Song Ci didn't expect that picking two flowers would prompt someone to meddle in her affairs.
She patted the two maidservants, looked at the woman pinned on the ground, scrutinized her, and searched her memory, discovering she didn't know this person.
In other words, she didn't recognize her.
"Who are you?" Song Ci looked down at the woman from above.
"My name is Wu Dan, known as Lady Peony; I'm here to help the Grand Duke tend to the peonies. Let go of me." Wu Dan stiffened her neck as she replied.
"Madam, Madam, why did you walk so fast..." A young girl dressed in a pink jacket ran over, saw Song Ci and others, and was so frightened she knelt on the ground: "Servant greets the Grand Madam, I wish the Grand Madam well."
Wu Dan felt a slight unease upon hearing her maidservant address the Grand Madam but regained her composure, considering the Grand Duke's fondness and adoration.
She lifted her head, looked at the noble Song Ci, her gaze lingering briefly on her face; a flicker of relief flashed in her eyes, but she quickly hid it.
No matter how noble, she's already aged and faded.
Nanny Gong sneered, "Lady Peony? Such a rude thing, you nearly collided with the Grand Madam and still don't know to apologize and greet her. You just returned to the mansion with the Grand Duke yesterday, and today you're wandering recklessly. Who gave you the courage? And you, this little girl, how do you handle things, letting people wander around? If you collide with a master, can you bear the responsibility? Zhou Qing's wife, drag this girl down and let Nanny Zhong teach her the rules again. If she can't learn, kick her out of the mansion."
The little girl's face turned pale, and she hurriedly kowtowed to plead guilty: "Nanny Gong, I know my mistake; I know my mistake."
Wu Dan frowned and said, "Stop, it has nothing to do with her. It was my affection for that Fen Er Qiao peony that made me rush here." She looked at the Fen Er Qiao peony, now with only one flower left, and said painfully, "This Fen Er Qiao was bought by the Grand Duke from the Bai Family for a thousand taels and cultivated for two years to bloom just two flowers, yet... And this nanny, the Grand Madam hasn't spoken yet, how can you act on her behalf to deal with this girl, she is innocent."
Nanny Gong laughed angrily, "A mere servant girl isn't worth bothering the Grand Madam? Dealing with a servant girl is within the rights of a seventh-ranked managing nanny like me, including dealing with an unknown commoner like you. I suspect you're an assassin intending harm to the Grand Madam. Somebody, drag her down to the Punishment Hall."
Wu Dan's complexion changed slightly, intimidated by Nanny Gong's authority, and her heart raced.
She dared not look at Nanny Gong, but only at Song Ci, saying, "I, Grand Madam, I'm not exactly a servant of the Prime Minister's Mansion, and I was invited by the Grand Duke to help cultivate the peonies. You can't bypass the Grand Duke to deal with me."
Song Ci coldly watched from the side, somewhat speechless as she saw the situation escalate to her.
Is she truly foolish, or fearless with confidence? Does she not know this is the Prime Minister's Mansion, or that I am the mother of the current Prime Minister? And she keeps using the Grand Duke to pressure me?
"Even if you're not a servant of the Prime Minister's Mansion, once you've entered, you must obey the mansion's rules. Setting aside the rules, every person knows basic etiquette, right? And you say this flower was bought for a thousand taels by that old man?" Song Ci's hand caressed the pink peony.
Old man, everyone fell silent upon hearing these words, glancing around tacitly.
Wu Dan thought she had intimidated her and hastily nodded: "Indeed."
Song Ci replied, "This prodigal old man."
Before she finished speaking, her aged hand mercilessly snapped off the remaining 'five hundred taels.'