The Return of the Seventh Young Lady-Chapter 15 - 14

Chapter 14

Auntie Yang was stunned for a long time, not anticipating that the young miss would abruptly step in to take the whipping meant for the servant, resulting in such severe injury. Regaining her composure, she then sharply ordered the servants, "Are you all blind? Hurry and help Seventh Young Miss up now!"

"Ye...yes, ma’am,"

The servants responded tremulously before rushing to assist the petite figure to stand. However, seeing the blood seeping through her clothing on her back, fear instantly enveloped their hearts.

Causing the young miss to be this injured, this could lead to death penalty for them!

"How are you feeling, Mi...Miss?"

One servant hesitantly inquired, while the other helped the young miss to her feet. Once Mu Yingying managed to stand, she gathered her strength to walk over to the figure on the platform. "Su Su..."

Her voice was weak and hoarse. The previously motionless figure stirred slightly, and slowly opened her eyes to reveal a familiar gaze.

"Mi...Miss...fi...finally, you’re here..."

Su Su spoke feebly, losing consciousness immediately after seeing the young miss come to her aid. Mu Yingying quickly reached out to support the other party, tears streaming down her face.

"Sob...Su Su... I’m here now...sob...I’m right here."

She spoke amidst sobbing, the hands that prevented Su Su’s head from hitting the platform gently placed it down, letting the frail girl rest.

The hall suddenly fell silent. All the servants were holding their breaths, not wanting to make any noise. The only sound was the little girl’s continuous sobbing.

"Auntie Yang...why did you whip Su Su?" Mu Yingying weakly raised her head to question the elderly servant, her pale face full of distress. Auntie Yang, taken aback by the question, hesitated before responding, "Because this servant is involved in the arson at the former Furen’s house!"

"Do you have any proof? Su Su had been with me all along. How could it be possible?" Mu Yingying argued tearfully, looking pitiful. Even Auntie Yang was at a loss for what to do.

She felt that today’s events were so unfavorable to her!

She didn’t expect the young miss to appear, causing her plan of extracting the truth to fall apart completely, and even resulting in the young miss getting injured!

Even though the young miss didn’t hold significant power or status within the manor, she could cause considerable trouble for Auntie Yang...

While Auntie Yang remained silent, Mu Yingying’s woeful cry was getting louder and louder, intimidating the servants. They were concerned about possible repercussions from the unfolding events.

Mu Yingying tried to cry as loudly as possible to disturb everyone in the room, ensuring they couldn’t focus until she caught sight of a group approaching. Her eyes momentarily glinted menacingly.

"Let me go! You all let me go right now!"

The little girl, who had been crying, suddenly shouted out loud, trying to break free from the servants’ grip. The servants looked confused at her sudden change, worried that if they really let her go, the young miss might not have the strength to stand anymore.

"Please don’t struggle, Miss."

"Let me go this instant! I need to help Su Su! Waaah... Su Su," Mu Yingying continued crying, her eyes reddened with sorrow, trying to escape the servants’ hold.

"Miss!"

One of the servants, in a fit of irritation, snapped at the petite figure, fearing that if anything worse happened to the young miss, she herself would be in deep trouble. Thus, she yelled loudly while forcefully pulling her away.

However, Mu Yingying, who should have been struggling, allowed herself to be dragged with the force until her small body collapsed onto the floor.

Thud!

The small figure immediately became motionless, and a pool of blood began forming around her on the floor.

Panic ensued among everyone in the room, especially the dragging servant who seemed to lose her senses. They all froze in place, too afraid to approach the unconscious body on the floor.

"Ying’er!"

"Seventh Young Miss!"

"Miss!"

Voices rose in alarm at the entrance of the hall as a group of dozens rushed in. When people inside the hall saw the newcomers, their faces turned pale. Even Auntie Yang herself inwardly exclaimed that the situation had turned dire!

Elder Mu Furen, who was brought over hastily, hurried forward with a worried expression to check on her granddaughter. The recent image of the little girl being flung to the floor still haunted her, combined with the sight of blood flowing from her granddaughter’s head made her nearly faint.

Her heart pounded with fear for her granddaughter’s well-being. She turned and sternly ordered the servants trailing behind, "Fetch the doctor immediately!"

"Yes, Miss!" A servant from the main house responded and dashed to summon the physician swiftly.

"Ying’er...Ying’er, don’t scare your grandmother like this,"

Elder Mu Furen spoke softly. She extended her trembling hands to cradle the little girl’s body against her chest, uncaring of the blood staining her clothes.

Elder Mu Furen, a strong woman who had weathered many hardships without shedding a tear, now found her eyes brimming with tears at the sight of her granddaughter’s motionless figure.

"Ying’er, it’s alright now...Grandmother is here," she comforted the small body in her embrace tenderly, afraid to cause any more harm and thus refrained from moving Mu Yingying. Instead, she waited for the doctor to come and attend to her there.

"Miss, please calm down. Crying too much could harm your health..." Su Ming, seated nearby, gently advised. She understood the turmoil in her mistress’s heart all too well.

Over the past three months, the bond between grandmother and granddaughter had grown exceptionally close, forging a deep connection. Witnessing her granddaughter being injured so grievously right before her eyes, Elder Mu Furen must feel like her heart was being torn apart.

"I don’t care! All I care about is my grandchild!"

Elder Mu Furen, deeply distressed, retorted firmly before sweeping her gaze across the room with an icy stare. "I will not let today’s matter go easily. I will punish those involved to the fullest extent!"

Thump!

"Please, Elder Furen, have mercy!"

The servants of the Second Furen, now kneeling, collectively begged for compassion from Elder Mu Furen. Even though they were servants of the Second Furen, the ultimate authority at that moment was Elder Mu Furen!

And the severity of their wrongdoing was too great to be forgiven!

Auntie Yang, who had been silent throughout, jerked in shock upon meeting Elder Mu Furen’s icy gaze directed at her. Sweat broke out on her back continuously, dampening her clothes until they stuck to her skin.

Fear crept into her heart uncontrollably. At that moment, one thing was clear to her: she was doomed!

She hadn’t expected Elder Mu Furen to have such profound love and care for Seventh Young Miss. Given her favoritism, if the situation escalated, Auntie Yang faced nothing but death or expulsion!

Meanwhile, the servant sent to fetch the doctor happened upon Lu Jiu, a servant of the Seventh Young Miss’s quarters, and a person who had come to inform Elder Mu Furen at the main house. Beside him was an elderly man carrying a medicine box, unmistakably a doctor.

"Are you Lu Jiu? Elder Furen sent me to fetch the doctor. Is this gentleman beside you the doctor?"

She asked, uncertain. Normally, the manor would have Doctor Luo as their regular physician and rarely consulted other doctors.

"When we parted at the main house, I had already sent someone to fetch Doctor Luo. However, we found that Doctor Luo was not at the residence and had gone out. So, I sent for Doctor Yao from Yao Ren Medical Hall,"

Lu Jiu explained about the physician beside him, clearing up the servant’s confusion as Yao Ren Medical Hall was known to be the largest and most reputable Medical Hall in Qingyun City.

"Then hurry and take the doctor there. Seventh Young Miss is in dire straits!"

After speaking, the servant quickly turned and rushed towards Second Furen’s old quarters, with Lu Jiu following worriedly, concerned for the young miss’s condition.

He hoped that Seventh Young Miss’s severe injuries weren’t as dreadful as they seemed...

He exchanged a brief, knowing look with Doctor Yao before both hastened their pace following the servant.

Upon their arrival, they were startled by the scene: two motionless bodies, one on a wooden platform, another in the arms of Elder Mu Furen, both soaked in blood.

"The doctor is here, Miss!"

The servant shouted, grabbing everyone’s attention in the room. As soon as the Elder Mu Furen heard it, she turned around with joy, eyes sparkling with hope.

"Doctor, please check on my granddaughter...."

Doctor Yao quickly approached and sat down next to the little girl. He extended his hand to check the pulse on her small arm and then revealed a troubled expression. He opened his medicine box to grab the necessary supplies to treat the wounds immediately.

"The young miss’s condition is quite severe. She has two cracked ribs on her back, severe internal bruising, and a head injury. Without proper treatment, her recovery could be difficult."

Those words from Doctor Yao felt like a sharp knife cutting through Elder Mu Furen’s heart. She looked back at her granddaughter’s pale, almost colorless face with a distant gaze as tears streamed down her face.

"Sob...my...my Ying’er"

"I will do my utmost to treat the young miss. Please rest assured, Elder Mu Furen," Doctor Yao reassured her firmly. In tears, she begged him,

"Please save my granddaughter. Whatever you need, I’ll provide everything. Just...please save her."

Su Ming came over to support her mistress, allowing Doctor Yao to concentrate fully on treating Seventh Young Miss. Doctor Yao then instructed to move both Seventh Young Miss and the injured Su Su to an inner room for better treatment before clearing out others to wait in the hall.

As time seemed to slow down, everyone waited anxiously. Elder Mu Furen remained seated with a gloomy face, making the atmosphere heavy and tense that no servants dared to breathe.

Click.

Suddenly, the door from the inner room opened, revealing Doctor Yao, looking exhausted. "They are now stable. Just ensure they drink the prescribed medicine and apply the ointments regularly. They should improve."

Elder Mu Furen exhaled a sigh of relief. "Thank you so much, Doctor Yao."

"There’s no need for thanks; it’s my duty," Doctor Yao responded politely. He then excused himself to return to his other patients waiting at the Yao Ren Medical Hall.

Elder Mu Furen nodded. She turned and gave Su Ming a look so that Su Ming would send the doctor to the entrance of the manor. It was an honor and thanks to Doctor Yao for helping with treatment today.

After ensuring the immediate medical issues were addressed, it was time to confront the problem head-on. Elder Mu Furen’s eyes scanned the kneeling servants before resting on Auntie Yang, the leader of them all.

"Yang Yifei...do you have nothing to say for yourself?"

Elder Mu Furen, typically compassionate, now seemed utterly transformed—her face stern and her presence imposing. The chill emanating from her was so intense that even the most seasoned servants felt a deep cold.

Auntie Yang, kneeling on the ground, quickly concocted a plausible explanation for herself, “Elder Furen, I can explain this matter.” 𝒻𝓇𝑒𝘦𝘸𝑒𝒷𝓃ℴ𝑣𝘦𝑙.𝒸ℴ𝘮

“......”

Elder Mu Furen remained silent, merely took a glance at the elderly servant. She didn’t dissuade, only lift her eyebrows slightly, indicating she was ready to listen. Auntie Yang then swiftly recounted the concocted story in her head,

“Initially, I heard from a servant that she overheard Su Su, the close servant of Seventh Young Miss, talking about the fire incident at the former Furen’s residence. From those statements, I feared that she might be involved in or knew the cause of the fire. Therefore, I had her summoned to inquire further.”

“However, Su Su was uncooperative. My people had to bring her in. Shortly after we started the interrogation, we found many suspicious details, convincing me that she was indeed responsible for the arson!”

“As I hold the position of the head servant in the Mu family’s manor, it was my duty to extract the truth to prevent any further incidents of arson. We had to use brutal measures to extract the truth from Su Su.”

“And just then, Seventh Young Miss rushed to protect this servant, accidentally taking the blow meant for her...”

Auntie Yang delivered her account meticulously, shaping the narrative to focus all blame on the servant and justifying her actions as a necessary investigation into the suspected arson!

“But what I saw was your people harming my granddaughter right before my eyes!”

Elder Mu Furen coldly retorted, casting a chilling glance at the servant who had flung Seventh Young Miss to the ground herself. The servant seemed to feel a cold stare, so she immediately bowed her head down to the ground.

Auntie Yang discreetly wiped her sweat and swallowed hard, trying to maintain her composure, “That was a misunderstanding. I ordered the servants to assist Seventh Young Miss, but their actions turned reckless, leading to the unfortunate accident.”

The servant responsible for the mishap looked up at Auntie Yang, disbelief evident in her eyes, shocked that Auntie Yang was deflecting the blame onto her. She hurriedly crawled towards Elder Mu Furen, pleading, “Elder Furen, I had no intention to harm. I was merely following Auntie Yang’s orders!”

Auntie Yang shot a fierce look at the servant, not expecting her to be a white-eyed wolf[1] who turned the tables and implicated her further. “Nonsense!”

“Elder Furen, please don’t listen to her. She’s trying to shift the blame onto me!”

“I am not speaking nonsense, Miss. All of us here merely followed Auntie Yang’s orders. Without compliance, we servants would face punishment. We had no other choice, Thus, we were compelled to act as we did. We beg for Elder Furen’s compassion!"

The servant hastily justified herself, immediately denying any personal fault while elucidating the entire situation truthfully. Then, other servants echoed her defense, "We were forced by Auntie Yang to follow her commands. Please, Elder Furen, show us mercy!"

Auntie Yang’s face turned visibly pale. If only one or two had spoken, she could have found some pretext to defend herself. However, now over ten servants were consistently asserting they acted under her directive, which left her no room to maneuver.

She glanced briefly at Elder Mu Furen’s even colder expression and felt utterly weakened, realizing that her end might not be favorable.

What to do?

How could she possibly defend herself now?

But...wait.

In a moment of desperation to find a way to survive, an idea struck Auntie Yang, prompting her to assert, "Esteemed Elder Furen, while I did issue the commands, all actions were taken in response to the alleged arson by Su Su. The incident involving Seventh Young Miss was a grave mistake that I cannot simply dismiss. Hence, I willingly accept the due punishment. However, I implore you, Elder Furen, to investigate this matter thoroughly to bring clarity!"

By escalating the issue, Auntie Yang might be able to escape the blame for Seventh Young Miss’s injuries...

[1] A white-eyed wolf (白眼狼); figuratively refers to those ungrateful persons who bite even the hands that feed them. It implies a strong repugnant connotation.

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