Holding the invitation whose cover was carved with images of flowers, Xianxian said, "What"s wrong? Are you scared or something? Don"t take it seriously. We have declined the small banquets for you. But these two, you have to go."
Bai Zhi stepped backwards behind Xianxian, looking obedient.
"Hong Yu, no need to serve us here. You can go out for a break."
Looking at Bai Zhi"s response, An Rushuang suddenly recalled that in her previous life, right after the Empress Ceremony she once saw such a face among those ladies who came to pay respect to her.
Xianxian was confused, looking at the woman in front of her. Without thinking twice, Mingyue said, "Right. Hong Zong, go with her. Take a break outside." Hong Zong was the servant girl of Lu Mingyue, whose original name was Hong Zong (a different Chinese character, meaning horsehair). But her previous name was discarded by others, so she changed to her current name (different character but same p.r.o.nunciation).
Hong Yu quickly responded and said smilingly, "Follow me and I"ll take you for a tea drink."
Bai Zhi looked at Xianxian worriedly and said, "Madam, you are not in a good state today. I"ll just wait outside the doorstep in case…"
"No worries, just go out and take a break."
Xianxian smiled, "We are just chatting and we won"t punch each other. Why bother being so cautious?"
"But Lady..."
Bai Zhi still wanted to say something. But when she heard "Lady", her face was slightly changed and suddenly stopped smiling.
An Rushuang frowned and said seriously, "Do as you are told to! Are you always trying to disobey your master? Such an ill-mannered servant shouldn"t be kept by your side."
When saying the last sentence, An looked at Xianxian.
Seeing An Rushuang was indeed angry, Bai Zhi turned pale and suddenly knelt on the floor, crying at Xianxian, "Madam, I was just worried about you..."
With her eyebrow knitted, Xianxian sighed, "Don"t make a scener here. Just leave us alone. "
A few servant girls went out quietly. Wiping her tears, Bai Zhi didn"t dare to say more. Zhu Xianxian didn"t turn to An Rushuang until all the servants went away.
"Hey, why bother to lose your temper?"
Her voice was still soft and gentle but sounded embarra.s.sing.
Mingyue also said, "True enough, it"s been several years since we met last time. It seems that you are now worse at controling your tempers."
Although Mingyue said in a teasing tone, An Rushuang did not laugh at all. She frowned and looked at Xianxian, "The "Lady" she mentioned, is it your stepmother?"
Xianxian"s mother lived in a temple for a long time, so she didn"t care much about what was happening outside.
An Rushuang remembered that once she went to visit the Zhu Family with her father in her childhood. She and Xianxian went to the temple by mistake and they saw a woman in light green who only glanced at them without any emotions, as if she was looking at two stray birds flying into the wrong place.
An Rushuang still remembered her indifference clearly.
Zhu Xianxian sneered, "In the Zhu Family, there is only one woman who can be addressed as Lady."
"That servant girl is not trustworthy. Why don"t you just find an excuse and get rid of her?" An Rushuang frowned and felt upset.
Hearing these words, however simple-minded Mingyue was, she realized what An really mean. Suddenly she held the whip and said angrily, "Isn"t Bai Zhi your servant? How dare she betray you? Doesn"t she know the consequences?" Saying so, she was prepared to use her whip and go outside. It was obvious what she was going to do.
In the Lu Family where most of the male members were serving in the army, family rules were very clear and strict. Betraying masters, if small, was an immoral misdemeanor, but it could also be as serious as treason!
Zhu Xianxian quickly held Lu Mingyue"s hand and stopped her from waving the whip. At a time, she didn"t know whether she should laugh or cry, "Don"t make trouble."
Mingyue hummed coldly, "She betrayed you first, no need to care about her."
An Rushuang couldn"t help but pat Mingyue on the shoulder, laughing, "Do whatever you like, go straight up and whip the servant girl to death. For one, Xianxian"s stepmother will definitely find a more cunny and vicious servant for her. Besides, it may cause a rift between Zhu Family and Lu Family. And what about you? If you kill a servant girl before you get married, who dares to take you home in the future!"
Hearing this, Lu Mingyue became even more angry, " So we just sit by and do nothing?!"
"Of course, we need to handle her, but we have to find a perfect excuse."
Zhu Xianxian looked at An Rushuang with great suspicion, but she saw her lightly curved thin lip and clear eyes. It seemed that she was extremely confident.
Lu Mingyue said with her big eyes blinking, "Tell us, what excuse? How to let the unfaithful servant disappear in front of Xianxian?"
After thinking for a while, An Rushuang smiled, "I only come up with an excuse to punish her, but if you want her to disappear, we need to think of a way on Xianxian"s marriage day."
Hearing this, Xianxian turned blush. She was a soft and gentle woman who never talked about her marriage in such a blunt way. She said to them, "Stop messing around. Don"t worry about me. I know how to handle her."
If she really knew what to do, how could she end up being married off to that merchant? The servant, however, married an official and became a madam later.
That was not An Rushuang want to see.
"Just let me take care of it. You are such a kindhearted person, and we will handle this for you." An Rushuang smiled and brought up another topic, "Well, did you just say there were two invitations we cannot decline?"