"Eh? Was she wrong?"Mrs. Yan shook her head. "She did not do anything wrong. The servants should not have gossiped about their master. They deserved it. However, she hit them so hard that they almost died. If she found them doing something wrong, she could have told the housekeeper. He knew exactly how to punish them for their misbehavior. I found it demeaning for her to take the matter into her own hands. Waihu was unaware of the mistake, so Wushuang stepped in and told her about it. To her dismay, Waihu was quickly offended and hit her, too. If I did not make it there in time, Wushuang could be long dead. I was very angry. Waihu was never an outsider to me. She was like my own daughter, so I had to give her a lesson to prevent her from being criticized for the same mistake. I did not expect her to be so offended that she threw me into the lake. I almost drowned myself." She described the events vividly with a false account of the facts.
If Gu Xijiu had not seen the incidents from Lan Waihu"s dreams, she too would think that it was all her fault.
Lan Waihu"s face turned pale. She clenched her fists tightly.
Gu Xijiu kept her countenance and acted surprised. "Waihu has never been so mean before. Did you remember it correctly?"
Mrs. Yan nodded her head. "How can I be wrong about it? Since then, she has been away from our residence and returned to Tianju Hall instead. She even broke up with Yan Chen. I regretted it terribly! If only I had talked to her more politely, knowing how sensitive a person she was. After all, she was only a child, alone with no parents."
Gu Xijiu replied, "I would like to know what the servants had said to make her so angry. What did Miss Leng say? What exactly did you say? I would like to listen to the conversations, so I can make a better judgment on which side is right and which is wrong. She always listens to me. We are like sisters, so I am ent.i.tled to teach her a lesson if she does anything wrong. Rest a.s.sured, if she suffers from any kind of humiliation, I will definitely get justice for her. I will not let her grievance be in vain."
Mrs. Yan looked surprised. She answered with a smile, "All of us said things to vent our anger. Also, it has been a while, how can we still remember the details?" Lovingly, she turned and talked to Lan Waihu. "Waihu, I was in a fit of anger back then, so I must have been very impulsive. My apologies. Will you forgive me?"
She acted as though she regarded her misbehavior with kind tolerance, like an elder who decided not to bother arguing with the likes of a reckless child. She was willing to compromise for the general good. Her acting impressed Gu Xijiu.
A woman like her would survive and thrive in the political field. Lan Waihu was definitely not a match for her. No wonder she felt so wronged, like a mute victim in silence.
Lan Waihu"s face turned even paler but she still remained quiet.
Mrs. Yan continued, "Waihu, you grew up with us, so you are family to me. Although you have broken up with Yan Chen, you are still a sister to him. You will still be our family. This time, Yan Chen will soon be engaged to Wushuang. I have purposely brought the invitations here to invite you and your friends to their wedding. By the way, I heard that you and Lan Yue are engaged. Lan Yue is an excellent man. I am so happy for you. I also heard that he is a member of Blue Fox Family. What a coincidence, Wushuang"s grandmother was once a member of the Blue Fox family, too. It seems like we are going to reinforce our old ties through marriages. All of you should be kind to one another and help each other in times of need. A good relations.h.i.+p is a deed worth praising."