Seeing Yuzhu eager to act, Yun Xi's eyes turned fierce. Then she pointed at the old maid from before.
"Her! Give her ten hard blows with the sole of a shoe first!"
"Yes!"
Hearing this, Yuzhu immediately stepped forward, grabbed the terrified old maid by the collar, and slapped! Slapped! She landed several blows with the sole of her shoe, catching the old maid off guard.
By the time the old maid came to her senses, her ears were ringing, and she had already endured six blows.
"How dare you beat me?!"
The old maid instantly exerted all her brute strength, broke free from Yuzhu's restraint, and glared angrily at Yun Xi as she shouted.
She was just a fallen - out concubine. What was so great about her?
She, Maid Liu, was a well - known figure in the prince's mansion and was highly favored by Wushuang. How could she let this young girl who had just entered the mansion step on her?
Maid Liu's accusation had already aroused public indignation, but Yun Xi remained calm and said unhurriedly:
"I am the master, and you are the servant. Just for that question you asked just now, you deserve to be beaten!"
"Yuzhu, give her another ten blows with the sole of the shoe!"
"Yes, Miss!"
Yuzhu waved the sole of the shoe in her hand and was about to strike Maid Liu's face again when Wushuang stepped forward bravely and blocked in front of Yuzhu:
"Stop! She is just a servant in the prince's mansion. Aren't you afraid people will say you're abusing your power by humiliating her like this?!"
Wushuang's appearance immediately earned her a grateful look from Maid Liu. Maid Liu immediately knelt in front of Wushuang, crying:
"Madam Wushuang, you're so kind - hearted. You must save this old servant! I've been in the prince's mansion for so many years. When have I ever suffered such humiliation?"
Maid Liu's cries made everyone glare at Yun Xi and couldn't help but start whispering:
"This is simply going too far!"
"Even if the prince has given her the power to manage the mansion, she can't abuse her power like this!"
"Even if we're of a lower status, we're still human! Everyone has their self - esteem!"
Ignoring the accusations from others, Yun Xi looked at Wushuang calmly and said:
"Wushuang, think clearly. Are you protecting or covering up for them? If I find out that you're the one behind all this, you should know what the consequences will be."
Hearing the veiled threat in Yun Xi's words, Wushuang's heart skipped a beat, but she still said fearlessly:
"What consequences could there be? I just don't want them to be treated unfairly. If I'm proven wrong, I'm willing to take the punishment for them!"
As soon as Wushuang said this, it immediately earned her the gratitude of everyone.
Some even looked at Wushuang as if she were a holy snow lotus, completely ignoring her once - despised lowly status.
Looking at Wushuang's upright stance, Yun Xi's lips curled into a sneer.
She finally understood why Wushuang could win the gratitude of so many people.
Who wouldn't be touched by a master who would protect her servants regardless of her own safety?
However, today she was determined to be a domineering master and rectify the Prince Xian's Mansion!
"Fine, remember what you said."
Yun Xi pointed at Wushuang, a hint of cunning flashing in her eyes. Then she instructed Yuzhu:
"Yuzhu, go find the steward of the mansion. Ask him to gather everyone except those in the prince's courtyard. Also, bring the list of all the people in the mansion."
Hearing Yun Xi's instructions, Yuzhu was first stunned, then nodded without suspicion and said:
"Yes, Miss. I'll go right away."
After saying that, Yuzhu put on her shoes and trotted off to find the steward of the mansion.
Watching Yuzhu's hasty back, Yun Xi couldn't help but sigh.
Since Honglu had to take care of matters in the Swallow Cave on her behalf, she had temporarily stayed in Lingchuan and wouldn't be able to return to the capital for a while.
At present, Yuzhu was the only one busy around her. It was really hard on Yuzhu!
The situation in the prince's mansion was complicated. She didn't dare to easily bring in people she didn't know well. Only Yuzhu and Honglu were the ones she trusted the most. It seemed that in a few days, she would have to find someone to replace Honglu in Lingchuan so that Honglu could come back earlier.
Not long after Yuzhu left, the steward hurriedly led everyone to the South Courtyard, holding a register in his hand.
"Madam, this is the register you asked for. Everyone except Guard Zhanfeng in the prince's courtyard is here."
Taking the register from the steward's hand, Yun Xi glanced at Nightingale standing not far away and nodded to her from afar.
"Good. Since everyone is here, I'll continue what I didn't finish just now!"
Yun Xi pointed at the old maid with the swollen face and said:
"Don't say this princess didn't give you a chance to speak. In front of everyone, tell the whole story of what happened before."
The old maid looked at Yun Xi suspiciously, but after receiving a look from Wushuang, she immediately gained confidence. Then she burst into tears and recounted Yun Xi's "evil deeds" in front of everyone.
After the old maid finished speaking, she pulled a few people from before to testify that what she said was true, and they all won the agreement of everyone and Wushuang.
Their words were all full of accusations against Yun Xi's domineering behavior and praise for Wushuang.
Finally, the old maid gave Yun Xi a smug look.
She thought to herself, was this princess's head empty? Since she had given her a chance, she naturally wouldn't miss the opportunity to make Yun Xi the target of public criticism!
For a moment, under the accusing gazes of everyone, the situation was very unfavorable for Yun Xi.
However, Yun Xi remained calm and said in a leisurely tone:
"I'm sure everyone has heard clearly. This old maid and these people were gossiping in front of the courtyard gate. I taught them a lesson, but they still refused to repent!
"Since she feels wronged, I'll clearly list her crimes in front of everyone, so that no one can say later that I'm abusing my power as the mansion - manager without asking about right or wrong!"
As soon as Yun Xi finished speaking, Wushuang couldn't wait to step forward and say:
"If you want to frame someone, you'll never lack a pretext. Madam, justice lies in the hearts of the people."
Wushuang secretly blamed Yun Xi for being unfair and said that everyone dared not speak out against her.
Yun Xi just smiled slightly and said:
"Wushuang, I remember you said before that you were willing to take the punishment for them. Don't worry. I'll soon make your wish come true."
Wushuang's face changed slightly. Yun Xi faced everyone and pointed at the old maid and said:
"You not only skipped work, slacked off, and gathered openly to gossip about the masters. You even dared to mock the prince as a chicken and said that this princess was using the prince's authority to boss people around! Before this princess could even punish you, you secretly mocked this princess for being narrow - minded and nitpicking!
"Your behavior is simply like biting the hand that feeds you. You don't put the masters of the prince's mansion in your eyes at all. What's the use of keeping such an ungrateful servant?!"
As soon as Yun Xi said this, everyone had different expressions. Then Yun Xi pointed at the other people from before.
"You can't tell right from wrong. You clearly made mistakes first but still refused to repent. You're human, but do you think the prince and this princess aren't human? Don't we have the so - called self - esteem?!"
Yun Xi's words were like a thunderclap. Immediately, she instructed the steward:
"Steward, drive these people out of the prince's mansion. Our Prince Xian's Mansion can't tolerate servants who are more arrogant than the masters!"