Gu Ruobai raised an eyebrow. "You should give me a little something in return. Lately, you come to my mansion and leave right away. You don't even have a good chat with me, and now you won't even give me a hug?"
Why did it seem like she was some heartless woman in his words?
Su Mingyu helplessly rubbed her forehead. "I'm going back to rest. I'm not fooling around with you. You rest well. I'm leaving. Bye."
After saying that, Su Mingyu's figure disappeared into the night. Gu Ruobai watched her departing back, a faint smile curving his lips.
This little girl always managed to surprise him. Even the words she used to comfort him left him speechless.
As soon as Su Mingyu returned to the mansion, she went to check on Zhizhu. She knocked on Zhizhu's door, but no one answered after waiting for a long time. Su Mingyu frowned in confusion.
Where could Zhizhu be at this hour if she wasn't in her room? And wasn't she still sick? Instead of resting, could she have gone out to play?
Just as she was thinking, she saw the butler nervously coming out from behind. "Um... Miss, Zhizhu was called by the second mistress."
"What?" Su Mingyu frowned, her face looking very gloomy.
Why did Wang Manwen call Zhizhu over?
"Wasn't Zhizhu supposed to rest today? She's not feeling well. Didn't I give you instructions? Why was she still called by the second mistress?"
Seeing Su Mingyu's bad complexion, the butler quickly explained. "I did give the order that Zhizhu should rest. But I don't know why. There was one maid missing in the second mistress's yard today, so she came looking for an available maid.
"Then the second mistress saw Zhizhu sleeping and thought she was being lazy. So she dragged her to the main courtyard and is punishing her now."
Su Mingyu tightened her grip on her palm and coldly ordered. "What are you standing there for? Lead the way!"
By the time Su Mingyu finally rushed to the main hall, Zhizhu was already pale and lying in a pool of blood.
Su Mingyu's face was extremely cold. She stepped forward and questioned Wang Manwen. "May I ask what my maid did wrong to deserve such punishment?"
"What did she do wrong?" Wang Manwen snorted, looking very confident. "She dared to steal my things. I've already given you face by not beating her to death!"
"Are you saying she stole something?" Su Mingyu was almost amused by anger. "Does the second mistress have any evidence? Who saw her steal? What did she steal? With which hand? At what location? And what was the reason for stealing?"
Su Mingyu's series of questions left Wang Manwen speechless. After a long while, she pointed at a broken hairpin on the ground and said. "This was the dowry my family prepared for me when I got married.
"I just asked this maid to tidy up my room. When I went back, this hairpin was gone. Later, when we searched her, we found it on her. The person and the stolen goods were both there. If it wasn't her who stole it, who else could it be?"
Su Mingyu was too lazy to deal with her. She bent down to check on Zhizhu and found that she only had a serious injury on her finger and had been whipped a few times on her body, but her life wasn't in danger. Only then did the stone in her heart fall slightly.
Seeing that Su Mingyu didn't take her seriously at all, Wang Manwen snorted again. "As for why she stole things, isn't it because the upper beam is crooked and the lower beam follows?"
Su Mingyu gave the butler a look, and the butler immediately understood and turned around to go find a doctor.
She carefully helped Zhizhu up and sat her on a wooden chair beside. Then Su Mingyu turned around and looked at Wang Manwen. "Mingyu doesn't understand what the second mistress means by this. Is the second mistress implying that I told Zhizhu to steal things from you?"
Wang Manwen raised an eyebrow, looking disdainful. "I didn't say that. If you insist on thinking so, it only shows that you have a guilty conscience."
Su Mingyu glanced indifferently at the hairpin on the ground. A hint of calculation flashed through her clear eyes. "Mingyu is just the eldest legitimate daughter of the Su family who is about to marry the Prince Ruixian. Why would I do such a thing just before getting married?
"Ordering my own servant to go out and steal? This is a serious crime. If it accidentally reaches the ears of the Prince Ruixian and he doesn't want to marry me, then maybe I can try to win the favor of the Prince Yu."
As she said this, Su Mingyu squinted her eyes and deliberately pretended to feel relieved. "The Prince Yu is not only the most favored prince by the emperor, but also handsome and elegant. Last time when I went boating with him, we had a great chat. Maybe I still have a chance."
"You!" Wang Manwen stared at her. "The Prince Yu is your younger sister's future husband. How can you say such a thing? You're so shameless!"
Su Mingyu smiled beautifully. "My younger sister's future husband? Second mistress, when did the Prince Yu say he would marry my younger sister? They've just been a bit closer. The Prince Yu has never shown the slightest intention of marrying my younger sister."
Su Mingyu's words were like a stab in Wang Manwen's heart.
Su Yueyue and the Prince Yu had known each other for quite a while, and Su Yueyue had done everything she could to pursue the Prince Yu. But the Prince Yu had never come to propose marriage, which made Wang Manwen and Su Yueyue extremely anxious.
Seeing that Wang Manwen stopped talking, Su Mingyu slowly took out a silver ingot from her bosom and put it on the table. "Let's not talk about whether this thing was really stolen by my maid.
"Anyway, it is indeed broken now. I'm willing to compensate for this hairpin on behalf of my maid in the yard. Would the second mistress be willing to let this go?"
Wang Manwen sneered. "You think you can get rid of me with just this little bit of silver? Do you really think I'm a beggar?"
"Moreover, this maid has done such a thing that ruins the family's reputation. How can I easily forgive her? If I don't drive her out of the mansion, won't it encourage such bad behavior?"
Seeing Wang Manwen's unrelenting attitude, Su Mingyu helplessly sighed and put the silver ingot back into her bosom. "It seems that the second mistress is not going to reconcile?"
Wang Manwen raised an eyebrow. "Why should I reconcile? I'm not the one in the wrong."
After saying that, Wang Manwen gave Zhizhu a very disdainful look. "Such a little maid isn't even worth my trouble to teach her a lesson. Just drive her out."
As soon as she finished speaking, Wang Manwen was about to call someone.
Su Mingyu calmly stopped her. "Second mistress, you've gone to such great lengths to lie and even ruin your own reputation as the mother of the Su family for a little maid. You really have good intentions."
"What?" Wang Manwen looked at Su Mingyu in surprise. "What do you mean by this?"
Su Mingyu paced over to the broken hairpin, then bent down and picked it up. "Second mistress said this hairpin was your dowry. What material is it made of?"