Xie Yingying was overcome with excitement, grabbing Mrs. Linâs hand and questioning her eagerly. Seeing her daughterâs agitation, Mrs. Lin rose and had a carriage prepared. She then quickly left the city with her daughter. Consequently, when Xie PanâEr arrived at the residence of the Main Branch, she had just missed Mrs. Lin and her daughter.
"Mrs. Lin, come out here! You wicked woman, how could you commit such a heinous act?"
Nanny Hua led two robust serving women to block Xie PanâEr.
"Third Miss, what do you think youâre doing? Causing such a ruckus in the Main Branchâs residence, have you no sense of decorum?"
"Nanny Hua, why are you here?" Xie PanâEr was surprised to see Nanny Hua; she was a personal attendant to the Old Madam of the Main Branch. When the Xie Family had sent people to the countryside to bring her and Xie Yingying back, Xie Yingying had written a letter to Mrs. Lin, hoping Mrs. Lin would decide to leave her in the countryside permanently and not bring her back. Unexpectedly, the ones sent to fetch them were not Mrs. Linâs people, but a trusted nanny of Old Madam Xie. Nanny Hua had said that bringing the Third Miss back was the Old Madamâs intention, and Mrs. Lin could not object. That was how she had ended up returning with Xie Yingying.
"Third Miss, since you now have the indenture contract, you should stop entangling yourself with the Main Branch!"
Nanny Huaâs words made Xie PanâEr sneer. "Your Main Branch truly has its methods! On one hand, you give me my motherâs indenture contract; on the other, you poison my father and brother. Instead of all this, why not just take a knife and kill our whole family? That would be more straightforward. Why go to such great lengths to deal with us? What does our Fifth Branch possess that your Main Branch covets?"
Hearing this, Nanny Huaâs expression changed, and she asked in surprise, "Third Miss, what makes you say that?"
"What do I mean? Nanny Hua, stop playing dumb with me. Ostensibly, you are the Old Madamâs most capable nanny, but in reality, donât you take orders from Mrs. Lin in all matters, big or small, within the Xie Family? Mrs. Lin has placed companion Gu on my father and brother! Do you know about this? Does my Eldest Uncle know? Does the Old Madam know? If your Main Branch doesnât give me an explanation today, I will go to the Government Office and file a complaint! I will make sure this affair becomes known to everyoneâthat the Xie Family of Wuliuxiang murders their own kin and is utterly devoid of conscience!"
As Xie PanâEr fired off these questions, her face showed a mixture of defiance and the recklessness of someone with nothing left to lose.
"Insolence! Such audacity! A mere child, spouting such unfounded nonsense here. Xie PanâEr, you are, after all, a descendant of the Xie Clan. We have raised you for over a decade. Is this how you repay your clan?"
The Old Madamâs voice suddenly came from outside, and then she entered the Courtyard, supported by a young Maid.
"Grand Madam, why have you come?" Nanny Hua asked, her voice trembling slightly.
Seeing Old Madam Xie, Nanny Hua was stunned. Publicly, she was the Old Madamâs capable nanny, but privately, she had accepted countless benefits from Mrs. Lin and had done many things for her in secret. She wondered if the Old Madam had overheard Xie PanâErâs words.
Hopefully, sheâs a bit deaf and didnât hear anything!
Dim-sighted and deaf? Of course not. Not only was Old Madam Xie far from being dim-sighted or deaf, but she had also heard every single word Xie PanâEr had spoken. Otherwise, she wouldnât have reprimanded Xie PanâEr so harshly.
"If I, this old woman, hadnât come, our Xie Family would have become the laughingstock of the entire Capital City! Where is Mrs. Lin? That third girl was raising such a commotion in this Courtyard, why wasnât she here?"
Hearing this, Nanny Hua quickly put on a smile and said, "Werenât the Eldest Miss and Eldest Young Master just released from the Celestial Prison? Mrs. Lin has taken the Eldest Miss to see a Doctor."