Chapter 996: Chapter 994: Unwavering Loyalty
Madam Zhou had just taken a sip of tea when she was caught off guard by Qiu Xiangâs words, and she froze for a moment, looking up at her.
"What do you want to say?"
Qiu Xiang felt a slight chill in her heart, thought for a moment, and told Madam Zhou about the stepdaughter story she had heard before.
Madam Zhouâs expression changed several times as she listened, and she placed the teacup on the small table beside her, her face cold as she said: "Are you saying, Mr. Wu wants to take over his biological daughterâs property?"
Qiu Xiang was startled, and knelt down with a thud: "This servant dares not!"
"But your words imply just that." Madam Zhou did not, as before, quickly tell her to get up, she just looked at her and said: "Step-mothers have never been good, but Mr. Wu, is Wufuâs biological father!"
Qiu Xiang, hearing this, secretly lamented in her heart, step-mothers might not be good, but there were quite a few scumbag dads like Wu Lihong. Not to mention, the awkward identity she and her daughter have now.
"Madam, since this servant came to this house, the young lady trusted me, elevated me, and only then did I come to serve by Madamâs side. This servant was sold as a maidservant since childhood, and has had several masters, yet none were as good as the young lady and Madam!" Qiu Xiang said with a face full of loyalty: "This servant is not a heartless person. Madam and the young lady treated this servant well, this servant knows gratitude, and does not want to be like a rootless duckweed, sold around. This servant knows, as long as Madam and the young lady are well, this servant will be well. This servantâs heart only thinks of Madam and the young lady, nothing else."
She spoke sincerely, and Madam Zhouâs expression slightly softened, raising her hand she said: "I know your loyalty, stand up and speak!"
"Thank you, Madam!"
Madam Zhou looked at the longan and red dates in the cup, sighed, and said: "Actually, what you said is for our own good, I know."
"Madam?"
Madam Zhou showed a self-deprecating smile: "I have thought about it these days, if I really take Wufu to recognize her ancestors and return to that place, Iâm afraid someone like me would live under others!"
Qiu Xiang said: "Madam, you mean to?"
"I donât know." Madam Zhou shook her head: "I want to be with him, yet I donât... But in this world, there are many dilemmas, and there is no such thing as having both the fish and the bear paws at the same time. If we really go back, no matter how well he treats me, it wonât change the awkward fact of our identity. By then, without a hold in hand, Iâm afraid my daughter and I will be at the mercy of others!"
Qiu Xiang sighed a long breath upon hearing this, and said: "So Madam understands, this servant was overthinking!"
Madam Zhou laughed with a "ha": "They all think I am foolish, I may be clumsy and weak, but I am not truly stupid." She looked at her own fingers, now well-cared for, and said: "Without silver, what good would we have? Even these hands, probably wouldnât look as nice as they do now!"
Hands doing hard work cannot compare to those that are well-maintained!
"Then what is Madamâs thought?"
Madam Zhou glanced at her, and said: "I just canât figure out whether in his heart he genuinely thinks for the good of my daughter and me, or if he has other thoughts?"
"Regardless of the masterâs thoughts, Madam, you only need to think of yourself and the young ladyâs days." Qiu Xiang boldly said: "Forgive this servantâs disrespect, the property in your and the young ladyâs hands is likely unmatched by many in that household. If you and the young lady were to return to that place, unable to compare in status and position to the main wife, and if thereâs also a lack of silver to smooth things over, Iâm afraid... the position of the main wife is there, and the rules are in place. Not even the master could interfere."
Madam Zhouâs face tensed and tensed again, and after a long while, she said: "I understand now."