He Dayuan voiced his regret: "Uncle village chief, why did you leave so quickly? We should have stayed at the Lu Familyâs place and given Old Master Lu a hard time. That old bastard really needs to be taught a lesson."
Hasnât the He family suffered enough at the hands of the Lu family over the years? Today should be the day to get even.
Village Chief He said: "Now is not the time to step on the Lu family. We must continue to endure."
County Magistrate Zou has not fallen yet, and even if the Lu family is severely weakened, they still have this backer. They canât go too far.
He Dayuan felt somewhat disheartened after hearing this, but thinking about how they had managed to release some spite today, he felt much more comfortable and straightened his back a touch.
At the Lu family, Old Master Lu was furious, pointing at the Mo mother and daughter-in-law: "Drag those three, along with the men from the Mo family, to the backyard and beat them up, then lock them up in the livestock shed and starve them for three days."
Old Mrs. Mo panicked and quickly pleaded: "Lu family brothers, you canât beat us. We went looking for work at Guâs Workshop in order to vent anger for the Lu family."
Slap!
Shuan Daâs wife, grabbing Old Mrs. Mo by the hair, gave her a fierce slap: "Brothers? A servant dares to address the Old Master as a brother, you must not want to live. Donât forget, your Mo family signed a death contract; the life and death of your entire family is controlled by the Lu family."
Old Mrs. Mo was stunned and retorted: "A death contract? Wasnât that death contract invalid? We had an agreement that once Qiuyue entered the Zou Mansion and became a concubine, you would return the contract to our Mo family, and from then on, the Mo and Lu families would be related by a pledge of friendship."
Shuan Daâs wife practically died laughing: "Pfft, what a beautiful dream you have, believing such words so easily. Did you really think your Mo family was something special? That the Lu family would form a kinship with you?"
It was nothing but a lie to get a family of free servants.
Elder Moâs family was not small, with a total of twelve members. Although they were said to have sold themselves to the Lu family, in fact, the Lu family did not give any silver coins to the Mo family.
They simply provided the Mo family with a place to stay, took care of their food and lodging, and made them a promise to send Mo Qiuyue to the Zou family, looking for an opportunity to get her to become a concubine of the Zou family.
And the reason the Mo family agreed was simply that: firstly, they had nowhere to go and urgently needed a place to stay; and secondly, they hoped to follow in the Lu familyâs footsteps, relying on connecting with the Zou family to lead a good life.
What a pity they didnât know that the promise of making Mo Qiuyue a concubine of the Zou family was also false. It was Concubine Lu who urgently needed a confidant maid, and thinking that the Mo family was easy to control, she only had the idea of buying Qiuyue after seeing the Mo family driven out of their village and living in the wilderness.
Old Mrs. Mo was not very bright. It took her a moment to come back to her senses after hearing this: "You bastard, the Lu family is deceiving us!"
"So what if we are deceiving you? The death contract of your Mo family is in the hands of the Lu family. Do you still want to rebel against the heavens?" Old Master Lu was so enraged by the Mo women that he stopped putting on an act and laid it out plainly: "Just be an honest servant in the Lu family, and youâll have food to eat. Otherwise, Iâll have you all sold, and youâll have nowhere even to cry."
"Oh my, our Mo family has fallen into a den of wolves. Old man, old man, come quickly!" Crying out, Old Mrs. Mo had just shouted a few words before she was beaten by Shuan Daâs wife until her mouth was bleeding, and dragged towards the backyard woodshed.
Mo Dakuiâs wife and Mo Dayongâs wife were also dragged by the Lu familyâs servants towards the woodshed.
Mo Qiuyue was so frightened that she trembled uncontrollably and did not dare say a word.
Old Master Lu turned his head to look at her and gave a cold laugh, warning her: "Stay put and learn the rules properly. In a few days, someone will send you to the Zou Mansion. Donât stay with your grandparents and parents. They are servants now, but in the future, you will be the master at the Zou Mansion. Donât ruin your future because of them."
Mo Qiuyue was cunning and afraid of being dragged down by the Mo family. Hearing this, she did not hesitate to agree immediately: "Old, Old Master Lu, rest assured, I will obey and will serve Concubine Lu well."
Old Master Lu nodded with satisfaction: "Mhm, thatâs correct."
True to his word, three days later, Old Master Lu had Shuan Daâs wife send Mo Qiuyue to the Zou Mansion.
During these three days, Mo Qiuyue had a hard time. She had to follow Shuan Daâs wife to learn the rules for ten hours every day, and she couldnât even sleep properly at night. If she didnât learn well, she wasnât allowed to eat and would get beaten.
Shuan Daâs wife also forbade her to cry; crying would result in an even harsher beating.
After arriving at the Zou Mansion, Mo Qiuyue was not immediately put to work but stayed in the servantâs room for three days. She was taught by Mrs. Han for three days before being taken to Concubine Luâs Haitang Courtyard.
In Haitang Courtyard, not only was Concubine Lu present, but Zhong Cuilan was there as well.
Zhong Cuilan was not sitting but stood respectfully next to Concubine Lu with her head bowed.
When Mo Qiuyue came in, Concubine Lu pointed at her and said, "Little sister, this is the maid that my elder sisterâs family has sent over. From now on, she will serve by your side. Wherever you go, you must take her with you."
Zhong Cuilan secretly resented this; Lu Meihua was keeping an eye on her, but she couldnât refuse, as Concubine Lu had evidence of her cuckolding County Magistrate Zou: "Yes, little sister will surely keep this girl by her side. Please rest assured, sister."
Hearing this, Concubine Lu felt a surge of satisfaction. After having Zhong Cuilan massage her legs and shoulders, she then looked at her belly and said, "Little sister, itâs hard work being pregnant, you should go back and rest early."
Hearing these words, Zhong Cuilanâs brow furrowed, and she tentatively asked, "Big sister, do you truly wish for your little sister to give birth to this little piece of flesh in her belly?"
Concubine Lu laughed and said, "This is Old Masterâs late-life child. The Old Master is extremely pleased, naturally, I hope you can give birth to the child."
She would have been better off not mentioning this; once she did, Zhong Cuilan felt cold sweat breaking out all over... When Concubine Lu caught her indiscretion, she thought Concubine Lu would make her get rid of the child in her womb and then frame Mrs. Zou. But now, it wasnât like that; instead, she was to give birth to the child... What was Concubine Lu planning?
Zhong Cuilan also thought of Eldest Young Master Zou and couldnât help but tremble slightly.
Mrs. Han quickly grabbed Zhong Cuilanâs hand and instructed Mo Qiuyue: "Qiuyue, your Mrs. Zhong is terribly cold, quickly help her back."
"Yes." Mo Qiuyue bowed her head, walked over, and supported Zhong Cuilan out of Haitang Courtyard.
Inside the room, Concubine Lu frowned and said: "Mrs. Han, has that Zhong woman realized our intentions?"
The corners of Mrs. Hanâs mouth curved into a smile: "Concubine, rest assured, even if Zhong Cuilan knows our plans, she wouldnât dare to do anything. Weâre still holding her leverages. If she dares to disobey, we can let the Old Master know about her adulterous affair and her bastard child, then sheâs as good as dead. Either way, she faces death; itâs just a matter of how she dies."
Concubine Lu and Mrs. Han were planning to keep the child in Zhong Cuilanâs womb to completely ensnare Mrs. Zou and her family.
How could they ensnare everyone in one fell swoop?
Of course, it wasnât by allowing Zhong Cuilan to have a miscarriage, but rather by making County Magistrate Zou believe that the child in Zhong Cuilanâs womb belonged to the eldest son of the Zou family.
Only by doing this, County Magistrate Zou would eliminate Mrs. Zou and the Eldest Young Master Zou, grow cold towards the Second Young Master, and thus, the Zou Mansion would belong to the Third Young Master.
Such a scheme was insidiously malevolent, aimed not only at eliminating Mrs. Zou and her household but also ensuring Zhong Cuilanâs death.