Yu Shu went to look for Yun Hua, but there was nothing she could do. She went to Wang Ji Tower, feeling helpless. The kitchen cooked a few seasonal dishes for her and drank alone to drown her sorrows.
Not being able to find Yun Hua not only meant that Xue Rui's identity was a mystery, but it also meant that she had no chance of obtaining the Book of Mystery Fairy's Six Rens. Her future suddenly became uncertain.
The rain outside had stopped long ago. Pushing open the window, it was cool. Yu Shu drank a pot of Huadiao. Just when she was a little tipsy, she heard footsteps in the corridor outside. In the blink of an eye, the footsteps were at the door.
"Miss, someone just came and said that something happened in your residence. Please go back and make a decision." The shopkeeper, Lin Fu, reported anxiously.
Yu Shu frowned, but she didn't panic. She put down her wine cup and asked, "Who is it? Ask him to come up."
Lin Fu left in a hurry. After a while, he came back with a person. It was her head maid, Xin 'er. When Xin' er saw Yu Shu, she knelt down. There were outsiders in the room, so she didn't say anything. However, looking at her pale face, she knew that it was not a small matter.
"Old Lin, go and do your work."
Yu Shu said. Lin Fu tactfully hid away. Before he left, he didn't forget to take Xiao Die who was serving in the room with him.
"Tell me, what happened at home?"
Xin 'er quickly explained the situation — —
The rain in the afternoon had just stopped. Several bailiffs came to the Yu Residence and asked to bring Aunt Cui back to the yamen. Yu Shu wasn't at home, so the residence was in a mess. He Fangzhi didn't come back from the medical center, so Zhao Hui could only come out and deal with the bailiffs to ask about the situation. It turned out that someone came to the yamen early in the morning, claiming that a family servant eloped with someone ten years ago and escaped. Now that they found her, they found that the servant had already had children and established her own family, so they came to the yamen to report.
The family that complained was none other than Aunt Cui's previous master, Assistant Minister Yin of the Ministry of Revenue, Yin Zhourong.
"The bailiff said that the head steward of the Yin Family had Madam Yu's contract to sell herself, and there were witnesses from that year. They insisted on taking Lady Yu to the yamen for interrogation. Lady He didn't agree and wanted to force their way in, but Steward Zhou stopped them with the guards. At that time, the situation was too chaotic. Madame He was hit on the head by someone and bled a lot. "
Yu Shu was originally able to keep her composure, but when she heard this, her expression suddenly changed. She stood up and said, "Hit your head? Are you alright? "
"It looks like there's an opening." Xin 'er had always been gentle, but now she was gnashing her teeth in anger. "Those violent bailiffs saw that the situation was not good. They were no match for our protectors. Taking advantage of the chaos, he slipped away. Master, quickly go back and take a look. "
Yu Shu didn't say anything else and walked out.
Lin Fu was waiting downstairs. He didn't go far and saw them coming down. He hurriedly went forward and asked with concern, "What can I do for you, Miss?"
Yu Shu paused for a moment, then said to him, "Get Ah Ping and Ah Xiang to come with me. ‘
She was angry, but she didn't let her anger get the better of her. Today, things would not end well. Assistant Minister Yin had made a ruthless move to oppose her. It was obvious that he wanted to seek revenge for that bastard Yin Yuanbo.
Those bailiffs had left today. They would probably come again tomorrow.
She wasn't afraid of making a big fuss, but she was afraid that her family would be implicated. Ah Ping and Ah Xiang were skilled, so she brought them back to guard the house for the time being, just in case.
.....
When Yu Shu returned to the residence with her people, she glanced at the main hall. She saw that the tables and chairs were overturned, and the two vases at the door had been pushed over. They were broken on the ground, but no one cleaned them up.
When she entered the backyard, she didn't see anyone. When He Fangzhi and her husband's residence, he saw a courtyard full of servants. Zhou Hu was kneeling outside. Yu Shu was angry and didn't even look at them when she walked past them.
What use were they if they couldn't protect their master!
He Fangzhi came back before her. At this time, he was sitting at the head of Zhao Hui's bed, comforting her. When he saw Yu Shu come in, he didn't complain. He just sighed and said to her, "Your mother's head was injured once before, which left a sequela. This time, it was lucky that it didn't hit the same place, otherwise …"
Before he could finish his words, he was pulled by Zhao Hui. She glared at him and turned to Yu Shu and said gently, "It's not a big deal. It's just a scratch. The chair's leg was broken, so it flew past my scalp."
She said it lightly, but Yu Shu clearly saw that her forehead was wrapped with a white gauze, which was faintly stained with blood. She looked very weak. Thinking of Zhao Hui's tragic life, she was killed once in Yiyang City and almost lost her life. Now, she suffered again because of her. Yu Shu was very upset.
It was also because she was so anxious about the Xue family these days that she didn't predict the disaster for Zhao Hui and the others. She didn't predict the bloody disaster today.
"It's all my fault. Those people came for me. I'm sorry."
Zhao Hui didn't blame her. When she heard her call her "mother", her heart softened. She waved her hand and asked her to come over, "It's okay to tell me. What are you going to do about what happened today?"
Yu Shu bowed her head in silence. She didn't know what to say.
Zhao Hui said anxiously, "You can't be muddle-headed. Although your mother used to be a maid in someone's residence, that was many years ago. Even if they said that they had a contract to sell her, we can't admit it."
This was a simple reason. Zhao Hui understood it. Once Aunt Cui was judged as a fugitive slave by the government, the other party held her slave contract and became her real master. She couldn't change her fate for the rest of her life.
On the surface, this matter didn't hinder Yu Shu's future. After all, her biological father was a famous scholar. The only smart thing Aunt Cui did in her life was to remarry into the Ji family. She didn't sell her son and daughter as slaves.
Therefore, when Yu Shu broke away from the Ji family and asked for her and Yu Xiaoxiu's residence card, she didn't encounter any obstacles. Because the siblings lived under someone else's roof, they didn't sell themselves as slaves. Later, they established their own family in the capital.
Yu Shu was afraid that Aunt Cui's background would be manipulated. Therefore, after the Ji family was ruined, she first hid Aunt Cui. As time passed, she used the Gentlemen's Hibiscus Banquet to ask for a favor from Imperial Consort Xue and went to the Ministry of Revenue to change Aunt Cui's household registration.
However, she only guarded against the Ji family's misdeeds. She didn't guard against the Yin family's drastic measures and caught her unprepared.
If they really brought Aunt Cui to the yamen for interrogation today, Yu Shu was sure that Assistant Minister Yin would have a way to prove that Aunt Cui had betrayed her master and escaped. Then, he would openly capture her and bring her back to the Assistant Minister's residence to be ordered around as a slave.
In this way, Yu Shu wouldn't have to care about her face. If the Assistant Minister's residence was ruthless and beat Aunt Cui to death, the result would be even more unthinkable.
The Yin family was trying to kill her.
Yu Shu gritted her teeth and raised her head to smile at Zhao Hui. She said, "With me here, our family isn't afraid of trouble. You just focus on recuperating and don't worry about anything else. After this matter is resolved, I will help you vent your anger."
Zhao Hui saw that she wasn't out of ideas and relaxed. To be honest, in her heart, Yu Shu was more reliable than anyone else. Even He Fangzhi couldn't compare.
.....
After checking on Zhao Hui's injuries, Yu Shu came out of the courtyard. Zhou Hu and a group of guards were still kneeling outside. It had rained earlier, so the ground was wet and their legs were covered in mud. Even so, they didn't move to a clean spot and quietly waited for Yu Shu to deal with them.
This was the good thing about the servants trained in the Consecrated Courtyard. They were well-behaved.
Yu Shu stopped in front of Zhou Hu. With a cold expression, she said, "I should have rewarded you for today's matter. You all did the right thing. If someone wanted to barge into the rear residence, no matter who they were, you all had to stop them. Even if they made a huge mess, I, as the master, would take care of it for you all. But you all were wrong. You shouldn't have attacked in front of the womenfolk. Couldn't you have lured them outside before fighting? Where did all of your brains go? "
Zhou Hu and the others trembled. This group of burly men couldn't even raise their heads after being scolded by a little girl. At the same time, they felt their blood boil. In the end, they were all servants. They dared to fight with officials because they wanted to protect their masters. Yu Shu didn't punish them just because they had chased away a few bailiffs. Instead, she said they should be rewarded. How could they not accept this?
"Seeing that this is the first time you've committed a crime, and this is the first time I've seen something like this, I won't punish you heavily. However, there's no reward. You all don't need to kneel. Go do what you need to do. If anyone comes looking for trouble, you don't need to be polite. Throw them all out. "
After saying this, she didn't care what they did and led a few servant girls to Aunt Cui's place.
After a while, Lin 'er jogged back and stopped Zhou Hu. In front of the group of guards who hadn't left, she said in a crisp voice, "Big Brother Zhou, the young lady said that she'll have the kitchen add two dishes of meat and fish tonight. Open a few jars of old wine to calm down."
After saying this, she ran off. Zhou Hu was stunned. He turned his head and saw the bright eyes of the group of guards. He coughed and put on a straight face, scolding, "What's there to be happy about? Master is benevolent and didn't punish us. Have a good sleep tonight. Tomorrow, wake up and be alert!"
.....
When Yu Shu arrived at Qing Shi Zhai, Aunt Cui was still hiding in the room, not daring to come out. How could she not know about the big commotion in the front yard this afternoon? She was afraid that someone would break in and capture her.
When Yu Shu entered the room, she saw her curled up on the bed, wrapped in a blanket. She stared at the door with a panicked expression. She was obviously frightened.
"Little girl, you're finally back." Aunt Cui grabbed the blanket and squeezed out two tears to Yu Shu. "There are officials coming to arrest me. You have to save me!"
Yu Shu felt a headache. She didn't treat her well. She picked a place nearby and sat down. She waved her hand to let everyone in the room leave. Xin 'er stood guard outside the door.
"You also know that there are officials coming to the mansion. Do you know why they want to arrest you?"
Aunt Cui nodded timidly. "It's the Yin family who reported to the officials that I eloped with your father. They also said that they have my slave contract. Logically speaking, I am still their servant."
Yu Shu took a breath and asked her again, "Then tell me the truth. Did you elope with my father?"
Aunt Cui's eyes widened instantly. She shook her head vigorously and said in a shrill voice, "No! It was Madam who gave me to your father. I didn't have the guts to elope with someone! "
Yu Shu narrowed her eyes. She felt very lucky in her heart. She confirmed again, "Then what about the contract you signed when you sold yourself to the Yin family?"
Aunt Cui's face was bitter. She felt wronged and said, "How would I know? Maybe your damn father kept it."
“.....”
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