The blocking maidservant merely said, "Please do not make things difficult for us, Third Miss Yun. We are only following orders."
When Yun Qiufang asked whose orders they were following, they fell silent again.
Yun Qiuping did not want to cause trouble and tugged at Yun Qiufang's sleeve. "Forget it, Third Sister, let's just go back." She was timid, and after all, this was not the Yun Family's territory. She did not want to stir up trouble.
Yun Qiufang, however, was extremely dissatisfied in her heart.
Although Yun Qiuchen had chosen to avoid the spotlight this year because the Commandery Princess was attending the Thousand Gold Banquet, she was the champion of the previous banquet. Her true abilities were well-known to all. Everyone would only think that the Yun Family Eldest Miss understood propriety and knew when to advance or retreat, and no one would dare look down on her.
At this Thousand Gold Banquet, Old Madam Yun had also asked Yun Qiuchen to assist in managing the event, overseeing the wine, tea, snacks, and meal arrangements for each family. Yun Qiuchen had not made any mistakes, quietly demonstrating the managerial skills required of a competent mistress of the inner courtyard in front of everyone.
The ladies and young misses of the prominent families in Yanbei all praised Eldest Miss Yun, yet no one ever remembered that besides Eldest Miss Yun Qiuchen, the Yun Family also had Second Miss Yun and Third Miss Yun.
Now, looking at the situation ahead, Yun Qiufang thought it likely that something had gone wrong somewhere, and Yun Qiuchen did not want others to know.
Yun Qiuping tugged at Yun Qiufang's sleeve again. Yun Qiufang's eyes shifted, and she glared at the two maidservants, saying angrily, "If you won't let us pass, forget it. We'll just ask Eldest Sister when she returns." With that, she turned and pulled Yun Qiuping away.
Yun Qiuping was surprised that Yun Qiufang was so agreeable today.
After walking a few steps away, Yun Qiufang whispered excitedly to Yun Qiuping, "I know that the rear courtyard of Fangze Courtyard is separated from Autumn Swan Courtyard by only a narrow alley. Let's sneak over from Fangze Courtyard. No one lives in Fangze Courtyard, so the side gate in the alley is definitely unguarded."
Yun Qiuping hurriedly said, "Isn't that inappropriate?"
Yun Qiufang rolled her eyes. "What's inappropriate about it? If Eldest Sister can go in, why can't we?" She narrowed her eyes, revealing a sly, fox-like smile. "If you're afraid of being blamed, we can just call a few more people to go with us. As they say, the law does not punish the masses."
Without waiting for a reply, Yun Qiufang pulled Yun Qiuping and ran toward the west courtyard to gather people.
After entering Autumn Swan Courtyard, Yun Qiuchen noticed that the courtyard was empty, with no maidservants or attendants in sight, which only deepened her suspicion. She glanced around and saw that the doors to the main hall and the east wing were tightly shut, while the door to the west wing was slightly ajar.
Yun Qiuchen stepped onto the corridor and stood at the door, listening for a moment. Hearing no movement inside, she frowned and glanced at her maid, Nanzhu.
Understanding her meaning, Nanzhu pressed close to the door and called into the room, "Miss Wu, Miss Jiang, are you inside? Our Eldest Miss wishes to see you. Miss Wu? Miss Jiang?"
There was still no response from inside, and Nanzhu couldn't help but look at Yun Qiuchen.
Yun Qiuchen had a bad feeling. She turned to look at the east wing and the main hall, but no one came out to answer.
Jiang Yuan Niang's maid, Qiuxiang, was nearly in tears from anxiety. She turned to another maid and asked, "Has Miss not come out since she entered?"The maid also turned pale, nodding as she said, "This servant has been waiting outside with those two sisters. The young lady did not leave."
Yun Qiuchen looked toward Wu Yiyu's two maids. The two maids exchanged glances, quietly retreating two steps but refusing to speak. One of them even turned and ran out.
Yun Qiuchen took two steps back and said to the two matrons behind her, "Go inside and take a look." A gentleman does not stand beneath a crumbling wall. With Wu Yiyu's maids behaving strangely and the situation inside unclear, Yun Qiuchen naturally would not rashly charge in first.
The two matrons gently pushed the door open and entered. Moments later, they hurriedly ran back out, their faces wearing expressions of fright.
Yun Qiuchen was startled and quickly asked, "What happened? Are Miss Wu and Miss Jiang inside?"
The two matrons flushed red, glanced at each other, and nodded. "Yes, they're inside. Both Miss Wu and Miss Jiang are there."
Yun Qiuchen's heart turned cold, but she forced herself to remain calm and asked, "Are they... still alive?"
The two matrons nodded again. One of them thought for a moment, then stepped forward and whispered a few words into Yun Qiuchen's ear.
Yun Qiuchen's eyes widened in shock as she took a step back, unable to react for a long moment. No matter how mature and experienced she usually was, she was still only a thirteen- or fourteen-year-old girl. She had never encountered such a situation before and found herself at a rare loss.
Jiang Yuan Niang's two maids, however, were so anxious they began to cry. Qiu Xiang tearfully asked, "Miss Yun, what happened to our young lady? Is she inside?"
Yun Qiuchen felt somewhat awkward and found herself in a dilemma. At this point, Eldest Miss Yun still did not know that this matter was caused by her second brother, Yun Wenfang, so she was unsure whether she should intervene. Getting involved in such matters carelessly would not only bring no benefit but could also lead to trouble.
The maid Wu Yiyu had left behind, who had not run away, also sensed something was wrong and began to feel uneasy. If Eldest Miss Wu were inside, she would not have remained silent when the two matrons barged in. Yet the matrons who had just entered said Eldest Miss Wu was inside, so something must have happened.
The more the maid thought about it, the more frightened she became. Finally, she pushed aside Jiang Yuan Niang's two maids and ran into the room.
"Ah—" Moments later, a terrified scream came from inside the room.
Now Jiang Yuan Niang's two maids could no longer stand still. Without another word, Qiu Xiang ran inside, followed by another scream and then sobbing.
Yun Qiuchen sighed, thinking that this matter would likely need to be reported to her grandmother and mother. However, she also knew that such matters must not be spread around. Otherwise, if Wu Yiyu and Jiang Yuan Niang's reputations were damaged, they would blame her.
She quietly instructed the matron who had just entered, "Go and report what happened here to my grandmother and mother."
After the matron hurried off, she ordered her maid Yin Zhu, "Have someone guard the courtyard gate. Do not let anyone in for now." Yin Zhu took two people to guard the entrance.
After doing all this, Yun Qiuchen walked into the courtyard, thinking about how to handle the situation next. She did not plan to enter the room just yet. At the very least, she would wait for their maids to help them wake up and tidy their clothes to avoid embarrassment for everyone.Yun Qiuchen had not expected Yun Qiufang to suddenly appear in the corridor at this moment, and she had not come alone. Behind her followed Yun Qiuping, Guo Yujiao, Qiu Hong, and two other young ladies she was close to. Silently, in a disorderly group, Yun Qiuchen hadn’t even noticed where they had entered from.
"Second Sister, Third Sister, you..."
The other young ladies, who had been inexplicably dragged along to witness the commotion, were utterly confused. When they saw Yun Qiuchen, they still wanted to go over and greet her.
Meanwhile, Yun Qiufang noticed Yun Qiuchen standing in the courtyard, with Yinzhu leading two matrons to block the courtyard gate, while the maid by Jiang Yuan Niang’s side was nowhere to be seen. Sensing something strange, she couldn’t help but look around as she walked.
Just then, a startled scream came from the west wing, followed by the clattering sound of something being knocked over, then cries of pain and weeping, creating a chaotic uproar.
Yun Qiuchen was about to step forward to shoo the intruders out, but now she couldn’t help but inwardly exclaim in dismay. She recognized that it was likely Wu Yiyu, having woken up, venting her anger on her own maid inside.
Yun Qiufang was just wondering where to slip into when the commotion from the west wing pointed her in a clear direction. Her eyes lit up, and without waiting for Yun Qiuchen to stop her, she grabbed Guo Yujiao, who was closest to her, and slipped into the west wing like an eel.
"Third Sister, don’t—" Yun Qiuchen gasped in alarm.
Convinced that Yun Qiuchen was up to no good, Yun Qiufang eagerly dragged Guo Yujiao into the west wing, rushing toward the inner chamber where the noise was coming from.
But the moment she caught sight of the scene inside the room, Yun Qiufang froze in terror.
Wu Yiyu was holding a feather duster she had found from who knows where, viciously whipping her own maid, who was writhing in pain on the floor. At this moment, Miss Wu’s appearance was far from dignified. Although her clothes were on, her belt was untied, and the collar of her inner jacket was half-open.
What left them speechless with shock was that on the canopy bed to the west of the room, another maid, whose clothes had been torn to the point of near-nakedness, was tied to the bedpost, struggling to free herself.
When Yun Qiufang regained her senses, she let out a piercing scream.
Yun Qiuping and the other young ladies who had followed Yun Qiufang were initially hesitant to enter, but spurred by Yun Qiufang’s scream, they rushed inside. Only Qiu Hong glanced at Yun Qiuchen and stopped at the doorway, not following them in.
Once inside, the young ladies were all startled. They had never expected to witness such a scene.
Furious and humiliated, Wu Yiyu swung the feather duster in her hand toward the screaming Yun Qiufang. With a sharp "crack," it struck Yun Qiufang squarely in the face, loosening two of her teeth. The intense pain made her let out a shrill, agonized cry.
Blinded by rage, Wu Yiyu raised the feather duster and struck Yun Qiufang indiscriminately, deliberately aiming for her head, face, and neck. Guo Yujiao dodged quickly but still accidentally took a blow to her arm. The young ladies who had barged in screamed and fled outside.
Now, Yun Qiuchen had no choice but to step in. Seeing Yun Qiufang’s pitiful state, she hurriedly instructed Nanzhu to drag Yun Qiufang out.When Yun Qiuchen entered, she had sensed something was off. Now it suddenly occurred to her that the first thing she noticed upon entering was not Jiang Yuan Niang. Her gaze swept over the bed—only a maid lay there, while Qiu Xiang and another maid of Jiang Yuan Niang stood nervously at the foot of the bed.
Yun Qiuchen’s eyes instinctively glanced under the bed, just in time to see the bed skirt surrounding the bottom of the bed shift slightly. She couldn’t help but understand the situation.
Next chapter expected around 12 o’clock～
The hardworking author is back again～
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