"Of course, you're free to go complain before Father, Grandfather, and Grandmother—I won't stop you. But guess who they'll believe, you or me?" As she spoke, Ren Yaohua glanced at Ping'er.
Ping'er bit her lip and whispered, "This servant... this servant saw nothing."
Though she tried her best to conceal it, her voice still carried a slight tremble. After today, her fear of Ren Yaohua had grown even stronger than before.
Thus, the outcome was clear. Even Ren Yaoying's personal maid wasn't on her side, and the item had already been swallowed by Ren Yaoying herself. Ren Yaoying had no evidence to accuse Ren Yaohua.
The Ren Yaohua of the past would never have resorted to such underhanded tactics. It was only later that she gradually came to understand that dealing with petty people sometimes required unconventional methods. Once she grasped this, Ren Yaohua could handle Ren Yaoying without the slightest hesitation—she had never been one for mercy.
Ren Yaohua nodded in satisfaction and said to Ping'er, "Now, you tell your mistress where she went wrong!"
Ping'er glanced at the disheveled Ren Yaoying. It was impossible not to feel a twinge of guilt. Although she hadn't served Ren Yaoying for long—back when Concubine Fang was still around—Concubine Fang had treated her well, and Ren Yaoying wasn't too difficult to serve. But she was just a lowly maid. Her fate and that of her family were in the hands of Third Madam and Third Miss. When Concubine Fang was still here, she might have been able to protect them, but now Concubine Fang was gone. When her parents wept and begged her to side with Third Miss, she simply couldn't refuse.
"Ninth... Ninth Miss, you really shouldn't oppose Third Miss anymore. It... it won't do you any good," Ping'er licked her dry, cracked lips. "Now that the concubine is gone, the Madam treats you very well. You... you should listen to the Madam..."
Ren Yaohua curled her lip and interrupted, "Enough of this useless talk. I want you to make her see reason!"
Ping'er paused, then whispered, "Now that the Madam is in charge of the household, we servants... we servants naturally must obey the Madam. I'm sorry, Ninth Miss."
Ren Yaoying felt as if her heart and liver were being clawed at. She thought the disgusting thing was still stuck in her throat, impossible to swallow or spit out. She wished she could roll on the ground to ease her agony. Yet, despite this, Ping'er's words clearly reached her ears. In a daze, she wondered: Had she truly lost every last person on her side? Had all the maids and servants, including Ping'er, now aligned themselves with Ren Yaohua?
Ren Yaohua said coldly, "Did you hear that clearly? The fact that you can stand here safe and sound, with food and clothing provided every day, is actually thanks to my mother's kindness. Unfortunately, I am not my mother—I don't have that much compassion. If you dare provoke me again in the future..." Ren Yaohua gave a cold laugh. "Next time, what I feed you won't be a blood leech! I mean what I say, so you'd better cherish your little life."Ren Yaohua was thoroughly provoked by Ren Yaoying today. If Ren Yaoying had schemed against her personally, she might not have been so enraged. But Ren Yaoying had actually exploited Lei Pan'er, a child so young! This was utterly intolerable! Ren Yaohua decided to give Ren Yaoying a lesson she would never forget, to remind her to recognize her own position.
Taking advantage of power to bully others, or kicking someone when they're down—such acts, Ren Yaohua could carry out without the slightest burden.
Ren Yaohua watched indifferently as Ren Yaoying suffered in agony. Only when the wind had nearly dried the urine-soaked skirt did she finally deign to instruct the matron, "Remove the cloth from her mouth. If she knows what's good for her, give her the medicine. If she screams, let the worm live or die in her throat as it pleases."
The matron promptly pulled the handkerchief from Ren Yaoying's mouth. Before Ren Yaoying could utter a sound, she vomited, splattering the matron's sleeve before she could dodge. At this moment, Ren Yaoying's face was smeared with tears and snot, her mouth and clothes stained with vomit—a picture of utter wretchedness.
After Ren Yaoying finished retching, the matron produced a bamboo tube, intending to feed her its contents. Ren Yaoying, now as frightened as a startled bird, stared in terror at the tube, trembling as she begged Ren Yaohua for mercy, "Spare me, Third Sister, I beg you, spare me..."
Ren Yaohua glanced at her with disdain. "Is that all you're capable of? Take it or not, as you wish."
The matron said, "Ninth Miss, you'd better drink the medicine. Otherwise, the blood leech will keep clinging to your throat and sucking your blood."
Ren Yaoying shuddered uncontrollably, feeling an increasing itch and pain in her throat, as if something were wriggling inside. Sobbing, she coughed violently but produced nothing.
Ren Yaohua's patience had run out. Frowning, she said, "Forget it if she won't drink. It's getting late; let's go back."
Realizing the situation, Ren Yaoying, regardless of what was in the bamboo tube, frantically broke free one hand, snatched the tube from the matron, and poured its contents down her throat. After swallowing the sour, salty, and fishy-tasting water, she exhausted herself and dropped the tube. No one restrained her now; she covered her face with both hands, slumped to the ground, and wept.
Ren Yaohua showed not a trace of sympathy, merely instructing Ren Yaoying's maid, Ping'er, "Take her to the washroom to change her clothes, then call all her attendants and prepare to descend the mountain."
Having witnessed Ren Yaohua's terrifying methods, Ping'er was terrified of her and immediately stepped forward to help Ren Yaoying up.
Just then, a derisive laugh sounded not far away.
Ren Yaohua's heart skipped a beat. She turned to look but saw no one.
She had made arrangements earlier, posting guards at nearby intersections to prevent anyone from stumbling upon her disciplining of Ren Yaoying. Her senior maids, Xiangqin and Wujing, hurriedly surrounded her, their expressions alert and fearful as they scanned the surroundings.Xiangqin even clasped her hands together, murmuring prayers: "All deities, it's a good thing you punish evil and reward virtue! But our young lady is a good person, and so are we. The ugliest one covered in snot and filth is the only villain here—you must look carefully and not mistake the wrong person!"
"Who's pretending to be a ghost? Show yourself!" Ren Yaohua said coldly, looking ahead.
Ren Yaohua did not believe in ghosts or gods, and she felt no guilt in dealing with Ren Yaoying, so she was unafraid.
As soon as Ren Yaohua finished speaking, a tall, slender man jumped down from an old pear tree not far ahead. The man had a slightly dark complexion, with sharp eyebrows and bright eyes, his features strikingly handsome. When he smiled, there was a hint of roguishness that could make women blush and their hearts flutter.
When Ren Yaohua clearly saw the newcomer's face, she froze for a moment: "You..."
The man leaned lazily against the tree trunk, arms crossed, glancing at Ren Yaohua a few times before looking at Ren Yaoying, who was desperately trying to hide behind Ping'er to conceal her ugliness. Finally, his gaze returned to Ren Yaohua as he raised an eyebrow and asked, "Where is she?"
No one present understood what riddle he was speaking, and they all looked at Ren Yaohua in confusion. Ren Yaohua, however, frowned, her expression turning cold: "I wondered who it was—so it's Second Young Master Yun, back at last. If you're looking for someone, go search your Yun Family. There's no one here you're looking for!"
Everyone present also recognized him—this man who had suddenly appeared was none other than Yun Wenfang, the second young master of the Yun Family, who had not returned to Yunyang City for three years.
Due to years of military life, Yun Wenfang had grown much darker than three years ago, his body appearing leaner and more defined. His facial features were sharper than before, especially his bright eyes, which had deepened, making him appear more mature and handsome.
Yun Wenfang scoffed at her words but did not publicly reveal who "she" referred to. Instead, he raised an eyebrow and said playfully, "Aren't you afraid I'll spread the word about you bullying your half-sister?"
Ren Yaohua pursed her lips, straightened her back, and retorted sarcastically, "Do as you please! I thought you'd have improved after all these years, but it seems you're still the same."
Hearing this, Yun Wenfang narrowed his eyes slightly, the lazy smile fading from his face. When he smiled, it wasn't noticeable, but now that he wasn't smiling, he exuded a murderous aura that made people tremble with fear.
The atmosphere grew tense for a moment, but it was Yun Wenfang who broke the silence with a laugh. He scoffed, half-serious and half-mocking, "Haven't you noticed my temper has improved?"
Ren Yaohua snorted coldly and said nothing. She had never had a good impression of Yun Wenfang, and his immediate inquiry about Ren Yaoqi only made her more wary of him.
Yun Wenfang didn't bother arguing with Ren Yaohua. He lazily stretched his limbs and said, "Since she's not here, I'll take my leave. Oh, and remember to tell her I'm back."
Ren Yaohua turned her head away, ignoring him.
Yun Wenfang curled his lips and added, "Your method of dealing with people is quite clever, but it's too troublesome. Next time, you can come to me. I can make someone disappear from this world without a trace."Yun Wenfang's gaze lazily fell upon Ren Yaoying, yet Ren Yaoying felt as if she had been targeted by a wolf. Every hair on her body stood on end, and she hid even more behind Ping'er, refusing to come out.
Ren Yaohua did not realize that this was actually the proud and aloof Second Young Master Yun expressing goodwill toward her in a roundabout way. She pretended not to have heard it.
Before leaving, however, Yun Wenfang turned his head to glance to the right. After a moment of thought, he murmured to himself with a hint of amusement, "It seems there really are quite a few people who enjoy watching the excitement."
Ren Yaohua heard this sentence and couldn't help but feel startled. Just as she was about to ask Yun Wenfang what he meant, he decisively walked away. Ren Yaohua still couldn't bring herself to call out and question him further.
After waving for Ping'er to take Ren Yaoying away to change clothes, Ren Yaohua thought for a moment and still led her people in the direction Yun Wenfang had looked.
Not far ahead, Ren Yaohua saw the figure standing with hands clasped behind his back under a tree not far away. It was unclear how long he had been standing there. The shadows of the branches obscured most of his face, making his expression difficult to discern, but Ren Yaohua felt her breath catch.
She stood in place for a while. The man did not approach, nor did she walk over. After a long pause, Ren Yaohua secretly took a deep breath, closed her eyes for a moment, and calmly instructed Xiangqin and the others, "Wait for me here."
The maids obediently agreed and instinctively spread out to guard the path.
Ren Yaohua straightened her posture and walked slowly to the man. Without looking at his expression, she curtsied coldly and said, "Greetings, Master Lei."
Lei Ting was silent for a moment. "Why has the form of address changed again?"
Hearing this, Ren Yaohua couldn't help but look up at Lei Ting. However, Lei Ting still wore his usual unchanging expression, and Ren Yaohua truly couldn't discern what he was thinking.
Ren Yaohua didn't know when Lei Ting had arrived, whether he had witnessed her disciplining Ren Yaoying, or if he would think her methods too cruel—especially since she was dealing with her own younger sister.
"Have you been here long? Did you see everything?" Ren Yaohua disliked guessing games, so after some thought, she asked directly.
Lei Ting looked at Ren Yaohua and nodded. "Yes, I saw."
Lei Ting's tone was calm and unruffled, but a sudden surge of bitterness welled up in Ren Yaohua's heart. She felt somewhat bewildered and inexplicably aggrieved.
Ren Yaohua despised this sudden weakness in herself. She slowly took a deep breath, wanting to quickly arm herself again. She thought that since Lei Ting had seen everything, he would surely feel disgust toward her. In that case, there was probably no need to force their engagement to continue.
Just as Ren Yaohua was contemplating how to express her thoughts, Lei Ting spoke before she could.
"Do you need my help?"
Ren Yaohua was stunned. She heard Lei Ting's words but didn't understand them. Shouldn't he be accusing her of being vicious and harboring disgust toward her?Seeing her remain silent, Lei Ting continued, "Although you handled this quite thoroughly, the location you chose wasn't ideal. This place is accessible from all directions, but you're not familiar with the terrain. While you had people guarding several intersections, you missed a hidden path. Just now, the youngest son of the Chen family nearly barged in. Moreover, there are many centuries-old pear trees nearby, making it easy for someone to hide among them." He must have spotted Yun Wenfang as well.
Ren Yaohua was still somewhat dazed: "Then, where is that person?"
Lei Ting was amused by her rare, bewildered expression: "I sent him away."
Ren Yaohua stared at Lei Ting, speechless and at a loss for words. She didn't realize her eyes were slowly reddening.
Lei Ting sighed softly, took a step closer, and raised his hand as if to do something, but after a moment's thought, he lowered it again. Instead, he softened his voice and said, "Don't be afraid. I'll handle Yun Wenfang."
He had revealed himself earlier because he saw Yun Wenfang and feared Ren Yaohua might be at a disadvantage. But before he could act, Yun Wenfang had already left.
Ren Yaohua finally realized something was off about herself. She immediately lowered her head, bit her lip, and murmured a quiet "Mm."
For those reading on mobile who mentioned that Chapter 365 hasn't been updated yet, the author previously uploaded the revised content in the work's related section. ~o(∩_∩)o~
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