"From now on, stay by my side and do your duties; don’t let your mind wander!"
"Yes, thank you Madam for not abandoning me, I am deeply grateful!"
The maid was moved to tears, bowed her head, and withdrew.
Madam Shi was both angry and distressed, with her temples throbbing painfully.
A trusted sister beside her tried to console her.
"Madam, you’ve been busy since yesterday; take advantage of this moment to rest a bit!"
Madam Shi snorted.
"Rest?"
"Others are walking all over me, and you think I have the leisure to rest?"
"You haven’t seen the blatant arrogance of the Fuguo Duke’s Mansion!"
"They really think we’re afraid of them!"
The sister sighed.
"Madam is just speaking in anger!"
"The Fuguo Duke’s Mansion has existed since the founding of the Great Chu Dynasty, a prestigious family with numerous talents over generations!"
"Even the Late Emperor and Taishang Huang held them in some esteem, not to mention the newly enthroned New Emperor; why should we fight against them?"
The sister saw Madam Shi silent, paused, then continued.
"Think about it!"
"If there had been any chance, those noble ladies wouldn’t have resorted to ruining their prospects to annul engagements!"
"It was all about self-preservation!"
Madam Shi felt a mix of despair and hilarity within, immediately retorted sarcastically.
"You’re suggesting I just let it go?"
The sister bowed her head slightly, nodding.
"Yes!"
"Let’s pretend none of this happened!"
"No way!"
Madam Shi squinted her eyes, a vigorous determination shone in her gaze as she straightened her back and declared loudly.
"Our Great Chu Dynasty is governed by clear laws and strict rules; even if it’s not feasible for the King to be held as accountable as commoners, such occurrences cannot be tolerated!"
"Moreover, this is right under the King’s nose!"
"I refuse to believe there’s no place for justice in the world!"
Seeing that Madam Shi remained unmoved, the sister grimaced, thought for a while, then couldn’t help but offer advice.
"If it really doesn’t work, Madam could perhaps consult with the Fourth Princess!"
"As long as the Fourth Princess agrees to help, there’s a chance; otherwise..."
Madam Shi rubbed her temples again.
"We’ll discuss it later, let me think about it! You may leave now!"
"Yes! Take care, Madam, I shall take my leave!"
...
The next day.
After pondering all night, Madam Shi finally couldn’t resist, instructed someone to relay Wanrong’s words and the maid’s experience in detail to the Princely Heir’s Madam of the Fuguo Duke’s Mansion.
She even specifically reminded.
"Don’t miss a single word; convey it clearly word by word!"
"Yes!"
The maid turned around with Madam Shi’s instructions and departed.
She went unobstructed to the Fuguo Duke’s Mansion and as expected met the Princely Heir’s Madam.
Following her mistress’s calm instructions, she repeated those words verbatim.
At the end, she coldly stated.
"My Madam said that our Miss is now frightened, with a fever that won’t subside, and she hopes your Mansion will provide a reasonable explanation!"
The Princely Heir’s Madam, hearing such truth for the first time, was immediately shocked to the core.
She took a long time to suppress her inner astonishment and slowly spoke.
"Alright!"
"Go back and tell your Madam!"
"I will certainly investigate this matter! If it’s true, our Fuguo Duke’s Mansion will never sit idly by!"
"By then, we’ll definitely come up with a proper solution, ensuring your satisfaction!"
The maid nodded.
"In that case, I won’t trouble you further; I shall take my leave!"
After speaking, she politely withdrew.
...
Once the maid completely left, the Princely Heir’s Madam dispersed all the maids in the room, and she angrily vented for a long time, throwing things around.
"This is sheer folly; they truly think the Fuguo Duke’s Mansion is just one person!"
"If this matter gets out, how will the Mansion members maintain their reputation? How will the children arrange marriages?"
Others are bound to think the Fuguo Duke’s Mansion is careless in teaching its children.
Boys might manage, but girls? Marriages in the future could be tough!
She first realized the seriousness of the situation.
So after stewing for a while, she called for Lady Sun.
Lady Sun, surprised upon hearing the news, still came over nervously.
"Sister-in-law, do you need something from me?"
She was puzzled about whom to seek advice from, not expecting the Princely Heir’s Madam to summon her.
Matters did not unfold as she had imagined.
The Princely Heir’s Madam first berated her fiercely.
After scolding, she relayed the words from Shi Mansion verbatim, finally furiously stating.
"It’s all thanks to your son’s antics!"
"Miss Jiang is now frightened, with an unending fever, and they’ve already confronted us. This matter can’t be hidden; the Old Madam will soon know; I don’t know what you’ll do!"