Chapter 002 Changes

When she raised her head, her forehead was already bruised.

Her eyes were filled with tears, looking like she wanted to cry but dared not.

Her previous stubborn look disappeared, and she looked pitiful.

Seeing this, Mrs. Qi's expression softened, and she spoke in a gentler tone, "Good, very good, it's good that you know your mistake, Xiaowu." She leaned forward slightly, squinting as if trying to see something from Xiaowu's face. "You should know that your grandmother is strict with you because she wants to teach you right from wrong. Your mother is not around to teach you, and your sisters spoil you. If your grandmother doesn't discipline you, who will teach you to distinguish right from wrong?"

Mrs. Qi continued, "You are a girl from the Jingning Marquis's mansion, and you should uphold the reputation of the mansion. If you continue to be so disappointing, it's not just your own face that you lose, but also your father's face, the face of the Jingning Marquis's mansion, and my face!"

Xiaowu knelt pitifully below, tears rolling down her cheeks.

Mrs. Qi looked at her with a hint of satisfaction in her eyes and then turned to the fourth Miss Qi Mo, asking, "Fourth Miss, are you satisfied with Xiaowu's apology?"

"Grandmother," Qi Mo glanced at Xiaowu below, furrowed her brows almost imperceptibly, then lowered her head and said, "Admitting her mistake and changing for the better is the most important. Besides, Xiaowu didn't mean to harm me. It's my fault for forcing her to apologize. How can I say whether I'm satisfied or not?"

Mrs. Qi said, "Whether intentional or not, she made a mistake and should admit it."

She looked back at Xiaowu and said, "Since you have admitted your mistake and your fourth sister is unharmed, I won't pursue this matter further. But... if you forget this lesson and make the same mistake again in the future, don't blame me for being harsh."

Upon hearing this, Xiaowu felt as if she had been pardoned and kowtowed three times on the ground.

Mrs. Qi said, "Alright, alright, my head hurts from your kowtowing. Xiaowu, go back to your room and reflect on your actions. The rest of you may leave." After a pause, she added, "Fourth Miss, stay."

Qi Mo took the opportunity to support Mrs. Qi and they walked towards the banquet hall, soon disappearing from the sight of the others.

Qi Mo's mother, Aunt Cui, patted her skirt and slowly tried to stand up from the ground. However, as she lifted one leg, she saw a maid in green running towards Xiaowu.

Aunt Cui looked at the maid's back, disdainfully pursed her lips, but her expression froze in an instant.

She realized that Xiaowu had been watching her all along.

With wide-open eyes, Xiaowu stared at her without blinking, making Aunt Cui feel uneasy.

She couldn't help but wonder, what was wrong with this child? Just a moment ago, she was crying injustice, and the next moment, she was apologizing and kowtowing?

Aunt Cui felt flustered and averted her gaze.

But Xiaowu continued to stare at her.

The woman with a coiled bun looked young, perhaps around twenty-five or twenty-six.

Without hesitation, Xiaowu turned her gaze to the maid in green who was running towards her.

The spring-colored dress of plum blossoms faintly resembled her memory.

But... how could this be possible?

She carefully examined the maid's features and softly called out, "Aunt Bai?"

"Yes, it's me!" The maid in green carefully helped her and tearfully asked, "Miss, are you in pain?"

Xiaowu, sweating profusely, weakly smiled upon hearing this.

It was indeed Aunt Bai. Only Aunt Bai would ask her if she was in pain in such a silly manner.

She leaned on Aunt Bai and barely managed to stand up straight.

But after kneeling for so long and kowtowing vigorously just now, Xiaowu felt dizzy and almost fell down again.

Fortunately, Matriarch Shen, quick to react, hurriedly supported her.

After helping her, Matriarch Shen scolded Aunt Bai while straightening her own clothes, "Aunt, you should be more careful. You don't want Miss to fall."

Matriarch Shen was a maid who came with Mrs. Qi to the Jingning Marquis's mansion and had been serving there for decades. Even the Marquis himself would be polite to her.

Aunt Bai nodded and didn't dare to say more.

She just nervously supported Xiaowu and led her back to the Fragrant Pavilion. However, the maids inside the pavilion only casually came to take over when they entered.

Some maids drew the curtains, while others supported Xiaowu into the inner room.

Aunt Bai followed, wiping her tears and reminding the maids, "Miss has injuries on her back, so don't let her lie down. Be careful and watch over her at night for the next few days."

The maids casually responded.

Xiaowu suddenly stopped in her tracks.

Aunt Bai asked, "What's wrong?"

The young maids also looked at Xiaowu.

With little strength, Xiaowu looked at them and said, "I want to bathe."

Just then, the senior maid, Bixu, walked in and smiled, "Miss, there might not be hot water on the stove right now. Rest for a while and we can talk about it later."

Taiwei looked at the quietly burning lamp in the corner of the room and spoke softly with a hint of hoarseness, "Has the Jingning Marquis's mansion become so poor that they don't even have firewood to boil water?"

Everyone was startled.

Bizhu remained silent.

Taiwei took a few steps forward and sat down on a chair, then repeated, "I want to bathe."

"Bizhu," Lady Bai rubbed the cloth in her hands and said softly, "Didn't you hear what your mistress said? Hurry and send someone to the kitchen to fetch water."

Bizhu glanced at Lady Bai and then at Taiwei, finally agreeing and turning to leave.

Lady Bai then said to Taiwei, "Fifth Miss, shall I have the maidservant assist you with your bath?"

"...Aunt, what time is it?" Taiwei lowered her head, her expression somewhat obscure and unclear, responding with a question instead of an answer.

Lady Bai was taken aback, "It should be past the evening hour."

Taiwei raised her head, her eyes shining with an unfamiliar light, "It seems that it's not early, Aunt, you should go back and rest early."

She was currently confused and in pain, and simply did not have the energy to interact with others.

Seeing Lady Bai's silence, she repeated in a soft voice, "Aunt, go back and rest."

Seeing Taiwei's resolute attitude, Lady Bai sighed and gave a few instructions before leaving.

After a while, Bizhu led someone to bring in hot water and said to Taiwei after coming out of the washroom, "Although summer is approaching, there is still a chill in the night. The water was cooled quite a bit on the way back due to the wind, it's not as hot as when I fetched it."