Ms. Cao on the couch raised her hand slightly, and the two maids stopped and stood aside.
Xiuyin hurriedly knelt down and straightened up.
Taoye resisted the urge to look aside and kept his eyes straight: "Old Madam Rong, it is indeed wrong to use lake silk for embroidery yin, but embroidery yin is just an ordinary embroidery girl in a sewing room. The old lady used it for worshiping Buddha. The embroidery lady with the most experience and the best skills in the mansion has taken over it, so this cloth should be kept strictly guarded, so why did it end up here in Xiuyin?"
"If there is a mistake, it is not Xiuyin's fault alone!"
"Old Madam, please take a closer look!"
The affairs of the back house of the Duke's Mansion are nominally in charge of the wife, but in fact, in recent years, the wife has not paid much attention to it. At most, she only looks at the account books.
In the past two years, I haven't even bothered with the account books.
On the other hand, Aunt Luo, who often served in front of the old lady, was asked by the old lady to assist in the affairs of the back house many times.
There are many of our own people stationed everywhere.
Regarding the sewing room, Taoye didn't believe it was not the work of these people.
The second young master has a broken leg, and I heard that he still cannot walk normally, so Aunt Luo will not let her go.
"Perhaps this embroiderer thinks she has climbed to a high branch and has nothing to rely on!"
Mrs. Cao stared at Tao Ye with stern eyes.
Wearing an ordinary maid's clothing, she outlines a very enchanting figure, and her reddish eyes are full of spring.
What made her even more dissatisfied was that a maid who was born humble actually seemed to be vaguely elegant and noble when she just argued her case.
The Cao family dislikes people who are outstanding in appearance but not servile enough.
"Old Madam, Xiu Yin has always been very careful and she never dares to do such unruly things intentionally, and this servant dare not get involved with things belonging to Shou'antang!"
"This slave has heard that Buddha has boundless kindness and compassion for all living beings, and he definitely doesn't want anyone to be wronged!"
If a peach leaf cannot catch a high branch or not, if it does, then you will admit that you are worthy of the word "high branch" and you will definitely be caught.
As the old lady believed in Buddhism, she could only try this.
But she knew in her heart that this might be in vain.
The old lady looked at her with eyes filled with disgust, perhaps because of the Second Young Master's incident, or perhaps because her eldest aunt told her that she was not a good person when she came to Shou'antang yesterday.
"Old madam, I also think that Miss Taoye is not like this. After all, she is someone who has served madam. She follows the rules in words and deeds. There must be some misunderstanding!"
Luo Xiangyan said softly on the side.
"Hmph, Mrs. Gu herself is an unruly person. With such a master, no wonder she is so arrogant!"
The old lady was indeed extremely dissatisfied with her, and she actually spoke out about her fault in front of the Duke's concubines and servants like them.
Taoye's heart sank again.
Although she used to be a well-known maid in the house, she didn't have much contact with the old lady.
Only today did I realize that the old lady is so paranoid.
It seemed that reason didn't make sense. Even if she had Linglongyu, she still had to be a "reasonable" person.
"Old madam, I still feel..."
Aunt Luo wanted to say more, but Mrs. Cao on the couch gave her a dissatisfied look: "Okay, I've told you many times that you can't be too soft-hearted when taking care of the back house. You should remember the rules and forget about those things. Ying'er's leg was injured by this unruly guy!"
Luo Shi's eyes turned red at the mention of these words, especially the weak and humble expression between his eyebrows.
Her lips moved slightly, as if she wanted to persuade her some more, but because of the stern look on Ms. Cao's face, she could only hold the handkerchief and stand.
I really can't afford it.
Mrs. Cao sighed inwardly, but there was a surge of arrogance in her heart.
"I ask again, do you know your guilt?"
Taoye almost sneered. It didn't matter whether she knew she was guilty or not. No matter how well-founded her self-defense was, the person above her would not listen.
"The old lady got angry today. Miss Taoye should admit her mistake earlier. The old lady is kind-hearted, but she just wants to receive a punishment. If you make the old lady angry again and hurt your body, then you two will have committed a serious crime!"
"This embroiderer originally obeyed orders, but she acted inappropriately. Now that she has been punished, she has learned a lesson!"
This is a secret threat to yourself.
Aunt Luo had someone in the sewing room, and she must have known that Xiu Yin was friends with her. If she didn't admit it, both of them would suffer. If she took the blame, Xiu Yin would be spared.
"My slave, I plead guilty! It was my slave who mentioned in front of Xiuyin that the new dress should be made of fine silk and satin, so Xiuyin took the lake silk by mistake!"
The bamboo ruler just now was so sharp that it was struck diagonally several times. If she was slapped again, Xiuyin might not be able to bear it.
After all, the two above did not intend to leave the Shou'an Hall with their tails intact today.
"Old madam, you see this person has admitted his mistake, so don't be angry with yourself!"
Luo Xiangyan said happily.
"Ms. Gu doesn't know how to train people, so I'm going to have to work hard today!"
"Come here, pull this maid into the courtyard and reward her with thirty pieces of bread!"
Mrs. Cao ordered in a cold voice.
"You two, take this person out!"
After Mother Wang gave an order, Taoye was roughly pulled up by two maids.
Xiuyin's bruised and swollen face was full of anxiety, but Taoye just shook his head to signal her to be silent.
She was not as smart as Tao Ye, but she could tell that the old lady was definitely going to punish Tao Ye today.
Taoye was escorted to the foot of the steps by the two maids. Before she could stand still, she felt a sharp pain in her knee.
His knees fell to the ground, and before the pain could subside, his body was pressed to the ground. The two maids immediately stood up and stepped away, and two rough ladies holding red wooden boards came forward.
Shouantang even had the boards ready.
Taoye felt cold.
If it was only thirty boards, she could survive it.
But Aunt Luo often walks in Shou'an Hall, so it is not difficult to bribe an executioner. Today's ban will definitely be difficult.
She knew that the method of playing this board was very particular. If she had the intention, thirty boards would be enough to make her lose her legs.
That's right, the second young master had his leg broken by the fifth young master because of her, and Aunt Luo was going to retaliate in kind.
Taoye felt fear that she had never felt before.
If she loses her legs, not only will she never be able to find her family again, but she will also have no way of survival in the future.
But she just thought about this, so what?
The rough ladies standing on both sides had raised the red wooden board high, and seeing that it was about to fall on her, Taoye couldn't help but close her eyes and gritted her teeth.
But the unexpected pain did not fall on him. Instead, he felt a warm body leaning against his back, and a cry of pain rang in his ears.
It was Xiuyin who stood behind him.
"Get out of the way!"
"It's me who the old lady wants to punish, so don't do it in vain..."
Taoye turned her head and said eagerly. The latter words were spoken very softly, but she knew that Xiuyin could understand them.
Xiu Yin was already tired of herself, let alone suffer another pain.
