Chapter 220 - Control (1/2)
Sang Wan was both shocked and angry after listening and her expression immediately sunk. It was not surprising that Gu Fangzi would call her “sister” intimately in front of Wang Shi but stab her behind her back again! Sang Wan laughed silently at herself. Gu Fangzi had always been good at plotting against others, what a fool she must be for not putting up her guard even after being at the receiving end so many times.“Third Aunt, thank you for telling me this!” Sang Wan said with gratitude, “The household has many servants who just don’t watch their mouths. I wonder which ignorant servants said such nonsense to make Third Aunt unhappy! Luckily Third Aunt is an understanding person, if not, I would not be able to explain myself even if I had more than one mouth!
“Don’t worry, you’ve always been reliable, and definitely not someone who would gossip behind peoples’ back, of course I would not believe those words! However, if someone else heard this, I can’t promise whether they would believe it or not!” Third Old Mistress Shi smiled gently before leaving her with those words.
After seeing Shi Third Old Mistress off, Sang Wan called Nanny Li over and ordered her to investigate what happened around the wall of flowers that grew on the fence that day. After Nanny Li heard Sang Wan’s story, she was infuriated too, “Young Mistress, you are so kind that others are starting to step all over you! Not just this, the case with the pastries as well, that was obviously a plot to breed disharmony between you and Old Mistress. It is even worse this time, even Third Mistress was dragged into it!” Then she added, “Luckily, Third Mistress is understanding, if it were Second Old Mistress Shi…”
Without even completing her sentence, Sang Wan understood what she meant and said coldly, “Nanny, you have to find out who those two instigators are!”
“Young Mistress, don’t worry. That isn’t actually difficult, just that it’ll be a little troublesome!” Nanny Li instantly perked up and said, “If I find out who those two are, I’ll definitely skin them alive!”
Even though there were many servants in the household, they were all responsible for their own duties. Who was in charge, what they were doing, and at what time, all could be easily identified. After a meticulous check, five servants were picked out. And after a series of careful questioning, only two servants were left.
The two servants, Liu Shun and Wu Chunfang were brought to Ning Garden1, in front of Sang Wan. Before they knew what was going on, Nanny Li popped the question, “Where were the both of you at during 3 to 5pm on the 23rd of March?” This caught them by surprise.
They did not remember the exact date. However, the acts that they had committed still made them feel guilty and their expressions twitched slightly.
Not just them, but the expression on Gu Fangzi, who was invited to be behind a screen, also changed slightly.
“You don’t remember?” Nanny Li laughed coldly, “Then let me help you recall. Have the both of you been to the wall of flowers, east of the flower garden?”
Both of them were dumbfounded and they looked at one another in a daze.
“Yes, yes. We did go there,” Liu Shun smiled, “That day, us old sisters were doing our duty there, clearing away the fallen leaves. Why is Nanny Li asking us about this all of a sudden? Did we do something wrong?
“Yes, Yes,” Wu Chunfang nodded, “We went there to sweep.”
Nanny Li said coldly, “Were you only sweeping and didn’t say anything else? Are the both of you even in a position to speak about Third Old Mistress Shi and Young Mistress?”
Li Shun and Wu Chunfang immediately claimed their innocence when they heard this, and they stubbornly refused to admit to their actions.
“Quiet, all of you!” Nanny Li said coldly, “Don’t be in a hurry to claim your innocence, listen to me first!” Nanny Li began explaining from the start. How many people were on duty that day, who were doing what, and where they were assigned to. Only the two servants were left who happened to be at the wall of flowers, “What more do you have to add? Unless there are servants that I do not know of now?”
Wu Chunfang’s face turned pale and she quickly explained herself, “I remember now, I was sweeping at Fu Rong Pavillion. I wasn’t at the wall of flowers, I was only there in the early afternoon!”
“Stop with this nonsense!” Nanny Li snorted, “If there is no evidence, why would I bring the two of you here? In the morning, both of you were in Plum Flower Garden, and after that you were at the purple vine structure and stayed there until lunch. After lunch, the both of you went to talk with the servants in the kitchen for a while before going on with your task to clean all the way from the northeast corner of the garden to the wall of flowers. Am I correct? I even have people to support my words. If you continue to lie, then I’ll bring the both of you to reflect on yourself while kneeling in the courtyard. Once you’ve finished, you may come back in and we’ll continue with this!”
Li Shun and Wu Chunfang were both taken aback. Even Gu Fangzi began to feel a little uneasy. Who knew that Sang Wan would be so detailed!
Li Shun and Wu Chunfang did not think of today when they did what they had that day. They merely did not let Third Old Mistress Shi’s maidservants recognise them, but did not avoid the other servants who were in the garden. Everyone had their duties, would Nanny Li not know if she had already investigated it beforehand?
Both of them looked at each other before turning towards Sang Wan and kowtowed, “Young Mistress, please forgive us! We were wronged! Where would we have the guts to speak badly behind our masters’ backs? Young Mistress, please check thoroughly to clear our names!”
The two people kowtowed and begged loudly. Sang Wan was always gentle and had a soft-heart; so long as they were able to seek Sang Wan’s help, Nanny Li wouldn’t be able to badger them about this since she was just a servant after all!