Chapter 22: Picking Trouble (Part 2)

  She needs to be made aware of her own position!

  Yao Cunmei and Ma Qunfang exchanged a triumphant glance, Yao Cunmei turned to face Yao Cunhui and said: "Second sister, did you hear that? Even Second Aunt is saying so! You kneel down and kowtow three times, I'll forgive you. Otherwise, humph, don't blame me for being impolite!" Yao Cunmei's icy gaze swept over Hong Lian.

  Hong's face suddenly turned pale, biting her lips tightly, her nostrils flared, and she stood aside, desperately holding back tears.

  She hadn't expected that her own careless words would land Second Miss in such a predicament. Now, she didn't dare say anything or make any move, because the more she did, the more mistakes she'd make. She had already wronged Second Miss once and absolutely couldn't give Third Miss another excuse.

  Mao thought that Hong Lian, who was loyal to Yao Cunhui, would jump out and take the blame on herself, but instead she stood still like a wooden stake, not moving at all. This made Mao think more highly of her: she's a maid who can keep her cool!

  After a moment of silence, Yao Cun Hui spoke softly: "With age comes order, can Third Sister afford to be on an equal footing with me, the three elders? Coincidentally, Second Aunt is also here. If Third Sister can say with a straight face that she can afford it, as her elder sister, I will naturally give her the sincerity she wants."

  Yao Cunhui's pair of dark, tranquil eyes were like two clear pools of water, staring unwaveringly at Yao Cunmei. Her thin lips were slightly pursed, and the calm, composed air about her eyebrows made Yao Cunmei's heart involuntarily skip a beat.

  Whether intentionally or unintentionally, Yao Cunhui just bumped into her, and with three loud knocks on the head, she herself didn't dare to withstand Yao Cunmei's sudden stunned expression.

  She knew her mother was a stickler for rules and etiquette, and doing so would put her in a difficult position. However, what she worried about more was that if her father were to find out about this matter...

  Mao was also secretly worried, this matter originally had nothing to do with her, but Yao Cunhui's words dragged her into it! As an elder, Yao Cunmei made such a presumptuous and rude request to her elder sister, and as an elder herself, she not only failed to dissuade her but also spread the news around, didn't she want to save face? And she was from a family of scholars too! Wasn't that enough for others to mock?!

  "Hui'er is right, Mei'er, you can't say such hurtful words even when you're angry!" Mrs. Mao had to intervene and smooth things over, subtly excusing Yao Cunmei in the process.

  Yao Cun Mei felt a deep sense of surprise, but she also knew to yield and followed the stairs down. She let out a soft hum and said: "Thanks for reminding me, Second Aunt, I was indeed blinded by my anger!" Her piercing gaze swept across Yao Cun Hui's body as she smiled and said: "Second Sister, the buttons on your clothes are really beautiful, I want them! You wouldn't mind parting with something external, would you?"

  As soon as her voice fell, everyone's eyes were on Yao Cunhui. Today, Yao Cunhui was wearing a lotus-colored white jade lan autumn robe with a crimson butterfly love flower mother-of-pearl button. The button was divided into butterflies and peony flowers when opened, and when closed, it formed the shape of a butterfly love flower, which was very lively and beautiful, and could be said to be the finishing touch for this entire outfit.

  Yao Cunmei's eyes were not to be trifled with, and her mind was equally sharp.

  "Since Sanmei likes it, I'll take the buttons off and give them to her when I get back!" Although she knew that Yao Cunmei was deliberately saving face for herself, Yao Cunhui was willing to acknowledge it! After all, it's just a piece of clothing, no matter how exquisite, it's still an external object.

  "No," Yao Cunmei's slender eyebrows rose high in defiance. "I'm going right now!"

  Everyone couldn't help but take a cold breath, even Mao was stunned!

  Yao Cun Mei, indeed has a petty mind. Now she's even going to take the buttons off other people's clothes! How is that person supposed to go back? The second young lady of the manor, returning from the garden with her clothes all disheveled, won't she be the laughing stock?!

  "What's wrong? Second sister can't bear to part with it? It's just a few buttons, second sister really doesn't have any sincerity!" Yao Cunmei sneered, turning to glare at Hong Lian: "Xiu Hui, go call the housekeeper from the second gate and tell her that there is a servant here who disrespects their master. Let them take her away and teach her a lesson! If she doesn't listen, sell her off!"

  "I'll give it to you!" Yao Cunhui said with a calm expression, her face still serene. A faint smile played on the corner of her mouth as she slowly spoke: "It's just a few buttons, Sanmei likes them, I'll give them to you now." As she spoke, she pulled out a golden hairpin from her coiffure, one end of which was sharp as a needle and could be used to pry out the buttons.

  "Second Miss..." Hong Lian finally couldn't bear it, lifted her teary eyes to look at Yao Cun Hui. This was all her fault, all because of her that Second Miss suffered this humiliation...

  A young lady of noble birth, stripping off the buttons on her clothes in public, how can people look at her? The image she has just established will collapse in an instant, and all her previous efforts will be wasted!

  Yao Cunhui didn't say a word, but in her heart she was also extremely angry, secretly swearing an oath: "Yao Cunmei, you are so cruel and narrow-minded, with a wicked heart. The humiliation I suffered today, I will return tenfold, a hundredfold tomorrow. You just wait!"

  Yao Cunhui endured the humiliation and agreed to come down, but unexpectedly, Yao Cunmei saw her face unchanged, completely without that kind of suffering pale painful expression, but felt very uninteresting, and shouted again in a bad temper: "I don't want this button anymore, Second Sister should stop it!"

  Everyone was stunned again, except for Ma Qunfang who had been following Yao Cunmei every day and had grasped about 40% of her temperament. The rest of the people did not understand what Yao Cunmei meant. Hong Lian, this kind-hearted girl, secretly rejoiced, thinking that Third Miss would still consider two points of sisterly love and would not bear to let Second Miss be humiliated in public.

  Yao Cun Hui raised an eyebrow in surprise and looked at Yao Cun Mei with a puzzled expression, she didn't think that Yao Cun Mei would let her off easily!

  Yao Cunmei didn't disappoint her, and with a sneer, she said: "One person does something, one person takes responsibility. It's clear that the maid did something wrong, how can I let Second Sister take the blame? And for the sake of this stinky maid, ruining our sisterly relationship is even more not worth it! Xiuhui, go call the housekeeper from the second door, today I'm going to teach this ignorant and rude maid a lesson on behalf of Second Sister!"

  Yao Cunhui's face changed slightly, her pupils suddenly shrinking, turning around and around, not thinking that she would point the spearhead at Hong Lian again!

  Yao Cunmei saw Yao Cunhui's subtle expression, and knew that she had found her weak point this time. She couldn't help but feel triumphant in her heart, and the corner of her mouth curled up in a victorious smile. With a slight raise of her chin, she said: "Xiuhui, what are you waiting for? Go!"

  "Don't go!" Yao Cunhui hastily stepped forward and stretched out her hand to stop Xiu Hui, coldly staring at Yao Cunmei: "Sister, do you really want it to be like this?"

  "Not bad!" Yao Cunmei shot back, looking at her with disdain. "Did I do something wrong? Sister, he's just a servant who dares to offend his superior, is he worth your protection?"

  "There's no need for my sister to wear such a big hat! The maids who follow the young ladies are naturally more spoiled than others, and I have indeed been indulging her too much. That's why she was so quick to anger my sister. Later, I will teach her a lesson and give an explanation to my sister. But taking it to the housekeepers is going too far! If you say someone has overstepped their bounds, there is indeed one person who has done so here, but I don't know how my sister plans to deal with them."

  Yao Cun Hui pointed at Xiu Hui with one hand while speaking.

  "Me?" Xiu Hui was suddenly stunned and couldn't help but turn her head to look at Yao Cun Mei, not understanding how this fire had suddenly burned onto her own body!

  "What do you mean?" Yao Cunmei was also puzzled, and she thought Yao Cunhui was talking nonsense. She sneered: "With a red mouth and white teeth, Second Sister should speak with evidence!"

  Yao Cunhui sneered and said lightly: "The evidence is already there, doesn't Sanmei know? Sanmei has forgotten, what was her name again?"

  "What a name! This is even more ridiculous! Could it be that she can't be called by this name?" Yao Cunmei laughed loudly, throwing her head back.

  Mao's eyes flickered, and he slightly curled his lips. Yao Cunmei had indeed learned a few true moves from Master Ma, but unfortunately, when facing Yao Cunhui, they were still not enough to impress!

  "Of course, it can't be called!" Yao Cunhui said coldly: "A slave, with a name that actually has the same character as the master, Third Sister, do you want us to ask Father and Mother? Oh no, don't bother, just ask Second Aunt, what kind of family rule is this?"

  Xiu Hui? Yao Cun Mei was stunned for a moment, and only then did she remember that the name of this second sister also had a "Hui" character!

  "I'm going to die, I'm going to die!" Xiu Hui was so frightened that she lost her mind, "thud" and knelt down, kowtowing repeatedly.

  As Yao Cunhui said, no servant's name dares to have the same character as their master. Moreover, Yao Cunmei is the younger sister and Yao Cunhui is the older sister. This being the case, even Yao Cunmei's reputation would be talked about by people, let alone a mere maid like her?

  "Shut up!" Yao Cunmei's delicate face turned bright red with anger as she glared at Xiuhui.

  Xiū Huì, Xiū Róng were the two most favored senior maids by her side, with Xiū Huì being the more favored of the two. Xiū Huì was not originally called Xiū Huì, but rather Xiū Qīng, a name that had been intentionally changed by Yáo Cún Měi three years prior in order to mock and belittle Yáo Cún Huì. As time passed, even she herself forgot about this distinction of honor and humility, yet unexpectedly Yáo Cún Huì suddenly brought it up again.

  At first, when she changed her name, Xiuhui was still smiling and thanking her, with a rather pleased expression. Today, however, she knocked her head and cried out "I should die", and Yao Cunmei immediately remembered how she had thanked her back then, and it would be strange if she wasn't angry.

  Although she was angry, she couldn't refute a single word of what Yao Cunhui had said!

  Mao was even more depressed, her silver teeth clenched tightly. She had obviously come to watch the commotion, hadn't she? Why did Yao Cunhui always have a way of straightforwardly and confidently dragging her into it?

  She just can't help but intervene.

  Mao Shi was just about to speak, but Yao Cun Hui didn't give her the chance. He smiled slightly at Yao Cun Mei and said: "It's just a maid's name, who doesn't have a moment of carelessness? Why are you being so petty, Second Sister, and want to make a big deal out of it with Third Sister? If Third Sister goes back and changes her name, that's the end of it!"

  Yao Cunhui's face had a faint smile, speaking in a light and airy tone, but Yao Cunmei was getting more and more annoyed with each sentence. She was clearly taking the opportunity to mock her!

  She has already said that, how can she still have the nerve to pick on Honglian's mistakes? Is she better than others in every way, including tolerance and magnanimity?

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