The cold attitude and murderous aura made Madam Han's face turn ashen.
Just then, a voice rang out from behind them.
"How dare you, unfilial daughter, be so presumptuous in the manor! You truly are tired of living!"
A man in a black robe and a straw hat pushed Gu Kun, who was in a wheelchair, through the crowd and approached Gu Qianying.
As they approached, an evil wind began to swirl.
Gu Qianying's indifferent gaze did not fall on Master Gu, but rather on the man pushing her father, who dared not show his true face.
Such profound internal energy!
Suddenly, the man standing behind Master Gu turned slightly, facing Gu Qianying, and raised his arm to lightly brush it.
A powerful surge of internal energy violently struck Gu Qianying.
Gu Qianying's pupils contracted, and she quickly raised her arm, intending to use her internal energy to retaliate.
But the attacking force was too strong and too fast.
Before Gu Qianying could even make a move, she was directly struck by the man's palm.
*Pfft!*
She spat out blood.
She was severely injured, her face instantly turning pale, and her body swayed unsteadily.
"Daughter!"
The First Madam cried out in alarm and rushed forward, supporting her as she teetered.
Her eyelids grew heavy, and everything before her eyes began to blur.
Finally, she fainted into the First Madam's arms.
"Daughter!"
The First Madam wept, holding Gu Qianying, at a loss.
The wet nurse, Nanny Wang, behind them also began to cry.
Seeing Gu Qianying severely injured, Madam Han was overjoyed.
The little slut was finally injured, and now she no longer feared her.
It was just a pity that she wasn't beaten to death on the spot, and also, the little slut's mother, Bai Wan Ting, was still alive and well, which was also a shame.
"Master, excessive anger harms the body. Please calm down. The eldest young lady has always been spoiled and willful, and her attitude towards this madam is often like this. This concubine has long been accustomed to it, but... now, our Gu manor is not what it used to be, and you yourself were almost implicated due to the matter of the old master and the eldest young master. If you ask me, it would be better to take this opportunity to drive out the eldest young lady and her son from the manor and let them temporarily hide in the countryside for some time. This way, it will both show your stance to the one in the palace, and at the same time, we can attribute all the recent misfortunes of our manor to the eldest young lady being a harbinger of misfortune, cursed by fate, and thus forbidden."
Listening to Madam Han's words, Master Gu immediately said without thinking, "Yes, do as you say."
"Yes, Master."
With that, the man wearing the straw hat pushed him away at Master Gu's instruction.
At this moment, everyone present was focused on Gu Qianying and her mother, and no one noticed that the man pushing Master Gu away, his eyes hidden beneath the straw hat, had lingered on Gu Qianying for a long time.
Gardening Pavilion.
"Be quick about it. Help sister Wan Ting if you can. Hurry up and throw out all these trivial things in the room. Sister Wan Ting has to take her injured daughter and a useless wet nurse on a journey today. It will be inconvenient to bring these small, scattered items with them. It's better to throw them out. As for this place, it will become the place where this madam lives from now on."
"Madam, oh, this servant heard the Master say that this place will be completely renovated. Yes, after all, this room will be yours, Madam, and the Master will naturally have people renovate it according to your preferences. Madam, the Master truly dotes on you."
Madam Han sat at the head of the Gardening Pavilion, a triumphant smile on her face, holding a cup of tea. The tea cup, carved from exquisite jade, sparkled in her hand, dazzlingly bright.
The personal maid serving her flattered her, and Madam Han's smile deepened.
Meanwhile.
All the valuable jade items in the hall, including the precious jewelry usually used by the First Madam and Gu Qianying, were confiscated by Madam Han.
Inside the room, there was a clatter.
Dishes, jade pots, tables, and chairs were all moved out.
At this moment,
The First Madam sat by the bed, using a handkerchief dipped in warm water to wipe Gu Qianying's forehead. The water dripping from the handkerchief stained her clothes, but she paid no mind.
After she and Nanny Wang carried her daughter out, her daughter had not woken up and had developed a fever.
Earlier, she seemed to recall her daughter mentioning that if one had a fever and no medicine, one could first use warm water to wipe the forehead, palms, and other areas that could lower body temperature.
"Clang!"
The basin containing half a basin of warm water, about five feet away, was overturned on the ground.
"Wipe what? Didn't you hear Madam Han say that this room already belongs to Madam Han? Why are you still lingering here? Hurry up and get out!"
After knocking over the basin of warm water, Madam Han's maid also pulled off the quilt that was covering Gu Qianying and reached out viciously, trying to drag Gu Qianying off the edge of the bed.
"No, don't!"
The First Madam slapped away the maid's hand, hugging her daughter tightly, "Don't do this. My daughter has a fever and needs rest."
"Heh, rest? Bai Wan Ting, even now, do you still foolishly believe that this manor can accommodate your mother and daughter?" Madam Han looked at the First Madam, the contempt in her eyes extremely obvious.
"Aunt Han, no, no, no, Madam Han, it is Madam Han. Please spare my daughter, I beg you."
After tidying up Gu Qianying and smoothing her slightly messy hair, the First Madam turned around.
Having lived in deep courtyards and large mansions for many years, she naturally understood the power struggles among the women in these mansions.
In the current situation, she could endure any grievance, only hoping to secure a place for her daughter in this manor.
Nanny Wang, standing beside them, saw the First Madam kneeling at Madam Han's feet and also knelt down with tears in her eyes.
She understood that Madam Han was the most influential person in the rear courtyard of the manor at the moment. Perhaps by begging her, the First Madam and her daughter could stay.
Her First Madam and young lady would not be accustomed to the simple meals and rough living in the countryside.
"Oh! Are you begging me?"
Seeing the once proud and arrogant First Madam now kneeling at her feet, begging her to be lenient with them, Madam Han found the scene most satisfying.
Madam Han's mood instantly improved.
"This madam is thirsty!"
Madam Han, holding a handkerchief, looked at the kneeling figures with a hidden meaning.
The personal maid serving her understood and immediately poured a cup of hot tea. She held the tea cup and stood to the right of the First Madam, not handing the cup to Madam Han.
The implication was obvious.
Nanny Wang wanted to take the tea from the maid for her First Madam, but as she got up, she was pushed back down by the arriving concubine Bai Shi.
"Bai Wan Ting, are you deaf? Didn't you hear? Madam Han said she's thirsty!"
Concubine Bai then had the maids accompanying her bring a chair for her, and she sat closer to watch the show.
She also intermittently said, "Bai Wan Ting, my sister Bai, for the sake of our shared surname Bai, I won't mind giving you a few pointers. Now, our Madam Han is the favored one in front of the Master, and our Master is the favored one next to the principal figure in the palace. Even though the eldest young master and the old master have been arrested, so what?
Our Master and the entire Gu manor are safe and sound. Therefore, if you and your daughter wish to continue living well in the manor, you must beg our Madam Han properly!"
"Madam Han, please have some tea."
A moment later.
The First Madam took the tea cup from the maid and stood before Madam Han, bowing her waist.
For her daughter, she was willing to do anything.
Madam Han remained silent, as if she hadn't heard the First Madam speak.
"Madam Han, please have some tea."
Madam Han still did not speak.
"First Madam, please have some tea!"
The First Madam's voice grew louder.
Madam Han still did not speak, but she looked at her.
Only when the First Madam's hands, holding the tea cup, began to tremble, and her fingers were already red from the heat, did Madam Han slowly say, "Kneel."
The First Madam's body stiffened abruptly.