Pearl looked at the pond, and immediately felt a sense of difficulty. The pond must have an area of at least a hundred square meters.
How could she possibly change all the water in the pond by herself? Not to mention where to put all this water.
"Sister Pearl, where do we put the water from the pond?"
Xiao Qi looked at the seemingly endless pond and immediately worried about how long it would take to change it.
"Pour it on the ground."
She looked around, and realized that pouring the water onto the ground was the best method.
"Pour it on the ground..."
Xiao Qi looked at the ground at her feet doubtfully. "Sister, do you really plan to change all the water?"
"Otherwise?"
Having said that, Pearl got up to find something to hold water. After searching for a long time, she found a basin, bent down, and began to scoop water to pour it out.
"Sister, the water in the pond looks the same anyway. Even if we don't change it, no one will be able to tell. Why don't we just leave it as it is?"
"No, first let's get the water out. We'll do as much as we can."
She directly rejected Xiao Qi's suggestion. From the meeting today, she felt that that lady was no simple person.
If she tried to be clever, she would only end up harming herself. Since she was to be punished, if she didn't work hard, she wouldn't satisfy them.
"Sister, this is simply an impossible task. I think you're just working for nothing. I think that lady is deliberately making things difficult for you. If you can't finish it, she'll find some excuse to make things even more difficult for you."
After all, she had grown up in the palace and had been meticulously taught by Madam Sun for so many years. She could still understand this small matter.
That lady was deliberately finding a tricky reason to make things difficult for Sister Pearl. If she couldn't finish it, who knew what other excuses she would find to make things difficult.
"We servants are born with humble lives. Whether our masters are good to us or punish us, it is all a blessing. We should only accept it with gratitude. Don't you understand these things, having grown up in the palace?"
Since she was demoted to a servant in her youth and her property was confiscated, she had already accepted her fate of being a servant for life. Her greatest desire was to protect her sister. If she could let her sister leave the palace and live a normal life, she would be content.
Now that her sister was no longer here, she had no attachments in this world, and was merely lingering on, waiting to die.
"I understand everything, sister. I just feel that we servants have such humble lives. When our masters are unhappy, they take it out on us. Being beaten or scolded is a minor matter; we don't even know when we lose our lives."
Pearl's eyes suddenly tightened. She had never known that Xiao Qi, at such a young age, harbored such thoughts.
"Xiao Qi, you mustn't say such things."
There were people's eyes everywhere. They had to be more careful when speaking. If a single word was out of place and fell into the masters' ears, their lives would be forfeit.
"Xiao Qi, what did I teach you before? Speak less and do more, especially don't discuss your masters' affairs!"
How many people had lost their lives just by saying the wrong thing and offending their masters.
Pearl, terrified, quickly rebuked Xiao Qi, fearing that Xiao Qi would follow in their footsteps.
"Sister... I, I misspoke just now. I was dissatisfied in my heart, so I said something carelessly. I didn't... I didn't mean to..."
Xiao Qi finally realized what she had just said. If someone with ulterior motives overheard it and spread it around, her little life would be lost.
If Madam Sun found out, she would surely kill her.
Thinking of this, she couldn't help but feel a chill down her spine, a lingering fear. Fortunately, she had said these words to Sister Pearl. If she had said them to someone else, her life would likely have been lost.
"Don't talk nonsense anymore in the future, do you understand!"
Pearl was also worried about Xiao Qi, and her tone could not help but become a little harsher.
"I understand. I won't talk nonsense anymore in the future." Xiao Qi nodded quickly, still feeling a sense of lingering fear in her heart.
"You go sit over there first. When I'm done, we'll go back together."
Having Xiao Qi stand there wouldn't help at all, so she directly sent her aside. It would be better for her to sit over there.
"What a touching scene of sisterly affection. To have the punished and the onlooker together, the rules of your Xiliang people are truly strange!"
Cai Qing's slightly sharp and mean voice rang out. Even she admired herself. This sentence was truly well-spoken and imposing. It was sure to awe them.
She was now representing the young madam and supervising, so she couldn't lose face for the young madam.
"Miss, my sister was just idle and came here to wait for me. She's leaving now. She absolutely didn't help me."
Fearing that she would implicate Xiao Qi further, Pearl quickly spoke, pushing Xiao Qi aside and signaling her to leave quickly with her eyes.
"You are currently being punished, not allowed to chat here. I think the punishment is too light, as it still gives you time to chat!"
It was the first time she was playing such a villainous role. Cai Qing's expression was slightly dazed, with obvious traces of effort on her face.
To maintain her ferocious appearance, Cai Qing had put in her utmost effort, her almond-shaped eyes glaring at Pearl and Xiao Qi with murderous intent.
"What's wrong with you, girl? Why are you so fierce? My sister just said that I'm leaving now, and you're still deliberately making things difficult for my sister!"
Xiao Qi couldn't stand it any longer and stepped forward, speaking up for Pearl righteously.
If the person who came was that fierce lady from today, she wouldn't dare to say a single word, even if she were given ten times the courage.
Who knew that the one who came was a servant by the lady's side? Since they were both servants, their statuses were considered equal, which gave Xiao Qi the courage to step forward and speak.
Sister Pearl had helped her a lot before. Now that Sister Pearl was in trouble, she naturally had to help as much as she could. How could she hide in the back like a shrinking turtle?
"Xiao Qi, don't talk nonsense!"
Seeing that things were not going well, Pearl pulled Xiao Qi behind her to protect her.
"Miss, my sister is young and doesn't understand things, speaking without restraint. Miss, you are magnanimous, please don't be upset with my sister."
She couldn't implicate Xiao Qi and have her punished along with her. She quickly spoke subserviently to Cai Qing, trying to placate her.
"Since you are dissatisfied, then you will be punished together."
Cai Qing had now learned some of Feng Jin's essence and directly ordered Xiao Qi to be punished along with Pearl.
"Miss... this..."
Before Pearl could beg for mercy, Xiao Qi said indignantly, "Why do you punish me? You are a servant just like us. What right do you have to punish me!"
In her eyes, they were all servants, all the same people. Why could Cai Qing scold them so arrogantly?