Li Zhao'er wept heartbrokenly, her pain clearly genuine. Sweat beaded on her forehead, a testament to her suffering.
Upon hearing her daughter's cries, Madam Guo's heart ached. She immediately berated her own entourage, "Are you all dead? Why aren't you pulling the elder young lady away!"
Two burly maids stepped forward to seize Li Man'er. Lu Yi and Zi Yan, however, would not let them near. They swiftly positioned themselves in front of Li Man'er.
Zi Yan spoke, "Madam, please calm your anger. Our young lady is not unreasonable. It was the second young lady who attacked the elder young lady, and our young lady was merely defending herself."
"Exactly!" Lu Yi, quick-witted and fiery, added, "Madam, it would be wise to understand the situation before taking action."
"Presumptuous."
Madam Guo refused to listen. She was determined not to let her daughter suffer. "Bring more people! Pull these little vipers away from her."
Madam Guo had come prepared, bringing a large retinue. At her command, several more maids, all stout and strong, entered from outside.
These maids had coarse, weathered faces that quivered when they walked, making them appear quite intimidating.
The maids swarmed forward, their hands ungentle as they shoved, specifically targeting the maids' waists and arms. Their calloused hands, like vises, pinched the girls, causing them to turn pale with fear.
The maids of Qingping Xuan were all delicate and fair-skinned, no match for these rough servants. They suffered immediate disadvantage upon contact.
Seeing her own maids in trouble, Li Man'er held Li Zhao'er's shoulders firmly and roared, "Get away from her, all of you, or I'll break her arm!"
The maids hesitated, daring not to act, and looked to Madam Guo. Madam Guo forced a smile and said, "The elder and second young ladies are fighting without restraint. What are you waiting for? Pull them apart!"
With their mistress's backing, the maids charged forward again.
Li Man'er sneered. Those who ignored her words would pay the price. This time, she acted without hesitation. With one hand on Li Zhao'er's shoulder and the other gripping her wrist, she pulled down with a skillful maneuver.
"Ah~"
A sound like a pig being slaughtered erupted in the room. Li Zhao'er fell directly to the ground, wailing incessantly.
"It hurts, it hurts so much, Mother, my arm."
Madam Guo nearly fainted. Forgetting to scold anyone, she rushed over, frantically examining Li Zhao'er. "Zhao'er, how are you? Where does it hurt?"
"Mother, I can't move my hand, it hurts so much." Li Zhao'er cried with gusto, "Mother, save me, call a doctor."
Madam Guo remembered and quickly ordered someone to fetch a doctor.
"You few, come here and carry the second young lady back to her courtyard."
The maids hurried over to lift Li Zhao'er, but she refused to let anyone touch her, claiming pain everywhere. In the end, they had no choice but to carry her out.
Once Li Zhao'er was gone, Madam Guo felt fearless. She strode menacingly towards Li Man'er and raised her hand to discipline her. She felt a burning need to slap her to quell her anger.
The maids cried out in alarm, fearing their young lady would be harmed.
Li Man'er was not the original owner, so she would not let Madam Guo succeed. She grabbed Madam Guo's wrist and taunted, "You mother and daughter are truly birds of a feather, using the same trick to hit people."
Madam Guo's eyes widened, and she berated, "Li Man'er, I am your mother, how dare you speak to me like that? Are you trying to hit me?"
The maids were so scared they dared not even breathe.
"If someone respects me an inch, I'll respect them a foot," Li Man'er glared fiercely at Madam Guo, making her swallow her angry words.
For some reason, she found Li Man'er more terrifying than her usual unruly self.
"All of you, get out."
Zi Yan and the others dared not disobey Li Man'er's order. Seeing that she did not appear to be at a disadvantage, they retreated as instructed.
Madam Guo's people, however, did not obey Li Man'er. If the elder young lady were to go mad, she might even hit Madam herself; it was safer to stay.
Li Man'er smiled thinly at Madam Guo. "Mother, perhaps you should have your people withdraw. Wouldn't it be better for our mother and daughter to speak alone?"
Madam Guo gritted her teeth and asked, "What do you want?"
"What do I want? What can I want!" Li Man'er laughed eerily and whispered close to Madam Guo's ear, in a voice only they could hear, "Perhaps we could discuss the matter of you poisoning me? That kind of drug that drives people mad is difficult to find, isn't it? Colorless and odorless, mixed into food, it would be completely undetectable."
These words struck Madam Guo like lightning. Her heart screamed impossibility, while she tried to maintain composure. In reality, she was panicking.
"I don't know what you're talking about."
"It doesn't matter if you don't know. We can go and explain ourselves to Grandmother. Oh, I almost forgot, Grandmother's younger sister, Mother's legitimate aunt, Madam Cui Wanying of the Zhennan Marquis's third branch, who is now the matriarch of the Guo family, was quite knowledgeable in pharmacology during her youth."
A look of horror spread across Madam Guo's face. She turned and ordered her servants, "All of you, leave. Do not enter without my command."
The servants dared not defy Madam Guo's order and filed out. Seeing this, Zi Yan and the others immediately stood guard at the door, ready to rush in at any moment.
With no one else in the room, Li Man'er no longer bothered to play pretend with Madam Guo. She released Madam Guo's wrist and raised her other hand, delivering a fierce slap to Madam Guo's face.
Madam Guo fell to the ground, her face stinging. She clutched her face and turned back, disbelief and fury in her voice as she demanded, "You dare to hit me."
Li Man'er shrugged. "I hit you because I wanted to. Do I need your permission?"
"This is unfilial! Are you rebelling?"
"My dear mother, you claim I hit you. Do you have witnesses? Do you have evidence?"
Madam Guo pointed hysterically at her face. "The injury on my face is evidence!"
"Don't be ridiculous. I have a mirror in my room. Why don't you take a look? Mother is well-maintained, her skin is like jade. How could there be an injury on your face?"
Madam Guo blinked, then quickly scrambled to her feet and rushed to the crystal mirror in the room. The person in the mirror had a perfectly clean face, not a mark on it.
Madam Guo exclaimed, "How is this possible?" Her face burned with pain. Based on her experience, that slap should have been enough to swell her face. Yet, the person in the mirror had flawless skin, not even a trace of redness.
"Anything is possible, just as you never expected that one day I would detoxify myself and become a normal person."
Madam Guo looked at Li Man'er in the mirror. Her composure finally broke. Her eyes were filled with terror, and she was speechless, as if her throat were constricted.