76 Selfishness

“20 strokes is too heavy of a punishment,” Gu Yunrong said seriously.

Even if she went to jail, it was only a prison sentence, and being exiled for 3,000 miles would not kill her.

Madam Gu was stunned. She thought that as just a young lady, it was inevitable for Gu Yunrong’s heart to soften.

Thinking that Madam Gu was hesitating, a trace of hope rose in Mother Su’s ashen eyes and she trembled.

“Third Sister, you’re wrong.”

A gentle female voice retorted firmly. It was neither loud nor soft, but it was powerful.

Gu Yunrong looked in Gu Yunzhen’s direction in shock.

Gu Yunzhen stared fixedly at Gu Yunrong and said methodically, “Mother Su has offended her master. If we don’t punish her severely as a warning to others, won’t everyone learn from her?!”

As Gu Yunzhen spoke, the shock in Gu Yunrong’s eyes intensified, as if she did not recognize her anymore.

Gu Yunzhen was a gentle person and had always been kind to the servants. Gu Yunrong thought that at least she would stand on her side and disagree with the flogging.

Gu Yunrong asked in a daze, “Big Sister also thinks she deserves to be beaten?”

“Of course.” Gu Yunzhen nodded affirmatively.

She raised her hand and pointed at Mother Su, whose eyes were filled with tears, and said firmly, “Grandpa once said that the way to control one’s subordinates is to distinguish rewards and punishments clearly. The master can’t have selfish motives and not distinguish right from wrong.”

“Third Sister, do you have selfish motives?”

Her tone remained gentle, but the meaning behind her last sentence was as sharp as a sword.

“…” Gu Yunrong’s eyes widened, as if some hidden illness in her body had suddenly been exposed in broad daylight.

Gu Yunrong instinctively wanted to say no, but she hesitated, her expression conflicted.

Madam Gu pressed her palm and looked at her comfortingly, meaning that she knew what to do.

Gu Yunrong pursed her lips, as if something was about to come out of her eyes. Sad emotions appeared between her eyebrows, but she did not say anything in the end.

As if she had fallen into an icehouse, the last flame of hope in her heart was extinguished. As if she had lost her soul, she forgot to struggle.

The old maidservants roughly dragged Mother Su to the entrance of the courtyard.

Gu Yunrong helped Madam Gu sit down at the head of the hall. She looked at the calm Gu Yunzhen for a moment and then at Gu Yanfei, who had already sat down and was drinking tea, as if she did not care about the outcome.

Her eyes flickered a few times as she held back her anger and asked herself, ‘Do I have a selfish motive, or are they too cruel?’

At this moment, for the first time, Gu Yunrong felt out of place. For the first time, she had a deep understanding that she was different from them…

“Slam!”

The sound of the board outside woke Gu Yunrong up and she looked over.

Sticks as thick as an arm slapped against flesh, time and time again. Each blow was solid and merciless, accompanied by the loud counting of the maidservant. “One, two, three…”

Mother Su’s pants were taken off and her body was pressed against a bench. Most of her bun was disheveled, and even her hairpin had fallen to the ground, as if she were a madwoman in a sorry state.

She let out a painful scream with every slap. Her voice was shrill, like thin needles stabbing at the softest spot in Gu Yunrong’s heart.

No matter how wrong Mother Su was, she was a good mother to her.

Gu Yunrong lowered her head, her manicured nails digging into her soft palm until the knuckles of her fingers were faintly white.

Madam Gu also saw Gu Yunrong’s abnormality and sighed in her heart. Her Rong’er was still too soft-hearted. She would have to face this in the future when she married into Kang Wang’s Manor.

Madam Gu waved her hand silently. Granny Li immediately understood and sent away all the irrelevant people around her.

Only Madam Gu, Gu Yanfei, and the other two were left in the central room.

The sounds of sticks slapping on flesh and Mother Su’s screams outside did not stop, making the atmosphere in the room heavy.

Madam Gu said without too much emotion, “Yanfei, I know you hate Mother Su, it’s only human nature. Today, I’ll let you vent your anger.”

“But…”

Her voice suddenly turned cold as she continued, “Although Mother Su is in the wrong, you have to remember that back then, Yangzhou was in chaos. She was the one who fought her way out of the mountains of blades and the sea of blood to bring you out of Yangzhou…”

“She was in the wrong, but she saved you and raised you. You should be grateful too. A girl can’t be so vicious and kill indiscriminately, or you won’t be able to avoid retribution.”

Her words were heart-piercing and it was obvious that she was warning Gu Yanfei. At the same time, she gave Gu Yanfei a sweet date to stop her.

“11, 12…” The countdown outside did not stop and was clearly transmitted into the room.

Mother Su’s screams grew weaker. Her bare buttocks were so red and swollen from the beating that sme of the younger maidservants outside could no longer bear to look at her.

Gu Yanfei smiled faintly.

Madam Gu had thought that Gu Yanfei would lower her head and that she would simply leave. Unexpectedly, Gu Yanfei nodded slightly and said, “Thank you for your teachings.”

A faint smile appeared on Gu Yanfei’s face as she tilted her body and propped her elbow on the coffee table. She rested her chin on her right hand and continued, “Madam, don’t be too hostile, lest you kill indiscriminately and suffer retribution in vain.”

Madam Gu’s face darkened and she reprimanded in a low voice, “How dare you!”

She was her grandmother and an elder, but a junior actually criticized an elder! How rude!

Gu Yanfei counted on her fingers and continued, “In June this year, when Zi Yu cut your nails and it bled, you ordered a beating of 30 strokes. After Zi Yu was sent home, she was severely injured and died before she even reached adulthood.”

“Last December, when the attendant in Second Uncle’s study ‘collided’ with you, you ordered to make her mute with poison and sell her.”

“Last July, the big warehouse in the inner courtyard was in disrepair for a long time. Coincidentally, a thunderstorm leaked and destroyed a lot of materials. You ordered the He Danian family, who was guarding the warehouse that day, to be beaten to death.”

“…”

Gu Yanfei’s words echoed in the room. The air in the central room gradually froze, as if a storm was brewing.

By now, the old woman outside had counted to 20. The clubbing stopped, and silence fell outside the courtyard at the same time. Mother Su was slumped on the bench like a dead fish, her dangling arms trembling gently.

Inside and outside the house, there was silence.

Madam Gu’s face turned pale, then purple. The colors changed brilliantly. Every word Gu Yanfei said was like a slap to her face, making her ears ring.

Gu Yanfei chuckled and said, “There’s something that Juan Bi was right about. The prescription I gave Big Sister was given by Spiritual Master Lingxiao. Back then, when I was in Huaibei, Spiritual Master Lingxiao not only gave me this prescription, but also taught me the ability to read fortunes.”

“Why don’t I read Madam’s fortune?”

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