This morning, Old Man Yun had already told Madam Gu that Hu Xier had gone out to meet a stranger and was caught red-handed by Si Man.
Upon hearing this, Madam Gu, suppressing her anger, went to the woodshed. "Open the door..."
No matter what happened today, she had to drive Hu Xier out of the Old Yun family.
The family members heard the commotion and came over.
Yun Daman had already taken Jinshan and Jinhe to the academy, so he wasn't home.
Zhao Guihua and Du Tieshan were busy preparing breakfast in the kitchen.
The Governor and his wife, along with the Prefect and his wife, also flocked over, their eyes fixed on the woodshed...
"What's going on?" asked Madam Huang, holding Chen Xiaoran's hand.
Prefect Chen pulled her, "Be quiet, don't ask what you shouldn't!"
Madam Huang rolled her eyes at him. What else could be exciting in the countryside besides such trivial matters?
Old Man Yun took out the key to the woodshed and opened the door...
Inside, Hu Xier was huddled behind bundles of hazel branches, her hair disheveled and her eyes dark.
Wangcai was sleeping soundly with his head on a pile of firewood, blowing snot bubbles.
Madam Gu frowned, "Come out!"
"Wuwuwu, Madam Gu, he forced me, I'm not coming out, wuwu..."
Before Madam Gu could say anything, Hu Xier started wailing and crying, sniffling.
Hearing the noise, Wangcai suddenly sat up and looked around. "Can I go now?"
Madam Gu glanced at Yun Erman and Yun Siman. "Get them out!"
"Alright!"
The two brothers rushed in and dragged out the screaming Hu Xier and the groggy Wangcai...
Seeing this, Madam Huang blinked. "Hoo, isn't that your little maid? Did he get together with this man in the cornfield?"
"Mom, what's 'getting together in the cornfield'?" Chen Xiaoran asked, confused.
Prefect Chen rubbed his daughter's head. "Go play with Sweet Baby, don't listen to your mother's nonsense!"
This damned woman, why did she say everything in front of the child...
So foolish!
Chen Xiaoran said "Oh" and went back inside to find Xiao Xitian.
Qin Yiyi and Qin Fenglan also sensibly returned to the main hall, waiting for dinner.
Yun Siman said indignantly, "Mom, Xi'er was meeting this man at the village entrance last night, and I caught them red-handed. This time, Mom must teach her a lesson..."
"That's right!" Yun Erman also clenched his fist. "This little slut embarrasses our family time and time again. She's not happy unless she's seducing men. Our family is a 'Yaomen' family bestowed by the Emperor, and we absolutely cannot let a maid ruin our reputation!"
Yun Sanman crossed his arms and looked Hu Xier up and down.
As far as he knew, with Hu Xier's appearance and figure, eight out of ten were not decent...
"Wuwuwu, Madam Gu, don't listen to their nonsense. I went out to the latrine last night, I didn't do anything bad!" Hu Xier defended herself, wiping away tears.
"Latrine, my foot?" Wangcai retorted. "Didn't you say you'd do anything if I gave you three hundred copper coins every month? Why aren't you admitting it?"
Hu Xier's face turned green when she heard this...
Now that Prefect Chen and Governor Qin were living in the Old Yun family, even if these two high officials didn't interrogate her in court, their imposing aura alone suppressed Hu Xier's arrogance.
"You are the mistress of the household, aren't you?" Wangcai looked at Madam Gu and cupped his hands. "This maid of yours is always indecent. As far as I know, she has more than just me outside; she has four or five others. This shameless creature will do anything for a little money. Going into the woods, getting together in cornfields, she doesn't even blink an eye..."
Madam Gu grew more and more annoyed. She narrowed her eyes and questioned, "Xi'er, we in the Old Yun family haven't treated you badly, have we?"
Hu Xier lowered her head silently.
"We have always treated you and Huaihua like family. We even eat at the same table with the same bowls. No matter how difficult the family was, we gave you pocket money every month. How can you still be unsatisfied?"
"I already warned you about the matter with Jiang Dawei last time. If you do anything that betrays the Old Yun family again, you and your sister-in-law will pack your things and get out. You haven't learned your lesson at all..."
Saying this, Madam Gu took out a letter of guarantee from her sleeve and threw it at Hu Xier's face. "Pack your clothes, bedding, and shoes. You have fifteen minutes to get out of our Old Yun family immediately!"
"No, no, no, Madam Gu, wuwu, I know I was wrong, I will definitely change. Please don't drive me away, okay? Wuwuwu, if I leave your family, my sister-in-law and I will have nowhere to go, wuwu..."
Hu Xier wailed loudly, crawling like a madwoman to Madam Gu and hugging her thigh, shaking it vigorously.
Seeing this, Yun Siman kicked her to the ground. "What are you doing? Don't touch my mother!"
Hu Xier rolled on the ground and continued to crawl towards Madam Gu. "Madam Gu, Xi'er will never dare again. Please forgive me this once, wuwu. Xi'er saved money desperately just to buy delicious food to show filial piety to you, wuwu..."
"Oh, please!" Yun Erman snorted coldly. "In my opinion, you just want to save enough money to go to the prefectural city or the capital to seduce men. How dare you say you want to show filial piety to my mother? Are you proud of yourself?"
Old Man Yun puffed on his pipe, his eyes filled with deep disgust and contempt as he looked at Hu Xier.
Madam Xue walked to Madam Gu's side and gently advised, "Sister-in-law Gu, such matters should be dealt with decisively. Keeping disobedient maids at home is also a disaster. It's better to drive them out early, and our ears will be quieter..."
Madam Gu hummed. Even if Madam Xue hadn't advised her, she would never have kept Hu Xier.
"Where is Huaihua?" Madam Gu asked.
"She's preparing food in the kitchen!" Yun Sanman pointed to the kitchen.
"Go, call her!"
Although she felt Huaihua was somewhat innocent, the letter of guarantee was written that way. If Hu Xier committed a crime, Jin Huaihua would not be spared...
Xiao Jinheng and Kong Xingzhu heard the argument and walked out of the room, glancing towards the east wing.
"What's wrong with the Yun family?" Xiao Jinheng asked indifferently.
Kong Xingzhu stretched his neck and looked. "It seems their maid Xi'er was caught seducing a man outside, and Aunt Gu is planning to drive her out!"
"Oh!" Xiao Jinheng nodded slightly and asked, "Is it related to Little Village Child?"
Kong Xingzhu shook his head. "This kind of thing definitely has nothing to do with Sweet Baby..."
"That's good, prepare the carriage!" Xiao Jinheng walked out of the main courtyard with his hands behind his back.
He was hosting a banquet tonight to entertain Prefect Chen and Governor Qin.
Although these two officials were not very reliable in their work, they had tried their best to find him and Little Village Child...
Xiao Jinheng planned to buy some good food and set up a few tables for the evening.
A moment later, Jin Huaihua, wearing an apron, hurried to the woodshed.