"Let's go take a look," Shen Xiaoyan ignored her and, pulling Baili Ziyun's arm, hurried towards the back.
"Let go of me, I'm not going. Did you hear me? I said I'm not going. I'm not going..."
Baili Ziyun twisted her body with all her might, trying to break free from Shen Xiaoyan's grip.
But the difference in strength was too great, and her struggles proved futile.
Finally, she was so exhausted from struggling that she was dragged away by Shen Xiaoyan.
Princess Zande watched with a heartache and quickly followed.
They arrived at the orchard, but Shen Xiaoyan didn't stop, continuing towards the back.
Beyond the fruit trees, a dirt road about 10 meters wide appeared. On the other side of the road was still an orchard, which this year bore no fruit.
This dirt road was deliberately left by Shen Xiaoyan when she planted the trees, so that a ditch could be dug to channel the river water from not far outside the courtyard.
This way, not only would watering be more convenient, but lotus flowers could also be planted.
Although a water channel had been introduced earlier, it was too narrow and too far away, making it inconvenient to travel back and forth, which was why Shen Xiaoyan had this plan.
However, this was indeed a large undertaking.
During this time, not only the servants in the house but also Shen Xiaoyan and the others were so busy that they had no time to do this.
When Shen Xiaoyan dragged Baili Ziyun to the edge of the orchard and stood by the dirt road, Baili Ziyun's eyes widened in disbelief.
Princess Zande and the others, who had followed closely behind, cried out in surprise, "What's going on?"
It turned out that on this dirt road, a group of people were working with great enthusiasm.
Some of them held shovels, while others carried soil baskets.
And what were they doing?
They rolled up their sleeves, tucked up their trousers, and were diligently digging a ditch.
"What are you doing?" Princess Zande shouted loudly.
However, no one paid her any attention.
Her carefully selected guards, who would usually respond immediately to even a soft cough, let alone her loud shouts.
But now, even after Princess Zande had screamed hysterically several times, no one paid her any heed.
These guards seemed to not notice Shen Xiaoyan and the others who had suddenly appeared, and were still diligently and conscientiously doing their work.
"Shen Xiaoyan, what exactly is wrong with them?"
Princess Zande rushed to Shen Xiaoyan and, pulling her arm, asked loudly.
"Didn't I tell you, these are your guards? How would I know what's wrong with them?" Shen Xiaoyan slapped away Princess Zande's hand and took a step back, smiling lightly.
Princess Zande naturally didn't believe Shen Xiaoyan, but she couldn't say anything else.
Just now, Shen Xiaoyan and the others had indeed been with her and couldn't have been here.
But even if she had come, what power did she have to make all 800 people obey her?
"You vixen."
Princess Zande could only squeeze these words out of her throat and then glare at Shen Xiaoyan in exasperation.
Shen Xiaoyan was not angry at all; instead, she gave Princess Zande a big smile, "Likewise, those who are not as capable as others will always say that."
"Now, you have nothing to rely on," Zheng Wei said coldly, glancing at the guards who were working.
However, Sima Han noticed a fleeting smile in Zheng Wei's eyes.
Earlier, outside, when he saw the 800 guards heading towards the courtyard, his heart had been greatly alarmed.
He was about to rush to stop them then, but Zheng Wei pulled him back.
Zheng Wei didn't say much at the time, only using his life as a guarantee that nothing would happen and that he shouldn't worry.
Indeed, nothing had happened now.
It was just that, how had he and Shen Xiaoyan managed to make these people so obedient that even with Princess Zande here, they remained unfazed and simply continued their work?
"Actually, I think it would be best to just keep them all here," Shen Xiaoyan said, stroking her chin.
"What do you mean?" Zheng Wei asked softly, his eyes smiling.
"Anyway, they currently have no ability to resist, so why not keep them all? Digging the ditch, building the canal, then paving a bluestone road along the side, and then channeling water in – it's quite an undertaking. Didn't we previously feel we had too few people and that it was too troublesome to do the work? Now, let's keep them all here, get the ditch done first, and then worry about guarding the spirit. What do you think?"
After speaking, Shen Xiaoyan looked expectantly at Zheng Wei, hoping for his approval.
However, Zheng Wei had always been a doting husband. Whatever Shen Xiaoyan proposed, he would try his best to achieve.
Therefore, Zheng Wei immediately nodded and said, "Mimi is right. This will also save us a sum of money; it's a worthwhile business."
Sima Han watched the couple speechlessly from the side. They were clearly working together, completely disregarding others' feelings. Was that really okay?
Didn't they see Princess Zande's face turn from red to pale, then from pale to green?
"You're delusional. I will never be at your mercy," Princess Zande scoffed.
"It doesn't matter. As long as you can watch Baili Hao die before your eyes, whether you're willing to dig the ditch or not is irrelevant to me. Looking at you and Baili Ziyun, you can't do much work anyway. With these 800 people, I believe my ditch will be completed in no time."
Shen Xiaoyan didn't care about Princess Zande's thoughts. Although she couldn't truly kill her now, she could torment her.
After all, as long as she kept her alive and breathing, it was fine.
"Since you've entered, don't think about leaving," Zheng Wei also said coldly to Princess Zande.
"Yes, don't think about leaving," Shen Xiaoming echoed loudly.
He had been observing the entire time and had heard Shen Xiaoyan's words, but he hadn't said a word.
However, this didn't mean he didn't have his own thoughts.
Just now, when his sister was about to strangle Princess Zande, he felt a sense of satisfaction and wished his sister would just kill Princess Zande.
But he also knew that Princess Zande had a noble status. If she truly died, the court would definitely send people to investigate.
While his brother-in-law was powerful and not afraid of these things, there were many other people in the household, including himself who couldn't fight, and four nursing infants. Therefore, unless absolutely necessary, she couldn't be killed.
However, since his sister had said she would keep them to work, they should be thoroughly tormented to let them know their place and never have wicked intentions again.
After saying this, Shen Xiaoyan looked coldly at Princess Zande, not urging her to make a decision. She believed she would understand.
As for Baili Ziyun, she had no say.
After a long while, Princess Zande closed her eyes in despair.
When she opened them again, her face was filled with numbness. "Tell me, what do you want me to do before you're willing to find a doctor to treat him?"
Even though Baili Hao's bleeding had been stopped and medicine applied, it didn't mean Baili Hao was out of danger.
The wound had not been treated meticulously. If it became infected and Baili Hao developed a fever, it would be irreversible.