Chapter 31: Slapping the Elder Brother’s Face

The Second Madam was momentarily speechless.

Faced with the Third Master’s cold, forbidding gaze, she pursed her lips and dared not utter another word. His look was as if he wanted to skin her alive.

Shen Zhao fixed her gaze on the Second Madam. Her father was her bottom line—she would not allow anyone to slander him. She would deal with the Second Madam in due course; there was no need to rush. Killing was best done with a dull blade—slow and deliberate.

The Second Madam shrank back, no longer daring to meet the Third Master’s eyes. Inwardly, she seethed with shame and anger. If only her husband, Second Master Chu, could be like the Third Master and hold an official post in the capital, rather than remaining a mere scholar, not even a certified graduate. Then she would not have to suffer such indignities, to be rebuked by others—especially by that wretched Shen woman. That little harlot! She was already on the verge of being discarded, yet still dared to rebuke her. Just wait until the Third Master cast her aside; then she would teach that shameless vixen a lesson and see if she dared to seduce her useless husband again.

The Old Madam rolled the prayer beads in her hand and said, “Since the matter is now clear, Mu’er, I will not interfere with how you choose to deal with Shen. The decision is entirely yours.”

As if recalling something, the Old Madam added, “Mu’er, though Shen has erred, our Chu family cannot divorce her now. Otherwise, the world will say our family is heartless, casting off a wife when her family has fallen on hard times.”

Beside them, Lin Jiaojiao, who had been watching the spectacle unfold, could not hide a trace of resentment in her eyes.

The old woman spoke so righteously. If not for Shen’s generous dowry, which they spent freely, she would have forced Mu to divorce her long ago.

This thought made Lin Jiaojiao restless. Every day she schemed to siphon off household silver, all to accumulate a handsome dowry for herself. With it, she would have the confidence to marry Mu as his wife. But now, thanks to Shen’s mysterious machinations, all expenses in the household had been curtailed. How would she save up for her dowry now?

This would not do.

She coughed lightly, feigning frailty as she said, “Mu, the Old Madam speaks true. Though sister has committed a grave offense, we cannot send her away now, or the world will blame you, Mu.”

She paused, then continued with gentle understanding, “Sister was at fault and has troubled the Old Madam and all of us. It would be fitting to follow the old practice: punish her by making her kneel in the ancestral hall, but let the household expenses remain as before. Sister should henceforth not meddle in the accounts. That would be a fair punishment for her transgressions.”

Shen Zhao deliberately remarked, “Jiaojiao, you are indeed considerate. Since Shen has nothing to say for herself, in light of these years of marriage—”

Before Shen Zhao could finish, Chu Mu interjected impatiently, “I have something to say.”

He shot Lin Jiaojiao a displeased look; he had already resolved to cut the household expenses.

Lin Jiaojiao glared back—how dare that wretch Shen glare at her? She was pleading on her behalf, could she not see that?

Chu Mu, noticing Lin Jiaojiao’s look, felt all the more dissatisfied with her behavior. When had she become like this?

Glancing at his second brother, who seemed somewhat smug, his eyes flashed with obvious annoyance. His second brother was no longer someone worth protecting.

“The reason I struck Chu Renjie was because he followed me, put his hands on me, spoke indecently, and even shamelessly undressed in front of me...”

With each word Chu Mu spoke, his face grew darker.

The others in the hall exchanged glances, their expressions varied.

The Second Madam was livid, secretly pinching Chu Renjie several times—how shameless could he be?

Shen Zhao marveled—what a rarity, this blockhead finally standing up for himself and exposing Second Master Chu’s true colors.

Chu Renjie’s face flushed red as he saw everyone’s probing looks. Furious and humiliated, he shouted, “You little whore, don’t try to smear filth on me! It was you, caught consorting with a lover, and now you accuse me of lusting after you. Am I the kind of beast who would peep at my brother’s wife?”

“Third Brother, as a scholar I have always been above reproach. She’s only trying to shift blame to me for her own crime. Third Brother, you must defend me!” Chu Renjie’s jowls quivered as he trembled in indignation.

Chu Mu was exasperated. How could his brother claim to be above reproach?

“Chu Renjie, you make empty accusations and invert black and white. I had not thought you such a petty man. Were there any servants who witnessed the whole incident?” Chu Mu looked to Shen Zhao.

“General, please summon the servants who were present in the front courtyard to testify and clear my name.”

“Very well,” came the response. “By my command, summon all servants who attended the front court here.”

Shen Zhao regarded Chu Mu with a meaningful look. The household servants were masters at currying favor and treading on the weak. Prepare to be disappointed once more.

Before long, two rows of servants, male and female, knelt in the hall.

Chu Mu surveyed them, raised his hand, and pointed, “You, you... and you, stay. The rest may go.”

The five he singled out were those who had witnessed the dispute.

He pointed to an older matron, a long-serving member of the household. “At the time, Chu Renjie spoke licentiously and bared his chest before me. You happened to pass by and saw it. Now, by my command, tell everything you saw and heard, without omission.”

The old woman glanced at Chu Mu, thinking her mistress must be mad. Even if she had seen, she would say she had not. She was well aware whose position in the household was stronger.

“I did see something at the time,” she began.

Chu Mu snorted coldly at Chu Renjie.

But then the old woman continued, “What I saw and heard was not as Madam says. I saw Madam... Madam…”

Chu Renjie, seeing her look his way, quickly said, “Don’t be afraid. Speak boldly. Did you see Shen consorting with a lover, and then I happened to pass by and was beaten by that man? Is that not so?”

The old woman nodded quickly, “Yes, that’s right. I saw Second Master being beaten by Madam’s paramour.”

The other four immediately chimed in, “We saw it too.”

Chu Mu’s eyes widened in disbelief. How could they twist the truth? It was clearly Chu Renjie who had harassed him!

“Absurd! Absolutely absurd! How has my hall become so mired in filth?” Chu Mu was beside himself with rage.

Among these servants were old retainers and new hires alike. He had always treated them with leniency, rarely punishing or reprimanding them. The household rules here were far more relaxed than in other mansions.

As for Azhao, she had always been more than fair. When she first married in, the household’s finances were strained, and it was Azhao who pitied them, often using her own private funds to increase their monthly stipends. She had never punished any of them.

Had they forgotten all that she had done for them? Even now, their stipends were distributed by Azhao; everything they had was thanks to her.

These people were nothing but thankless ingrates, wolves in human skin.

Back at Gongyue Gate, when they shirked their duties, he thought it was out of fear of Second Brother’s reprisals. But here, in the general’s presence, with no such threat, they could have told the truth—yet one by one, they chose to slander him.

Even the servants in his own house deceived him. What a failure he was as a general.

He closed his eyes, a self-mocking smile touching his lips. “So this is the General’s Manor.”

Shen Zhao, seeing Chu Mu so disheartened, pressed her forehead in resignation. He was truly wounded by this. Was it necessary? Was it really so bad to have lost control? Was it really so tragic that everyone in the household took him for a fool?

Nevertheless, the servants were in dire need of discipline.

She fixed her gaze on the five, her eyes losing their warmth, replaced by a cold light. “Are you certain of your words? If there is a single falsehood, I will show no mercy! At best, you will be thrown out as an example, at worst, you will be beaten with thirty blows and sold to the brokers!”

The five hesitated, casting nervous glances at the Old Madam.