Chapter 21: The Ruthless Unveiling

“Maybe she even faked the suicide attempt, just to catch the Crown Prince’s attention! She’s such a shameless woman; for His Highness, there’s nothing she wouldn’t do! Honestly, she’s so unloved, she’s lower than us maids! Hahaha!”

Laughter and mocking voices echoed outside the door without any restraint.

Liuzheng looked sadly at Sheng Xiayan, instinctively reaching to cover her young mistress’s ears. In the past, whenever her lady was bullied severely, she would cover her ears to block out the abuse. Unable to bear it any longer, she would stand up for her lady, though it often ended with her being beaten by the crowd and punished by the madam.

But just thinking about protecting her mistress gave her courage.

Sheng Xiayan gazed at Liuzheng’s reddened eyes. Though she was barely eighteen, she cared for her so deeply. In this ruthless household where people devoured each other and women competed viciously, Sheng Xiayan finally felt the kindness conveyed by a fellow woman.

She gently stroked Liuzheng’s hand to soothe her, telling her not to be afraid, then opened the door.

The maids’ voices were familiar—likely trusted aides of Nurse Gu—who had tormented the original mistress beyond measure.

In the courtyard, a few sweeping maids giggled as they spoke ill of her. Seeing Sheng Xiayan, they showed no fear, only a perfunctory bow: “Second Miss.”

Sheng Xiayan sneered. The original mistress’s status in the mansion was truly so low, even these sweeping maids looked down on her.

But she was not the original mistress—she was neither weak nor kind-hearted.

In the next moment, she appeared before the maids like a ghost, slapping two of them across the face. Within moments, the maids fell to the ground, their cheeks swollen and red.

“If you love to wag your tongues behind your mistress’s back, then maybe you won’t need that tongue anymore.”

As she finished speaking, a delicate dagger appeared in her hand as if by magic.

Squatting down, she grabbed the nearest maid, forcing her mouth open. With a swift strike, a pink piece fell from the maid’s mouth, followed by a spray of blood that splattered across Sheng Xiayan’s face, making her look like a dreadful demon from the underworld.

The maid whose tongue was cut off felt searing pain, her eyes rolled back, and she fainted instantly.

The other maids, seeing this, finally dropped their careless disdain and wore expressions of terror.

“Second Miss! I was wrong! Please spare me!”

They all knelt on the ground, begging for mercy.

But Sheng Xiayan had no intention of letting them go.

If she didn’t harshly warn these maids, if she didn’t make an example of them, how could the people in the Grand Tutor’s mansion know that the old Sheng Xiayan was dead, and the one who lived on was a demon?

Blood splattered everywhere, screams echoed relentlessly through the courtyard.

After several rounds, the ground was stained with blood and littered with severed tongues. The maids were all unconscious from the pain.

Liuzheng, clutching medicine, had slipped in unnoticed. Seeing the scene, her hands trembled so violently she could barely hold the remedies.

Sheng Xiayan turned to see Liuzheng’s return and immediately restrained the murderous aura around her.

She smiled gently at Liuzheng: “Send them all away from the mansion; sell them to the tooth pullers. Disloyal scum like them have no place in my yard.”

“Yes,” Liuzheng hurriedly nodded in agreement.

Sheng Xiayan pondered silently.

The poison in Sheng Xiayi’s body was enough to kill her unless a miraculous doctor was found to treat her; otherwise, death was certain. But it wasn’t foolproof—if the Grand Tutor’s mansion found such a doctor, Sheng Xiayi would survive.

Then the original mistress’s great vengeance would be impossible to fulfill.

She needed another chance, a stronger poison!

Before that, she planned to recuperate at the Night King’s mansion for a few days. Uninvited guests kept arriving one after another, and she was exhausted from dealing with them all. Health was her foundation—if she kept being tossed around like this, revenge would be the last thing she could accomplish. She’d be dead first.

Lost in thought, another uninvited guest arrived.

It was Madam Jiang.

Behind her trailed Nurse Gu, her face full of resentment.

Clearly, Nurse Gu had already exaggerated the situation to Jiang, and now they had come to settle accounts with Sheng Xiayan.

“Mother,” Sheng Xiayan greeted Jiang indifferently.

“Sheng Xiayan, you’re becoming more and more willful and unruly! You can’t even control Nurse Gu anymore!” Jiang scolded sharply. “Do you know how worried and upset your sister has been because of your reckless attempts at self-harm? It’s one thing that you can’t compare to her, but why do you have to target her so viciously? Can’t you learn from her generosity and kindness? Look at what you’ve done today—beating Nurse Gu and the maids! Sheng Xiayan, how did you become like this? You’ve truly disappointed me!”

Every word was an accusation aimed at Sheng Xiayan, completely ignoring how those people had bullied her.

“When I was bullied, you said nothing. When I fought back, you scold me? Have you no shame?” Sheng Xiayan smirked scornfully, speaking without mercy.

“You!” Jiang was furious, yet Sheng Xiayan’s words were all justified, leaving her no retort.

She couldn’t understand how her once docile, meek, and dull daughter had turned so sharp-tongued and ruthless after trying to take her own life.

She had struck Nurse Gu—not just Nurse Gu’s body, but her dignity!

Sheng Xiayan had changed, and this was bad news for Jiang’s secret plans.

Her eyes darted as she schemed in her mind.