All the palace maids began to work faster, causing the number of people who came by the well to fill their wooden basins with water to increase as well. It wasn’t long before Su Xi-er had lost count of how many buckets of well water she had drawn, her hands turning red as her body heated up.
When Chao Mu came, she noticed that Su Xi-er’s hands were covered with streaks of red marks from the well ropes and immediately offered, “You can help me wash the dishes; I’ll draw the well water in your place.”
She then stood up and tried to snatch away the bucket Su Xi-er was holding.
However, just as she did so, one of the other palace maids stealthily reached out and pinched Chao Mu’s calf.
Chao Mu yelped out in pain as her leg retracted in reflex, making her unable to keep her balance as she pitched forwards towards Su Xi-er.
Su Xi-er’s gaze swiftly swept around her, spotting a palace maid standing next to where Chao Mu had been. This palace maid is the one I drenched earlier. Looks like she’s managed to change into some dry clothes.
Circling a hand around Chao Mu’s waist, with a deft flick of Su Xi-er’s wrist, she flung the bucket in her hand at the palace maid’s head.
Not expecting Su Xi-er to be so decisive, the palace maid was caught completely off guard when the well bucket came flying through the air. It struck it’s target dead-on, causing a wound on her forehead that immediately began to bleed and swell.
The other palace maids yelled, “She actually dared to hurt someone!” Many of them pointed their fingers at Su Xi-er, claiming that she intentionally targeted the other maid’s head..
Chao Mu could barely stand without the help of Su Xi-er. By the time she managed to stay upright, she was already furiously berating the other palace maids. “Who said that she hit someone? That person clearly pinched my leg on purpose! Su Xi-er accidentally lost control of the well bucket!”
The injured palace maid supported her head as she looked at Chao Mu in terror. “When did I pinch your leg? I was suddenly smashed on the head, yet you’re now maligning me!” She retorted while glancing at the palace maids around her; it was clear that they were close friends.
“You dare to be so arrogant after injuring someone? Let’s find an old maidservant to judge!” A good friend of the palace maid shouted and went to the front yard to look for the old maidservant.
Tan Ge walked to Chao Mu’s side. “Are you alright? Does your leg still hurt?”
Su Xi-er looked at Tan Ge. “You also saw that injured palace maid pinching Chao Mu’s leg?”
“Yes,” Tan Ge softly replied.
Chao Mu coldly snorted at the injured palace maid. “Did you hear that? She saw that you were the first who pinched me. You threw good money after bad, after giving away your wife, you also lost your soldiers! Serves you right!”
Even though the palace maid had never studied, she could still decipher the meaning of ‘after giving away your wife, you also lost your soldiers’. She furiously stared at Chao Mu. “I’m not going to talk to you. We’ll wait for the old maidservant to come and judge.”
Chao Mu still wanted to continue, but was stopped with a meaningful look from Su Xi-er. Understanding Su Xi-er’s intentions, she could only suppress the wrath of fury in her heart and shut her mouth.
Not long after, the female cook who was assigning everyone’s duties came over and swept her eyes across all the palace maids. “Apart from the palace maids who were causing trouble, the rest are to continue with their own work.” She then shifted her gaze to Su Xi-er, Chao Mu, and the injured palace maid before waving her hand. “The three of you, follow me.”
Tan Ge pulled Su Xi-er’s sleeve. “Nothing bad will happen right?”
“Don’t worry, we’ll be back very soon.” Su Xi-er replied in a low voice. She then left the backyard with Chao Mu and followed the female cook to a small hut.
The female cook looked at Su Xi-er. “You don’t look like someone who would make trouble. Tell me, what exactly happened?”
