"Clear out all the things in the room and give it a thorough cleaning," Jiang Ning'an looked at Chu Yu. "This princess won't use things that others have used. If Miss Chu likes them, you can take them all away."
The maids immediately sprang into action. In a short while, they had gathered all of Chu Yu's things in the yard.
Then, those black - clothed men went in and even carried out the large pieces of furniture. Tables, chairs, and benches were strewn all over the yard.
Those pieces of furniture were made of high - quality Huanghuali wood and were extremely valuable, but at this moment, they were being treated so roughly and carelessly.
Chu Yu felt heartache.
When she lived here, she had taken good care of these things, but as soon as Jiang Ning'an came, these treasures became a pile of trash and were discarded without a second thought.
Could the nobles be so wasteful?
Chu Yu was indignant and was about to say something, but Jiang Ning'an had already turned around and left.
After a while, Xiaocui came out carrying a half - person - tall burden on her back. "Don't worry, miss. I've packed up all those beautiful clothes and jewelry. Let's hurry up and go..."
These black - clothed men were really terrifying.
The mistress and her maid left in a hurry, but they didn't head towards the servants' quarters.
-
Meanwhile, Jiang Ning'an turned back and went to the front courtyard.
The steward of the front courtyard was nearly forty years old. He had once been a trusted subordinate of the Princess who Pacified the State.
As soon as Steward Zheng heard that she had returned, he quickly brought Meng Chun out and was now waiting for her in the front hall. "Princess, Meng Chun has been in the front courtyard for the past six months. I didn't let her do any rough work. Please rest assured."
Seeing that Meng Chun was still as charming as she was six months ago and her clothes were very proper, it was obvious that she hadn't suffered.
Only then did Jiang Ning'an feel relieved. "Thank you for taking care of Meng Chun."
Steward Zheng waved his hand with a smile. Seeing that Jiang Ning'an had no other orders, he turned around and went to attend to his business.
Since there was still a lot of cleaning to do in the back courtyard, Jiang Ning'an sat down in the front hall and took a closer look at Meng Chun.
"Don't worry, princess. I'm fine," Meng Chun's eyes curved into a smile. "Steward Zheng has taken good care of me. I've been idle in the front courtyard for half a year."
"That's good," Jiang Ning'an nodded. "What's the situation in the mansion in the past six months?"
Speaking of this, Meng Chun's eyes immediately turned red.
"Princess, just a few days after you entered the palace, the imperial consort brought that girl to our mansion. He treated that girl very well. He used the silver of our Princess Mansion to buy her clothes and jewelry, and he even personally decided to replace all the people in Wutong Residence!"
"After all, the imperial consort is the imperial consort. This time when you entered the palace, we servants couldn't get in touch with you, so we had no choice but to act according to the imperial consort's wishes. Please punish us, princess."
A cold light flashed in Jiang Ning'an's eyes. "Punish for what? They even dared to move you. Who else would dare to disobey?"
This move of killing the chicken to scare the monkeys was really brilliant.
Just then, there came a hasty sound of footsteps.
The person who came was a man in his late thirties or early forties, with sword - like eyebrows and starry eyes, and a straight and imposing figure. Time had not left harsh marks on his face. Instead, it made him appear more steady and refined.
It was Jiang Ning'an's biological father, Chu Ming.
Chu Yu followed him meekly, looking at Jiang Ning'an timidly.
Chu Ming walked closer, looking concerned. "Ning'er, why did you come back so suddenly? You didn't even send a letter home."
Jiang Ning'an slowly put down the teacup and looked him straight in the eye. "I'm returning to my own home. Why should I send a letter?"
Chu Ming's face stiffened at this retort.
Taking a closer look, the admiration and love in Jiang Ning'an's eyes for him had completely disappeared. All that was left was the same disgusting arrogance and coldness as her mother's.
The husband is the head of the wife, but that damned woman never respected him. She even didn't allow their child to take his surname.
For a moment, it seemed as if that damned woman was standing in front of him again, and he felt that sense of being suppressed.
Chu Ming pressed his lips together unhappily. "Ning'er, as a princess, it's not appropriate for you to seize someone else's courtyard as soon as you come back."
Jiang Ning'an raised her eyebrows, with a hint of mockery in her eyes. "While I was away, you let someone occupy my courtyard. Is such a despicable act something a father should do?"
Not expecting her to retort directly, Chu Ming immediately roared angrily. "How dare you be so presumptuous! I'm your father!"
A dark figure quietly landed beside Jiang Ning'an.
Those extremely pale eyes stared directly at Chu Ming, like a cold - blooded poisonous snake.
Chu Ming immediately quieted down.
"By the way, this young lady seems to have the same surname as father, Chu—"
Jiang Ning'an casually lengthened the end of her sentence, and a sudden smile flashed in her eyes. "Taking a closer look, Miss Chu and father look somewhat alike. Could she really be father's daughter?
Looking at Miss Chu's appearance, she seems to be about the same age as me... Father, who exactly is this Miss Chu?"
Chu Ming's face turned deathly pale.
Beside him, Chu Yu couldn't help but feel a glimmer of hope and quietly glanced at Chu Ming.
Would he recognize her?
If he did, she could live in the mansion openly and even have a courtyard of her own.
She wouldn't have to live in the servants' quarters...
Before Chu Yu could fantasize about her future life, she heard Chu Ming's firm voice. "No!"
"Yu'er is the child of my elder brother's family. She's just staying at the mansion. After all, we're all family. It's not strange that we look alike."
If he admitted that Chu Yu was his child, wouldn't it be admitting that he had been unfaithful to the princess?
The princess was dead, but the emperor was still alive. If that person found out about this, he would surely die a miserable death!
Jiang Ning'an's black eyes rolled, and a smile appeared on her pale face as she enjoyed Chu Yu's ugly expression.
At this moment, Chu Ming suddenly noticed something strange. "Ning'er, where's Chuntao?"
"She did something wrong, and uncle had her killed." Jiang Ning'an's voice was calm.
Chu Yu subconsciously covered her mouth with her hand and stared wide - eyed. "Killed? But that's a human life!"
Jiang Ning'an looked at her in confusion. "So what?"
Chuntao was a pawn arranged beside her to ruin her reputation and harm her life. Even if she were a celestial being, Jiang Ning'an wouldn't tolerate her.
"How can you be so callous about human life!" Chu Yu couldn't help but get excited. "That's a human life. Her parents must have spent a lot of effort to raise her. How can you just kill her?"
Jiang Ning'an was stunned.
But Chu Ming's heart rippled because of Chu Yu's words.
This was what his daughter should be like!
Jiang Ning'an looked at her for a long time and finally asked sincerely. "So you want to go down and keep her company?"
Chu Yu: ...
How was she supposed to respond to this?
Jiang Ning'an then kindly spoke again. "If you do, I can call the person who killed Chuntao over at any time. It would be a fulfillment of your wish for the two of you to die at the hands of the same person."
Chu Ming couldn't stand her aggressive attitude and immediately scolded her. "You're a princess after all. How can you say such vicious words?"
Jiang Ning'an shook her head with a click of her tongue. "Father, calm down. Just now, seeing Miss Chu so indignant, I thought she was some great kind - hearted person. Who knew she was just all talk?"
After all, Chu Yu was the protagonist of this world. In the dream, Chu Yu could turn the tables even in a desperate situation. How could she be disposed of by just a few words from Jiang Ning'an?
But even if she couldn't kill her, it was still good to disgust her.
Chu Yu's face turned pale and then red. She stood there for a long time without saying a word. No one knew what she was waiting for.
After a long time, she finally couldn't help but turn around and leave.
Chu Yu kept calling out to the system in her heart, but the usually active system didn't respond at all.
It wasn't until she left the courtyard that a burst of static sounded in her mind.