As Shen Li's voice faded, the servants below began to whisper among themselves, completely ignoring Shen Li, the person in charge, sitting above.
Jiao Yue's face darkened. She was angry that these people showed no respect for her young lady. Her young lady was right here, yet they dared to be so audacious!
She stole a glance at Shen Li and saw that her face remained calm, showing no sign of anger. Jiao Yue then felt at ease.
"Alright! Quiet down! If you have any opinions, feel free to voice them!" Shen Li's imposing voice reached everyone's ears.
As soon as the crowd fell silent, a middle - aged man in the first row stood up. It was Shen Shou, the head steward of the Shen Mansion.
Shen Shou was not originally the steward. He was promoted by Shen Junming after Shen Li's parents passed away.
Shen Shou wiggled his slightly plump body and bowed to Shen Li with his hands clasped. "My lady, this move of yours is inappropriate!"
"Oh! I wonder what exactly the steward thinks is inappropriate?"
"My lady has just taken charge and may not know. Our master is a fourth - rank official. Most of the people he associates with on a daily basis are also officials in the capital, and guests often come to our mansion. If we suddenly cut down so many allowances and expenses, it may damage our family's reputation!"
Shen Li sat up straight and said with a hint of interest, "Steward Shen has been in the Shen Mansion for many years and has a wealth of experience. I wonder what advice the steward has on this matter?"
Hearing the praise in Shen Li's words and that she was now asking for his opinion, Shen Shou thought his words had taken effect. His small eyes were almost reduced to mere slits with pleasure.
"Forgive my impertinence, but I've been the steward of the Shen Mansion for eight years. Even when the mistress was in charge, she often asked for my advice!"
"In my opinion, my lady should follow the established routine. The mistress spent many years establishing the rules, and the mansion has always been in good order without any mistakes. It's better for my lady not to make any changes. After all, my lady is young and inexperienced. It's normal not to understand some things!"
Shen Shou was so pleased with himself that he began to lecture Shen Li in the manner of an elder!
Jiao Yue shouted angrily, "How dare you! Who gave you the right to speak to the young lady like this! How dare you contradict her!"
Shen Shou ignored Jiao Yue's words. In his impression, Shen Li was a timid and indecisive person with little presence in the mansion. Although she was now in charge, Shen Shou believed that in a few days, the power of managing the mansion would return to Mrs. Shen.
"Steward Shen!"
Shen Li's cold voice came.
Shen Shou looked up at Shen Li sitting high above. Suddenly, he felt an imposing aura from her.
"Since steward Shen is dissatisfied with the way I manage the mansion, I won't make things difficult for you."
"Then I'll relieve you of your position as the steward of the Shen Mansion and let you leave the mansion. But considering your long - time service and hard work in the mansion, Jiao Yue, go to my private account and withdraw ten taels of silver for steward Shen."
Shen Shou trembled with anger. He was a servant born into the Shen family, and his family members all worked in the mansion. During his years as the steward, he had saved up thousands of taels of silver.
Giving him ten taels of silver was clearly like dismissing a beggar!
"The words I just said were truly from the bottom of my heart! My lady doesn't have to listen, but now you want to drive me out of the mansion! I'm not convinced. I want the master and mistress to judge!"
"Hanyue! He's confused. Please 'escort' him out now!"
Without saying a word, Hanyue stepped forward, grabbed Shen Shou by the collar, and dragged him out.
The servants who witnessed the whole process were stunned. Thinking of Shen Li's decisive handling of the matter just now, they couldn't help but shrink their necks.
How could the young lady seem like a different person!
The former timidity was gone, and now she was so decisive that she seemed more like the head of the family than even Master Shen Junming.
"From now on, there will be no such titles as 'master' and 'mistress' in this family! There will only be 'second master' and 'second mistress'. Do you all remember?"
The group of servants weakly replied yes.
Recently, Shen Miao had been very distressed. The last time she sent someone to assassinate Shen Li but failed. Instead, she was outmaneuvered, and her family lost the power to manage the mansion.
Moreover, Shen Li had ordered a reduction in the mansion's expenses, and all of Shen Miao's allowances had been greatly cut.
When her mother was in charge, Shen Miao never followed any allowance rules. When she wanted to make clothes, she would simply summon the embroiderers from the silk stores in the capital. She could choose the best materials and the latest styles, and she would often make ten or twenty sets of clothes at a time.
Now, she could only make four sets of clothes a month, which was only half of the amount stipulated by the allowance.
Clothes and jewelry were fine. She had her own private savings and could spend her own money to make them.
But what made her angry was that she now had to live under Shen Li's thumb! She used to be the one who said east, and Shen Li wouldn't dare to go west.
No! She had to come up with a way to stop Shen Li from being so complacent!
"Has Princess Heyuan agreed to the invitation sent to her mansion?"
Shen Miao asked Chun Nuan.
"Miss, I went to deliver the invitation today, but I couldn't even enter the princess's mansion. I was driven out by the gatekeeper!" Chun Nuan whispered.
"Driven out? Did you say something to upset them?"
"Miss, I was always respectful. As soon as I handed over the invitation, the gatekeeper took a look and said... said that from now on, all of miss's invitations would be... thrown out!"
After Chun Nuan finished speaking, she lowered her head in fear. She knew that Shen Miao had been in a bad temper recently and often got angry with the servants. Even Chun Xi had been scolded twice in the past two days.
Sure enough, the next moment, Shen Miao flew into a rage and threw a cup of hot tea on the small table to the ground.
"Useless things! What am I keeping you for? You can't even handle such a small matter! Get out! Kneel outside for an hour!"
The teacup shattered beside Chun Nuan's feet. Most of the hot tea spilled on her shoes and slowly seeped onto her feet.
The freshly brewed tea was very hot, but Chun Nuan didn't dare to make a sound. If she made any noise, she would surely be scolded by Shen Miao again.
Enduring the pain in her feet, Chun Nuan knelt in the yard. The sun was very strong at this time. After a while, she felt dizzy but still gritted her teeth and held on.
After the punishment, Chun Nuan couldn't rest. She had to go back to guard outside Shen Miao's room and wait for orders. It wasn't until the end of her shift at night that she limped back to her room.
There were a circle of blisters on her feet, which were worn out by walking. Lying in the quilt, she covered her face and cried bitterly.
After today's incident, the belief that had been a bit shaky in her heart became even firmer.
A few days later, Shen Miao took Chun Xi and left the mansion in a carriage.
Chun Nuan was guarding the path from the West Courtyard to the main gate. From afar, she saw a maid in a light - yellow dress coming over with a basket.
"Hey! Sister Ming Yue, are you going out?"