Chapter 65 - No One Can Hurt My People!

Hong Ling’s face was filled with anger. She stood up and was about to kick out the guards who had come to detain them, but Bai Ruo pulled her back. “Hong Ling, don’t cause trouble for Miss.”

Hong Ling gritted her teeth. She glared at Madam Zhao and allowed the guards to bring them down.

Hearing the sound of clubbing, Madam Zhao leaned against Shen Dong’s chest and curled her lips. The four little bitches had helped Shen Ninghua do a lot of bad deeds. She had given instructions to the guards. Thirty strokes would definitely take their lives!

The arm-thick clubs struck their bodies firmly. Each stroke threatened to break a person’s bones. Qing Que and Hong Ling had martial arts to protect them, but Bai Ruo and Bi Zhu weren’t so lucky.

After receiving three or four strokes, their expressions had already changed, but they bit their lips without making a sound.

The eight guards in charge of the execution exchanged glances with each other. They twisted the clubs in their hands slightly and used the thinner side to smash down fiercely against the four of them. Bai Ruo’s body was the weakest, and she fainted instantly. Blood dripped from the corner of her mouth.

Hong Ling’s heart ached and her eyes were filled with tears, but she didn’t dare to make any moves for fear of causing trouble for Shen Ninghua. Qing Que gritted her teeth as she stared coldly at the guards who were clubbing Bai Ruo. When she got through this, she would definitely tear these guards to pieces!

At this time, Shen Xuanhua was accompanying Shen Ninghua on her way to Yingyue Courtyard. Along the way, he was very happy. “Eldest sister, the Second Prince often asked about you. But don’t worry, I didn’t say anything.” Although he was young, he understood the Second Prince’s intention, but he did not agree from the bottom of his heart. Although the Second Prince was the Commandery Prince, he already had a wife. His eldest sister, who was like a bright moon in the sky, deserved the best.

A maidservant ran over in panic. Seeing Shen Ninghua, she hurriedly pounced over, knelt on the ground and said, “Eldest Young Lady, hurry back to Yingyue Courtyard. Master is punishing sister Bai Ruo and the other three sisters.”

Shen Ninghua’s eyes suddenly turned cold, and the smile on her lips instantly disappeared. A suppressed cold aura swept across her entire body, and she coldly spat out a word, “Go.”

The four maids had received fifteen strokes, and both Bi Zhu and Bai Ruo fainted. Just as the guards were about to lift their clubs high up into the sky and kill them, the door of Yingyue Courtyard was kicked open with a bang.

Shen Xuanhua kicked open the door and Shen Ninghua took a step forward. When she saw the scene in the courtyard, her pupils contracted abruptly, and the tyrannical aura in her heart immediately spread out. Her cold gaze swept across the guards in charge of the execution as if they were dead people, making them feel terrified and suffocated.

The guards took two steps back in shock and unconsciously lowered their clubs.

Madam Zhao heard the commotion outside the door and immediately trembled. Her hands covering her belly tightened. “Master, what’s going on? Are these maids bold enough to fight back?” She was very happy in her heart. She even wished that Qing Que and Hong Ling beat up all the guards in charge of the execution. This way, she could ask Shen Dong to have Bai Ruo and the other three maids beaten to death.

Shen Dong frowned in displeasure. He helped Madam Zhao sit on a chair and walked to the door. He looked in surprise at Shen Ninghua who was standing in the courtyard. “Ninghua, when did you come back?”

Shen Ninghua’s face was expressionless, and her gaze on Shen Dong was exceptionally cold. “Greetings, father. If I didn’t come back in time, these girls will die. What mistakes have they made that you ordered the guards to beat them to death?”

Being looked at by Shen Ninghua with that kind of gaze made Shen Dong’s heart slightly shrink. After restoring his senses, he was very unhappy. “Is this your way of talking to your father?”

“I don’t dare to offend father. However, if you want to beat the servants in my courtyard to death, you should at least tell me. After all, Princess Anning asked about them today and told me to bring them to the Palace another day. Father, only after you explain the reason to me can I tell Her Highness why they were beaten to death.”

Hearing about Princess Anning, Shen Dong’s anger immediately cooled down. Seeing the lifeless maids, he was suddenly shocked. He had been furious and ordered the guards to give them thirty strokes. For so many years, countless servants had been given thirty strokes in the Shen family, but less than ten of them were killed by the thirty strokes. These maids had only received fifteen strokes, yet they were on the verge of death. How could there be nothing fishy?

Shen Dong’s expression turned sullen. “Ninghua, these servants talked back to the matriarch. It’s understandable for them to be given thirty strokes. But fifteen strokes are also enough. Have someone bring them down and take care of them. I’ll give you a few more servants.”

Shen Ninghua rejected Shen Dong’s suggestion with a cold expression. “Thank you, father. I have gotten used to their service. I’m uncomfortable with someone else serving me, so please don’t bother to give me new servants.”

Shen Dong frowned. But seeing Shen Ninghua’s expression, he didn’t insist. “Since that’s the case, I’ll have someone send them some better medicine that would help them recover quickly. You just said Princess Anning wanted to see them. What’s up?”

Shen Ninghua stepped forward to felt Bai Ruo and Bi Zhu’s pulses. After checking their injuries, her heart sank. If she came back a little bit later, even if she could save Bai Ruo and Bi Zhu’s lives, their legs would be crippled. These people were so bold! Shen Ninghua curled her lips and her gaze was extremely cold.

“Today, I went to a banquet in the Palace and mentioned the four maids when I talked with Princess Anning. Her Highness was very interested after she heard about them. She said that she wanted me to bring them into the Palace for a look another day.”

Although Princess Anning was not favored by the emperor, she was the Second Prince’s younger sister. The Second Prince was powerful in the court these days. Since the development of the situation was unpredictable, the best thing to do at this time was not to offend anyone.

“Alright, quickly bring these maids down to recover.”

Madam Zhao walked out with her hands covering her belly. Seeing that Shen Ninghua had rescued the maids, a trace of unwillingness flashed in her eyes. “Ninghua, I’m relieved that you are back. I heard that you left the Palace two hours ago. I was so worried not to see you come back in time, but these maids talked nonsense without showing any care about you, so I taught them a lesson for you.”

Shen Ninghua suddenly laughed. Her smile was sweet, as if she did not feel the slightest unhappiness because of this matter. “Thank you, mother, for doing this for me.”

Hearing her intimate tone, Madam Zhao couldn’t help feeling the surge of coldness in her heart. She thought to herself that Shen Ninghua was too weird, but she wasn’t willing to let this great opportunity slip by. “It won’t take more than an hour to get home from the Palace. Where did you go with the one extra hour that you made your father and I so worried?”

A chill flashed in Shen Ninghua’s heart, but the smile on her face did not change. “When I was on my way back, I encountered some problems with the carriage. I rented a carriage that took me to the back door, and I dropped by my second aunt. Then she let Xuanhua send me over. Mother, why did you ask that question? Are you worried that I went somewhere else?”

Madam Zhao’s smile stiffened. “No, I’m just concerned about you. My girl, you just tend to think too much. Master, Ninghua has had a hard day. We should let her go back and rest.”

“Alright.” Shen Dong nodded. Shen Ninghua was safe. Moreover, she got along well with Princess Anning, which would be beneficial to the Shen family. So he would not spare his affection for her. “Ninghua, have a good rest. Since the princess likes you and you still need to go to the Palace, you should wear the best jewelry and clothes. Don’t lose the dignity of the Shen family. If you need anything, just tell Wang Fu and let him buy it for you.”

“Alright, thank you, father.”

Shen Dong accompanied Madam Zhao to the side yard and waited there for the doctor to check her pulse. The smile on Shen Ninghua’s face slowly disappeared and was replaced by bone-chilling coldness.

In the room, Qing Que and Hong Ling propped up their bodies against the bed. “Miss, are you alright?”

“Quickly lie down. Although you have martial arts to protect your body, the people in charge of the clubbing were determined to kill you. Your bones were slightly hurt.”

Hong Ling’s head was covered in cold sweat due to pain. Seeing Shen Ninghua was worried, she still smiled and comforted her, “With Miss here, even if I only have one breath left, I will fully recover.”

Shen Ninghua pulled a gear on the bookshelf and a hidden box appeared on the wall. She took out a medicine bottle from it and fed Bai Ruo and Qing Que each with one pill. Then she heaved a sigh of relief when she saw the coloring of their faces slowly improved.

“Let’s talk about it when you fully recover. Since I was late, Zhao would definitely find a way to make things difficult for you. Whatever she said, just chime in with her. Why did you have to lead yourselves to this pain?”

Hong Ling said angrily, “That’s impossible. You don’t know how detestable the First Lady was. She wanted to ruin your reputation. I just can’t tolerate that.”

Shen Ninghua sighed, and her action of applying medical balm to them became more and more gentle. She knew that Qing Que and Hong Ling were adept at martial arts. If they wanted to fight back, even if there were a few more guards, they wouldn’t get hurt. However, they didn’t fight back because they were worried about her. She would engrave their kindness in her heart.

Hong Ling cautiously looked at Shen Ninghua and said, “Miss, don’t be sad. Sister Bai Ruo and Sister Bi Zhu are both seriously injured. Qing Que and I are alright. We’ll be fine in three days, and we’ll be able to serve you again.”

Shen Ninghua finished applying medicine for them. “I’ve already sent someone to invite doctor Zhang Nian over. You can set your mind at rest and recover. I’ll settle this debt for you. I won’t let my people be bullied for nothing.”

“Miss, don’t be impulsive. It’s never late to take revenge, even if we should wait for ten years. The debt can be settled step by step.”

Shen Ninghua tidied up their clothes and said, “Just wait and see.”

Shen Ninghua walked out of the room where the four maids lay, wearing a gentle smile on her face. Outside the yard, Shen Xuanlin popped his head and looked about. When he saw her, he hurriedly ran in. “Eldest sister, I heard that Sister Bai Ruo and the other three in your courtyard were punished. Are their injuries serious?”

Shen Ninghua took out a handkerchief and wiped the sweat off his head. “It would take a while for them to recover.”

Shen Xuanlin gritted his teeth resentfully. “Eldest sister, don’t be sad. I’ll lend my maidservants to you for the time being.”

“No need. I’ve got a martial arts tutor for you. Did you learn anything from him?”

Shen Xuanlin’s eyes lit up. “Yes, I did. Master Liu Yun is amazing.”

“I don’t believe what you said. You can ask Master Liu Yun to test your martial arts skills and then report to me.”

“Eldest sister, believe me. Master said that I am very talented.”

Shen Ninghua touched his head softly and told him to eat dinner at Yingyue Courtyard before returning to his own courtyard.

In the middle of the night, Yingyue Courtyard was quiet. Shen Ninghua closed her eyes and lay on the bed with a slight frown on her face. A moment later, she heard an almost inaudible sound by the window and the sound disappeared very quickly.

Shen Ninghua opened her eyes and found that the thing she had placed by the window disappeared. She smiled, closed her eyes and finally fell asleep.

The next day, just as the day broke, a scream resounded throughout the Shen Mansion.

“Ah, people were killed!”