Chapter 42: Chapter 39: A Hero? He’s Not Worthy
Mrs. Dou was so terrified by the Master’s sudden words that her legs went weak. She hurriedly knelt and kowtowed. "Mercy, Master! It was this old servant’s fault for misspeaking! Mercy, Master, this servant will never dare do it again..."
The Third Master looked at Mrs. Dou sprawled on the ground, feeling even more disgusted.
He remembered what she’d said—’The Master can protect the Third Miss, but can he protect a mere servant like you?’—and his heart pounded with anger.
Qiancao was one of Yun Zhao’s personal servants. If Mrs. Dou and the others truly controlled everyone around Yun Zhao, what kind of life would she lead in these inner courtyards?
With not a single trustworthy servant by her side, controlled from within and without... The thought was unbearable.
’These wicked servants!’
"Beat her viciously!" The Third Master’s anger surged at the thought. ’A treacherous servant harming her master... unforgivable.’
Then, the Third Master turned to an aide and commanded, "Relay my orders at once. Sell off Mrs. Dou and her entire family!"
Mrs. Dou’s vision went black, and she fainted on the spot.
A mere beating would have been one thing. But to have her entire family sold off... ’What future could we possibly have now?’
Had she known, she wouldn’t have begged for mercy. It would have been better to just endure the beating.
The Third Master walked up the steps and onto the veranda, meeting the gaze of his daughter. In his dark eyes, the anger had faded, leaving only guilt. "Zhaozhao..."
"Father, you’re here." Song Yunzhao’s eyes were rimmed with red. She hadn’t expected him to deal with Mrs. Cai’s most trusted aide on her behalf.
The Third Master reached out and patted his daughter’s shoulder. "Father... was late. I’m sorry you’ve been wronged."
He had always thought he was doing the right thing, that he had to maintain a balance between his wife and his daughter. Even when he knew his wife had gone too far, he would let his daughter be wronged for the sake of household peace and harmony.
To him, those injustices had never seemed like a big deal.
But now he understood. He had been wrong. The injustices he had dismissed as trivial had piled up, day by day, until even the servants in his own house dared to bully his daughter.
If he hadn’t been so biased toward his wife, how would her personal steward have ever dared to act this way?
Song Yunzhao couldn’t read her father’s mind, so she couldn’t grasp the depths of his remorse and guilt. She smiled and said, "You weren’t late, Father. You were right on time. Like a hero in a storybook, swooping in to deliver justice for your daughter."
’A hero?’
The Third Master felt he didn’t deserve the title.
But looking at his daughter’s happy smile, he took a deep breath. ’She’s right,’ he thought. ’It’s not too late. There’s still time to make things right.’
Mrs. Cai received the news and arrived swiftly. Her face was thunderous as she strode into Yun Zhao’s courtyard. The sight of the father and daughter laughing together was galling, and she snapped, "Master, what is the meaning of this? Mrs. Dou has been with me for so many years! Even if she has no great merits, she has served me faithfully..."
The Third Master heard his wife arrive and show not a shred of concern for their daughter, instead immediately pleading for Mrs. Dou. The smile on his face vanished, replaced by a flash of anger.
"I never realized that a servant is more important to you than Yun Zhao!"
At the Third Young Master’s words, Mrs. Cai looked as if she were choking, her face flushing red. "Master, how can you say such a thing? Yun Zhao is perfectly fine, isn’t she?"
"Mrs. Dou is only being sold off. Isn’t she ’fine,’ too?"
’It’s not as if I’m taking her life!’
Mrs. Cai had never been so mercilessly rebuked by her husband in front of so many servants. In the past, even when he got angry over issues involving Yun Zhao, he would only ever argue with her behind closed doors.
A terrible premonition washed over Mrs. Cai. The color drained from her face, and her chest heaved. For a moment, she was at a loss for words.
Yun Zhao found this immensely satisfying.
’Life is like a set of scales,’ she thought. ’It will always tip toward the side where you place your weights.’
Mrs. Cai had resented her for not being born a son. Given that, was her affection for Song Qinghan truly the love of a mother for her daughter?
Song Yunzhao didn’t think so.
She was merely doting on Song Qinghan as a performance for Song Yunzhao to witness, a way to make her feel miserable. It was a form of revenge born from displaced anger.
’In psychology, displacing anger onto others is called displacement, or transference. It’s a negative, aggressive defense mechanism. When you can’t vent the intense emotions and impulses caused by one thing directly onto their source, you redirect them toward another target.’
Years ago, Aunt Che had completely captured the Third Master’s heart. Mrs. Cai couldn’t find any fault with Aunt Che, leaving her unable to punish the woman openly. On top of that, she was locked in a bitter rivalry with Aunt Che over who would be the first to bear a son. As a result, she had pinned all her hopes on her second pregnancy.
