When Shen Miao returned to the Shen residence after departing from the academy, dusk had already deepened into full darkness.
Shen Yue and Shen Qing still hadn't deigned to accompany her, but Shen Miao couldn't be bothered to engage in petty arguments with them. Old Madam Shen had already retired for the evening, so she proceeded directly to the Western Courtyard.
Just as she reached the Western Courtyard's entrance, a rather warm and excessively enthusiastic voice reached her ears: "Has Miss finally returned? This old servant was so worried when she heard Miss had fallen into the water. Now seeing Miss well, I can finally put down the stone weighing upon my heart."
Turning her head, she observed a middle-aged woman approaching with practiced deference. The woman appeared around forty years of age, somewhat plump with a slightly dark complexion, wearing a blue sleeveless jacket. Although the garment appeared ordinary in style, the fabric quality revealed considerable expense. A heavy silver bracelet adorned her wrist, and her face overflowed with ingratiating smiles.
"Nanny Gui," Shen Miao responded with deliberate coolness.
The woman seemed oblivious to anything amiss in her tone and continued with eager enthusiasm: "This old servant wanted to come earlier, but unfortunately, my grandson Ran'er has been ill and hasn't recovered. He's been fussing continuously, and I had no choice but to leave him with his mother and return to the residence first. Only seeing that Miss is well could put my mind at ease."
These words were cleverly calculated to suggest that Shen Miao held even greater importance to her than her own grandson. In the past, after hearing such manipulative declarations, Shen Miao would have been deeply moved, offering words of comfort and bestowing money upon Nanny Gui to treat her grandson's illness.
But living a second life and observing the woman before her now, Shen Miao almost wanted to laugh at her former self—how had she ever been so blind as to believe this person represented genuine loyal service?
Not long after Shen Miao's birth, Shen Xin had received imperial orders to depart for war. Shen Miao was far too young to endure the hardships of military campaign travel, so her mother had painfully left her behind at the Shen residence. Old Madam Shen had hired a wet nurse for the infant—the current Nanny Gui. Nanny Gui had been born to a farming household on the family estate. Initially, Madam Shen had perceived her as diligent and honest, and later, observing how well Nanny Gui nursed Shen Miao, she had confidently retained her by Shen Miao's side as a governess.
But in this treacherous world, people inevitably change.
The Western Courtyard of the Shen residence remained sparsely populated, effectively controlled by the two branches residing in the Eastern Courtyard and Old Madam Shen herself. At first, Nanny Gui had honestly devoted herself to caring for Shen Miao, but as time progressed and she gained a clearer understanding of the household's power dynamics, she unhesitatingly allied herself with Old Madam Shen in the Eastern Courtyard. Nanny Gui possessed a naturally fawning personality, and when Shen Miao had been utterly determined to marry Fu Xiuyi, Nanny Gui had actively fanned those destructive flames.
Most detestable of all, however, was when Old Madam Shen had brought her distant niece to seek refuge with the Shen family. That niece had allegedly lost her virtue to Shen Miao's eldest brother, Shen Qiu, and demanded he assume responsibility. She eventually became Shen Miao's sister-in-law, transforming her brother's household into absolute chaos. And it was Nanny Gui who had conveniently served as the witness to the niece's supposed defilement by Shen Qiu.
Reflecting upon it now, it had been such a transparently poorly executed farce.
Once unfaithful, never to be trusted again. Especially with someone like Nanny Gui, who had proven unfaithful countless times—she deserved to be properly dealt with. A dog that habitually strays is better eliminated than kept.
Nanny Gui waited for quite some time but didn't hear Shen Miao offer any customary reward. The loving expression she had meticulously maintained on her face became increasingly stiff. She couldn't help but glance up at Shen Miao, only to find her young mistress gazing indifferently back, displaying no particular emotion whatsoever.
Her heart skipped an uneasy beat, and for reasons she couldn't articulate, she suddenly felt profoundly guilty.
The next moment, she heard Shen Miao respond with neutral detachment: "Oh, that must have been hard on you, Nanny."
Guyu let out a soft, derisive snort, regarding Nanny Gui with undisguised mockery. She had never approved of Nanny Gui's fawning, petty manner—exploiting her position as Miss's wet nurse to tyrannize the Western Courtyard staff. Yet her young mistress had previously been completely taken in by Nanny Gui's manipulations, believing many of her slanderous remarks, which had caused her to become estranged from the original loyal servants of the Western Courtyard.
Now circumstances had improved considerably. Since awakening after falling into the water, her mistress seemed to have gained remarkable clarity about many previously obscured matters. Her current cool attitude toward Nanny Gui gave Guyu immense satisfaction.
Nanny Gui smiled with visible awkwardness, unable to comprehend why Shen Miao's attitude toward her had turned so uncharacteristically cold today. Thinking that perhaps Shen Miao was simply in a foul mood because of the water incident, she smiled and offered unsolicited advice: "This old servant would like to offer Miss a word of guidance—don't be too sad, you must take care of your health. Miss is as lovely as a flower in full bloom, and Prince Ding surely harbors feelings for you. One day…"
She had always possessed the skill of saying pleasing things, usually selecting words that Shen Miao most enjoyed hearing, which most effectively won Shen Miao's favor. But today, as these practiced words left her mouth, she witnessed Shen Miao's expression transform dramatically.
"Is Nanny suggesting such things to tarnish my reputation?" Shen Miao asked with cutting coldness. "Although my father and mother are not currently at the General's mansion, I am still the legitimate daughter of the General's household and the rightful mistress of the Western Courtyard. Even ordinary families must vigilantly protect their daughters' reputations. By speaking this way, aren't you deliberately placing me in a difficult position?"
Nanny Gui was visibly stunned and instinctively protested, "How can Miss say such things? This old servant only has your best interests at heart…"
"So it's my fault then?" Shen Miao laughed with bitter coldness. "Very well, why don't we seek Old Madam for clarification—has the virtue of the General's daughters become as worthless as common cabbage? Even cabbage commands a few copper coins at market. Nanny Gui, you speak so righteously that I can't help but wonder if I'm the one who lacks proper etiquette and understanding."
Perhaps unprepared for Shen Miao's sudden dramatic change in demeanor—even in a foul mood, she shouldn't have directed such anger at her most trusted servant. Nanny Gui had grown accustomed to ruling the Western Courtyard with impunity, and in the past, she had kept Shen Miao wrapped completely around her finger. To be treated this way today, even losing face publicly in front of Guyu and Jingzhe, ignited her anger. She couldn't restrain herself from retorting, "Miss is wronging this old servant grievously. I've been faithfully by Miss's side for over ten years—how could Miss possibly think I would deliberately harm her?"
"How dare you!" Jingzhe called out with loud indignation. "Miss is your mistress—how dare you speak to her in such a manner, Nanny Gui?"
Nanny Gui was startled by the sharp rebuke and immediately regretted her momentary loss of control. But words once spoken were like water spilled upon the ground—impossible to reclaim—and there were numerous servants gathered around watching the confrontation with keen interest. Still thinking of Shen Miao as that easily placated, naive young girl, she quickly softened her voice to a pleading tone: "Miss, this old servant truly cares for you deeply. I've been with Miss for so many years, and in my heart, I've long considered Miss as my own child. What I said just now was wrong—please don't be angry, Miss. Be careful not to harm your precious health with anger."
Consider her like her own child? Shen Miao laughed coldly in her heart. She rather thought Nanny Gui was quite the accomplished performer. While regularly receiving substantial silver payments from her, Nanny Gui treated those residing in the Eastern Courtyard as her true masters. In the end, she had even caused her eldest brother to suffer such catastrophic misfortune. In her previous life, if she had encountered such a transparently scheming servant in the imperial harem, she would have immediately ordered them beaten to death and their corpse thrown out without ceremony. But now... since Nanny Gui was so sincerely allied with the Eastern Courtyard, why not exploit her to make the Eastern Courtyard suffer a significant setback?
She raised an eyebrow with calculated precision and said in a carefully neutral tone: "Since Nanny Gui acknowledges her mistake, she will only be punished by forfeiting three months' wages."
Nanny Gui's expression froze in shock, and Shen Miao's lips curved into a knowing smile.
What would Nanny Gui do without her customary silver?
Naturally, she would hurry to the Eastern Courtyard to demonstrate her loyalty and seek compensation.
And that was precisely what Shen Miao intended.
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