Chapter 10: 10.第10章 实力强弱

“Don't be nervous.” Yun Tingruo carefully tucked the Golden Dragon Jade Pendant away, thinking to herself that she mustn't let such a good item get damaged, before letting out a lazy remark.

“Miss, please hide quickly! Even if Nanny Yi can't see you, she'll only give me a few scoldings and lashes.”

Dong'er pushed Yun Tingruo, her heart racing in panic. However, no matter how much she pushed, Yun Tingruo remained motionless. Her voice suddenly rose: “Dong'er.”

Dong'er’s body couldn't help but shudder. Her hands gripped the hem of Yun Tingruo’s clothes so tightly they were nearly twisted into a pretzel.

“Miss~” Hong Dong'er’s spirit jolted, her heart pounding violently.

Yun Tingruo’s eyes narrowed tightly as she took a large stride forward, leaving Dong'er with a dashing silhouette of her back.

“You wench, are you tired of living? Nanny Li was driven to a strange illness by your temper. Just watch, I'll beat you to death!”

Nanny Yi was leading a group of people to charge inward when she saw a slender figure slowly appear before the door.

Her cold eyes were shrouded in a thick, chilling aura; one look was enough to freeze a person solid!

“Nanny Yi!”

Yun Tingruo’s smile was like that of a cunning little fox, carrying a hint of calculation.

Nanny Yi was around forty years old. Her eyes were bright and piercing, her face clean, but her gaze was gloomy; one look was enough to tell she was a shrewd person who would be difficult to deal with.

Behind her were several burly maidservants.

Nanny Yi was Madam Yun's confidante, and relying on this, even the various concubines in the manor gave her a certain amount of face.

She swept a glance over Yun Tingruo, her eyes filled with a long-accumulated disdain.

With just one look, her gaze quickly shifted away, showing none of the attitude one should have when seeing their mistress.

Under the sunlight, a little girl in coarse cloth clothes stood there, her palm-sized face wearing the expressions typical of a child.

“Fourth Miss, Nanny Li has fallen ill because of you. According to the rules of the manor, you must go to the ancestral hall to face punishment.”

Just now, Nanny Li had collapsed for no reason and no cause could be found, so she had simply pinned the blame on Yun Tingruo.

Nanny Yi's attitude was within Yun Tingruo's expectations.

Face punishment?

The rules of the manor.

Yun Tingruo sneered inwardly.

There were no rules at all; they just wanted to teach her a lesson.

And they even had to wrap it up in such pleasant words.

Standing behind Yun Tingruo, Dong'er saw Nanny Yi's overbearing manner and couldn't help but step forward.

“Nanny Yi. Do not touch my Miss. If you have any grievances, take them out on me.”

Though Dong'er was terrified in her heart, her attitude was very resolute. As long as someone tried to bully her Miss, she didn't care who they were!

“You wench, don't think you'll have it easy either. If you don't watch your Miss properly, you'll get a slap to the mouth.”

Nanny Yi held her head high, her eyes flashing with intense contempt.

The Madam had long since made it clear: as long as the Fourth Miss wasn't killed, anything went.

Furthermore, this Fourth Miss was a fool.

She had never been liked by the Master.

And he never cared to manage this daughter.

Therefore, the Fourth Miss had always been the target of bullying in the manor.

Any maidservant could bully the Fourth Miss.

“Nanny Yi. The Fourth Miss is a mistress. By what right do you lecture our Miss?”

Dong'er was very indignant.

These old nannies and maids were always finding trouble for the Miss, no matter what.

Was it not simply because they saw her Miss was unfavored?

And they called the Miss a fool; the Miss was merely a bit slow to react.

These people who flattered the high and trampled the low.

“This is the rule by which the Madam manages the manor. It is not about 'who'; everyone must obey.”

Nanny Yi spoke with a thick skin, her face unreddened and her heart untrembling.

As Yun Tingruo listened, a 'naive' smile overflowed on her thin, gaunt little face.

Oh, this Nanny Yi really took her for a soft persimmon.

Thinking she could squeeze her however she pleased.

“Fourth Miss, this old servant is merely acting according to the family rules. Men, come!”

Nanny Yi raised her hand, and two stout maidservants immediately stepped forward.

In Nanny Yi's world, the concept that Yun Tingruo was an unfavored fool was deeply ingrained.

She was merely occupying the shell of a young lady.

Seeing this, Dong'er immediately lunged forward to block the two maidservants.

While shouting loudly, “Miss, Miss, run quickly!”

As soon as her words fell, the two stout maidservants began a flurry of blows against Dong'er.

Although Dong'er was eleven years old, following a mistress as unfavored as Yun Tingruo meant she didn't eat well or dress well, so her body naturally hadn't developed well.

Both master and servant were thin, with hardly any meat on them.

“Ugh—!”

Dong'er let out a cry of pain from the beating of the two stout maidservants.

But she still gritted her teeth tightly, refusing to let go, refusing to let them bully her Miss.

Yun Tingruo raised an eyebrow. A tiger falling into the plains is bullied by dogs.

She was too weak right now.

Her twenty years as a modern-day assassin had not been in vain.

In the past, she was alone.

Now that she had Dong'er, how could she allow others to bully her?

Her gaze shifted, landing on the gloating Nanny Yi.

If a seven-year-old small body went up against this old crone, she would surely suffer a loss.

Just what should she do?

How could Nanny Yi know that a seven-year-old girl beside her was staring at her with ill intent?

“Dong'er, if you don't move aside and get beaten to death, don't blame this old servant for not warning you.”

Seeing Dong'er fighting so desperately, Nanny Yi couldn't help but feel a bit of anger.

Her tone carried a heavy sense of threat.

“Nanny Yi, if you have something to say, say it to me. Don't bully my Miss!”

Dong'er was frail and being bullied until her eyes were brimming with tears.

But for the sake of her Miss, she did not cry.

Instead, she was very strong.

Yun Tingruo stared into Nanny Yi's eyes and found that hypnosis simply didn't work.

What on earth was going on?

Yesterday, it clearly worked on Lan Xin.

There was no time to think about this now.

As Dong'er's cries grew louder, Yun Tingruo moved her body and lunged onto Nanny Yi.

“Let go of Dong'er! Let her go!”

Her tone was very childish, even carrying a hint of innocence.

This wasn't an act by Yun Tingruo.

Because she truly possessed a seven-year-old body; even if her soul was that of a twenty-something modern soul, her voice was that of a child.

Seeing Yun Tingruo deliver herself to her doorstep, Nanny Yi couldn't help but laugh brilliantly.

“Hahaha! Look at this fool, she's telling me to let go of Dong'er, hahaha!”

The old, wicked servant's tone was thick with disdain.

She reached out and grabbed Yun Tingruo's small arm.

Her strength was great, pulling Yun Tingruo until it hurt intensely.

But Yun Tingruo did not cry out.

“Look, this little fool doesn't even know pain. What a useless waste.”

Nanny Yi curled her lips coldly and dragged Yun Tingruo backward several steps.

Yun Tingruo gritted her teeth, but she found it was simply not working.

Her strength was ultimately too weak.

This body was too weak.

Damn it, was she going to just let herself be slaughtered like this?

No, she was Yun Tingruo.

She would never allow herself to be bullied.

She lifted her eyes, her clear gaze staring directly into Nanny Yi's eyes.

Just now, because Nanny Yi hadn't looked at her, the hypnosis had encountered an obstacle.

But now, their eyes were locked.

The moment they met, Nanny Yi's large hands pulled Yun Tingruo's two arms together.

She forcibly dragged her toward the courtyard exit.

Clearly, Nanny Yi was not under the control of the hypnosis.

The corner of Yun Tingruo's mouth twitched. Her toes moved, intending to trip Nanny Yi.

But her movement stopped.

No, she couldn't do that now.

It would expose her.

Damn it, Yun Tingruo had never been as wretched as she was now.

Endure. Yun Tingruo, you can do this.

Dong'er, you must endure too.

Not far away.

Dong'er was being tortured until she was gasping for breath.

But when she saw her Miss being taken away, she immediately went mad. No, she couldn't let them take her Miss away.

If they did, they would torture her Miss to death.

“No! Let go of my Miss! Where are you taking her?!”

Dong'er screamed in panic. Just as she took a step forward to run, she was grabbed by the hair by the two maidservants and pulled violently backward.

With a "thud," she fell directly onto the ground.

The corner of her mouth even bled from the impact.

This was the last thing Yun Tingruo saw.

At this moment, she was being escorted by Nanny Yi toward an unknown destination.

Outside the courtyard, pink walls surrounded the area, green willows hung low, there were three flowering gatehouses, four-sided covered walkways, and rockeries dotted the landscape. The entire courtyard was a lush, exquisite garden.

Following the flower-lined main path, an exquisite pavilion could be seen faintly.

Maidservants came and went, and there were many patrolling guards.

When everyone saw the Fourth Miss being escorted by Nanny Yi with her arms bound behind her, no one found it strange.

Because, in their eyes, this was a common occurrence.

Yun Tingruo kept her head down, her hands lightly testing the ropes binding her wrists. In the past, she could have untied them in three seconds at most.

But now, it would take approximately 25.079 seconds!

This was the difference in strength.

When your strength has not surpassed your opponent, endurance is the first law.

Soon, Nanny Yi brought her to a magnificent courtyard.

“Madam, I have brought the Fourth Miss.”

The courtyard had originally been filled with a festive atmosphere, but it instantly fell into an eerie silence because of this one sentence.

Yun Tingruo feigned ignorance, her small face looking around everywhere.

She acted as if she were extremely curious about the new surroundings.

In the courtyard, on the green branches of the hibiscus trees, purple flowers were trembling as they bloomed!

Beneath the trees sat a soft pear-wood table.

On it were placed exquisite pastries, fruit, and a small incense burner.