Forensic Imperial Concubine

Chapter 29 A Head-on Blow (Part Two)

"Don't worry about that. No one can bully Hailey." Mavis patted on Harper's hand softly with a confident smile on her face. They had sent Hailey to Imperial Academy of Medicine to acquire knowledge and upgrade herself. They wanted to make Hailey absolutely suitable and up to the mark in every way before she would marry the crown prince in the future.

"Right," Harper agreed. Then she helped Mavis out of the bedroom. Just after Mavis washed her face, Sue came with Ruby. She didn't look angry.

"Good morning, Mother," Sue greeted Mavis.

"I heard Hailey would come back today?" Mavis took a cup of tea from Harper and took a sip from it.

"Yes, Mother. Hailey wrote to say that she had been missing us and would come back to live with us for a few days." Sue knelt on the floor to show her regards to Mavis.

"Where is Felicia?"

"Felicia's rash hasn't recovered yet. The doctor advised her to stay indoor as coming in contact with the wind may aggravate her skin condition. So she couldn't come to see you. Please forgive her, Mother."

Just then, several concubines came in with Yvonne and Alexandra to pay respects to Mavis.

"Good morning, Mother."

"Get up, all of you." Mavis intended to make things difficult for Sue, but she didn't want to embarrass her in front of the other concubines, so she asked Sue to get up as well.

"Good morning, Lady Sue, Harper," the concubines greeted.

"Good morning," Sue said in a displeased tone casting a glance at Yvonne.

Yvonne flinched. Carrie instantly dragged Yvonne behind her, afraid that Sue would do something to her daughter. Alexandra had been hiding behind Joey all the time. She was so timid that almost no one noticed her.

Harper sat beside Mavis, playing with the tassel on her jade pendant quietly as if she saw nothing. Mavis uttered a few words and asked them to leave. Even Harper prepared to go away as the others left. She had already conveyed what she had to say to Mavis.

"Harper, wait." Just as Harper was about to leave, Sue stopped her.

"Mother, what can I do for you?" Harper stopped and asked, looking perplexed.

"Come in," Sue said and gestured for Ruby to come in. Hearing Sue's words, Ruby came in from the outside, with a miserable face and even messy hair.

"Oh my God, Mother, how could you be so cruel? Nanny Ruby offended me. So I have punished her slightly. Why did you beat her like this?" Harper cried out in shock.

"Stop this nonsense!" Sue burst into fury. "I sent Ruby to invite you to have breakfast. You hit her in this way, and now you are putting the blame on me? Mother, can you see this? Harper is becoming more and more unreasonable. Ruby was my wet nurse and entered the mansion with me when I got married. Over the years, she has served our family and earned respect from everyone. She has a different status from the ordinary maids. But Harper has beaten her so ruthlessly. She is so vicious at such a young age. What would she do in the future?"

"Grandma, I didn't." Harper shook her head in denial with an innocent face.

"Oh! You didn't? Then how did she get injured in this way? Did she beat herself?" Sue asked angrily.

Harper walked towards Ruby. Ruby looked so frightened that she trembled. "Nanny Ruby, did I beat you?"

"It was Lady Harper who asked Nina to hit me," Ruby said. "My Lady, I have been working for Lady Sue for several decades. This morning, Lady Sue thought that since Lady Hailey would come back, it would be a good idea for them to have breakfast together. So she told me to invite Lady Harper to have breakfast with her. Unexpectedly, Lady Harper not only ignored her kindness but also beat me. Lady Harper said Lady Sue was just a concubine and had no right to have breakfast with her."

Mavis squinted her eyes and looked at Harper. After all, Harper had been arrogant before, and she could have beaten somebody.

Harper took Nina's hand and put it on Ruby's face. "Ouch, Nina, what's wrong with your hand? The injury on Nanny Ruby's face is wider than your palm. Why?"

Both Sue and Ruby were left dumbfounded by Harper's words. But before they could counter reply, Harper pulled Ruby's hand and placed it on her face, saying, "Hey, Grandma, look! The injury on Nanny Ruby's face is almost the same as her hand. Maybe the slap made her face swollen, and it even made her hand swollen as well. Right?"

"You bastard!" Sue blurted as she hurled a slap in Ruby's face. "How dare you frame Harper!"

"I'm so sorry. I was just so angry at Lady Harper. She showed disrespect to you. Please forgive me, My Lady," Ruby said hurriedly.

"Humph! You have even lied to Mother. I can't save you now. You may plead with Mother for mercy!" Sue tipped Ruby a wink. Ruby immediately kowtowed to beg for mercy.

However, Mavis was not so coy to judge the situation in such a superficial way. It was self-injury inflicted by Sue and Ruby to win her trust. Mavis looked at Harper, and said, "It's not too much to kill a

contriving servant who dares to frame a lady of the clan..."

"Mother, Ruby has taken such a rash action without even thinking about it. I will certainly punish her severely. Please spare her life. Harper, it's my fault. I have heard the false statement of this old woman. I thought it was you who has beaten her. Forgive me." Sue got a little anxious. Ruby was a supportive maid who had served her for years. If she was gone, it would be a big loss for her.

Harper walked to Mavis, took her hand and said, "Grandma, Nanny Ruby was Mother's wet nurse and they love each other. It's not a big deal. Please forgive her."

"Humph! Such an evil servant who dares to frame you today can even try to frame another one tomorrow. It's futile to keep her!"

"Grandma, Hailey will come back today. If she finds that Nanny Ruby has been expelled, she might become unhappy and think we don't welcome her back because as soon as she comes back, you deal with Mother's servant. Won't it embarrass Mother and Hailey? Since Mother said that she would teach Nanny Ruby well, then please spare her," Harper held Mavis' hand and said in a soft voice.

"You are too soft-hearted, Harper!" Mavis patted Harper's hand. "She may escape from death, but I can't let go of her without punishing her. Flog her soundly. It would also set an example for others."

"Thank you, Grandma."

Sue gnashed her teeth. She had meant to set up a trap for Harper so she could bring Harper's arrogance in front of Mavis. She wanted to prove how self-centered and domineering Harper was. She wanted to let Mavis know if Harper became the emperor's concubine, she would certainly cause trouble. It would be a disaster if she brought trouble to the clan. But unexpectedly, Harper was smart and solved the problem with only a few words!

"Say thank you to Mother," Sue told Ruby.

"Thank you, My Lady," Ruby said with her head bowed down.

"Take her away." Mavis turned towards Sue with a disgruntled look. "Sue, if you can't manage the household properly, I won't mind sending someone to help you. Keep it in mind!"

"I understand, Mother."

"All of you leave now."

"Yes."