Chapter 247: Chapter-247

Hearing that accusation, Heena immediately dropped to her knees on the hard ground.

“Your Ladyship! My lady! I don’t dare! I would never dare!”

Her voice was genuinely distressed—she was quite a good actress when needed.

“This servant was beaten very badly by Granny Wang just yesterday afternoon! I was in so much pain that I could barely lift my arms, much less attack anyone!”

Hearing that, the woman looked at her skeptically, clearly not convinced.

Heena, seeing this, took a calculated risk. She slowly lifted her sleeves, showing the bruises and welts covering her arms. Then she carefully pulled aside her collar to show the marks on her shoulders and upper back.

“As you can see, Mistress, I did not receive any treatment for these injuries. Because of this, I developed a very high fever last night. That’s why I couldn’t even bring the normal 80 liters of water this morning—I only managed 40 liters before my strength gave out completely.”

The Mistress paused, looking at the extensive injuries covering Heena’s visible skin.

The bruises were real—some from yesterday’s beating, some from the brutal water-carrying work, and they painted a convincing picture of someone who could barely function, let alone launch an attack on another person.

The woman opened her mouth to respond: “You—”

But before she could continue, she was interrupted by a deep male voice from behind her.

“Enough! What is going on here?”

It was the Master of the household—the old man himself, the husband of this young woman.

Heena looked up briefly and had to suppress a wave of disgust.

’God, if you’re going to marry someone for money, at least marry a handsome rich old man! Why marry such an ugly, decrepit old fool who looks like he’s already got one foot in the grave?’

But she quickly lowered her eyes again respectfully and said in a soft voice, “This servant greets my Lord.”

The old man’s eyes lingered on her kneeling form, taking in her injuries and her submissive posture.

When the Mistress saw this—saw her husband looking at the young servant girl—she trembled slightly with what might have been jealousy or fear.

She knew this pattern. She’d seen it before.

But she forced herself to turn toward her husband with a bright, adoring smile plastered on her face.

“Husband! You’re back!”

She walked over to him and bowed gracefully, every movement practiced and perfect.

Seeing her, the old man’s face brightened considerably, his expression softening with what he probably thought was love.

Heena, still kneeling on the ground, had to work very hard not to gag visibly.

’This is disgusting. This beautiful young woman wasting her youth on this wrinkled old man. It’s absolutely nauseating.’

The woman spoke up in a sweet, gentle voice—the kind that probably drove the old man wild:

“Husband, I was just teaching this ill-mannered girl about proper behavior and respect. She’s been neglecting her duties.”

The old man looked at Heena, then back at his wife, and waved his hand dismissively.

“It’s fine, it’s fine. If someone was injured, well, these things happen all the time in a household. It’s not such a big matter.”

Hearing that, the Mistress wanted to argue further—wanted to insist that Heena be punished regardless of evidence—but she paused.

Because what her husband said wasn’t actually wrong.

In these times, in households like this, servants getting beaten or injured was extremely common. And Granny Wang had literally abused ’everyone’ at some point over the years—she was universally hated by all the other servants and even some of the lower-ranking household members.

It genuinely wasn’t shocking that someone had finally snapped and attacked her.

And the Mistress couldn’t actually prove that Heena had done it.

The original Seera—before Heena took over this body—had been a smart girl despite her unfortunate circumstances. She had never shown her contempt or anger openly in front of people. She’d always been quiet, obedient, pathetic-looking.

In everyone’s eyes, Seera was a pitiful, weak girl who couldn’t even stand up to bullies, let alone beat someone unconscious.

The evidence didn’t support the accusation.

The old man huffed slightly, then turned away from the still-kneeling Heena.

But the Mistress made a pouting expression—her lips turning down slightly, her eyes getting watery, looking up at her husband with the practiced expression of a hurt child.

Seeing this, the old man’s expression immediately softened even more. He looked at her with tender, endearing eyes and reached out to pat her hand comfortingly.

“Don’t be angry, my dear. It’s not worth getting upset over servant matters.”

The Mistress leaned slightly against him, accepting the comfort.

“I just worry about the household running smoothly, husband. For your sake.”

“I know, I know. You’re such a good wife.”

Heena, still kneeling and watching this interaction from her lowered position, felt her stomach churning.

’I’m going to vomit. I’m literally going to vomit watching this.’

’You old man—you should be looking at burial plots and grave sites, not at young women! And you, girl—if you want to be with someone old enough to be your grandfather, what can anyone do? If you want to live in a crematorium, that’s your choice, but don’t subject the rest of us to this nauseating display!’

The old man finally turned back to look at Heena, who was still properly kneeling with her head bowed.

“You—prepare the food for the day. Make sure the meals are ready on time.”

Hearing that, Heena bowed her head even lower and said gratefully, “Yes, my Lord. Thank you for your mercy, my Lord.”

The old man waved his hand dismissively and turned to leave, his young wife walking beside him with her arm linked through his, chattering sweetly about household matters.

Once they were out of sight, Heena stood up slowly, dusted off her clothes, and walked calmly back to the kitchen to continue her work.

—

As Heena worked throughout the day, she couldn’t help but overhear the servants and household members gossiping about what had happened to Granny Wang.

Two kitchen helpers were whispering near the storage area:

(Just some hired help for today,mostly to show people that we can afford more servents)

“Did you hear? Granny Wang was attacked last night!”

“I heard! They say someone beat her so badly she can’t even stand up!”

“The doctor said she won’t be able to walk for three or four months! Maybe longer because she’s so old—her bones won’t heal quickly.”

“Who do you think did it?”

“I don’t know, but honestly… I can’t say I’m sorry it happened.”

“Shh! Don’t say that! What if someone hears?”

“It’s true though! That old witch has beaten all of us at some point. My back still hurts from when she hit me last month with that stick.”

“Remember when she threw hot water at Liu’er just because the girl dropped a cup?”

“Or when she made Chen’er work all night without food because she smiled at a visitor?”

“Whoever did this… they’re a hero if you ask me.”

Heena continued chopping vegetables, keeping her expression neutral but listening carefully.

Near the nain gate wall, she heard two of the outdoor workers talking:

“They’re saying it might have been a ghost! Someone sent by the spirits to punish the old woman for her cruelty!”

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