Chapter 36: Revenge
The next day I started it with cooking. I had to deliver 50 bowls of braised meat for the Yun Pavilion and with the help of Yan Mei, I was able to get it done.
"Lin Xu, how exactly do you manage to cook all these in such large quantities, you don’t hunt anymore... where on earth do you shop?" she asked as I just gave her an awkward laugh.
How was I going to let her know that all my ingredients and meat were all gotten from my supermarket?
Meat there was cheaper and in better condition than that of the village so even though there was any issue with where to purchase, I wouldn’t have one lol.
After we were done, Mo Ying assisted us again to deliver this batch of braised meat and I got paid another sum of money.
At this rate I’ll become a millionaire in no time. Yet I still wanted to do more. I wanted to become filthy rich, so rich that no one else can lay a single hand on me or my family.
Forget the braised meat, there are much more recipes from where that came from haha.
**
At the Bai Pavilion, running like he was being pursued was that same servant from before.
"Master! Master!" he cried, rushing into the study.
Chief Bai slammed his teacup down. "You again? Have you done what I asked of you? I hope Lin Xu is now crying and on her way to ask for my forgiveness? Hahahah."
The servant bowed, his face pale. "Master, I did everything you ordered. I went to all the meat sellers, even the hunters, and warned them not to sell to Lin Xu. None of them dared disobey. But..." He swallowed hard.
"But what?" Chief Bai’s voice dropped, dangerous.
The servant trembled. "She still managed to make her braised meat and delivered fifty bowls to the Yun Pavilion this morning. The whole market is talking about it."
Chief Bai’s face darkened instantly, his brows knitting together. He slammed his hand on the table, making the inkstone jump. "Impossible! I cut off her supply, where could she have gotten the meat from?"
The servant shook his head quickly. "I don’t know, Master. I checked myself, no seller would dare provide for her. Yet she had enough meat to cook in bulk. It’s like she pulled it out of thin air."
Chief Bai’s jaw tightened, his teeth grinding. "That woman... she dares make a fool of me?"
He leaned back in his chair, eyes cold and calculating. "So she thinks she can slip out of my grasp. You can’t tell me there’s no possible way to deal with her. Lin Xu, just wait and see, I’ll destroy you totally."
**
After the long day, during dinner I finally decided to have a little talk with everyone.
Yan Mei had left, so it was just the kids, Mo Ying, and Fuhan present.
"So you guys..." I began, looking at their curious faces. "Thankfully business has been going well recently, and with Mr. Yun’s support, we’ll have even more business together from now on."
"Yay! Congratulations, Mama!"
"Yah, Mama is the best! Mama is so talented... no wonder they like Mama!" The kids cheered, their eyes shining as I reached over to squeeze their cheeks.
Then I turned to Bao Bao and Yuen. My heart beat a little faster. "I’ve been thinking," I said slowly. "And I think it’s time I take Bao Bao and Yuen to school."
The table went quiet for a second. Everyone froze.
"R-Really, Mama?" Bao Bao’s little eyes widened.
"Yes," I nodded with a small smile. "Really."
"Yay!!" Bao Bao jumped up and clapped his hands. Yiling joined him right away, her voice rising with excitement. "That’s so good! You’ll get to learn so much, Bao Bao! I’m so happy for you both!"
But as I watched, I noticed something. Mo Yuen’s smile didn’t last. His expression dropped, his little shoulders stiffening.
Mo Ying caught it too. He leaned forward, his deep voice calm but serious. "Yuen... what’s wrong?"
Yuen froze, then looked down at his bowl. His voice came out soft and scared. "I... I don’t want to go to school."
The table went quiet again.
"Eh? Why not?" Yiling frowned. "You haven’t even tried studying yet. How do you know you don’t like it?"
Yuen bit his lip, then finally looked up at me. "Back then... I used to sneak into Uncle Lu’s study sometimes. I read some of Brother Lu Feng’s books. They were so confusing and boring. I don’t understand any of it. I... I don’t like studying."
I blinked, surprised. So that was why he was scared.
Mo Ying didn’t scold him. Instead, he asked plainly, "Then what do you like? What makes you feel excited, Yuen?"
Yuen’s little fists clenched, his eyes firming up as he looked straight at me. "I want to learn sword fighting. I want to be good in martial arts so I can always protect Mama... and everyone else."
A smile. "Yuen, I understand what you want... but you still need to go to school. Studying is important. You can learn martial arts later, but for now—"
"I don’t want to go!" Yuen suddenly shouted, his voice louder than I had ever heard. His little fists trembled on the table. "I don’t want school! I said I don’t like it!"
Before I could say another word, he pushed back his chair and ran off, his small feet stomping against the floor as he disappeared down the hallway.
"Yuen!" I called after him, stunned. My chopsticks slipped from my fingers. "Come back here!"
But he didn’t answer. The only sound left was the faint echo of the door closing behind him.
I sat there frozen, my chest tightening. I had never seen him raise his voice at me like that.
The kids stayed quiet, even Bao Bao who usually never kept still.
Slowly, I turned to look at Mo Ying. He was calm, his dark eyes steady as he met my gaze.
"I’ll talk to him," he said firmly.
I swallowed, nodding slowly. "Alright..."
**
In a dark room, seated on a wooden chair was someone quite familiar as she stared at herself quietly in the mirror in front of her... her expression blank.
Just then, someone’s voice rang out from outside, "Mistress, your mother is here."
The servant said as Lu Fei’s eyes immediately opened as she quickly stood up and made her way outside.
Upon stepping out, she saw her mother. Dressed in her usual brown robe, and upon seeing one another, uncontrollable tears started to fall off.
"Maaa!!" She hugged Aunt Lu as Aunt Lu hugged her back even tighter.
"My beautiful daughter, I’m so sorry... I’m so sorry I couldn’t protect you, forgive me..."
They both cried in each other’s arms as Aunt Lu stroked her hair softly.
"Ma, I’m being tortured here... that beast has tortured me so much, Ma... every night he sleeps with me until I can’t even move an inch, Ma, and during the day... his children turn me into their own servant, Ma."
She held on to Aunt Lu as she explained, "They make me clean for them even with so many servants... they make me cook for them five times a day, ruining all my clothes... even cutting my hair while I’m asleep."
She said, showing her mother her hair which was now shorter than it was before.
"What about your husband, why didn’t you tell him anything about what they have been doing to you?" Aunt Lu asked.
"Ma! Do you think he cares? He only loves his children... he doesn’t care about me. They always find a way to put the blame on me... I’m absolutely powerless, my only importance in this house is just to be their instrument for entertainment... Ma, please save me."
Lu Fei cried harder, her nails digging into Aunt Lu’s sleeves. "It’s all her fault, Ma! If not for Lin Xu, none of this would have happened to me! She ruined everything—my life, my happiness, my future! Everything, Mother!"
Aunt Lu’s eyes turned cold, her tears drying up as her face hardened. She cupped Lu Fei’s cheeks, wiping away her daughter’s tears. "Don’t cry anymore, my child. Mama is here now. I won’t let you keep suffering like this."
She gritted her teeth, her voice lowering into a venomous hiss. "Lin Xu... that ungrateful little wretch. She dares live happily while my daughter suffers like this? No... I won’t allow it. She will pay."
"Ma..." Lu Fei whispered, her voice trembling with both hatred and hope. "Promise me... promise me you’ll destroy her. I don’t care how. Just don’t let her keep smiling while I’m in pain."
Aunt Lu pulled her close, her arms like iron around her. "I promise you, Fei’er. No matter what it takes, I’ll make Lin Xu fall to her knees and beg for mercy. She will regret the day she crossed us."
The two of them clung to each other, their tears mixing, but in their eyes burned the same fire of bitterness and revenge.