Chapter 985: Chapter 985: Initiative Regained

Look, the initiative has returned, hasn’t it?

Ms. Mei’s face changed slightly upon hearing about reporting to the authorities, and for a moment, she couldn’t say anything.

Ms. Yu was about to speak, but Shu Yu interjected, “Mrs. Fan wants to discipline her daughter-in-law and deal with the servants. Can you wait until I finish my questioning? Afterward, you can deal with it privately behind closed doors. Right now, the victim–which is me–is here, shouldn’t we prioritize figuring everything out first?”

Ms. Yu was so angry she nearly keeled over. This was happening in her Fan Mansion, where she originally intended to handle the matter privately. Shu Yu had barged in uninvited, and now it seemed she was blaming her for delaying things!

Shu Yu didn’t care whether Ms. Yu’s nose was about to blow steam. She walked straight up to Xiao Yun.

Seeing the two coarse old women still holding Xiao Yun down by force, Shu Yu frowned. “Release her, release her. How am I supposed to ask questions with her like this?”

The two old women exchanged glances, then instinctively looked toward Ms. Yu.

Ms. Yu sneered coldly. “Xiao Yun, this maid, has committed an offense. What if we release her and she tries to escape?”

“You have so many people in this courtyard, and you’re afraid of one little maid escaping? That would be utterly useless. Or are you saying the Fan Mansion doesn’t even feed the servants enough to keep them from running off?”

“You…”

Shu Yu squinted her eyes at the two old women. “Still not letting go?!”

Ding Yuehua, standing behind, immediately hinted to the people around her to step forward and help.

But before they could move forward, Shu Yu had already reached out with her hand.

She grabbed one old woman’s wrist tightly, causing her to cry out in pain and release her grip immediately. The other old woman, seeing this, could only retreat by taking half a step back.

Xiao Yun, drenched in sweat, tumbled off the bench and let out a long sigh of relief.

Only then did Shu Yu start questioning her. “What on earth happened? Weren’t you heading to the Ding residence? How did you end up in a conflict with the Eldest Young Mistress, and how did the blueprints end up destroyed?”

Xiao Yun glanced at Ms. Mei, who merely curled her lips into a derisive smile, clearly indifferent to the situation.

No matter if she had indeed destroyed the blueprints, what could they possibly do to her?

Seething with anger, Xiao Yun began to recount the events after she left the house.

She had been instructed by her mistress to head straight to the Ding residence upon leaving. But shortly after stepping out, she spotted a familiar face pleading with the gatekeeper, asking him to grant some leniency to let him in to meet the Third Young Master and the Third Young Madam.

The gatekeeper refused, giving the excuse that the Third Young Master wasn’t home and the Third Young Madam was hosting guests, therefore not allowing him to enter.

Even though the man claimed he had something urgent to discuss, he still couldn’t move a single step further into the Fan Mansion.

Approaching closer, Xiao Yun realized who it was–it was the foreman from the porcelain kiln!

She hurried over. The foreman looked surprised and delighted to see her, while the gatekeeper, recognizing her, looked noticeably guilty and jittery.

Xiao Yun didn’t have time to dwell on the gatekeeper’s odd behavior, as the foreman seemed desperate–perhaps something had gone wrong.

The foreman immediately pulled Xiao Yun aside, and the first thing he said was about the two blueprints sent by the Third Young Master two days ago. One had been burned, and the other had fallen into the water, rendering it useless.

Xiao Yun was shocked. As Ding Yuehua’s personal maid, she was well aware of the significance of those blueprints.

Two days ago, Monarch Lu Xiang’s father, Second Master Lu, had wanted someone to craft porcelain. The blueprints detailed the shapes of the porcelain pieces to be created.

Second Master Lu hadn’t initially planned to involve the Fan family, as he required only a small quantity. It was Ding Yuehua who overheard the matter incidentally and immediately took on the responsibility.

After obtaining the blueprints, Ding Yuehua handed them over to the Third Young Master of the Fan family.

The Third Young Master personally took the blueprints to the kiln, instructing the workers to shape the molds according to the designs.