After swallowing my anger and taking the blame, I became the lucky little queen

Everyone in the Nian Mansion was in a panic, with all kinds of rumors flying around. If she let these two people go, she would not have peace in the days ahead.

The maid named Yuanyuan said coldly, "Fangfang! Shut up!"

Seeing that she still refused to admit it, Nian Susu became even more disappointed. Fangfang at least knew that those who confessed would be treated leniently, while those who resisted would be treated severely, but Yuanyuan knew she was wrong but refused to change.

Even if she wanted to spare them at first, she couldn't do that now.

"Do you know what happens to escaped slaves if they are discovered by the government?"

"Do you think you will be free if you escape from the Xiangfu and leave Shengjing far away?"

"Without a contract of sale, you will be slaves for the rest of your life. If you go to another place and people find out you are not from here, they will immediately assume you are runaway slaves."

Nian Susu sneered, his tone getting colder: "And if a runaway slave is caught, he will either be beaten to death or sent to the army to be a prostitute."

Fang Fang and Yuan Yuan were so frightened that they were shaking. Even the stubborn Yuan Yuan didn't dare to hide it anymore. The two of them cried and begged for mercy.

"Miss, we won't dare to do it again. Please don't send us to the government!" Yuanyuan kowtowed three times.

If I were to be sent to the army as a prostitute, I would rather die.

Fang Fang also burst into tears, "Miss, we won't dare to do it again! Please forgive us!"

Nian Susu stepped over the threshold, crossed his arms across his chest, and looked down at the two of them. A shadow enveloped them.

"Why are you running?"

Fang Fang and Yuan Yuan exchanged glances, both filled with fear.

Finally, the older Yuanyuan raised her head and explained: "Miss, we heard from people in the mansion that... the master offended the emperor and made a serious mistake. The emperor wants to execute all of us in the Nian Mansion. We were scared for a while... so we thought of leaving in the middle of the night."

Fang Fang nodded. "Two guards had already escaped during the day, and no one found them at night, so we came up with this idea."

Yuanyuan: "Yes, Miss, we are also trying to survive... We don't want to die yet..."

Survival is an instinct, and the two little maids don't understand anything about gratitude and morality. Nian Susu can't blame them for betraying their master, nor can he force them with moral principles.

She was angry when she heard that two people had escaped during the day, but she quickly calmed down.

"Your indentures are still with my mother, so you are still members of the Prime Minister's Mansion. I will not hand you over to the government. I will punish you according to the family law."

Nian Susu walked inside and said, "To see my mother."

Fangfang and Yuanyuan didn't dare to run anymore. They picked up the bags on the ground and followed Nian Susu obediently, with their heads almost buried in his chest.

Yang Yuerong had already fallen asleep, and Nian Susu was waiting outside the door for someone to go in and pass on the message.

Soon, Jingqiu came out.

Jing Qiu was half-sleepy, and it was obvious that she had been woken up. She was wearing an outer coat with a white inner garment underneath, and she had rushed over without even getting dressed properly.

"Miss, Madam has gone to bed." Jing Qiu explained, "Madam is tired today. If it's not something important, why not talk about it tomorrow?"

Nian Susu glanced at the two people behind him and said, "They packed their bags and prepared to flee overnight, but I caught them. This is a very serious matter. Go and inform mother and see if she wants to deal with it on the spot or leave it until tomorrow.

Jingqiu hesitated for a moment and decided to listen to her.

Fangfang and Yuanyuan were shivering like chicks caught in the rain. They huddled together for warmth and did not dare to ask Nian Susu to plead for them or to ask him to spare them.

After waiting for a while, the lights in the north courtyard came on, burning a hole in the darkness.

Jing Qiu came out fully dressed. She walked towards Nian Su Su with a serious expression, "Miss, Madam asked you to take the person to the central hall."

After Jingqiu finished speaking, he left in a hurry, as if he had something to do.

When Fang Fang and Yuan Yuan heard that they had to go to the main hall, it was like a bolt from the blue. Their legs went weak immediately and they started crying again.

Nian Susu was not going to be soft-hearted at this time, and sternly ordered them to follow him to the central hall.

When Nian Susu walked into the central hall, the entire prime minister's residence was already brightly lit. In the central hall, everyone from the maids and guards to the errand boys were neatly arranged in ten teams, with each team having twenty to thirty people, and it was a sea of ​​people.

Although there were many people, it was completely silent and no one dared to speak.

The housekeeper and Jingqiu stood on the steps, their faces as gloomy as water.

Nian Su brought the men upstairs and made them kneel down in front of hundreds of people.

The people below were whispering and talking among themselves.

"Aren't these the two little girls who help in the kitchen? What did they do wrong?"

"It's the middle of the night. Could he have been caught stealing? Or was he caught by the young lady?"

"Don't any of you think the young lady's outfit is weird? This dress doesn't look like the young lady's usual style. It looks a bit like... the style that the ladies in the palace wear."

"Nonsense! The ladies in the palace wear much more gorgeous clothes than what Miss is wearing. How can it be so plain? There are not even pearls or gems on that dress, but the embroidery is nice."

After listening to these words, Nian Susu felt inexplicably guilty. If he had known earlier, he would have gone back to the east wing to change clothes before coming here.

The servants' talk was nothing, as they had never been to a palace and didn't know these were palace maids' attire. They were just worried that Yang Yuerong would become suspicious.

The hall suddenly became quiet. Following the gazes of the crowd, Yang Yuerong arrived, followed by two tall, mighty and ferocious guards.

Yang Yuerong walked up the steps, stood in front of Fang Fang and Yuan Yuan, and glanced at them coldly.

She put her hands on her waist, glared at everyone in the hall, and shouted, "Who on earth is spreading the rumor that my Nian family will be executed?"

No one dared to speak.

Fang Fang and Yuan Yuan were so frightened by this powerful aura that they were shaking like sieves.

"Well, since you don't admit it, I won't make it difficult for you." Yang Yuerong smiled coldly, "Everyone knows that our master was beaten with a stick in the court. I'm not surprised that these rumors have spread."

"I know that many of you are scared and want to leave the Prime Minister's Mansion to find a way to survive. I can understand that."

"Today, I will give you a definite message. Anyone who wants to leave can go to the housekeeper to collect this month's salary and go to Jingqiu to get the contract of sale. From now on, everyone will go their separate ways and have nothing to do with each other."

Someone brought a chair over, and Yang Yuerong sat upright, immediately displaying the demeanor of a mistress of the house.

The housekeeper stood on her left, Jingqiu stood on her right, one holding a wooden box containing silver, and the other holding a wooden box containing the indenture. Both of them looked confident and their demeanor was exactly the same as Yang Yuerong's.

Fang Fang and Yuan Yuan regretted it deeply. If they had not been so impatient, they might have taken this opportunity to collect the banknotes and indentures and leave.

Nian Susu always felt strange. Would Yang Yuerong be so kind? Would she release him just like that? The Xiangfu was now at the center of controversy, and it was a test of people's hearts and loyalty. Anyone who left would be considered a betrayer of the Xiangfu.

She looked at Yang Yuerong and always felt that there was a different emotion in her eyes.