Sludge suction system

Yunniang was studying new acupuncture techniques in her room when, without warning, a ball of white light flashed in front of her, transforming into a small, fluffy creature. Its eyes were wide open, its expression anxious, its chest heaving violently, and it was panting heavily.

"Master, something terrible has happened!" Xiao Zha's voice was urgent and shrill. "Jin Lili has tampered with your ice silkworm silk. She wiped it with a damp cloth, and the silk thread is now damp. There will definitely be problems when you embroider it."

Upon hearing this, Yunniang dropped the needle with a "clatter," her face filled with astonishment. But she quickly regained her composure, her gaze fixed intently on Xiaozha: "Are you sure? Did you look carefully?"

Xiao Zha nodded his head vigorously: "Absolutely true! I saw it with my own eyes. She sneaked into the embroidery workshop at night, and I followed her all the way. I saw it all clearly."

Yunniang frowned, pacing back and forth in the room, pondering a solution. After a moment, she turned to Xiaozha and said, "This matter must not be made public. If we alert them, who knows what other underhanded tricks they might pull."

Xiao Zha looked puzzled and tilted her head, asking, "Then what should we do? If there's a problem with this ice silkworm silk, your embroidery will be ruined."

Yunniang smiled faintly, her eyes radiating confidence: "I have my own way. Tomorrow I will go to the embroidery workshop early, dry the silk threads first, and then soak them in a special solution to strengthen them. Jin Lili thinks she can bring me down with this, she's thinking too simply."

Xiao Zha breathed a sigh of relief and patted his chest: "Luckily I was keeping an eye on things, otherwise it would have been troublesome."

Yunniang patted Xiaozha's head: "Thanks to you, I'll have to keep an eye on their movements from now on."

Xiao Zha straightened up, her eyes resolute: "Don't worry, Master! I will keep a close eye on them and make sure they don't cause any more trouble."

The following morning, golden sunlight streamed through the carved window lattices, scattering like shattered gold across every corner of the embroidery workshop, illuminating the colorful silk threads and the focused faces of the embroiderers. Everyone busied themselves around the embroidery frame for the "Hundred Birds Paying Homage to the Phoenix" painting, the air thick with a tense yet enthusiastic atmosphere.

Yunniang calmly approached the embroidery frame, her gaze intentionally or unintentionally sweeping over the ice silk that Jin Lili had tampered with. Her plan was already quietly unfolding. She picked up the thread without a sound and began to thread the needle, her movements seemingly skilled, but in reality, they concealed a hidden scheme.

Jin Lili hid not far away, pretending to be focused on her embroidery, but her eyes never left Yunniang out of the corner of her eye. Seeing that Yunniang was unaware, she was secretly delighted, and the corners of her mouth couldn't help but turn up slightly. She would occasionally exchange glances with An Gu, her eyes full of pride and anticipation, as if victory was already beckoning to them.

After embroidering for a while, Yunniang frowned at just the right moment, gently tugging at the silk thread in her hand, her face showing just the right amount of worry. "Why does this silk thread feel a bit rough?" she muttered to herself, deliberately lowering her voice, her volume carefully controlled so that it could just reach Jin Lili's ears.

Jin Lili's heart tightened suddenly, and she subconsciously straightened up, a hint of tension and excitement flashing in her eyes. Unable to suppress her curiosity, she casually took a few steps closer, craning her neck to get a better look. Yunniang seemed oblivious, continuing her work, but the silk thread became increasingly unruly, frequently tangling into knots.

"Strange, this ice silkworm silk is usually incredibly smooth, why is it so difficult to use today?" Yunniang raised her voice slightly, her tone full of confusion. This immediately attracted the attention of the surrounding embroiderers, who all cast concerned and curious glances at her.

Seeing this, Jin Lili was secretly delighted, convinced that her plan was about to succeed. Suppressing her excitement, she feigned concern and quickly walked to Yunniang's side, asking insincerely, "Yunniang, what's wrong? Is there a problem with the silk thread?"

Yunniang raised her eyes and looked directly at Jin Lili, a fleeting, almost imperceptible glint of cunning flashing in her eyes. "I don't know why either, Lili. You've come at the right time. You're usually the most knowledgeable about silk threads, so please help me figure out what's going on with these threads."

Jin Lili tried to appear calm as she reached out and took the silk thread, but her fingers trembled slightly. She pretended to examine the thread, muttering, "This...this might have gotten damp. Look at the color, and the feel, it's clearly different from before." She tried to make her voice sound natural, but the trembling at the end betrayed her inner tension.

"Dampness?" Yunniang raised an eyebrow, a hint of suspicion in her eyes. "This silk thread has always been kept in a dry and well-ventilated place, how could it get damp for no reason? Could it be that someone did it on purpose?" Yunniang's gaze swept across the faces of everyone around her, finally settling meaningfully on Jin Lili.

Jin Lili's face turned deathly pale instantly, her lips trembled slightly, and she stammered, "I...I don't know either. Maybe the warehouse has been too damp lately, and it accidentally affected the silk thread."

Inside the embroidery workshop, the atmosphere was as tense as a taut bowstring, ready to snap at any moment. The head aunt stared intently at the trembling Jin Lili, her eyes filled with scrutiny and authority.

"Jin Lili, is this matter related to you?" The head maid's voice was low and cold, echoing in the embroidery workshop.

Jin Lili turned pale with fright, large beads of sweat rolling down her forehead. She stammered, "Auntie, I...I really..."

Just as Jin Lili was at a loss for words and about to give herself away, An Gu darted forward, grabbed Jin Lili's arm, and pulled her towards her.

“Aunt, look how terrified Lili is. She must not know anything about it.” Aunt An said, while gesturing to Jin Lili with her eyes to stop talking. “We should discuss this matter of the silk thread more carefully. The most important thing right now is to solve the problem as soon as possible, so as not to delay the important matter of embroidering a congratulatory gift for the Empress Dowager.”

An Gu turned to the other embroiderers and said loudly, "Everyone, stop standing there and get back to work. This gift can't have any mistakes." With that, she pulled Jin Lili and walked towards a corner of the embroidery workshop.

Jin Lili staggered, being pulled along by Aunt An, muttering, "Aunt An, I..."

"Shut up!" Aunt An scolded in a low voice. "Let's get out of here first."

The two walked to a corner, and An Gu let go of Jin Lili, frowned, and said seriously, "How could you be so careless? You almost got caught! The way you were flustered just now, were you afraid that others wouldn't know you had done something wrong?"

Jin Lili lowered her head, bit her lip, and said regretfully, "Aunt An, I was so nervous at the time, my mind went blank, and I really didn't know what to do. Luckily you appeared in time, otherwise I would have been finished."

An Gu crossed her arms and paced back and forth. After a moment of thought, she said, "This time we were lucky and didn't give the head aunt any leverage. But Yun Niang must be suspicious now, so we have to be careful from now on."

Jin Lili nodded hurriedly, her eyes filled with fear and obedience: "Aunt An, I know I was wrong. I will listen to you from now on and never act rashly again."

An Gu looked at Jin Lili, a fierce glint in her eyes: "Our plan can't just fall apart like this. Yun Niang, she won't get away with this so easily."

Suddenly, An Gu stopped in her tracks, a sinister glint flashing in her eyes, like a cold lightning bolt streaking across a freezing night. "Lili," she said in a low voice, her tone as frosty as ice, "we'll tamper with the colors of the embroidery."

Jin Lili raised her head, her eyes were dazed, her lips were slightly parted, but no sound came out.

An Gu leaned closer to Jin Lili, her voice as low as a ghostly whisper: "Do you remember that batch of inferior dyes that the Imperial Household Department sent last time? The red in it fades badly when it gets wet. Let's secretly use the red silk thread that Yunniang used to embroider phoenixes to re-dye it with this dye."

Jin Lili's eyes widened, a flicker of excitement crossing them, but it was quickly replaced by worry: "But what if the dyeing isn't even, or what if it gets discovered beforehand..."

An Gu's lips curled into a cold smile, her eyes full of calculation: "So we have to be meticulous. First, soak the silk thread in the dye, then use a special technique to make the color even and look normal. When Yun Niang is almost done embroidering, find a rainy day and have someone splash water on the embroidery. When the red fades, the whole embroidery will be ruined, and everyone will think that Yun Niang made a mistake in choosing the color and materials."

Jin Lili bit her lower lip, her hands nervously gripping the hem of her clothes, and hesitated, "Will this work? What if they investigate..."

"What's the panic!" Aunt An interrupted her, her eyes filled with a desperate madness. "As long as we do it cleanly, no one can trace it back to us. If Yunniang fails, she'll never have the chance to flaunt her power in front of us again, and we'll have many more opportunities to rise to prominence in the future."

Inspired by An Gu's resolute decision, Jin Lili gritted her teeth and nodded firmly: "Okay, let's do it this way."

An Gu's face twisted into a cold smile, resembling a vengeful ghost in the dim light: "We'll make our move tonight. Remember, there can be no mistakes." With that, the two women leaned even closer, whispering and planning each step, like two venomous scorpions plotting a calamity.