Chapter 3: Taming the Servants for the Puppy

Although Gu Yunlan loved teasing handsome guys, she was startled and quickly pulled her hand back.

“What, what are you doing?” Her cheeks flushed pink.

Mu Chenye’s eyes were full of confusion: “Blood, wife’s hand, hurt, hurt. Lick clean.”

Gu Yunlan noticed the injury on her hand, a mark left from the original owner’s struggle.

Seeing that Gu Yunlan didn’t say anything, Mu Chenye straightened up slightly, as if he wanted to lick the wound on her forehead. Gu Yunlan quickly stopped him: “Silly husband, you need medicine to heal wounds.”

Mu Chenye frowned: “Medicine, bitter.”

Then, as if he remembered something, he fumbled in his chest for a while and took out a piece of candied fruit, placing it in Gu Yunlan’s hand with care: “Wife eat, sweet.”

Gu Yunlan looked at the candied fruit in her hand and couldn’t help but smile slightly.

In the Divine Physician Hall, she was the one and only god.

She held a high position, yet she was alone.

Her parents had died early, and she had few relatives. She had suffered a lot for the sake of studying medicine, but no one had ever cared for her. After she became proficient, the people around her either feared her or had ulterior motives. No one had ever been as close to her as this little fool, Mu Chenye.

She reached out and gently stroked Mu Chenye’s head, her eyes gentle: “It’s okay, I’m not afraid of bitterness.”

Mu Chenye shook his head, picked up the candied fruit, and stubbornly brought it to Gu Yunlan’s mouth: “Don’t want wife, eat bitter.”

Looking at this persistent little fool, Gu Yunlan sighed softly and ate the candied fruit.

Seeing her eat, Mu Chenye smiled contentedly. He had a cold and aloof appearance, but when he smiled, the small dimple on his lips appeared, making him seem unexpectedly cute.

Grrr…

Mu Chenye’s stomach rumbled. He touched his stomach awkwardly and smiled shyly at Gu Yunlan.

“Hungry?” Gu Yunlan got up and walked outside: “I’ll go call someone to get you some food.”

Mu Chenye quickly grabbed Gu Yunlan’s sleeve and pointed to her head: “Also medicine, don’t want wife hurt, hurt.”

Gu Yunlan’s heart warmed: “Okay. You stay here and be good.”

Mu Chenye nodded obediently and hobbled to the table to sit down, his back straight and stiff, like a good student listening to a lecture.

Only then did Gu Yunlan remember that Mu Zixuan and the others had mentioned that Mu Chenye was also a cripple.

But it didn’t matter. Whether it was his mind or his legs, she would cure him.

She rubbed his head with a touch of heartache before walking outside.

“Someone! Someone!”

She called out several times, but it took a long time before an old woman slowly walked over, munching on melon seeds, with an impatient expression: “Third Madam, what is it?”

“Get some medicine and food.” Gu Yunlan said coldly.

She was just a woman from a small family, who had taken advantage of the master’s power to get her two sons beaten. She actually thought she was something special.

The old woman, Liu, looked at her with disdain and spat out a melon seed shell: “There’s nothing. It’s past mealtime. We’ll talk about it tomorrow.”

She was about to leave.

Gu Yunlan slapped the old woman’s hand, and the melon seeds in her hand scattered on the ground.

She angrily threw the remaining melon seeds at Gu Yunlan and raised her hand to retaliate: “Third Madam, you have a big temper! I’m Third Master’s wet nurse! How dare you treat me like this?”

Gu Yunlan kicked the old woman in the knee, and the old woman fell to her knees. She was so angry that her face contorted: “Someone, come quickly! Tie this little slut up for me!”

Gu Yunlan grabbed the old woman’s throat, and she immediately stopped moving.

Gu Yunlan snorted: “Wet nurse, so what? You’re just a servant! I’m the Third Madam of this house, and I can’t even order you, an old shrew?”

The old woman reluctantly said: “What are you talking about, Third Madam? I’m terrified.”

The old woman had been taking advantage of Mu Chenye’s favor with the master, even though he was a fool who didn’t know how to complain. She had been acting arrogantly for a long time, and she no longer treated Mu Chenye as her master. It was common for her to scold and beat him. How could she possibly serve Gu Yunlan as the Third Madam?

If it weren’t for Gu Yunlan’s grip on her neck, she would have slapped this little slut’s face to pieces!

“Terrified?” Gu Yunlan scoffed: “All I see is arrogance.”

She scanned the courtyard. There were many people hiding in the shadows, watching.

These servants in the courtyard, many of them were like this, bullying the weak. Who knows how they had been bullying Mu Chenye in secret!

Today, she had dealt with those two beasts, but these servants still hadn’t seen the situation clearly.

If she didn’t establish her authority, they would dare to ride on her neck and defecate tomorrow!

“You all saw what happened to the second master and the fourth master, right?” Gu Yunlan narrowed her phoenix eyes, her eyes filled with coldness: “My husband, Mu Chenye, is no longer someone you can bully at will. I, the Third Madam, am not someone you can easily bully either!”

“I’ll count to ten. All of you get out of my sight, otherwise…”

She kicked the old woman away. The kick was so powerful that the old woman flew up and hit the courtyard wall, spitting out a mouthful of blood and fainting.

The other people in the courtyard shrank their necks, their eyes filled with fear.

But the two men in black hiding in the shadows looked at each other and smiled.

The shorter man in black, wearing a fox mask, sat on a tree branch with his legs crossed, swinging his legs: “Although I thought marrying a rush marriage bride was unreliable at first, it seems pretty good now. This Third Madam is capable and can protect the young master. The master will be relieved.”

“Hmm.” The taller man, wearing a silver wolf mask, stood straight, his face expressionless under the mask.

“But this Third Madam is just an unloved illegitimate daughter, right? How come she knows medicine, can fight, and is so powerful? No, I have to investigate.” The fox chattered.

“You go.” The silver wolf said concisely.

“Okay, okay, I’ll go.” The fox flipped over and disappeared into the night.

The silver wolf continued to observe the courtyard.

“Ten, nine…”

Gu Yunlan began to count. The servants in the courtyard, afraid of suffering the same fate as the old woman, quickly knelt down in front of Gu Yunlan, introducing themselves ingratiatingly.

Gu Yunlan glanced at them roughly.

There were twelve servants in Mu Chenye’s courtyard, besides the wet nurse, Liu, there was also a steward, Old Lady Zhao. One first-class maid, Chunyi, two second-class maids, Xiahe and Xiaming, two third-class maids, Qiufang and Qiushou, and three young servants, Dongxue, Donghan, and Dongla.

Old Lady Zhao had a gentle smile on her face, looking very humble, but just now, when Gu Yunlan called out and she didn’t come out, it could be seen that she was a smooth operator who was kind on the surface.

Chunyi had a proud look on her face and was well-dressed. Xiahe and Xiaming looked quite well-behaved, but their eyes were darting around. Qiufang and Qiushou were dressed the simplest, with their heads lowered, looking honest. Dongxue, Donghan, and Dongla were all looking down, and it was hard to tell what they were thinking.

The first person to come out was Old Lady Zhao, followed by Qiufang and Qiushou. The three young servants and Xiahe and Xiaming came out after looking at Old Lady Zhao’s face. Chunyi was the last one to come out, seemingly unwilling.

Gu Yunlan had a plan in mind.

“Chunyi is demoted to a third-class maid. Old Lady Zhao will be responsible for sweeping the courtyard from now on. Qiufang is promoted to a first-class maid, Qiushou to a second-class maid, Xiahe is demoted to a third-class maid, and Xiaming remains the same.”

The art of using people lies in balance, using punishment and rewards to control them. Suppressing the most powerful Old Lady Zhao and Chunyi, breaking up the second and third-class maids to incite competition among them, all for the sake of balance.

As soon as Gu Yunlan finished speaking, Chunyi was the first to object: “Why? I’ve been with Third Master for ten years! I’m the only first-class maid in this courtyard!”

Gu Yunlan smiled: “Because I’m the master, and even if you’re a first-class maid, you’re still a servant.”

She came from the future. Although she didn’t like the rules of hierarchy, if she wanted to live well and couldn’t change the rules, she had to adapt to them.

If she tried to implement equality for all, she would not only be called stupid and foolish in this era, but she would also be cheated out of everything, and in serious cases, she would even lose her life.

Chunyi was still reluctant, but Old Lady Zhao gave her a look, and she shut her mouth, her neck stiff as she agreed.

“I don’t care how you served before, and I don’t care who you belong to. Now that you’re in my courtyard, you have to follow my rules. If you have any other thoughts, I don’t think Father would mind if I did something excessive to protect Chenye.”

Gu Yunlan’s cold gaze swept over them, and everyone immediately lowered their heads and agreed.

“Now get to work. Qiufang, go and take over the courtyard affairs with Old Lady Zhao. Xiaming, go get some food. Qiushou, go get some medicine for external injuries. In a quarter of an hour, I want to see the food and medicine.”

After saying that, Gu Yunlan ignored their thoughts and turned back into the house.

As soon as she closed the door, she felt a gust of wind behind her. Gu Yunlan’s expression immediately became alert.