Chapter 79: Xiafu
That string of brass keys, tied with black beaded thread tassels—how could Granny Zhao not recognize it?
A large bunch of over ten keys, including those for the tea room cabinets, kitchen cupboards, the Storehouse, and even the large cabinets in the Main Chamber.
Originally hanging on the wall of her own room, how did they end up in her handkerchief? Clearly, they were stolen!
Granny Zhao had no time to think it through, her anger rising instantly.
She grabbed Xiafu by the ear, demanding to know why she had stolen the keys.
Xiafu panicked, kneeling on the ground, dumbstruck and speechless.
Shen Shi had been in a foul mood all day. Suddenly discovering that her personal maid had stolen tea, her temper flared.
Reclining on a bamboo couch, she fanned herself angrily with a round fan and said, “That little wretch must have taken advantage of my absence, intending to use the keys to unlock the cabinets and steal what’s inside! Granny, why aren’t you searching her immediately to see what she’s taken?”
Xiafu still clutched her clothes, refusing to be searched, but what did Granny Zhao care?
She called in two sturdy maids, who dragged Xiafu by the ears and slapped her twice.
They tore open her jacket and skirt, revealing a pink undergarment and fine cloth knee-length trousers, even removing her shoes and socks.
After rummaging through everything, they found only two sachets and a turquoise-inlaid, eight-treasure tasseled handkerchief.
Xiafu, now half-naked, her hair disheveled, her earlobes torn and bleeding, was too ashamed to lift her head.
The maids, fierce and imposing, beat, scolded, and questioned her, but she only wept without uttering a word.
“Madam, aside from the Phoenix Cluster Sparrow Tongue Tea cakes, there’s nothing else.”
Granny Zhao handed the tea cakes to Shen Shi for inspection.
Shen Shi sneered, refusing to take them, and pointed the fan handle at Xiafu’s nose. “Everyone, look! This is the personal maid I raised, fed three meals and six snacks a day, only to end up with a light-fingered, worthless thief!”
Xiafu pulled her clothes to cover herself, kowtowing until blood stained the floor, sobbing uncontrollably.
“Madam, I didn’t steal anything! Someone has framed me! The tea cakes were locked in the tea room cabinets, and the keys were in Granny Zhao’s room. How could they end up on me? Someone must have planted them on me!”
Her words subtly pointed to Pear Moon. Shen Shi and Granny Zhao turned to look.
Pear Moon stood by the Green Gauze Cabinet, holding a tray.
Granny Zhao, clutching the tea cakes, demanded without asking for details, “You didn’t know something was missing from the tea room?”
Pear Moon had anticipated this question. She produced her keys for them to see and explained calmly with lowered eyes:
“The Sparrow Tongue Tea cakes are precious. I keep them locked in the cabinets, with the keys on my person at all times. Just now, when I was brewing tea, the tea cakes were still safely stored in the cabinet. Sister Xiafu came to hurry me with the tea, so I locked the cabinet and brought the tea box to the Dressing Room to serve. I didn’t even know the tea cakes were missing.”
Her two sentences left Granny Zhao speechless.
Pear Moon’s keys had never left her person, while Granny Zhao’s keys were found together with the stolen goods.
At this point, trying to shift the blame would convince no one.
According to Pear Moon’s account, Xiafu must have stolen the keys and opened the tea room cabinets around the time she came to hurry the tea.
Everyone was inside or around the Main Chamber, waiting to attend to Shen Shi. No one saw what Xiafu was doing.
Thinking it through this way, the case seemed to fit perfectly.
It must have been her theft, without a doubt!
Granny Zhao flew into a rage, grabbing a long-handled copper scoop used for shaved ice, and struck Xiafu with it.
Half-naked, how could Xiafu endure such a beating? She rolled on the ground, wailing loudly.
Seeing her cry and scream, Shen Shi felt disgusted and annoyed. She ordered Xiafu to be tied up immediately and her room searched.
Meanwhile, she instructed Zhi Qing to check the Dressing Case, fearing that her important jewelry might have gone missing.
Not long after, Granny Zhao returned with others, carrying a pile of miscellaneous items.
Old fans with torn silk covers, half a box of face powder, two cakes of rouge, and some worthless silver jewelry.
None of these belonged to Shen Shi’s room; a few looked familiar, having been stolen from the maids.
After checking for a long while, Zhi Qing reported that nothing was missing from the dressing case.
Only then did Shen Shi feel slightly relieved. She took a few sips of the Elsholtzia Decoction and had a maid fan her.
“You thieving wretch! Did I ever deprive you of food or clothing that you dared to steal? Among all the maids in Phoenix Ripple Courtyard, I promoted you to serve in the inner chambers because you seemed honest. But it seems a thief’s nature can’t be cured—you’re just destined to be a thief and meet a wretched end! Tell me truthfully, how many times have you stolen?”
Xiafu kowtowed desperately, her face streaked with tears.
“Please have mercy, Mistress! This servant was blinded by greed—I’ve only stolen this once!”
Pear Moon, standing nearby, listened quietly and gently bit her lip.
She had often heard jokes about petty thieves who, when caught red-handed, would weep and swear they had only stolen once.
Yet the wounds from the beatings they received the day before hadn’t even scabbed over.
Xiafu appeared quiet on the surface, but she was a girl with her own schemes.
Although she had been promoted to first-rank maid, she felt Shen Shi had a difficult temperament and feared she would have no secure future.
She discussed with her brother and sister-in-law, who were also attached to the household, hoping to earn more silver for herself.
She tried hoarding pepper to make money but lost all her capital, leaving not a single coin of her savings.
Unable to bear her sister-in-law’s constant complaints and envious remarks about other maids who adorned themselves with cosmetics and gold jewelry,
she had, by chance a few days ago, taken a box of face powder from who-knows-whom and sold it for a tael of silver.
Her brother and sister-in-law were overjoyed, praising her as if she were a blooming flower.
After tasting this sweet success, Xiafu could no longer control her hands.
Today she would pocket a handkerchief, tomorrow she would take a cake of rouge, and have her sister-in-law pawn them for money.
Her sister-in-law, who worked in the laundry—a heavy job with little pay but plenty of free time—was more than willing to take advantage of this opportunity.
Seeing her sister-in-law so capable, she constantly urged her to steal more.
Rings, gold hairpins, and gold bracelets belonging to the maids would vanish as soon as Xiafu set her eyes on them.
She even dared to sneak out premium fish, shrimp, and seafood from the kitchen yard when no one was looking, handing them over to her brother and sister-in-law.
Xiafu had been stealing daily these past few days, accumulating over a hundred taels of silver, all entrusted to her sister-in-law for safekeeping.
She had even scouted Pear Moon and the others’ small room twice, but with so many people around, she hadn’t yet managed to enter.
Granny Zhao preferred peace and avoided trouble, and none of the maids suspected Xiafu, so her boldness grew.
After stealing from others, she would even go back to intimidate them, warning them not to make a fuss.
Today, with Shen Shi away from home and Granny Zhao leisurely enjoying the cool in the main chamber,
Xiafu was feeling particularly smug. In the morning, she had stolen a gold bracelet and had her sister-in-law pawn it for ten taels of silver.
At noon, while Granny Zhao wasn’t paying attention, she took the key to the tea room and pocketed a cake of Sparrow Tongue Tea.
She had heard Shen Shi mention that this tea cake could be sold for thirty taels of silver.
Puzzled but undeterred, Xiafu handed the tea cake to her sister-in-law and returned the key to its place.
How could she have dropped a handkerchief, wrapped around the tea cake and such a large set of keys, while standing properly in the dressing room?
Xiafu slowly raised her head and looked at Pear Moon, her heart suddenly sinking.
That handkerchief looked very similar to hers, but its colors were much brighter—someone had planted it to frame her!
Realizing this, Xiafu couldn’t help but feel regret.
If she had known she was being framed, she shouldn’t have confessed earlier!
Her entire body ached terribly as she knelt on the ground, weeping incessantly:
“Madam, this servant has no parents, only living with my elder brother and his wife. My sister-in-law is unwell, and I wanted to save some silver to treat her illness—that’s why I acted foolishly for a moment! Madam, I beg for your mercy, spare me this once!”
Shen Shi frowned with displeasure. “A lowly thing with sticky fingers, I cannot keep you here!”
Xiafu immediately burst into tears, sobbing uncontrollably. “Madam, think of how I have served you since childhood, please keep me here at least. From now on, I will work as a coarse maid. It matters little if you drive me away, but I fear it would bring shame to our Phoenix Ripple Courtyard!”
Mentioning the reputation of Phoenix Ripple Courtyard, Shen Shi indeed wavered.
Even Granny Zhao lowered her hands and sighed, advising Shen Shi.
“Madam, our Phoenix Ripple Courtyard has had many incidents lately. Driving Xiafu away now would only invite ridicule. Considering this is her first time stealing, let her be beaten a few times to remember the lesson, and deduct her monthly allowance for a year as punishment.”
“Thank you, Madam! Thank you, Granny Zhao!”
Without waiting for Shen Shi’s consent, Xiafu kowtowed repeatedly like pounding garlic.
Pear Moon lowered her head to look at her, meeting her resentful gaze directly.