The Lucky Farmgirl
Chapter 584 - Five Hundred Seventy-Three: Temperament

Chapter 584: Chapter Five Hundred Seventy-Three: Temperament

Expect their young lady to say thank you?

The beautiful maid’s face still wore a smile, but her eyes were already filled with contempt. However, there were quite a few onlookers gathered around now.

She was not foolish, knowing that these folks were sharp-tongued; even if she could suppress them in an argument, it would bring little benefit to her young lady.

Thus she wore a smile as she gave a bow, turned around to take out two ingots of silver, and handed them to Daji, saying, "Thank you for helping us retrieve the kite, this silver is your reward."

Daji glanced at Bai Shanbao but didn’t move.

The beautiful maid’s expression faltered slightly. After looking at the smiling Manbao and Bai Shanbao, she put on a smile once again and said, "This is a token of thanks from my young lady to you."

Only then did Bai Shanbao nod slightly.

Daji reached out to accept the silver, returned the bow, and stepped back.

Manbao then cheerfully stuffed the kite into her hand, earnestly advising, "Pretty sister, be more careful when you fly your kite next time. Don’t let it fly away again, and if it does, and someone else finds it, you should speak to them nicely. Who starts off by lashing out with a whip?"

Manbao added, "We’re just kids, and we have nice tempers. What would happen if you met someone with a violent temper who wouldn’t hesitate to start a fight?"

The girl clutching the whip gnashed her teeth, and the beautiful maid’s face also tensed up. But seeing the onlookers nodding in agreement, she held back her anger and put on a smile again, saying, "You’re right, miss. When we get back, I’ll be sure to teach her a good lesson."

Manbao then let go and walked away.

The beautiful maid watched them go, her smile unwavering. She cast a fleeting glance at the whip-bearing girl and turned to take the kite back to report her duty.

The whip-bearing girl shuddered and followed, her face pale.

The boys looked at Manbao and her companions in surprise and whispered, "You guys really have guts, you know. Those are people from the Prince of Yizhou’s household."

"So what?" Manbao said, "We haven’t done anything wrong."

"Aren’t you afraid they’ll hold a grudge and seek revenge later?" Qi Jue said, "In Yizhou City, it’s not that the Prince has the final say, but there really isn’t anyone who would offend him over such trifles."

"I already offended them when they swung their whips at me and missed. Oh well, so be it, if worst comes to worst, I can just go home." Manbao thought very openly. "It’s not like I have to stay in Yizhou."

Qi Jue nodded, "That does make some sense."

However, Bai Shanbao turned to Manbao and said, "Don’t worry, they wouldn’t dare do anything. They are just servants after all."

Bai Shanbao was right; they really didn’t dare.

The little princess of the Prince of Yizhou’s household disliked the crowded slope, so she had people take up a good position and set up a tent early on.

She was displeased when she saw her servants lose the argument and become the subject of public instruction, so she left for the tent ahead of the others. Now, seeing Qiu Man returning with the kite, she humphed and asked, "Is it sorted out?"

"Yes," Qiu Man did not dare to repeat those provocative words and instead offered the kite, saying, "I dealt with them by giving them twenty taels of silver."

The little princess had no idea how expensive twenty taels of silver were, deeming it an insignificant amount, so she sneered and said, "Peasants will be peasants, they’d do anything for money. Where’s Qiu Ye?"

"She’s kneeling outside."

"Let her return to the estate, receive twenty lashes. It was just retrieving a kite, yet she managed to disgrace herself on Qixia Mountain. I look at this filthy kite," she waved it to the floor, "Just create another if it’s lost, rather than indignantly demanding it back. If it could be reclaimed that’s one thing, but to fail and embarrass me in the process, if she weren’t a gift from my mother, I’d certainly..."

"Princess..."

The little princess then stopped her rant and waved her hand dismissively, "Burn this kite, I don’t want to see it again."

"Yes." Qiu Man handed the kite to another maid to dispose of, and from the corner of her eye saw the princess take the whip from the shelf. She jumped in fright and quickly stepped forward to stop her, "Your Highness, Miss, isn’t the matter already resolved?"

"Resolved what?" the princess said irritably. "Earlier, you said there were too many onlookers, so you wouldn’t let me act. Now that the crowd has dispersed and they’ve walked far away, you still forbid me to land a few lashes?"

"Your Highness, times have changed. Haven’t you forgotten the Prince’s reminder?" Qiu Man said, "There may be nobility in Yizhou recently, we must act cautiously. It’s enough that we’ve gotten back the kite, why bother squabbling with a group of youths?"

The princess pulled her hand, found it held fast, and glared at Qiu Man, "They are but some poor people. What harm can I do by lashing them a few times?"

"Your Highness, they might not just be paupers. By their dress, they seem like scholars, and these days are the examination period for the prefectural school. Perhaps they are here to take part. Making enemies rashly is never good."

"Just a bunch of poor scholars, can they rival my father, the Prince?" The princess said angrily, "Qiu Man, are you my servant, or are you theirs?"

Qiu Man knelt down, "I am naturally Your Highness’s servant, and for that very reason, I must advise you. Your Highness, if you go out now, and the Prince hears of it..."

The princess, infuriated, dropped the whip, kicked over the table behind her, and shouted, "We’re going home! I don’t want to play anymore!"

Qiu Man bowed her head and answered, "Yes."

Meanwhile, Manbao and her two companions, having already returned to their claimed spot on the grass, exchanged addresses with Qi Jue and the others, agreeing they could get together for more fun when time allowed.

Although Qi Jue and the seven other boys still insisted their kites were ugly, curiously, they didn’t seem to dislike them as much anymore.

So they generously shared the address and name of their academy.

Though Qiu Jue thought even if they hadn’t, the three would still be able to find their way, given that their teacher and the others’ teacher were Senior Brothers.

Finding out would have been a matter of a few words to the three.

Mr. Zhuang had no idea they’d had a clash with others; seeing the two groups come back as one, laughing and talking, he exchanged a pleased look with Huang Chuan.

Then the two groups joined forces for play.

Zhou SiLang had been flying the kite for so long his hand was nearly cramping. Seeing them return, he immediately handed over the kite and sprawled out, unable to move his limbs.

Manbao and her friends played for half the day. After a long kite battle, they reluctantly packed up their kites under Mr. Zhuang’s urging and said their goodbyes to Qi Jue and the others.

The seven boys said, "To be honest, your kites truly are ugly."

Manbao: "We won."

The seven boys: "The cutting wasn’t good, did you mess up the drawing as well?"

Bai Shanbao: "Our kites flew higher than yours."

The seven boys: "The colors are so uninspired. They were already unattractive, and your painting made them uglier."

Bai Erlang: "Our kites were homemade, from the frame to the canvas, down to the kite string. Despite your store-bought ones, they didn’t fly better than ours."

The ten of them successfully tore the fragile bond of their newfound friendship, huffing at each other before following their respective teachers home.