Second Wife Fuhui's expression changed as soon as she heard that the Chai family was behind it.
She wasn't stupid, of course. She knew the Chai family wouldn't target her for no reason. It could only have been her useless husband who had deliberately hired them to do it.
But these matters were a family disgrace, and she couldn't bring herself to speak of them.
The Five Rats had spent years among the common folk and were experts at reading people. They could clearly tell there was more to the story.
But Second Wife Fuhui said nothing, and they realized she had some private difficulty she couldn't talk about—not something people like them should pry into.
So the five of them stopped asking, got to their feet, and took their leave.
Fuhui couldn't very well ask them to stay, so she awkwardly rose to see them off.
As soon as the Five Rats had left, Fuhui's eyes reddened. She sat there silently shedding tears, not knowing what to do.
Xiaodie knew who had bullied her mistress, too. Indignant, she said, "Miss, they've gone too far! What should we do? They're practically bullying you to your face. They have no respect for us at all."
At Xiaodie's words, Fuhui suddenly looked up at her, her expression grave. "Xiaodie, you mustn't tell anyone about this. Otherwise, I won't forgive you."
It was the first time Xiaodie had seen her mistress so stern. She was deeply unwilling to let the matter go, but she really did keep her mouth shut and didn't dare say another word.
Seeing that she had gotten through to Xiaodie, Fuhui breathed a sigh of relief. But thinking about her own situation made her feel even more wronged, and for a while, she had no idea what to do.