173 2.1.24: Punishmen

The atmosphere surrounding the Duchess was cold and threatening, her green eyes were narrowed and cruel as they looked at her. She had never looked at her this way, except once. This look reminded her of when when had first stepped in the Warrington mansion, all those years ago. Back then, she was scared out of her wits because she faced the woman who had coldheartedly paid to have murdered a seven year old child... and now, she stood as the person who had mentored her into the identity that she was today.

She was silent and so was the Duchess. They stared at each other, neither willing to acknowledge the other. If this was the the former Xiao Yunhua, she would've been restricted by Juliet's natural sense of submission. However, these years weren't just just for naught. She had helped this personality of hers slowly grow out of its shell and morph into someone more open. Luckily, the gradual change didn't go against the system and the original character, so she had much more freedom since it was seen more natural for the little girl to be more candid.

Hence, this allowed her to remain adamant against the stare of the cold woman, not backing down. A few—but long—minutes later, the Duchess smirked. She started to laugh as though someone dawned on her and the realization was too humorous. "The little pet is rebelling?" She murmured so softly that if Xiao Yunhua didn't have her enhanced senses, she would've never heard her.

Pet?

A sense of fury filled Xiao Yunhua but before she had the chance to retort, the Duchess spoke again. "You've disappointed me."

'As if your disappointment is something I care about.' Xiao Yunhua thought, bemused. Instead of voicing her real thoughts, she instead said: "I'm sorry."

"Sorry isn't going to cut it!" The Duchess harshly snapped, startling her. How the woman had such a quick shift in attitude scared her but she didn't have time to contemplate as the Duchess continued, "You will be on house arrest until I instruct much further." Opening her mouth to protest, she was once again shot down by the angry Duchess. "Remember, your life isn't that of a peasant girl. The moment you stepped in with that letter, you already chose the life of a noble of the dukedom of Warrington. Your life is no longer yours..." the hidden meaning behind her words was clear: Violetta still had her purpose.

Xiao Yunhua couldn't say anything because she knew the Duchess was right. Today was a big risk she had taken and it was successful, but at the cost of her imprisonment. Which meant that all her effort was wasted as the house imprisonment was likely to last a while until the Duchess trusted her to not do something so foolish again. "Please, give me another chance." In the end, all she could do was plea.

The Duchess simply eyed her indifferently, standing up to leave. As she stood up, she spoke again. "I forgot to mention, but the servant that helped you keep such an important matter a secret has been whipped twenty times." Libby was whipped because of her? Her vision blurred and she felt the urge to cry. Her moment of selfishness had caused an innocent person to be hurt! "She will have her salaries deducted and I was tempted to throw her out, but for the sake of your reputation, I kept her to keep an eye on her." The Duchess' green eyes flashed with malice, "I suggest you do not do something so foolish again, or else it will not end with a small house arrest."

Xiao Yunhua took a deep breath and finally spoke with a clear tone. "Please do not punish Libby. Punish me instead!" She had already kneeled before her, but the Duchess wasn't moved. Instead, she felt more disgusted.

"To think that a daughter of such a high aristocracy is kneeling for a servant." She crossed her arms, "It is true that your bastard bloodline outweighs no matter how many years you train."

"What you call bastard bloodline, I call humility." Xiao Yunhua blurted out. But although she saw the Duchess fuming, it surprisingly didn't scare her as much as she thought it would. This was one thing she needed to tell the cold woman who lacked it. Yes it would make her punishment more severe, but the constant mention of her illegitimacy had caused her to snap.

In the following seconds, a crisp sound rang in the silence in the room. Before Xiao Yunhua had the chance to react, her cheek was already stinging from the pain and she could feel the warmth of the fingerprints on it as well. Her eyes were wide and her expression was stunned. Never had she expected for the Duchess to resort to physical violence on her own!

"Bastard child, if it wasn't for my Vivienne, you would be lying in a grave. Do not mistake the years of my mentoring for grace to allow you to speak so willfully!" The final strings of sanity seemed to have snapped and Xiao Yunhua saw a new side of the cold Duchess: a woman cruel beyond belief. Even her drunken self didn't compare to the devious laughter that escaped her mouth at the moment. "Yes, your debutant party will happen soon. Soon, all these years will be used to help avenge my darling daughter."

"W-What do you mean?" It was like Xiao Yunhua's question had reminded the Duchess that she wasn't alone.

Her narrowed eyes turned to her in a manner that could only be used to describe a madwoman. Suddenly, she raised her hands and they grabbed the neck of Xiao Yunhua, confusing her. Her mouth gaped open as she felt herself being choked, losing all the oxygen in her body. Her face was turning pale and she could feel herself slowing losing consciousness, but the Duchess paid her no need. "Soon... you'll know soon. Once you marry him, I will finally kill those disgusting creatures..." her green eyes brightened with vicious joy, "Then I will kill you." She released the neck she was tightly clasping, who was already kneeling, but the impact caused the girl to stumble and fall on the floor—banging her head. She coughed violently and felt dizzy.

The fatigue of everything that had happened had already made her body reach her limit, so with one last look, all she could see were the infamous green eyes in the dark before she passed out.