The very next morning, Lin He ordered the house servant to give Chunyun twenty strokes, then instructed that she be sent off to the broker. Chunyun was still quite young, perhaps only a decade or so old, and had only been at the Lin family residence for a few months. She had spent most of her life drifting, and having finally found a decent household, this beating was something she could endure. Lin He announced she was to be sold off, and when Chunyun refused to leave, she dissolved into tears and pleas in the courtyard.

Seeing Chunyun in such a state, Lin He felt a pang of reluctance, but she knew such matters allowed for no softness. It was a case of killing the chicken to frighten the monkeys; this was a warning to the other staff. Their mistress was generally amiable, but anyone who disregarded the household rules would find no quarter given. Moreover, Lin He gathered the maids from the pomade workshop and reiterated the rules about not speaking carelessly outside, adding that if anyone was caught gossiping with outsiders again, the punishment would be far more severe than a mere beating and sale.

For the past few years, the pomade workshop had been managed by Lin He, alongside Ziqing and Ziyu. Lin He rarely spoke to them with such severity, and the maids immediately grasped the gravity of the situation, nodding in unison to show they would keep silent. Seeing that her words had taken effect, Lin He dismissed them to their tasks.

As for Chunyun, who continued to weep and beg in the courtyard for a long time, Mother Huang and Chen'er could bear it no longer. Mother Huang approached to intercede for her: “He'er, perhaps we should keep Chunyun? Don't let her work in the pomade workshop, just have her do odd jobs around the house. Look at the poor child, passed from seller to seller; who knows where she might end up if we sell her now.”

“Mother, you both think she should stay, right? If the household maids think leaking secrets only warrants this much punishment, they will all use Chunyun’s case as an example. What then? Besides, we are not like ordinary families. When they first came, I told them we have fewer strict rules for maids here; we treat them better in every aspect and never resort to beatings or scolding. My only requirement is that they do not speak carelessly. If she cannot even manage that, I will not be lenient,” Lin He stated firmly.

“I know that, dear, but this Chunyun truly looks pitiable,” Mother Huang murmured softly.

“Yes, Sister, she looks so pitiful,” Chen'er added from the side.

“Fine. I will have the servant send her to a broker we know well. I will ask him to find Chunyun a decent place, try hard not to sell her to some dubious location. But keeping her here is impossible,” Lin He finally conceded somewhat.

Mother Huang nodded: “Yes, that’s better. Just ensure she isn't sold to some unsavory place; that would be too wicked.”

Lin He called for Chang Geng, the head servant, instructing him to finalize arrangements with the broker and have Chunyun taken away. With Chunyun dealt with, the focus shifted to Sister Sanxi.

Lin He paused, then told Ziqing to summon Iron Bull’s wife. Iron Bull’s wife had been working in the Lin household for over three years, and her performance had been exemplary. Furthermore, since she was considered an elder to He'er, Lin He reasoned that Sister Sanxi was likely introduced by her, so she should first inquire about Sister Sanxi’s background with her.

Soon, Ziqing brought Iron Bull’s wife over. Iron Bull’s wife arrived smiling, “He'er, what is it? I was just working. Do you need my help with something?”

Lin He invited Iron Bull’s wife to sit down and smiled, “Auntie Da Tang, it’s nothing. I have a question for you. Sister Sanxi was introduced by you, wasn't she?”

“Yes, weren’t you looking for help before? She said she wanted to come and work, so I introduced her. I thought she was quite capable when working, so I recommended her. Did she do something wrong?” Iron Bull’s wife asked cautiously.

“Does anyone in Sister Sanxi’s family work in Tianxin Town? I ran into her several times when I went into town,” Lin He avoided answering directly, feigning nonchalance as she asked.

“No one in her family works over in Tianxin Town, and I’ve never heard of her going there. Why would she go there? When we go marketing, we all go to Huayu Town,” Iron Bull’s wife asked, puzzled.

“Exactly, I was wondering too. I thought maybe she had relatives or someone she knew in town, and she was going there on business,” Lin He continued.

Iron Bull’s wife thought for a moment and then said, “She doesn’t have any relatives working there. But thinking about it, there is a connection, I suppose. The wife of Tie Zhu has a younger brother who works there, supposedly in some kind of rouge shop. Sister Sanxi and Tie Zhu’s wife are maternal cousins; they count as relatives. But logically, since Sister Sanxi is married, she should be visiting the wife of Tie Zhu’s mother’s side, not going into town?”

Hearing Iron Bull’s wife’s words, Lin He’s thoughts began to clear. She asked, “Sister Sanxi is a maternal cousin to Auntie Er Tang? How come I never knew that?”

“He'er, you surely wouldn't know. They don’t associate much; their relationship isn't very good. Sister Sanxi married into our mother’s family side several years ago, and I didn't know either until I overheard Tie Zhu’s wife mention her name once at home.”

“Oh, I see. Alright then. Auntie Tang, you can go back to your work now,” Lin He said.

Iron Bull’s wife looked somewhat puzzled. Hearing Lin He ask so many questions without giving a clear answer, she only said upon leaving, “He'er, if Sister Sanxi isn't doing her job well, just dismiss her. I only helped recommend her; you don't need to consider my feelings.”

Lin He smiled and nodded. This confirmed that the matter likely had nothing to do with Iron Bull’s wife, but it was definitely connected to Tie Zhu’s wife. And it was highly probable that Tie Zhu’s wife was the one causing trouble. However, right now, it was difficult to pin the matter directly on Tie Zhu’s wife since she didn't work there and wasn't an employee of theirs; it wouldn't be easy to handle.

As for Sister Sanxi, there was little to do besides firing her. Unlike in a past life where leaking trade secrets resulted in criminal charges, here, they simply copied her identical wares and sold them openly; there was nothing they could do about that. In the future, security within the house needed tightening, but the situation in town would be watched by Uncle Wen, so she didn't need to worry too much about that front.

Regarding Sister Sanxi, her hiring had initially been agreed upon by Er Niu and Mother Huang. Lin He decided that the matter of dismissing Sister Sanxi should be discussed with Father first. Thinking this, Lin He asked Ziqing to fetch Er Niu.

Er Niu had nothing pressing to do currently, often found wandering near the fields or at Uncle Li's place, so Ziqing quickly brought him back. Lin He explained the entire situation regarding Sister Sanxi to Er Niu and asked, “Father, why don’t you handle telling her about the dismissal?”

“That's fine, but under what pretext should we dismiss her? We are all neighbors; suddenly letting her go might lead to gossip. Since you already know everything, and Chunyun has been sold, why not let her finish this month and pay her wages for this period before saying anything?” Er Niu appeared troubled.