บท 184: No longer the madam (2)

"How dare you speak ill of the young miss of this household? Don't know if you're brave or simply foolish. "The maids rallied behind Xia Lihua because she had just turned a blind eye to their bullying of Xia Sirong. In fact, Xia Lihua had appeared indifferent to it, almost as if she were tacitly endorsing their behavior.

While the maids harbored no genuine fondness for Xia Lihua, they were aware of Old Master Xia's favoritism toward her. Consequently, they deemed it wise to align themselves with Xia Lihua. They won't let Xia Sirong belittle Xia Lihua. 

"Hah! You sewer rats! Now you're siding with this wench?" Xia Sirong spat, her tone dripping with contempt. "Why are you ganging up on me? Is this some sort of vendetta? Because I didn't give you days off on holidays and let you visit your families? What's the fuss about?"

"The 'fuss' is that you never paid us our due wages!"