Dream of the Red Chamber: I can see the hidden labels of the beauties.

After a long while, seeing that none of the maids and servants confessed, Lai Sheng's wife grew increasingly anxious and angry, and gritted her teeth, she roared:

"Still no one admits it, huh? Fine, then you'll all be beaten to death! I think you've all heard about Banmei's fate."

Upon hearing this, the maids and servants erupted in uproar once again. They were already on tenterhooks, and the words "to be beaten to death" terrified them even more, especially the greedy and cowardly ones.

In an instant, the courtyard erupted in chaos once again, filled with voices of mutual suspicion, accusations, and insults.

Some were pointing fingers and cursing at others, dredging up old grievances, while others were crying out for justice, creating complete chaos.

Jia Can sat in the main room, holding a teacup in his hand. He slowly took a sip, listened to the noise outside, gently shook his head, and raised his voice to remind them:

"Time is running out, you'd better hurry!"

These words were like a death warrant from the deepest hell, chillingly seeping into everyone's ears.

The maids and servants panicked even more, and the arguing grew louder, almost tearing down the courtyard wall.

Lai Shengjia's face changed repeatedly, turning pale and then flushed, with fine beads of sweat appearing on her forehead. She could only utter some harsh words, but no matter what she said, no one stepped forward to admit it.

Lai Shengjia was truly panicked now; his hands and feet felt weak, and his face grew increasingly pale.

Time waits for no one. Fifteen minutes is neither a long nor a short time, and half of the time has almost passed, yet there has been no result.

Judging from Jia Can's behavior today, he is no longer the soft persimmon that he used to be, someone who could be easily manipulated. He is a man of his word, and if he doesn't see the silver in a quarter of an hour, he will probably really go to Jia Zhen.

Lai Sheng's eyes flashed, and he began to subtly scan the group of maids and servants, plotting to find a few scapegoats to satisfy Jia Can first.

Anyway, some of these people were thieves, so it wouldn't be unfair to just pick out a few of the most dishonest ones and push them out.

But just then, Jia Can's voice came again from the main room, reminding them:

"If no one admits it, then you can split the cost among yourselves. I won't let this go until I see the money. You can decide for yourselves what to do."

Upon hearing this, Lai Shengjia was startled and immediately realized that catching a few scapegoats would probably be useless; Jia Can wanted money, not someone to admit guilt.

Even if she sends out a few people who can't come up with the money, Jia Can still won't give up.

After a long pause, Lai Shengjia gritted his teeth, finally made up his mind, and shouted sternly:

"Stop arguing! Everyone, split the bill and gather enough money to give to Second Master Can. No one can escape this."

No sooner had the words been spoken than an old woman, unconvinced, retorted defiantly:

"Why should I? I didn't take any of Master Can's money, why should I have to pay? This isn't fair!"

Lai Shengjia stared intently at the old woman, his eyes filled with malice.

"If you don't want to share the burden, and no one acknowledges it, then you can wait for the magistrate to beat you to death! The choice is yours!"

Upon hearing this, everyone fell silent, and the courtyard instantly became quiet.

Banmei had just been beaten to death by Jia Zhen, her body barely cold, and the lesson of her past was right before them. No one wanted to become the next Banmei.

The maids and servants in the courtyard hadn't yet recovered from the frustration of having to split the money when they heard Jia Can raise his voice from the main room:

"Perfect timing. With Lai Sheng's family included, there are twenty-five of you in total. Each of you will receive one tael of silver."

"I don't care what method you use, whether you go home to get it or borrow it from someone, I want to see twenty-five taels of silver in a quarter of an hour."

"This is the last chance I'm giving you. If you don't cherish it, I'll go see the master."

Although one or two taels of silver is not much, it is still a considerable sum for these maids and servants.

Their monthly allowance was already meager, only a few coins a month, so this one or two coins was equivalent to several months' worth of monthly allowance.

Many of them were greedy and stingy, and they would split every penny in half to spend. Now, having to share an ounce of silver was like cutting off their flesh.

For a moment, everyone looked hesitant, exchanging glances, none of them willing to speak first.

Lai Sheng's wife also realized that all Jia Can wanted was money; nothing else mattered.

He gritted his teeth, glanced at everyone, and said coldly:

"If you don't want to split the cost, that's fine too. I can even pay for everything for you, and you'll be happy to have nothing to lose."

"However, don't blame me for informing my wife afterwards!"

At this point, Lai Sheng's wife only dared to threaten to tell You Shi, not Jia Zhen, because if it were told to Jia Zhen, she would inevitably be implicated.

Upon hearing this, the maids and servants were completely at a loss.

Even though they were extremely unwilling, the thought of being held accountable and expelled from the mansion made them dare not have any thoughts at all.

Some people had already started taking money out of their pockets; although their movements were slow, they dared not not take it out.

Some of them happened to have silver on them, and some could even actually produce an ounce or two.

They held the broken silver or copper coins in their hands, their faces full of reluctance, as if they had cut out a piece of their heart.

Some were still short of money, and in their anxiety, sweating profusely, they could only ask Lai Sheng's family for help:

"Sister Lai, I...I don't have that much on me. I'll go back and get some, it'll be quick..."

Lai Sheng's wife, however, had a gloomy face, waved her hand impatiently, and said:

"There's no time to save you. I'll cover for you first, and you can hand it over to me later. Make sure you don't lose a single one."

Clearly, Lai Shengjia also knew that time was passing and there wasn't much time left until the fifteen minutes Jia Can had mentioned.

These old women and maids would take at least the time it takes to drink a cup of tea to make a round trip. If they couldn't produce the money, they would have to borrow it from someone else, which was simply not enough to keep them busy.

As the wife of the head steward, Lai Sheng's wife always carried a lot of silver with her for emergencies, which came in handy at this moment.

At that moment, Lai Sheng's wife collected the money they handed over one by one. If it wasn't enough, she took out silver from her own purse to cover the shortfall.

While collecting the money, he secretly made a mental note of who paid, who didn't, and how much each person owed.

Before long, Lai Sheng's wife arrived before Jia Can with a pile of copper coins and loose silver, offering them with both hands, her demeanor far more humble and respectful than when she had first arrived.

"Second Master Can, this totals twenty-five taels of silver. Please count it carefully."

Jia Can smiled slightly, gesturing for her to place it on the table next to him.

He reached out and calmly counted the copper coins, nodding slightly only after confirming the number was correct.

"Yes, that's enough. You can leave now. But I have a piece of advice for you: be more careful with your hands and feet in the future, and keep your eyes open."

"It's only because he ran into me. If it were any other master in the manor, it wouldn't have been so easy to resolve."

Upon hearing this, Lai Shengjia breathed a sigh of relief. The weight that had been hanging over him was finally lifted, and he thought to himself, "I've finally passed this test."

He subconsciously wiped his forehead, forced a smile, and said awkwardly:

"Second Master, you're right. If it were any other master, we wouldn't be alive today. It's because of your kindness and compassion..."