Chapter Fifty-One: Please Forgive Me

Minerva had been confined to her house for almost a full month, with only Nanny Rui for company.  Mother did not allow Anna to visit, and even Lu was only able to sneak in a few times to cheer her up. 

The twins were not speaking to her, even if they had been allowed in her courtyard.  Father had given them ten lashes each.  He had also threatened to cane her as well, but her mother had intervened on her behalf and saved her from a beating.  She had, however, been forced to kneel in the family shrine for three days and three nights.  The bruises on her knees had almost rivaled the bruises on Sun and Chen's backsides.

It was the first time in her life that she had ever been punished so severely. 

It was also the first time in her life that she felt truly remorseful.