"What happened?"
Xiao Jingnan draped a robe over Li Wanming and asked in a low voice.
"I don't know either."
Li Wanming shook her head. "When I got here, they were already fighting." Soon after, she added, "Anyway, we can't let Yiyi suffer."
Liu Yiyi whispered to them what had happened, then said angrily, "It was clearly them who cursed first, and they even filed a false complaint first!"
"I see."
Xiao Jingnan thought for a moment, then called Chun Tao over and whispered instructions in her ear. Taking advantage of everyone's inattention, Chun Tao ran towards the front hall.
"General Li, Mrs. Li."
Mrs. Guo was still making a show of being in a difficult situation and making a grand speech in front.
"Originally, it's a family matter of your Li family that your girls got into a fight. I wouldn't have said anything. But my husband is the assistant minister of the Ministry of Personnel and has the responsibility to evaluate all officials. If I don't tell him, it might seem like I'm deliberately hiding something..."
Seeing that Li Wanming's hair was all in a mess, Li Rusong was only concerned about feeling sorry for her and busy checking her injuries. He didn't even listen to what Mrs. Guo was saying and just kept nodding on one side:
"Yes! It's our family's poor upbringing that our girls got into a fight. It has nothing to do with you!"
...
Mrs. Guo was stunned.
What's going on?
Why was Li Rusong's reaction different from what she had imagined?
She had originally planned to explain the stakes and her difficulties, then state that the Guo family didn't want to make things difficult for the Li family and wouldn't report him for his poor upbringing of his daughters.
She wanted to do a favor and make Li Rusong owe her family a debt of gratitude.
Unexpectedly, Li Rusong not only didn't take her hint but also admitted the crime of poor family discipline on his own!
How could she continue?
Liu Yiyi said, "Miss Guo, I did damage your clothes, but I've already said that I'll compensate you. It's you who refused!"
Li Wanming said, "What exactly do you want, Miss Guo? Just come up with a solution."
"I... I don't know..."
Guo Xinyue shrank behind Mrs. Guo, shivering, looking even more pitiful.
Liu Yiyi got angry. "Stop pretending! Where's the energy you had when you cursed me as a person of low class and not fit to be on the stage?"
"As the daughter of a minister, how could you use such vulgar and obscene words! In my opinion, the upbringing of the Guo family and Minister Guo is not so good either!"
Princess Chengping came over in a grand manner with a large group of people.
Guo Xinyue's face darkened.
Why would such a small matter alarm Princess Chengping?
For some reason, she had been a little afraid of this princess since they first met.
When the princess swept her eyes over, she felt as if she was being blown by the cold wind. All her calculations and schemes seemed to disappear.
"I... I didn't..."
Guo Xinyue was already a little scared at this time, but there was nothing she could do. She could only clench her teeth and deny it. "She's just making things up and slandering me!"
Liu Yiyi was just the daughter of a merchant. She thought Princess Chengping wouldn't make things difficult for her, the daughter of the assistant minister of the Ministry of Personnel, for Liu Yiyi's sake...
Princess Chengping had already come closer and said, "Whether it's slander or not, we'll know after a trial in the Office of the Metropolitan Magistrate."
The Office of the Metropolitan Magistrate?
For such a small matter, they were going to send them to the Office of the Metropolitan Magistrate?
Guo Xinyue tightly grabbed Mrs. Guo's arm, and her knuckles turned a little white.
Mrs. Guo was also a little flustered and said with a forced smile, "Princess, it's just a joke among the young girls. There's no need to make such a big deal out of it and send them to the Office of the Metropolitan Magistrate..."
"Mrs. Guo, you're wrong."
Princess Chengping said calmly.
"According to the laws of our dynasty, those who slander and damage others' reputations will be beaten with thirty sticks and exiled for one year. Miss Guo is the daughter of a court official. This matter concerns the upbringing of the Guo family and Minister Guo's official reputation. It must be investigated."
Her eyes swept over Liu Yiyi again. "Can you guarantee that what you said is true?"
Liu Yiyi immediately raised her right hand and swore, "If I tell a single lie, may I be struck by lightning!"
"Very well. Since that's the case, take them to the Metropolitan Magistrate's Office."
Princess Chengping's voice fell on Guo Xinyue's head like ice and snow from the nine heavens:
"I remind you that there's a law in our dynasty that those who slander others will be punished in the same way. If someone is found to be lying and slandering others, the slanderer will be beaten with a hundred sticks and exiled for three years!"
All the blood in Guo Xinyue's body turned cold.
"No... I don't want to go... Mother, save me..."
She trembled her lips and looked at Mrs. Guo helplessly.
Mrs. Guo's face also turned pale. "Princess, there's no need to make such a big fuss..."
"May I have a word, Princess?"
Pei Yanqi, in a green robe, stood out gracefully like a tall and straight pine tree.
"What? Are you here to plead for them, Scholar Pei?"
Princess Chengping frowned slightly.
"Not really. It's just that this incident happened in the Li family. If it really goes to the Metropolitan Magistrate's Office, it might embarrass General Li. Moreover, this matter involves two noble girls from official families. If it gets out, it will inevitably be criticized for the upbringing of our officials in the capital."
Princess Chengping thought for a moment and asked, "What do you suggest?"
Pei Yanqi was the newly - crowned top scholar this year and the emperor's protégé. She had to give him some face.
"This matter can be big or small. In the end, it depends on whether the parties involved want to pursue it."
"If the parties don't want to file a complaint, then the official won't interfere. Reaching a compensation agreement privately is also a solution."
"Miss Liu," he turned to Liu Yiyi. "You're the victim in this matter. Do you want to solve it privately or go to the Metropolitan Magistrate?"
Liu Yiyi scratched her head. "Of course, I don't want to go to the government! I've already said that I'll compensate her for the clothes. It's her who refused..."
Guo Xinyue trembled all over and shouted repeatedly, "I'll take it! I'll take it!"
...
"It would have been over if you had done this earlier."
Liu Yiyi clicked her tongue, picked up the gold hairpin on the ground and stuffed it into her hand, saying, "Come to Liu Ji Silk Store for the rest. Remember, don't say later that I didn't compensate you!"
Princess Chengping glanced at Xiao Jingnan, and he gently shook his head.
"Then let's handle this matter according to Scholar Pei's suggestion. Today is Mrs. Li's birthday banquet. Don't spoil the old lady's mood."
After Princess Chengping finished speaking, she led the crowd back to the front.
This tortuous banquet finally began.
Everyone's face looked calm and happy, as if the little episode just now had never happened.
Only Xiao Jingnan was unhappy.
It was clearly he who sent Chun Tao to call the princess. Why did Pei Yanqi steal the show in the end?
People who didn't know might think it was Pei Yanqi who helped the Li family solve this trouble...
However, if we talk about the root of this matter, it's not Sun Miaoqing but her grandmother, Mrs. He.
As long as Mrs. He was still by Mrs. Li's side, Sun Miaoqing's delusions wouldn't stop. She would keep causing trouble for Li Wanming.
This matter needed a thorough solution...
He pointed at Mrs. He sitting beside Mrs. Li at the main table and asked Li Wanming, "Do you want to drive them out of the Li family?"
"Of course I do. Why wouldn't I?"
Li Wanming said, "Before my great - aunt came, my grandmother wasn't so mean to us."
"It's all because she kept instigating my grandmother every day, saying that granddaughters were unreliable and the family needed a male heir. As a result, my grandmother either urged my mother to have a child or wanted to take a concubine for my father. That's why the relationship between my mother and grandmother became so bad. I hate her so much!"
Xiao Jingnan said, "Since that's the case, then there's no better time than now. I'll help you solve this big problem today, my wife."
"How do you plan to do it?"
Li Wanming immediately became excited.
"Doesn't she always want to adopt her grandson into your Li family? Fortunately, all the elders of the Li family are here today..."
Li Wanming widened her eyes. "You want to expose this matter today?"
She hesitated a little. "But since all the people of the Li family are here today, my great - aunt should not dare to mention this matter..."
In front of the Li family clan, saying that she wanted to adopt an outsider into the family, wouldn't the elders of the Li family tear her apart?
Although Mrs. He was stupid, she wasn't that stupid.
Xiao Jingnan glanced at Sun Miaoqing in the corner and smiled faintly. "So, we need to find an assistant."