Madam Tong never expected to hear such words from Su Qingyu. She was stunned for quite a while before she finally came to her senses.
By then, the anger of being deceived had gradually welled up in her heart and finally burst out completely.
"Su Qingyu, how dare you lie to me?!"
Madam Tong was so angry that her whole body trembled. She raised her hand high and slapped Su Qingyu hard on the uninjured side of her face with all her might.
"Su Qingyu, where do you put all the teachings I've given you these days? Do you know that I almost went into the palace to beg Concubine Tong to find a way for you to ask the Empress to revoke the order. If that had happened, it would not only be deceiving the emperor but also openly defying the imperial edict!
"The Marquis's Mansion and the Tong family might very well be convicted because of your mistake!"
Su Qingyu covered her face and cried, "Yu'er knows her mistake, Mother. Yu'er will never dare to do it again. Father and elder brother have already scolded Yu'er severely because of this. Yu'er has come to the ancestral shrine to apologize to the ancestors."
Madam Tong had been ill. In recent days, she had not slept well because of nightmares. Just now, when she was setting up a memorial tablet for her second daughter in the ancestral shrine, she was also frightened. Her emotions had fluctuated greatly several times. Looking at her eldest daughter's disheveled appearance and thinking about the impact this incident had on the Pingyang Marquis's Mansion, she couldn't catch her breath. Her eyes rolled back, and she fainted.
Zi Ning and the Real Man Wen Qing were right beside her. They were startled and quickly supported Madam Tong's falling body.
"Madam!"
Su Qingyu shrieked and rushed forward. "Mother! What's wrong with you?"
The Marquis of Pingyang rushed forward, picked up Madam Tong in his arms, and walked out quickly.
Su Qingyu and Su Zeqian followed closely behind. While chasing after the Marquis of Pingyang, Su Qingyu cried, "Mother, it's all Yu'er's fault. Yu'er shouldn't have said these things to make you angry at this time. If anything happens to you, Yu'er doesn't want to live either!"
The Marquis of Pingyang turned back, his eyes red with anger, and scolded, "Shut up! Don't say such discouraging words at this time! What are you two following for? Don't think that just because your mother has fainted, you can avoid punishment. Get back to the ancestral shrine for me and kneel in front of the ancestors to reflect on your mistakes properly!
"Su Zeqian, watch your sister well. Don't let her cause any more trouble!"
Su Zeqian stopped and said seriously, "Qian'er understands, Father."
He grabbed Su Qingyu and said, "Yu'er, come with me to the ancestral shrine."
"But... but Mother..." Su Qingyu's eyes were always tightly following the departing figure of the Marquis of Pingyang. Her face was full of anxiety. "Brother, Yu'er knows medical skills. Yu'er can treat Mother. Just let Yu'er go."
Su Zeqian sighed. "Yu'er, Father is very angry now. He won't let you get close to Mother. Be obedient and come with me to the ancestral shrine to kneel for punishment."
Damn it! She thought she could avoid this kneeling punishment by pretending to be worried about Madam Tong fainting, but she didn't expect the Marquis of Pingyang to be so persistent!
Su Qingyu secretly gritted her teeth in hatred and had no choice but to follow Su Zeqian back to the ancestral shrine.
The two siblings lit three incense sticks. Su Zeqian bent down and said to the many memorial tablets,
"I, the unworthy descendant Su Zeqian, solemnly repent to the ancestors of the Su family today. As the elder brother, I failed to correct my sister's mistakes in time, which led to my sister doing something that damaged the reputation of the Marquis's Mansion. This is a great fault of mine. Today, I specifically come here to kneel before the ancestors, examine my words and deeds, and swear that I will never make such mistakes again. I beg the ancestors to forgive me."
Su Qingyu also lit three incense sticks and stood beside Su Zeqian. "I, the unworthy descendant Su Qingyu, solemnly repent to the ancestors of the Su family today. As the legitimate daughter of the Marquis's Mansion, I made an unforgivable mistake because of a momentary thought..."
She respectfully listed all her crimes to the ancestors one by one, and then bowed three times with Su Zeqian.
However, just as the two of them got up and were about to insert the incense sticks into the incense burner, Su Qingyu found that the three incense sticks in her hand had broken in the middle.
Su Zeqian also noticed this detail, and his face suddenly changed. "What's going on?"
Su Qingyu said with a pale face, "I don't know either."
She lit three more incense sticks, repeated what she had just said, and bowed three times again. When she got up to insert the incense sticks into the incense burner, she found that the incense sticks in her hand had broken again.
Su Qingyu couldn't help but feel a little creepy.
At this time, there were only her and Su Zeqian in the ancestral shrine, and there was no one else. Moreover, there was not the slightest bit of wind in the ancestral shrine, so it was impossible for someone to interfere.
This could only prove that the ancestors of the Su family did not accept Su Qingyu's repentance and apology. Her actions had angered the ancestors of the Pingyang Marquis's Mansion.
It was impossible for Su Qingyu not to believe in ghosts and gods. After all, her time - traveling from the future to here was itself a miracle. If there really were ghosts and demons in this world, it was quite normal. She just didn't expect such a thing to happen to her.
"Brother, what should I do?" Su Qingyu looked like she was about to cry. "Do the ancestors not want to forgive me?"
Su Zeqian served in the Ministry of Justice. When such a thing happened, his first reaction was that there was something wrong with the incense sticks in Su Qingyu's hand.
He took the incense sticks she had lit twice and looked at them carefully. Finally, he found some clues.
He pointed to the broken part and said, "No, it has nothing to do with the ancestors. It's because the core of the incense stick is broken here. So when the fire burns to this point, without the core to connect, the fire naturally goes out."
So it wasn't the work of ghosts and demons. Su Qingyu heaved a sigh of relief. But subconsciously, she looked at the incense sticks lit by Su Zeqian again. His were burning well without any problem.
Su Qingyu said, "But brother, why are your incense sticks okay?"
Su Zeqian was stumped by her question and could only explain, "Maybe these three incense sticks of mine just happen to be okay. Well, it doesn't matter if you can't light the incense. Just kneel down and repent sincerely. The ancestors will hear your heartfelt voice."
Knowing that she couldn't escape the kneeling punishment today, Su Qingyu had no choice but to kneel down on the futon.
Su Zeqian lifted his robe and knelt down behind Su Qingyu.
His gaze fell on the figure kneeling in front of him, and Su Zeqian sighed silently.
This was the first time Su Qingyu had knelt in the ancestral shrine since she returned to the Pingyang Marquis's Mansion. Before, because of Su Yuanyuan, this eldest sister who had been living among the common people seemed so sensible and dignified. But now, without someone to contrast with, the shortcomings of this sister were exposed.
After all, she hadn't been raised by their side all the time. Her behavior and manners were still a bit different from those of a well - bred young lady.
Sighing in his heart, Su Zeqian closed his eyes. When he opened them again, his expression had returned to the proper and upright one as before.
...
The night shrouded the entire Shengjing. In the Mingzhu Courtyard of the Duke Yong's Mansion, Chun Xiao helped Su Yuanyuan take off the hairpin on her head. She carefully washed Su Yuanyuan's cheeks and hands with a handkerchief, then blew out a lamp and retreated from the room.
The young girl didn't rush to sleep. Instead, she wrapped herself in a furry cloak and lay on the table, playing with the little agarwood rabbit in her hand.
This little rabbit given to her by Su Huaisheng had become her favorite little thing. Whenever she was thinking or bored, she would take it out and unconsciously stroke it in her palm.
Since she returned to the Duke's Mansion, she had been waiting, waiting for Yun Jian to appear in front of her.
This guy might be worried about being discovered. After she left the Duke's Mansion, he didn't know where he had hidden. He still hadn't appeared until now. He couldn't have died from the poison, could he?
Humph, it would be good if he did. She didn't expect that the person he offended was the Wang family. Last night, he even led the people of the Wang family to their Duke Yong's Mansion, obviously trying to avoid the Wang family's pursuit by using their Duke's Mansion.
Thanks to the good reputation her father and mother had accumulated in Mobei, they were still supported by everyone after rejecting the Wang family. If it were someone else, they would have been uprooted by the Wang family long ago.
"Aren't you sleeping so late? Waiting for me?" Suddenly, a hoarse and unpleasant male voice came from behind.