"How outrageous! How utterly outrageous! Without my permission, you dared to dismiss my concubines?" Cheng Yong came in, ready to scold.
Cheng Simian put down her chopsticks, her expression calm.
"Father almost beat those two concubines to death last night. I assumed you were tired of them. Thinking for your sake, I was afraid you'd get angry and hurt yourself if you saw them this morning, so I dismissed them. From now on, they won't bother you anymore. I did this all for you, yet you blame me?"
Cheng Yong felt as if there was a duck egg stuck in his throat. His face turned bright red with anger, and the fat on his face jiggled, but he couldn't utter a single word in refutation.
His earlier scolding felt more like slapping himself in the face.
If he denied being tired of the two concubines, he'd be admitting that his violence last night was beastly.
His face burned with embarrassment, but he had to swallow his anger.
As the master of the Marquis of Wude's Mansion and a father who should have been respected, he had lost all his dignity in front of his daughter.
Cheng Siyi came here hoping to see Cheng Simian being scolded, but Cheng Simian easily turned the situation around.
She continued to fan the flames. "Elder sister has always been willing to be a good person. Our Marquis's Mansion is a noble family. What's the difference between those two bought - in concubines and servants? Father can beat them if he wants and scold them if he wants. Even if he beats them to death, they should be grateful. Dying at Father's hands is their honor!"
These words made Cheng Yong regain a bit of his male pride. He unconsciously puffed out his chest.
"You really shouldn't have acted on your own. Do you still have me, your father, in your eyes?"
Cheng Simian wasn't in a hurry to refute Cheng Yong. Her deep eyes stared at Cheng Siyi, her gaze cold.
Cheng Siyi felt a chill run down her spine.
"Little sister, in order to make Father happy, you even belittle your own mother.
Have you forgotten, little sister, that your mother, Lady Yu, was also bought from outside? She's even inferior to those two concubines. Those two were from good families, while your mother was a brothel girl.
If you don't treat those two concubines as human beings, it means you don't treat your own mother as a human being either. If your mother heard you asking Father to beat and scold the concubines, would she be sad? Would she be afraid?"
Cheng Siyi was rendered speechless. Her face turned a mixture of red and green.
Cheng Simian was rubbing her face on the ground!
Lady Rong felt a wave of disgust in her heart when she saw Cheng Siyi's coquettish behavior, just like Yu Qiaor's brothel - like ways.
"Second Miss has spoken rudely. Nanny, take Second Miss to the ancestral hall and let her kneel for four hours before getting up!"
Cheng Siyi panicked. She looked at Cheng Yong with tear - filled eyes, pleading.
Cheng Yong's dignity was stepped on again, and he felt guilty, but he still tried to maintain his authority as the master. "Siyi is still young. Is it necessary to punish her just for a few words?"
Only then did Lady Rong open her eyes and give Cheng Yong a cold look. Her tone was sharp.
"Since you forced me to recognize Second Miss as my daughter, then as her mother, I have the responsibility to teach her. If you feel sorry for her and can't bear to let her suffer this bit of hardship, then just remove her from my name and let her go back to Lady Yu's place to be taught!"
Cheng Siyi relied entirely on the title of "legitimate daughter" to gain a bit of respect outside.
She knew that Lady Rong didn't like her.
She was afraid that if Lady Rong got angry, she would really remove her name. So she quickly said, "Mother is right. Daughter will go to the ancestral hall to kneel now!"
After Cheng Siyi left, Cheng Yong's face turned even uglier.
Lady Rong picked up her chopsticks again and calmly continued eating.
This man was good for nothing. He bowed and scraped to the powerful outside and only showed his authority in the inner courtyard. It was a waste of her feelings to even look at him.
After her mother dealt with Cheng Siyi, Cheng Simian slowly picked up the previous topic.
"Father has been glaring at me these days. Are you dissatisfied with my management of the mansion?"
Cheng Yong was silent. He wanted to answer but had to think carefully about what to say.
Cheng Simian's power to manage the mansion was given by the Crown Prince.
Denying Cheng Simian meant denying the Crown Prince.
The Princess Dowager could openly fall out with the Crown Prince and fight to the death, but he had neither the qualification nor the courage to openly challenge the Crown Prince's authority.
Seeing Cheng Yong's timid and submissive appearance, Cheng Simian felt contempt in her heart.
"If Father is dissatisfied, you can report it to the Crown Prince. After all, you're still the master of the Marquis's Mansion. If you want to appoint someone else to manage the mansion, I'm sure the Crown Prince won't object."
These words were like stabbing a knife into his heart.
Cheng Yong had no choice but to swallow his anger. He let out a long breath and forced a smile that looked worse than crying.
"What are you talking about? You've managed everything very well. I drank too much yesterday, and I'm still not sober. I was a bit impatient. Don't take it to heart, you and your mother."
He still regarded Cheng Simian as a trump card to curry favor with the powerful.
Although Liang Yuchuan was avoiding the Marquis of Wude's Mansion for now, after the storm of the Princess Dowager passed, the Marquis's Mansion would still be a glorious one.
Liang Yuchuan favored Cheng Simian. When that time came, if he invited Liang Yuchuan again, Liang Yuchuan would surely be tempted.
Thinking like this, Cheng Yong felt much better.
He saw that Lady Rong was radiant and still charming, looking nothing like the haggard woman of the past. His heart skipped a beat.
"The three of us haven't had a meal together for a long time."
He told the maid to add another stool.
At this moment, he seemed to be a gentle and considerate husband and a kind and lenient father.
Lady Rong felt disgusted. She threw down her chopsticks and stood up. Coldly, she said, "Yes, it's been eight years since we had a meal together. Does the Marquis still remember why Mianmian left the capital? You're the one to blame. You were so partial without knowing the truth. Why should I give you the courtesy and have a meal with you?"
She left without looking back.
Cheng Yong was publicly humiliated in front of all the maids and servants in the room. His dignity and prestige were shattered.
Cheng Simian said lightly, "Father, don't blame Mother. She's suffered for eight years, so she's a bit impatient. Don't take it to heart."
After saying that, she also put down her chopsticks and followed her mother out.
Looking at the cold and empty dining table, Cheng Yong slowly realized that although his explanation just now seemed sincere, when the same words were thrown back at him, he realized how perfunctory it was.
...
An old and respected nanny beside the Princess Dowager voluntarily stepped forward to apologize to the emperor.
She said that she had, in the name of the Princess Dowager, instructed Cheng Jingxuan to ruin Shen Yuhe's reputation and provoke the conflict between the Wen family and the Cheng family.
The reason was that she wanted to relieve the Princess Dowager's worries and suppress the Wen family.
Since Imperial Tutor Wen often impeached the Princess Dowager, and she had served the Princess Dowager for most of her life, she felt sorry for the Princess Dowager and wanted to avenge her.
After "confessing" all this, she rammed her head against a pillar in front of the emperor and died on the spot, with blood splashing everywhere.
The Princess Dowager, pretending to be ill, rushed over and hugged the nanny's body, crying bitterly.
She blamed the nanny for being stupid and also scolded herself for not noticing earlier, which led to the nanny's self - assertion and the great disaster.
After investigation, it was found that this old nanny and Lady Yue's mother had once sworn to be sisters and supported each other in the deep palace for twenty years.
The remaining followers of the Princess Dowager then stood up and said that it wasn't the Princess Dowager who was targeting the Crown Prince. It was all the old nanny's fault.
She wanted to avenge Lady Yue's mother.
The emperor once again chose to believe the Princess Dowager.
The Princess Dowager's illness suddenly got better.
Cheng Yong invited Liang Yuchuan to his mansion for a feast again.
Liang Yuchuan agreed.
Cheng Simian sat in front of the bronze mirror, carefully dressing up.