Farming and reading lady

The emperor hurried over from his seat, personally helped the old lady up, and ordered: "Wang Chuan, quickly arrange a seat for the master's wife. Why are you still standing there? You have no sense of propriety at all."

Wang Chuan silently brought a chair over, and the emperor helped the old lady sit down, then asked slowly, "I wonder why Master's wife came here today?"

He knew the old lady's character very well. She never liked to beat around the bush, so it was best to ask directly.

As soon as the emperor finished asking the question, he saw the old lady's eyes turn red, and tears quickly welled up in her eye sockets. This really shocked him: "Master's wife, Master's wife, please don't get excited. If you have something to say, please tell me slowly. I'm here for everything."

The emperor was so frightened that he even changed his way of addressing others. When he was young, he went to the Duke of Zhenguo's Mansion every day for more than ten years, but he had never seen the old man with such an expression. It was too horrifying. His scalp was numb. If possible, he wanted to kneel on the spot.

The old lady raised her sleeve to wipe the corners of her eyes, and then she choked up and said, "Your Majesty, from our peasant ancestors to the current generation, all of our Zhenguogong Mansion has been upright and has never done anything to shame the world, the royal family, or the people. My sons and daughters are loyal to their country, and even the women in my family have never sacrificed their lives, but they have never done anything to bully others, is that right?"

The emperor nodded. He couldn't be sure about other families, but the officials and the royal family all had some unfilial descendants. However, the Duke of Zhenguo's Mansion was truly clean and upright, and no one had ever done anything wrong. He knew this better than anyone else.

Seeing him nod, the old lady took a breath, calmed down and continued, "But today, someone stood at the door of my Zhenguo Mansion, pointed at my nose and scolded us for forcing a good woman to be a concubine. If it is true, I will lead my family to die for this crime, but this is a false accusation that my Zhenguo Mansion cannot and cannot afford. I hope the emperor will investigate and give justice to my Zhenguo Mansion."

The emperor was furious after hearing this. He did not ask who could be so reckless. Instead, he shouted into the air, "Long Yi, go check who dared to slander my master's family. Bring him to me and let him tell the whole story."

This statement was meant to be a show, but it was more about his trust in himself and the Duke of Zhenguo's Mansion.

The incident happened in public, and Long Yi quickly brought the two parties involved, their parents, and several eyewitnesses at the time.

Half an hour ago, Lu Jiaojiao was crying in the mansion. Madam Lu looked at her beloved daughter's red and swollen face, and was angry and anxious. When she asked her, she was hesitant and could not explain clearly, just holding her face and crying in pain. Madam Lu had no choice but to ask someone to call Master Lu, who went to the concubine's room after the court, and asked the accompanying maids. The maids dared not tell the truth, but only said that Master Tong's female apprentice was arrogant and domineering. Their young lady was kind to greet her, but she didn't appreciate it and spoke rudely. After a disagreement, she even beat him.

Mrs. Lu was furious when she heard this: "How could a country girl be so ignorant of the immensity of heaven and earth? I'd like to ask the master to ask Tong Mingyan how he taught his apprentice."

When Lord Lu came to the hall and saw his daughter's appearance, he was also shocked. After hearing Mrs. Lu's retelling, he was furious: "Tong Mingyan is so bullying. He really thinks I, Lu Zhong, am easy to bully. I will definitely go to the emperor and accuse him of a crime of allowing his followers to commit murder."

Seeing her parents defending her, Lu Jiaojiao was secretly delighted. Now she wanted to see how Gu Xixian could hide. However, she never thought about whether the maid's words would stand up once the matter came before the emperor, and whether she could bear the consequences.

Just when Lord Lu was furious and was about to complain, the Dragon Guard came to "invite someone" and did not even give his daughter time to wash and dress. The three of them were taken to the palace. Similarly, when Gu Xixian, a bachelor, was lying down and sleeping soundly, she was taken into the palace by the Dragon Guard and successfully met her teacher and his wife at the palace gate.

When the two families met at the palace gate, sparks flew. Lu Zhong and Tong Mingyan, the sworn enemies in the court, exchanged glances, but they had been in the court for many years, so they knew that it was not a good idea to start a fight at the palace gate. After the eye contact, they snorted and turned their heads away.

After entering the emperor's study, everyone bowed their heads and knelt down to greet him. Before they could stand up, they heard the announcement that the dragon guards brought in another group of people. The six people had different thoughts.

Lu Zhong: Why are all the Dukes here? What big thing happened?

Mrs. Lu: This damn country girl actually beat her daughter like this, she will never let it go.

Tong Mingyan: It seems that he doesn’t need to say anything more, the emperor has already seen everything.

Yin Xueruo: Wow, I’m going to do something big… Aren’t you excited?

Lu Jiaojiao shrank back, as if trying to make herself invisible: this group of untouchables looked a little familiar.

Gu Xixian: Hey, aren't these the eyewitnesses of the time? It seems that the emperor is a reasonable person, so just be reasonable.

Emperor: What do you guys want with this lawsuit? Do you think I'm blind?

The emperor looked at each other for a few seconds. During the waiting process, his mood became very calm. He did not give the two families a chance to speak, but directly said to the witnesses: "Please tell us about the situation at that time. Just tell it truthfully."

On the way, several people had received the Dragon Guard's advice. Facing the supreme ruler of the dynasty, how could they dare to hide anything? Of course, they didn't need to hide anything. There were many people who saw this incident at the time, and they were just one of them. So one by one, they continued to speak.

Witness 1: "Not long after this young lady came out of the Duke of Zhenguo's Mansion, Miss Lu had her carriage stopped. Before the young lady could say anything, Miss Lu called her a country bumpkin and said that she was sent to the Duke of Zhenguo's Mansion to be a concubine by her master's wife."

Witness 2: "Yes, this brother is right. Miss Lu also said that she was shabby to be a concubine, and that Madam Tong wanted to harm her own children and nephews."

Witness 3: "The little girl had a good temper and didn't curse. She just said that Miss Lu lived by the sea and suggested that if Miss Lu was too full and had nothing to do, she could run along the city wall."

Witness 4: "Miss Lu said that she lived in Beijing and called the girl a country bumpkin with no knowledge. The girl wanted to get around her, but Miss Lu called her parents ignorant. The girl got angry when her parents were scolded and beat her up."

Everyone: Why do you seem so happy?

Witness Five made the final conclusion: "What the brothers said is correct. This is what happened. This little girl has a very good temper. If it were me, I would have beaten her to death a long time ago."

Gu Xixian: Uncle, this is in front of someone's parents, you'd better be careful and beware of retaliation.

Witness 45: I am alone and barefoot, so I am not afraid of those who wear shoes.

Lu Zhong, who was furious, felt his veins throbbing, Madam Lu, who had eyes like a knife, felt cold sweats streaming down her face, while Lu Jiaojiao, who was secretly happy, felt her whole body trembling as she listened!

The emperor, who was listening to the opera, interjected, "What do you think of this, Lord Lu?"