Mad Queen Leaves the Palace

Just then, seeing Prefect Liu's approval and agreement with his words, Xiao Lan felt a surge of confidence and assurance. He then continued, "That Qi Jing'an's second daughter, Qi Lanlan, has dared to impersonate the eldest grandson of Marquis Xiao, namely myself, in a marriage bestowed upon her! Such behavior is a grave trampling and desecration of the dignity of the Qi family, the Xiao family, and even the entire royal family! What's even more despicable is that she has wantonly slandered the future princess consort. Such actions are undoubtedly a blatant contempt for royal authority! According to the law, such a serious crime should be punished with the death penalty, not only beheading her and displaying her head to the public, but also implicating her entire family. However, our current Emperor has the well-being of all people in his heart and possesses unparalleled benevolence and magnanimity, and has never liked killing. Therefore, after careful consideration, it is better to only sentence her to twenty strokes of the cane and order her to sign a contract of servitude to our Xiao family."

After speaking, Xiao Lan slightly raised her head, her gaze first falling on the serious-looking Xiao Zhenwei, and then turning to the upright Prefect Liu. She carefully observed the expressions of the two men, and saw that they were both silent, showing no sign of objection.

So, Xiao Lan took a deep breath and spoke again, "Since Xiao Jinshi took over the management of our Marquis's mansion's inner quarters, she has repeatedly misappropriated the mansion's property without my grandfather's permission to subsidize the Jin family in Changzhou. You must know, how could a mere concubine be qualified to manage the master's finances! Therefore, I hope that the Prefect can issue an order to send men to Changzhou to surround the Jin family. After I have settled the accounts of the lost property of the Marquis's mansion, I can go to the Jin family to reclaim what belongs to us." At this point, Xiao Lan paused, then turned to look at Yue Jiangchuan sitting to the side.

She continued, "Furthermore, I will need to trouble Commander Yue to send a capable person back to the capital to request the Prefect of the Capital to detain Xiao Jin's younger brother, sister-in-law, and others. At the same time, we must seal off our Xiao family's ancestral home. When I return to the capital after dealing with matters here, I will certainly investigate these matters thoroughly. Also, please have someone convey a message to everyone in the capital that the items lost from the Xiao Marquis's residence were stolen, and that those precious items were all beloved possessions of my grandparents. I believe everyone here is intelligent; those who bought the stolen goods should know very well that these items were obtained illegally."

Prefect Liu nodded slightly in agreement, then gave a wink to his clerk beside him. The clerk understood and nodded in agreement before turning to leave to handle the relevant matters. At the same time, Yue Jiangchuan also selected two people and gave them specific instructions and tasks.

Standing quietly to the side, Xiao Lan saw that Prefect Liu and Yue Jiangchuan had made proper arrangements. She pondered for a moment, then looked up at the sky, estimated the approximate time, and asked, "I wonder if Xiao Dayi has been captured and brought back yet?" Her voice was clear and loud, echoing throughout the room.

Just as everyone awaited a response, footsteps sounded at the door. Then, Li Yuan entered with a man. This man was none other than Xiao Dayi. However, Xiao Dayi looked completely different from the Xiao Lan remembered. In her previous life, Xiao Lan had never seen this uncle since she came of age. The Xiao Dayi before her was haggard, his face filled with dejection, as if he had endured countless hardships and exhaustion. Anyone with a modicum of experience could immediately tell that his appearance was the result of excessive indulgence.

However, Xiao Lan was only just of marriageable age and should still be ignorant about matters of love and sex. Therefore, when she saw Xiao Dayi's listless and exhausted appearance, she could only pretend not to understand, feigning confusion, and innocently asked, "Uncle, what's wrong with you? Why do you look so tired? Did you do some heavy physical labor? But according to what I've heard these past two days, you're either frequenting brothels or playing cricket fighting with others. Could these activities really be so exhausting and make you feel tired?"

Those who were slightly older present all knew the reason for Xiao Dayi's weary appearance, but out of politeness, no one was willing to point it out. However, Madam Xiao seemed unwilling to let it go. She turned directly to Xiao Lan and said without any mercy, "Miss Xiao, you may not know! The reason Xiao Dayi looks so listless and tired is because he went to those brothels again last night! He used up all his energy on those courtesans, so naturally he looks weak and powerless now!"

Xiao Dayi never expected that the usually dignified and virtuous Lady Xiao would so recklessly expose his shameful deeds in front of everyone. He was furious, his face turning ashen. He glared at her, pointed his finger at her, and roared through gritted teeth, "You shameless hussy, how dare you spout such nonsense here! Wait till I get back to the manor and teach you a lesson. I'll beat you until your skin is torn and bleeding!" With that, he raised his fist, as if to pounce on Lady Xiao.

Little did anyone know that Lady Xiao's lips curled into a cold, mocking smile as she sneered, "Xiao Dayi, Xiao Dayi, you're probably still in the dark! Your shameless mother has been having an affair behind the Marquis's back, and now the Marquis knows about this scandal! Your mother has been demoted from a respectable concubine to a lowly maidservant. And your eldest sister's bastard child, whose father is unknown, along with her two equally illegitimate daughters, have all been ruthlessly removed from the Xiao family genealogy! From now on, they will all have to take your mother's adulterer's surname—Qi."

Lady Xiao paused, then continued, "Back then, you and your mother conspired to deceive me, claiming you were the legitimate son of the Xiao Marquis's family, using this as a pretext to trick me into marriage. Humph! Fortunately, justice prevails, and the Marquis has now seen through everything and has granted me permission to divorce you. As for Xiao Chengliang, the child you had with that prostitute... hehe, oh no, although that child's mother was indeed a prostitute, he is not your bloodline! We've already discussed this matter; we'll have him serve as a servant in my Marquis's family, as a small way to repay the kindness I've shown him over the years!"

Upon hearing this, Xiao Dayi's previously hazy drunken mind instantly cleared. He abruptly stood up, his eyes wide with astonishment, and blurted out, "What? You actually knew all along that Liangliang wasn't your biological son? Wait, you just said Liangliang isn't my son? How is that possible! Absolutely impossible!"

Just then, Xiao Dayi, who had been in a daze, finally snapped out of it! His eyes widened, his face filled with astonishment, and he quickly reached out and shook Hou's shoulders forcefully, shouting urgently, "You woman, stop talking nonsense here!"

Seeing this, Xiao Lan, standing to the side, curled her lips into a barely perceptible sneer. She spoke slowly and deliberately, "Uncle, oh no, it's probably not certain whether I can continue to address you that way. If you insist that Xiao Chengliang is your biological son, then according to clan rules, you must undergo a blood test with my grandfather. If the test results show that you are not my grandfather's biological son, hehe, that would be interesting. At that time, perhaps your whole family could be completely removed from the Xiao family's genealogy!" After saying this, Xiao Lan crossed her arms and looked at Xiao Dayi, whose face was becoming increasingly ugly, with a leisurely air.

Xiao Lan secretly pondered to herself that she really didn't want Xiao Dayi to continue investigating Xiao Chengliang's identity. She knew that if it were later confirmed that Xiao Dayi and Xiao Chengliang were related by blood, the flaw would be glaringly obvious! After all, Xiao Li'an had long since married far away, and who could guarantee that someone wouldn't one day decide to verify whether Xiao Li'an and Xiao Zhenwei were related? If that happened, today's carefully planned charade would be instantly exposed. However, if Xiao Dayi, in order to firmly maintain the preferential treatment afforded to the son of a marquis, chose not to verify their relationship with Xiao Chengliang, then the Marquis's family would undoubtedly go to great lengths to "treat" Xiao Chengliang well. In that case, it wouldn't be long before Xiao Chengliang's life was in danger. Perhaps after some time, they could cleverly fabricate a crime against him and exile him to a remote place.

At this moment, Xiao Dayi was also filled with conflict and fear. He worried that if the test results showed that he and Xiao Zhenwei were not related by blood, the consequences would be unimaginable. Moreover, Qi Jing'an was constantly fanning the flames and adding fuel to the fire, while Xiao Jinshi, for various reasons, remained unable to utter a single word in Xiao Chengliang's defense. After much deliberation, Xiao Dayi still couldn't make up his mind. He felt a surge of anger and couldn't help but burst into a tirade: "Damn slut, how dare you deceive me!" Then, pointing at Xiao Chengliang, he roared, "You little bastard, get out of my way! Your shameless mother was a prostitute, so what good are you!"

At this moment, Xiao Lan, who had been silent all along, finally spoke slowly: "Now that you have confirmed that Xiao Chengliang is the bastard child born to that woman outside, it is only right to expel him from our Xiao family's genealogy. As for what this boy should be named in the future, that is entirely up to his new master—Madam Hou, to decide."

Upon hearing this, Madam Hou quickly bowed deeply to Xiao Lan and replied with gratitude, "Thank you for your understanding, Miss Xiao! My servants should rightfully change their surname to Hou, but a son born to a prostitute like him is truly unworthy of such a noble surname as Hou. In my opinion, why not let him take the surname Zhen? There are no prominent families with the surname Zhen in the current court."

Upon hearing this, Xiao Lan couldn't help but smile and said jokingly, "Haha, does that mean we're going to bestow upon him the name 'Jian'?"

Hou was taken aback for a moment, then realized what Xiao Lan meant and burst into laughter, praising her repeatedly, "Zhen Jian, you're so cheeky... Oh my, Miss Xiao is truly intelligent and witty!"

Surprisingly, despite being devastated by the news of her daughter's tragic death, Hou seemed to have a sudden realization, and a hint of joy returned to her face. Perhaps deep down, she was thinking that if her daughter were still alive, the chaotic family environment would have a profound impact on her, and it was difficult to predict what kind of person she would become. Furthermore, if her daughter were still alive, a smooth divorce with Xiao Dayi would have been extremely difficult, especially with such a morally questionable mother-in-law. Now that her child was gone, she had many more options.

Xiao Lan narrowed her eyes slightly and then said slowly, "Madam Hou, regarding Xiao Dayi's sale of his own child, if you decide not to pursue the matter further, our Hou family will naturally provide you with a certain amount of money as compensation. However, if you insist on investigating this matter to the end, then we will probably have to go to Prefect Liu to file a complaint. At that time, everything will be judged by the government, and our Hou family has always been loyal to the court and loves the country. We will never show any favoritism towards Xiao Dayi in such a matter!"

Lady Hou knew perfectly well that Xiao Lan's words were merely a way to leave her some room to maneuver. Her gaze was as firm as a rock as she retorted without hesitation, "Hmph, who doesn't know your Xiao family is wealthy and powerful? But so what? My Hou family is not short of money either. To me, no amount of gold and silver can compare to the life of my poor daughter! Besides..." At this point, Lady Hou abruptly turned her head, looking directly at Xiao Zhenwei, her eyes filled with grief and accusation, "My daughter is your own granddaughter, Lord Xiao! If even you, as her grandfather, are unwilling to seek justice for her, wouldn't that be the greatest tragedy in the world?"