Chapter 262: Public Opinion and Public Opinion

The carved red door of Linglong Pavilion slowly closed behind him, blocking out the luxurious warm fragrance inside.

Wen Li'er walked out slowly on the bluestone road with light steps.

The crisp winter air hits my face.

Behind him, there was a sharp slapping sound.

What followed was Liu Zixuan's heart-wrenching cry filled with shame and indignation.

Liang Qingning took two quick steps to catch up with Wen Li'er, with the fists clenched in her sleeves still tightly in place.

"Cousin." Her almond-shaped eyes were wide open, her chest heaving with the anger just now, and the suppressed anger in her voice had not yet disappeared.

"Are you just going to let her go like this? This guy is really too... too..."

Liang Qingning tried to organize her words for a long time but couldn't find a suitable word.

Qingmei, standing by, was impatient and angrily said, "Master! Miss Fourth Cousin is right! The eldest lady of the Luo family is too much! How can we let her go so easily? In my opinion, we should make everyone in the mansion, from masters to servants, kneel in front of our Wen Mansion and kowtow to the old lady for three days and three nights. Only then can we dispel this hatred!"

Wen Li'er glanced sideways at Liang Qingning and Qingmei, a faint smile on her lips.

If Liu Zixuan is severely punished now, how can this play be performed later?

"Just wait and see. Within three days, people from the Luo family and Duke Wen's residence will kneel before the gate of my Wen residence and kowtow to my grandmother to apologize."

Liang Qingning and Qingmei scratched their heads at the same time, indicating that they didn't understand.

Qingzhu glanced at his master, then calmly glanced at the common people in front of Linglong Pavilion who were peeking and whispering. A hint of thought flashed across the depths of his eyes.

The next moment, Wen Li'er suddenly raised her hand to touch her forehead, her dark brows tightly furrowed, and her slender body swayed like a willow in the wind.

"master!"

Qiu Ying and Hua Zhan, who were standing on either side, reacted extremely quickly. In a flash, they had already supported her shaky body steadily.

Wen Li'er's eyes suddenly turned red, and tears flashed in her eyes.

She raised her tearful eyes and looked at the crowd that was gradually gathering around her, her voice filled with heart-wrenching grief and trembling.

"My dear neighbors... I'm sorry to have embarrassed you all! The Luo family... The Luo family is simply going too far!"

The people were just watching outside and had no idea what the conflict inside was about.

Wen Li'er wiped her tears and explained, "A few days ago, my maternal grandfather and his family traveled thousands of miles to Beijing to attend my brother's wedding. When they reached the post station on the outskirts of the city, the Luo family... Madam Luo's carriage ran amok, nearly knocking my maternal grandfather's carriage over! Not only did they refuse to apologize, they actually relied on their sheer numbers to force... forced my maternal grandfather and his family to kneel down and kowtow in the snow to apologize!"

Having said this, she covered her heart tightly with one hand, breathing rapidly, as if she was in pain and so sad and angry that she could hardly breathe.

"It's freezing cold, and my grandparents are a bunch of old, weak, women and children..."

The onlookers felt sympathetic when they heard what happened, and spoke out in unison for her.

At this moment, a man wearing a coarse cotton jacket squeezed out of the crowd and echoed loudly.

"What the young lady said is absolutely true! A few days ago, I went to visit relatives outside the city and passed by the Sanshili Post Station. I saw it with my own eyes! Madam Luo brought with her over thirty strong servants, and they forced a group of people, young and old, to kowtow in a snow pit! If they refused to kowtow, they would be beaten with sticks all over their heads! It was tragic! It was truly horrible!"

He shook his head as he spoke, his face full of indignation.

Wen Li'er, with tears in her eyes, glanced quickly at Hua Zhan.

Hua Zhan understood what he meant, and his eyes, as fast as lightning, fixed on the man's face imperceptibly, then moved away.

Wen Li'er wiped the tears from her cheeks with a handkerchief and asked in a mournful voice, "Fellow villagers, please judge for yourself. In this matter, should the Luo family apologize to my grandfather, or should my grandfather apologize to them?"

"Of course it's the Luo family who should apologize!" A loud woman's voice immediately sounded, with a strong sense of injustice.

"Is there still law? You bump into someone and still want them to kowtow!"

Wen Li'er looked in the direction of the voice, and more tears instantly welled up in her eyes, as if she had finally found someone who understood her.

With the support of Qingmei Qingzhu, she staggered a few steps to the plainly dressed woman, choking before she could say a word.

Then he grasped the woman's rough palm.

"Auntie..." Her voice was choked with sobs and tears streamed down her face.

"I see you're about the same age as my mother... How old is your loving mother back home?"

When the woman saw Wen Li'er crying like a pear blossom in the rain and mentioned her mother, her eyes also turned red.

She sighed, "My mother... is sixty-six years old this year. She suffered a lot when she was young. Now her body is not good, her eyesight is blurry, and her waist and legs are often sore..."

Upon hearing this, Wen Li'er suddenly tightened her grip on the woman's hand, and her voice trembled even more with extreme grief and anger.

"Aunt... my poor grandmother is also sixty-six this year! She toiled her whole life, raising three sons and one daughter with great difficulty. She suffered from many illnesses, and her waist and legs are particularly weak... But that Liu from the Luo family!"

Her voice suddenly rose in an accusatory tone.

"She actually threatened the lives of my cousins! She forced my frail grandmother to kneel down and kowtow to her in the freezing cold snow!"

Her other slender white hand tightly grasped the collar of her clothes over her chest, as if she was suffering from heart-wrenching pain there.

"Grandma's knees weren't good to begin with... They... They even forced her head to bang against the frozen ice! Her forehead... Her forehead was even broken..."

"What a sin! Damn the Luo family!"

Among the crowd of onlookers, an old man with white hair and beard was shaking with anger and slammed his cane to the ground.

"Bullying the elderly and the weak like this will be punished by lightning!"

Wen Li'er continued, her voice hoarse as she asked the woman in front of her, "Auntie! If someone forced your old mother to kneel and kowtow in the snow, what would you do?"

The woman was so excited by the scene described by Wen Li'er that her blood vessels were boiling, her eyes were wide open and she shouted loudly;

"Who dares?! Who dares to touch me? I will fight him to the death even if it means risking my life!"

"Auntie...you understand me! You understand the pain I'm feeling!"

Wen Li'er tightly grasped the woman's hand, tears pouring out like a dam breaking. "How hateful! How hateful that the Luo family bullies others by taking advantage of their power... I... I..."

Her words were interrupted by heavy gasping, and she suddenly leaned back and fell limply towards Qiu Ying, her eyes closed and her face as pale as paper.

He looked as if he had fainted from grief!

"master!"

"cousin!"

"cousin!"

Liang Qingning, Liang Qingyou, Ji, He, Qingmei, Qingzhu and other palace maids were suddenly in chaos, screaming and trying to help Wen Lier onto the carriage parked nearby.

Wen Li'er seemed to be struggling to wake up in everyone's arms.

Her eyelashes trembled violently, her lips moved, and she uttered a sentence with a weak breath: "...Justice... is in the hearts of the people..."

After he finished speaking, his head tilted and he completely fainted.

This scene was like a raging fire that ignited dry wood! The hearts of the onlookers were tightened.

Witnessing a delicate woman being forced into such a situation, everyone could no longer suppress their anger.

"How can this be possible!"

A man who looked like a scholar stood out from the crowd, raised his arms and shouted loudly, his voice like a bell.

"The Luo family, relying on their marriage to Duke Wen's mansion, has become so lawless, bullying the innocent and abusing the elderly! This is intolerable! We're going to the Luo family right now to seek justice for that old man!"

"Yes! The Luo family must pay the price! We must seek justice for this lady and her maternal family!"

"That's right! They should make their entire family kneel down in front of the door and kowtow and admit their mistakes!"

"And the Duke Wen Mansion! They can't escape responsibility for not educating their adopted daughter and allowing their own daughter to commit violence! They must be severely punished as well!"

"That's right! Let's go! Go to Minister Luo's house and ask for an explanation!"

The crowd was outraged and the discussion was as turbulent as the tide.

I don't know who took the lead and shouted, "The Luo family woman disregards human ethics and rebels against Tiangang! Bullying women and children is intolerable!"

This slogan was like a spark thrown into a frying pan, instantly igniting everyone's emotions.

"Yes! It's against the will of heaven!"

"Go to the Luo family! Ask for justice!"

The crowd surged and rushed towards Minister Luo's residence.

Along the way, people who did not know the truth kept asking questions. After hearing the whole story, they were all filled with righteous indignation and joined in.

The team grew bigger and bigger like a snowball, and the slogans were earth-shaking.

In Linglong Pavilion, Liu Zixuan, who was originally covering her cheeks and crying, saw the black and raging crowd rushing towards Luo Mansion. The redness and swelling on her face from being slapped disappeared instantly, leaving only a deathly pale face, like a water ghost.

"It's over... it's over..."

All her strength seemed to be drained away in an instant, and she collapsed limply to the ground.

A huge fear gripped her heart, making her tremble like a sieve.

Liu Ziling's face was also ashen, and her eyes were so gloomy that water could drip out of them.

The gossip and public opinion can kill people more effectively than a sharp blade!

She no longer cared about Liu Zixuan on the ground, and turned around to leave quietly with her personal servant.

She must rush back home immediately to inform her father and father-in-law, so that they can take precautions and calm the situation!

However, as soon as she took a step, Zuo Qing stood in front of her.

Before long, Minister Luo's residence was surrounded by angry people.

The deafening slogans were like thunder, one louder than the other, soaring into the sky and almost shaking the high-hanging plaque down!

"The Luo family woman disregards human ethics and rebels against Tian Gang! Bullying women and children is intolerable!"

"The Luo family woman disregards human ethics and rebels against Tian Gang! Bullying women and children is intolerable!"

"The Luo family woman disregards human ethics and rebels against Tian Gang! Bullying women and children is intolerable!"

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(My dear children, since this woman has lowered her status to such an act, why didn't she complain to the Emperor? And why didn't she use her privileges as a Royal Concubine to directly settle accounts with the Luo and Liu families? I will tell you in the next chapter.)

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