"And you, you shameless slut, using my son's money to support your gigolo, and even now you're still protecting your lover!" After spitting as she finished her tirade, Old Lady Wen, as if still not satisfied, kicked Lu Siniang, who was defending Gu Qingyan!

Lu Siniang screamed and fell to the ground. Gu Qingyan ignored the pain and struggled to get up, but was held down by several burly men. He could only cry out, "Siniang, Siniang!"

The dean, who was standing nearby, was extremely anxious and rushed forward to persuade her: "Madam, this is a sacred place for scholars. It is illegal to beat up a teacher! Why don't you stop?"

"Pah!" Old Mrs. Wen spat fiercely! "What law have you broken? My son-in-law works in the county, I have plenty of connections!" After saying that, she ordered the burly men holding Gu Qingyan: "Beat these two adulterers to death."

"Let's see who dares to hit my father!" Gu Nanjiao rushed over without stopping, charged into the crowd, and glared fiercely at Old Lady Wen.

Grandma Wen glanced sideways at Gu Nanjiao, a little girl, and completely disregarded her, mocking, "Another one who doesn't know what's good for her!"

When Gu Qingyan saw Gu Nanjiao, he looked anxious: "Jiaojiao, what brings you here? Go back quickly."

Gu Qingyan was actually panicking inside. It was all over. He knew his daughter well; she loved to throw tantrums and act unreasonably when things went wrong. She could stop Old Madam Wen's tantrums with her own, but that would completely ruin his plans.

Gu Nanjiao didn't ignore what her father said. She looked at Lü Siniang in astonishment. The two stared at each other, their eyes wide with surprise and disbelief.

Gu Nanjiao: So you're my dad's lover?

Lü Siniang: You're Gu Qingyan's daughter? No wonder we share the same surname, Gu!

Gu Qingyan was unaware of what the two were thinking. Seeing their expressions, he couldn't help but wonder, "Could it be that Jiaojiao is not satisfied with Fourth Sister?"

Lu's mother and Wang Sang followed closely behind. After seeing this scene, Wang Sang couldn't help but say angrily, "How dare they hit Scholar Gu? They're tired of living!"

After hearing this, Old Lady Wen snorted coldly: "Pah! He's a scholar, but I'm a scholar's mother!"

Gu Nanjiao rolled up her sleeves, looking ready to fight at any moment. Gu Qingyan shouted nervously, "Jiaojiao, don't be impulsive!"

That's it. If her daughter starts fighting with someone like before, he won't be able to explain himself.

Gu Nanjiao gave her father a reassuring look and began to use her eloquence. Today she was going to have a verbal battle with Old Lady Wen and would never resort to violence. She cleared her throat and was just about to start speaking.

Suddenly, countless footsteps sounded, and the academy gates were slowly opened.

Lu's mother tugged at Gu Nanjiao's sleeve, and the two turned to look.

Gu Nanjiao was startled. She looked at the two rows of yamen runners carrying fire and water sticks who came out of the door. Their faces were cold and serious.

Mother Lu lowered her head and whispered, "The officials have arrived!"

A middle-aged man, about forty years old and dressed in official robes, walked over with an imposing air. The officers quickly brought him a stool to sit down.

After the man sat down, he looked down at them and said, "Who beat up my brother Gu?"

Gu Nanjiao was stunned: Brother Gu? Who is that? Could it be his father? Her father can be on friendly terms with the county magistrate. The county magistrate is at least an eighth-rank official, right? Does her father have this kind of disguise?

Grandma Wen and the others had never seen anything like this before, and they were so frightened that they knelt on the ground, cowering and trembling.

The county magistrate inquired about what had happened.

Grandma Wen quickly recounted what had just happened, but her face no longer showed the same confidence and arrogance as before; instead, she appeared somewhat uneasy, even showing a hint of panic.

"How dare you!" the county magistrate rebuked in a stern voice.

"My lord, everything I have said is true," Old Lady Wen said in a trembling voice.

"True? Hmph, summon Lü Siniang for questioning."

Lü Siniang stepped forward and bowed.

"My lord, my husband passed away several years ago. After his death, my son and I were driven out of the Wen family by Old Lady Wen, and all our property was swallowed up, leaving us only a dilapidated clothing shop. Now that Old Lady Wen sees that the clothing shop is doing well, she is jealous and has falsely accused me of having an affair with Scholar Gu. She has even conspired with others to humiliate and beat up students in the sacred place of the academy. I beg you, my lord, to investigate this matter thoroughly."

Lu Siniang's words were eloquent and sincere, so much so that Gu Nanjiao couldn't help but applaud her.

It seems there's nothing for her to do here; her father and Lü Siniang can handle it perfectly well.

Old Lady Wen, somewhat flustered, kowtowed to the county magistrate: "Your Honor, she is framing me! Please investigate!"

"I will investigate this matter thoroughly. However, you have actually conspired with others to beat up a student of the imperial court in the sacred ground of academy. This is an utter disgrace to scholarship. Now, all the students in the academy can testify to this. For this alone, you deserve one hundred strokes of the cane and exile for three hundred miles."

"My lord, my lord!" Old Lady Wen panicked, and the burly men following behind her trembled like leaves.

"Sir, it has nothing to do with us. It was Old Lady Wen who gave us money to come to Nanfeng Academy to catch the adulterer."

Gu Nanjiao was furious. How dare he say such things to his father: "Who is the adulterer? A married woman and a married man having an affair is considered adultery. Now, a widower and a widow, it is reasonable and legal for them to marry."

The county magistrate glanced at Gu Nanjiao indifferently: "No noise is allowed in the courtroom." He then looked at the burly man from before and said sternly, "This man is full of slander. Take Old Lady Wen and the others into the yamen to await their fate."

Old Mrs. Wen shouted, "My son-in-law is the county magistrate, you can't arrest me!"

The county magistrate raised an eyebrow. He was the highest-ranking official besides the county magistrate. How could a mere clerk scare him? This old lady probably has something wrong with her head.

"Take him away!" the county magistrate ordered sternly.

Soon, the yamen runners came forward with sticks and took Old Lady Wen and the others away.

As the crowd dispersed, the county magistrate immediately stood up from his stool and helped Gu Qingyan up, saying, "Brother Gu, I'm late. You got beaten up."

"Brother Zhang, your arrival is perfectly timed. If we hadn't taken this beating, how could Fourth Sister have gotten her shop back? I am extremely grateful." Gu Qingyan quickly grasped Lord Zhang's hand, his expression excited.

Lord Zhang said, “Brother Gu has something to ask of me, so please don’t say such grateful words. After all these years, I’m glad you’ve found someone you can trust. It’s a good thing that you’ve been able to let go of the past.”

Gu Qingyan looked at Lü Siniang with a sigh and said nervously, "Let's not talk about the past."

Gu Nanjiao winked at Lü Siniang, her eyes filled with a teasing tone.

Lu Siniang glanced at Gu Nanjiao shyly, then lowered her head.

She couldn't understand how such a coincidence could happen in the world. Her business partner and best friend turned out to be Gu Qingyan's daughter.

Looking at the sky, which was getting dark, Gu Nanjiao walked to Lu's mother's side and whispered, "Mother, I'm worried about my little sister being home alone. It's getting dark, you should go back quickly. I'll stay with my father tonight!"

Mrs. Lu lowered her head and thought for a moment: "Alright, I won't say goodbye to your father. Please let him know for me that I'm going back now."

As the mother-in-law of the Gu family, she couldn't very well interfere in Gu's father's affairs. Right now, they were busy entertaining the county magistrate, so she couldn't go up and greet him.

"Auntie, let me take you home!" Wang Sang said quickly as she heard that Lu's mother was going back.

Gu Nanjiao looked at Wang Sang gratefully and said, "Thank you for your help."

Wang Sang scratched her round head sheepishly: "No trouble at all, no trouble at all!"

After watching Lu's mother leave, Gu Nanjiao slowly approached Lü Siniang and teased, "Hey, I never would have guessed. I treated you like a sister, and you actually want to be my mother."