Chapter 97 Like a slap in the face
"Emperor, Emperor..." Goudan's mother was so panicked that she didn't even dare to call him the emperor.
Xiao Jiuyue took a step forward and leaned slightly. She bowed in the direction of Shengjing before looking at Goudan's mother's pale face and asking, "Your Majesty is wise and considerate of my grandmother's age, allowing the women of the Xiao family to return to their ancestral home to retire. Why do you make the women of my Xiao family seem like rats that everyone wants to beat?"
"If you think the emperor has done something wrong, then go to Shengjing and file a complaint." Xiao Jiuyue saw the fear in her eyes and a mocking smile appeared on his lips. "Perhaps you don't know the procedure for filing a complaint. First, beat the drum, then roll the nail board."
"Do you know what a rolling nail board is?" Xiao Jiuyue glanced sideways and kindly reminded him, "It's a board covered with sharp nails. Every nail will pierce your flesh. You have thousands of nail holes all over your body. If you survive, this lawsuit will only be the first step."
Goudan's mother's face turned pale with fear. She could only shake her head. Her throat was stiff and she couldn't say a word. Just by imagining the scene that Xiao Jiuyue described, she felt as if nails were piercing her flesh.
"By the way, when you roll the nail board, you have to recite your complaint word for word. If you make a single mistake, the Dali Temple won't accept the case." Xiao Jiuyue said lightly, "Alright, I've told you the procedure. You leave today and you can reach Shengjing in one and a half months on foot or half a month by donkey cart."
"No, no." Goudan's mother shook her head and said, "I won't file a complaint with the emperor. I won't, I won't." She wanted to keep her life for a few more days!
"No, you must file a complaint." Xiao Jiuyue said firmly. "My father used to be the Minister of Revenue, a second-rank official. He was harmed by a traitor and ended up in this misfortune. If you file a complaint, who knows, the emperor might even review the Xiao family case and redress their wrongdoing."
Second grade?
Goudan's mother didn't know how high an official he was, but she listened to the whispers of the people around her and heard Xiao Jiuyue continue, "It's only a matter of time before my father is rehabilitated. You..."
"Miss Xiao, Miss Xiao, I was wrong." Goudan's mother was very panicked. She was crying and snotting, and her hair was wet and muddy from the ditch just now. She looked particularly embarrassed at this moment.
"No, you're right." Xiao Jiuyue sneered, "It's true that only the women of the Xiao family are left, but my father, grandfather, uncle, eldest brother, and nephew are all fine. The women of the Xiao family are not to be bullied."
"From now on, the Huang family is not welcome in the workshop." As soon as Xiao Jiuyue finished speaking, Aunt Huang San beside her immediately became unhappy. She didn't have the arrogance she had just used when scolding Widow He. She said cautiously, "Miss, it was Goudan's mother who said that. We didn't say that."
Aunt Huang pushed Goudan's mother out and said, "You're such a rotten mouth! Do you think you can talk nonsense about the Xiao family's affairs?"
"I, I was wrong." Goudan's mother was very panicked at this moment.
Xiao Jiuyue didn't care about that and called Jin Wu over directly: "Send Goudan's mother to Shengjing to file a complaint with the emperor. The nail plate next to the Dengwen drum is about to rust, right?"
"Miss, it's more than just rust, there's so much blood." Unlike the handsome Jin Wen, Jin Wu looked particularly serious when he frowned. "Miss, I've seen people rolling nail boards before. They're full of holes. The blood is like a gardener's watering can."
Jin Wu liked listening to storytelling, and at this moment his voice was as exciting as the storyteller's, describing how miserable the man rolling the nail board was.
"It's okay. Since Goudan's mother believes that the emperor is wrong, she should file a complaint with the emperor. She will definitely be able to survive." Xiao Jiuyue said, "Jin Wu, you must send Goudan's mother to Shengjing."
"Don't worry, Miss." Jin Wu patted his chest and promised, then went straight forward to grab Goudan's mother. Goudan's mother was so scared that she peed her pants, and she smelled so bad that Aunt Huang and her biological daughter Huang Chunxi couldn't help but pinch their noses.
"I won't sue, I won't sue. The emperor is not wrong, I am wrong." Goudan's mother no longer cared about the embarrassment. She just wanted to live well. She knelt in front of Xiao Jiuyue and begged for mercy: "Miss, I was really wrong."
Xiao Jiuyue took a step aside, lowered her eyes, and saw Goudan's mother's wet skirt. She said, "Hey, Goudan's mother, I'm helping you. Please don't kneel to me, I'm afraid it will shorten my life."
"No, no, no, Miss, as long as you don't let me go to Shengjing to file a complaint, you are helping me." Goudan's mother shouted in panic.
"Well, didn't you just say that the Xiao family are sinners?" Xiao Jiuyue looked embarrassed.
Goudan's mother begged repeatedly, even bowing her head, before Xiao Jiuyue waved her hand and said, "Forget it, Jinwu, if she doesn't want to, we can't force her."
"Thank you, Miss." Goudan's mother turned around and wanted to run away.
"Wait." Xiao Jiuyue spoke, and Jin Wen directly blocked Goudan's mother's way.
Goudan's mother turned around excitedly and said, "Didn't I say I wouldn't sue?"
"You're not going to file a complaint, but you just punched a hole in Aunt He. You can't just pretend nothing happened, right?" Xiao Jiuyue looked at her sincerely. "Aunt He helps me run the workshop. Hitting her is like hitting me in the face."
Aunt He, who was a little dizzy due to excessive blood loss, suddenly had a light in her eyes. She looked up and saw Xiao Jiuyue's profile. For so many years, apart from her son and daughter, when had anyone protected her?
"I, I was careless." Goudan's mother slapped herself. The loud slap was seen clearly by Shi Lizheng, Shi Daniang and others who arrived a step later. When they looked at Xiao Jiuyue, there was an... indescribable admiration in their eyes.
In the village, Goudan's mother and Goudan's father were like tough as nails, never knowing what it meant to admit their mistakes. But now, they were completely subdued by Xiao Jiuyue.
After applying some medicine on her head, Aunt He was still a little dizzy. When she heard Xiao Jiuyue's words, she immediately said, "Miss Xiao, she said that the Xiao family is a widow like me."
"I didn't." Goudan's mother looked guilty and shouted at Aunt He, "I said you are a widow."
"So, not only did you say that our Xiao family is a sinner, you also cursed my grandmother, my mother, my grandfather and my father?" Xiao Jiuyue's cold voice was colder than the wind in the cold winter. Goudan's mother shuddered all over and excitedly wanted to explain that she didn't say it.
But no one said a word at this moment. Cheng Goudan's mother usually said whatever she wanted, so she must have said this.
"Li Zheng Shi, this matter needs to be judged by the village head. Although our Xiao family has just returned to Fu'an Village, we have not done anything against the will of heaven or morality, let alone harmed the villagers. Now that Goudan's mother is cursing my grandfather and father, I..."
Xiao Jiuyue, who had just looked like a young lady, was now crying like a tearful person, especially since her hands and even her face were stained with blood. She looked so pitiful when she cried!
"Miss Xiao, don't cry. This is all Goudan's mother's fault!" Aunt Shi rushed forward, wishing she could wipe Xiao Jiuyue's tears. She pointed at Goudan's mother and said, "Last year, all the three taels of silver you earned in the workshop went to waste?"
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