Chapter 27 [VIP]
Xiao Yi thought that Mi Yao's incident at the Ma family was the end of it. Since she herself said that she only bullied the weak and feared the strong, he assumed that she would not provoke the Zhao family because of him.
But to everyone's surprise, Mi Yao still came to the academy the next day.
Because Mi Yao didn't send anyone to call him, he didn't know that she had gone to find the teacher and had also taken Ma Jie to find Zhao Shilang's parents. By the time he found out about this, the teacher had already brought a weeping Zhao Shilang to apologize to him.
Zhao Shilang was a year older than him. In the past, he had only seen Zhao Shilang act arrogantly and domineeringly in the academy because of his surname Zhao. He often cursed the teacher for being nosy in private and never took the teacher seriously. But now Zhao Shilang was crying so hard that he could hardly breathe, and he was like a quail in front of the teacher.
"Zhao Hongyi instructed Ma Jie to attack you and threatened you to lie and ruin your mother's reputation. I didn't want a student like that, but his parents brought him to apologize to me, saying that he was young and didn't know any better, and that he was misled by others and made a mistake. Now he knows he was wrong."
Master Li frowned, clearly not agreeing with the fact that Zhao Shilang had admitted his mistake. "As his teacher, I punished him with thirty strokes of the cane. If you think my punishment is reasonable, I will give him a chance to stay in the academy. If you are unwilling to forgive his actions, we will discuss his future later."
Xiao Yi had assumed that this was an academy run by the Zhao family, and that Master Li would side with the Zhao family once he learned of it. However, he never expected that Master Li would actually slap Zhao Shilang's hand until it was swollen.
Zhao Shilang's palm was red and swollen, with faint bluish-purple tinges; the injury he suffered was no less severe than the one on his shoulder.
"Xiao Dalang, I was wrong. I shouldn't have instructed Ma Jie to bully you. I apologize and promise I'll never do such a bad thing again. Please forgive me this time for the sake of our friendship..."
Zhao Shilang bowed deeply to Xiao Yi while crying. His plump face showed no trace of ferocity, making him seem like a completely different person compared to usual.
Before Xiao Yi could speak, Zhao Shilang pleaded in a low voice, "If you don't forgive me, my father will beat me to death, please..."
Knowing why Zhao Shilang had become so obedient, Xiao Yi looked at him a few more times and chose to forgive him.
Li Fuzi had anticipated Xiao Yi's choice.
Just as Xiao Yi's stepmother thought, Xiao Yi wouldn't hold it against her, so instead of listening to Zhao Hongyi's parents and asking Xiao Yi if he forgave Zhao Hongyi, it would be better to punish Zhao Hongyi first and then bring him to Xiao Yi.
"Think more carefully before you act in the future. If there is a next time, no matter who pleads for you, Bimo Academy will not keep you."
Master Li, with a stern voice, dismissed Zhao Shilang before turning to Xiao Yi and saying, "From now on, if anything like this happens again, you must report it to your superiors. Judging from your mother's words, if your aunt hadn't discovered your injuries, would you have planned to keep it a secret forever?"
"The students didn't want to make a big fuss and put the teacher in a difficult position..."
Upon hearing this, Master Li patted Xiao Yi on the shoulder. He knew Xiao Yi's family background and usually only hoped that he would be more obedient than ordinary children. He did not expect that Xiao Yi would suffer injustice and swallow it down. "You must trust your teachers. I teach you benevolence, righteousness, propriety, wisdom and trustworthiness. I do not just talk about it. You and Zhao Hongyi are both my students. What is there for you to be afraid of?"
Sensing the teacher's goodwill, Xiao Yi suddenly realized that he originally wanted Mi Yao to cause a scene at the academy using the same tactics she had used the night before, so he wanted Teacher Li to stand on his side. But now it seemed that although he did not have a good background, there were many good people in the world, and Teacher Li was genuinely standing up for him.
“The students understand that from now on they will not be cowardly or timid, and they will not silently endure injustice. The students know that doing so will only encourage the evil people who bully me to think that I deserve to be bullied by them.”
Upon hearing Xiao Yi's words, Master Li nodded repeatedly: "It seems your mother taught you a lot at home."
Xiao Yi's words reminded him of Mi Yao, who had just faced Zhao Shilang's parents in the main hall of the academy.
The moment he saw Mi Yao, he was immediately struck by her beauty. Then he frowned, thinking that it was not a good thing for Xiao Zhenshi to marry such a beautiful woman. As the saying goes, even heroes cannot resist the charms of a beautiful woman.
Commander Xiao was still young and came from humble beginnings. With a mere whisper in his ear, who knew how he might lose his mind?
But unexpectedly, Mi Yao came to the academy this time to stand up for Xiao Yi.
She had someone bring Ma Jie along, and also sent someone to summon Zhao Hongyi's parents. She put on a domineering and arrogant demeanor, but every word she spoke was reasonable, leaving the Zhao couple, who wanted to downplay the matter, speechless.
Since Mi Yao was so eloquent, and now Xiao Yi was able to say something reasonable, he naturally assumed that these words were taught by Mi Yao.
Xiao Yi did not deny it. He was eager to see Mi Yao and ask her why she came to the academy today, and whether offending the Zhao family would bring her trouble.
But Master Li clearly didn't sense his anxiety, didn't mention Mi Yao again, and after saying a few words to him, let him go back to the teaching school.
It was several hours later when he returned to his residence after school.
He walked hurriedly, but he was still a step too late when he got home.
He rushed over to the main hall, and upon arriving, he not only saw Mi Yao, but also someone dressed in a black robe.
On the balustrade in the main hall was a large white-glazed vase with blue and white peony scroll design. There were also several celadon loquat branches on the table. It seemed that Mi Yao was arranging flowers when her father returned and interrupted her.
Seeing the stern look on his father's face, Xiao Yi felt guilty towards Mi Yao. If he hadn't gotten involved in her affairs, things would have been much easier.
"Father, it's all my fault,"
Instead of offering a greeting, she knelt before him, bowing her head and taking responsibility for her actions.
Mi Yao and Xiao Chuan had just met. It had been a long time since they had seen each other during the day. Mi Yao found it exciting to see Xiao Chuan and was thinking of tugging at his sleeve and acting coquettishly.
But who would have thought that Xiao Yi would pull this stunt as soon as he got home from school?
Mi Yao glanced at Xiao Yi, who was kneeling on the ground, seemingly ready to be beaten and scolded, but remained silent, wanting to see what surprise Xiao Chuan had in store for her this time.
Xiao Chuan happened to see her watching the show.
Xiao Chuan couldn't help but sneer, wanting the kneeling fool in front of him to look up and see who he was blocking in front of to receive punishment.
"What happened?"
Xiao Chuan did not immediately make Xiao Yi stand up, but sat down nearby, looking at him with a deep gaze.
Xiao Yi recounted how Zhao Hongyi had ordered Ma Jie to beat him and make him lie, but omitted the fact that Yu Xiu had discovered his injury. Instead, he said that he had taken the initiative to seek out Mi Yao, wanting her to stand up for him.
“My mother felt sorry for me and saw how pitiful I was, which is why she went to settle accounts with the Ma family last night and went to the academy to support me this morning.”
Regardless of how Xiao Chuan felt about these words, Mi Yao was quite satisfied.
Compared to the version where the injured person is afraid to tell anyone and keeps quiet, this version where the person actively seeks out an adult to confront them is clearly more satisfying.
"This morning?"
Xiao Chuan's focus was clearly different from that of ordinary people. He repeated Xiao Yi's description of the time and looked at Mi Yao with a half-smile.
Is there anything in this world that could make her wake up early?
"For me it's this morning, but for most people it should be almost lunchtime."
Meeting Xiao Chuan's gaze, Mi Yao felt no shame for her oversleeping and winked at him with a smile.
Seeing her like this made Xiao Chuan angry.
Thinking about it carefully, Mi Yao hadn't done anything to attract attention. The mansion didn't require her to get up early to work in the fields, and there were no elders who required her to get up early to greet them. She could get up whenever she wanted.
But for some reason, whenever he looked at her for a while, an inexplicable anger would rise in his heart.
Ultimately, it's because he doesn't really like her.
"Get up."
He didn't have anyone stop Mi Yao yesterday, which meant he approved of her approach. He didn't want Xiao Yi and the others to rely on him too much, which would make them feel weak and think they had a powerful backer in everything they did. But that didn't mean he had a grudge against them or wanted to see them bullied by others.
"From now on, if you haven't done anything wrong, don't kneel down all the time."
“Your father is right. Kneeling all the time will make others wonder whether you are right or wrong, and it will also make those who stand up for you feel insecure and lack confidence.”
Mi Yao offered a word of comfort, which made Xiao Chuan raise his eyes to look at her again.
Knowing that Xiao Chuan hadn't seen her for a long time and missed her beautiful face, Mi Yao deliberately took a step closer to him, allowing him to admire the beauty openly.
"Your son understands. Your son will follow your teachings and will think twice before acting in the future. He will not kneel down casually again."
Xiao Yi thought that he should make things clear so as not to involve Mi Yao, so he spoke again, "Zhao Hongyi apologized to me today, and I forgave him. His parents treated this as a childish squabble and did not take it to heart."
Hearing that Xiao Yi was implying that Mi Yao hadn't caused any major trouble and that the Zhao family wouldn't hold her accountable, Xiao Chuan curled his lips and dismissed Xiao Yi. As Xiao Yi left, he didn't miss the worried look Xiao Yi gave Mi Yao.
I thought Xiao Yi was more sensible than his younger siblings, but I didn't expect him to be so easily bribed by Yu Nu.
"Is my lord in such a hurry to spend time alone with me?"
Mi Yao is the kind of person who doesn't learn from mistakes. After only a few days, she forgot her previous lesson and, like a spineless coward, sat in Xiao Chuan's lap again.
A warm fragrance wafted through the air. Xiao Chuan scrutinized Mi Yao's expression, trying to discern whether she was itching to act coquettishly, or if, as Xiao Yi suspected, she was afraid of offending the Zhao family and was therefore eager to please him.
Her small face was beaming with joy, her almond-shaped eyes were clear and innocent, and her rounded lips were slightly upturned.
She was afraid he wouldn't notice, but he could see that she lived a more innocent and carefree life than Xiao Shan, so her eyes were as pure as a child's.
"Now that Xiao Yi has finished speaking, it's your turn."
"My turn?" Mi Yao was bewildered, feeling that Xiao Yi's statement was complete and she didn't need to add anything.
But clearly only she thought that way.
Xiao Chuan pinched her chin as she leaned closer, his rough fingers sliding across her skin.
"Xiao Yi said you did it for him, but when you stood up for Xiao Yi, why did you mention Zhao Qiniang's pettiness? You even said that Zhao Qiniang deliberately sent her cousin to set a trap for you, making the Zhao family lose face."
His calloused hands were hot and large. Mi Yao's skin was thin, and she felt itchy after he touched her a few times. She knew that Xiao Chuan was taking advantage of her, but she still couldn't help but laugh and snuggle into his arms.
Xiao Chuan was speaking to her seriously, but she quickly aroused him, and then he saw her freeze in his arms.
He didn't know why his body was so unresponsive, and suspected that Mi Yao had applied some kind of aphrodisiac to her body, but seeing her sitting up straight with a look of lingering fear, his suspicions about her lessened somewhat.
If Mi Yao knew what Xiao Chuan was thinking, she would definitely curse him as a load of bull.
Who would bother with all that weird stuff on themselves? She even complained that he was too easily teased; she'd only touched him a few times before he stood up straight, making the sticky, awkward atmosphere unfunny.
"I only brought up Zhao Qiniangzi because my husband wouldn't help me."
After leaving Xiao Chua's lap, Mi Yao considerately placed a blanket on his legs to cover him up. Thinking of his question just now, she subconsciously glared at him, but when she met his unfathomable deep gaze, she realized that he was currently susceptible to teasing, so she immediately restrained herself. "Before, I told my husband about Zhao Qiniangzi and her brother's conspiracy. I thought that even though my husband said he didn't care, he must have taken it to heart. Who knew she would still send me an invitation."
To be honest, Mi Yao felt a bit angry.
In the book, the original owner of the body did not treat Xiao Chuan as a person, and the two had no physical intimacy. Even so, Xiao Chuan knew that Zhao Qiniang wanted to drug the original owner and was able to stop her. In the end, the matter was reported to Zhao Tianhe, and the Zhao siblings were punished.
Now that it's her turn, she told him in advance that the Zhao siblings had ill intentions, and she thought he would take action in advance, but who knew he didn't make a move at all.
"This time, Dalang suffered a completely undeserved disaster. Zhao Qiniang sent me an invitation, which I refused. She couldn't accept that, so her cousin attacked Dalang to ruin my reputation."
Mi Yao said unhappily, "I can pretend I didn't find out about this, but that's not because you didn't take action, and I don't want to have an affair, so I can only mention Zhao Qiniangzi directly to warn her."
Since the intention is to warn her, she cannot be too polite.
At the academy, she directly asked Zhao Hongyi's parents if she was unwell and hadn't accepted Zhao Qiniangzi's invitation to leave home, and that Zhao Qiniangzi had her cousin stage such a play as retaliation.
Judging from the grim expressions on Zhao's parents' faces at the time, she wasn't surprised that her words would spread throughout the city and reach Xiao Chuan's ears in less than half a day.
Xiao Chuan stared at Mi Yao for a long time, realizing that she was truly unafraid and didn't think offending the Zhao family was a big deal. He lowered his eyes and chuckled, "You think highly of me."
Everyone said he was the Zhao family's dog.
Zhao Tianhe is using him now only because he is using his sharpness, while she sees him as a mountain, believing that he can withstand all troubles.
“Zhao Wulang’s father was a brother of my father and held a certain position in the army. Compared to his other good-for-nothing cousins, Zhao Wulang was more capable of acting. He was on my father’s list of candidates to succeed him.”
Xiao Chuan said calmly, which served as his explanation for not immediately taking action against Zhao Wulang.
He thought that Mi Yao would be frightened after hearing his words, but to his surprise, her eyes were full of light, and her gaze towards him was more earnest than before: "I understand. My lord did not disregard my worries, but is taking things slowly. Then tell me, my lord, how many more days does Zhao Wulang have left to die?"
"Who do you think I am? You think I can take the lives of the Zhao family members so easily?"
Xiao Chu scoffed, unable to understand how Mi Yao could comprehend his words.
"Naturally, he is a great man who can marry the most beautiful woman in Jiangnan."
Mi Yao didn't know if Xiao Chuan was genuinely indifferent to her or just putting on an act. In any case, as his beloved wife, she provided him with ample emotional support. Holding his hand, she looked at him with sincere and tender eyes: "In my heart, my husband is the most magnificent man in the world, an eagle among men, and a pillar among husbands."
After gaining military merits, Xiao Xu had many sycophants around him.
He had heard plenty of flattery, but this was the first time he had ever heard someone as greasy as Mi Yao.
Meeting her gaze, Xiao Chuan's anger, which had subsided, slowly rose again.
*
Pu Qing arrived at the main hall amidst this thick atmosphere. He looked up and saw that his master's face was extremely close to Yu Nu's face. He wondered what Yu Nu had done wrong to anger his master. His master's gaze was piercing, as if he wanted to open his mouth and bite Yu Nu's face.
He hurriedly lowered his head: "Governor, the Ma family requests an audience."
The honey-sweet scent abruptly ceased, and Xiao Chua rose with a flick of his sleeve. Only when he reached the door did he seem to realize that he had gotten up to meet someone.
Who requests an audience?
"Grandma Ma brought her children to the door, saying that she had a misunderstanding with the lady and wanted to see the town magistrate to explain things clearly."
"It's not a misunderstanding with me, so why are you explaining yourself?"
Xiao Chuan turned to look at Mi Yao, only to see her pretending not to hear, turning her back to pick up the branches and leaves on the table, frowning thoughtfully as she placed them into the porcelain vase.
If his memory serves him right, she had just been half-closing her eyes, waiting for him to kiss her. He had only taken a few steps when she found herself doing something important that she couldn't hear anyone else talking about and was completely absorbed in.
Finding the Ma family troublesome, but knowing they would come back if they didn't see him today, Xiao Chuan said, "Take him to the outer hall, I'll change my clothes and go over there."
The outer hall is a small hall, not far from the gatehouse, and it is usually where vendors deliver goods and stay.
Realizing that his master didn't intend to take the Ma family seriously, Pu Qing obeyed and left. Only after his master was about to go to the outer hall did he belatedly serve the Ma family scalding hot tea that was inedible.
The Ma family could easily see the Xiao family servants' neglect. Ma Xiao Niangzi cursed under her breath and tugged at her mother's clothes: "It must be Yu Nu who ordered the servants to do this. We must tell Brother Chuan about it later."
“Of course we have to expose the heartless things that woman from the south has done! She dares to be so arrogant only because Xiao is not in the mansion. What good is it if she is a beautiful but unfavored woman? She can't compare to the affection between our family and Xiao.”
The commotion last night clearly didn't teach Grandma Ma a lesson.
She was indeed somewhat afraid of Mi Yao, because Mi Yao didn't follow the rules and did whatever she wanted. She was afraid that if Mi Yao got ruthless, she would have the guards beat her up too.
But that doesn't mean she's going to avoid Mi Yao.
Mi Yao and Xiao Chuan shared a room for one day before separating into separate rooms. Other families in Yizhou might not know this, but Granny Fan, being in the Xiao household, couldn't possibly be unaware of it.
Knowing that Xiao Chuan was not bewitched by Mi Yao, she had long wanted to go to his door and sow discord between him and Mi Yao.
Xiao Chuan only appeared and disappeared mysteriously every day, and she only found an opportunity to come and complain now.
"Leaving aside the relationship between our family and the Xiao family, just considering who the Zhao family is, that woman surnamed Yu dared to be so arrogant. She's probably already been slapped a few times by Xiao Chuan."
Upon hearing this, Xiao Chuan, who was outside the door, looked down at his outstretched palm, where the smooth, silky skin of Mi Yao could still be faintly seen.
“What’s the big deal about slapping someone in private? I need to see Yu’er get slapped by Brother Chuan with my own eyes before I can get rid of all the grievances in my heart! Mother, you don’t know what people outside are saying about our family. They say we’re bloodsuckers, clinging to the Xiao family and sucking their blood. It’s so satisfying that Yu’er has come to our door.”
"Today is that woman's death day!"
Grandma Ma said fiercely.
Hearing the tone of voice that seemed to want to tear Mi Yao to pieces, Xiao Chuan pushed open the door and glanced at the people in the room.
He was not unaware of the Ma family's ulterior motives. The money they took was just a drop in the ocean for him. Because he remembered his friendship with Ma Songping and thanked the Ma family for their help when his mother passed away, he did not hold it against them.
Who would have thought that the kind old man in front of him would be such a person in private?
How can we postpone Mi Yao's death?
"You lot came to my Xiao family to insult my wife, and you expect me to grant your wish? Who gave you the audacity and courage?"
Xiao Chuan curled his lips in a mocking smile, "Get out of the Xiao residence and never appear before me again."
Xiao Chuan was known for his swift and decisive actions. Since he knew the Ma family was no good, he made it clear from the start that there was no future possibility of any further dealings with them.
But the Ma family was unwilling to lose Xiao Chuan, such a powerful figure.
After a moment of panic, she started crying and tugging at Xiao Chuan's robes, trying to stop him from leaving.
“Governor, what I said was just nonsense I rambled on in anger. Don’t listen to other people’s slander. Don’t you know what kind of people my family is? I didn’t stop Pan from remarrying, but she actually spread rumors outside to make a good reputation for herself, calling me a wicked mother-in-law.”
Even now, Granny Ma still felt that Mi Yao was nothing to Xiao Chuan. After talking about Madam Pan, she said with a bitter face, "I know that the town magistrate also dislikes that ignorant Yu girl. That woman is domineering and causes trouble everywhere, giving the town magistrate a lot of trouble..."
"Who says I hate my wife?"
Xiao Chuan interrupted Granny Ma calmly, and while she was stunned, he frowned and brushed away her tugging.
“I originally just wanted you to get out of here, but since you don’t understand the rules, let’s settle the score. Pu Qing, take some men and search the Ma family’s place to see how much of the Xiao family’s property there is.”
"Your subordinate obeys."
"Can't search! Can't search!"
Granny Ma was so frightened that she quickly stopped Pu Qing. Whether the search of the Xiao residence yielded any results was another matter. As soon as the person went to the Ma family, wouldn't the onlookers know that the two had broken up?
“Master, the house where the Ma family lives was originally a small side residence of the governor’s mansion. It was you who lent it to the Ma family for temporary accommodation.”
Pu Qing thought of something and said to Xiao Chua.
If he hadn't mentioned it, Xiao Chu would have forgotten long ago.
The two families used to be neighbors. After he received a newly bestowed mansion, the Ma family's original house was destroyed by fire, and they said they had nowhere to live, so he gave them a house to stay in.
"If that's the case, then clear out the whole house after you've searched it."
"Brother Chua, you can't do this! If you do, I'll never talk to you again!"
Ma Xiaoniangzi was furious. When she heard that Xiao Chuan had only shared a room with Mi Yao for one day, she was secretly pleased, thinking that Xiao Chuan was different from other vulgar men and that Mi Yao was not particularly beautiful.
But who knew that Xiao Chuan would still be bewitched by Mi Yao.
Now they're actually helping Mi Yao to deal with their family.
She had already decided that if she couldn't be his legal wife, becoming his concubine was not out of the question.
Unfortunately, Xiao Chuan paid no attention to her anger and restraint. Hearing her weak threat, he glanced at her but did not intend to pay any attention to her.
"Brother Chua, if you really want to do this, then we'll never be able to be together again."
Seeing Xiao Chuan turn to leave, Ma Xiaoniangzi called out tearfully, "Brother Chuan, can Yu Nu compare to the bond we formed as childhood sweethearts?"
Who was your childhood sweetheart?
Xiao Chuan didn't want to speak, but as Ma Xiao Niangzi's words became more and more outrageous, it was as if she had fabricated a story about someone with the same name and appearance as him, but who had absolutely no connection to him and was involved with her.
He looked coldly at Ma Xiaoniangzi: "I've only met you a few times. If we met on the street, I'm afraid I wouldn't even recognize you. What kind of relationship do we have?"
Although he hasn't been on the battlefield every day these past few years, the total time he's spent at his residence doesn't even add up to more than a few months.
In the past few months, he had rarely even seen Xiao Liang and the others, let alone a woman with a different surname who was five or six years younger than him. He only knew that there was such a person in the Ma family.
Hearing Xiao Chuan's heartless words, Ma Xiaoniangzi was both ashamed and angry, feeling that Xiao Chuan was bewitched by Yu Nu, which was why he treated her so cruelly.
Suddenly, the words of those who had watched the spectacle last night, calling her a toad, came to mind.
She stomped her foot fiercely, tears streaming down her face.
"Brother Chua, I don't believe you don't have me in your heart."
After saying that, she ran out of the house. Everyone thought she was leaving the mansion in shame and anger because she couldn't stand Xiao Chuan's indifference. But who knew she was running towards the lotus pond. Before jumping into the water, she said, "Only Brother Chuan is allowed to save me."
Xiao Chu: ...
He's not mentally ill, so why would he jump into the water in the dead of winter to save a crazy person who's courting death?
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