Kneeling as punishment in ancestral hall
After listening to Mu Mingyue's tearful account and seeing the injuries on Mu Mingyue's face, Mu Zian's father cast an unfriendly glance at his least favorite eldest son. Without a word, he ordered his men to tie Mu Zian up and take him to the ancestral hall. He did not forget this proud son of the Su family. He said to Su Jinxi, "I apologize for the misunderstanding today, young master Su. I must go and punish that unfilial son now. I hope you will forgive my lack of care today and will come to apologize in person another day!"
Su Jinxi waved her hand, thinking to herself, judging from their practiced manner, Mu Zian must have been punished quite a bit in this Mu family. Moreover, Mu Zian's father did not listen to his explanation and directly ordered them to take action. In his eyes, Mu Zian was not as good as that concubine's daughter who occupied the position of legitimate daughter. How ironic.
Mr. Mu originally intended to ask Su Jinxi to leave, as it was best not to leave outsiders present during family matters. However, Su Jinxi, seeing his expression, knew she didn't want to stay. "Uncle Mu," she said, "why did you only listen to Miss Mu's side of the story just now? Why didn't you listen to Young Master Mu's explanation?" Mr. Mu shook his head awkwardly, "Young Master Su, you don't know that my unfilial son is good at twisting the truth and is full of lies. After hearing it so many times, he naturally won't believe it anymore." Su Jinxi naturally didn't believe what he said. After all, in her previous life, Mu Zi'an was a person of great loyalty and righteousness; he wouldn't do anything deceitful!
"Perhaps there's a misunderstanding, or perhaps there's more to the story. Besides, I have nothing to do today, so I've come to help Uncle Mu." Uncle Mu was about to retort with something about family scandals... when Su Jinxi cut him off, saying, "It's alright. If I don't say anything and you don't say anything, then no one will know, right?"
The shepherd had no reason to persuade him anymore, so he could only accept his fate and let Su Jinxi go with him to the ancestral hall.
Inside the ancestral hall, Mu Zi'an showed no panic whatsoever. After all, he was a regular here. Mu Mingyue's injuries were quickly bandaged. Her face was in this state because of Mu Zi'an. Malice crept into her heart. Watching Mu Zi'an being forced into the ancestral hall, she knew what he was about to endure. She was overjoyed, since his injuries hadn't fully healed. Would he die inside? If he did, that would be wonderful!
Mu Zi'an's father arrived at the ancestral hall quickly. Considering Su Jinxi's presence, he pretended to ask, "Is what Mingyue said true? Did you slash her face with a knife?" Mu Zi'an was quite surprised by his father's question, thinking he had changed his ways. But then he saw Su Jinxi, and ah, so that's how it is…
Mu Zi'an wasn't going to accept his explanation. His reply was, "I did it!" Before his father could say anything, Su Jinxi looked at him in astonishment and asked, "Why?" Hearing his voice, Mu Zi'an gave a mocking laugh, seemingly mocking his naiveté, then looked at Su Jinxi with a playful expression, "No reason, I just don't like her!" Before he could finish speaking, his father slapped Mu Zi'an across the face, adding, "You unfilial son!" Mu Zi'an rubbed his numb cheek, his eyes filled with defiance as he silently told his father, "Go ahead and kill me if you dare!" Seeing Mu Zi'an's expression, Mu's father was so angry he wanted to slap him again. He raised his hand high, but Su Jinxi stopped him. In Su Jinxi's eyes, the boy kneeling before her had a bright handprint on his face, but his eyes revealed stubbornness and a refusal to admit defeat. Su Jinxi felt a sharp, stabbing pain in her heart. She thought to herself that in this vast Mu family mansion, no one stood by her side to support her. She could only protect herself in this extreme way...
Mu Zian had no idea what Su Jinxi was imagining. Feeling Su Jinxi's gaze, Mu's father sheepishly withdrew his hand, but he wouldn't let Mu Zian off easily. Because Su Jinxi was present, he only made him kneel in the ancestral hall to reflect on his actions, releasing him only when he admitted his mistake. Mu Zian scoffed. Compared to the previous punishments, what was this kneeling punishment?
Afterwards, Su Jinxi left the Mu residence and returned to the Su family. Mu's father watched her leave, just as he had expected; no matter what, the young master of the Su family would eventually leave. He went to the ancestral hall, knowing that Mu Zian wouldn't admit his mistake. He ordered the steward to bring the family discipline. The steward looked at his master, then thought about how Mu Zian's injuries had only just begun to heal, and now they were about to be aggravated again. Although he felt sorry for Mu Zian's plight, he understood that he was just a servant and couldn't control his master's thoughts. After all, a large family depended on him; he couldn't afford to lose his livelihood. In the end, he could only sigh, taking the long, thin leather whip in his hand, and hurried to the ancestral hall.
While the steward was getting the family rules, he looked at Mu Zian kneeling on the ground. He sized up his unfilial son who had no affection for him, but the more he looked, the more restless his gaze became. That little face, and that little waist, just thinking about it was really exciting. He even wanted to pin Mu Zian down and see how he would fuck him.
Mu Zi'an clenched his fists secretly, wanting to kill the man in front of him. Just then, the butler arrived and noticed that his master's gaze towards his son was very strange, as if he were looking at a woman in a brothel. The butler seemed to have discovered a huge secret. Fortunately, the master didn't notice. He immediately called out, "Master, the family law has been delivered..." Mu's father glanced at him and, seeing no abnormality in his eyes, told him to step outside.
He looked down at Mu Zi'an and asked if he had admitted his mistake. The butler was outside and could hear what was happening inside. He heard the young master reply, "I didn't do anything wrong," followed by Mu's father angrily saying "Very well." Soon after, the sounds of a whip cracking on a wooden board and the whooshing of the whip through the air filled the room, along with Mu's father repeatedly asking if he had admitted his mistake...
Mu Mingyue happened to be passing by when she heard the noise from inside the house. She laughed and said, "This is what happens when you go against me." After saying that, she went to find her mother with a smile.
Inside the ancestral hall, every inch of Mu Zi'an's body was covered in red marks, so many that his clothes couldn't conceal them. Mu's father was visibly shocked by the sight. He eagerly picked Mu Zi'an up, and the steward, about to greet him, noticed the young master in his master's arms, his body covered in red marks. Although Mu Zi'an had been reborn, his current body was too weak; he hadn't lasted long before fainting, otherwise he wouldn't have let his father carry him. The steward stood frozen, unsure what to do. Mu's father glanced at the steward casually, his meaning clear: turn a blind eye and pretend you didn't see it.
There were also spies of the second wife in the mansion. She was very favored. Although she was not the first wife in the true sense, she was the most beloved by the herdsman. On the contrary, the first wife was disliked by the herdsman. The servants naturally fawned over whoever was most favored by their master. Several servants saw the master carrying the unfavored young master into his room. Some of them noticed that the unfavored boy was covered in red marks and was barely clothed. They hurriedly went to inform the second wife.
The second wife was furious upon hearing this. She ordered her men to summon the master, claiming she wasn't feeling well. Her aim was to get rid of Mu Zi'an, as many of her men were interested in harming him. Mu Zi'an remarked that he was truly worried about not finding an opportunity to escape, and thanked her profusely. Of course, that's a story for later.
Mu's father was naturally unhappy that his good time had been interrupted, but when he heard that his second wife was unwell, he left Mu Zi'an and hurriedly went to his second wife's bedroom. His second wife leaned weakly against Mu's father's chest, and Mu's father immediately became aroused. However, he longed even more for Mu Zi'an to lean against him like that, at his mercy.
While they were making love, Mu Zian woke up, but found himself not in his own room. The steward was waiting outside. Hearing the sounds from inside, he knew his young master was awake. He went in and handed Mu Zian the prepared clothes. Mu Zian understood. His father was truly audacious! Looking at his young master's expression, the steward probably realized that he had figured it out. No one could accept their own father having desires for their children.
Su Jinxi returned to the Su residence. Thinking about everything he had witnessed Mu Zian endured at the Mu residence that day, he realized that anyone else would have been driven mad. What right did he have to say Mu Zian was wrong? The truly wrong ones were those self-righteous individuals. Ha! His past self, standing on the moral high ground, trampling on Mu Zian's flesh and blood, doing what he considered righteous deeds. He was wrong in his past life; in this life, he would surely stay by Mu Zian's side.
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