"That's right! He wouldn't even look down on someone of Yongding Hou's caliber and family background, but he chose to follow a broke, down-and-out scholar! And he even had a bastard! He's absolutely crazy!"
"That's right! It's bad enough that he humiliated himself, but he dragged his entire family down with him! I heard that the officials at the Censorate weren't idle. They've been impeaching Grand Secretary Sang for several days, alleging he 'failed to manage his family properly' and 'lacked family traditions.' The Emperor was furious and publicly reprimanded Grand Secretary Sang in the court! That look...tsk tsk, I heard he was later escorted out by the eunuchs!"
"That's more than that! The Sang family is completely finished now! Several girls in the clan who were originally engaged have all had their engagements broken off! Who in the man's family wouldn't be upset about marrying a daughter-in-law from such a shameful family background? Even the ones who had just been engaged have had their engagements broken off! They said they 'didn't dare marry into a family of scholars'! Listen, it's such a slap in the face!"
"Serves him right! Grand Secretary Sang's lifelong reputation has been completely ruined by this ignorant daughter! The Sang family's century-long reputation has been completely thrown into the gutter!"
The rumors were like boiling oil, tormenting everyone in the Sang Mansion.
Sangfu Ancestral Hall.
The air was filled with the smoke of incense and candles, and the tablets of ancestors were silently looking down at the people below in the heavy shadows.
The air was stagnant, carrying the smell of rotten wood and a suffocating oppression.
Scholar Sang seemed to have aged twenty years overnight.
His once straight back was now hunched, the wrinkles on his face were as deep as ravines, and his hair, which had been meticulously combed in the past, was now disheveled, revealing a sense of crazy despair.
His eyes were red as he stared at the trembling Sang Wenyin.
"Evil creature! Beast!" Grand Scholar Sang's voice cracked, each word coming out like blood coughed up from the depths of his throat. "Generations of the Sang family's reputation, decades of accumulated prestige for our ancestors, and the futures of hundreds of members of our clan have all been ruined by you, a shameless bitch!"
He suddenly raised his head, his bloodshot eyes gazing at the solemn tablet above him, and spoke in a shrill voice: "I, Sang Chengzhong, am ashamed of my ancestors! Such a scum has come into our family, bringing disgrace and ruin to our family tradition! If I don't kill you, I won't be able to appease the anger of our ancestors! If I don't kill you, I won't be able to set the Sang family straight!"
"Someone!" He waved his hand violently, his voice as shrill as a ghost's howl. "Bring a rope! Let this bitch end her life in this ancestral hall! Use her blood to wash away the stigma of my Sang family! Tell everyone that she died suddenly of a serious illness! Let those families who broke off the engagement, those censors who impeached me, and everyone in the capital see this! My Sang family will never tolerate such shameless people!"
"No! Dad! Don't!" Sang Wenyin was so scared that her soul was out of her body. She let out a scream that was so shrill that it didn't sound like a human voice. She rolled and crawled over and hugged Scholar Sang's legs tightly.
"My daughter knows she was wrong! I really know she was wrong! Please spare my life, Daddy! I beg you! I don't want to die! Ling Xi said he would pass the high school entrance exam and that he would marry me..."
"Liao Lingxi?" Grand Secretary Sang kicked her away fiercely, disgust and hatred on his face reaching its peak. "That lowly, poor fellow packed up his bags and ran away a long time ago! He knew your affair had been exposed, that there was no more money to be made, and fearing being implicated, he ran away faster than a rabbit! He didn't even leave you a message! And you still dare to mention him?! Are you still dreaming of your grandeur?!"
These words were like the last straw that broke the camel's back, completely crushing Sang Wenyin.
She was kicked to the ground, hitting the cold blue brick floor, but the severe pain was nothing compared to the despair of having her heart torn apart.
Ling Xi ran away? He...he actually ran away? He left her and the baby in her womb and ran away?
impossible!
She collapsed on the ground, like a rag doll with all the life sucked out of it. She couldn't even cry, and all that was left was an empty and gray silence.
"Master! No, Master!" Almost at the same time, Mrs. Sang also rushed over. She hugged her furious husband tightly and cried bitterly.
"Master! Yin'er is possessed by a ghost! But she is our own flesh and blood! Even a tiger won't eat its own cubs, Master! Give her a chance to live! Please!"
She tightly gripped her husband's arm and banged her forehead against the cold, hard blue brick floor. "Bang bang" sounds were heard, and blood was visible after a few hits. "Master! If you want to kill me, kill me! It's my fault for not teaching her well! I've paid for her life with my life! Please, for the sake of our marriage, leave Yin'er a chance to live! After all, there's a life in her belly..."
Scholar Sang was breathing heavily, his chest heaving violently.
He slowly closed his eyes, a strong sense of powerlessness and shame almost overwhelmed him.
After a long while, he finally used up all his strength to break free from his wife's hand. His voice was tired and dry, with a cold despair: "Survival? Where is the Sang family's chance of survival now?"
He looked coldly at Sang Wenyin lying on the ground, his eyes devoid of any warmth: "You don't deserve to die in my Sang family's ancestral hall. You've defiled our ancestors' place."
Then he ordered the steward standing guard outside, "Go! Get the family rules! Get the longest and thickest nanmu ruler!"
The heavy nanmu ruler was quickly brought over.
Amidst Mrs. Sang's heart-wrenching cries and attempts to stop him, Grand Secretary Sang raised his ruler and struck him down.
“Snap! Snap! Snap!”
Again and again, extremely fierce sounds echoed in the empty and silent ancestral hall.
Each slap hit the palm of Sang Wenyin's fair right hand hard.
Those were the hands she once used to draw her eyebrows and lipstick, embroider, and play the piano. They were also the hands she once used to communicate with Liao Lingxi through letters.
The intense pain made Sang Wenyin scream like a pig being slaughtered, and her clothes were instantly soaked with cold sweat.
After just a dozen or so hits, the hand bulged high, became bloody and mangled, and was a horrible sight.
Scholar Sang stopped only when the palm of his hand was torn and swollen like a steamed bun, with no trace of healthy skin left.
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