Chapter 15 The Loss Outweighs the Gain
The second wife screamed in pain.
“Ah…it hurts…”
Xiao Fuguang squatted down.
“Pah.”
A slap hit her in the face.
He pinched her chin and forced her to kneel down and look up at him.
"Second Aunt, you said that you have the inheritance your grandfather gave you back home, and you're already living a comfortable life. Why do you always want more?"
"You still want to infringe upon my Marquis' Mansion? Don't you even consider how lowly you are?"
Xiao Funian looked at Xiao Fuguang from the side and saw murderous intent in his eyes. He spoke tremblingly.
"Cousin, father and mother mean well. If you don't want to, then forget it. Why bother..."
Xiao Fuguang slapped him in the face with his backhand.
"For your father's sake, I, as your elder sister, would like to remind you that you should never covet things that do not belong to you, or you will only bring yourself to ruin."
He then stood up and looked down at the mother and son kneeling on the ground.
"Xingyue, Second Uncle is being beaten with a stick. After thirty strokes, I'm afraid Second Uncle and Second Aunt won't be able to return home. Take Second Aunt and Fu Nian to Jingsi Garden and let them reflect on what they did wrong. They can also wait for Second Uncle to recover."
Upon hearing this, Xingyue immediately stepped forward and pulled the second lady up.
"Let's go, Second Madam."
Xiao Funian looked at Xiao Fuguang and was about to say something, but when he met Xiao Fuguang's cold eyes, he had no choice but to catch up with the second wife.
Mrs. Xiao's eyes turned red when she saw this scene. Her daughter, whom she had raised tenderly since she was a child, had now suffered such a great injustice. She reached out and gently touched Xiao Fuguang's face.
"Fu Guang, your face..."
Lin Qingwan instructed the maid Sui'er beside her.
"Go get the medicine."
Xiao Fuguang reached out and held Mrs. Xiao's hand.
"Mother, it doesn't hurt. Don't worry. It's just a slap. With the regent, in the future in the imperial city, if others want to step on our Xiao family, they will have to think twice. This slap from my daughter is not undeserved."
Looking at her strong appearance, Mrs. Xiao's tears welled up in her eyes, her eyes full of heartache.
"If your father and brother were here, they would never let you suffer such an injustice."
Then his eyes were filled with worry.
"Your second uncle and his family have all come to the Imperial City. I'm afraid the clan has already known about this, or perhaps the clan has acquiesced to their actions. The fact that the Regent has protected the Xiao family twice is already a great favor. From now on..."
Mrs. Xiao even had a hint of self-blame in her eyes.
"If I had known earlier, I should have given your father two concubines, so that the Xiao family wouldn't be without men to support the family now."
Xiao Fuguang helped her sit down.
"Mother, what are you talking about? We have Qi'an in our family. Qi'an is smart and clever. He will definitely make the Marquis' Mansion flourish in the future."
Mrs. Xiao looked at the child's prayer.
"But Qi'an is only three years old. From now on, we will be an orphan and a widow..."
As he spoke, tears began to fall.
The mother was hurt by the second wife, and Xiao Fuguang took out a handkerchief to wipe her tears.
"Mother."
"Don't worry, there are still children and sister-in-law at home."
"My sister-in-law is well-educated and well-mannered. She will definitely help mother take care of the Marquis's Mansion."
"Moreover, women in this world are no worse than men. The reason why most families rely on men for support is because we women are trapped in this backyard. If women can also read and write, and can also practice martial arts to conquer the world, then we women will be no worse than men."
Lin Qingwan wiped the tears from the corners of her eyes and began to agree.
"That's right, mother, don't be sad. Qingwan will accompany you in the future, support the family together with you, and educate Qi'an well."
"I heard about it back then, mother. You once accompanied father to the battlefield. You were a woman who was as brave as a man."
Upon hearing this, Mrs. Xiao reached out and held Xiao Fuguang and Lin Qingwan's hands.
"It is truly a blessing for my mother to have such a good daughter in this life and such a good daughter-in-law like you."
Xiao Fuguang felt relieved when he saw that his mother was in better condition. The Xiao family really couldn't just rely on the regent's mercy and support. It seemed that it was time to find a backer for the Xiao family.
"Sister-in-law, you stay with mother. I'll go see my second uncle."
At the gate of the Xiao family mansion.
Some people gathered around to watch the excitement, but they were all stopped by the guards and kept at a safe distance.
Xiao Yiming lay on the bench, his face pale, and every time the board fell he groaned in pain.
"ah…………"
The guards of the Regent's Palace will not show mercy and will hit the prisoners with every blow.
There were already bloodstains on Xiao Yiming's back.
The onlookers were talking about it!
"Who is this? Why is he being beaten with a stick in front of the Xiao family's mansion?"
"I don't know. He doesn't look like a servant in his clothes. Besides, who would punish a servant by dragging him to the gate of the mansion?"
"Did you notice? The person beating the man with the stick seems to be a guard from the Prince Regent's Palace."
"Indeed, it is the attire of the Prince Regent's Palace."
"Then who is this person who was beaten?"
"I recognized him. The man being beaten seems to be the second master of the Xiao family. It seems he has been back to his hometown for decades. How come he suddenly came back and got beaten?"
At this time, the people from the Regent's Palace had finished beating.
The guard glanced at the crowd watching the excitement.
"Xiao Yiming disregarded friendship and bullied the family of a loyal and honest official. He was given thirty lashes by order of the Regent as a warning to others."
"The Marquis of Loyalty and Bravery and the Major General sacrificed their lives for Xuanyuan. The entire nation mourns. If anyone dares to bully the families of these loyal and righteous men, their fate will be the same as Xiao Yiming's."
Seeing this, Xiao Fuguang, who was standing behind the door, came out, wiping his tears with a handkerchief, and spoke with a concerned tone.
"Second uncle, how is Second Uncle?"
Seeing Xiao Fuguang like this, Xiao Yiming felt that he didn't die on the board, but he was about to be pissed off to death by this little bitch.
"Stop pretending here. I'm in this state because of you."
"You are disobeying your elders..."
Seeing this, the guards of the Regent's Palace spoke in a cold voice.
"It seems that we two brothers were too gentle with the blow just now."
Upon hearing this, Xiao Yiming didn't dare to say anything and could only look at Xiao Fuguang with hatred in his eyes.
Xiao Fuguang squatted beside him and spoke while crying.
"Uncle, why don't you trust me and Mother? This title of Marquis was bestowed by the Emperor. We have no say in it. We can't just give it to you if you want it. The Emperor has to make the final decision!"
"You've made such a fuss, and even made a scene in front of the Prince Regent. Mother almost fainted from anger. We're family. Even if Qi'an inherits the title of Marquis in the future, you're still his second grandfather. Why are you so obsessed with giving the title to your brother Funian?"
The people around looked at Xiao Yiming in shock.
"Oh my god, it turns out he's back to grab the title."
"This is too shameless! General Xiao and Major General are still buried alive."
"Isn't this bullying an orphan and a widow?"
"That's right, this is too much."
Xiao Fuguang listened to everyone's reactions and continued speaking.
"Uncle, please stop making trouble. Mother was already heartbroken because of the deaths of father and brother in battle, and now she's fainted. The court doctor said she can't get angry anymore or she'll die early. Please, for father's sake, let us, an orphan and a widow, go."
"The title of this Marquisate is decided by the Emperor and the Regent. Even if you force us all to death, we can't give you the title."
Watching Xiao Fuguang crying and begging Xiao Yiming.
The onlookers could not hold back their heartache and their eyes turned red. General Xiao was a great hero who defended his country. How could he stand by and watch his daughter being bullied like this? Some people even threw rotten vegetable leaves at Xiao Yiming.
"Beat him! This shameless person actually bullied General Xiao's family."
"That's right, she actually made Madam Xiao faint from anger. She deserves to die."
Someone shouted at Xiao Fuguang.
"Miss Xiao, don't be afraid of this rogue. General Xiao is our hero. We will all help Miss Xiao in the future."
A middle-aged man took two steps forward.
"Miss Xiao, although we are all ordinary people, we are strong. If you are a girl and you are embarrassed to chase this scoundrel away, please let us know and we will help you get rid of him."
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