Chapter 139 A Great Victory! We'll Stand by You!
Tu's face instantly turned red with embarrassment.
She knew perfectly well that being a mistress was a shameful thing that would bring disgrace to one's ancestors for generations!
But looking at the person in front of him, who had managed to jump out of the state prison unscathed, he was definitely not someone to be trifled with!
We can't afford to mess with this plague god!
She forced a few weak laughs, nervously twisting the hem of her clothes with her hands, and repeatedly agreed, "Hehe...yes, yes...Mrs. Lin is right...you're absolutely right..."
Dong Rou's eyes reddened with anger, and her voice trembled as she shouted, "Madam! How can you side with outsiders and help them humiliate your own daughter like this?"
Lu Zhaoruo took a deep breath, her eyes devoid of any warmth, only filled with utter estrangement and resolve: "Mother. I will call you Mother one last time."
"What you have done today has severed the last shred of mother-daughter affection between us."
"Take this Mr. Gu, whom I am not worthy of, and leave immediately."
"From this day forward, whether I, Lu Zhaoruo, live or die, whether I am honored or disgraced, will have nothing to do with you."
"What?"
Tu's eyes widened suddenly.
She could hardly believe her ears—
This rebellious daughter! This pushover she's had under her thumb for so many years, how dare she... how dare she say she wants to sever ties with her?
A surge of anger and humiliation erupted within her, and she screamed, "You—what right do you have? I'm your mother! Your marriage should be my decision! How dare you…"
Lu Zhaoruo ignored them and suddenly raised her voice, ordering, "Sun Jing is not here, and Shi Mozi is not in the hall. Does this mean that Lu's family has no one left?"
"Madam Yang!"
Her sharp gaze swept over them. "Go to 'Anshun Carriage and Horse Shop' on the front street, find their manager, and tell him that I, Lu Zhaoruo, am hiring twenty laborers. They need to be clean-handed and have a steady temperament. Come over immediately! Double the wages!"
"Dong Rou!"
Her voice commanded again, "Go find Mudskipper Three, and you two guard the gate! Before Li Fu arrives, anyone who dares to touch a single brick or piece of wood in my embroidered tower, or who dares to speak disrespectfully..."
Her gaze swept coldly over Zhou Dongjia and Lin Yingyu, "and she struck them with sticks!"
She stared at Zhou Dongjia and Lin Yingyu: "Zhou Dongjia, Lin Shi, this is my Lu Zhaoruo's private property. You came uninvited and made outrageous remarks, which is 'disturbing the house'."
"I will not discuss business with you today, but only 'trespassing'."
"Either you leave with some dignity on your own."
"Either you wait for my hired men to arrive, and then I'll 'ask' you to leave."
"If things get ugly, don't blame me."
"Even if it goes to court, I think even if the officials wanted to show favoritism, they wouldn't be able to."
Zhou Dongjia never expected that Lu Zhaoruo, a mere merchant's wife, would have such a strong and fierce spirit. Seeing that she wouldn't give an inch and was even going to get serious, he was truly frightened.
Lin Yingyu, standing to the side, didn't seem to care at all. Instead, she chuckled lightly, her tone carrying a hint of feigned regret: "Tsk tsk, look how angry Boss Lu is."
"Enough, let's not dwell on past grievances today. I'm only trying to help you out of consideration for our past...sharing of the time we served the same husband. I'm offering to pay for this boudoir so you can have a way to survive."
Gu Yun also seized the opportunity to chime in, putting on a painstakingly earnest expression: "If you ask me, Madam Lu, you should just move the embroidery tower around. What's the point of clinging to this empty shell?"
Lu Zhaoruo's gaze swept over him like an icy blade: "Gu Yun, when did it become your place to speak here? Who do you think you are!"
Gu Yun was publicly insulted, and his face turned purple. He pointed at her, his voice trembling with anger: "You! It's you, Lu Zhaoruo, who is not good enough for me, Gu! It's not that I'm not good enough for you! If it weren't for your mother and my aunt's earnest mediation, would I have agreed to this marriage with you!"
The more he spoke, the more he felt he had been greatly wronged: "You're just a divorced woman! A lowly merchant's daughter at that! What gives you the right... what gives you the right to put on this haughty face in front of me?"
Seeing this, Zhou Dongjia also stepped forward to smooth things over, saying, "Madam Lu, it won't do anyone any good to keep putting up this. Let's just be straightforward and transfer the embroidery shop..."
Just then.
Mudfish, wielding a stick, charged in first!
Behind them followed Steward Chen, Yunniang, Lü'er, and more than twenty embroiderers. The crowd quickly filled the hall, each of them glaring angrily at Master Zhou and his group.
Everyone spoke in unison, their voices firm: "We will never transfer ownership of the embroidery tower!"
The three mudskippers slammed their sticks down heavily and shouted sternly, "Get out! If you stay here any longer, don't blame grandpa's stick for being merciless!"
Zhou Dongjia turned pale with fright and retreated repeatedly. He hurriedly tugged at Lin Yingyu's sleeve and whispered, "Mrs. Lin! A wise man doesn't fight a losing battle... They outnumber us and have hired thugs! If this gets out of hand, it'll be hard to handle. We... we should leave first!"
Seeing that the other side had a large number of people and all of them had fierce expressions, Lin Yingyu couldn't help but feel uneasy.
She forced herself to maintain her composure, and before leaving, she turned back to give Lu Zhaoruo a mocking smile: "Tsk, how pathetic. The embroidery building is in such a state of disrepair. How will it make a living in the future?"
He sighed again, "Even someone as good as Master Gu looks down on you. I wonder who you'll marry in the future!"
The three mudskippers slammed their clubs down and shouted sternly, "Drive them all out! Leave no one alive!"
The embroiderers and their assistants responded in unison, wielding brooms and sticks, and pressed forward step by step, driving Zhou Dongjia, Lin Yingyu, Tu Shi, Gu Yun and their group toward the gate in a sorry state.
at this time.
At the end of the long street, the sound of horses' hooves suddenly rose like thunder!
A messenger on horseback, carrying a command flag on his back, galloped in, shouting loudly that shook the surrounding area: "Great victory! Great victory at Linhai! General Xiao led our Jizhou navy to annihilate the main force of the Japanese pirates! Twenty-one enemy ships were burned, and countless heads were taken!"
"General Xiao will soon return in triumph and present the captives to the emperor!"
The entire street fell silent for a moment, then erupted into a deafening roar of cheers!
The crowd's jubilation had not yet subsided—
Two fine horses quietly parted the jubilant crowd and arrived directly at the gate of the embroidered tower.
The lead rider wore a dark blue battle robe with dark patterns, a suit of black cold-forged iron armor, a red-tasseled helmet, and a neck guard that covered his chin, revealing only a pair of extremely dark eyes.
A newly healed scar ran across his brow bone, adding a touch of battlefield ruthlessness and murderous aura.
Despite being travel-worn and bearing the marks of battle, his handsome and heroic spirit was still evident in his eyes.
It was Xiao Yeming!
He was followed only by one of his personal guards, Wang Wu.
Those with sharp eyes in the crowd immediately recognized him and erupted in even louder cheers: "It's General Xiao! General Xiao is back!"
The people spontaneously bowed and clasped their hands, enthusiastically shouting:
"Congratulations on your great victory, General!"
"May the General enjoy boundless blessings!"
"Thank you, General, for ridding us, the people of Linhai, of this scourge!"
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