Chapter 562 Successful Frame-up
Meanwhile, one of his cronies put his arm around Meng Chengxing's shoulder and asked, "Chengxing, you haven't been home for days. Why don't you go back tonight?"
Meng Chengxing had been having a great time with Yingying from Baihualou these past few days, and he was still reluctant to leave her gentle embrace. His maidservants were also quite sensible, but compared to Yingying, they were worlds apart.
He pulled the beautiful Yingying into his arms and said, "What's the rush? The new top courtesan of Baihua Pavilion is going on stage tonight. It's not too late to go back after watching the song and dance."
Then his cronies asked, "If your father finds out you haven't been home for so many days, will he scold you?"
Upon hearing this, Meng Chengxing frowned. Ever since Dong Shi miscarried and divorced his father, his father hated him to the bone. How could his father care whether he came home or not? Fortunately, his grandmother was good to him and would subsidize him in private. In addition, his second sister married a wealthy merchant, and the family became much richer. He was also much more financially secure, which allowed him to maintain the dignity that a son of the Earl's family should have when he was out in public.
But he didn't want to mention this to his friends. In their eyes, he was his father's most beloved child and the heir to the title. Instead, he said, "My father has been busy lately. He doesn't have time to take care of me. Even if he finds out, he won't be able to bear to scold me. Don't worry."
However, when evening came, things took an unexpected turn.
The servants of the Meng family entered the Hundred Flowers Pavilion, caught Meng Chengxing who was about to make love with Yingying, dressed him, tied him up tightly, and forcibly took him out of the Hundred Flowers Pavilion despite his resistance and curses.
The commotion was quite loud, and everyone present was astonished.
Seeing this, Meng Chengxing's cronies hurriedly hid to the side to avoid being seen by Meng Chengxing and asked to help. They didn't want to be dragged into such a shameful matter.
One of his cronies muttered, "Didn't he say that even if his father found out, he wouldn't scold him? Why is he now disregarding his reputation and sending people to arrest him?"
"Tch! You can tell he's just bragging just by looking at him." The second of his cronies scoffed. He'd disliked this kid for a long time. He was always putting on airs, as if he wanted everyone to know that his brother-in-law was the Marquis of Changxing and that he was the heir of the Earl's Mansion. He was always bragging about himself and trying to make himself look good. If it weren't for his generosity, he wouldn't bother with him at all.
At this moment, someone asked curiously, "Whose young master is that?"
Seeing that the man was dressed in fine clothes, the second of his cronies said, “Brother, haven’t you seen him before? He is the heir of the Yongchang Earl’s Mansion and the brother-in-law of the Changxing Marquis.”
The man scoffed, "Oh, so you're from that impoverished family. Instead of studying hard to support your family after your family's decline, you come here to waste your time at such a young age. The Meng family's children are quite interesting. Do you really think they can rely on their two older sisters for the rest of their lives? The eldest sister married a powerful and wealthy man, and the second sister married a rich merchant. They'll never have to worry about food or drink for the rest of their lives."
Another man beside the man said, "That's not how you say it. The second young master of the Meng family is promising. He came in first place in the academy examination. It's just that the young master Meng is not up to par."
...
Meanwhile, Meng Chengxing was furious, his face flushed red. These people dared to kidnap him and take him back; it must have been his father's order. Otherwise, how could they dare to treat him like this? Had his father gone mad? He had lost face, and the Meng family had lost face too. If his grandmother found out, she would definitely not forgive his father.
However, before he could even see Madam Meng, he was brought before Meng Dongyuan by a servant.
Upon seeing him, before he could even speak, Meng Dongyuan took three steps in two, raised his hand, and slapped him hard across the face with a loud "smack," then angrily cursed, "You bastard!"
Meng Chengxing's left cheek was numb from the beating. He had never been beaten like this before. He was furious: "Father, does Grandmother know that you've treated me like this?"
Meng Dongyuan said angrily, "You wretched child, how dare you mention your grandmother? If you hadn't been so ignorant and incompetent, hanging out with your cronies and spending the night at the Hundred Flowers Pavilion, your grandmother wouldn't have suffered a stroke from anger, fallen down, and ended up in a coma for several days."
Upon hearing this, Meng Chengxing was shocked and then felt a wave of fear. His grandmother was his support; if his support fell, what would he do in the future? He hurriedly asked in a trembling voice, "Then, how is Grandmother now?"
Meng Dongyuan reached out and covered his eyes, as if wiping away tears that were about to spill, and said with great sorrow, "Your grandmother is now paralyzed in bed due to a stroke and cannot speak. If it weren't for you, you troublesome brat, your grandmother wouldn't be in this state!"
Upon hearing this, Meng Chengxing felt as if he had been struck by lightning. His head was buzzing, his whole body was exhausted, and he slumped to the ground with lifeless eyes.
It's over.
It's over.
The only person in this family who loved him and protected him unconditionally will no longer be able to protect him. What should he do then?
Seeing him like a stray dog, Meng Dongyuan felt a little relieved of his resentment. If it weren't for this wretched child, he and Dong Shi would have been a harmonious couple and would have had a lovely child, perhaps even a son. Thanks to this wretched child, he lost his child and Dong Shi. This wretched child was truly a good son born to that poisonous woman Sun Shi, inheriting her nature. The Meng family would never fall into the hands of this wretched child in the future.
He took a deep breath and made the final decision: "Take this wretched child to the ancestral hall and make him kneel before the Meng family ancestors to reflect on his actions. Without my permission, he shall not step out of the ancestral hall!"
Meng Chengxing slowly came to his senses, realizing that his father was lying to him, and said stubbornly, "No! I want to see Grandmother! I want to see Grandmother!"
"You wretched child, how dare you face your grandmother? Do you think she's been too lenient with you?" Meng Dongyuan finished speaking, then waved to his servants, signaling them to take the person away.
Thus, Meng Chengxing was once again forcibly taken to the ancestral hall by his servants and made to kneel there and repent.
Meng Chengxing was forced to kneel on the prayer mat. He looked up and murmured, "My grandmother is fine. My father lied to me, didn't he?"
The servant glanced at him with disdain, thinking that this young master was far inferior to the second young master. He was ignorant and incompetent, and had even angered his elders like this. He said, "Young master, the old lady was indeed so angered by you that she suffered a stroke and became paralyzed. She is still unable to speak, and it is hard to say whether she will recover in the future."
Receiving an unwanted answer from the servant shattered Meng Chengxing's last glimmer of hope. Just a few days ago, his grandmother had been perfectly fine, giving him money to spend and telling him that his second brother-in-law had given the Meng family a lot of money, so he didn't need to be too frugal. She also said that the entire mansion would belong to him in the future, and he shouldn't care about his father's attitude.
How could Grandma have fallen ill after only a few days? Grandma loves him so much, yet she got so angry with him this time. Is she really just angry that he's being so unreasonable?
He asked again, "What were the circumstances when Grandma collapsed?"
How could the servant know? But since the lord said it was because of the young master, it must be because of the young master. So he said, "When the old lady learned that you, young master, had skipped school, spent the night at the Hundred Flowers Pavilion, and made friends with good-for-nothings, she was so angry that she was overcome with grief... As you know, the old lady values you highly and has high expectations for you."
After hearing this, Meng Chengxing believed it. His grandmother was probably not only angry that he had done these things, but more angry that he had lied to her, because he had always lied to her that he had studied hard and made many friends among diligent and studious students.
In an instant, Meng Chengxing was filled with remorse.
If only he hadn't stayed out all night, his grandmother wouldn't have found out. If she hadn't known, she wouldn't have fallen ill from anger. If his grandmother hadn't fallen ill, he would still have had a powerful backer, and his father wouldn't have been able to do anything to him.
But what should he do now?
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