Chapter 159 The Power of Discourse
In the Duke of England's mansion, the matter of Xu Jingzhen wanting to marry a commoner, a divorced female doctor who was out practicing medicine, was ultimately opposed by everyone except Xu Jingzhen, from the old lady down to Xu Jingye, not to mention Xu Jingzhen's mother.
The others, such as Xu Jingzhen's sister-in-law Wang, Xu Jingzhen's younger brother Xu Jingyou, and the second wife's family, did not speak, of course, because they had no right to speak.
Finally, Xu Jingye ended the farce of the evening with one sentence: "Alright, stop fooling around and make Grandma and Grandma angry."
Before leaving, the elderly British lady said, "If you don't want to get married because of your fate, we can let you be. But if you do want to get married, you will never marry a woman like this!"
Xu Jingzhen returned to her courtyard filled with disappointment and anger.
Of course, this anger was not only because his family wouldn't let him marry the woman he loved, but also because he was angry at his own powerlessness at not being able to marry the woman he wanted.
Xu Jingzhen even wondered if Li Sanniang had rejected his marriage proposal because she knew of his incompetence.
Speaking of Li San Niang, she is currently watching the four little ones practice boxing in the courtyard.
She didn't take Xu Jingzhen's previous marriage proposal to heart at all.
It wasn't that Li San Niang looked down on Xu Jingzhen, but rather that one could see from Fang Chengxian that the premise for a scion of a noble family to "do whatever he wanted" was because of his status as a scion of a noble family, not because of who he was.
If Fang Chengxian hadn't been carefully cared for with good medicine since childhood, he would have died young.
Xu Jingzhen is the same.
Xu Jingzhen was better off than Fang Chengxian in that he had an elder brother to carry on the family line and ensure its prosperity, so he didn't have to worry about supporting the family.
The British Duke's mansion could spend a lot of money to send him to Wudang Mountain to ward off evil spirits and learn martial arts because of his unusual and strange fate since childhood. They could also allow him to remain unmarried at an advanced age so that he could live more freely.
After all, his two elder brothers had long been married and had children, and there were already five or six young men in the family. They really didn't care whether Xu Jingzhen had any biological sons or not.
Even if Xu Jingzhen never married and had no descendants, he could still live a peaceful life relying on the Duke of Ying's mansion.
However, the Duke of England's mansion would never allow him to marry a woman he liked who was not from a high-ranking noble family, thus diminishing the honor of the Duke of England's reputation.
Unless one day Xu Jingzhen can make a name for himself on his own, like making another great contribution and getting Emperor Wu to grant him the title of Duke, or even Marquis.
Only then will Xu Jingzhen be qualified to talk to the current head of the Duke of Ying's mansion about which family's daughter he wants to marry.
Nowadays, what right does a young man who can only live a life of luxury because of the Duke's mansion, who is called "Third Master Xu" by people when he goes out, and who is almost thirty years old but still has no achievements or career, have to say who he wants to marry?
After the post-meal digestion activities, the Li family members gathered together for a while to chat before dispersing.
Li San Niang felt that she would still dream tonight, but it probably wouldn't be a nightmare; it would be a dream similar to last night, where she knew she was dreaming.
Not long after lying down, Li San Niang fell into a dream.
This time, however, the scene was different from before. Instead, it was in an unfamiliar place. Li Sanniang's hands were bound, and she was forced to kneel on the ground. She looked up and saw a court official at the head of the table, who was loudly demanding, "You killed someone. According to the law, you must be punished!"
Li San Niang wanted to speak up and defend herself, saying that she would be killed if she didn't resist, that she was innocent, and that she had no other choice under the circumstances.
Even though her mouth was not stuffed or blocked, she couldn't make a sound when she opened it. Just then, the official at the head of the table announced the verdict for Li Sanniang: "Li Sanniang, the murderer, is sentenced to beheading!"
Then the scene changed, and Li Sanniang was sent to a high platform erected on Zhuque Street. This time, her mouth was stuffed with a cloth, and she was forced to put her head on the execution platform, with a burly executioner standing to the side.
Hearing cries from ahead, Li San Niang strained her head to look and saw her mother, who was being held back by her two older brothers, crying out, "San Niang, San Niang, my son!"
"The time has come! Executioners, carry out the executions!"
Li San Niang was powerless to resist and was about to meet the King of Hell when the axemen cleaved her in two.
Suddenly, a man rushed into the platform – it was Li's father!
"Third Sister, Third Sister, don't be afraid, Father is here."
Before Li's father could reach Li San Niang, he was slashed to the ground by a constable standing to the side.
Li San Niang was terrified by the blood on the ground and cried out "No!"
At midnight, Li Sanniang was suddenly awakened from a nightmare. She was sitting on the bed, panting heavily. The scene of her father being chopped in the dream had frightened her greatly. Li Sanniang wiped the cold sweat from her forehead with her sleeve, got up and got out of bed. By the moonlight, she picked up the teapot on the table and took several gulps to suppress the lingering fear in her chest.
Li Sanniang carefully changed her wet undergarment and lay back on the bed, thinking to herself that she still felt very guilty about killing someone back then.
Rationally, you understand that if you don't kill someone, you will die, especially since the man in black attacked first with malicious intent.
People with a high sense of morality find it difficult to accept doing certain things as a matter of course. Even knowing that doing so is to protect their own interests, they still have to endure tremendous mental and emotional pressure.
Li San Niang is in this situation now.
Li San Niang woke up around dawn after a drowsy sleep.
After getting up, as usual, she ran around the yard with the four little ones for a couple of short laps before continuing to study poison techniques.
Just after 9 AM, guests arrived at the Li family's house.
It was Erlang from Uncle Li's side who came. After sitting down and exchanging a few words, I learned that news had spread that Li Sanniang had encountered and killed villains on her way home from work, which made him come to inquire about her situation.
Before the relatives had even left, the Qian and Gao families both sent stewards to offer their greetings and bring gifts, mostly medicinal herbs.
Later, Tuva and Shen Qiuniang, who had moved to the outer three cities, also brought things to Doctor Gao's place. Even Tang Mingyue and Chen Yanfu, who had just met Li Sanniang, came over.
They were busy, and only after Tang Mingyue and Chen Yanfu had lunch at the Li family's house did they see them off.
Before they could all be seen off, another group of people arrived.
Old Zhou, who was planning to sell his house to Li San Niang next door, also came over with his eldest son. Old Zhou had traveled all over the country doing business in his younger days and had seen a lot. Unlike others, he did not inquire about Li San Niang's health as soon as he arrived. Instead, he praised Li's father, saying, "With a daughter like this, why bother having a son?"
In Old Man Zhou's view, an ordinary man might not be able to escape from a bad guy, let alone fight back.
But if Li San Niang, a young woman, can do that, then she is stronger than any man and is a capable person!
That deserves praise.
Furthermore, Old Man Zhou continued, "Third Sister, you don't need to worry about those gossipy women. They're just jealous of you. As for those old pedants, don't take them to heart. They're just people who stand there talking without understanding the pain of others, since they haven't been hurt themselves."
Li San Niang asked, puzzled, "Oh? What does Grandpa Zhou mean by that?"
It was only then that Old Man Zhou noticed that Li San Niang and the others were looking at him with puzzled expressions.
"It's my fault, I was too talkative. It's alright, it's alright, Third Sister, don't take it to heart."
Feeling something was amiss, Sister-in-law Li went out and walked back and forth on the street. When she returned, Li San Niang saw that Sister-in-law Li had a livid face, as if she had lost an argument with someone and was not only upset but also angry.
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