"impossible!"
Pang Yue interrupted Pang's mother before she could finish speaking.
“Mother, you know that Yunqing is my life, and I will never allow anyone to hurt her.”
Pang's mother sighed, as if she had aged ten years: "No matter how much Xin Hui has done wrong, you should think about your brother and your nephew. They are innocent. How can they be implicated because of this?"
"Innocent? They're innocent, but isn't my Qingqing innocent too?"
“I know Qing’er has been wronged. As long as you don’t send Xin Hui to prison, you can do whatever you want with her. Whether you make her a nun or marry her off to a distant place, I will have no objection.”
"Mother, you're thinking too simply. Pang Xinhui committed a crime openly in the palace, and on the very day of the Emperor's birthday. How could the palace possibly let her off so easily?"
Hearing this, Madam Pang became even more anxious, fearing that it would implicate the whole family: "What should we do? Why don't you send Qingqing and Qingyun to the palace to plead for them?"
Pang Yue was shocked; she hadn't expected her mother to utter such a matter-of-fact statement.
“Mother! Please don’t say such things. Even if Qingqing is magnanimous and doesn’t pursue the matter, I, as her mother, will not let it go easily. Don’t forget how the Pang family survived back then. Even if my brother is impeached today because of this, he deserves it.”
Pang's mother was shocked that her daughter still held a grudge about what happened back then. She swayed as she spoke, "You, you actually think that way?"
Just then, there was another noise outside the door.
It turned out that Minister Pang had come after finishing his morning court session and heard about the foolish thing his daughter had done.
Seeing her mother so distraught, she rushed over to support her, asking, "Little sister, what happened?"
Pang Yue gets angry whenever she sees him. If it weren't for his indulgence, how could Pang Xinhui have done something so audacious?
"That's a question for your well-mannered daughter."
The soldiers nearby, understanding the situation, stepped forward and explained the cause and course of events. Minister Pang's face darkened upon hearing this.
"Xinhui, why did you do this?"
Pang Xinhui, who had been pretending to be invisible, couldn't hide the resentment in her eyes when she heard her father's question.
"Why? Because she always seduces Brother Ziyue. Only by destroying her can I have a chance to be happy."
"Rebellious daughter!"
*Slap!* With a shout, Pang Xinhui received another resounding slap.
"Yun Qing is your own cousin, how could you treat her like this for a man?"
Pang Xinhui retorted defiantly, "Did she even consider me her cousin? If she truly cared for me, she wouldn't have interfered in my relationship with Ling Hua."
"You, you're utterly unreasonable!" Minister Pang pointed at her nose: "Yunqing is already married to Qingyun, what's it to you?"
Upon hearing his words, Pang Xinhui finally couldn't hold back her tears, which streamed down her face.
"But Linghua just keeps thinking about her. What can I do? As long as she lives, he will never have me in his eyes."
"You scoundrel! You scoundrel! I'm going to beat you to death today!" Minister Pang was shocked by her twisted logic.
Zhao rushed forward and hugged his leg: "Master, please spare Xinhui this time. If you insist on hitting her, you might as well kill me too."
"Ignorant woman!" Minister Pang shoved her aside and glared at her angrily.
"I haven't even listed all your faults yet, and you're already threatening me. You've raised a perfectly good child into this state, and you still have the nerve to complain? If you hadn't been at odds with your younger sister all these years, constantly whispering nonsense in your daughter's ear, would she be so hostile towards Yun Qing?"
Zhao froze as he scolded her. Recalling her words and actions over the years, she felt a pang of regret. Could it be true, as her husband said, that it was all because of the ideas she had instilled in her daughter that had led to this terrible outcome?
"My poor daughter!" Zhao got up from the ground and embraced Pang Xinhui, weeping bitterly.
Pang Yue was getting tired of watching their whole family putting on this show.
"Brother, I'm making this clear today: I'll do whatever the Dali Temple decides in this case. Don't even think about letting things slide. I'm a member of the Pang family, but Yun Qing isn't. She has no obligation to back down for the Pang family's interests."
Hearing Pang Yue's resolute attitude, Minister Pang's expression stiffened, and he finally sighed, "Little sister, we have wronged you and Yun Qing in this matter. I will pretend that I never gave birth to this rebellious daughter."
Looking at her brother who had cared for her since childhood, Pang Yue felt a pang of pity; he was already so old and still had to worry about his children.
But there was no way around it; wrongdoing must be punished. Besides, she had already repaid that sibling bond long ago. Pang Xinhui should never have laid a hand on her precious daughter.
In the end, the matter of Pang Xinhui framing Yun Qing came to an end: Dali Temple sentenced her to ten years in prison, and Zhao was confined to the Buddhist hall for life.
As for Pang Yue, she moved out of the Pang family home the day the soldiers arrived. Yun Qing had already married, so there was no point in her staying.
After Yunqing learned about this, he wanted to bring her to the Xu residence or buy a house nearby for her to live in.
Pang Yue refused: "Qing'er, I plan to return to Jiangnan. I came to the capital for your marriage, and now there is nothing here for me to miss."
"Mother, you still have me. Don't you want to see your own grandson born?"
Pang Yue sighed: "Qing'er, I know you're reluctant to part with me, but now that you have your own family, you have to be independent and can't rely on me alone anymore. Qingyun is a good boy, and I can see his feelings for you. I have nothing to worry about."
Yunqing threw herself into her arms, tears welling up in her eyes: "Mother, I can't bear to part with you."
Pang Yue stroked her back: "You must be obedient. Your mother is getting old and can't stay with you forever. If you encounter any difficulties in the future, write to me or go to your Uncle Ling. He will help you."
Having said that, Yunqing did not try to stop her anymore. In fact, she knew why her mother insisted on leaving.
Firstly, they had already broken ties with the Pang family, and if Pang Yue stayed in the capital, people would inevitably gossip about her every few days.
Secondly, Princess An is said to be dying, and Ling Rui has never given up on Pang Yue. If he has no more concerns, he might want to rekindle their relationship, which would lead to another entanglement.
Yunqing knew that her parents were actually very loving. Pang Yue had long planned that once Yunqing found someone she could entrust her life to, she would return to Jiangnan and stay at their former home.
After watching her mother leave the city gate, Yunqing leaned against Xu Qingyun's chest and cried uncontrollably.
Not far away, Prince An was also lying on his son, looking melancholy.
“Ziyue, your Aunt Pang is gone, leaving Yunqing all alone, all lonely and helpless. What do you think, how about I take her in as my goddaughter?”
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