In the main hall of the Court of Justice, the newly appointed Chief Justice was immediately at a loss as he looked at the several teenagers being brought in.
One was the only son of Cao Song, the Grand Minister of Agriculture; another was the eldest son of the Yuan family; and there were also two young boys from the Xiahou family. Although Yuan Shao was born out of wedlock, he was still someone Yuan Shao could not afford to offend.
After questioning them and confirming that they had not caused any major disturbance, the Court of Justice only gave each of them a few symbolic slaps before releasing Cao Cao and his companions.
Seeing the Chief Justice's blatant favoritism towards these individuals, Wang Yue felt a surge of discontent. He couldn't believe that such favoritism and perversion of justice could occur right under the emperor's nose; it was clearly a stain on the emperor's reputation.
"Master, this Chief Justice is clearly afraid of those in power. Those few people acted recklessly, yet the Chief Justice handled the matter so hastily?"
Stepping out of the main hall of the Court of Justice, Wang Yue's apprentice, Shi A, was immediately filled with anger.
"Alas, the court is now corrupt, and it is common for these evil officials to deceive their superiors and subordinates. I just don't know how His Majesty should deal with this..."
Wang Yue sighed and looked towards the palace. He couldn't help but recall the small figure who had pestered him to learn swordsmanship so that he could protect the area.
Shi A looked at Wang Yue with concern, "Master, the court is so dangerous now, we should rush to our junior brother's side immediately to protect his safety."
"Hmm!" Wang Yue nodded, then said in a deep voice, "Now that my former junior brother has become the emperor, he should be treated with the respect and awe due to him, both in public and in private."
"Yes, Master, I understand!"
Shi A nodded heavily.
Although the Court of Justice did not punish Cao Cao and his companions, their actions quickly spread far and wide, drawing ridicule from countless scholars and students.
Xiahou Dun's father was furious upon hearing this, and ordered his men to hang the two brothers up and whip each of them more than a dozen times before stopping. The two brothers cried and screamed, but they still took full responsibility and tried to cover for Cao Cao.
The Yuan family.
Upon hearing that his son had conspired with the eunuch's daughter and almost ruined the bride's reputation, Yuan Feng was furious.
Upon seeing Yuan Shao being escorted in by his servants, Yuan Feng immediately shouted sternly, "You unfilial son, kneel down!"
Yuan Shao also knelt down with a thud, bowing his head and remaining silent.
Although he did not participate in the actions of Cao Cao and his two brothers, Yuan Shao immediately stepped forward when he saw his friend being arrested, hoping to help Cao Cao and the others share some of the blame.
Yuan Feng glared angrily at Yuan Shao: "I warned you before that Cao Cao is the descendant of a eunuch. You should not associate with him, as that would tarnish the reputation of my Yuan family. Why did you not listen?"
“Aman treats me sincerely. Although his actions may be inappropriate, he is not a corrupt person. Why does Father humiliate my friend like this?”
Yuan Shao looked at Yuan Feng with a stubborn expression, not believing that making friends would have any impact on his reputation.
"You still dare to argue? Do you even have eyes for me? Do you even care about the Yuan family?"
Enraged that Yuan Shao dared to defy him, Yuan Feng grabbed a teacup from the table and threw it at Yuan Shao.
However, Yuan Shao, who was kneeling on the ground, neither dodged nor flinched. The teacup landed squarely on Yuan Shao's forehead, and blood immediately flowed down the corner of his eye.
"I have always held the Yuan family in my heart and have always been proud of the Yuan family. But in this Yuan family, who treats me as a member of the Yuan family?" Yuan Shao chuckled, completely unconcerned about the blood flowing from his forehead.
"What... how dare you be so rebellious...?"
Originally, Yuan Feng was thinking of handling Yuan Shao gently when he saw that Yuan Shao was injured. However, Yuan Shao suddenly said something that made Yuan Feng lose his temper. He took a few steps to Yuan Shao and slapped him.
With a loud "smack," Yuan Shu, who was watching the commotion from the sidelines, couldn't help but shudder. It was the first time he had ever seen his father so angry. Looking at the stubborn figure kneeling on the ground, Yuan Shu felt not the slightest bit of joy, but rather a sense of pity.
Feeling the burning pain on his face, Yuan Shao felt a chill in his heart. He didn't blame his father for making a mistake and being beaten. He only blamed his father for always using the Yuan family and its reputation to pressure him. It seemed that in his father's eyes, he only needed to be a well-behaved mascot.
Yuan Shao wasn't unwilling to contribute to the Yuan family; he simply wanted fair treatment. He didn't consider himself inferior to those so-called legitimate sons, that was all.
"Master, please calm your anger!!"
Yuan Shu's mother, Cui, also hurriedly stepped forward to advise, "Shao'er is young and doesn't understand things yet. It must be that Wang Shi has failed to educate her son properly. The head of the family only needs to find Wang Shi and reprimand her. You must not hurt the harmony between father and son."
Cui's words not only made Yuan Feng frown, but also Yuan Shu, who was standing to the side, frown and look at his mother with some dissatisfaction.
Although Yuan Shao's mother was not his legal wife, she was Yuan Feng's first woman and was always kind to others. Even Yuan Shu respected her greatly.
If a woman is scolded for such a trivial matter, it would be tantamount to implying that she has failed in her parenting, which would be very damaging to her reputation.
"This matter concerns the child entirely; what does it have to do with my mother? What grudge do you hold against your mother?"
Yuan Shao, who was kneeling on the ground, raised his head and looked at Cui Shi beside Yuan Feng. With the blood flowing from the corner of his eye, he looked somewhat ferocious, which frightened Cui Shi so much that she turned pale.
You must know that in ancient times, a woman's most important duty was to be a good wife and mother. If a child made a mistake, it was because the mother was not fulfilling her responsibilities. A single sentence of "failure to educate a child properly" was equivalent to being a bastard in later times. Yuan Shao was extremely filial to his mother, so how could he not ask?
When Cui came to her senses, she realized that she had actually been frightened by this illegitimate son, and she was furious and ashamed: "As a mother, I am immoral and I have not taught my son properly. You are so ignorant of manners. Like mother, like son!"
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