"You've gone too far! You have no respect for elders and are defying your superiors. You should know that I am your grandmother. Don't you even abide by basic ethics and moral principles?" The old lady had been baring her teeth and brandishing her claws just moments before, but now she could only use ethical principles and moral principles to suppress An Yuan'er.
An Yuan'er said calmly, "There are stories in ancient books about emperors who were incompetent, and ministers who risked their lives to remonstrate with them. Later generations did not criticize the ministers for their insubordination, but instead praised them for their frankness. This shows that while it is important to uphold the established moral principles, it is also necessary to distinguish between different situations."
“Grandmother is going to punish me just because of the rumors. It’s really unreasonable. But I think this must not be Grandmother’s true intention. Grandmother must have been instigated by a villain and that’s why she’s acting so foolishly. I should follow that minister’s example and speak frankly to teach that villain a lesson so that she will never do such a wicked thing again.”
An Yuan'er gave Shuangshuang a look, and Shuangshuang stepped forward and pulled An Xia'er out from among the many women.
An Xia'er is An Piao'er's half-sister. She is usually sharp-tongued, but she is actually very timid. As soon as Shuangshuang pulled her out, she was so frightened that she knelt on the ground.
"Grandma, Grandma, save me! Xia'er doesn't want to die."
Then she knelt down and pleaded, "Hero, spare my life! How much did An Yuan'er pay you to hire you? I'll pay double. Please don't kill me."
They both ignored her.
Anxia'er said frantically, "Then I'll pay ten times the amount, no... I can give you all my money, please don't kill me."
Neither of them were moved.
The Shadow Guards always had deathly faces, and as Anxia looked at their expressionless faces, her fear grew stronger.
An Xia'er panicked and began to stammer, "An Yuan'er, dear sister, I didn't instigate Grandmother to do what happened today. Actually, I'm innocent. I just listened to..."
Anxia'er was halfway through her sentence when she looked up at what was in front of her and then dared not continue, her body trembling violently.
The grandmother felt disgusted by An Xia'er's lack of manners. A concubine's daughter was indeed a concubine's daughter; she was unfit for refined manners.
Despite her disgust, she said to appease everyone for the sake of the An family's reputation, "An Yuan'er, no matter how bad she is, she is still your half-sister. You cannot treat a human life so lightly."
“Grandmother is so biased. She was so lenient and tender when she was punishing Yuan’er, but now that it’s my sister’s turn, Grandmother has stopped me several times before I’ve even done anything.”
"Don't worry, I didn't say I was going to kill her, what are you all so nervous about?"
An Yuan'er's gaze swept over everyone, her eyes sharp. The other women, who were timid, felt uneasy under her gaze.
"Xia'er's mouth is so annoying; she's gone to Grandmother's place to complain and provoke her time and time again. Grandmother is getting old and is bound to be confused. Today, I'll teach her a lesson in front of all the sisters, so she'll remember it."
As soon as An Yuan'er finished speaking, Shuangshuang grabbed An Xia'er with one hand and began slapping her face repeatedly.
"Clap clap clap!"
The slap was loud, and soon Anxia'er's face became red and swollen.
Anxia let out a bloodcurdling scream, like a pig being slaughtered, and kept making a fuss.
The women all looked grim. The slap, though seemingly aimed at An Xia'er's face, was actually An Yuan'er's way of intimidating and showing everyone that she was not weak and easily bullied.
An Yuan'er stopped Shuangshuang when she saw the expression she wanted on everyone's faces.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com