Chapter 1 Another one
The doorman, Old Sun, opened the door and saw a thin figure suddenly falling in, shouting hoarsely: "County Lady, County Lady, help me!"
Aunt Xuanji, who was in the middle of the meeting, looked up and was immediately surprised: "Isn't this Mr. Shang? What happened?"
Looking outside again, a spirited old man was climbing down from a carriage, holding a bramble in his hand. He glared at me, puffing his beard and glaring, "Get out of here, you bastard! Even the gods can't protect you today!"
Shangluo clung to the inner gate pillar tightly and yelled hysterically at the old man who was stopped outside by the gatekeeper: "I will die here today, rather than go back!"
"Hey, your hair hasn't even fully grown yet, and you dare not go home?"
"I have no home! You've taken over my home!"
Outside, people gathered, pointing and watching the show: "This old man is so cruel, he beat the child in the car, and he didn't stop even after the child jumped out of the car!"
"Hey, isn't this the young master of Jizhou Beijia? No wonder he came to the Changhua Palace to seek help. Isn't he the candidate for the palace's husband?"
Aunt Xuanji went over suspiciously and was about to ask what had happened when Shangluo, who was clinging to the pillar, saw her. Tears welled up in his big puppy-like eyes and he cried out, "Aunt, save me!"
Aunt Xuanji had come from the palace to the prince's mansion, having spent twenty years as a maid and then a historian. Her former friends already had children and grandchildren, but she, alone, had never married. Therefore, she deeply loved children. Seeing him crying like this, she hurriedly supported him and asked, "What's wrong? Is that your grandfather outside?"
Shangluo didn't answer, but turned around and took off his clothes, revealing his naked back.
When their eyes swept over his exposed back, everyone inside and outside the door took a deep breath.
The young boy's pale, frail back was covered in bloody scars from thorns, scraped to the point of leaving no intact flesh. The old wounds hadn't healed before new ones piled up, leaving layers of bruises and abscesses, a horrifying sight.
"No wonder the kid jumped out of the car to ask for help. It turns out he was beaten like this!" Everyone was talking in an uproar.
Aunt Xuanji's eyes were reddened. "Father Shang, this is your own grandson, a prodigy who entered the Imperial College at the age of twelve or thirteen. How could you have the heart to beat him like this?"
Old Man Shang waved the whip in his hand and said sternly, "This bastard is going to ruin my Shang family. If I don't teach him a lesson today, he will definitely kill my whole family!"
Aunt Xuanji was about to retort when she suddenly felt Shangluo's body twitching and trembling in her arms. She hurriedly hugged him and touched his cheek to comfort him, but she felt it was burning hot. Then she realized that his flushed face was not because of anger, but because his body was burning.
"Mr. Shang, you feel so hot, what's wrong..."
Before she could finish her words, there was a "click" sound, and Shangluo fainted and fell into her arms.
Aunt Xuanji quickly supported him, and seeing that he was breathing rapidly and twitching all over, she hurriedly asked the doorman to help him lie down in the corridor first. Amber had already run to Doctor Jiang in the mansion and asked him to come over for treatment.
Zhenzhu went straight to the back hall to report to Qiandeng.
The palace was small and sparsely populated, so Doctor Jiang was usually idle. When Qian Deng arrived, he was examining Shang Luo's back injury, shaking his head and sighing, "The young master was repeatedly flogged, and the wounds have festered and abscessed. Furthermore, he hasn't eaten in recent days, so he's too weak, and that's why he fainted from exhaustion."
Seeing this tragic scene, everyone at the door was shocked and looked at Old Man Shang: "What a sin! Such a beautiful grandson, and his grandfather had the heart to be so cruel? Could it be that he is not his biological son?"
Old man Shang, who was stopped outside the palace, had a red face, but he refused to explain why he beat the child to death. He just stiffened his neck, gritted his teeth, and still held the whip in his hand.
Amidst the noise and chaos, Shangluo woke up in a daze and opened his eyes to see a swaying figure in front of him.
It took him a long time to make out the vague outlines of the people in front of him, and he also saw Qiandeng's concerned and worried eyes.
He raised his hand and tightly grasped Qiandeng's sleeve, begging weakly, "County Lady, please save me. Grandfather knows that my father was sent away... because of me. He said I ruined our family and beat me like this..."
"What did you do to cause your father to be implicated?" Qian Deng asked in surprise.
"Yes...my mother became a nun and practiced Buddhism, and I...offended the Grand Princess of Gao State, which led to my father being exiled..."
Qian Deng was confused by his baffling words. Aunt Xuanji leaned over and whispered in her ear, "Shang Luo's father was a top scholar, a man of extraordinary talent and beauty. He had a close relationship with the Grand Princess of Gao State. Madam Shang divorced her husband and became a nun."
Qiandeng then understood that Shangluo was probably upset that the Grand Princess had separated his parents, so he caused trouble and offended her, which led to his father being exiled as the Deputy Governor of Jizhou.
The Shang family was not a large family, and among all their descendants, only Shang Biejia was the most promising. Now that he had offended the Grand Princess, it would be difficult for him to rise again after being exiled, which was almost equivalent to ruining his own future and that of his entire family.
That's why Mr. Shang took such ruthless action after knowing the inside story. First, it was to vent his anger, second, he couldn't bear the condemnation from the clan, and third, it was to express his stance to the eldest princess.
"You evil creature, you dare to hide today, never let you enter the house again!" Outside the mansion, Old Man Shang roared while swinging a whip, his anger still lingering.
Doctor Jiang sighed and went to prepare medicine. Amber brought candied date porridge and gave Shangluo a few sips to fill his stomach.
Aunt Xuanji scooped up some porridge for Shangluo and fed him small sips. However, Shangluo was so delirious with fever that he had difficulty swallowing the porridge.
He reluctantly ate a few mouthfuls and asked with sobs, "County Master, I...can I stay here? I don't want to go back..."
Qian Deng hesitated for a moment. "It's only natural for your grandfather to teach his grandson. If I keep you in the mansion, this matter will be unreasonable and will be disgraceful if it gets out."
"Is the county lady going to watch me get beaten to death? My uncle is afraid that the princess's mansion will punish him, so he will really beat me to death!" Tears rolled down his face again, "Why is the county lady unwilling to save me? Why do you care about Brother Jingning but not me? If you don't take me in, I... I will die outside your mansion!"
Qiandeng was speechless for a moment, and Aunt Xuanji touched Shang Luo's flushed cheek and pleaded, "County Lady, Young Master Shang is in such a bad condition. It will be hard for him to go back. After all, he is one of your potential husbands. At least let him stay in the mansion to recuperate for a while until he recovers."
Shangluo also looked up at her and pleaded, "I go to the Imperial College every day and won't bother you. Just give me a place to stay... Please help me, my lady!"
His voice was hoarse, like a badly injured beast. Seeing that the old man Shang outside the door was still swinging the whip to continue punishing him, Qiandeng finally sighed, raised his hand to stroke his hot forehead, and motioned him to sit down and calm down.
Seeing her nod, Aunt Xuanji immediately stood up and left, stopping on the upper steps. She scolded, "Old Master Shang, although Shang Luo is your grandson, he is now a candidate for the husband of the Lingling County Master of my Changhua Palace. His name has been registered with the court. You treated him so harshly. If anything goes wrong, not only will the court laws be ignored, my Changhua Palace will absolutely not allow it!"
Old Man Shang was scolded in public, his face flushed purple. "Okay, I dare not trespass into the palace, but Shang Luo is my grandson after all. Please send him out. I will take my grandson home. I believe the county lady will not interfere in my family affairs, right?"
Qiandeng looked at Shangluo's dying appearance and felt a little angry.
Putting Shang Luo down and standing up, she responded loudly behind the screen wall: "I shouldn't interfere with my grandson's education, but Mr. Shang is too eager to help, and has damaged my selection of a husband for the Changhua Palace. National law is more important than family law. Since he is seriously ill and unable to walk, I will take in Mr. Shang and stay in my palace temporarily. When he is well and this county lady is satisfied, I will return him to Zhao!"
Shangluo was young and recovered quickly from his injuries. After he had recovered a little, he ran to the backyard to clean the Muxiang Pavilion and stayed there stubbornly. He was determined to wait for his father to return from Jizhou before leaving. In any case, he would never go back and die at the hands of his grandfather.
In Shengfa Casino, Shangluo, who originally had the lowest bet, suddenly became bullish, and several groups of people placed heavy bets.
Idlers couldn't help but admire: "This young master of Shangluo, hailed as a child prodigy at such a young age, is indeed far-sighted. He relies on his youth to get ahead of others. Who else has such an advantage?"
"Tsk, tsk, tsk, tsk! Wasn't that Lingling County Lady disfigured? Or was she destined to be unlucky in marriage? How could she be so sought after now? Are the candidates so eager to compete for the top spot?"
"I heard she wasn't disfigured! Didn't that Grand Music Minister Xue also run for the position? He has many confidantes all over the world, and he's seen countless beauties. But the other day, when someone asked about the county lady's appearance, he said, 'The county lady has an ethereal beauty, the only one I've ever seen in my life, and I, a mere mortal, can't describe it with my humble words."
"Is that so? Then this young master Xiyang, whose reputation as a playboy is known to the world..."
"Of course, I've already grabbed my zither and headed straight for the Changhua Palace!"
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