Chapter 31: Wasn't the stolen general returned safely? ...
As the sun rose, Fang Yilan, despite the discomfort of a hangover, rose early. The emperor had recently assigned her a sinecure at the Imperial Guards' training grounds. While it was a leisurely position, she dared not slack off for even a moment.
Zhao Huaixu had nothing to do in his mansion, so he was spending time in his study with a copy of the Book of Rites. Suddenly, he heard some noise outside. He put down the book and walked out to check what was going on.
As soon as I reached the door, I saw a woman wearing an eight-treasure pearl hairpin standing there. She looked arrogant and asked in a rather impolite manner, "Are you the beloved male companion of Fang Yilan?"
The person who came was Fang Sixuan. She glanced at Zhao Huaixu several times and cursed him contemptuously, "You are quite good-looking, but last night I saw you two quarreling in the mansion. You are not afraid of being laughed at by the servants. Such behavior is simply despicable!"
Zhao Huaixu's expression remained unchanged. He simply bowed and asked, "My name is Zhao Huaixu. I wonder what important matter has brought the Second Young Lady here?"
Fang Sixuan said in a soft voice: "Anyway, Fang Yilan, that country bumpkin from the northwest, has to go out to do some business during the day. What's the point of you following her? Why don't you come and play with me?" Before she finished speaking, she stretched out her hand and pretended to grab Zhao Huaixu's arm.
Zhao Huaixu reacted very quickly, just dodging to the side and avoiding her touch.
Fang Sixuan thought that Zhao Huaixu would definitely surrender, so she used too much force and lost her balance instantly. She staggered forward and fell to the ground. The hairpin on her head kept shaking, making a crisp sound like jade colliding.
"Second Miss!" The maid beside her screamed in horror upon seeing this, and hurriedly bent down to help Fang Sixuan up.
Fang Sixuan's face flushed red. She pointed at Zhao Huaixu and said with gritted teeth, "Just wait for me!" After that, she glared at Zhao Huaixu fiercely, and with the help of her maid, she endured the pain and limped away.
Shu Xue unconsciously clenched her hands together and looked at Zhao Huaixu nervously, her face full of anxiety.
Zhao Huaixu acted as if nothing had happened, and even seemed to be in a very good mood. He gently comforted Shuxue: "Don't worry, it's okay."
Shuxue looked at Zhao Huaixu's calm and composed look and became more and more confused. She didn't know if she was wrong or if Master Zhao had lost his mind.
Fang Yilan rode his horse back to the mansion, but saw Shuxue rushing out of the mansion in a panic, and almost bumped into her.
When Shu Xue saw Fang Yilan returning, she cried anxiously, as if she had seen a savior, "Miss, something terrible has happened! Young Master Zhao has been taken away by the old lady."
Fang Yilan frowned. Zhao Huaixu has always been low-key and never caused trouble. How could he cause trouble to his grandmother?
"What happened?"
"It was the Second Miss. She came to see you today, but unfortunately, you went to the training ground and ran into Young Master Zhao. For some reason, the Second Miss reached out to help him, but she slipped and fell towards Young Master Zhao. Young Master Zhao quickly dodged to avoid suspicion, and the Second Miss fell heavily to the ground."
"Young Master Zhao even apologized, saying that there's a difference between men and women and he didn't dare to rashly support her, lest there be any unnecessary misunderstandings. I thought it was all over, but just now, the servant in the old lady's room suddenly took Young Master Zhao away, accusing him of stealing the earrings the old lady had given to the second young lady."
After listening to this, Fang Yilan understood a little bit.
Fang Yilan walked into the ancestral house, where his second uncle Fang Shen and Wu were also present, while Zhao Huaixu was kneeling in front of the hall.
"Grandma, Yilan comes to pay his respects to you."
Old Mrs. Fang raised her eyelids slightly and glanced at Fang Yilan lightly: "You came quite quickly." After that, she picked up the Bijianchun on the table and took a sip to moisten her throat.
Fang Yilan raised the corner of her lips and retorted bluntly, "Of course it has to be urgent. It's only the second day since I returned to Beijing, and someone dared to take my people away while I was away. If I had been a step later, I'm afraid everyone in my entire courtyard would have been cleared out."
"How dare you!" Old Madam Fang slammed the table so hard that the teacups shook.
Fang Sixuan raised her chin high and said provocatively, "I didn't arrest him casually. He stole my things first!"
"Your stuff?" Fang Yilan's tone was drawn out, as if he had heard an absurd joke.
"He usually loves wearing earrings. Who knows if he's fallen for the purple jade hibiscus pendant my grandmother gave me and is becoming greedy!"
The earrings Fang Yilan had given Zhao Huaixu were just something she'd bought on the street on a whim. They cost a dozen or so taels of silver and weren't anything precious. But after hearing Fang Sixuan using this lame excuse to accuse her, she felt a bit regretful. She should have given her something more valuable and stopped her from making such a fuss.
Fang Yilan was silent for a while. Fang Sixuan thought she had no tricks left, and the smile on her face became more arrogant.
Fang Yilan suddenly took action. Without saying a word, she took off the amber bead hanging from her waist. In front of everyone in the room, she waved her arm and threw the bead directly out of the window. With a "plop", it fell into the lotus pond outside and sank into the water in an instant, leaving only circles of ripples.
Her face immediately changed into an expression of deep sorrow and indignation, and she feigned a bow to Old Madam Fang: "Grandma, Fang Sixuan stole my beads. I hope you can seek justice for me!"
"This carved bead was given by His Majesty himself. If His Majesty knew it was stolen from his own house, not only would it be a laughing stock, but if His Majesty blamed us for it, how could our Fang family afford it?"
Fang Sixuan's eyes nearly popped out of her head as she yelled in frustration, "Fang Yilan, do you think we're all fools? You threw it down with your own hands, and you dare to spit on me!"
Fang Yilan sneered, his eyes full of contempt: "I said you threw it, what can you do? Does His Majesty believe you, or me, the general who protects the country?"
Old Madam Fang hurriedly ordered, "Quick! Send the servants to fish out the pearl!"
"Except Fang Sixuan, I don't think anyone else dares to rescue her!" Fang Yilan took a step forward and glanced at everyone. Although he didn't have a sword on his waist at the moment, a murderous aura was all over his body. The temperature in the room dropped instantly, and no one dared to act rashly.
The guards on both sides drew their sharp swords and stopped the servants who were rushing towards the pool.
"Did he steal the earring, or did you hide it on purpose?"
Fang Sixuan was frightened by her sharp gaze and trembled all over. She tugged at Old Lady Fang's sleeve and cried, "Grandma! Grandma, help me!"
Old Madam Fang looked quite displeased, and glared at Fang Yilan sternly, "Yilan, just be magnanimous and give her up. You're the daughter of a noble marquisate, and making such a fuss over a male favorite who's not worthy of being mentioned in public is truly a disgrace to our mansion."
Fang Yilan walked slowly to an empty seat nearby, slouched down, and poured herself a cup of tea before responding, "Grandmother, you're wrong. Yilan was simply upholding justice, so what's wrong with that? But you, Grandmother, are openly showing partiality for a foolish and vicious granddaughter. If this gets out, won't it bring disgrace upon the Marquisate?"
Old Madam Fang's face flushed red at Fang Yilan's words. For a moment, she was choked and speechless. Her lips trembled slightly, and she pointed at her and said angrily, "You! You..."
Seeing that the situation was getting out of hand, Fang Shen spoke up to persuade them, "Yilan, calm down. Talking back at your ancestors is a sign of great unfilial piety. If the emperor hears about this, you will surely be punished."
Fang Yilan casually spread his hands and said in a relaxed tone, "Second Uncle, you can go ahead and sue me. Don't forget, this plaque of the Ding'an Marquisate was earned by me, Fang Yilan, at the cost of my life on the battlefield. If I quit, can you expect your food, clothing, and other expenses to fall from the sky for nothing in the future?"
She continued, "That's great! Tomorrow I will report this matter in detail to His Majesty. The second branch has been with Grandmother day and night, so it's normal for Grandmother to favor them. Since that's the case, why not divide the family so that everyone can live their own lives? That would be better for everyone."
Fang Shen panicked upon hearing this. He quickly put on a pleasant expression, a smile plastered across his face, and his tone became extremely earnest: "Yilan, let's talk it out. Sixuan is a child who is ignorant and has made mistakes. It's all because of me, as a father, who failed to discipline her. For the sake of Second Uncle, please forgive her this time."
Fang Yilan looked at Fang Shen and chuckled, "In that case, Uncle, why don't you go and fish that amber pearl out of the pond for my younger sister?"
"This..." The apologetic smile on Fang Shen's face froze. He didn't expect Fang Yilan to point the finger at him. He was a little at a loss for a moment.
Fang Yilan didn't expect that Fang Shen stood up and slapped Wu hard in the face instead of picking up the platinum beads.
"Look at what you've raised your daughter to be!" Fang Shen shouted at Wu. "She's always stirring up trouble. She doesn't have the refinement of a lady from a noble family."
Mrs. Wu covered her red and swollen cheeks but did not dare to say a word.
"Dad! What are you doing?" Fang Sixuan's eyes turned red with anger and she yelled at Fang Shen.
"How dare you say that!" Fang Shen turned around and shouted angrily, "If you hadn't come to cause trouble without understanding the situation clearly, how could it have become so difficult to resolve?"
Fang Yilan watched the farce of the people in the room coldly, feeling sad in her heart.
"Alright, Uncle, you look very energetic. It's freezing cold, and a woman's body is so delicate, how can she withstand such an ordeal? As a father, it's only right for you to take on more responsibility for your daughter. So, go down and fish it out."
Fang Shen's face turned extremely grim, and he wanted to refute but was speechless. Not wanting to lose face, he kept a gloomy face, took off his socks and boots, and stepped into the freezing cold pool step by step.
I had to take off my socks and boots and go into the pool.
Fang Yilan glanced dully at Fang Shen, who was struggling in the pool, without any emotion in her heart. She turned around and helped Zhao Huaixu up.
"Let's go, there's no need to waste time here."
The two of them stepped out of the threshold of the ancestral house side by side. Fang Yilan half bent over, put his hands on Zhao Huaixu's knees, and gently massaged them.
"How long have you been kneeling? Does your knee hurt? Can you still walk?"
When he looked up to ask, he met Zhao Huaixu's smiling eyes, which were full of unbreakable tenderness and affection.
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