Sitting in the flower hall, Madam Cen seemed somewhat uneasy, constantly clenching her hands, and even appeared a little nervous.
"Madam Hou, Chief Guard Xiao has arrived," a maid announced from outside.
"Your subordinate greets Lady Hou."
The Marquis of Zhongyi's family were born into military families, so there were naturally many guards in the mansion. Those who could become the chief guards were even more skilled in martial arts.
"Pan-ge'er went to the poetry gathering today. I want you to go and see him quietly. If he's at the teacher's poetry gathering with his classmates, just observe quietly and don't disturb him. But if he's secretly drinking or getting into a fight with a group of young masters, go directly there and say there's an emergency at the manor. Bring him back by force without any delay. Do you understand?" Madam Cen ordered coldly.
"Yes, Your subordinate obeys."
"If Pan Ge'er is unwilling to come back with you, even if you have to knock him unconscious, bring him back. If he's already fighting with someone, make sure he doesn't hurt anyone. Go and come back quickly!"
Chief Guard Xiao clasped his hands in a salute, then turned and quickly left.
However, Liu Mama, who had been by her side the whole time, was a little surprised. How did the Lady of the Marquis know that Pan Ge'er was not going to hold a poetry gathering?
She was, after all, a trusted confidante of the Lady of the Marquis. If the Lady of the Marquis had known about this news in advance, she would have sent someone to investigate. However, this morning, the Lady of the Marquis only visited the Third Madam and had not yet remembered to do anything else, not even to settle the accounts.
Cen waited anxiously. Half an hour later, Guard Xiao appeared in Shou Kang Garden carrying the unconscious Pan Ge'er.
"Madam, when I arrived, the young master and his classmates were arguing with several rich young men. Neither side would back down, and the young master and his friends smashed their wine bowls, seemingly about to fight. I immediately stopped them. The young master was unwilling to come back, so I forcibly took him away. Before leaving, I even sent someone to report to the authorities."
Hearing what Captain Xiao said, Cen's eyelids trembled incessantly, and her heart felt like it was about to jump out of her chest.
What were they arguing about?
"I didn't have time to inquire in detail, but during the argument, both sides mentioned a woman who performed but didn't sell her body. The young master and his men accused the other side of abducting a woman, while the other side questioned where the woman came from and cursed the young master and his men for being blind..."
The captain of the guard was clearly an honest man; he immediately repeated the insults exchanged between the two sides verbatim, without any attempt to conceal them.
Cen was terrified; the system had actually predicted everything!
Who is Xu Wanying, and who is the system?
She slumped back in the chair, belatedly realizing that she was covered in a cold sweat.
If she hadn't sent Chief Guard Xiao, all of this would have happened, and the entire Marquis of Zhongyi's mansion would have been implicated.
As Cen was contemplating the serious consequences, a dry howling sound came from outside.
"Mother, Mother, why are you treating me like this? Just now in Qingxi Pavilion, you had the servants gag me and drag me out. Not only will my third sister-in-law laugh at me, but all the servants around her will remember this for the rest of their lives. I'm so ashamed to live like this! I'll never be able to hold my head up again..."
Hearing that familiar wailing, Cen was greatly troubled; though late, the hindrance had finally arrived.
This time, Li Chunlan was smarter. Instead of using chili water, she used onion water and even scented her handkerchiefs with incense beforehand, completely masking the odor.
She covered her eyes with a handkerchief, and the tears fell like raindrops.
She didn't stop along the way and rushed straight into the house.
Not wanting to waste any more words with her, Madam Cen pointed to Chief Guard Xiao outside the house and said, "Look who's outside."
Xiao, the guard, was tall and imposing. Li Chunlan noticed him when she came in, but she didn't dare to look too closely. After all, he was an outsider, and it was best for her, a woman, to stay away from him.
However, after Cen said that she looked up and took a closer look, she immediately noticed a recliner next to Chief Guard Xiao, and the chubby little boy lying on the chair looked very familiar.
Her eyes widened, and she immediately recognized that this was her own son.
"Oh dear, what's wrong with my Pan-ge'er? Why is he sleeping here? My darling, wake up! Didn't you say you were going out to participate in a poetry gathering?" She forgot about crying and hurriedly went out, gently patting the little fat boy's chubby face.
But the chubby boy didn't react at all, as if he had fainted.
"Who the hell did this? What happened to my son? Is it any of your business? I'll fight you to the death!" Li Chunlan's expression instantly turned ferocious. Like a mother lion protecting her cubs, she bared her teeth at Guard Chief Xiao, ready to charge at him and fight him at any moment.
"Nonsense! This was my order. If it weren't for Captain Xiao arriving in time, Pan-ge'er would be in deep trouble today. Granny Liu, tell the First Madam what just happened!" Madam Cen immediately stopped her.
Granny Liu immediately stepped forward and began to recount how Lady Hou had summoned Chief Guard Xiao.
Li Chunlan had been glaring fiercely at Chief Guard Xiao, but upon hearing the rest, her face showed surprise, which quickly turned into fear.
"Luckily, we made it in time!" No matter how stupid Li Chunlan was, she could understand what was going on.
Seeing that she was emotionally agitated, Cen was afraid that she might blurt out something without thinking, so she immediately sent all the servants away.
The room was quiet. Li Chunlan stroked the little fat boy's head, feeling a wave of fear wash over her.
"Mother, what's going on? Xu Wanying was right about everything. She's a jinx, isn't she? It must be her curse on Pan Ge'er. That system is an accomplice, an executioner!"
When she said these words, her eyes were red and she couldn't stop the tears from flowing.
This time it was clearly a genuine cry; no tools were needed to induce tears—it was a true expression of emotion.
The mother-in-law and daughter-in-law looked at each other. Li Chunlan saw that Cen Shi's face was serious but she didn't say a word, and she immediately became anxious.
“Mother, this third sister-in-law is clearly a demon. In order to prevent her from cursing the rest of the family, should we—” she said urgently, but stopped short, her eyes flashing with a fierce light, everything was left unsaid.
For the sake of her child, she was capable of doing any evil.
"Are you out of your mind! Xu Wanying clearly possesses supernatural abilities, even able to predict the future. How can you be so sure that apart from what happened today, Pan-ge'er's future will be smooth sailing? Even if Pan-ge'er is healthy and free from illness, what about the rest of the Marquis's household? What about yourself!"
Cen Shi had originally wanted to hear what suggestions she could offer, but it turned out that she wanted to silence Xu Wanying, so she glared at her on the spot.
This foolish eldest daughter-in-law is truly beyond saving.
"Get back to your courtyard. If you dare to cause trouble before the Marquis returns, you'll be in for a beating!"
Seeing Li Chunlan's nonchalant attitude, Cen felt both angry and afraid.
It's not the clever people who have ulterior motives that's scary, it's the fools who are prone to making things worse.
Seeing her mother-in-law so angry, Li Chunlan didn't dare to say anything. She could only call the servants in and have them carry Pan Ge'er back.
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