Chapter 49 Suffering a Backlash, Dou Mingyan Gets Beaten Up
When Madam Gu saw him, she finally found her pillar of support.
She hurriedly got up to greet him, trying to take the scepter from his hand. "Master, Fourth Miss is too wild. No one can control her. With her around, the Dou family will not be safe and sound. Let's send her back to Yuqing Temple!"
Dou Bochang remained expressionless, and with a wave of his arm, Madam Gu fell to the ground, unfortunately bumping into the base of a jade flowerpot on the chair, instantly swelling a large bump on her forehead.
This sudden turn of events caught everyone off guard, leaving them stunned.
Madam Gu, in agony, burst into tears and questioned, "My lord, we've been married for so long, is this how you treat me...?"
Dou Bochang had never been so furious, nor had he ever hit her in public. Even if it was unintentional, it shattered her long-standing prestige as the matriarch of the Dou family.
Dou Bochang was furious and completely ignored her.
He stared intently at Dou Mingyan, coldly uttering a few words, "Disgraceful!"
Dou Mingyan was terrified and cried her heart out, "Father, are you blaming Mingyan?"
Dou Wenyi breathed a sigh of relief. To prevent Dou Mingyan from distorting the truth, before leaving Lishan, she specifically asked Pei Siyan to send someone to inform Dou Bochang in advance. It seems that he already knows the truth.
Her ears burned at the thought of the deal she made with Pei Siyan.
“I’ve turned a blind eye to your relationship with Xie Guidu because you’re young. But since you’re engaged to the Crown Prince, why don’t you break it off cleanly sooner rather than later?”
At this moment, Dou Bochang felt an intense hatred for his years of indulgence towards Dou Mingyan, and his eyes were filled with deep anger and disappointment.
"You've been caught red-handed? Saving my life isn't your shield. No man in the world would tolerate his fiancée having an affair with another man!"
Madam Gu looked up in shock, "Master, Yan'er isn't someone who doesn't know her place, there must be some misunderstanding here!"
"Misunderstanding! I wish it were a misunderstanding. Eunuch Anxi, who serves Pei Siyan, personally instructed me. If her reputation is tarnished, how can she have the face to be the Crown Princess?" Dou Bochang raised his voice.
Dou Mingyan had never seen such a fierce and heartbroken expression on his face. Her eyes were filled with tears as she said, "Father, Si Yan didn't hold it against me. Don't worry, I won't let you down again."
"It was all Xie Guidu's wishful thinking. I was also a victim... If my fourth sister hadn't been so immature and made such a fuss, things wouldn't have gotten out of control."
Madam Gu glared at Dou Wenyi with resentment.
Dou Wenyi was utterly disappointed and filled with contempt. The position of Crown Princess had truly become Dou Mingyan's shield!
She will never be wrong; all the mistakes will be made by others. She is still the most innocent, the most pitiful one.
In the eyes of Dou Bochang and Madam Gu, her daughter was worthless.
Even though they all knew about Dou Mingyan's disgusting and ambiguous relationship with her brother-in-law, they didn't think she had done anything wrong.
Their only concern was that Dou Mingyan might not handle the matter well, allowing the scandal to be exposed and affecting her marriage.
Dou Bochang forcibly suppressed his emotions, looking heartbroken. "Shut up! Mingxiu is in prison. In a couple of days, go and plead with the Crown Prince again to see if he can come up with a solution."
He was once a young man too; what unforgettable love hasn't he experienced?
If Dou Mingyan hadn't kept giving Xie Guidu hope, how could he have fallen ill with lovesickness and remained infatuated with her?
As the saying goes, it takes two to tango, but when you slap yourself in the face, does it make a sound?
The mere thought of Eunuch Anxi's sarcastic tone filled him with a profound sense of humiliation.
How much have they worried about Dou Mingyan over the years?
Did they spend even more money on her?
That's how she was raised to be proficient in music, chess, calligraphy, and painting, becoming one of the most outstanding noble ladies in Tianning City.
What benefits does Dou Wenyi have that she doesn't have? And what benefits does Dou Wenyi not have that she also has?
They brought this on themselves, they deserve it!
Dou Mingyan was born with a noble destiny, but by constantly causing trouble like this, she has squandered all her good fortune.
Thinking of Dou Mingxiu's suffering in prison, Madam Gu was on the verge of collapse. She grabbed Dou Mingyan's arm and said, "Good daughter, you must rescue your brother. We are all counting on you."
Dou Mingyan looked slightly uneasy, her eyes darting around. "Father, Mother, don't worry, Si Yan won't make things difficult for my elder brother. Once the swelling on my face has gone down, I'll go to the East Palace."
Madam Gu glared at her resentfully. The Crown Princess's face—she dared to hit her like that!
Dou Bochang stared at Dou Mingyan's face, his expression shifting repeatedly. His equally venomous gaze also shot towards her, his tone unusually cold.
"Fourth daughter, I don't blame you for hitting Mingyan out of anger. But if you can't win your future husband's favor, why don't you reflect on yourself and find the reasons why?"
"It's come to this point, and you insist on breaking off the engagement with Xie Guidu. Are you expecting your elder brother to support you for the rest of your life? If that's the case, why don't you think more about him?"
What a useless and unlucky person!
Dou Wenyi was stunned. She was the victim, and she almost died, yet she was being blamed for making a big fuss.
Dou Bochang was exhausted. The Dou family was originally very prosperous, but this series of changes made him feel as if he could see the Dou family's magnificent building crumbling and falling to the ground.
He paused, then said, "He's lost. Who will the Dou family rely on in the future? They can't even write two characters with the same name. Do you intend to become an enemy of our entire family?"
Dou Wenyi was furious.
She knew that Dou Bochang was ruthless, power-hungry, and cruel to the core, caring only for personal gain and never taking her, his daughter, seriously. She had underestimated his despicable nature. Even though she had long since given up hope for their shallow kinship, she still felt an overwhelming sense of sorrow.
She didn't know what Pei Siyan had said to Dou Bochang, but thankfully, the annulment of the engagement was a done deal.
If you want to annul the engagement, you must ensure they have no worries about the future.
After a long silence, she slowly spoke, "Father, rest assured. I visited Prince Duan after he was injured. His injuries are not serious, and he did not blame us. My brother will be fine. The situation in the court is unpredictable. His Highness the Crown Prince is wise and powerful. His temporary detention of my brother must have his reasons."
“My brother almost made a big mistake last time when he secretly took a prostitute from the government. He is reckless and I am afraid that he will be used by someone with ulterior motives and become a knife in someone else’s hands.”
"A small punishment might serve as a warning, and he might even learn to behave himself and turn misfortune into good fortune. However, since Grandmother is not in good health, it's best not to let her know about my brother's affairs for now."
Dou Wenyi spoke softly and gently, her tone neither hurried nor slow, her words reasonable and well-founded.
After listening to her detailed analysis, Dou Bochang's anxious heart immediately calmed down. Dou Mingxiu was the future emperor's brother-in-law, and he was impetuous. He really should work on cultivating his temperament.
He suppressed his anger and stroked his beard. "But if you break off the engagement, you won't be able to marry anyone else, and that will ruin the reputation of my Dou family!"
Dou Wenyi suddenly recalled Pei Siyan's lies to Xie Guidu and continued, "At the detached palace, Consort Zhang summoned my daughter. My third sister happened to see her; in reality, she intended to bring my daughter and Zhang Chengxian together..."
Seeing her blushing face, Dou Bochang instantly understood why Master Zhang was so attentive to him; it turned out he had this wicked idea.
Although the Zhang family's social standing was not as noble as that of the Marquis of Dingyuan, Consort Zhang was deeply favored by the Emperor, and the Zhang family still held real power.
Zhang Chengxian is slightly inferior to Xie Guidu, but he has a good appearance. It seems that by changing marriage arrangements, the Dou family wouldn't lose out!
Dou Bochang finally showed a more pleasant expression, "Is this really true?"
“What Father is saying is of course true. How could I, your daughter, joke about something as important as my life?” Dou Wenyi said earnestly and with great certainty.
Before you can successfully break off the engagement, keep him hanging on for now, lest things get complicated!
But I need to talk to Zhang Chengxian first; he should be willing to help her out for now.
Upon hearing this, Dou Bochang's expression softened slightly. "Then let's break off the engagement with the Marquis of Dingyuan first. You were the one who injured someone by riding a horse. Go to the storeroom and select some good medicinal herbs to send to the Prince of Duan's residence. Make amends for your mistake, and your brother can return sooner."
Dou Wenyi nodded obediently.
Madam Gu was taken aback, but she eventually calmed down and was no longer as flustered and helpless as she had been at the beginning.
Dou Mingyan's eyes flashed with surprise, and a sour feeling welled up in her heart. She thought that she could mock her after her engagement was broken off, but she didn't expect that this would happen so smoothly.
Dou Wenyi has really grown up; when did she manage to hook up with Zhang Chengxian?
What troubled her most was that she originally thought that after this incident, the Dou family would blame Dou Wenyi for all the mistakes.
What exactly did she do?
With a few simple and straightforward words, she managed to defuse her parents' anger, and they stopped mentioning her wrongdoing in hitting someone, nor did they punish her for implicating Dou Mingxiu.
She escaped unscathed.
Didn't she get beaten up for nothing?
——
A few days later, an ordinary carriage came to a smooth stop at the west gate of the East Palace. The coachman said, "Honored guest, we have arrived!"
Dou Wenyi lifted the carriage curtain and was about to get off when she saw the Dou family's carriage parked not far away at the palace gate. Amber helped Dou Mingyan down from the carriage.
She wore a moon-white dress, completely unadorned, with only a white jade hairpin in her hair, making her appear otherworldly and ethereal, like a Taoist nun untouched by worldly affairs.
Dou Wenyi felt contempt, as if Dou Mingyan always dressed in a detached and aloof manner whenever she saw Pei Siyan, a stark contrast to her usual attire.
Pei Siyan has unique tastes and likes women who are two-faced.
Cuizhi also saw Dou Mingyan and was taken aback. "Miss, are you really going to the East Palace? Are you sure you can get in?"
It's no wonder she asked that question; Dou Mingyan and her entourage were ruthlessly stopped at the door by the guards, and they were supposed to go and announce their arrival.
“Go, of course we’ll go. Turn around and go to the east gate.” Dou Wenyi nodded.
Last time at the Li Palace, she made a deal with Pei Siyan. Today, the Crown Prince sent word that he was coming to collect the debt, so how could she dare to be negligent?
Did she stand Pei Siyan up? Did she have a death wish?
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