19. Chapter 19 Heartache
Zhong has already found out the whole story.
After Princess Anhui held the kitten in her arms, she discovered it was unharmed and the blood on its paws was not its own. Although she realized she had wrongly accused someone, she did not apologize, saying only that the maid had misled her. Then, she took her kitten and left.
Mrs. Zhong caught the two maids, but they insisted that they saw someone abusing the kitten and started talking about it.
Zhong naturally realized that the two maids did it on purpose. Seeing that Mu Xi was also injured, she did not pursue the matter further and directly sold the two maids. She also beat the servant who scared the kitten with dozens of boards and drove him out of the Duke of Zhenguo's Mansion.
When Pei Xiuhan asked about it, Zhong did not mention the complicated story behind it, but only talked about the mistakes made by the maids and servants and the fact that Princess Anhui beat people in anger.
Pei Xiuhan's eyes darkened after hearing her words.
Zhong's heart was beating fast when he looked at her.
Pei Xiuhan finally gave her face and didn't ask any further. He just asked, "Did Li Mingjia apologize?"
Zhong smiled bitterly. She was a princess and if she refused to apologize, she would not force her.
Pei Xiuhan ordered Yang Hao in a cold voice, "Bring the Princess and Li Mingjia here."
The eldest princess and Pei Xiuhan do not have the same biological mother. Her mother was originally Concubine De, who had also harmed Pei Xiuhan's mother.
Although she was five years older than Pei Xiuhan, she was actually a little afraid of her younger brother who held real power. She didn't dare to act rashly. After hearing what Yang Hao said, she hurriedly brought Princess Anhui over.
The scenery of the Duke of Zhenguo's Mansion was no less beautiful than that of the Princess's Mansion. The pavilions and towers were very spectacular, and the garden scenery was even more unique. However, the Princess had no intention of appreciating it. On the way, she reminded her daughter to be careful with her words and actions, to apologize when necessary, and not to be willful again.
Upon seeing Pei Xiuhan, the eldest princess's face was filled with apology. "I just heard about this from the maid. It's all my fault for spoiling this girl. That's why she hit people without knowing right or wrong. Mingjia, please apologize immediately."
Li Mingjia turned his head away.
Pei Xiuhan glanced at her coldly, and his already cold expression became even colder.
Li Mingjia was a little embarrassed. She avoided his gaze and deliberately ignored the eldest princess's hints, refusing to apologize.
She didn't think she had done anything wrong. In her eyes, both Xiaoxiao and Muxi were of low status, and apologizing to them was not an insult to her.
After all, she is a princess and Pei Xiuhan's niece. Could he force her to apologize?
Xiaoxiao also knew Li Mingjia's identity. Fearing that Brother Pei would be embarrassed, Xiaoxiao pulled his sleeve and whispered, "Brother, I'm fine. It doesn't matter if she doesn't apologize. She's just too worried about Xiaomao. My injury will heal after some rest."
The little girl's voice was soft. She was obviously the one who was wronged, but she was so well-behaved. Pei Xiuhan was already a little unhappy, and at this moment, his eyes looking at Li Mingjia became even colder.
He glanced at the whip on Li Mingjia's waist and gestured to Yang Hao, who whipped out her whip. Pei Xiuhan said to the princess, "Do it yourself. Use the exact same position. Don't use too little force. Yang Hao, you stay and supervise. When you're done whipping them, you can let them go."
After he said this, he ignored everyone's shocked looks and pulled Xiaoxiao away.
After Pei Xiuhan left, Zhong looked at Mu Xi. Mu Xi had not expected that he would cause such a disaster.
She and Mu Wen had always been at odds, often harming each other and wishing the other bad luck. She didn't actually let anyone abuse the kitten, she just made it dirty, and the blood on its claws was actually chicken blood.
Unexpectedly, at this moment, not only Mu Hong was injured, but Xiaoxiao was also injured. She felt a little guilty, her face turned pale, and she lowered her head.
She should have thought of it earlier. Princess Anhui is not an easy person to deal with. How could she be treated with care?
Mu Xi felt upset and his eyes were red.
Zhong sighed and said nothing more. She covered up for Mu Xi because she knew that she was not a bad person. She didn't know whether what happened today would make the prince dissatisfied.
Mu Xi has always been smart. Seeing her sigh, her heart tightened. She didn't even watch Princess An Hui being punished. She picked up the hem of her skirt and ran out quickly. Xiao Xiao and Pei Xiu Han had just walked to the curved corridor surrounded by green trees when they heard hurried footsteps.
Xiaoxiao turned her head and saw that it was Mu Xi who had chased out. "Wait, wait a minute."
She ran so fast that she was a little out of breath when she spoke.
Xiaoxiao was a little surprised and didn't know what was wrong with her. When they were in the clan school, Mu Xi didn't like to pay attention to her. Every time their eyes met inadvertently, she would turn her head away. Xiaoxiao always thought that Mu Xi hated her like the other children in the village.
But Xiaoxiao no longer thought so. Today, she was spared a whipping because Mu Xi pushed her away in time. She had already thanked him. When she saw the whip marks on Mu Xi's hands, Xiaoxiao couldn't help but take another look.
Mu Xi quickly hid her arms behind her back. Her eyes were red, and without even looking up, she said quickly, "I'm sorry. What happened today is all my fault. Those two maids said that under my instructions, but who would have thought that they would cause you to get hurt? If you're angry, hit me or scold me. I won't fight back."
Xiaoxiao was a little surprised. Thinking about how she and Mu Wen had always been at odds, she vaguely understood something. She thought about it and said seriously, "You should apologize to Mu Wen."
Mu Xi had thought that she would not forgive her, but she had never guessed that she would say that. She felt it was incredible and blurted out, "You really are stupid!"
As soon as she finished speaking, she met her cousin's cold gaze. Mu Xi panicked and bowed quickly. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have said that. I'm stupid, the stupidest one. I'm just like Mu Wen, a fool. Will you forgive me?"
Xiaoxiao: ...
Even when apologizing, she didn't forget to criticize Mu Wen. How deep was her hatred for Mu Wen? Xiaoxiao didn't bear a grudge against her in the first place. She was certainly wrong, but seeing her brave enough to admit her mistake, Xiaoxiao knew that she was not a bad person.
She thought for a moment and said, "Don't hurt anyone again in the future. If you can do that, I will forgive you."
Mu Xi opened her eyes wide in disbelief. She obviously didn't expect that she would be so lenient. She didn't want to agree. Mu Wen was harming her. Should she be tolerant of bad people?
When she saw her cousin's cold expression, she didn't dare to accuse him of meddling in other people's business. She said aggrievedly, "The most I can promise you is that I won't hurt others first. If someone hurts me first, I will definitely retaliate."
She said that and ran away.
Pei Xiuhan originally thought that the clan school of the Duke of Zhenguo's Mansion was not a good place to go, and was planning to hire a teacher for Xiaoxiao after returning home. When he saw Mu Xi running to apologize, Pei Xiuhan's anger dissipated a little.
After she ran away, Xiaoxiao secretly glanced at Pei Xiuhan, still feeling a little uneasy. She pursed her tender pink lips again and again until she got into the carriage. Pei Xiuhan then glanced at her sideways and said, "Just say what you want to say."
Xiaoxiao then spoke softly, "Brother, I know you are standing up for me, but will what happened today have a negative impact on you?"
After all, the other party is the daughter of the eldest princess. In Xiaoxiao's opinion, she is someone who is difficult to mess with.
After meeting the little girl's worried eyes, Pei Xiuhan couldn't tell what he felt. He just thought that the little girl was silly and cute. "Don't worry about me for nothing. Does your back still hurt?"
In fact, it still hurts, but after applying the medicine, it is much better than before. Xiaoxiao shook her head for fear that he would worry.
The carriage gradually moved away from the Duke of Zhenguo's Mansion. At this moment, the coachman suddenly pulled the reins, and the carriage stopped abruptly. Xiaoxiao fell forward uncontrollably, and Pei Xiuhan reached out and grabbed her arm.
Xiaoxiao finally managed to sit firmly. The man's arms were like iron clamps. Her face turned pale with pain. She bit her lips tightly and managed not to make any sound.
Pei Xiuhan lifted the curtain and took a look, only to find that two children were chasing each other on the side of the road and were almost hit by the carriage. The small vendor was so scared that his face turned pale. He quickly hugged his own children in his arms and knelt down to kowtow.
Pei Xiu Han asked them to stand up. When the carriage started moving again, he noticed that Xiao Xiao's arm was bleeding, from the place where he had just grabbed her.
Pei Xiuhan's face darkened and he reached out to lift her sleeve.
"Brother, I'm fine."
The little girl's pink lips were bitten white, but she was still so sensible. Pei Xiuhan ignored her and lifted her sleeves. As he moved, the girl's slender white wrists were revealed little by little, and the whip marks on them were still bleeding.
Pei Xiu Han's eyes were dark and unclear. If he hadn't helped her in that situation, she would have hit her head.
Looking at the whip wound, for a moment, Pei Xiuhan wanted to ask the coachman to turn the carriage around, go back to the Duke of Zhenguo's Mansion, and personally whip Li Mingjia a few times. This feeling was even worse than seeing the carefully cared-for cabbage being trampled by a pig.
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