Chapter 51 Master Liu
"My son! My beloved Shi'er! My heart and soul! I'm so sorry! I was so foolish! I was blinded by treacherous people!"
He cried so hard that he beat his chest and stamped his feet, tears streaming down his face. His voice was so mournful that it could be heard halfway down the street, attracting the attention of early-rising vendors and pedestrians who stopped to stare and point.
"Gentlemen of the General's Mansion! I beg you, have mercy! Let me see my poor daughter!"
"She is my own flesh and blood! She is the only bloodline of the Liu family! The General's Mansion cannot bully us and take my daughter away!"
He cried and wailed while repeatedly kowtowing, leaving red marks on his forehead. He looked miserable and pitiful, as if he had suffered a great injustice.
The gatekeeper and guards watched coldly, their eyes filled with disdain.
The story of this wealthy man Liu severing ties with his relatives has become common knowledge in Jinling, and his current behavior is truly disgusting.
The message spread quickly.
Xie Sangning was having breakfast when she heard this and simply raised an eyebrow: "Let him howl. When he's had enough, let Xie Nu'er deal with him herself."
Inside Ruixue Tower, Xie Nuer was being helped by her maid to do her hair and makeup.
Upon hearing the gatekeeper's report, she tightened her grip on the jade comb.
The carefully made-up face in the mirror was instantly covered with frost, and a deep-seated hatred surged in the eyes.
Without the slightest hesitation, she stood up abruptly: "Change my clothes!"
A moment later, the gates of the General's Mansion slowly opened.
Upon seeing this, Master Liu, who was kneeling and wailing outside the door, stopped crying abruptly, his eyes filled with wild joy!
He scrambled inside, shouting, "Shi'er! Daddy..."
"stop!"
Xie Nu'er wore an extremely gorgeous long dress, her hair was styled in a high bun, and she was adorned with a kingfisher feather hairpin newly given to her by Xie Sangning.
Her makeup was exquisite, and her eyes and brows carried the unique nobility and aloofness of a legitimate daughter of a general's mansion. Where was there any trace of the illegitimate daughter who was bullied by everyone in the backyard of the Liu family?
She didn't step out the door; she just stood there high above, at the boundary between shadow and light.
"Master Liu, what brings you making such a commotion so early in the morning, disturbing the gates of the General's mansion?"
Master Liu shuddered at her unfamiliar address and cold attitude, but the immense temptation made him disregard everything else. He quickly stepped forward and cried out in a tearful voice, "Shi'er! It's your father! Your father has come to take you home! Your father knows he was wrong! Your father apologizes to you!"
"Come home with your father, and I'll treat you well from now on! You're my own flesh and blood, how can you acknowledge someone else as your father? No matter how good the General's Mansion is, it's still stolen..."
"Shut up!" Xie Nu'er interrupted sharply, her eyebrows raised. "Who is your daughter? Has Master Liu lost his mind and is spouting nonsense?"
She took out a piece of paper from the brocade box held by the maid behind her.
The sign above clearly bears Liu Chengzong's handwritten signature and the striking red Liu family seal.
It was the very document that had expelled Liu Shi from the family and severed ties with her father.
"Master Liu, do you still recognize this item?"
"That day, you wrote it yourself, driving me away, calling me a whore and a slut, wishing I would die right before your eyes! At that time, did you remember that I was your own flesh and blood? Did you have even a shred of familial affection for me?"
With each question she asked, Master Liu's face grew paler, and cold sweat poured down his forehead.
"Now that you see me climbing the social ladder and gaining wealth and a promising future, you've suddenly remembered our blood ties? You want to acknowledge this daughter whom you personally stigmatized and discarded like trash? In this world, is there such a cheap thing!"
"Liu Shi has been dead since you signed this letter severing ties!"
"Liu Shi no longer exists in this world!"
She slightly raised her chin, and the sunlight fell on her magnificent attire:
"Standing before you is Xie Nu'er, the legitimate daughter of the General of the State!"
The moment she finished speaking, she turned around without hesitation.
"close the door!"
With a deafening roar, the gates of the General's Mansion slammed shut, separating the two worlds and severing the unbearable past.
Inside the door, Xie Nuer's straight back trembled slightly, then straightened even more.
She raised her hand and gently touched the hairpin at her temple. The last trace of weakness that belonged to Liu Shi in her eyes completely disappeared, leaving only the desire that belonged to Xie Nuer.
——
News spread rapidly within the palace.
Xie Sangning waved his hand dismissively and accepted a sworn sister!
That wasn't all. On the spot, they made a decision to include her in the Xie family's genealogy, making her a legitimate and precious daughter of the General's Mansion!
What's worse is that Xie Nu'er is about to participate in the talent show!
The news spread like wildfire, reaching the ears of the Grand Eunuch Desheng in no time.
Desheng was holding a cup of hot tea and had just taken a sip when a little eunuch came over and whispered a few words to him.
Then I saw Desheng's well-maintained, shiny old face suddenly change like a Sichuan opera face-changing act. All his leisurely air vanished, his lips twitched and drooped, and his eyelids twitched twice.
He knew perfectly well what was going on: This is terrible! Something big is about to happen!
Miss Xie's move was absolutely brilliant!
Before the imperial edict was issued, they forcibly created a legitimate daughter with sufficient status to take the blame!
Isn't this blatantly challenging the Emperor and making a fool of him?
The Emperor's temper... Deshengguang felt a chill run down his spine just thinking about it.
Can this be covered up? Does he dare to cover it up?
Even if Desheng had a hundred times the courage, he wouldn't dare to pull this trick under the Emperor's nose!
Desheng quickly shoved the teacup into the hands of the little eunuch next to him.
He took a deep breath, straightened his clothes, and his face instantly became extremely cautious. He took his signature small, quick steps and rushed towards the Imperial Study.
In the imperial study, Pei Yan had just finished reviewing several memorials and was sipping ginseng tea to soothe his throat. He seemed to be in a good mood.
The imperial decree has been issued, and Xie Sangning must already know about it. He's probably crying in his mansion right now.
Desheng bowed, his face filled with extreme caution, and leaned closer, his voice low and tinged with just the right amount of fear: "Your Majesty...a message...has come from outside the palace..."
Pei Yan didn't even lift his eyelids, blowing away the tea foam: "Hmm? What is it?"
"...It's about the General's Mansion."
Desheng swallowed, feeling his throat go dry: "Miss Xie, yesterday at the grand banquet at the Lin residence, she publicly recognized a sworn sister named... Xie Nu'er, and she's been added to the Xie family genealogy, becoming a legitimate daughter of the General's Mansion..."
As he spoke, he kept glancing at the emperor's expression.
Pei Yan's hand, which was holding the teacup, paused.
The imperial study fell eerily quiet.
Desheng's heart was not just in his throat, it was about to jump out of his mouth!
He dared not pause, nor wait for the emperor to ask a question, and quickly uttered the last and most fatal sentence!
"This family recognition was announced just before Your Majesty issued the imperial decree for the selection of concubines! Immediately afterwards... Miss Xie said on the spot that this newly chosen legitimate daughter of the Xie family... would participate in... the selection of concubines."
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