Madam He helped the old lady in, and Madam Lin finally suppressed her temper, saying, "Mother."
When Jiang Mingting saw his grandmother and mother arrive, his eyes immediately reddened, and he struggled with grievance, saying, "Grandmother, my aunt is deliberately trying to make things difficult for my sister and me."
He pushed away the two servants who were holding her son, hugged Jiang Mingting, and cried.
When his mother cried, Jiang Mingting felt useless. "Grandmother, you must stand up for us!"
The old lady comforted her, "Good child, Grandma knows what she's doing."
“Grandmother saw it all.”
The old lady sneered at Madam Lin, "I'm not dead yet, and Mingting's mother is here too. Why should I trouble you to discipline him?"
Lin raised her chin slightly, "If my younger brother and sister-in-law are well disciplined, I won't have to worry about them."
“Mingting is already fourteen. It was already inappropriate for him to break into his cousin’s room without permission, but he even dared to hit her. Yan Wan’s brow bone was broken. Can’t I give him a few lashes?”
Seeing that Madam Lin wouldn't give in, and because most of her son's memorial tablet had been burned, the old lady was also seething with anger.
“It’s wrong for Mingting to hit someone, but he did it to protect his own sister!”
"But how did you raise Lin Qingwan? She actually harmed her own cousin like this."
Lin had overheard Jiang Mingting and Lin Qingwan arguing outside. If Jiang Mingting hadn't injured Jiang Yanwan, she might not have sided with Lin Qingwan.
"Does Mother have any evidence to support her claim?"
The old lady choked up and turned to look at Madam He. Madam He wiped away her tears and said, "After Mingyun woke up, she said that Qingwan had drugged her. What reason does she have to slander Qingwan?"
Lin said sarcastically, "Then what reason would Qingwan have to harm her?"
Madam He said, "The maids in Meilin all heard it. Yun'er liked Qingwan's cloak and wanted to ask her for a reward, but Qingwan refused."
"Yun'er is still a child, and she was just being affectionate with her older sister. Who knew that she would upset Qingwan!"
This reason is really far-fetched.
However, the matter is no longer between Jiang Mingyun and Lin Qingwan, but between the old lady, Madam He, and Madam Lin.
The old lady arranged a reunion dinner on Laba Festival because she knew Jiang Zhenlin had caused trouble and wanted to take the opportunity to get Jiang Su to promote Jiang Mingting. However, she wasted a lot of time and effort but the plan failed.
The old lady was not about to let it go after her son's ancestral hall was burned down.
"Hmph! She spends all her time arguing with Ah Lin over trivial matters in the Prime Minister's residence. She's clearly been spoiled and raised to be petty and malicious." The old lady glared at Lin Shi and retorted, "Does she even deserve the Jiang family name?"
Born into a prominent family and being the wife of a prime minister, Lady Lin never made a single mistake in her life.
Unfortunately, Lin Qingwan's return became a stain on her reputation.
"Bring that girl out here! I'm going to get justice for Mingyun today!"
The old lady sat in the main seat where Madam Lin had previously been, with a stern and cold expression.
Seeing her mother being held down by her grandmother, Jiang Yanwan came out from the inner room, her eyebrow half-bandaged. "Grandmother, please understand. Qingwan is frail and afraid of the cold, which is why I didn't give the cloak to Mingyun."
"I wanted to give my fox fur coat to Mingyun at the time, but it got wet from the tea and that's why I didn't."
“We are all one family, there’s no need to speak so harshly to each other.”
After saying that, she called Lin Qingwan, "Qingwan, come out and explain to your grandmother."
Jiang Yanwan kowtowed to the old lady, "Grandmother, Qingwan suffered outside and has been working hard to learn the rules of the Prime Minister's residence since she returned. If she has done anything wrong, it is because Yanwan has not taken good care of her."
Please don't blame her.
Seeing that Jiang Yanwan's right eye was already closed and she was still rushing out to calm down, Madam Lin felt a pang of heartache.
Then I suddenly wondered, why is it always Lin Qingwan!
When the old lady saw how badly Jiang Yanwan's brow bone was swollen, she couldn't be angry with her. "Where is Lin Qingwan? She has the guts to do it but not the guts to admit it. What kind of person are you to come out and apologize on her behalf!"
Lin Qingwan wasn't unwilling to come out; her entire back was in so much pain that she couldn't straighten up.
Aunt Qin urged, "Miss Qingwan, you can't avoid it. Go out and explain to the old lady."
Lin Qingwan smiled bitterly. Her mother only saw that Jiang Yanwan was hit on the brow bone, but she didn't see that she was almost hit on the head by Jiang Mingting's stool.
She was just inherently base; even if she were beaten to death, she couldn't compare to Jiang Yanwan.
Since no one cares about her, her crying out in pain is seen as being dramatic.
Lin Qingwan clenched her fists, gritted her teeth, and straightened her back. She broke out in a sweat from the pain after only a few steps.
Therefore, she didn't have the time or energy to waste words with the old lady, and said directly, "If Grandmother has evidence to prove that I harmed Mingyun, you can beat or scold me as you please."
"If not, I beg my grandmother to give me justice."
"I may not be as well-mannered as the young lady, but my cousin humiliated me in front of so many people. Shouldn't he apologize to me?"
"They are all of the Jiang family bloodline, and Grandmother cannot favor one over the other."
Her face was cold, her voice was cold, and the words she uttered were cold, but her logic was clear, her attitude was firm, and she pointed out the rift between Madam Lin and the old lady in one sentence.
This wasn't an explanation; it was adding fuel to the old lady's fire.
The old lady trembled with anger, blaming Lin, "Look at this, is this the good daughter you raised? Talking back to her elders and ignoring them, you're trying to drive me to my death while I'm still alive, aren't you!"
When the old lady can't win an argument, she resorts to her age and seniority, which is what gives Lin the biggest headache.
They couldn't help but blame Lin Qingwan for not being able to say nice things.
He Shi held back her tears and said sadly, "Mother, I didn't want to make things so embarrassing, but now I have no choice but to speak up for Ming Ting's sake."
"The servants guarding the sacrificial room were slacking off and went to the kitchen to drink. When they returned, they saw Qingwan covering Mingyun's mouth and nose with a handkerchief and locking Mingyun in the sacrificial room."
“The servants dared not offend the elder brother and sister-in-law, but he was so distressed by Mingyun’s plight that he risked his life to tell me.”
"I originally thought that Qingwan would just apologize to Yun'er, but I didn't expect her to even go after Mingting."
Upon hearing that there was a witness, the old lady immediately perked up, glaring at Lin Qingwan, "You scoundrel! What else do you have to say for yourself!"
Jiang Yanwan covered her lips, asking incredulously, "Qingwan, you...you really are you?"
Lin's face turned ashen, as if she had been publicly pelted with rotten eggs. Her nails almost dug into her flesh, and her lips trembled, unable to utter a word.
She didn't need to say anything; Lin Qingwan was already used to her believing others but not herself.
When she came out of the ancestral hall, she made sure no one was around. Besides, if Jiang Mingyun wanted to embarrass her, he wouldn't let anyone see it.
To put it another way, if there really were servants present, why would Jiang Mingyun wait for someone to come in before he was rescued after the fire started?
Despite the numerous flaws, the mother insisted on believing that she was the one who did it.
"Guards, beat her until she admits her mistake!" the old lady immediately ordered.
A sinister smile crept into He's eyes, and Jiang Mingting's anger finally found its outlet.
Lin Qingwan kept looking at her mother, waiting for her to speak.
Even after the servants came in, Madam Lin remained unmoved.
Lin Qingwan gave a self-deprecating laugh, "Where is that servant? I need a chance to confront him, right?"
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