That's how people are; they'll side with whichever side is in power.
Especially since the royal family all favored the Lu family, they had even less sympathy for the Zhang family. After all, Zhang Wentao had no choice but to cause trouble for the young master Lu.
Doesn't this just prove them wrong?
Serves him right!
After this incident, everyone gained a new understanding of the Lu family, realizing that they were not illiterate warriors, but rather people with both literary and martial talents, which increased their respect for them.
After that, no one caused any more trouble, except that Young Master Zhang, who was beaten up, couldn't sit still and went home early.
He lost face in front of others this time and will be looked down upon. He never wants to appear in such a situation again.
After the banquet, Zhang Wentao returned home and immediately started to lose his temper, scolding his son for being useless and bringing shame to him as his father.
At this moment, the eldest son of the Zhang family had just had his injuries treated by a doctor and was about to lie down to rest when he saw his father rushing into his yard shouting and cursing. He felt distressed and bitter.
"What good have I done raising you all these years? You can't even beat a five or six-year-old kid, what else can you do?"
"I went through so much trouble to get you into the Imperial Academy, and this is how you report back to me?"
"Absolutely useless!"
Zhang Wentao's insults were very harsh. When Madam Zhang followed him in, she heard him saying that he didn't treat her son like a human being. She was furious that he was still scolding him even after all this.
"That's enough!"
Madam Zhang interrupted him sharply, tears streaming down her face: "If you hadn't suddenly gone mad tonight and targeted a five or six-year-old child, would they have been so disrespectful to you?"
"Jun'er suffered all this night because of you. You feel no remorse, but you even insult my Jun'er like this. Do you have any conscience at all?!"
"That little kid clearly practices martial arts from a young age. How can my Jun'er compare to him? You only blame your son; why don't you think about where you went wrong?"
"General Lu protected his son the whole time, saying he wanted to have a proper holiday. It was you who insisted on making things difficult for him. That's why he wouldn't let it go, and that's why he humiliated your son like this!"
"Didn't you hear that little kid say that he wanted to compete with Jun'er because you're too old? He's making Jun'er pay for his father's sins!"
...
After holding back all night, Mrs. Zhang finally had the chance to speak her mind. Without holding back, she launched into a tirade against Zhang Wentao.
Seeing her today, I realized how outstanding and good other people's men are. They protect their wives and children in critical moments, while my own man only stirs up trouble. When something happens, he doesn't even give me a glance, let alone speak up for our son.
The problem is that not only did they not speak up for him, but they also acted arrogantly at home. Even though their son is in this state, they still get scolded. How much harm must that cause?
Zhang Wentao seemed surprised that his usually gentle and generous wife would accuse him like a madwoman. He was stunned for a long time before he reacted after Mrs. Zhang finished scolding him.
"You're absolutely unreasonable!"
After a long while, he finally managed to utter this sentence.
"I'm unreasonable? I think you're the unreasonable one!"
"You yourself are useless and incompetent, and after all these years you're still just a fourth-rank official! You're incompetent, yet you won't allow others to be competent. You're jealous of General Lu's favor with the emperor. Don't think I don't know that."
"Why is General Lu favored? It's because he has made great contributions! I, a woman confined to the inner quarters, know all the great things he has done. Do you think you don't know?"
"If it weren't for General Lu and his wife, you would be nothing but a pile of bones by now, after that palace coup at the end of last year. It's one thing that you don't know how to be grateful, but you're making things difficult for Young Master Lu on such a fine day. How dare you say I'm unreasonable?"
"Is it so hard to admit that someone is better? I've been married to you for so many years, you are my husband, I have always respected and honored you, and I have never said these things to you before, but tonight, you really went too far!"
Madam Zhang's tears flowed uncontrollably. She had thought it all through and knew she had to say these things. Even if she was divorced, she had to say it, otherwise she wouldn't be able to swallow this insult.
Her son might not be considered outstanding by outsiders, but in her eyes, he was no worse than anyone else. He studied hard every day, never forgot to be filial to his parents, and was gentle and polite in his dealings with others, unlike his father who seemed ill-mannered.
Thinking of this, she glanced at Zhang Wentao with disgust, regretting that she had married such a brainless, pedantic old man.
"You, you, you..."
Zhang Wentao clearly saw the disgust in his wife's eyes, and he was so angry that he was trembling all over.
It's one thing for him to lose arguments with others outside, but can't he even talk about his own son at home?
Now even the women in his family look down on him. What does that mean?
Perhaps Madam Zhang touched a nerve, or perhaps he felt guilty and didn't know how to face his wife and children. He didn't actually have the idea of divorcing his wife, but he was very angry and speechless. He turned and left.
"Mother……"
Seeing his mother arguing with his father over him, Young Master Zhang felt terrible. Seeing his mother crying like this, he felt even more guilty.
If he could have withstood a few of Lu Ziyu's moves, his mother wouldn't have suffered such injustice.
"Jun'er, you don't need to say anything. Your mother knows you're a good child. Tonight's incident was your father's fault for offending someone, it's not your fault. That young master Lu is very capable despite his young age. If you have the chance, you can associate with him more. Don't listen to your father!"
Mrs. Zhang wiped away her tears and instead smiled as she comforted her son.
Upon seeing this, Young Master Zhang nodded emphatically: "Mother, I understand."
Although Mrs. Zhang cried, she also felt relieved after venting her anger. Before, she had kept everything bottled up inside, which made her feel terrible. Tonight, she vented her anger to her heart's content and felt much better than any medicine.
She figured it out. Anyway, more than 20 years have passed, and she's too lazy to fawn over Zhang Wentao anymore. If anyone dares to mess with her or insult her son, she'll give them a good dressing down!
Meanwhile, at the Lu family's place, Gou'er was praised all the way back. They said he was smart, calm in the face of trouble, and capable of growing up with ease. He even managed to turn the tables on Zhang Wentao, beating up Zhang Wentao's son and teaching Zhang Wentao a lesson.
Gou'er was also happy to have brought honor to his parents, but thinking of the Zhang family's eldest son who had been badly beaten, he still said, "Mother, I want to apologize to Brother Zhang when I go to school tomorrow. Brother Zhang is actually quite nice; he was just implicated by his father tonight, and I had to teach his father a lesson, so..."
Thinking about this, Gou'er still felt a little guilty, after all, he was still young and kind.
"If you want to do it, then do it. If the young master of the Zhang family is truly reasonable, he should understand that it was his father who made things difficult for you tonight, and he won't hold a grudge against you."
He Jiuniang rubbed the dog's little head; she had always supported her son's ideas.
Moreover, the son's idea is good; it shows he understands how to conduct himself in society, so we should support him even more.
The dog chuckled and asked, "Can I bring some braised duck and milk tea for everyone tomorrow?"
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