"What do you mean by that? Why should I, a princess, apologize to you?"
Princess Anping sat in the main seat, treating the place as her own home. Madam Sun didn't mind and went to sit in the guest seat. For a moment, it was hard to tell who was the host and who was the guest.
Sun turned to look at the old woman with a deadpan expression. She was very old, with all her hair white, but her eyes were sharp and full of contempt.
On the way, Madam Sun had already asked the servant about what had happened that morning. Upon learning the purpose of the grandfather and grandson, she felt a surge of disgust. They were indeed very depraved.
"Oh? Didn't you come to apologize? I heard that your son upset my son this morning, so I thought the princess was in such a hurry to visit me to apologize. Isn't that right?"
In short, every word is precious.
She not only said that Princess Anping's sudden visit was impolite and interrupted her plans to meet with friends, but also that Yuhe's visit in the morning had displeased the Lu family, making the grandmother and grandson seem worthless.
"What nonsense are you spouting? I was sent by my grandmother to discuss cooperation with your Lu family. My grandmother was a princess personally bestowed by the late emperor. Being favored by my grandmother is a blessing your Lu family has accumulated in your past lives. Not only do you not appreciate our good intentions, but you also disrespect my grandmother. How dare you!"
Yuhe stepped forward to confront Sun Shi. Sun Shi was known for her sharp tongue in the village, so she wasn't afraid of the grandmother and grandson. She stood with her hands on her hips and started yelling, "You're the one who's disrespectful! Your grandmother was a princess personally appointed by the late emperor, and I'm a first-rank imperial consort personally appointed by the retired emperor. By all accounts, I'm not much lower than a princess. Besides, my son is a second-rank general. Who do you think you are to dare challenge me?"
"You keep saying you want to cooperate with the Lu family, how dare you say such a thing? What benefits can you offer us? Why should I share my perfectly good business with you for no reason? You have the nerve to say that, calling yourselves royalty? Isn't this a disgrace to the royal family?"
"Yes, you were originally nobles, high and mighty and very impressive, but isn't it true that fortunes change? Even a princess like you is shameless enough to take advantage of a peasant like me, so how noble can you still be?"
"Still boasting about having powerful connections? Let me see where you're powerful. Our Lu family has never had any dealings with you. If we're looking for powerful connections, why not find someone we know? His Highness Prince Jing just recognized me as his godmother, can't I ask him for help?"
"The Empress and my daughter-in-law are good friends. Is it wrong for me to ask her for help? How dare you come up to me like this? You're really something else! I've never seen anything like it!"
This outburst stunned not only Princess Anping, but even the maids and servants standing nearby.
In their eyes, the old lady had always been a very kind and easy-going person, treating them, the servants, even better than their own mothers. They never expected the argument to be so fierce. Of course, they found it quite enjoyable to watch from the sidelines.
Especially the servant who had just been beaten by Yuhe, was so excited that he couldn't express it. He really wished he could become the old lady's apprentice on the spot!
"You! You..."
Princess Anping's expression changed repeatedly. She had come to cause trouble, but instead, she was humiliated instead.
She was a princess personally appointed by the late emperor, yet this old peasant woman dared to humiliate her like this!
Overwhelmed by anger and anxiety, he fainted.
"Grandmother! Grandmother! Quickly, get a doctor!"
Yu He anxiously supported Princess Anping, and the worry in his eyes was genuine.
After all, she's the only living advertisement in the family. The others aren't very successful. If the old lady were to pass away, they don't know how destitute their family would become.
Madam Sun rolled her eyes, looked at the maids and servants in the house, and said, "This is it? You dare to cause trouble in my house? You all saw what happened just now, right? Don't let anyone bully you in the future, understand?"
"Understood, Madam!"
The servants nodded vigorously. Madam Sun turned and walked out, saying kindly, "Please ask the physician to come and take a look. If something really happens, who knows how much money we'll be extorted from."
Fortunately, the old lady wasn't seriously ill, and she was fine once she woke up. Sun had someone send her back home.
When the whole family was having dinner together that evening, Sun brought up the matter, and Lianhua said apologetically, "Grandma, it was my fault. That young master Yu came to see me a long time ago, but I refused him because the elders were not at home and I couldn't make the decision. After that, I forgot to tell you, which made you feel disgusted for no reason."
Old Lu found it quite amusing and laughed, "So this guy who's trying to take advantage is actually quite sincere, like he's gone to great lengths to visit Zhuge Liang."
Sun glared at him and said irritably, "So, you're the only one who can laugh if I didn't disgust you!"
This incident did not have much impact on the Lu family. Lu Baichuan smiled and said, "It's alright. We can just not let them in from now on, so we won't have to worry about these things."
"That's right, let's eat!"
Old Lu nodded repeatedly and downed three large bowls in a row.
They thought the matter was over, but the Yu family had a new trick up their sleeve. The next day, news spread throughout the city that the Lu family was disrespecting the imperial authority. The rumors were exaggerated, saying that the Lu family had named and cursed the late emperor, showing great disrespect to him, and that they were using their current power and status to bully the princess whom the late emperor had personally appointed.
Old Man Lu heard this news when he went out for a walk early in the morning. When he came back, he was furious. He went to find Lu Baichuan and complained, "Even if you didn't go to court, I could guess that you were among the people impeached by the officials this morning. How do you plan to resolve this? Disrespecting imperial authority is a serious crime!"
The Lu family is already a target of attention. If someone takes advantage of their misfortune, wouldn't that delay their son's return to Changzhou?
"No rush, I've already sent someone to take care of it."
Lu Baichuan also heard the news early in the morning and immediately sent people out. Since the Princess's Mansion was unwilling to let it go, he would accompany them to the end.
Hearing his son say that, Old Man Lu was relieved, but he was no longer in the mood to go out and play. He went back to the yard to play with the dog's pet monkey and planned to go out again after the matter calmed down.
During the morning court session, some people did bring up this matter. The emperor was annoyed when he heard these people talking badly about the Lu family. If it weren't for these people's instigation, he wouldn't have become suspicious of the Lu family.
He interrupted impatiently: "Enough! General Lu has already left the court, why are you still holding onto him? It's just a minor friction between the two sides, why bring it up in court? Are you being so aggressive because you've received benefits from the Princess's mansion? If so, I'll have to investigate whether you've been secretly colluding!"
To everyone's surprise, the emperor was even more protective of the Lu family than before. One by one, they knelt down to apologize. The emperor wasn't really angry. Seeing that they were quite sensible, he changed the subject and let the matter drop.
To everyone's surprise, Princess Anping still refused to give up. That very day, news spread that she had attempted suicide at home. It was said that many doctors were called in to save her. When she woke up, she kept crying, saying that she had let down the late emperor and brought shame upon him, which was why her family of peasants had been so humiliated.
This was clearly an attempt to force the emperor to punish the Lu family; otherwise, if word got out that the emperor had disrespected his ancestors for the sake of an outsider, the charge would be much more serious.
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