Jiapingguan Chronicle

"This story is absolutely outrageous!" Xia Jiu took a sip of tea to calm herself down, then looked at Xiao Fengqi. "Is there more to it? Does that Wuhale know that his son has inadvertently caused such a huge disaster?"

"And speaking of which, the people from the Xiao family went to the post station to look for Wuhale, but they couldn't find him. They said he went to drink with his brother whom they hadn't seen in a long time."

"This," Xia Jiu sighed, "You're really carefree. After causing such a commotion, you still went drinking."

So, will he be able to get there in time?

“Yes, the place where he was drinking wasn’t far from the post station, and he received the news not long after it started.” Xiao Fengqi sneered. “I heard that when he received the news, he was stunned for a long time, thinking that he had misheard. He never expected that his son would be so bold as to help the Xiao family’s young lady.”

"It's also his own fault for not teaching him well. He just entered Linhuang Prefecture, doesn't he know he should be careful with his words and actions?"

“I guess I did teach him, but I didn’t expect that my son would cause trouble if I wasn’t watching him closely.” Xiao Fengqi spread his hands. “After recovering, Wuhale rushed to the gate of the Xiao residence to apologize. At first, his great-aunt didn’t let him in and made him wait at the gate. He just knelt there at the gate, and even as more and more people gathered around and pointed at him, he didn’t dare to move an inch.”

"This..." Shen Cha frowned slightly, "Isn't this a bit inappropriate?"

"There's nothing wrong with it. Everyone in Linhuang Prefecture knows that Wuhale is affiliated with the Xiao family and is a member of the Xiao family. Moreover, most people have only heard about the heinous things his son did in the street. Those who haven't heard about it initially thought that the Xiao family was bullying them, but after learning the inside story, they also felt that their great-aunt did the right thing. Of course, there were also many busybodies who went to the palace to complain, but they didn't even get into the palace. The Regent's Palace directly sent out a message that the Xiao family should handle this matter themselves. If the Northern Court needs assistance, the Northern Court will definitely do its duty without hesitation."

“Our Northern Court’s responsibilities are the same as those of the Court of Judicial Review and the Ministry of Justice in the Great Xia Dynasty. We are also responsible for handling cases involving members of the royal family and tribal nobles.” Qi Zhifeng looked at them and explained, “This shows that the late emperor and the regent are on the side of the Xiao family.”

"When the Regent sent out the message, he also asked those who wanted to file complaints a question."

"What?"

"Let them think about whether they would be able to let things go smoothly if their own sisters or elders encountered such a situation!"

“The Regent was truly an upright person in his early years,” Shen Cha sighed softly.

“Power is blinding and can easily lead people astray.” Xiao Fengqi spread his hands. “The complainant has given up, but Wuhale can only kneel at the gate of the mansion. After kneeling for almost half an hour, he was finally allowed to enter. When he was about to go in, he couldn’t stand up at all. His guards had to help him up, and he limped through the gate.”

"My legs went numb from kneeling."

"Yes."

"Is this all the punishment we're going to give him? It's too lenient." Xia Jiu and Shen Jiu exchanged glances, then gave Qi Zhifeng another look. "If it were us, we'd be letting him off easy by not skinning him alive."

"That's still too lenient." Qi Zhifeng rolled his eyes and held up three fingers. "It's not just one layer of skin, it needs to be at least three layers. I'm not saying it'll bankrupt them, but it should be the kind of thing that makes them feel the pain of losing money whenever they think about it, the kind that makes their hearts ache at the slightest touch. Otherwise, they won't learn their lesson."

“Yes!” Xia Jiu nodded. “In the days to come, whenever they think of doing something like this again, they will tremble involuntarily, and their heart will ache. They will have to think about whether they can bear the consequences of doing such a thing.” “That’s right, we need to make them live in constant fear and be careful with their words and actions for the rest of their lives.” Qi Zhifeng looked at Xiao Fengqi and raised an eyebrow slightly. “Based on my understanding of my great-aunt, she shouldn’t stop here, right?”

"You're overthinking it. Of course not. My great-aunt's thoughts are similar to yours. We want them to remember this once and for all so they can't repeat it." Xiao Fengqi smiled. "Although my aunt isn't my great-aunt's child, she is indeed one of her favorite juniors. She will definitely seek justice for my aunt and won't just take it lightly. Both Uhale and his son will have to pay a heavy price for this frivolous act."

"So, making Uhale kneel at the door for so long is the first step in the punishment?"

"Yes, another point is to let everyone in Linhuang Prefecture know about the evil deeds of Wuhale's son. Once this person appears on the street, stay away from him and don't give him the opportunity to harm other girls."

“This method,” Shen Cha nodded, “is indeed good.”

"As it turns out, that's exactly what happened. Every time Uhale and his son came out of the post station, they would see many people avoiding them and pointing at them." Xiao Fengqi sighed softly and said, "Not only that, when they came to Linhuang Prefecture that time, they were hoping to be transferred in, but..." He shook his head gently, "...everything came to nothing."

"He deserves it."

Xiao Fengqi nodded and continued, "Wuhale was led into the mansion, but he still couldn't see his great-aunt. Instead, he waited at the entrance of the main hall for about the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, while he stood outside listening to the sound of whips being cracked."

"Whipping him? Is he interrogating his son?"

“Yes!” Xiao Fengqi sighed. “It is said that Uhalle’s face looked very bad.”

"Is your pale face a sign of shame or... anger?"

“Yes, but not to my great-aunt, but to his son.” Xiao Fengqi sighed. “My great-aunt called him in half an hour later, and what greeted him was a teacup that my great-aunt threw at him in a fit of rage.”

"Were you scared to death?"

“Yes.” Xiao Fengqi nodded. “There’s nothing we can do about it. He did manage to avoid it, but my great-aunt said she was even angrier then.”

"She should have knelt down and apologized as soon as she went in." The Third Master shook his head helplessly. "We can't just let it go because the girl didn't suffer any real harm. The shadow left in her heart can't be erased in a short time, and it may even affect her entire life."

“You’re right. That’s what my great-aunt meant too. We must let her see with her own eyes that those who have hurt her or tried to hurt her have received their due retribution and punishment. Only in this way can we eliminate those negative influences.” Xiao Fengqi sighed and said, “I can understand my great-aunt. In fact, Uhale could understand too, but he was in a state of anxiety at the time and didn’t react immediately.”

"So that's what further angered your great-aunt, right?"

"Yes!" Xiao Fengqi sighed and said, "What happened next, apart from my great-aunt, Uhale, his son, and my aunt, no one else knows. What agreement they reached, and when Uhale led his son away from the Xiao residence, he kowtowed nine times at the gate." (End of this chapter)