"Oh? I wonder what it is?" Cao Dexiu immediately pressed.
Everyone's eyes turned to Ye Xi in unison, curious about what she had to prove her identity.
The Ye family members exchanged glances, all seeing shock and unease in each other's eyes.
Ye Xi rummaged in her bosom and took out the token given to her by Hunyuan. She showed it to everyone.
"The Lotus Gold Token!?" Cao Dexiu blurted out after just one glance.
Everyone was startled and stood up in a fluster.
Saixing was overjoyed. Right! She had forgotten that Miss had Master Hunyuan backing her up!
The Ye family members felt a sinking feeling in their hearts, knowing things were going to go wrong. Jiang Ningyuan couldn't see clearly behind the screen. Hearing Cao Dexiu's shout, she instantly jumped up and took two steps forward, nearly knocking over the tea on the side.
"That's right," Ye Xi said, holding the token and slowly showing it around so that everyone could have a clear look.
"This token was originally given to me by my senior brother Hunyuan. My senior brother is a low - key person, and I usually don't like to use his name. I'm afraid people will think all my skills are just boasted about using his name."
"I originally didn't want to use this token today, thinking I could solve this matter just by 'asking for the fortune'. But now, forced by the situation, I have to take out this Lotus Gold Token."
Ye Pengcheng and his wife never expected Ye Xi to have such a background.
All their painstaking plans made overnight had gone to waste!
"No, it's impossible!" Ye Jueyao refused to believe it. She let out a shrill scream and tried to rush forward to grab the token.
Lingyan, who was standing beside, instinctively stretched out her foot and tripped Ye Jueyao, who looked like a madwoman.
"Ah!" Ye Jueyao let out a scream and fell heavily in front of Ye Xi, looking extremely embarrassed.
Ye Xi couldn't help but burst out laughing. "Miss Ye is really polite. She knows that all officials below the first rank should bow when seeing this Lotus Gold Token. She even shows her respect with such a prostrate posture."
Then she glanced at Ye Pengcheng and his wife beside her and pretended to scold. "But you're just too impatient. Lord Ye hasn't bowed yet, and you've rushed out first. Well, there are only so many people here. It will be your turn eventually. Why be in such a hurry?"
Except for Grand Tutor Cao, no one here had reached the first rank. Cao Dexiu was fine. He always paid attention to etiquette. Before Ye Xi finished speaking, he bowed respectfully.
Only the Ye family members looked ashen - faced. Ye Jueyao's face was flushed with anger. She wanted to retort but didn't know where to start. She could only glare at Ye Xi resentfully, looking like she wanted to eat her flesh and drink her blood.
Qian Fangxue still refused to give up and tried to defend herself forcefully. "I've never heard that Master Hunyuan has a junior sister. This token might be fake."
"Humph~" Before Ye Xi could say anything, Cao Dexiu sneered. "Ignorant woman. There's only one such Lotus Gold Token in the world. If the Celestial Master takes it out in public today, it's very easy to be exposed if it's fake. Who would dare to forge it? Do they want to lose their lives?"
"Idiot! If you don't know, just shut up. Bow quickly!" Ye Pengcheng scolded with an ugly face. He bowed reluctantly to Ye Xi first. Qian Fangxue and Ye Jueyao, who also looked extremely uncomfortable, had no choice but to follow suit. Along with the servants and maids beside them, they all bowed in a row.
Ye Xi felt extremely pleased.
But then Ye Pengcheng shouted loudly, pointing at the fake Taoist nun. "Come here! This nun dared to impersonate someone and deceive me and Lord Cao. Immediately take her to the Kyoto Yamen for interrogation!"
Now that the situation was out of control, he had to get rid of this fake Taoist nun quickly and not let others get hold of this handle.
The servants outside responded in unison and quickly came in to take the fake Taoist nun away.
"Lord Ye, don't be in a hurry," Ye Xi tilted her head slightly towards Lingyan. Lingyan immediately flashed in front of the fake Taoist nun like a phantom and grabbed her like a chick and brought her to Ye Xi's side.
"Since I've been 'asking for the fortune' in Kyoto, this is the first person who dared to impersonate me so blatantly. Who is she? Why did she do this? What's her ulterior motive? I must find out."
Ye Pengcheng didn't dare to let her ask. Just as he was about to argue, Ye Xi frowned and snapped. "Tell the truth about all these things and I'll spare your life. Otherwise, I'll make you wish you were dead!"
"I... I..." Seeing the situation was bad, the fake Taoist nun was already extremely frightened. But she still had a glimmer of hope, thinking that the Ye family might be able to protect her. Looking around, she couldn't say a single word for a long time.
Ye Xi saw what she was thinking and sneered. "What? Can't you see the situation clearly by now? Do you think the person behind you will ignore such a big handle on you at this point? I'm afraid before nightfall, your life will be taken under the pretext of 'suicide out of fear of punishment'!"
These words hit the nail on the head.
Everyone present understood what she meant and looked at Ye Pengcheng and the others in unison.
The fake Taoist nun was so scared that she collapsed on the ground. Without any hesitation, she knelt down beside Ye Xi with a thud and kowtowed. "Celestial Master, spare my life. I'm Tian Fen, a worker on the Ye family's suburban estate. It was... the madam who came to the estate last night and gave me a large sum of money. She asked me to dress up as a Taoist nun and taught me what to say. She told me to take a look at Miss Ye's palm today and then claim that Miss Ye had no affair with the young master of the Cao family..."
"Slut!" Qian Fangxue roared. She took a few steps forward and kicked Tian Fen hard. "How dare you slander me!"
Tian Fen was kicked to one side by Qian Fangxue. She was both angry and resentful, and spoke even more recklessly.
She swore an oath. "Every word I said is true. If there's a single lie, let me be struck by lightning and die a bad death! God have mercy... I just wanted to earn some money to marry off my son. If I hadn't been instructed by the madam, I'm just a rough person who can't even read a single character working on the estate. I don't even know what 'asking for the fortune' is. How could I have done such a thing for no reason..."
"Your Excellencies, if you don't believe me, you can go and investigate."
"You... you..." Qian Fangxue was so angry that her chest heaved. But she couldn't say a single word to refute. Overwhelmed with anger, she almost fainted.
This was the perfect time to cry and question.
Jiang Ning quickly took out the silk handkerchief from her waist. She stood up excitedly and was about to explode.
Suddenly, an anxious shout came from outside the door.
"Grandfather!"
Jiang Ning thought, Who is this? What a good timing.
Everyone turned their heads towards the door in unison.
The person who came was none other than Cao Sheng, the other key figure in this "affair scandal".