"My lord~"
Concubine Yuan knew best how to please Xie Yi. She leaned against him limply, her arms loosely around his neck, and the two hugged tightly.
Xie Yi prided himself on being a man of passion. When he was young, he could take a fancy to a woman as fairylike as Lady Yun. As he got older, he preferred a charming woman like Concubine Yuan even more. Otherwise, Concubine Yuan wouldn't have been in favor for so many years.
In broad daylight, the two hugged each other recklessly in the outer study. As they got more involved, they didn't even hear the deliberately loud voice of Wu'er in the yard.
It wasn't until the study door was kicked open with a "bang".
"Who dares to interrupt my good deed!" Xie Yi looked up from Concubine Yuan's chest with a gloomy look on his face. Without even turning around, he shouted angrily, "Get out of here!"
"Who do you want to get out!"
There was a chill in this voice, which made Xie Yi shiver. The hand around Concubine Yuan loosened involuntarily. But he still had a glimmer of hope in his heart. He turned around to look.
This look almost scared his soul out of his body.
He saw that Old Madam Xie had one foot stepped into the room with Nanny Su's support. The young servant Wu'er was following behind, hunched over.
Xie Yi was immediately flustered. He pushed Concubine Yuan away. "Ouch!" Concubine Yuan was shocked and was thrown to the ground. She fell hard and couldn't help groaning.
But Xie Yi had no time to care about her. He stood up in a hurry, patted his clothes twice, and stood in front of Old Madam Xie. He bowed deeply and said, "Greetings, Mother."
"Kneel down!"
The old madam roared angrily. Xie Yi's knees went weak, and he knelt down with a thud. Concubine Yuan also held back her groans.
Nanny Su moved a chair over and placed it behind Old Madam Xie. She helped the old madam sit down.
Old Madam Xie sat down without looking at Xie Yi. Her eyes were fixed on Concubine Yuan, who was holding her waist. A look of disgust flashed across her face. She waved to Nanny Su and said, "Have someone take her away. If she dares to come to the front - yard study again, have her sold."
"No! Old Madam!" Concubine Yuan rushed straight over, but was stopped by two old women who grabbed her arms. Concubine Yuan was immediately panicked and shouted, "My lord, save me."
Xie Yi knelt on the ground, with a look of pity on his face. He looked at the old madam and pleaded, "Mother..."
"Concubine Yuan, the old madam only forbids you from coming to the front - yard study. She doesn't shout at you or beat you. Who are you putting on this act for?" Nanny Su stepped forward and blocked Concubine Yuan's sight. "This front - yard study is the place where the gentlemen handle business. People come and go. Even the old madam doesn't set foot here. The concubine's behavior like this is really inappropriate."
Hearing Nanny Su's words, Xie Yi swallowed the words he wanted to plead silently.
Seeing that the situation was hopeless, Concubine Yuan still wanted to shout unwillingly, but was gagged by the old women and dragged away.
Seeing that the person was dragged away, Nanny Su bowed and walked out. She closed the study door and stood guard outside.
In the large study, only the mother and son were left.
Old Madam Xie looked at her son, who was already over thirty but still naive. She shook her head and only felt exhausted.
Xie Yi looked up at the old madam and weakly called out, "Mother!" He didn't quite understand why his mother had made such a big fuss.
"It's my fault that I didn't teach you well!"
"Mother..."
Old Madam Xie raised her hand to stop Xie Yi's words and continued, "I know you've been feeling aggrieved these days. You're not convinced because I asked Feng Ran to teach Chenghui and gave her the family - head token, aren't you?"
Xie Yi rolled his eyes, moved his legs, and murmured, "What does a little girl like her know about propriety? It's just that you've favored her, Mother."
"Heh!" Old Madam Xie sneered, "The little girl doesn't know propriety, but you do?"
"If you knew a bit of propriety, you wouldn't be fooling around with the concubine in the outer study in broad daylight, and you wouldn't still not have sent back the memorial after the emperor asked you to defend yourself."
The angrier Old Madam Xie got, the louder she slapped the table.
Xie Yi knew he was in the wrong and didn't dare to refute. But he still had something to say about Xie Feng Ran.
"Mother, if it weren't for that girl causing such a stir outside, I wouldn't have been punished by the emperor."
Now he was just an idle marquis. The emperor wouldn't think of him for half a year. If it weren't for Xie Feng Ran, who would still pay attention to the Marquis of Dingguo's Mansion?
"You're so stupid!" The old madam wished she could knock open Xie Yi's head to see what was inside. "If the emperor really intended to punish you, why would he go to the trouble of giving you a chance to defend yourself? It's just that this matter is not yet finalized. The emperor gave you a chance to complain, but you don't even know how? Aren't you stupid!"
"Ah!" Xie Yi stared at her with wide eyes in a daze. "Does the emperor really mean that?"
"The emperor knows exactly what happened at the palace banquet. The third princess and the imperial concubine are still under house arrest, which shows that the emperor doesn't believe it. But the matter that Feng Ran mistreated her half - sister and was disrespectful to her parents did spread from our mansion. The emperor asking you to defend yourself is just asking you to explain. Who would have thought that you're so useless that you even missed the chance to explain!"
"Ah, Mother, what should we do?"
"What should we do?" Old Madam Xie snorted. "Of course, we should severely punish those who spread rumors and rectify the rules of this mansion well!"
"This..." Xie Yi hesitated.
Although he was sometimes muddle - headed, he wasn't stupid.
He didn't need to think to know who the person the mother was talking about with such killing intent was.
But in his opinion, his eldest daughter hadn't really been hurt. Once the rumors were clarified, it would be over. There was no need to make a big fuss. The mansion was peaceful and stable now!
"You have no say in this matter!" Old Madam Xie didn't give Xie Yi any chance to shirk. She said firmly, "Nanny He has already found out those who spread rumors behind people's backs. It not only involves the one in your courtyard but also things in the West Courtyard."
"If we muddle through this time, it won't just boost the ambition of the inner courtyard. In the future, whether you can keep your position as the marquis won't be up to me!"
"How could that be? Why does Second Brother target Feng Ran?"
"Human greed knows no bounds. Yi'er, remember, I gave the family - head token to Feng Ran for the stability of the Marquis's Mansion and for your position as the marquis."
Old Madam Xie said earnestly, "When your father was alive, the Marquis's Mansion was prosperous. With your father's ability, he could surely keep you happy all your life. Naturally, you didn't have to follow in your father's footsteps. Who would have thought..."
A look of pain flashed in Old Madam Xie's eyes. She sighed deeply. "Forget it. It's all fate. Now that your character has been formed, I don't want to make things difficult for you. I just hope you remember that if you want to keep the glory of the Marquis's Mansion, don't listen to the slander of that mother and daughter and go looking for trouble with that child Feng Ran."
"Does that girl really have that much ability?" Xie Yi murmured. He was not convinced in his heart, but when he saw his mother's fierce look, he immediately knelt up straight and said, "Yes, Mother. Don't worry. I won't look for trouble with Feng Ran in the future!"
Old Madam Xie nodded. Her son, although incompetent, still valued his position as the marquis. As long as she grasped the key point, he wouldn't dare to cause trouble.
At this time, Nanny Su knocked on the door and said softly, "Old Madam, the eldest young lady is back."