Sorry, Your Grandmother Has Ascended to Godhood

Not only Ax, but Benjamin himself was also dumbfounded.

As things had developed to this point, even if he thought with his toes, he understood the Old Madam's intention.

The Old Madam had tripped Dick on purpose to help him.

Just look at the motion of that cane swinging—there was still Ax standing between the Old Madam and Dick. For the cane to bypass Ax and hit Dick was no easy feat. If the Old Madam hadn't done it on purpose, one could only say that this cane swing was truly artistic.

The Old Madam was absolutely intentional. She deliberately tripped Dick, causing the chamber pot to strike him once more. In doing so, she stood on the same front as Benjamin. If the people from the Fool Family wanted to punish Benjamin, they would inevitably have to punish the Old Madam as well, otherwise, it would violate some so-called "noble glory."

And these people were even less likely to throw a chamber pot at the Old Madam. If something were to happen to her, it wouldn't be a laughing matter; what if it escalated to The Church? Taking a step back, even if Ax dared to throw it, Claude certainly wouldn't allow it.

Therefore, the people of the Fool Family could not punish the Old Madam, and naturally, they could find no reason to punish Benjamin.

In short, the Old Madam had pushed the act of "relying on one's age to bully others" to the extreme, saving Benjamin's life.

Thinking of this, Benjamin let out a long sigh of relief.

Fortunately, although his grandmother had an eccentric temper, she was more loyal in such critical moments than his cheap father. Otherwise, he really wouldn't have known how to escape this disaster. It seemed that there were people in this world who knew how to protect their own, and not everyone was biased against their own kin.

Grateful, so grateful...

However, if Benjamin could realize this, others could realize it even more.

Looking at the Fool Family members led by Ax, with their expressions as if they had just eaten excrement, it was clear that they certainly didn't want to swallow this insult just like that.

"Duke Claude, the Old Madam is old and senile, so she doesn't know what she is saying; naturally, we won't mind. But Duke, you should be clear about how this matter ought to be handled."

As soon as Ax spoke, he aimed at the rigid Duke Claude. It seemed he also understood that the Old Madam was too difficult to deal with, so it was better to leave her aside and start with Benjamin's father.

"Hmm..."

Claude looked troubled but didn't answer immediately.

Seeing this, Benjamin's heart, which had just settled, rose again.

These people were truly like lingering ghosts; even at this point, they were still refusing to back down. One had to know that by doing this, Ax could be considered to be sowing discord within the Riser Family.

If only his father wouldn't actually agree...

"What? Don't look at me as if I'm old and my limbs aren't nimble; my mind is still very clear. I know how this matter should be handled, and I certainly won't let it end in a muddle."

Just as Claude was hesitating, the Old Madam's eyelids twitched, and she spoke up first, looking dignified and righteous to an absurd degree.

Claude was interrupted by the Old Madam again, yet he didn't flare up; instead, he remained silent, seemingly having no intention of expressing an opinion on the matter, adopting an attitude of letting the Old Madam do as she pleased.

Ax couldn't help but frown upon seeing this:

"Old Madam, please stop making a scene."

"Making a scene?" The Old Madam looked surprised, as if she had heard something strange, and put on an innocent face. "Count Ax, what do you mean by this? Aren't you the ones who came to our house to cause trouble? How did it become me making a scene? Count Ax, you must be reasonable."

Ax seemed to be losing his patience and immediately retorted: "We are not the ones causing trouble!"

After saying this, he seemed to realize his impropriety. He took a deep breath, collected his emotions, and resumed the slick posture of a noble, continuing:

"Old Madam, my child was a guest in your family and was bullied by your child. As his father, I naturally must seek justice for him. Furthermore, since your child made a mistake, we punished him on your behalf and even helped you educate him so he wouldn't repeat it. Not only do you not thank us, but you are here twisting right and wrong. Old Madam, who exactly is the unreasonable one?"

"Is that so?" The Old Madam looked even more surprised, even revealing a hint of confusion, as if she were hearing this version of events for the first time. "But wasn't it us who kindly invited young Dick to be a guest? Who knew that this child would have an episode of Night-walking Syndrome in the middle of the night, treat that thing like a ball, and not only injure himself but also make our hallway so dirty? Considering it was an unintentional mistake, we didn't hold it against you; how can you be so unreasonable?"

Slap!

Upon hearing this, Ax seemed truly enraged and slammed the table as he stood up.

"You..."

His eyes widened as he pointed his finger at the Old Madam, but the words were stuck in his throat, and the fat on his face trembled. His expression looked exactly like his son's, who couldn't speak after being hit by the chamber pot the previous night.

Everyone looked at each other, the atmosphere was strange, and even Claude showed a look of surprise, seemingly wanting to say something. However, at this moment, the Old Madam glanced back at Claude. It was a seemingly unintentional look, yet it made Claude fall silent again, with no inclination to speak.

She turned back, standing at the center of everyone's attention, yet she still wore an innocent and confused look, as if what she had just said were merely ordinary household chatter.

Benjamin was even more dumbfounded.

It seemed that this grandmother of his held a position in the Riser Family that was higher, higher, higher... higher than he could have ever imagined.

And... his serious and rigid father, Claude, was actually a mama's boy?

"Your grandfather passed away very early, and your father was basically brought up by her single-handedly. The Riser Family in the early years was actually supported by her alone. According to some rumors you've heard before, her status in the Royal Capital seems quite special, though the specifics are unclear."

The system popped up like in a Japanese anime to provide an explanation.

"You didn't mention these things before," Benjamin muttered silently.

"Oh, those are just minor details. It was a simplified version of your memory anyway; how could I cover everything? You really are quite troublesome," the system replied casually.

"..."

Benjamin felt nothing inside, having lost even the desire to complain.

Returning to reality, Ax was still blocked by the Old Madam's words, so she showed her "unforgiving" side, pressing her advantage and adding the final straw to the camel's back:

"Come, Benjamin, tell Count Ax what you saw last night. We can't let the Count be kept in the dark."

Benjamin paused, immediately reacting, and turned on his acting skills.

He put on a slightly aggrieved expression, with a hint of timidity and innocence, yet containing a trace of stubbornness, and said: "I... I just woke up last night and was a bit hungry, so I came out to find something to eat, and then I ran into Mr. Fool. Mr. Fool's state seemed quite abnormal at the time; I guess his Night-walking Syndrome was acting up, and he was holding that thing in his hands. I was just about to call out to wake him, but who knew, he tripped himself, and then... and then what happened, everyone saw."

As he spoke, he thought to himself: My acting is getting better and better.

Such a shameless person, even I am afraid of myself!

On the other side, hearing Benjamin's words, Ax immediately regained his ability to organize his thoughts and sternly rebuked: "You're lying!"

Benjamin immediately put on a weak expression, looking like he was about to cry:

"I... I'm not, it really was like that."

The Old Madam also stood up immediately, adding fuel to the fire: "How could the Count not believe him? Could it be that there is some hidden truth to this matter? Oh my, where is Dick? Quickly, ask him what exactly happened last night. Only Dick knows the truth of everything."

Where was Dick? Ah, where was Dick?

Dick was in that fragrant pile of excrement.

Ax looked at the unconscious Dick again, the fat on his face trembling, and fire seemed to be spitting from his eyes.

"Oh my, why did I just remember?" The Old Madam also looked at Dick, suddenly showing a look of "sudden realization." "I seem to have heard someone say that when people are sleepwalking, they don't remember things. What should we do? Asking Dick is useless now. Count Ax, I'm afraid this cold case cannot be solved; I am very sorry about this."

Critical hit.

Benjamin wanted to applaud. If the Old Madam had been making a scene before, these few sentences hit the nail on the head. A person who is sleepwalking is not conscious; Dick didn't actually know who hit him with the chamber pot. He just woke up and saw Benjamin, so he assumed it was him.

But in reality, the moment Benjamin threw the chamber pot, no one saw it. In other words, what happened last night was entirely up to Benjamin's word; even if others were suspicious, no one could prove otherwise.

If he said Dick hit himself with it, then Dick hit himself with it.

Poor Dick...

After the Old Madam's words, Ax felt as if a bucket of cold water had been poured over him, and he slowly realized this point. He looked at Dick, who was lying in the pile of filth, and then at the Old Madam, who wore a look of sympathy. The fighting spirit in his squinted eyes dissipated like a deflated balloon.

The other members of the Fool Family looked at each other, all appearing angry yet helpless.

In the end, Ax conceded.

"Old Madam, Duke, we shall meet again at next month's banquet. I hope you will be as spirited then as you are today." His voice was dull, like a tiger locked in a cage. "Let's go."

Under his command, the members of the Fool Family looked dejected as they began to clean up the unconscious Dick, preparing to leave.

"Wait, how can you just leave like this? That's not good." Unexpectedly, the Old Madam spoke up to keep them.

Ax, who was about to reach the door, turned around, looking suspicious, and didn't speak.

"You didn't know what was going on, yet you brought that thing into our living room, broke it, and got these filthy things all over our living room. As a noble family, shouldn't you apologize to us properly? I'm being reasonable with you, don't you think so?" The Old Madam said slowly, without a hint of blame, instead appearing as if she were convincing them with logic.

Ax was enraged again, and the other members of the Fool Family were even more furious.

"Old Madam, do you think we are easy to bully?"

The Old Madam covered her mouth in surprise, looking innocent: "How could that be? I think this is a very reasonable request. Just apologize, and we can settle this privately; let's not take it to The Church. Think about it, if the Pope were to know about this, what would he think of your Fool Family? I am doing this for your own good, to save you from losing face outside. Don't you agree?"

Upon hearing the words "Pope," everyone in the Fool Family, including Ax, showed a look of panic.

And after the Old Madam finished this sentence, the anger on their faces vanished without a trace.

If this were to go to The Church... Benjamin thought to himself, the Bishop would still want to use him, so he would definitely stand on his side. In reality, the Fool Family had no ground to stand on in this dispute. No one could prove it was Benjamin who threw the chamber pot; the Fool Family was just making trouble, and the Riser Family was already giving them face by settling it privately. Taking it to The Church would definitely be favorable to the Riser Family.

Benjamin understood this logic, and naturally, Ax understood it too. He looked at the Old Madam, his expression shifting, and finally, it settled into a trace of bitterness:

"Old Madam, you are being a bit too unreasonable."

The Old Madam's eyes rolled innocently upon hearing this. Suddenly, she revealed a smile that seemed only natural, looking as kind and harmless as a grandmother who had been swindled out of her pension by a snake-oil salesman in his previous life.

She said: "I am an old woman nearly seventy years old; I am unreasonable."

"..."

I talk to you about age, and you talk to me about logic. I talk to you about logic, and you talk to me about age.

Ax was on the verge of a breakdown.