After Tan Wenhan's furious shout, an eerie silence settled over the room for a long moment before another rustling arose.
It sounded as though the two inside were hurriedly straightening their clothes.
The rustling made the faces of those outside darken further.
Tan Siyuan was an ignorant wastrel, but he was the apple of Tan Wenhan's concubine's eye. The Mansion had expended considerable resources to secure him a cushy position at the Ministry of Revenue. He should have been on duty at this hour, yet here he was, carrying on this sordid affair with Xu Ruiming's mistress in his own home!
At the thought, Tan Wenhan gave another heavy snort. "If you two don't come out now, don't blame me for sending someone in to fetch you!"
The noises inside instantly grew louder and more frantic. Clearly, Tan Wenhan's words had frightened them into picking up the pace.
Before long, the two appeared before everyone, their clothes reasonably neat, though a closer look still revealed a few disheveled details.
The moment Zhang Shiliu stepped outside and saw so many people gathered there, she shrieked and hid behind Tan Siyuan.
Tan Siyuan instinctively reached out to shield her, his face equally bewildered. "Father, Mo-Auntie... why are you all here?" He had nearly blurted out "Mother."
His second son's instinctive words made Tan Wenhan draw another harsh breath in anger.
His lawful wife, Madam Zhang, was absent today, so it was plain whom that unfinished "Mother" had been meant for.
But this was not the time to dwell on that.
His gaze blazing like a torch, he stared straight at the pair and slowly held out a hand. "Hand over the calligraphy."
Both their expressions changed. His teeth chattering slightly, Tan Siyuan still tried to deny it. "Wh-what calligraphy?"
Tan Wenhan's eyes