Mo Mansion.
Liu Roujie looked at Liu Hui, somewhat surprised, "Father, what brings you here?"
She tried to get up, but she was feeling heavy, so her maidservant helped her up, and Liu Hui pressed Liu Roujie back down to sit.
Looking at his daughter, Liu Hui didn't know where to begin. In three months, Liu Roujie's baby would be born. Mo Leshan was clearly not the right man, but could the child be left without a father?
Seeing Liu Hui's hesitant expression, Liu Roujie grew anxious. "Father, what happened? Is it that my husband...?"
Liu Hui sighed, "It's related to him."
Liu Hui couldn't bring himself to hide the truth from his daughter and let her continue living with that beast. He told Liu Roujie everything he had heard from Tong Aning.
Liu Roujie's vision went black, and she slumped heavily back into her chair.
"Miss..."
" Roujie..."
The maid and Liu Hui frantically helped Liu Roujie up.
The chair was cushioned, and there was a pillow behind her. Liu Roujie shook her head. "I'm fine."
But her face was pale, and she didn't look like she was alright at all.
Liu Hui said anxiously, " Xiaoyue, go and fetch a doctor."
The maid Xiaoyue responded.
Liu Roujie grasped Liu Hui's hand, her expression resolute, and said, "Father, there's something I need to discuss with you."
"You say."
When Mo Leshan rushed home, he was met with a letter of divorce.
Liu Roujie wants to divorce her husband.
Mo Leshan knelt before Liu Roujie, pleading bitterly, when the commander of the imperial guards arrived, saying he would take Mo Leshan into the palace.
Upon seeing this, Mo Leshan suddenly collapsed to the ground.
Half an hour ago.
A woman, accompanied by her young daughter, struck the Dengwen Drum, pleading that she had suffered a great injustice and hoping that His Majesty would redress her grievances.
The woman continued to knock even when her hands were almost too heavy to lift. Her face was pale, and the only color on her face was the blood seeping from the cut on her lip. The wind lifted her coarse linen clothes high, highlighting her unyielding spirit.
She must sue.
The onlookers were somewhat moved and unanimously pleaded for justice to be served for her.
She didn't know how long she waited, but finally the person came out.
She knelt before them and declared firmly, "I want to see His Majesty."
The woman and the young girl were brought to the court.
[Are these Mo Leshan's first wife and daughter?]
Yes, host.
The woman paused, wondering if it was a divine intervention.
The courtiers' gazes towards the mother and daughter immediately changed, some showing sympathy, others pity.
The woman, with her young daughter, knelt before the emperor. She stood straight and resolutely declared, "Your Majesty, I wish to sue Mo Leshan, the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel, for not only abandoning his wife and daughter but also imprisoning them, and then seeking to marry another."
The emperor had already heard about it.
The woman was horribly thin, and the child wasn't in much better shape. It was likely that the child had been not only imprisoned but also tortured. To treat his own wife and daughter so cruelly, this Mo Leshan was simply outrageous.
The emperor, his face grim, said sternly, "I will definitely investigate this matter thoroughly and seek justice for you and your daughter."
Li Yuanling kowtowed to her clasped hands, hot tears streaming down her cheeks, and said in a trembling voice, "Thank you, Your Majesty."
She emphasized each word, as if it weighed a ton, crashing down with those dark and hopeless years.
[That shameless scoundrel Mo Leshan.]
Tong Aning was furious. She felt sorry for the mother and daughter, as well as for the deceived Liu family girl and her unborn child.
"Your Majesty, Mo Leshan is already outside the palace."
"Bring him in."
Following Mo Leshan in were Liu Hui and Liu Roujie.
The emperor looked at the Liu family father and daughter. If it weren't for Liu Hui, the Minister, Mo Leshan would never have been appointed to such an important position as the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel.
He's using his wife and daughters to pave the way for his own career; it's truly despicable.
However, Liu Hui is a pillar of the state, and we cannot disregard his reputation in this matter.
The Emperor said, "Minister Liu, you must already know what happened."
On the way here, the commander of the Imperial Guards told them, and Liu Hui, "Your subject knows."
"So you mean...?"
My daughter's opinion is my opinion.
Mo Leshan, whose heart had sank ever since he saw Li Yuanling and her daughter, was now somewhat pleased again. Liu Roujie was the most soft-hearted person; as long as he pleaded with her properly, she would definitely change her mind. At that time, would he still have to worry about losing his life and official position?
Mo Leshan looked at Liu Roujie with hope in his eyes.
How could Liu Roujie not know what Mo Leshan was thinking? She sneered, "Your Majesty, I have already divorced this beast. He has nothing to do with my Liu family anymore. He can be dealt with however he pleases. My Liu family will not utter a single complaint."
Mo Leshan looked at Liu Roujie in disbelief, "What did you say? Roujie, I'm your husband."
Liu Roujie's icy gaze fell on Mo Leshan, Mo Leshan felt a chill in his heart. He had been married to Liu Roujie for so long, and he had never seen such a look in her eyes before. Liu Roujie had always been gentle and tender towards him.
"Do you still remember that you are my husband? What did you say the day you proposed to me? You said you would be devoted to me and would never lie to me or deceive me, or else you would be struck by lightning and die a horrible death. Mo Leshan, go to hell."
Mo Leshan's face paled with horror. Looking at Liu Roujie's swollen belly, he seemed to suddenly grasp a glimmer of hope. He cried out impatiently, "But you're carrying my child! A child can't be without a father!"
Liu Hui couldn't help but look at his daughter. He had also struggled with this issue, but his daughter was much more determined than he was.
Liu Roujie placed her hand on her stomach and said, "This is my child. It will be raised by the Liu family from birth. What does it have to do with you?"
Mo Leshan only knew that Liu Roujie was soft-hearted, but he didn't know that Liu Roujie was just indulging the person she liked. Once she stopped loving him, she would quickly withdraw.
[Great, well done.]
Mo Leshan was still not giving up. He said angrily, "Do you really want your unborn child to be fatherless? Aren't you afraid that the child will resent you when it grows up?"
Liu Roujie said calmly, "There's no need for an outsider like you to worry about that."
Mo Leshan nearly vomited blood in anger; she actually called him an outsider.
[Hahahaha, serves him right.]
Mo Leshan was taken away.
Li Yuanling, however, could no longer hold on and completely fainted.
When Li Yuanling woke up again, the first person she saw was Liu Roujie.
When Liu Roujie saw that she was awake, she asked Xiaoyue to help her up.
Where is my Xiaoxiao?
Liu Roujie said, "The child is exhausted and has fallen asleep. Eat something first, and I'll take you to see her when you have the strength."
Xiaoyue handed Li Yuanling a bowl of plain porridge. After Li Yuanling finished eating, she asked, "Can I go see Xiaoxiao now?"
"Can."
On the way, Li Yuanling asked, "Why did you bring me back to the Liu family?"
"Because we are all people with hard lives, aren't we?"
Looking at this face, Li Yuanling, what a kind and intelligent girl she is, yet she has been wasted by that scumbag Mo Leshan.
Li Yuanling felt a pang of guilt. "If only I had run away sooner, you wouldn't have been fooled for so long..."
"Don't be so hard on yourself," Liu Roujie with a charming smile, "It's not too late now."
Li Yuanling stopped crying and smiled, then pushed open the door to her daughter's room.
*
The weather was perfect that day, Tong Aning was going hunting with Xue Lin.
Tong Yibin was surprised to find out and thought, "This is terrible!" He decided to follow along as well.
Upon hearing this, Su Zhouyue realized that Tong Yibin was just a weak scholar who couldn't protect Tong Aning at all, so she decided to go along too.
So when Tong Aobai returned, he was met with an empty mansion.
Tong Aobai: "Where is he?"
His wife is such a high-ranking woman!
Uncle Zhao said, "Madam, the eldest young master, and the fourth young lady went hunting in the mountains, while the second young lady, Mu Yao, and the fifth young lady went to the shop."
Tong Aobai: "... So I've become all alone?"
Uncle Zhao: "Yes, Lord Marquis."
Tong Aobai: "..."
He clenched his fists and turned to leave.
Uncle Zhao hurriedly said, "My lord, the lady instructed you not to follow, lest you interfere with her performance."
Tong Aobai felt a surge of frustration. "I'll go to the study, I'll go to the study, okay?"
The outskirts of Beijing.
Tong Aning drew her bow and nocked an arrow; her aim was excellent, but her strength was lacking.
Su Zhouyue: "Draw the bowstring taut."
"I don't have the strength to pull the poop all the way."
Su Zhouyue: "..."
She rode her horse to Tong Aning's side, grasped Tong Aning's hand, and pulled hard, sending the arrow flying that almost pierced the wood.
Tong Aning's eyes lit up. "Mommy, you're amazing!"
"Of course," Su Zhouyue said confidently. "Back in the day, your mother was a sharpshooter, so this is a waste of her talent."
Tong Aning laughed heartily, when suddenly an arrow shot towards her, which Su Zhouyue Tong Aning in half with her dagger.
Su Zhouyue's eyes sharpened as she looked in the direction from which the arrow had come.
Xue Lin's expression was also not good. "I've already asked Sichen to investigate."
Tong Yibin said, "It might not have been intentional."
Sichen returned quickly and said, "There's a group of wealthy young men hunting not far away. That arrow was accidentally shot in our direction."
The group breathed a sigh of relief. Tong Aning asked curiously, "A hunt? What are they hunting?"
Sichen shook his head; he was too far away to know.
[Host, they're hunting living people!]
Tong Aning: "!!!"
[What's going on these past few days? First there was that beast Mo Leshan, and now a bunch of beasts hunting people have appeared.]
Tong Aning gritted her teeth; she was clearly furious.
The remaining few felt the same way. Since they had encountered this situation, they could not stand idly by. So, they followed Tong Aning towards the hunting grounds they had been hunting in.
Upon arrival, several people in brocade robes simultaneously drew their bows and aimed their arrows at a frail woman in the center.
The woman trembled with fear and tried to run, but no matter which direction she ran, a warning arrow shot out in the open ground in front of her.
After several repetitions, the woman began to feel numb. She slowly sat down on the ground, as if resigned to her fate and ready to die.
Even so, those people were still not satisfied.
"I'm making you a sitting duck, a sitting duck, do you understand?"
"How can we show our strength if you don't run?"
Tong Aning's eyes were practically blazing with fury as she spurred her horse forward.
You want to make them live targets? She'll take them down right now!!!