CWTGD Chapter 7 - Stupid and Vicious

Xiao Yan's sudden visit to the Qian family threw everyone into a state of panic.

Qian Baokun's heart skipped a beat, and in that brief moment after hearing the announcement, he mentally reviewed all his recent actions, wondering if anyone in his family—his father, brothers, sons, or relatives—had offended this fearsome man. He also questioned whether he had inadvertently offended him at court.

He set aside the guests and hurried out to greet Xiao Yan. Upon seeing that there were no Black Armored Guards accompanying him and hearing that Xiao Yan had come to deliver someone to see Princess Cheng, Qian Baokun finally exhaled a sigh of relief.

Thank goodness. He wasn't here to confiscate the family property...

That scared him to death.

After Xiao Yan was invited inside, the once lively and bustling front hall fell into a deep silence. If it weren't for the red silk and the "happiness" character decorations, the atmosphere would have been completely devoid of any celebratory feeling.

Xiao Yan sat naturally in the main seat and said, "I'm not here on official business today, so everyone, please don't be nervous."

Not on official business?

The crowd collectively let out a sigh of relief.

"I heard that there's a joyful occasion in Master Qian's residence, and I shouldn't intrude. But I happened to encounter something unusual on the mountain yesterday and thought I'd do a good deed for the day, so I came to visit."

The crowd: "..."

This man, doing a good deed?

Xiao Yan seemed oblivious to the strange looks in everyone's eyes as he continued, "I went to the mountain for some official business yesterday, and on my way back at night, I found a young lady lost in the rain."

"The young lady was all alone in the rain, lost her way, and later her horse got startled and fell off a cliff. She was fortunate that I managed to save her. Feeling it was rare for me to do a good deed, I decided to bring her back to the capital."

Hearing that Xiao Yan had arrived, Xie Yin, who had followed out of curiosity, suddenly felt a jolt in his heart. Even Song Shulan, who had been red-eyed and full of grievances, was startled.

Mountains?...

Isn't that...

"Princess Cheng, the young lady claims to be from the Song family. When she awoke from her unconsciousness, she cried and said she wanted to see you."

Princess Cheng, who had initially been watching the excitement, suddenly changed her expression.

A daughter of the Song family?

Tang Ning?!

She quickly stepped forward and anxiously asked, "Is it Tang Ning? What happened to her? Where is she?"

"Aunt..."

A low, hoarse voice came from outside the hall, causing everyone inside to instinctively turn their heads. They saw a person pushing a four-wheeled cart enter, with a young lady on it, looking quite pitiful.

The young lady was wrapped in a long, thick fur cloak, her originally beautiful face now pale as paper, with scratches covering half of her forehead and cheek.

The fox fur cloak she wore covered her down to her chin, making her lips look frighteningly pale. Her legs were wrapped in thick fur, and even though her hands were bandaged, blood was still seeping through.

Even though she had been tended to, she still looked miserable.

"Tang Ning!"

Princess Cheng was shocked. "What happened to you? How did you end up like this?"

"Aunt..."

After being lost for so long, upon seeing her closest relative, Song Tangning couldn't hold back her tears.

Princess Cheng panicked, fumbling to wipe away Song Tangning's tears but afraid of touching her wounds. However, Song Tangning didn't care, throwing herself into her aunt's arms, hugging her waist, and crying so hard she couldn't catch her breath.

Her aunt was still alive.

She was still alive...

Princess Cheng's eyes reddened as she comforted her, patting her back, and bent down to ask, "What happened? Yesterday was your mother's memorial, and you went to Lingyun Temple to offer incense. How did you end up alone in the mountains?"

Song Tangning choked out, "My brother and cousin left me in the mountains..."

The room erupted into an uproar, and Princess Cheng looked at Xie Yin in disbelief.

"I didn't!"

Xie Yin's face turned pale.

Song Tangning, still buried in her aunt's embrace, said in a trembling voice, "I went to Lingyun Temple to offer incense, with my brother, cousin, and Brother Lu. They also brought Song Shulan."

"I didn't like her disturbing my mother's peace, so I went alone to offer incense. But Song Shulan secretly followed me and knocked over my mother's eternal light. I was so angry that I slapped her."

"My brother forced me to apologize, but I refused. So... they left me in the mountains."

She lowered her head, pressing against Princess Cheng's stomach, crying so hard she could barely breathe.

"It was so cold in that forest, and I was so scared..."

"I kept calling out to my brother and the others, saying I was wrong, but they ignored me..."

"I couldn't find my way back or figure out how to return to the temple..."

The girl's voice, filled with fear, echoed in the hall, and her crying made everyone feel the depth of her despair.

Even though they hadn't witnessed it firsthand, some soft-hearted ladies and young women had tears in their eyes. Even the men, who were usually more stoic, couldn't help but gasp.

Mountain?... what kind of place is that?

Except for a few households near Lingyun Temple and the front of the mountain, the rest of the mountain was wild forest.

Some wealthy families from the capital would go hunting there in the spring, and they might even encounter bears or wolves. And in early spring, the snow on the mountain still hadn't melted.

How deep was their grudge to abandon a young lady in the mountains?

Xiao Yan listened to the girl's sobbing, his eyes cold.

"When I found Miss Song, she had injured her leg and was barely alive. She was covered in wounds and unconscious, muttering about her brother and cousin, and even mentioned someone with the surname Lu. So, I brought her back to the villa on the outskirts of the city for the night."

No one suspected Xiao Yan, a eunuch, of any improper behavior towards Song Tangning, but as his words fell, his slender fingers tapped the table beside him, and the sound felt like a mountain crashing down on certain hearts.

Princess Cheng trembled with anger.

She let go of Song Tangning and slowly walked toward Xie Yin. Everyone around quickly stepped aside, their expressions changing as they looked at Xie Yin.

"Did you do this?"

"Mother..."

"I asked you if you did this. Did you abandon Tang Ning?"

"I didn't!"

Xie Yin panicked, hurriedly explaining in desperation,

"I didn't abandon her! She was deliberately making things difficult for Shulan, saying terrible things. Brother Jin Xiu and I only wanted to make her behave herself so that she wouldn't ruin her reputation. We just sent her back to Lingyun Temple to reflect on her actions."

"Mother, please believe me, the place was just below Lingyun Temple. She could have turned around and returned. I didn't expect her to get into trouble..."

"Slap!!"

Princess Cheng slapped Xie Yin hard across the face.

"Mother..."

"Slap!"

Another slap, this time with all her strength. "You thought she wouldn't get into trouble, so why is she like this now?"

"I..." Xie Yin recoiled.

"Tang Ning is your sister, your aunt's only blood relative. How could you treat her like this?!"

Princess Cheng's eyes reddened with anger.

"You say Tang Ning spoke out of turn, but why not admit that you fools provoked her first?"

"Yesterday was your aunt's memorial day. You know how much she loved Song Xi, yet you brought a concubine's daughter to disrupt her peace? You say Tang Ning made things difficult for that concubine's daughter? If she really wanted to, that concubine's daughter wouldn't have made it back to the Song family alive!"

"A wretched girl puts on a pitiful act, and you lose your heart and abandon your own sister? How could I have raised such a brainless, cruel fool like you?!"

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T/N: The slap was very satisfying. You can read ahead to chapterr 100 here

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