Chapter 30: The First Lady Who Tricked Her Son

A servant came to report that the banquet was ready and invited the masters to take their seats.

Everyone followed the servant to the dining hall. Along the way, Jun Jun Zijin walked at a leisurely pace.

Jun Jun Shuyan approached Jun Jun Zijin and whispered:

"Second Sister, you were truly impressive today; look how you made First Brother so angry."

Jun Jun Zijin smiled lightly but did not answer.

Upon reaching the banquet, everyone took their seats according to custom. The Matriarch had also come to the banquet today; since her movements were inconvenient, a separate table was set up just for her.

There were two other large round tables: one for the elders and one for the juniors.

At the elders' table, Xiang Xiang Junzheng sat in the head seat, with Li Shi, the First Lady, seated beside him.

Dishes were served one by one: tender and delicious soft-braised eel, the fragrant and richly flavored Fu Shou Quan, crispy outside and tender inside sweet-and-sour squirrel fish, and the mellow and richly flavored steamed crab meat lion's head meatballs... Just looking at these dishes, which were perfect in color, aroma, and taste, made one's mouth water.

Xiang Xiang Junzheng raised his chopsticks first and said:

"It is rare for the whole family to gather today; let no one be restrained, and enjoy the meal properly."

Everyone promptly picked up their chopsticks and tasted these delicacies. Every dish left a lingering aftertaste, and everyone praised them without end.

"This soft-braised eel is truly tender and delicious, with an exquisite flavor!" the Matriarch exclaimed.

"Fu Shou Quan is also very good; its fragrance fills the air and greatly increases one's appetite," Xiang Xiang Junzheng said.

Regardless of what the people present were thinking, the atmosphere on their faces was harmonious, giving a bit of the feeling of a family banquet.

After eating only a few bites, Jun Chengcai left the table. Given Jun Chengcai's temperament, no one was surprised, and it did not affect the others' dining.

Jun Jun Zijin slowly picked up a piece of steamed crab meat lion's head meatball. She appeared to be looking down slightly, but every movement in the dining hall did not escape her eyes. She noticed that Jun Chengcai was no longer in the dining hall; she raised an eyebrow slightly, realizing that the good show was about to begin.

At that moment, a maid carrying a bowl of soup walked toward Jun Jun Zijin. Jun Jun Zijin thought to herself, "It seems this is another plot from a novel again." The maid reached Jun Jun Zijin, stumbled with a clatter, and the soup bowl was about to tip onto Jun Jun Zijin. Jun Jun Zijin leaned back, executed a beautiful spin, and the bowl of soup landed squarely on Jun Jun Zhidie, who was sitting beside Jun Jun Zijin. Jun Jun Zijin even deliberately stuck a few drops of soup on her own clothes. Jun Jun Zhidie, scalded, let out a sharp scream:

"Blind dog eyes!" She stood up and slapped the maid hard. The maid covered her face and ran away.

"Go quickly and fetch a Physician!" the Matriarch anxiously ordered the servants to call a Physician immediately to examine Jun Jun Zhidie's injuries.

Since it was summer, the young ladies were all wearing thin shirts. With that bowl of soup, Jun Jun Zhidie's clothes stuck to her body, and her red belly band was faintly visible. Jun Jun Zhidie, looking extremely embarrassed, quickly stood up to change her clothes.

A short while later, Jun Jun Zijin also stood up:

"Grandmother, Father, Mother, I have also gotten soup on my clothes; I will go change first."

Li Shi and Jun Jun Yiyi saw that Jun Jun Zijin's clothes were also dirty, exchanged a glance, and realized their goal had been achieved. As for Jun Jun Zhidie, that was an accident, and they paid her no mind.

As soon as Jun Jun Zijin walked around the tree-lined corridor, she quickly caught up with Jun Jun Zhidie. She looked at Jun Jun Zhidie's injuries and said:

"Oh my, Third Sister's body is burned red over a large area. By the time the Physician arrives, blisters might have already formed. I will go apply medicine for Third Sister right now."

Jun Jun Zhidie was unwilling, but the pain was truly severe. Waiting for the Physician would take a long time, and Jun Jun Zijin was a ready-made Physician. Although Jun Jun Zhidie hesitated in her heart, the pain from her body left her no room to think further, so she finally nodded to indicate her consent.

As the two had just reached the end of the corridor, they saw a strange-looking maid walking toward them from the front. As soon as she saw Jun Jun Zhidie, she hurriedly bowed and asked:

"Young Lady, what has happened to you?" Her tone revealed concern. Then she added:

"This servant will lead the Young Lady to change clothes immediately; please follow me." After speaking, the maid turned and led the way ahead.

The maid brought the two to the second room behind the Water Pavilion. Jun Jun Zijin thought to herself, "This is indeed a good place for committing crimes." She looked up and saw the room name: Shui Xie Yuan.

The maid, thinking the simply dressed Jun Jun Zijin was a servant, tried to stop her from entering the room. Jun Jun Zijin angrily said:

"The Young Lady has been scalded; I am a Physician. If you dare delay the Young Lady's injury, be careful that I report to the Master; even beating you to death would be too light a punishment."

The maid was stunned and felt a bit afraid. Seeing that Jun Jun Zhidie was indeed scalded, and recalling that the First Lady had indeed instructed her to lead the Young Lady changing clothes into this secluded room, but had not instructed her to keep Physicians out, she let the two enter the room.

Once the two were inside, the maid closed the door and left.

As soon as Jun Jun Zijin entered, she quickly scanned the room and vaguely saw a shadow behind the wardrobe. She remained calm and applied medicine to Jun Jun Zhidie, who had taken off her clothes. At that moment, she noticed that figure quietly emerging from behind the wardrobe and approaching the screen. Jun Jun Zijin tore off the clothes hanging on the screen, threw them over the person's head, and began a brutal beating.

"Where did this lecher come from, daring to peek at my Third Sister changing clothes!" Jun Jun Zijin shouted.

Jun Jun Zhidie was shocked; how could someone be so bold as to peek at her while she changed clothes! Her explosive temper "Bang" exploded. She quickly pulled her clothes together, her face flushed red, veins bulging on her forehead, and immediately began punching and kicking the lecher whose head was covered.

The person, in pain, tried to pull off the clothes covering his head, but the clothes were wrapped around his head several times and seemed to be tied in a knot, making it impossible to pull off.

The person, beaten into continuous wails, begged for mercy:

"Stop hitting, stop hitting! It's me! You've mistaken the person!"

"I don't care who you are; daring to peek at a young lady of the Jun family changing clothes, even beating you to death would be too light!" The two did not stop their fists, and Jun Jun Zhidie even kicked the person several more times hard.

That person was beaten until he could only make muffled, unintelligible sounds.

After a long while, the two finally stopped their fists and feet. When they untied the clothes from the person's head, they saw that his face was covered in bruises and swelling, his eyes squinted into a thin slit, his nose crooked to one side with blood faintly seeping from his nostrils; his lips were swollen high, like two sausages hanging on his face, and the corners of his mouth were cracked, with fresh blood slowly seeping out.

This miserable sight was such that even his own mother would not recognize him. Jun Jun Zijin held back her laughter and said:

"Little thief, you dared to peek at a young lady of the Jun family changing clothes. This Young Lady will now escort you to see Father and Mother."

Jun Chengcai wanted to beg for mercy, but moving his mouth caused tearing pain, and he could not speak clearly. The two only heard him saying something about being the Eldest Young Master of the Jun family.

Jun Jun Zijin sneered:

"Daring to impersonate the Eldest Young Master of the Jun family! Third Sister, let us escort him to see my Father and Mother."

Half an hour passed. The Matriarch, feeling a bit tired, returned to Jingzhu Courtyard to rest first. The First Lady felt a bit uneasy; Jun Chengcai had been gone for a long time with no news, and she began to worry that something had gone wrong. She was about to order her attendant, Xue Nainai, to go check.

Suddenly, she saw Jun Jun Zijin escorting a person with a bruised and swollen face, unrecognizable in appearance. As soon as the person arrived, Jun Jun Zijin loudly said:

"Father, Mother, I saw that Third Sister's injury was not light. By the time the Physician arrives, blisters might form. I am a Physician, so I went with Third Sister to apply medicine. Who would have thought that while Third Sister was taking off her clothes and I was applying medicine, we suddenly discovered this lecher peeking at Third Sister changing clothes. We caught him and have brought him here for you to deal with."

Li Shi, hearing that her daughter had been peeked at, immediately trembled with rage all over. She stood up, walked quickly to Jun Chengcai, who was beaten into a non-human shape, raised her hand, and was about to slap him hard.

Seeing this, the First Lady immediately shouted:

"Second Sister-in-law, stop!"

Li Shi, confused, angrily asked:

"What does the First Lady mean by this?"

The First Lady suppressed the anger in her heart and was just about to reply when she saw that lecher break free from his restraints and cry out in muffled sounds:

"Second Aunt, don't hit! It's Chengcai!"

At this moment, Jun Zhengming, who had been silent all along, spoke up: "What exactly happened?"

Jun Jun Zhidie was frightened by Jun Zhengming's gloomy expression; seeing that she had struck this ancestor and caused trouble, she immediately shifted the blame:

"If it weren't for Second Sister covering Big Brother's head with clothes and shouting nonsense about a lecher, how would I have hit Big Brother?"

Jun Chengcai wanted to roll his eyes at Jun Jun Zhidie, but his eyes were swollen into a single slit, so he could only mutter quietly instead: You were the one who hit the hardest just now.

Hearing Jun Jun Zhidie speak thus, Jun Jun Zijin did not indulge her and immediately replied:

"Third Sister's words are incorrect. Just now you were... left with only your bodice. I saw a shadow stealing a peek at you; fearing for Third Sister's reputation, I covered him up."

Li Shi nodded in support:

"Second Daughter did the right thing. Even though he is the Eldest Young Master, he cannot commit such a wicked act."

This was the first time Li Shi stood on Jun Jun Zijin's side; so what if he was the Eldest Young Master? Could the Eldest Young Master ruin her daughter's reputation?

The Eldest Lady's face turned green then white, yet she could not vent her anger. Jun Zhengming looked at everyone and asked in a deep voice:

"Chengcai, is this true?"

Upon hearing this, Jun Chengcai immediately cried out: "Father, son only wanted to enter the room to rest; I did not know Sister was changing clothes."

Jun Chengcai was truly wronged. Originally, Wu Shi had asked him to steal Jun Jun Zijin's undergarments and secretly deliver them to Chunxiang Lou. He had not wanted to agree at first; he was a rascal, but after all, he was a man; he would not do such a beastly thing to ruin his own sister's reputation. Yet thinking of Xiaotaohong, he had agreed. Who would have thought he would not only get beaten but also alert his father, and perhaps face another good beating.

Jun Jun Zijin naturally knew that this incident alone could not uproot Wu Shi. Who said only Jun Jun Yiyi could play the good person? Besides, hearing Jun Jun Zhidie's reaction to Jun Chengcai's size...

Jun Jun Zijin bowed calmly:

"Father, perhaps Big Brother truly did not know Third Sister was changing clothes inside. Daughter was applying medicine to Third Sister; suddenly seeing a shadow, in the fright, I was unclear what happened. Please, Father, spare Big Brother this time?"

Seeing that both Jun Chengcai and Jun Jun Zijin had spoken thus, and Jun Jun Zhidie had no reaction, Li Shi could not say anything more.

"Let this pass this time. In the future, remember not to be rash and cause trouble." Seeing it was a misunderstanding, Jun Zhengming scolded Jun Chengcai a few times before rising and leaving.

Jun Chengcai breathed a sigh of relief; this time he owed his life to Second Sister letting him off, yet this girl's hands were too ruthless. Jun Chengcai thanked Jun Jun Zijin:

"Thank you, Second Sister."

As he spoke, he unconsciously touched his nose; the nose he had just straightened was crooked again. Jun Chengcai let out a wail; would he have to face Xiaotaohong with a crooked nose from now on?

Jun Jun Zijin was too lazy to deal with this rascal and planned to go see Grandmother. Passing by Jun Jun Yiyi, she stopped and said: "Regarding Second Sister moving out of Aoxue Courtyard, trouble Second Sister to do so quickly." Having finished, she left without looking back.

The Eldest Lady had originally thought that since her son handled this matter, even if things went wrong, he would not sell her out. Who would have thought her son was so useless; not only did he get thoroughly beaten by this cheap girl, but his daughter also had to move out of Aoxue Courtyard.

The Eldest Lady, who had dug a hole for her son, was so angry she nearly fainted. Jun Chengcai, seeing the situation was dire, fled on foot.