Chapter 307

Facing the invitation, Liu Qiongzhu turned ashen and stepped back: "No... no!"

"Ah brother, no, young master, please, Zhu'er doesn't want, Zhu'er doesn't want to, Zhu'er hasn't seen anything..."

Li Kechuan, however, gave her no chance to refuse.

He gave Wu Da a look: "Go, bring her over."

Wu Da still somewhat unwilling: "Master, I don't want to..."

Li Kechuan glared at him: "You don't get to choose! You've never tasted a woman, how do you know you don't want to?"

"If you defy me even a little, I'll kill you—believe it or not?"

Wu Da then silently approached, tore Liu Qiongzhu's clothes off in one grab, and threw her directly onto the bed.

Liu Qiongzhu, distraught and terrified, clung tightly to Li Kechuan's remaining leg, begging desperately: "Ah brother, Zhu'er begs you, spare Zhu'er—"

"Zhu'er truly is ill now, can no longer feel any pleasure; each time it's painful as if she were about to die... Zhu'er truly isn't lying to you."

"Sniffle, it's true, ah brother, please don't do this to Zhu'er, I beg you..."

Li Kechuan's face flashed with doubt.

It seemed he finally understood why she always rolled in pain each time.

He couldn't help but chuckle: "Could this be your retribution for being a wanton before? Hahaha, hahaha..."

"Zhu'er, Zhu'er. You once seduced me into being obsessed with you, and also seduced Zhuang Sanlang so that your affection took root, yet later you toyed with us and went to Prince Yun's bed."

"You insisted on becoming his concubine, and wouldn't even glance at us!"

"This is your retribution!"

Liu Qiongzhu also wore a remorseful face, kneeling on the bed, wringing her hands in plea: "Zhu'er truly knows she was wrong, ah brother now hates me so, Zhu'er accepts her fate. But Zhu'er begs you, begs you..."

"Zhu'er will serve you even more wholeheartedly from now on, please don't treat Zhu'er like this... sniffle..."

Li Kechuan, seeing her like that, indeed felt a twinge of softness.

But he was no longer the Li Kechuan of before.

Every time his heart softened toward her, it was quickly overwhelmed by deeper hatred from within.

"That time at the ruined temple, weren't you the fastest to run?"

"I once begged you bitterly, merely asking you to find someone to save me—yet how did you treat me?"

"Zhu'er, ah brother once loved, protected, and trusted you so deeply; for your sake, I repeatedly schemed to harm Luo Luo, even wishing each time to consign her to death just to guard you."

"But you also saw that each time, ah brother instead suffered greater humiliation as punishment and result."

"Broken leg, lost marriage, ruined career, lost virtue... layer upon layer of humiliation and blows—have I, Li Kechuan, ever blamed you for any of it?"

"Perhaps it's heavenly punishment, perhaps I truly cannot match her Li Qingluo, and I, Li Kechuan, was the first to cease being human—I accept these!"

"For you, I have always been willing!"

"But you? Betraying trust, abandoning me without a glance... this isn't the first time, is it?"

"Even if something happened, if you could bring people back to save me without hesitation, I wouldn't hate you to the bone as I do today!"

"My leg, I have endured these humiliations in the flesh... Liu Qiongzhu, how are you to repay?"

"You have betrayed me again and again! And you still expect me to forgive you?!"

"Zhu'er, just sink into hell together with ah brother..."

"I'll be a ghost—how could you remain human?"

Liu Qiongzhu's shriek that day echoed through half the Jiangjun Fu.

Yet in this lifetime, no one will come to rescue her again.

Deng Mama felt embarrassed to continue.

But now she has grown accustomed; no matter how indecent the sexual topics are for women to speak of, the girls hearing them feel no shame at all.

No matter how bizarre, to the girls it sounds as ordinary as eating and drinking.

Even Deng Mama herself feels embarrassed to be shy.

So she forced herself to continue: "I've heard that people from Lan Cang Yuan often catch the three of them sleeping in the same room, and they frequently start up indecent acts in broad daylight."

"Especially Wu Da, who used to sneak into Li Kechuan's room, now does so without restraint, staring hotly at Li Kechuan in front of the servants without looking away."

"Now he acts like a half-master, ordering the servants around—quite formidable!"

"Only Wu Da is living it up; I hear Liu Qiongzhu always screams miserably, and if others aren't paying attention they think it's three men inside."

Zheng Mama wore a look of disgust and disdain: "Pah! Lan Cang Yuan has become a brothel; as the master leading these lewd, base deeds, what reputation could Lan Cang Yuan possibly have left? Which courtyard would dare associate with its people?"

"The Jiangjun Fu now looks utterly rotten; such vile affairs, does the mistress not care to manage them?"

Deng Mama: "Manage? I've heard that since Liu Qiongzhu was locked by Li Kechuan in Lan Cang Yuan, she hasn't set foot inside even half a step."

It's unknown whether she fears she'll soften again, or has become utterly cold and hard, and simply doesn't want to manage anymore.

Li Qingluo remained silent.

Moreover, her expression was bland, unknown what she was thinking.

Zheng Mama couldn't help but worry: "Miss, you won't soften, will you? Liu Qiongzhu is indeed somewhat pitiable, but this matter... isn't it all of her own making?"

"That wretched little thing schemed to the utmost back then; now all this is merely her deserved retribution."

Li Qingluo glanced at Zheng Mama: "Soft-hearted? How do you know this isn't the outcome I've been waiting for deep down?"

Back then she stopped Li Chao Jing from directly killing Liu Qiongzhu, precisely to let her reap what she sowed.

She merely occasionally added fuel to the fire.

Li Qingluo never imagined that the outcome for Liu Qiongzhu and Li Kechuan would turn into today's bizarre situation...

But if Li Kechuan hadn't originally schemed to harm himself first, how could he have harmed himself and Liu Qiongzhu?

All this is indeed them reaping what they sowed, scheming against each other to the end and bringing harm upon themselves.

Li Qingluo merely didn't expect that Li Kechuan, who once was so infatuated with Liu Qiongzhu, would now completely turn into such a beastly visage.

No need to worry about them; let them torment each other.

Li Qingluo felt her ears were dirty just hearing that.

After sleeping a night and waking up, Li Qingluo opened her eyes to hear Deng Mama come in and say: "Miss, Deng's old concubine hanged herself last night."

"She even left a suicide note in her room, saying she had done all the bad deeds she could, so she died willingly, going to the underworld to atone for her sins."

"Moreover, she hopes that the people of the second and third branches can return to the manor to live, and from now on, never come back again."

Li Qingluo sat on the bed, stunned for a moment, then after a while replied: "Undeniable, she was a good mother."

Moreover, she spent her life scheming, and indeed she managed to turn over a new leaf and change the fate of herself, a former maid; for her two biological sons, she even exhausted all plans.

Even until death, she was still seeking a way out for them.

Indeed, this manor is now completely ruined.

Only by leaving can one be reborn; otherwise, whoever stays will go down together.

Moreover, only her own willing death truly protects the second and third branches.

She truly devoted herself to her two sons, but it's unknown whether they understand this heart of hers.

From now on, as long as they don't cause trouble, they can clearly know their status; they can indeed avoid conflict like well water not offending river water, and grandmother and I won't exterminate them.

But if they intend to avenge Deng's old concubine, Li Qingluo won't be soft-hearted.

"Watch the second and third branches; if they don't do anything excessive, just let them leave."

After washing up, Li Qingluo went to look for her grandmother.

"Grandmother, Luo'er's belongings are all packed."

Although Zhang Mama came back last time to help Li Qingluo pack again, to completely leave the manor, Li Qingluo has quite a lot to move.

The most valuable of them are naturally the treasures her grandmother gave her.

Fortunately, her small storeroom had a very sturdy lock installed initially; otherwise, judging by the marks at the door, it would have long been stolen clean out.

Pei Lao Furen saw her come and rose with her: "Let's go, we should go to the ancestral hall to handle the last matter."

Pei Lao Furen was talking about severing ties with the sect and clan.

The deed scrolls and such she had also already prepared herself; now she only needs to go to the ancestral hall to sign and affix seals, then take them to the government office to clear the way, after which Pei Lao Furen and Li Qingluo can establish their own household.

Just as the grandmother and granddaughter had just stepped out of the courtyard, they saw Mama with an anxious face hurrying over to report: "Old Lady, not good. The Qu family has brought government officials!"

Pei Lao Furen said: "What's there to panic about? Everyone in the courtyard witnessed that the Lady You was strangled to death by her own daughter, Qu Shi; how could this possibly be faked?"

"Even if they want to splash dirty water on us, isn't there still Prince Su's guards as witnesses?"

Prince Su couldn't step forward, but that little guard whom Pei Lao Furen now knows clearly.

Pei Lao Furen looked at Li Qingluo.

Li Qingluo:?

Grandmother, is this about linking our Xiuli Manor with Prince Su's residence to clear the way?

However, Li Qingluo hadn't yet sent someone to fetch Zhui Yu when she heard wailing and howling outside.

The sounds sounded like they were arresting people?

Pei Lao Furen's face sank: "Do they think I'm already dead?"

When Pei Lao Furen and Li Qingluo hurried out, they realized it wasn't just the Qu family bringing government lackeys to cause trouble; both the Qu and Pei families had sent people, bringing officials who were arresting people throughout the manor!

Maids, wet nurses, slaves and servants—seeing a person, they'd grab them, all locked up in one place.

Moreover, the people of the second and third branches were still mourning Deng's old concubine, each with tears on their faces, when they were dragged out; instantly the whole manor was filled with wailing and screaming.

"It's over, over, this manor is really going to be finished——"

"It's your main branch that's trying to kill us. What did we do wrong? We haven't enjoyed any blessings for a day, yet now we must suffer misfortune—why?"

"Wuu wuu wuu, auntie, your death is unjust——"

The second and third branches' weeping shook the heavens, simply worse than when they cried upon discovering Deng's old concubine's death in the morning.

Pei Lao Furen: "Stop! What are you doing?!"

"At least this is still the manor; you cannot act so lawlessly and recklessly cause trouble here!"

"All of you, stop!"

Pei Lao Furen shouted with internal energy, and only then did the officials arresting people throughout the manor halt; they looked at the Qu and Pei family members standing at the gate, apparently waiting for orders to continue.

Pei Lao Furen's face turned black with anger.

"How is it that your Qu and Pei families now have such authority, able to barge into others' mansions in the imperial capital and cause trouble at will?"

"Or has this manor committed some heinous crime, letting you finally meet today to jointly settle private grudges under the guise of public duty?"

The one from the Qu family is the eldest son of the main branch, Qu Dao Yuan, who currently serves as an Assistant Minister in the Ministry of Punishment.

The one from the Pei family is likewise just returned from the frontier, newly appointed as the eldest son and heir apparent of the Pei family, Pei Zijun, who has just taken office in the Ministry of War.

Pei Zijun also respectfully clasped his hands toward Pei Lao Furen and said: "Nephew-grandson Zijun pays respects to Grand Aunt. This is the imperial decree just delivered from the palace this morning, ordering our Ministry of War to come to the manor to apprehend the criminal official Li Chao Jing, who in the past confused military achievements, falsely claimed credit, and committed the grave crime of deceiving the sovereign, along with all his household members and servants; Grand Aunt, would you like to personally review it?"