At this moment, Lord Xiao’s cold voice rang out again, “If you can’t discipline Xiao Chengli, I’ll send him to Hanshan Temple. He’ll have to suffer there before he’ll reform.”
Hearing this, Madam Xiao’s face turned extremely ugly.
She knew all too well what Hanshan Temple was. If Xiao Chengli went there, he would suffer greatly.
If he could truly bury himself in his studies and pass the imperial examinations, that would be fine; the Marquis’s mansion would still be his.
But if he was crushed by Hanshan Temple and lost all ambition, he would be completely abandoned by the Marquis and would never be able to return to the mansion.
“Don’t worry, Lord Marquis, I can naturally manage Li’er.”
These words indicated that Madam Xiao was determined to be ruthless. She had previously hesitated to confront her son, but now she had no choice.
Xie Wan Ning stood to the side, and Lord Xiao also said a few words to her.
As the principal wife, she had to act like one.
The implication was that Xie Wanrou was a menace, and the Xiao family needed her to speak to the Xie family to deal with her.
Xie Wanning naturally wouldn’t stop her. Xie Wanrou had fallen out of favor in the Xiao family, so Aunt Yun couldn’t rely on her, and Xie’s father could only rely on her.
Since they relied on her, many things would be much easier.
Originally, she had planned to have Aunt Liu deal with Xie Wanrou, but Xiao Chengli’s incident directly cut off Xie Wanrou’s escape route, saving her a lot of trouble.
On the surface, she was listening to the reprimand, looking worried about Xiao Chengli, but in her heart, she was wondering who was behind this.
The debt collector had actually come to Lord Xiao’s doorstep; it was suspicious if no one was instigating it.
However, there was only one problem: Xiao Chengli lived in the study, not far from the main house, so she couldn’t sneak into Xiao Chengyan’s courtyard like she had the previous two times.
Only twice, and she didn’t even know if she could get pregnant.
She had put in so much effort; she couldn’t let it all go to waste.
Xie Wan Ning was preoccupied with her own calculations, only vaguely remembering what Marquis Xiao had said and not paying much attention.
But just as Marquis Xiao was about to leave, he emphasized to Madam Xiao, “Ayan will be taking the imperial examination soon. As his mistress, you must prepare some things so he won’t feel disheartened leaving home.”
Madam Xiao’s face was extremely pale, but she still gritted her teeth and agreed.
Madam Xiao watched Marquis Xiao leave, her eyes almost bursting with anger, but she couldn’t afford to vent it at the moment. Instead, she hurriedly helped Xiao Cheng Li up and asked someone to find a doctor to treat his injuries.
Marquis Xiao had said that Xiao Cheng Li had to stay in the study, and Madam Xiao dared not disobey. She could only have thick mattresses placed on the couch for him to lie face down.
Marquis Xiao had been ruthless. Looking at the wounds of varying depths on Xiao Cheng Li’s back, Madam Xiao felt heartbroken, but seeing the debts that still needed to be repaid, she was filled with anger and wanted to hit Xiao Cheng Li a couple of times.
Seeing that Madam Xiao couldn’t bring herself to hit him, Xie Wanning pleaded for her, offering her a way out. “Mother-in-law, please calm down. My husband must have his reasons. Please don’t be angry.” ”
What reasons could be more important than studying?”
As soon as Xie Wanning spoke, Madam Xiao seemed to find an outlet for her anger, slamming her hand on the table and shouting, “What reasons could make him spend so much money outside? And even have someone complain to the Marquis, bringing shame to the Xiao family?”
Xie Wanning didn’t follow her words, lowering her head and speaking up for Xiao Chengli with resentment. “And those who are collecting debts, the Xiao family is a respectable family in the capital. If they really wanted money, why didn’t they come to our door? Why did they only go to my father-in-law?”
“My father-in-law is an official. He cares most about his reputation when he’s out in public. Isn’t this deliberately trying to make him angry with my husband?”
After saying this, Madam Xiao was stunned for a moment, and her face froze.
Seeing that she didn’t speak, Xie Wanning feigned concern and asked, “Mother-in-law, what’s wrong?”
“Nothing, just take good care of Li’er.”
Madam Xiao’s expression changed slightly, and she called for Granny Li to hurry back to her room.
Xie Wanning took a few steps towards the door, watching Madam Xiao leave the courtyard, a faint smile curving her lips.
Madam Xiao had just heard her words and would surely follow her line of reasoning. Xiao Chengli borrowing money wasn’t a big deal, but bringing it up with her father-in-law would be deliberate.
If someone wanted to harm Xiao Chengli, the first person she would think of was Aunt Yue.
Aunt Yue had interfered in Xiao Chengli’s affairs time and time again, and Madam Xiao wouldn’t tolerate it.
In her previous life, when Xie Wanrou and Xiao Chengli conspired to frame her for adultery, she had also said many things that added fuel to the fire.
Aunt Yue had never been a good person, so in this life, she didn’t intend to let her off the hook either, but she hadn’t expected Aunt Yue’s retribution to come so quickly. It was so fast
that he could simply go with the flow and watch the show without putting in much effort.
…
On the other side, after returning to her courtyard in a hurry, Madam Xiao only remained silent for a moment before dismissing Granny Li.
Soon, Granny Li arrived at Xiao Chengyan’s courtyard.
At this time, Xiao Chengyan was in his study.
Granny Li was led over, bowed respectfully, and said with a smile, “Second Young Master, Madam requests your presence; she has important matters to discuss.”
Hearing this, Xiao Chengyan looked up at her. “Important matters?”
Granny Li nodded. “Madam said you’ll know what it is when you get there.”
A faint smile appeared on Xiao Chengyan’s lips. He naturally knew why Madam Xiao wanted to see him. He
hadn’t expected Madam Xiao to react so quickly; he had thought he would have to wait until tomorrow.
Granny Qi had been beaten, and Granny Li was one of the most important people around Madam Xiao. Since she had come to inform him personally, Xiao Chengyan didn’t refuse and went immediately.
Upon arriving at Madam Xiao’s courtyard, Granny Li dismissed the other servants and stood guard outside the door.
“Your father said you’ll be taking the imperial examinations in a few days. Is there anything you need? If so, let me know, and I’ll have someone procure it.”
Madam Xiao was being polite, but Xiao Chengyan sensed her insincerity and retorted sarcastically, “Madam invited me here to discuss important matters just for this?”
A hint of disdain flashed in his eyes, which made Madam Xiao very uncomfortable.
In truth, Xiao Chengyan had grown up under her watchful eye, but Lord Xiao never allowed her to interfere in matters concerning Xiao Chengyan’s courtyard. Compared to the son born to Concubine Yue, Xiao Chengyan was actually more favored.
However, Xiao Chengyan’s concubine hadn’t been particularly liked by Lord Xiao during her lifetime; it was only after her death that Xiao Chengyan caught his eye.
Lord Xiao personally chose a path for Xiao Chengyan, sending him to the army, where he would pursue a martial career, even though he too would study. Since Xiao Chengli couldn’t endure the hardships of military service, Lord Xiao encouraged him to focus on his studies and take the imperial examinations.
Previously, Madam Xiao had been dissatisfied with Marquis Xiao’s excessive attention to Xiao Chengyan, but since Marquis Xiao was equally attentive to Xiao Chengli’s studies, she felt somewhat more at ease.
Her dissatisfaction with Xiao Chengyan stemmed solely from his success, while her own son was a good-for-nothing.
Madam Xiao took a deep breath before saying, “Since you’ve put it th at way, I won’t beat around the bush. I’ve thought carefully about the message you sent earlier, and I also feel it’s time.”
Hearing this, Xiao Chengyan looked at her calmly, “What do you mean by ‘time’?”