How could Pei Muzheng be fine? He clutched his face, howling in agony.
The maids outside were terrified.
Zhenzhu hesitated for a moment but still entered.
Jiang Yao immediately panicked and shouted at Zhenzhu, “Zhenzhu, quick, go fetch a Langzhong!”
Zhenzhu didn’t bother with anything else and hurriedly retreated, heading outside the residence to find a doctor.
Jiang Yao stood in the room, seemingly flustered, and began to sob.
“Husband, husband, are you alright? Wuwuwu, you scared me to death! Husband, I didn’t mean to, husband, what should we do now?”
Pei Muzheng covered his face, feeling the numb burn and stinging pain. He felt like killing Jiang Yao.
“Jiang Yao, you vicious woman! Are you trying to scald me to death? I’m going to divorce you!”
Jiang Yao seemed frightened and repeatedly insisted she hadn’t done it on purpose.
On the surface, Jiang Yao appeared utterly terrified, but inwardly she sneered.
Divorce her? Dream on! Only when the Pei family had fallen into the mud, only when Pei Muzheng’s official career was ruined, and only when Shen Yuanwu entered the household as a Qie, would she agree to a separation.
Trying to shake her off now? Not a chance.
Moreover, she knew the Pei family coveted her dowry—the very residence they lived in was part of it. At this point, they wouldn’t dare divorce her.
Jiang Yao seemed utterly terrified, sitting nearby and crying, all the while observing Pei Muzheng’s miserable state.
Good, good. It was worth having Zhenzhu serve the tea a little hotter. Pei Muzheng’s face was already flushed red from the scalding, with small blisters beginning to form.
Pity it wasn’t boiling hot tea—otherwise, it could have disfigured him.
Jiang Yao clicked her tongue, feeling somewhat regretful.
Pei Muzheng’s agonized cries even reached Yongshou Hall.
Over at Yongshou Hall, Old Madam Pei, Liu Shi, and Pei Xingyu were still waiting for Pei Muzheng to return from his official duties for the evening meal.
After waiting for so long without seeing him, they faintly heard miserable screams.
Old Madam Pei’s heart raced with unease.
Hesitantly, she asked her daughter-in-law and granddaughter, “Did you hear some screams?”
The two listened carefully. “Indeed, it seems to be coming from Jiang Yao’s courtyard.”
Old Madam Pei grew even more anxious.
“Don’t you think the voice sounds familiar? Does it sound like Mu Zheng?”
Liu Shi and Pei Xingyu listened more closely and realized it did sound familiar. “Yes, it really does sound like Mu Zheng.”
Before the three could say anything more, a maid serving Old Madam Pei rushed in frantically.
“Old Madam, Madam, it’s terrible! Something has happened to the Master at the Young Madam’s place.”
At these words, everyone in the room turned pale.
Old Madam Pei stood up abruptly, her body swaying, her head dizzy. All sorts of terrifying thoughts raced through her mind.
Had Jiang Yao gone mad and stabbed her grandson?
A few days earlier, her grandson had told them that Jiang Yao was still angry about the incident at the Guogong Fu, feeling he hadn’t trusted her, and was still throwing tantrums.
That’s why they had decided to wait until Jiang Yao’s anger subsided before discussing household management matters.
She had no choice but to listen to her grandson and had been restraining her daughter-in-law these past few days, telling her not to provoke Jiang Yao.
“Quick, let’s go check immediately.” Old Madam Pei was terribly frightened.
On the way, Old Madam Pei, supported by her maid, walked swiftly.
“Do you know what exactly happened to Mu Zheng?” Old Madam Pei asked, her voice trembling as she hurried along.
The maid, her face pale, shook her head. “We don’t know yet. A maid from the Young Madam’s outer courtyard heard the Master screaming inside and rushed over to Yongshou Hall to report.”
Old Madam Pei didn’t press further, her expression darkening.
Soon, the group arrived at Jiang Yao’s courtyard.
It was only then they noticed that Muyun Yuan had been renamed Hanmei Yuan.
Liu Shi and Pei Xingyu paid it little mind, but Old Madam Pei’s face changed.
She knew all too well the depth of Jiang Yao’s feelings for her grandson.
Yet ever since returning from Guogong Fu, Jiang Yao had been acting strangely—and now she had even changed the name on the courtyard plaque.
What was going on with Jiang Yao?
Had her affection for her grandson vanished?
Before the three could enter the courtyard, a maid standing by the outer gate hurried over, her face full of worry.
“Old Madam, Madam, please come quickly! The master seems to have been scalded. He came looking for the young mistress earlier, and they argued inside. Then we heard the master cry out in pain—he even shouted at her, asking if she meant to scald him to death…”
Old Madam Pei and the others turned pale.
Liu Shi let out a wail and rushed into the courtyard.
Old Madam Pei glanced at the maid, recognizing her as Jiang Yao’s chief maid. But judging by her attire now, she seemed to have been demoted to a low-ranking maid in the outer courtyard.
Had Jiang Yao sent her to do menial work outside?
At least she remained loyal to her grandson.
Old Madam Pei could think of nothing else after hearing about her grandson’s condition.
As they entered the room, Pei Muzheng’s furious roar grew clearer: “Hurry up and bring me some cold water to press against my face!”
This was followed by Jiang Yao’s flustered sobbing: “Husband, I—I’ll have the maid fetch cold water right away. Xi Fu, go to the kitchen and bring a basin of cold water!”
Upon entering, the three saw Pei Muzheng’s terrifyingly red face, parts of it peeling and blistered.
At the sight of her son’s suffering, Liu Shi shrieked, “My son!”
She then lunged at Jiang Yao, her eyes venomous.
“You vicious woman! What have you done? First, you splashed me and Xingyu, and now you dare scald my son? I’ll teach you a lesson today—show you what it means to honor your husband! How dare you defy him!”
As Liu Shi charged forward, Chen Momo, along with two sturdy maids, intercepted her, wrapping their arms around her waist to hold her back.
“Madam, what are you doing? Why not let our young mistress explain what happened? She didn’t do it on purpose!”
Jiang Yao immediately turned teary eyes toward Old Madam Pei. “Grandmother, you must stand up for your granddaughter-in-law.”
In the Pei family, Liu Shi was a shrew, always scheming to take Jiang Yao’s dowry.
Pei Xingyu was much like her mother.
But Old Madam Pei prided herself on being a fair and reasonable matriarch.
In truth, Old Madam Pei was just like Pei Muzheng—shrewd and selfish.
Outwardly, however, she maintained propriety and would never lunge at Jiang Yao like Liu Shi had.
Seeing the burns on her grandson’s face, Old Madam Pei’s heart ached, but she suppressed her urge to strike Jiang Yao and demanded sternly:
“Tell me, what drove you to harm your own husband?”
Jiang Yao wept bitterly. “Grandmother, if only you knew what my husband did…”
Just as she was about to speak, Zhenzhu arrived with the Langzhong.
It was the same elderly doctor who had treated the Pei family members for vomiting and diarrhea last time.
His Medicine Hall was the closest to Pei Manor.
The old Langzhong couldn’t help but wonder what was going on with Pei Manor. Just recently, they had eaten unclean food and suffered from vomiting and diarrhea, and now Lord Pei was scalded.
But why was his face scalded? It was rather strange.
As soon as Liu Shi saw an outsider arrive, she felt intense hatred toward Jiang Yao. She couldn’t resist wanting the outsider to know about Jiang Yao, so that when the news spread, Jiang Yao would be labeled a shrew! She wouldn’t be able to keep her reputation.
Liu Shi shouted loudly, “Tell us! Why did you splash your husband’s face like this?”