Qi Mohan was so infuriated by Su Ying’s words that he nearly spat blood. He never expected her to chase after him over such a trivial matter—was it really necessary?
Recalling her mention of the eagle, he suddenly realized this woman was in cahoots with the siblings who had taken his eagle! He immediately lost his composure. “How am I the fraud? That eagle was raised by me, and the waistband is mine too. Clearly, you’re the ones who took my things and now you’re turning the tables on me!”
“This is utterly unjust! Who can prove those things are yours? Magistrate, Madam Magistrate, you’re my parents—” Su Ying turned and clung to the Madam Magistrate’s leg, hoping they would help settle the dispute. She had meant to say “you’re our parental officials,” but the moment the words left her mouth, all three people present were so shocked their eyes nearly popped out.
Realizing her slip of the tongue, Su Ying felt a pang of embarrassment and quickly corrected herself, “You’re our parental officials! You must uphold justice for us. This man is making false accusations—the eagle doesn’t have a name on it, and it fell into our yard. Of course, we’d want to sell it—what’s wrong with that? And as for the waistband, I bought it from a vendor’s stall. He came and tried to snatch it from me—is it wrong that I refused to hand over something I paid for? And now he has the audacity to file a complaint! Please judge fairly for your humble daughter!”
Seeing Su Ying’s tearful and snot-filled appeal, Qi Mohan hurriedly explained to the couple, “Father, Mother, regarding the eagle, I didn’t even blame them—I even gave the siblings ten taels of silver. It’s just that she stubbornly refused to give me the waistband, so I had no choice but to come here!”
Su Ying’s attention was caught by the man’s first sentence. Why was he also calling the Magistrate and Madam Magistrate “Father” and “Mother”? Was he copying her earlier address to cozy up to them, thinking they looked kind and approachable, so they’d side with him?
At this thought, Su Ying refused to be outdone and cried out, “Father, Mother, tell me—was I wrong not to give him the waistband?”
Before the Magistrate and Madam Magistrate could respond, Qi Mohan widened his eyes and looked up at them. “Father, Mother, when did you have such a grown daughter?”
Su Ying glared at him and blurted out, “Why can you call them Father and Mother, but I can’t?”
Qi Mohan was taken aback, then burst into laughter and explained, “Sorry, but I’ve been calling them that for over twenty years!”
Those words sent Su Ying collapsing to the ground in shock. “You… you… you’re the Magistrate’s son? You wouldn’t abuse your power for… for… personal… vengeance…?”
Just when she thought her stutter was cured, it came back worse from the fright. Qi Mohan covered his mouth, chuckling, “I have no intention of abusing power for personal revenge. I just came to retrieve my waistband—is that wrong?”
Su Ying fell silent. He really wasn’t wrong. So what was she doing here? Had she just made a complete fool of herself?
“Are you still going to file the report?”
Seeing Su Ying still limp on the ground, Qi Mohan asked amusedly.
“No, no, no, no, no, no…” Upon hearing this, Su Ying quickly shook her head and scrambled to her feet.
“Ahem… Well, I’m not a fraud. The Black Eagle really is mine, and the waistband is mine too. So, could you please return that waistband to me?”
As she was about to leave, Qi Mohan brought up the waistband again. Having said this much, he figured the woman would probably give it back to him now.
But unexpectedly, Su Ying walked even faster. Her legs felt weak as she tried to step over the threshold, but she couldn’t manage it. Suddenly, she jumped over it, only to tumble to the ground.
Ignoring the pain, she quickly scrambled to her feet and continued running. Yet, after just a few steps, she fell again. Afraid the man might chase her, Su Ying glanced back—only to find him standing in place, laughing uproariously.
Embarrassing! What a humiliation!
Covering her face, Su Ying hurriedly fled the county office.
Her elder sister Su Juan and younger brother Su Mo were waiting outside. Seeing her stumble out in disarray, they immediately asked what had happened.
This time, Su Ying truly burst into tears. “That man is the county magistrate’s son. I just went in there and made a complete fool of myself…”
“Ah! The county magistrate’s son? Did he do anything to you?” Su Juan inquired with concern.
“No, I… forget it. Let’s hurry back home!”
Recalling how she had shamelessly called his parents “mom and dad,” her face burned with shame. Glancing back at the county office, she vowed never to return unless the magistrate was replaced.
She needed to hide her waistband well—she still had to exchange it for the Appearance Restoration Balm.
Hearing that nothing serious had happened, Su Juan and Su Mo didn’t press further. They simply accompanied her back to Panlong Town, where they used the ten taels from selling the carving to buy some grain, pickled vegetables, silk thread, and a few pieces of cloth. Then, when Su Juan wanted to pick out a good ointment for Su Ying, Su Ying proactively chose a cheap, low-quality one instead.
Su Ying had a plan in mind, which was why she bought the inferior ointment. As for what that plan was—just wait and see. She was determined not to let the vicious wrongdoers off easily!
Su Juan frowned at the poor-quality ointment Su Ying had bought, but relaxed when Su Ying explained she had another use for it.
Su Juan still cared about her sister’s face and was about to spend a large sum on a better ointment when Su Ying quickly stopped her, claiming she already had a method to restore her face to its original state. Without waiting for Su Juan to believe her, she dragged her along to buy wrist guards, knee pads, and similar items for Su Mo.
The ten taels didn’t last long. Their Panlong Town, in Longtou County, was under the jurisdiction of Nanyang City, which bordered the capital, so prices were extremely high. These few items quickly reduced their funds to just two taels.
When they grew hungry from walking, they ate the vegetable cakes they had brought and borrowed water from a nearby household to drink. Then, carrying their purchases, they hurried back home.
They had set out before dawn that morning, and it was now past noon. Besides those working in the fields, there were surely many idlers chatting at the village entrance.
Usually, when they returned from shopping, the busybodies at the village entrance would tease and lecture them, saying things like, “One must not forget their roots,” and “You should show filial respect to the elders at home with whatever good things you buy.”
But today, when the three siblings passed by carrying their items, these nosy people acted unusually. Instead of paying much attention to them, they were engrossed in discussing how the second daughter of the Su family’s second branch was to marry a Great Writer, their tones dripping with envy.
Even those who noticed the siblings didn’t have their usual lecturing or disapproving looks. Instead, they smiled and greeted them, asking what they had bought.
Su Juan calmly showed them the inexpensive items, and Su Ying even displayed the cheap ointment she had bought for herself. People’s eyes held varying degrees of pity.
After greeting them and heading back, I heard waves of pitying sighs from behind.
“Look at these three siblings—do they really seem to carry the rumored Killing Aura, bringing misfortune to everyone they meet, with a typical cursed Destiny? If their Destiny were truly cursed, why hasn’t Second Son of the Su family been affected? Not only did the eldest daughter marry the Village head’s son, but now the second daughter is set to marry a Great Writer. Could it be that the second branch’s daughters have such favorable Destinies that they can neutralize the first branch’s three siblings’ Destinies?”
“I don’t believe it! The second branch of the Su family usually kept a low profile, but now that the rumors are out, it’s clear they’ve always had some ill intentions.
The eldest daughter snatching the first branch’s daughter’s engagement could be a coincidence, but for the second daughter to do the same—that’s just black-hearted! No matter how unscrupulous one is, they shouldn’t covet others’ engagements like this!”
“Exactly! These rumors never surfaced before He Juren returned. Now that he’s back, they’ve emerged—it must be related to him. They’ve always pretended to be kind, frequently giving the three siblings nice things. Turns out it was out of guilt!”