The Old Madam and her two children hurried forward, trying to help Gong Mohan up. But his injuries were far too severe. His prison clothes were torn to shreds, both arms bore terrible wounds, and his ten battered fingers hung limply, stained with blood. One of his legs bent at an unnatural angle—it was clearly broken.
The original owner of this body had very few memories of her husband. She only knew that Gong Mohan was eighteen years old and once a graceful, handsome young man. He had narrow eyes with captivating phoenix-shaped double eyelids, sharp and elegant features, thin lips, and a high nose bridge—a truly striking beauty by any standard.
But now, looking at him again…
His ragged prison clothes barely covered his body. Wounds covered him everywhere, and even the right side of his face had been ruined. Dark, mangled flesh split open there, oozing yellow pus.
The once-dashing young general, the proud son of heaven, had fallen to such a miserable state. The blow to his spirit must have been devastating. Whether he could even survive was uncertain.
Ziling silently lamented her own fate.
Such a handsome man, finally encountered after transmigrating…
What a waste.
These people had truly been ruthless.
Just as Ziling was about to step forward to help support Gong Mohan, she noticed several people approaching nearby.
Leading them was a middle-aged man around forty years old. Behind him followed a woman of similar age whose face resembled a vicious demoness, sharp and unpleasant at first glance, clearly someone difficult to get along with.
Behind them stood a teenage boy and girl. The boy, around sixteen or seventeen, had a gaunt yellowish face like a corpse drained of vitality. One look was enough to tell he had indulged himself far too much. The girl appeared thirteen or fourteen years old and was actually rather pretty.
Before the middle-aged man could even speak, the woman exploded like a string of firecrackers:
“What terrible luck! Being related to your family never brought us any benefit, yet now that you’re exiled, we’re dragged down with you too! My poor son and daughter aren’t even married yet, and now their futures are ruined because of you!”
Women in ancient times rarely left the house before marriage, so the original owner had no memory of these people. Ziling guessed they must be relatives from the same clan who had also been implicated in the exile.
Gong Mohan had just opened his mouth to speak when his mother stopped him.
“You say you never benefited from us?” the Old Madam said coldly. “If not for our General Manor, you’d probably still be farming in some forgotten backwater village. Over the years, relying on our family’s name, how many advantages have you gained while causing trouble outside? Did you think I knew nothing of it?”
“Now that the General Manor has been framed, you still dare to make a scene here?”
The woman’s face alternated between red and pale. Just as she was about to argue back, the middle-aged man tugged at her sleeve and said with a fake smile:
“Old Sister-in-law, no matter what, we were still implicated because of your family.”
At that moment, the gaunt young man sneered sarcastically.
“Hmph. Maybe the General Manor committed too many evil deeds, and this is simply retribution.”
The atmosphere instantly froze.
Both Gong Mohan and Gong Hao glared furiously at him. Gong Mohan struggled to rise and teach the boy a lesson, but his injuries were too severe, and he collapsed back down.
Seeing this, anger surged within Ziling.
She stepped forward coldly.
“All the luxury and comfort your family enjoyed came from the protection of the General Manor. Without this family shielding you, you’d probably have died countless times already. And now you kick people while they’re down? Aren’t you afraid of retribution yourselves?”
The woman became so furious she nearly jumped up to curse back, but one of the officers escorting the exile group walked over and barked:
“Quiet! Anyone who keeps making noise will get the whip!”
Only then did everyone shut their mouths, and the conflict temporarily settled down.
Hearing Ziling defend the family just now, Gong Mohan felt as though he had been struck by lightning. For the first time, he truly looked at the woman he had just married.
He had never paid much attention to her before. If none of this had happened, he thought his life probably would have passed quietly beside this woman, without love or hatred between them.
But now…
After everything that had happened, and after learning that it was her father who had caused the downfall of the General Manor, hatred surged within him like a raging tide.
Ziling sensed the sharp, icy gaze directed toward her and looked back. But Gong Mohan immediately turned his head away coldly, as though avoiding a plague.
Ziling couldn’t care less what he thought.
On the road to exile, with her knowledge as a modern medical doctorate holder, she refused to believe she couldn’t heal him.
And once they reached the place of exile…
They would divorce.