Chapter 86 Part 4: Resentment
At this time, in the Ningyuan Marquis residence, the sound of a woman’s weeping could be heard from the main hall.
“Master, stop hitting, stop hitting! Yan Bang cannot bear so many beatings, quickly stop!” With lightning speed, Ningyuan Marchioness was about to forcibly take away the whip in Ningyuan Marquis’s hand, but was pushed onto the ground by Ningyuan Marquis. She looked on helplessly as the jet-black, glossy whip fell on Zhou Yan Bang’s back. Zhou Yan Bang immediately let out a blood-curdling scream.
The servants in the hall, the other members of Ningyuan Marquis’s residence, all didn’t dare to plead for leniency for Zhou Yan Bang. Zhou Yan Bang knelt on the ground, intending to evade his father’s beating, but he was whipped even more fiercely.
His back was right away filled with red scars that swelled up. Because normally he was raised well, he had smooth and tender skin, thus the scars looked completely frightening.
While beating, Ningyuan Marquis severely reprimanded: “Preposterous son!”
No matter how, Ningyuan Marchioness was unable to dissuade Ningyuan Marquis. She could only stare blankly until Ningyuan Marquis was tired, threw the whip in his hand away, snorted, and left without turning back.
Ningyuan Marchioness pounced forward at once. Seeing Zhou Yan Bang’s dying appearance, her tears flowed down continuously, unable to stop. The servant beside her worriedly shouted: “Quickly invite the doctor!”
The doctor arrived very quickly and wrote several herbs for a concoction for Zhou Yan Bang. Ningyuan Marchioness immediately called someone to get the herbal medicine and pan fry it in the kitchen. Then she personally applied ointment on Zhou Yan Bang’s back.
After a while, Zhou Yan Bang, who had slowly regained his consciousness, turned around and called out: “Mother.”
Ningyuan Marchioness’s tears fell on the back of her hand, her heart mourning for his misfortune, unable to get angry. She wished she could beat Zhou Yan Bang a few times, yet she couldn’t. So she merely said: “What are you actually doing?”
Zhou Yan Bang couldn’t explain it either.
What was he doing? From last night until now, he was dizzy and wasn’t clear about anything.
Ningyuan Marchioness continued: “Forget about Jiang Yu’e and you mixing together, anyway she is just a shu daughter. If it really won’t do, bringing her in as a n.o.ble concubine is already too much. But you are really, why did you go and provoke Shen Ruyun? That’s the secretary’s younger sister, nowadays, the emperor regards Shen Yurong as someone important. You provoked the Shen family, the emperor is bound to be unhappy with you and also giving birth to discontent with our Ningyuan Marquis residence. That’s why your father is this angry.”
Zhou Yan Bang had a headache after listening. When did he provoke Shen Ruyun? He wasn’t even clear what Shen Ruyun looked like. The secretary’s younger sister met with a mishap last night. When she was accusing while shedding tears, it was the first time Zhou Yan Bang saw this person’s appearance clearly. Towards this unfamiliar woman, how could he be frivolous? Zhou Yan Bang himself was puzzled.
“Didn’t you say that you are fond of Jiang family’s second miss, Jiang Li, before? Since you like her, why did you look for Jiang fifth miss and Shen Ruyun? Yan Bang? What is actually in your mind? How could you do such a muddled thing?”
Jiang Li? Zhou Yan Bang was stunned; the pain left behind by the flogging was ignored for a split second. Zhou Yan Bang recalled, last night, the person he clearly arranged a meeting with at Yu Xiu Pavilion was Jiang Li. How did it change to Jiang Yu’e? At that time, he personally saw the person coming to Yu Xiu Pavilion and thought it was Jiang Li who kept the appointment. He couldn’t contain his joy and was unable to restrain his emotion. Could it be, the person who came was actually Jiang Yu’e?
Seeing Zhou Yan Bang looking dumbstruck and not saying a word, Ningyuan Marchioness asked: “What’s wrong with you?”
Zhou Yan Bang came out of his daze and said perfunctorily: “Nothing.” Yet his mind was chaotic and he wasn’t at peace at all.
Jiang Li turning into Jiang Yu’e, what happened here? He asked someone to deliver the slip of paper into Jiang Li’s hand. The returning person also said clearly that Jiang Li had received the paper. Such an important thing, Jiang Li definitely would not carelessly throw it away and let other people pick it up.
Zhou Yan Bang also remembered, after Shen Ruyun attracted the crowd last night, Jiang Li was also there, standing within the crowd. Her gaze as she looked at him didn’t have any trace of surprise, calm and chilling.
She already knew.
Just like a basin of cold water poured onto him, Zhou Yan Bang felt he was shaking from head to toe from the cold. The colder his body was, the flame of hate and anger in his heart and his head actually grew bigger, more and more flourishing.
Jiang Li didn’t wish to go to his invitation and simply set up a trap for him with Jiang Yu’e. A Jiang Yu’e wanted to marry into the Ningyuan Marquis’s residence by every possible means. Jiang Li must have known about this matter since earlier and gave the slip of paper to Jiang Yu’e.
In this way, she could stand in the crowd and coldly looked at his disgraceful situation.
Zhou Yan Bang’s heart produced a beastly wrath.
Even if he was foolish, he was also aware that after last night’s matter, his official career could be considered to be destroyed. As a student of the Imperial College, the first important thing was precisely morality and conduct. His morality and conduct was inspected under many people and had become a joke. Hong Xiao emperor was not happy, he wouldn’t have an opportunity in his official career to show his hands and feet.
All of this was given by Jiang Yu’e and Jiang Li.
Zhou Yan Bang hated Jiang Yu’e, but hated Jiang Li even more. It’s fine if Jiang Li didn’t keep the appointment, yet she still used such a way that brought dishonour to a person. She ignored his sincere heart and still discarded it like a worn out shoe. Using such a method, destroying his whole life.
This is a vicious woman!
Seeing Zhou Yan Bang seemed to be trembling all over, Ningyuan Marchioness was a bit anxious and asked: “Is there any discomfort? Let the doctor come and take a look?”
“No need.” Zhou Yan Bang resisted the pain on his back and the ice in his heart as he said: “Mother, what should be done next? The current me and Jiang fifth miss, Shen family’s miss, are all implicated. What should I do?” He pulled the corner of his mouth, “and the marriage with Jiang You Yao should be impossible, right?!”
Ningyuan Marchioness was silent for a while. She shook her head, “Early this morning, the Jiang family dispatched someone to come over.” Her tone was unknown, angry or regretful, “the marriage with Jiang You Yao, just treat it as if it never happened.”
Zhou Yan bang said: “No matter, my marriage with Jiang You Yao was originally something that should not happen.”
Ningyuan Marchioness felt that there’s something strange in his speech and couldn’t help looking at him.
However, he thought in his heart, originally, her marriage with Jiang You Yao was a replacement of his and Jiang Li’s. Now that Jiang You Yao had left. It could be considered as returning to the beginning.
But his relationship with the Jiang family didn’t appear to be totally severed.
“What about Jiang Yu’e?” Zhou Yan Bang asked: “Seems I have to arrange a status for her. Mother, how about making her a concubine?”
“This is the best.” Ningyuan Marchioness snorted: “Not taking a look at her own ident.i.ty. If she wasn’t satisfied with this, she better dispel the idea of entering the Ningyuan Marquis residence.”