Chapter 110 – Flower Picking Thief (Part Ten)
Everything unfolded in the blink of an eye. Just when everyone was recovering from one shock, another wave of panic washed over them.
“Someone’s dead!”
I don’t know who shouted that, but the crowd fell silent as chickens, stepping back and forming a semi-large circle.
“What are you shouting for? They aren’t dead yet!”
Jiang Pengji snapped, and the crowd instinctively parted to give her a clear path.
The maid who was pushed around had just snapped out of her fright. She had been dazed, then suddenly felt a powerful force push her in another direction, making her heart race as if it would leap right out of her throat, only to land safely in the embrace of a lean yet strong figure.
She glanced up shyly, stealing a peak at Jiang Pengji’s face. From this angle, she looked so delicate like a lady… she thought, and immediately felt a flush of heat, hastily moving away.
“Thank you, Young Master, for saving me.”
Her voice was as soft as a mosquito’s buzz, too timid to speak aloud.
“Just be safe. You and the other servants should go rest and better forget about what happened tonight.”
Jiang Pengji’s cold gaze fixated on the “house maid” lying on the ground, hands clutching the gushing wound at her neck, her tone as chilling as ice shards.
The maid didn’t seem to care, timidly glancing at Mr. Wei Yuan, and receiving his nod before obeying Jiang Pengji’s instructions.
After all, they weren’t from the Liu Residence, and if they just followed Jiang Pengji without question, Wei Yuan might not feel comfortable about it.
“This is clearly a… woman…”
Wei Yuan only kept his trusted steward, sending the other house servants and maids away.
Jiang Pengji found the sandalwood fan that she had thrown, which had injured the “house maid,” picked it up and wiped the blood off with a napkin, softly saying, “How could this possibly be a woman? If you don’t believe it, why not strip and check?”
Upon hearing this, Wei Yuan nodded for the steward to help verify the identity.
Jiang Pengji stood to the side, as if playing the role of an uninterested bystander in a live stream.
However, the audience in the live stream was far from calm.
They saw the steward approach, roll up his sleeves, and with one hand, feel below the clothing of the “house maid,” seemingly pinching something, his face twisting into a pained expression, quickly replaced by sheer terror.
The display was too intense, and everything happened so suddenly that they forgot to send any comments in the chat.
【Lord Hongjun’s Flower】: (/ω╲) Oh my eyes, I’m going blind. First, the streamer stomped on someone’s eggs and little buddy, and now, this older man is touching something suspicious on a “woman” who looks like a middle-aged lady? Today’s live stream is too filthy.
【Streamer’s Front Facing Camera】: I don’t care about the rest; I just want to know… how does it feel?
Even though the live stream was scandalous, the seasoned audience members were even filthier; morals seemed to vanish into thin air.
Even the long-silent system interjected.
System: “Host, if it weren’t for the special nature of this live stream, you would have been banned long ago.”
I wonder if the internet in that world is being heavily sanitized; wild actions like these should have already been on the “banished list.”
“The audience is so dirty; can I control their mouths and fingers? As your system, if you don’t apply censorship or filter certain words, that’s your negligence, not my problem,” Jiang Pengji retorted boldly.
System: “…”
It sounded so reasonable that it couldn’t come up with a rebuttal.
While they were exchanging quips, the old steward rose with a grim expression and nodded gravely to Wei Yuan.
It’s definitely a man!
Receiving this answer, Wei Yuan nearly fainted from anger.
He didn’t know the house maids well, but he was aware that a coarse maid could get access to the inner courtyard.
In other words, the one who bullied his concubine, who had put a green hat upon him, and tarnished his daughter’s reputation was this wretched creature wailing on the ground. Thinking about the male objects he had found by chance while resting in the concubine’s room only fueled his rage.
What made him feel even more humiliated was that this scandal had evidently reached those who shouldn’t have known.
Qi Guanrang was tolerable; he was a son-in-law candidate Jiang Pengji selected, coming from humble beginnings with a tragic background. Although his eldest daughter had a little bit of a loss, it wasn’t disgraceful to be matched with him. Wei Yuan had observed that man’s character for a long time and found him trustworthy.
Since he was the soon-to-be son-in-law, even though it was embarrassing for him to know these things, at least it would be shame within the family.
For the sake of his poor daughter, he could swallow his pride. Why not?
But then, there was also his student, Liu Xi, inserting himself into the mix, seemingly also in the know.
Otherwise, how could one explain this kid’s behavior tonight?
Is he trying to turn Liu Xi into his son-in-law too?
Even more infuriating was that if it weren’t for this kid climbing over the wall in the dead of night, they might have let this “fake woman” escape with no idea who the real criminal was. So, blaming would not help, nor could he avoid the bubbling frustration, feeling his pride hurt.
His entire reputation was in jeopardy tonight.
With this thought, Wei Yuan, who usually held himself upright, felt his spine sag, as if aging before his time.
Though Feng Jin had no idea what had actually happened, judging by Jiang Pengji’s previous hints and her reactions, he could piece together some truths. Once the steward confirmed that maid was indeed male, he wished he could close his eyes and not see anything.
Truly, he was dragged into this mess because of Liu Xi, his foolishly naïve friend.
Although he could keep his lips sealed, he guessed that Mr. Wei Yuan must be harboring some resentment towards him right now.
Feng Jin could hold still, but the moment he moved, Wei Yuan’s attention fell on him.
Wei Yuan: “…”
Oh right, I forgot there was still one here.
【Streamer’s Side Profile Camera】: I know I shouldn’t laugh in such a situation, but I can’t help but want to burst out laughing. It feels like our poor Mr. Wei Yuan is in a completely miserable spot, stuck in the rhythm of being humiliated by outside males while his wives and concubines are in trouble.
【Streamer’s Back Profile Camera】: Although I want to laugh too, I worry more about what’s going to happen to those wives and concubines?
Yes, they’re just here to enjoy the drama; in simpler terms, they’re just gossiping about others for entertainment.
But the parties involved in this event surely can’t find anything to laugh about.
Needless to say about Wei Yuan, who seems like a rigid ancient Confucian scholar—his wives and concubines were touched by external males… even if they were innocent, as an ancient man, there would definitely be some mental blocks about it. So… what’s going to happen to the poor women in the harem?
From what the streamer just said in conversation with Qi Guanrang, it seems Mr. Wei Yuan is quite fond of his daughters and is willing to plan for their futures.
But wives and concubines aren’t daughters; when it comes to male dignity and the color of the hat above his head, there’s no way he would be so benevolent.
Watching the fun is one thing; having compassion is entirely another.
See, this group of people is so contradictory.
