Chapter 1251 – War is Brewing (12)
Liu Ji quickly stood up to greet his old mother upon hearing her words.
He lowered himself, but Old Matriarch was relentless, forcing Liu Ji to explain himself.
“…Mother, what you say puts me in a difficult position. When have I ever complained about you?”
Liu Heng also stood up to perform a respectful greeting to his grandmother.
With the help of the father and son, the Old Woman settled into her seat at the upper end of the table.
Having enjoyed a life of comfort for many years, despite her age, the Old Woman’s skin was fair, making her appear slightly younger than she actually was.
However, her features were somewhat sharp, her narrow eyes looked piercing, making it clear she was not an easy-to-please old lady.
This person was Liu Ji and Liu Zhi’s mother, the true matriarch of the Liu Clan—the long-lived Old Matriarch. She had heard the bold news about Jiang Pengji splitting from the clan and was fuming; she rushed over to discuss it with her eldest son, but upon entering, she overheard the previous conversation, fueling her anger even more.
“Humph! I hear that the second branch has produced an unfilial girl.” The Old Matriarch, despite her advanced age, spoke loudly, her expression sharpening at the mention of her granddaughter Jiang Pengji, “In her twenties and still unmarried, and now she wants to split from the family? As the clan leader, why haven’t you written her a scolding letter to stop her? Is there still any rule in this family, allowing a girl to act like this over her elders?”
Upon hearing this, Liu Ji could only smile bitterly to himself.
Little did the pampered Old Matriarch know the weight of the Liu Clan in the outside world!
The Liu family once enjoyed glory but had been on a downward trend for hundreds of years. Their second-rate position in Hejian County was mostly due to Liu Zhi’s face. Compared to Liu Zhi, Jiang Pengji was much more formidable; what could the Liu Clan use to compel her to bow down?
“Mother, this matter is not as incredible as you think. Lan Ting’s decision to split was for the good of the clan members. Hejian County has fallen into Huang Song’s hands, and Huang Song and Lan Ting are adversaries. If Lan Ting does not split and cut ties, Huang Song will surely threaten the lives of everyone in the Liu Clan. By splitting, Lan Ting has given the Liu Clan a reason to avoid Huang Song’s wrath; this was an act of filial piety from that child simply done out of necessity.” Liu Ji spoke gently, trying to persuade his increasingly stubborn old mother.
The mother of Liu Ji and Liu Zhi came from a prominent family in Langya County; she and Gu Min’s mother were cousins who hadn’t surpassed five ranks.
Due to her noble birth, this old woman had lived by her own rules all her life, developing a strong and willful personality since she was a girl.
She liked to force others to bend to her will; she could live comfortably, but the people around her were being driven mad.
A recent example was Liu Zhi and his wife.
As soon as Liu Ji finished speaking, the Old Matriarch swatted his hand away.
“Don’t give that unfilial girl any kind words! You might pull the wool over fools, but not over me! I may be old, but my mind is still sharp. Liu Xi is undeniably unfilial towards her elders and lacks compassion for the clan!” The old woman glared with wide eyes, driving fear into people’s hearts, “She says she’ll split from the clan as she pleases, throwing the entire clan’s reputation to the dogs? She’s truly the wretched spawn of that woman Gu Min! First, she incited her husband to stand against me and now birthed an unfilial daughter who tarnishes our family’s honor!”
Spoiled as she was, the Old Matriarch had heard that this granddaughter had talent, but instead of being pleased, she felt disdain.
It wasn’t that Liu Xi was truly unsatisfactory; it was merely due to old grievances.
The Old Matriarch and Gu Min’s mother were cousins who were equally matched within the clan.
Back in their day, the social norms for men and women were much more liberal, and it was normal for unmarried girls to have a love interest.
When the Old Matriarch was young, she fancied young, handsome scholars and occasionally had covert meetings under the moonlit sky.
Despite coming from a noble family, her reputation before marriage was too shaky—she had to be very careful in her actions.
Unfortunately, Gu Min’s mother—her cousin—outshone her and used some crafty means during their arrangements to marry off their daughters. Someone spotted her exchanging tokens with a talented young man. Although she nearly lost her life for it, it affected her reputation, and the proposal shell went sideways.
In the end, Gu Min’s mother married into the prestigious Gu family in Langya to be a matriarch, drawing envy from everyone.
Meanwhile, she married a son from the Liu family with a less impressive background, and after marriage, felt disappointed when compared to her cousin.
Who would have known that her cousin’s legitimate daughter, Gu Min, would marry Liu Zhi, her own second son!
Every time she saw this daughter-in-law, she felt like a thorn in her throat.
She also held a dislike against Gu Min, believing her to be the mastermind behind Liu Zhi’s divided loyalties.
After marrying, Gu Min became restless, engaging in all sorts of commercial ventures and exposing herself to public view, making a fortune but not thinking of honoring her elders.
Having been Gu Min’s mother-in-law for several years, every time she suggested rules to that woman, Gu Min reluctantly agreed.
“Hmph! I’ve never seen such an unfilial woman!”
When Gu Min passed away, she secretly rejoiced.
With Gu Min gone, her originally obedient and filial son would surely return.
Seeing her son distraught over Gu Min, she specifically sought out a woman who resembled Gu Min, intending for this woman to be Liu Zhi’s beloved concubine. With her secret encouragement, the woman sought to grab Gu Min’s left-over heritage and bully the children she left behind.
A dead person is a dead person after all, and a man is ultimately a man—what man would push aside a beautiful woman for a deceased one?
However, things didn’t go as planned.
Not only did Liu Zhi refuse, but he also, in front of all the household servants, killed the woman by whipping her, even going so far as to skin her.
When the Old Matriarch heard wind of this, her legs turned to jelly.
After that, Liu Zhi moved out of the family residence and established his own household, never setting foot back, causing the old woman to nearly choke to death.
Whether it was her cousin, Gu Min, or Liu Xi—these three women, all from the same lineage, were there to give her grief!
Thinking about the shadows and grievances she had suffered over the years, the old woman felt angrier.
Now Liu Xi wanted to split from the clan as well? She thought her wings had grown strong!
Liu Ji furrowed his brows, dissatisfied as he spoke.
“Mother, regardless, Lan Ting is still your granddaughter.”
Ever since Liu Ji and his brothers married, their mother had grown increasingly overbearing, wanting to control everything and everyone.
When their father was alive, he could rein her in, but without him, she became more and more unruly.
Now, not caring for the Old Matriarch’s status and age, she openly called her granddaughter “wretched” in front of everyone.
Liu Ji was a gentleman and couldn’t tolerate filthy words.
The Old Matriarch stubbornly declared, “I do not have such an unfilial granddaughter!”
Liu Ji had become a grandfather, nearing fifty years, yet still struggling against his mother.
The Old Matriarch unleashed a stream of insults upon Liu Ji.
Liu Ji was already in a foul mood and, facing his unreasonable mother, retorted, “Mother, regardless of the situation, Lan Ting is a lord commanding an army of a million, not just a granddaughter groveling before you! To say something harsh, she has the power of life and death over our clan! We are the fish on the chopping block, we can only accept her splitting from the clan without a word of complaint.”
Hearing this, the Old Matriarch’s anger rose to a breaking point.
She raised her hand and slapped the table, ready to scold this unfilial son, when suddenly, everything went dark in front of her, and her breathing quickened.
