Chapter 137: Chapter 136 Jinling City 8
Hou Tianying said resentfully, "Dad, look at the state Big Brother has been beaten into, and you do nothing about it!"
Third Master Huang had crippled her own brother, severing his line of succession, leaving Hou Tianying deeply conflicted.
It was so hard to find someone she wanted to marry, and now... How could such a serious conflict have arisen with her family? Now that a deadly feud had been established, her hopes could only remain as thoughts. It was all Big Brother’s fault, always causing trouble and never finding peace, turning Jinling City into a chaotic mess. Now he had reaped what he sowed.
On regular days, Lady Hou always prioritized her son in everything, her thoughts and worries consumed by him. Even her daughter had to stand aside. Hou Tianying, as the legitimate eldest daughter, was accustomed to being flamboyant and doted on by everyone in the household.
But now... the man she admired was unattainable. Her heart was filled with both hatred and resentment.
Old Master Hou, however, wasn’t preoccupied with such thoughts. Upon opening his eyes, his attention was immediately drawn to his unconscious son. The sight of blood soaking his son’s crotch was particularly glaring. Coupled with Lady Hou’s heart-wrenching cries, he began to panic.
"What happened here? Who did this? Who dares to cause such trouble in Jinling City?"
A tiger doesn’t eat its cubs. Even though he favored Aunt Mei the most, Hou Tianbao was his flesh and blood, his own son. His son’s line of succession had been severed—an unforgivable enmity.
"Presumptuous! Speak, who did it!"
Lady Hou was too busy crying to answer. In her panic, Hou Tianying closed her eyes and lied.
"I don’t know who it was! I don’t recognize them!" After saying this, she quickly added, "It was a group of people staying at Jingtai Tower!"
Lady Hou was too consumed with grief to listen carefully.
Prefectural Magistrate Hou stormed out, leaving only Hou Tianying behind. She looked around and decided to follow.
"Father, wait for me!"
Her mother’s heart was entirely with her brother. Staying behind wouldn’t help, so it might be better to accompany her father. If she found an opportunity, maybe she could find a way to exonerate Third Master Huang. Perhaps a touched Third Master Huang and a pleased father might just make this wishful thought possible! Just thinking about his free-spirited, noble demeanor, even the way he struck others was so sharp and decisive. He must be a noble among nobles! At this thought, she even felt a sense of secret delight.
"Mother, now that Big Brother is useless, if you want to maintain your standing in the Hou family, you’ll have to rely on me, your daughter! So what if Aunt Mei has a son? As long as I marry well, you will still be the respected Prefectural Lady. Humph!"
With her mind made up, Hou Tianying indeed followed along.
Along the way, Hou Tianying felt somewhat uneasy.
"Dad, that Third Master Huang looks like he has significant backing! Confronting him head-on might not be wise!"
Prefectural Magistrate Hou was so angry he seemed about to blow smoke from his nostrils.
"What significant backing? Isn’t he just a wealthy merchant?"
Hou Tianying grew anxious.
"But... Dad! Think about it, if he were just a merchant, where would he get the audacity to run wild in Jinling City? All the merchants that passed through our Jinling City before were polite and offered you gifts, but this Third Master Huang... he is different!"
Upon hearing this, Prefectural Magistrate Hou paused for a moment.
"Tianying, your words make sense!"
Prefectural Magistrate Hou stroked his beard. After thinking for a while, he turned to give an order.
"Someone come here!"
A man who looked like an advisor immediately stepped forward.
"Master, what are your instructions?"
Prefectural Magistrate Hou thought for a moment and then asked, "First, go and find out for me the background of that merchant who did the beating. I’ll head back to the Yamen first and await your news!"
With a dismissive pat to his own backside, Prefectural Magistrate Hou flicked his sleeves and departed.
The advisor was completely bewildered. "Eldest Miss, this..."
Hou Tianying said impatiently, "Just go if I tell you to! This concerns my elder brother’s matter. None of you are allowed to slack off! Everyone must thoroughly investigate!"
Having said that, Hou Tianying breathed a sigh of relief and left as well.
She also wanted to know the details about Third Master Huang, and this was a good opportunity to have the advisor thoroughly check it out! Yes! That’s it!
Thinking this, Hou Tianying also left, feeling quite satisfied.
The advisor, wanting to cry but having no tears, stood in the wind, completely flustered.
"This... with no clear starting point and no connections, where am I supposed to begin this investigation? Am I just to wander around asking blindly?"
「A day passed, and night gradually fell.」
Jingtai Tower was still safe and sound, just as Zhao Junyao had expected—indeed, no one came to cause trouble.
Xia Ruqing was a little worried. "My lord, if they didn’t come today, they might come tomorrow, right?"
Consort Yun glanced at Xia Ruqing with some dissatisfaction and snorted coldly, "As if the lord would be afraid of them!"
Zhao Junyao gave Consort Yun a cold look and said nothing.
Xia Ruqing also fell silent.
Around the large table, everyone ate their meals in an eerily quiet atmosphere.
That night, Zhao Junyao was in a foul mood and didn’t call for anyone to attend to him. Xia Ruqing didn’t mind. Although somewhat concerned, after talking with Zi Yue before bed, she managed to fall asleep.
Consort Yun, on the other hand, was extremely anxious and uneasy.
"Alas, if only I could be there to comfort the lord when he’s in a bad mood!"
Cai Die then suggested, "Why don’t you... go over now?"
Consort Yun thought for a moment but shook her head. "The lord doesn’t like to be disturbed when he is thinking!"
Tossing and turning in bed, she finally fell asleep in the latter part of the night.
「Early the next morning,」
When Prefectural Magistrate Hou awoke on Aunt Mei’s soft, youthful belly, it was already well into the morning.
Lady Hou had sent people several times, but they were all stopped at the door by Old Master Hou’s servants.
Lady Hou was so furious she nearly burst a vessel. She endlessly cursed that ’hussy’ and ultimately had to leave, consumed by resentment.
Aunt Mei, nestled on Prefect Hou’s corpulent belly, whispered seductively in his ear, "Old Master, with the Eldest Young Master beaten so severely, are you truly going to do nothing?"
Aunt Mei was just over thirty this year, in the prime of her beautiful, mature womanhood.
For Prefectural Magistrate Hou at his age, naive young girls could obviously no longer satisfy his needs. Only a woman like this—experienced, attractive, skillful in bed, and with a variety of techniques—could keep him.
Aunt Mei’s skills in bed were definitely top-notch. The fact that Prefectural Magistrate Hou spent every night in her chamber said it all.
When Prefectural Magistrate Hou heard her question, he scoffed lightly. "That shrew has always known nothing but to curse on the streets. Besides, I don’t have only one son!"
After speaking, he hooked a finger under Aunt Mei’s chin with a lecherous smile. "Don’t I still have your son?"
"Old Master, Xixi is only eight years old this year, and he’s still so young. Besides, his birth is humble; how can he compare to his elder brother!" Aunt Mei said, half-coquettishly, half-sourly.
Prefectural Magistrate Hou could clearly discern her implications. Though her tone was a mix of pique and charm, his heart softened.
He then wrapped his arm around her waist and said, "Once that shrew dies, I’ll make you my legitimate wife and make Xixi the heir. How about that?"