Chapter 28 You are bullying the weak and afraid of the strong
The Duke's wife was surprised and asked her niece, "This fourth daughter-in-law has never been around us often. Why is she so free today?"

"Has mother forgotten?" Li Lanchun glared at her aunt, lowered her voice, and replied, "Didn't my second brother beat Qilang a few days ago? Fourth aunt has always doted on her son, so she must have come to talk to you about it."

When the Duke's wife heard this, her eyebrows raised and she snorted coldly, "Her son was a bastard first, and my son just taught him a lesson, and she still has the nerve to come to me and complain."

When the Duke's wife was young, she had a hot temper and would yell at anyone she saw injustice. Now that she is a grandmother, although she is no longer as hot-tempered as before, she is still a person who cannot tolerate any sand in her eyes.

Li Lanchun hurriedly advised, "Don't be upset, Aunt. I asked around yesterday and heard that Qi Lang might not make it. The best outcome is that he will be a cripple. Otherwise, Third Aunt wouldn't be able to come with Fourth Aunt."

After hearing that Qi Lang was in such a miserable state, the Duke's wife suppressed her temper and said, "Oh," muttering, "This time, the second brother really did act a little more ruthlessly."

The aunt and niece went straight to the front hall. The Duke's wife was wearing a bright red phoenix-patterned dress with her hair done in a high bun. Although she was nearly fifty years old, her figure was still upright, and there was a hint of heroic spirit between her brows.

The Fourth Lady has always been most afraid of the Duke's wife, so she insisted on bringing the Third Lady along.

When the Duke's wife met the Third and Fourth Madams, she didn't say any more nonsense. She sat down on the chair and said directly, "It is indeed wrong for the Second Brother to beat the Seventh Brother like this. Third Sister-in-law, Fourth Sister-in-law, how do you want to punish my son? I will never protect him. You can either tie him up and beat him severely, or report to the clan and take away his position as the Crown Prince. As a mother, I have nothing to say."

The fourth lady was originally feeling very aggrieved, but upon hearing this, she was at a loss as to what to do and glanced secretly at the third lady beside her.

The Third Madam did not want to take away Lu Ji's position as the crown prince. Their nephews and nieces in the East Palace were still young, and the eldest had just entered the official career, and they needed Lu Ji's protection at that time.

After hearing what the Duke's wife said, the Third Lady cleared her throat and said, "The position of the Crown Prince is of great importance, it is not something that can be taken away just like that."

The Duke's wife nodded slightly upon hearing this, then looked at the Fourth Madam and asked, "Fourth Brother's Wife, what do you think?"

Before coming here, the Fourth Madam had been informed of the pros and cons by the Third Madam. The Fourth Madam also knew that it was a pipe dream to shake Lu Ji. When she saw the Duke's wife asking about it, she said angrily: "There is no need to report to the clan, but my son was beaten to a cripple. You should give us mother and son an explanation."

Seeing that neither of them agreed to take away her son's title, the Duke's wife felt relieved and said simply, "Since the two sisters-in-law said so, I will pay money to compensate Qi Lang. Just tell me how much you want. Or, you can give all my dowry to compensate the fourth sister-in-law and her son, and I will not say no."

The old general in the General's Mansion has only one daughter, the Duchess. When she was sent off for marriage, she was given a huge red wedding dress that stretched ten miles.

The entire dowry would be enough to last for several lifetimes.

The Third Lady said nothing upon hearing this. She just drank her tea and let the Fourth Lady make the decision. The Fourth Lady thought for a moment and said with a dull face, "Of course the money must be compensated. My son has become like this. He will have to rely on money to keep himself alive in the future."

The Duke's wife said, "Don't worry about that. I will never be stingy with money. In the future, I will make sure that you and your son will have no worries."

The fourth lady raised her eyes to look at the Duke's wife, but she did not dare to look her in the eye, and said, "I have another request."

"You talk." The Duchess's wife listened attentively.

"Tell the prince to hand over the concubine surnamed Qin." When the fourth lady mentioned this, her face twisted and she gritted her teeth in hatred: "If it weren't for this little bitch, why would my son be in this state? It was all caused by this bitch." "What does this have to do with that little girl?"

The Duke's wife was surprised when she heard this. She looked at the two ladies below and asked, "But did that girl seduce Qi Lang? If so, I will never tolerate it and will hand her over to you for disposal. But as far as I know, that girl never paid any attention to Qi Lang. This was entirely Qi Lang's deliberate attempt to seduce her first."

The Fourth Lady naturally knew this, but she was holding her anger in her heart and couldn't do anything to Lu Ji, so she could only vent her anger on Qin Xiaoning.

"If she is really innocent, why doesn't my son flirt with others in such a large mansion, but has to keep an eye on her?" the Fourth Lady argued.

The Duke's wife was really confused about the Fourth Madam's logic. She held the teacup and stared at the Fourth Madam, unable to speak.

Seeing this, Grandma Li Lanchun smiled and said to the Fourth Lady, "Fourth Aunt, you are wrongly accusing her. The little girl has been raised in the mansion since she was young. She is a decent person. Everyone in the mansion knows this. According to what you said, is it that the little girl was deliberately framed by Qilang and it became her fault?"

After hearing what her niece said, the Duke's wife finally came to her senses, so she agreed with her niece's father-in-law and said to the Fourth Madam in all fairness, "This matter has nothing to do with the child."

The fourth lady was determined to do what she wanted, and she gritted her teeth and said in defense, "This is all because of her. If I don't cut that little bitch into pieces, I won't be able to relieve the hatred in my heart."

When the Duke's wife heard this, she laughed in anger, "Fourth brother's wife, you are bullying the weak and afraid of the strong. What do you want? You can just come after us mother and son. You have to embarrass an innocent weak woman. Do you think it's funny?"

"Second sister-in-law, you are sincerely trying to protect that concubine."

As she spoke, the fourth wife began to sob again, first crying for her dead husband, then crying for her crippled son, and then she rolled on the ground throwing a tantrum.

The Third Lady was not surprised at all, but the Duke's wife hated this kind of shrewish attitude the most, and her face darkened immediately with anger.

Seeing this, the Third Madam hurriedly asked the maid beside her to pull the Fourth Madam, and said to the Third Madam in a smooth manner: "Don't be upset, sister-in-law, the Fourth Brother's wife is also holding back her grievances."

The Duke's wife looked at the Fourth Lady throwing a tantrum on the ground, frowned, and said coldly: "She feels wronged, so is she going to take it out on an innocent little girl?"

The third lady thought to herself: How can the fourth brother's wife be compared with yours in terms of her broad-mindedness?

While trying to reconcile the Duke's wife, he also tried to persuade the Fourth Lady, but the Fourth Lady insisted that the West Mansion hand over Qin Xiaoning, and she was ready to throw a tantrum until the end if she didn't hand her over.

The Duke's wife's face turned pale. She was not good at speaking to begin with, and she was so angry that she couldn't utter a word. She only clenched her fists so hard that they made a creaking sound.

Li Lanchun knew her mother-in-law's temperament best. She was really worried that if the Fourth Lady continued to make trouble, it would provoke her mother-in-law to fight. So she quickly persuaded the Duke's wife to leave the front hall, saying, "Aunt, go and have a rest first. I will take care of this."

　The previous few pictures were blocked in the black room, but they have been corrected. I will release them later for everyone to see.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)