CHAPTER 201: CHAPTER 201 SLANDER

The Heir of Duke Chong left the Drunken Immortal Pavilion and went straight back to Duke Chong’s Mansion.

He held the IOU to curry favor with the Old Madam.

This news not only pleased the Old Madam of Duke Chong’s Mansion, but the entire Duke Chong’s Mansion was also beaming with pride.

The face they had lost before was completely restored now.

Such good news even reached the Buddhist Hall of Duke Chong’s Mansion.

The Duchess of Chong was kneeling on the prayer mat reciting scriptures.

A maid dashed in like the wind and said, "Madam, the Young Master has won against the Young Master of Dongxiang Marquis Mansion again."

The Duchess of Chong’s face froze slightly.

The maid said joyfully, "This time, the Young Master of Dongxiang Marquis Mansion even lost both the Dongxiang Marquis Mansion and Qingyun Mountain to our Young Master."

The Duchess of Chong felt a pang in her nose.

"I know."

"You may leave now."

Her voice carried a trace of suppressed anger.

The maid was a bit stunned; why wasn’t Madam happy?

The maid turned and left.

As soon as the maid closed the door, tears the size of beans rolled down the face of the Duchess of Chong.

...

The news that the Young Master of Dongxiang Marquis Mansion lost the Dongxiang Marquis Mansion and Qingyun Mountain to the Heir of Duke Chong spread like wildfire throughout the Capital City.

The next day, before the morning court session.

Outside the Political Discussion Hall, civil and military ministers were discussing this matter.

Upon seeing the Duke arriving, all were praising the Heir of Duke Chong as a young talent, brave and resourceful.

Everyone knew that Su Chong was highly skilled in martial arts, slightly superior to the Heir of Duke Chong, who wisely chose to avoid his edge and attacked his weaknesses, truly a matchless strategist.

The Duke showed no emotion on his face amid the praises, but he was secretly overjoyed.

"Even Qingyun Mountain belongs to the Duke now, the face of Marquis Dongxiang is utterly lost this time," a minister said with a chuckle.

"When he returns to the Capital, there will be a good show to watch," another minister chimed in.

He probably won’t have the chance to return to the Capital.

A cold smile curled at the Duke’s lips.

The eunuch announced the beginning of the court session.

The ministers filed in one after the other.

When the Emperor came to court and took his seat on the Dragon Chair.

Eunuch Fu proclaimed, "If there are memorials to submit, present them, otherwise retire from—."

The word "court" was stuck in his throat.

Marquis Dongxiang walked in rubbing his neck, heading to his designated spot.

In his absence these days, his spot had been occupied, but seeing him coming, people hurriedly moved aside.

Standing in his place, Marquis Dongxiang smiled, "It’s been a while since I’ve been to court; I really do miss it."

The Duke’s face turned as dark as the bottom of a pot.

Not to mention taking Marquis Dongxiang’s life.

He returned without a scratch!

Seeing Marquis Dongxiang return, many ministers were stunned.

The Emperor frowned and said, "Weren’t you missing on the battlefield?"

"Not missing, just afraid of being ambushed on the way back, I don’t like living in constant fear, so I came up with an unexpected way to return," Marquis Dongxiang said with a smile.

"What way?" the Emperor asked.

"I took a detour, avoiding all the necessary routes from the border to the Capital," Marquis Dongxiang said with a smile.

"How could you avoid them?" Prince NanAn asked.

"I detoured back via Nanliang," replied Marquis Dongxiang.

"...!!!"

The Duke almost spat out a mouthful of old blood.

Nanliang?!

He actually detoured back from Nanliang!

None of the many people he dispatched encountered him!

The Duke clenched his fist.

The sound of bones creaking was clearly heard by the ministers nearby.

The ministers were all impressed.

Marquis Dongxiang was truly formidable.

Unfortunately, he didn’t raise a good son.

Eunuch Fu continued announcing the words he couldn’t finish earlier.

The morning court session proceeded as usual.

Halfway through, the Emperor asked, "Is there any urgent matter to report?"

The hall was very quiet.

Marquis Dongxiang looked around and said, "Is nobody going to impeach me?"

The ministers were, "...."

What was with that hopeful look?

Why.

Has going without impeachment for a time made you uncomfortable?

The Emperor held his forehead.

The court, having been quiet for so long, was about to become lively again with his return.

"Marquis Dongxiang, speak your piece if you have one," the Emperor said.

Marquis Dongxiang stepped forward and said, "Your Majesty, since no minister is impeaching me, I will impeach myself."

The Emperor, "...."

The ministers, "...."

Eunuch Fu knew things weren’t good at the sound, quickly instructing a little eunuch to bring a cup of cooling tea.

"What are you going to impeach yourself for?" the Emperor frowned.

Marquis Dongxiang replied, "I was responsible for transporting grain and grass to the border. Passing through Wangzhou, I couldn’t help but rob the silver vault and the grain store of Wangzhou Prefecture."

The Emperor, "...."

The ministers, "...."

Prince NanAn looked at Marquis Dongxiang and said, "Wangzhou Prefecture didn’t have grain and grass."

The Duke stood up, looked at Marquis Dongxiang, and shouted, "Marquis Dongxiang, do not slander yourself!"

Marquis Dongxiang, "...."

The Emperor spit out a mouthful of tea directly.

Coughing nonstop.

Eunuch Fu hurriedly helped the Emperor pat his back.

Really.

This is the first time the Emperor has sprayed tea in front of the court ministers since he ascended the throne.

Marquis Dongxiang’s mouth twitched violently.

He has always left others speechless, never expecting to find himself speechless one day.

Marquis Dongxiang was silent for a long time, then said, "I also had someone break one of the Prefect of Wangzhou’s legs, it just happened a couple of days ago."

Duke Chong’s forehead veins bulged.

He looked at the Emperor and said, "Your Majesty, a natural disaster occurred in Wangzhou, and it just received aid from the court, so it’s impossible for there to be grain and grass for Marquis Dongxiang to seize."

The Emperor waved his hand and said, "We’ll discuss this matter later."

Marquis Dongxiang returned to his position.

Duke Chong stood still.

The Emperor looked at him and asked, "Does Duke Chong have something to report?"

Duke Chong stepped forward half a step and said, "Your Majesty, I have sinned, and I have failed in teaching my son."

The Emperor, "...."

What is happening today?

Has self-impeachment become an addiction?

At this rate, will he need to issue a self-condemnation edict?

"What happened?" the Emperor asked.

Duke Chong told the Emperor about his son gambling with Su Chong in public and winning Dongxiang Marquis Mansion and Qingyun Mountain.

The Emperor already knew about this matter.

But Marquis Dongxiang did not.

He shouted angrily, "That rebellious son!"

"I’m going back to beat him right now!"

Without even finishing court, Marquis Dongxiang turned and left, only to be stopped by Duke Chong.

It wasn’t going to be that easy to leave!

Marquis Dongxiang’s brows furrowed.

Duke Chong looked at the Emperor and said, "Your Majesty, Dongxiang Marquis Mansion was granted by you, and the audacity of the Young Master of Dongxiang Marquis Mansion to gamble away the imperial-granted mansion should be severely punished."

Many ministers stood up to agree.

Not only should he be severely punished, but they should honor the wager.

Marquis Dongxiang’s eyebrows knitted tightly like a twisted rope.

Except for Prince NanAn and a few others remaining silent, most ministers overwhelmingly supported Duke Chong.

The wrath of the crowd was difficult to withstand, and besides, Su Chong indeed needed a good lesson.

The Emperor said, "Since it was a wager, the terms must be honored."

Marquis Dongxiang returned to the Dongxiang Marquis Mansion.

The moment Commander Tie and his men withdrew, the people from Duke Chong’s Mansion arrived, urging Marquis Dongxiang to move out.

The steward of Dongxiang Marquis Mansion saw them and said, "Wait outside!"

Drunken Immortal Pavilion.

Su Chong had stayed at the Drunken Immortal Pavilion last night.

The night before, he had slept at the farmstead because the room was stuffy, so he spent the night in the gazebo.

He wasn’t sure how much blood he had contributed to mosquitoes, but they surely returned him many red envelopes of bites.

He yawned as he came downstairs.

The Heir of Duke Chong just happened to enter.

Their eyes met.

Their gazes burned intensely.

Of course, only Su Chong was getting burned.

The Heir of Duke Chong was in an exceedingly cheerful mood.

Su Chong walked over and said, "Let’s keep gambling!"

The Heir of Duke Chong sneered coldly, "You’ve already lost Qingyun Mountain to me, what else can you gamble with?"

Su Chong pulled out a piece of paper from his chest and slapped it on the table, "I still have a thirty percent share of the Conscience Ice Shop!"

The Heir of Duke Chong’s gaze narrowed.

"If you’re not afraid of losing it all, then come on!" His eyes showed disdain.

...

The servants of Duke Chong’s Mansion waited outside the Marquis Mansion for almost two full quarters.

The servants from Dongxiang Marquis Mansion had already packed everything up.

Everyone had a bundle each.

Marquis Dongxiang hadn’t brought much when he came to the Capital City.

He also didn’t buy much after moving into Dongxiang Marquis Mansion.

They moved so swiftly that the servants of Duke Chong’s Mansion were a bit dumbfounded.

They had thought the others would stubbornly refuse to leave, so they had brought many men to prepare for a fight.

The servants of Duke Chong’s Mansion took down the plaque.

If the plaque hadn’t been an imperial gift, they would have stomped on it a few times.

Marquis Dongxiang tapped the stone lion at the gate with his hand.

Mrs. Tang looked at Marquis Dongxiang and said, "Don’t get too smug."

Marquis Dongxiang lightly coughed.

His face took on a serious expression.

Mrs. Tang, "...."

"It’s still early, I’ll accompany you for a stroll," said Marquis Dongxiang.

"Your stroll, in others’ eyes, is wandering the streets," Mrs. Tang tittered.

"...."

They hadn’t even reached the end of the street.

The news came that the Heir of Duke Chong had lost Duke Chong’s Mansion to Su Chong.

"Starting today, we’ll be living at Duke Chong’s Mansion," Marquis Dongxiang laughed heartily.

"Go supervise their move," Mrs. Tang instructed the servants.

"Yes, Madam!"

The servants shouted in unison.