As soon as Master Yan uttered those words, the entire flower hall exploded.
Mu Qing’s father, Master Mu, was the first to object. His face darkened as he stood up and said coldly, “Brother-in-law, what kind of talk is that? As for my daughter Miaoniang’s marriage, I have my own plans. There’s no need for you to concern yourself.”
Madam Bai, Mu Qing’s mother, had just come in from the rear courtyard with her daughter. She had been in quite a good mood, especially after receiving the thoughtful gifts Mu Qing had brought her. And perhaps thanks to Yan Hong sweet-talking her earlier, even her attitude toward her former brother-in-law had softened somewhat. She had been planning to personally oversee a fine dinner to host him.
But who would have thought she’d hear such words the moment she walked through the door? Madam Bai’s expression immediately turned icy as she snapped, “Brother-in-law, that’s quite an outrageous thing to say. Let’s not forget, our Miaoniang was raised under this roof, and everyone here knows her temperament. Even if outsiders don’t understand her, surely her own kin should! My poor sister died young, and we haven’t seen you in just a few years, yet you’ve come here to slander our Miaoniang like this? It’s truly heartbreaking.”
At the mention of his late wife, Master Yan’s expression shifted slightly. But the dead were, after all, long gone, and couldn’t compare to the living.
One look at her former uncle-in-law, and Mu Qing could already tell he must’ve been egged on by his current wife, Madam Wang, specifically to come here and stir up trouble for her.
But no matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t think of any recent incident that might’ve provoked the Yan family—unless it had to do with her cousin Yan Hong and that Liu Feng.
If so, that really wasn’t her fault.
Even if Liu Feng had briefly held a so-called “tutor” title under her roof, it was her cousin who had fallen for him and refused all attempts at persuasion. If anyone insisted on pursuing such a mess, that was on them.
She could understand the Yan family’s anger, but directing it at her was entirely unjustified.
Still, when it came to rebuking others, Mu Qing rarely had to do the work herself. Whether it was her father, her mother, or even her little brother, they would typically take care of it for her. Today was no different. Her former uncle-in-law hadn’t even spoken much before being firmly shut down by her parents, left completely speechless. Clearly, his level wasn’t high enough to spar with the Mu family.
Truthfully, the only real challenge among the Yan family was Madam Wang, the second wife Master Yan had taken after the death of Mu Qing’s aunt. She was one of the few whose scheming was sophisticated enough that even the whole Mu household couldn’t fend her off—Mu Qing herself had to personally deal with her to break even.
Fortunately, their interactions were limited. Aside from occasional matters concerning Yan Hong, they barely saw each other.
After all, as a second wife, Madam Wang had no desire to associate with the deceased first wife’s family—widows included. No matter how well she kept up appearances, her heart was always filled with resentment and jealousy. Mu Qing had seen plenty of such relatives over the years and wasn’t at all surprised anymore.
After several head-on confrontations with Madam Wang, Mu Qing had grown increasingly adept at holding her own, while the woman had gradually retreated, adopting a strategy of lying low.
She was especially good at putting on a show, often appearing all kind and generous. No matter the criticism, she always wore a teary-eyed, tongue-tied expression that made others feel like they were bullying her instead.
Master Yan, ever more sympathetic to her “plight,” was easily swayed—especially since she’d given birth to three sons for the Yan family. With her whispers at his pillow, he listened to everything she said, making her quite the formidable adversary.
This time was likely no different.
But this kind of “messenger work” had little actual impact. Master Yan had never been eloquent. After just a few words, he was thoroughly countered by Mu Qing’s parents and left without a comeback.
The atmosphere in the flower hall grew awkward. It was then that Mu Qing calmly stepped forward, pulling out the gifts she’d prepared for her uncle-in-law and cousin, respectfully handing them over with a bright smile.
“Uncle rarely visits—let’s not spoil the mood with unpleasant talk. These are some small tokens for Uncle and Cousin. By the way, why didn’t Aunt come along today?”
The deliberate mention of Madam Wang clearly struck a nerve with Master Yan. His face twitched with frustration, and he gave a dry cough before answering, “Your aunt wasn’t feeling well, so she asked me to bring Hong’er. Speaking of which, where is she? She said she was going to find you, but you haven’t seen her?”
“Aunt,” huh? As if that Madam Wang would accept the title. Master Yan might be willing to pretend, but she certainly wasn’t.
Still, Mu Qing merely smiled and didn’t expose him. She nodded lightly and replied, “We met earlier. I was with my classmates at the time, so it wasn’t convenient to travel together. I told Cousin, and we parted ways. What, she hasn’t returned yet?”
It was already growing dark outside. Even if Yan Hong had been entangled with Liu Feng, they should’ve returned by now.
After all, Liu Feng was still technically residing at the Mu family residence. With the academy on break, he had nowhere else to go in Tongzhou. So Mu Qing hadn’t thought too much about it, assuming the two would tire themselves out and come back on their own.
But she hadn’t expected to spend so long talking with Qin Qin and still not see them. Now that the sky had gone dusky and they still hadn’t returned, not only were Master Mu and Madam Bai visibly concerned—Mu Qing herself was starting to get anxious.
Oddly enough, it was Master Yan, her cousin’s own father, who remained unbothered. He snorted, “Always learning the wrong things—never anything proper. If she ends up bringing home some disgraceful man and calling him husband, that would be quite the joke…”
That was the last straw. Mu Qing’s temper flared. She slowly rose to her feet, met her former uncle’s eyes directly, and said coldly, “Uncle, who exactly are you calling ‘disgraceful’?”
Though she still wore a polite smile, her eyes blazed with fire. Her aura alone was enough to utterly crush Master Yan, who flinched back against his chair and muttered weakly, “I-I was just talking about your… that Qing fellow… he looks like one of those fancy boy performers… Who knows where he came from…”
He hadn’t even finished speaking when there was a loud bang—something heavy dropped to the floor, abruptly silencing him.
Everyone turned to look. It was Mu Qing’s little brother.
He had been holding a thick satchel of books, but now it lay scattered on the floor, papers everywhere. Yet the boy himself remained perfectly composed.
“Pardon me,” he said calmly. “My hand slipped.”
Earlier that afternoon, he’d stayed behind at the academy to help a teacher copy several rare volumes, so he returned late. He hadn’t even changed into indoor attire when he heard Master Yan’s blatant slander—insulting his beloved brother-in-law no less. That was absolutely unforgivable. So he smashed down his book satchel in righteous fury.
With her little brother stepping in so forcefully, Mu Qing instead regained her calm. She bent down to help gather the books, gently patted his head, then turned to Master Yan and said icily, “Uncle, that was uncalled for. My husband has both name and virtue, and once saved my life. He is the one I’ve chosen for the rest of my days. I ask that you show some respect and refrain from slandering him without cause.”
Master Yan had just recovered from the scare of Mu Jiang’s book-throwing when her words reignited his anger. “So this is how you younger ones speak to your elders now? Outrageous, absolutely outrageous! You say his background is clear—then where is he? You’re here, aren’t you? Why doesn’t he come out to greet his elders? I—”
He cut himself off.
Because right at that moment, Mu Qing’s husband stepped through the flower hall doorway.
And he wasn’t alone. Beside him stood Liu Feng—clothes in disarray—and Yan Hong, covered in dust and dirt.
Both looked utterly wretched.
Liu Feng especially looked like he had just been beaten half to death. He was slumped, disheveled, with blank, vacant eyes.
Mu Qing’s heart skipped a beat. She was just about to step forward and ask what happened when her cousin Yan Hong suddenly ran ahead, collapsed to her knees, grabbed Master Yan’s leg, and burst into sobs.
“Father! You must stand up for me! I… I’m already his woman!”
