Chapter 259: Chapter 259 She Overestimated Herself (Thanks to the confused little Zhuge for the reward and updates)
"Humph! For an unmarried young lady of the inner chambers like her daughter, the Lin Family should be calling a Doctor to the house, not parading the girl in public. The Lin Family truly has no manners!"
Madam Xie was quite dissatisfied. She had just received an imperial edict from the Empress Dowager, instructing ladies of families belonging to Fifth Grade officials and above in the capital to bring their eligible daughters, aged thirteen to eighteen, to the Palace to demonstrate their artistic skills.
As soon as she received the news, she sent Nanny Hua to inform the Lin Family. Then, she immediately went to find the Lin Family to discuss that Xie Yingying, with her disfigured face, should not be brought to the Palace.
Unexpectedly, before she could step into the Lin Family’s courtyard, she heard Xie Pan’Er’s outraged roar.
Her accusation stunned her so much that she dared not even consider if it could be true?
For the sake of the clan’s reputation, she lashed out without a second thought.
To her further surprise, with such a serious incident in the Xie Family, the Lin Family hadn’t stayed home to handle the matter. Instead, they had gone out with their daughter.
"Old Madam, please calm down. The Lady explained that she had heard of a remarkable person outside the city who could restore the Eldest Miss’s face and even repair her blind eye. That’s why she hurriedly left the city with the Eldest Miss."
Upon hearing this, Madam Xie’s face softened a bit. The Xie Family was once a prestigious family of the previous dynasty, but it has significantly declined by now.
The Xie Family of Wuliuxiang, in the eyes of others, was now merely the residence of a Fifth Grade Junior Minister of Guanglu Temple.
The art presentation in the Palace during the Double Ninth Festival represented an opportunity for the Xie Family. After all, the family now had three eligible daughters to bring to the Palace.
The Emperor had no Queen, let alone any concubines. If the Emperor really planned to use the Double Ninth Festival to select consorts, every girl in the capital could seize the chance to rise in status!
Initially, she regretted that her eldest granddaughter’s face had been marred, causing her to miss such an opportunity.
But after hearing what Nanny Hua said, she felt somewhat relieved.
"Pan’Er, you can eat indiscriminately, but you can’t speak irresponsibly. You said the Lin Family had poisoned your father and brother. Do you have any evidence? As a descendant of the Xie Family, it is well known that family shame should not be spread abroad. Even if you had evidence, you still ought not to make such a fuss and attract everyone’s attention! You even mentioned going to the Government Office to press charges!"
Madam Xie entered the Flower Hall and sat down, ordering someone to bring Pan’Er before her. With a somber face, she stared intently at Pan’Er.
Xie Pan’Er was somewhat scared facing Madam Xie. Though she called her "Great-grandmother," this woman was not her actual grandmother.
Her grandfather and Old Madam Xie’s husband were brothers, though not by the same mother.
"Great-grandmother, the Lin Family is malicious! The Lin Family fed both my father and brother a parasitic poison, threatening their lives and tormenting my mother daily! My mother’s body has been tormented to the point of ruin."
"Miss Pan’Er, the Old Madam just stated that you must have evidence for your accusations. If you have none, you must not speak such nonsense!"
"Whether I have evidence or not will be clear if you invite a Doctor to examine my father and brother.
"Then there’s my mother. Last night, while I was away accompanying the Princess at the Ji Mansion, the Lin Family forced my mother to kneel on the warm cobblestones in the Lin Family’s courtyard for the entire night!
"Her kneecaps are so damaged that she can barely walk!"
Although Xie Pan’Er was afraid of Madam Xie, thinking of her father’s and brother’s lives, and her mother’s future, she clenched her teeth, steeled her nerves, and told the whole story, subtly mentioning the Princess in passing.
Madam Xie’s face instantly turned terrifyingly grim. So, this girl Pan’Er now has powerful backing and dares to act so audaciously.
Humph! For a young girl, she indeed thinks too highly of herself!