The cries reached the inner chambers, causing Zan Ying’s brows to twitch.

Ren Shi rushed in, teeth clenched, “Young lady, don’t be afraid. I’ll go out and drive that old hag away. Her acting like this, it’s all just to make the families in Wuyi Lane see, trying to use the guise of propriety and filial piety to crush you. The Fu family is a prestigious clan, and she, as the old matriarch of a prominent family, has lost all shame. Bah!”

Ren Shi then turned to leave.

Zhan Ying raised her eyes and said slowly, “Sister Ren, don’t go. Let her kneel a while longer; isn’t that better?”

Ren Shi and Chun Jin were both stunned.

Zan Ying took the tea cup with its blue porcelain and gold rim, feeling the tea’s heat, and took a small sip. “Send someone to check if she is really kneeling or just pretending.”

Ren Shi, worried, said, “Young lady, don’t act impulsively. Even if that old woman kneels to death, it doesn’t matter, but those outside with sharp tongues might distort the facts. What about your reputation?”

Chun Jin, standing by, was so angry that her eyes were red, stamping her foot and saying, “Isn’t this just meant to ruin the young lady’s reputation? How can there be such bullies in the world?”

“Ruin my reputation?” Zan Ying’s expression was innocent, as if this was the least of her concerns.

She spoke with a tone as crisp and cold as ice shards falling onto a frozen surface. “My father’s birth mother passed away early. The one outside is not my true grandmother. She won’t be able to ruin me. It’s not I who forced her to kneel, but she who kneels to force me. Since it’s a performance, she should carry it out fully. Sister Ren, please go out and take a look.”

Seeing that the young lady was calm rather than panicked, Ren Shi felt more at ease and nodded. “Alright, I’ll do as you say.”

The old Lady Fu outside was clearly not truly kneeling; it was all a show to force Zan Ying to appear.

She bent her knees, and the maids quickly supported her, shouting loudly, “It’s terrible! Young lady Zanying has disrespected her elders and forced the old lady to take such drastic measures!”

Their purpose was not to reconcile with Zan Ying.

Old Lady Fu intended to use force and intimidation as her strategy, as instructed by her advisors before leaving.

They were to apply as much pressure and intimidation as possible.

But after a long time of futile thunder without rain, only a few servants peeked out from the gate, and the main figures did not appear.

Old Lady Fu, furious that the girl was truly unperturbed, thought of a strategy given to her before leaving.

Considering the honor of her late son, she gritted her teeth and, with a resolve, moved aside her two maids and genuinely knelt on the bluestone path.

“If you won’t see me, then your grandmother will stay here kneeling.”

“She’s really kneeling?”

Inside the hall, upon hearing this response, Zan Ying blinked a couple of times.

She called for Chun Jin to bring more tea and sipped it slowly while occasionally glancing at the water clock as if counting the time.

One cup of tea passed.

Two cups of tea passed.

Outside in the alley, Old Lady Fu believed that by pressuring Zan Ying like this, the inexperienced girl would surely be frightened and come running out.

Then, she would mention her plan to remove both her and her father’s family registration.

This scare would make the girl panic and comply, making Lady Fu’s sacrifice worthwhile.

However, she knelt there for a long time, and apart from the constant chirping of cicadas, there was no movement at the gate of the Fu residence.

In the sweltering heat of the midsummer, beads of sweat quickly formed and trickled down from the old matriarch’s forehead. Her knees ached painfully on the stone bricks, and soon she could no longer endure.

Zan Ying could still manage within the confines of the Fu residence, but once the news spread to the neighboring Wang family estate…

In the coolness provided by the ice basin in the Wang residence, the old Lady Fu leaned back on a rosewood couch, half-closing her eyes and listening to the ancient qin music played by the performers behind the beaded curtains.

She sighed softly, “The Fu family has truly gone to ruin.”

She remembered that the Fu family, originally of modest status, was only elevated due to Tang Su’s marriage to Fu Sanlang and their daughter being made a consort.

Without this, the Fu family would never have made it even to the rank of a second-tier aristocratic family.

Even a somewhat respectable scholar from a small family would not do something so foolish.

Lack of intelligence might be forgivable, and limited family education could be hidden.

But to be so utterly disgraceful, treating one’s own dignity as mere stepping stones, and then proudly flaunting it, only shows that their fortunes have run dry.

Meanwhile, old Lady Fu, gritting her teeth, was struggling on the scorching blue stone slabs, feeling dizzy and having her ears ringing.

The two maids she brought along took turns calling out to the inside of the gate but could not summon Miss Fu.

This was quite different from what they had anticipated.

Unable to kneel any longer, the old matriarch was about to help herself up when she suddenly heard a heavy sound of the gate opening.

Finally, Old Lady Fu, with resentment in her eyes, lifted her head, her spit already prepared with sharp barbs, ready to fire.

However, she found that it was not the Fu family’s main gate but the gate of the neighboring residence.

A young man in a dark purple silk robe stood on the steps.

With a face powdered and a noble demeanor, he looked down at her coldly.

“Are you the old matriarch of the Fu family? I just heard that you’ve been shouting about how you refuse to support your legitimate elders while supporting outsiders instead. I’m puzzled. Is this how you treat the mother of our esteemed imperial consort, such a prominent figure? Where is your second head for such audacity?”

Old Lady Fu was immediately drenched in cold sweat, and her legs gave way, causing her to sit back down.

Hearing these words, did she provoke the actual Prince of Huijun?

But her remarks were all aimed at Fu Zanying and had no disrespect for the imperial consort at all.

The Prince of Huijun was known for his filial piety.

Seeing Fu Zanying disrespecting her elders, shouldn’t he turn his back on her?

Why did he still speak up?

Before the old matriarch could explain, a gate outside the district suddenly swung open.

A young maid in a green skirt came out carrying a bucket of vegetable wash water.

She quickly walked over and, with a vigorous splash, doused the three old women’s skirts with dirty water.

The dirty water flowed and stained the skirts of the three elderly women, who collectively were over two hundred years old.

The maid said nothing after she finished and merely shot a glance at the old women before turning and walking back into the estate.

In her lifetime, the old matriarch had never been subjected to such humiliation.

She looked at the gate, where two large golden characters were displayed: “Xie Family,” and suddenly everything went dark before her eyes.

Why did the Xie family also come forward to support someone who opposed the imperial family, showing disrespect and disobedience?

Didn’t they feel embarrassed at all?

Just as this thought faded, Qiu Shi saw an elderly woman with silver hair walking out of the neighboring residence on the right of the Prince of Hui’s estate.

This woman, like her, was leaning on a cane, but she wore a simple, elegant gown with a straight hem and bamboo orchid embroidery at the collar.

Under the sunlight, her attire radiated a serene and refined beauty.

“Old sister, what is the point of this?”

The elderly woman spoke with a gentle southern accent. “Allow me to offer you some advice: leaving a path for others is also leaving a path for your own descendants. The world is full of sharp edges. This young girl has had a hard life. How can she withstand such pressure from you?”

Old Lady Fu looked at the speaker in astonishment.

It was none other than Madam Chu, her neighbor for decades.

Old Lady Fu’s lips trembled, unable to say a word.

Was it really worth it to have Madam Chu, who had received a house in Wuyi Lane from Tang Su years ago, come out to defend her granddaughter?

Qiu Shi suddenly felt surrounded by enemies.

But since the situation had reached this point, she was determined to save the Fu family.

This drama had to be played out, whether she liked it or not.

Moreover, with both families watching, she had to hold her ground.

This was precisely the attention she sought.

As long as she used her final trump card to make Zan Ying afraid, her own face would not be tarnished.

With this thought, Old Lady Fu’s gaze became as firm as iron wedges.

With the help of her two maids, she slowly stood up, focused solely on the door in front of her.

Gathering all her strength, she shouted:

“Zan Ying, are you truly so stubborn as to be willing to erase your father’s name from the Fu family records? If that is your wish, I will take it upon myself to remove both your and your father’s names from the family register. Your father will no longer be a son of the Fu family, no longer supported by our incense, and you will no longer be a daughter of the Fu family, forever relegated to common status. Think carefully, and do not regret it.”

These words, powerful and resonant, echoed through the long alley, passing over the dark-tiled walls and willow-shaded pools, and were clearly heard in Zan Ying’s hall.

Inside, the maids were horrified, their faces showing panic.

They all knew the gravity of the charges of disrespecting elders and being removed from the family records, even they, as servants, understood it clearly.

It was one thing for Old Lady Fu to act this way, but the matter involved the reputation of the deceased father, which could cast a lifelong shadow over Zan Ying.

What a cruel old woman, trying to drive Zan Ying to despair!

Even Manager Du, and his servants arrived in a rush, their faces frowning with anger, ready to take action. “Young lady, don’t be afraid. I’ll drive them away.”

Zan Ying’s eyes lowered slightly, sitting calmly in place, unmoved as a mountain.

She put down the cup, her fingertips trembling a little.

She pressed her left hand against her right arm to steady herself.

It wasn’t fear, but anger—anger that this old woman was tarnishing her deceased father’s reputation.

After the anger, Zan Ying sighed softly, feeling a tinge of disappointment.

She had waited for several days, hoping for some new tactics, but it turned out to be nothing more than the old method of using social etiquette to inflict harm.

During these few days since moving, she had not been idle.

Besides starting to read the books and letters left by her father, she had also learned many things about her parents’ past from Uncle Du.

Outside in the courtyard, under the blazing sun, the white wolf with its ears drooping and tail hanging low, paced back and forth, eventually settling down beside the young lady in a jade robe.

Its sharp teeth were slightly exposed, and its cold eyes stared out at the courtyard. Zan Ying sat steadily behind the sandalwood desk, her arms outstretched to smooth her wide sleeves, which flowed like waves and spread evenly over the mat.

She placed her hands on her knees, her back straight, and her chin slightly raised. Calmly, she said:

“Convey my words. I have heard that when my mother married into the Fu family, the Fu family made things difficult for the bride. My father, unwilling to endure it, even wanted to sever ties with the Fu family. It was my mother who, considering my father’s reputation, swapped our residence with a neighboring estate to establish the Rui Garden, avoiding conflicts and covering up our family’s disgrace. I am not as capable as my mother, nor do I have my father’s temperament. Today, the Fu family has come to our door, daring to use my respected mother as a pretext. I can tolerate insults to myself, but I will not endure any insults to my parents.

“Today, on behalf of my late father, I am determined: it is not the Fu family that will expunge my father’s and my names from the family records, but rather, it is my father and I who will sever ties with the Fu family. I have heard that removing names from the family record requires the elders to be present, to enter the ancestral hall, and to affix seals. This cannot be decided by just you, Fu. You go and invite them, and I will definitely come.”

At this point, Zan Ying’s eyes sparkled with emotion, and for the first time, she gritted her teeth. “If within ten days you Fu family cannot gather the clan elders and open the ancestral hall, I will go and invite them myself. This seal, whether you Fu family want to affix it or not, it must be done.”

She then added in her mind, “There is only one day left of the five-day deadline.”

These people wanted to exploit her weaknesses, didn’t they?

In her previous life, she feared both wolves and tigers, but in this life, she feared nothing.

She even hoped that the last day would drag on slower, even slower.

She enjoyed watching these people struggle, unwilling to cut their own wrists to save themselves.

The longer they hesitated, the more deeply the rotten flesh would rot, and the more it would hurt when it was cut away piece by piece.

The hall was so quiet that even a needle dropping could be heard.

When the message was sent out, Zan Ying suddenly felt a furry sensation on the back of her hand.

She looked down, and the cold fire in her eyes extinguished in an instant.

Her voice even softened a bit, “Do you think I am too harsh?”

She affectionately patted the wolf’s head, her gaze burning with intensity. “There are worse things to come.”

The young lady’s words were personally conveyed by Manager Du.

After hearing this, the old matriarch of the Fu family was stunned for a while, nearly collapsing back to the ground, the cold sweat stinging her eyes.

“I must have heard it wrong, or you… you must have misspoken. How dare she? This is treason, this is treason!”

At the corner of the long alley, Xu Shi, who had been trailing behind the Fu old matriarch since she left the house, squinted at the position of the sun and saw that the time was about right.

He said to the two groups of armored soldiers behind him:

“Go ahead. According to the Grand Marshal’s instructions, if the old lady likes to kneel, let her kneel until she’s comfortable. As long as she is still alive to go to the ancestral hall and sign the seal, it will suffice. Just change the location, don’t do it in Wuyi Alley to avoid disturbing the noble families.”

“Oh.” Xu Shi remembered something and added, “If someone from the Fu family comes to plead, and they are descendants of benevolence and filial piety, don’t stop them. Share the good fortune; the more people, the livelier it will be.”

Meanwhile, in front of the Fu residence’s gate, Fu Xiao, hearing the message from the gatekeeper, stood there stunned, as if struck by a celestial thunderbolt.

“Did you hear it wrong?”

Not only was his voice trembling, but his body was also shaking.

The eyes of Fu Zhongling were quivering uncontrollably.

“My mother went to Jingyun Temple to offer incense, didn’t she? How did she end up in Wuyi Alley? Kneeling to a younger generation? She is not a common streetwoman; she is a noblewoman, the mother of the Zhongshu Ling! My Fu family is a prestigious family. How could my mother behave like this?”

Fu Xiao’s face contorted with rage.

Suddenly, he yelled, jumped up, and pounded on the carriage shaft, crying out, “Drive the carriage, drive it! It’s all over, the Fu family is doomed!”