“But you worthless creatures, inferior to pigs and dogs, actually dare to rely on the merits of the Great Capital’s Bai family men who died fighting valiantly on the battlefield for their Kingdom… to bully the Jin people that our Bai family has protected for generations, to randomly humiliate and kill the common people whom our Bai family has always regarded as flesh and blood relatives! Such pigs and dogs… are they worthy of being Bai descendants? They are simply a disgrace to the Bai ancestors!”

Bai Qingyan looked at the emotionally agitated Bai Jinzhi with satisfaction. Though filled with righteous indignation, she could still maintain rationality and seize the opportunity… to win the hearts of Shouyang’s people for the Bai family.

Xiao Si… has grown up.

Bai Qingjie’s mother wanted to say something more, but when Bai Qingyan’s bone-chillingly cold eyes looked over, she immediately fell silent.

Bai Jinzhi turned around, clasped her fists, gritted her teeth, and with eyes red from emotion said: “Elder Sister, if these creatures inferior to pigs and dogs are not expelled from the clan, I, Bai Jinzhi, will be the first to request expulsion from the clan myself! I would rather share a surname with pigs and dogs for the rest of my life than be in the same clan as such beasts and petty people!”

Looking at the proudly dignified and reserved eldest daughter of the Bai family, and at the indignantly tearful fourth daughter of the Bai family, the Bai clansmen were deeply moved.

The Bai clansmen gathered at the entrance of the Bai ancestral hall, and clenched their fists tightly. After hearing Bai Qingyan and Bai Jinzhi’s words, surging emotions of passionate excitement churned in their hearts.

Live as citizens, die for the Kingdom!

Yes, Duke Zhenguo was indeed already in his sixties when he went to Nan Jiang and took all the Bai family men with him, and even the youngest at ten years old… none of them returned alive.

They remembered when merchants and scholars from other places came to Shouyang and spoke of the Great Capital’s Bai family’s various deeds, remembered those merchants and scholars saying that… the Great Capital’s Bai family regarded those with the Bai surname as flesh and blood relatives. Immediately their eyes filled with tears – so the Great Capital’s Bai family truly protected and loved the people like this!

If the Great Capital’s Bai family only sought military merit without protecting the people, how could they have taken even a ten-year-old child to the battlefield?

The Bai clansmen were not ignorant – they knew that those families who had gained nobility through martial achievements were unwilling to let their descendants serve in the military… risking their lives on the battlefield for advancement.

But the Great Capital’s Bai family was Jin’s most illustrious family of wealth and honor. Even if their descendants lived idle lives like these Shouyang Bai descendants, they would still enjoy inexhaustible riches for generations, yet they still went to the battlefield.

Previously, they didn’t believe in the Great Capital Bai family’s benevolence and righteousness! They didn’t believe the so-called… rumors that the century-old military Duke Zhenguo’s mansion produced no worthless descendants, thinking it was merely the world’s beautification of power.

Now, having witnessed it, they were completely convinced and admired the Bai family’s love for the people!

The Duchess of Zhenguo showed no favoritism in dealing with Bai clan members, and Princess Gaoyi’s angry rebuke of clan members came from the heart.

Although all were Bai descendants, the Great Capital’s Bai family was truly different from the Shouyang Bai clan.

Previously, because the Shouyang Bai clan bullied the common people, they were blinded by hatred and prayed to gods and Buddhas, hoping that the Great Capital’s Bai family would meet with disaster and die out completely, so the Shouyang Bai clan would have no backing.

But now that the Great Capital Bai family’s legitimate eldest daughter, the Duchess of Zhenguo, and fourth daughter, Princess Gaoyi, had returned, these actions and these words truly made them so ashamed they wanted to hide underground, wishing they could beat the ground and weep bitterly, to kneel before gods and Buddhas, take back their previous prayers, and willingly shorten their lives to beg the gods and Buddhas to bring back the Great Capital Bai family’s Duke Zhenguo and all the young generals of the Great Capital Bai family.

Not relying on achievements to cover faults, not treating people as grass and weeds – having such a Bai family guard Jin was truly a blessing for the Great Jin’s common people.

Now, all the men of the Great Capital’s Bai family had perished, leaving only the daughters…

While it was regrettable, they were also fortunate that the Bai family still had such daughters with proud integrity and noble righteousness that commanded respect.

Seeing one spot reveals the whole leopard – if the sons of the Great Capital’s Bai family were still alive, what kind of upright and honorable young men they would have been.

“Expel them from the clan!” The clan leader gripped his walking stick tightly and spoke.

“Grandfather, please spare me! I will never dare again!”

“Clan Leader Grandfather! Grandfather, please beg the Clan Leader. Grandfather, I don’t want to be expelled from the clan, I don’t want to go to prison!”

“Father, A’Jie is your grandson!”

“Father, please beg the clan leader! This cannot be!”

Wailing and crying filled the courtyard of the Bai ancestral hall, while outside the hall, the Bai clansmen felt greatly satisfied, each one’s blood boiling with excitement.

Amid the loud weeping and wailing, the clan leader brought out the genealogy and crossed out the names of these errant descendants.

From now on, these descendants would have no relationship with the Bai clan whatsoever.

“Magistrate Zhou, you may send people to escort these criminals back. Please judge quickly, Magistrate Zhou, and sentence them strictly according to law without favoritism! Give the Bai clansmen of Shouyang an explanation!” Bai Qingyan instructed.

Magistrate Zhou quickly stood up and bowed deeply to Bai Qingyan: “Your Highness, please rest assured, this official will judge strictly according to law!”

Magistrate Zhou also bowed deeply to the Bai clansmen outside the ancestral hall: “Everyone please rest assured, this official is the parent-official of the Bai clansmen and will definitely severely punish these criminals! Tomorrow I will open court to judge their crimes and will definitely give everyone justice!”

After speaking, Magistrate Zhou waved his hand for the bailiffs to drag away those who were crying and making noise… the people who had been expelled from the Bai clan.

The mothers of those Bai descendants who had been expelled couldn’t bear it. Seeing that crying and begging their husbands, fathers-in-law, and the clan leader was useless, they lifted their skirts and hurried to chase after them. Outside the ancestral hall, they hugged their children and wouldn’t let go, crying continuously and telling their children it would be fine, that they would go beg Magistrate Zhou to release them later.

Under the contemptuous gazes and spitting sounds of the Bai clansmen, those expelled Bai descendants… were ultimately taken away by the bailiffs.

The crying and noise within the clan decreased considerably.

Bai Qingyan turned her head and whispered something to Shen Qingzhu. Shen Qingzhu nodded, retreated to an inconspicuous place, and climbed over the ancestral hall courtyard wall to leave.

Fifth Master saw that Bai Qingyan still sat steadily and calmly, frowned deeply, and glared at Bai Qingyan, then asked his brother, the clan leader: “Can we disperse now?”

“What’s Fifth Master’s hurry? We’ve just settled the crimes of the Shouyang Bai descendants, and there are still so many accusations here… I imagine the aggrieved parties have all arrived. I said we’d go through them one by one…” Bai Qingyan looked toward Magistrate Zhou, “Since Fifth Master is so anxious, let’s start with Fifth Master’s family!”

The clan leader’s heart sank heavily – indeed… Bai Qingyan was going to clean house in the clan.

The clan leader clenched his fists tightly, his gaze falling again on Quan Yu, who was respectfully changing hot tea for Bai Qingyan. His heart felt as if pressed by a mountain, making even breathing difficult, his complexion extremely unpleasant.

Even the most favored eunuch beside the Crown Prince treated Bai Qingyan with such respect – the rumors that the Crown Prince favored Bai Qingyan were probably mostly true. If they didn’t comply with Bai Qingyan’s wishes today, and Bai Qingyan accused the ancestors and requested expulsion from the clan, the Crown Prince’s thunderous rage afterward would probably be more than their Bai clan could bear.

Upon hearing these words, Fifth Master’s entire scalp tightened, and he turned to look at his brother.

The clan leader closed his eyes. So be it… even if his younger brother’s family was expelled from the clan, as long as he remained clan leader, he could provide extra care.

Seeing the clan leader remained silent, Fifth Master gritted his teeth and asked: “Bai Qingyan, you’re not planning to settle personal scores under the guise of justice just because I previously moved into the ancestral residence and stayed for a while, are you!”