This was Li Guanwen’s first opportunity to carefully tour the inner residence of Prince Zhongshun’s mansion. Though he maintained a stern expression and dignified bearing throughout, his eyes nimbly surveyed everything around him.
Xu Weizhi led the way in front, turning back warmly from time to time to greet them.
However, Li Guanwen could see the nervousness and embarrassment in Xu Weizhi’s expression.
Did he think Li Guanwen couldn’t tell?
No wonder the mansion’s steward would feel embarrassed. The prince wasn’t a child of a few years old – such a grown man being punished to kneel by his legitimate mother, and because of fighting outside at that. If this had happened to him, he’d be embarrassed too.
The group entered the inner residence and headed straight for the upper courtyard. Li Guanwen asked casually, “Madam Pang has been living in the upper courtyard since returning to the mansion?”
“Yes, after Madam Pang returned to the mansion, the old madam said that Madam Pang was the Pang family’s matriarch and should be honored accordingly, so she moved Songhe Hall out of the upper courtyard to the rear side courtyard.”
“Oh?” Li Guanwen couldn’t help but say in surprise, “The old madam’s righteousness is truly admirable.”
By rights, Prince Zhongshun couldn’t even be counted as Madam Pang’s illegitimate son, and given the past entanglements of the Pang family, if His Majesty sent Madam Pang to Prince Zhongshun’s mansion and the prince merely treated her with courtesy, no one would say anything improper. Who would have thought that Prince Zhongshun would treat his legitimate mother so well?
Regardless of whether this kindness stemmed from respect for his legitimate mother or loyalty to His Majesty, that Pang Xiao could achieve this level truly earned Li Guanwen’s admiration.
“What about the old master and grand madam of the mansion?” Li Guanwen asked again.
Xu Weizhi smiled, “They now also live in Songhe Hall in the rear side courtyard. The old madam lives together with the old master and grand madam.”
Li Guanwen nodded and made note of this.
While they were talking, they reached the upper courtyard. Li Guanwen happened to see a little maid running inside – apparently a servant had just told the gatekeeper at the second gate, who then found the little maid to relay the message, causing some delay.
Li Guanwen quickened his pace and saw the little maid run into the courtyard.
In the center of the courtyard, that familiar tall figure was indeed kneeling.
Prince Zhongshun was actually being punished to kneel by his legitimate mother!
Even though Li Guanwen had already heard something about this earlier, he still couldn’t help but stare in shocked amazement.
It was truly because Pang Xiao’s usual arrogant and imposing image was too deeply ingrained in people’s minds, making it momentarily impossible for Li Guanwen to connect this disheveled man being punished to kneel by his legitimate mother with the war god prince in his memory who could make enemies tremble with just a glare.
Pang Xiao must have heard the little maid’s message and suddenly turned around, seeing Li Guanwen entering the courtyard gate under Xu Weizhi’s guidance.
Li Guanwen clearly saw emotions of unwillingness and humiliation on Pang Xiao’s face.
Pang Xiao couldn’t be bothered to continue kneeling in punishment and stood up, looking at Xu Weizhi with a dark expression: “Steward Xu, how are you performing your duties? When Grand Manager Li came, why didn’t you announce it earlier? Making this prince show such disrespect to Grand Manager Li – what kind of propriety is this?”
Li Guanwen had served beside His Majesty for many years and understood the mindset of such superiors quite well. Even though Prince Zhongshun had now been stripped of military authority, his prestige in the army remained undiminished from before. This was someone even His Majesty had to be wary of – how could a chief eunuch supervisor like him afford to offend him?
Therefore, Li Guanwen bowed his head and hunched his body, respectfully serving to the side, completely lacking the arrogant bearing he had shown when arriving.
Xu Weizhi trembled with fear, keeping his head lowered as he bowed: “Your Highness, Grand Manager Li came by imperial decree. This humble one had no choice. Please forgive this transgression, Your Highness.”
Pang Xiao looked at Xu Weizhi with a dark expression.
Before he could respond, the door curtain with auspicious longevity patterns in front of the main room was lifted.
A plump woman past fifty with graying hair, dressed in fine clothes, emerged supported by a maid.
Madam Pang’s face already bore many wrinkles, especially the deep vertical lines between her brows that made her entire face appear full of anger – even without expression, she looked as if in a rage. Her youthful appearance could no longer be discerned, but looking at her now, she appeared to be someone with a violent temper and thin, harsh lips.
“Your Highness, you must not redirect your anger at others.” Madam Pang frowned and said, “Steward Xu has worked diligently for the mansion. Grand Manager Li came by imperial decree – could Steward Xu possibly obstruct him?”
This scolding…
The reasoning was correct, but was it really appropriate to say it out loud?
Li Guanwen, an outsider, felt his lips twitching as he listened.
However, Pang Xiao respectfully bowed, his attitude not intimate but very respectful: “Thank you for Madam’s instruction.”
“Hmm.” Madam Pang drew out her acknowledgment, slowly descended the steps, and came before Li Guanwen, her attitude completely transformed.
That face full of anger now wore a smile, and her voice was no longer as stern as when speaking to Pang Xiao, but rather beaming as she said: “How terribly rude of us. This old woman has only recently arrived at the mansion and hasn’t had time to organize things properly. The entire mansion is in such disorder – it truly makes you laugh at us, Eunuch.”
“Not at all, Old Madam. Your health is most important. His Majesty is also concerned about your physical well-being.”
Madam Pang’s eyes crinkled with laughter: “This old woman is crude and unworthy, yet troubles His Majesty with concern. I am truly frightened. Please assure His Majesty that this old woman will certainly counsel the prince well, so there will be no more such absurd incidents in the future.”
“Oh my, you must not say such things.” Li Guanwen was already wailing inwardly. Just how capable was this Madam Pang? Her husband had been dead for so many years, yet she could still speak this way to Pang Xiao, who wasn’t even her illegitimate son, had no nurturing relationship with her, and held such high position and power.
“The prince is His Majesty’s right-hand man. This servant came here also by imperial decree to examine the prince’s injuries. If Madam Pang doesn’t mind, this servant will have the imperial physician come examine the prince.”
“Then we must thank His Majesty for his consideration.”
Li Guanwen went to summon Imperial Physician Ma.
The wound on Pang Xiao’s arm had been bandaged, but bloodstains still remained on the snow-white gauze, looking shocking. Combined with the bruise at the corner of his mouth, even though Li Guanwen hadn’t personally witnessed the two fighting, he could imagine that both must have struck heavy blows.
After Imperial Physician Ma rebandaged and applied medicine to Pang Xiao’s wounds, Li Guanwen respectfully bowed and asked: “Your Highness, His Majesty instructed this slave to ask what exactly happened at the time.”
Pang Xiao’s sword-like eyebrows shot up as he snorted coldly in anger: “That bastard simply deserved a beating! When this prince catches the opportunity, I must certainly repay this sword’s revenge!”
Being someone who had fought and killed on battlefields, his surging fury made even Li Guanwen instinctively shrink his neck.
However, Madam Pang showed no fear of Pang Xiao whatsoever, saying sternly: “Your Highness! You are a subject, while Prince Consort Ji is imperial family. How can you speak this way! Have you forgotten all the Pang family’s household rules?”
Upon hearing this, Pang Xiao frowned tightly. One could see he was already on the edge of explosive rage, but he still didn’t retort.
Madam Pang continued: “After all, you had no fortune to be raised in the mansion, but living among commoners you’ve learned some rogue ways. Just how did your mother teach you? If you had grown up in the mansion, you wouldn’t be so lacking in rules and propriety. If your father were still alive and saw you being so unpromising, he would break your legs!”
Upon hearing this, Li Guanwen nearly wanted to kowtow to Madam Pang.
In all the world, among those unrelated to Pang Xiao, probably only Madam Pang dared speak to him this way.
Having endured for an entire day, Pang Xiao finally couldn’t control his anger and said in a deep voice: “Madam Pang, this prince respects you only for the sake of my father whom I’ve never met. Don’t you dare push your luck!”
Madam Pang was stunned.
Since arriving at Prince Zhongshun’s mansion, she had never seen Pang Xiao lose his temper with her!
It was precisely because of Pang Xiao’s courteous treatment and constant yielding that gave Madam Pang the confidence to discipline him.
She hadn’t expected that someone who usually appeared gentle and harmless could be so terrifying when releasing the killing aura that only existed on battlefields.
Pang Xiao said: “If Madam Pang hadn’t been so jealous back then, how would I have had no fortune to be raised in the mansion? You know the events of those years better than anyone. This prince respects you, but please know when to stop. Back then you already drove my mother away and sent people to assassinate her – it was her great fortune that allowed her to escape by chance. From then on, she had nothing to do with your general’s mansion!
“I was never acknowledged by your family, and my noble title was earned through my own fighting and killing, borrowing no glory from your Pang family. That I now treat you with courtesy is due to my cultivation. If you want to continue manipulating my mother, thinking she’s still the maid you persecuted before, then you’ve miscalculated!
“I, Pang Zhixi, have no other abilities, but as you said, I am indeed a rogue! When the time comes I’ll kill you, and let’s see who can do anything to me!”
“You, you…” Madam Pang’s face turned deathly pale, whether from anger or fright. “You are simply incorrigible, disregarding human relationships!”
Pang Xiao smiled coldly and turned to ask Li Guanwen: “Grand Manager, did you see everything that happened today clearly?”
Li Guanwen bowed his head: “Yes, this slave has been watching carefully. Your Highness, what are your instructions?”
Pang Xiao said: “It’s good that you saw clearly Madam Pang’s unreasonable behavior. I will shortly enter the palace to petition His Majesty, and ask that Grand Manager Li testify for this prince.”
“Testify?” Li Guanwen asked in confusion: “Your Highness, you want to?”
Pang Xiao said: “His Majesty helped my Pang family find Madam Pang, and this prince is very grateful. It’s just that this prince’s mansion is small and cannot accommodate two families. Madam Pang everywhere makes difficulties for my maternal grandfather and grandmother, and my mother is also ordered about by her. Seeing all this, this prince doesn’t even know why I originally opposed the Northern Ji Kingdom’s tyranny. If we hadn’t opposed Northern Ji back then, wouldn’t they have just lived this way anyway?”
One troublemaking woman was enough to throw an entire family into chaos. Pang Xiao didn’t want to keep Madam Pang, but since it was originally His Majesty’s arrangement, he could only follow the decree. Now that so much time had passed, he might as well take advantage of today’s bad mood and use this as an excuse to remove this thorn from the prince’s mansion.
Li Guanwen’s heart skipped a beat upon hearing this.
Even Madam Pang’s complexion changed dramatically as she said anxiously: “What right do you have to send me away? If not for your father, would you exist in this world? I am your father’s legitimately wedded wife – you should show filial piety at least for your father’s sake!”
“Is this Madam Pang’s thinking?” Pang Xiao laughed coldly. “Filial piety requires compliance to be truly filial, but this prince is stubborn and never yields. If Madam Pang continues living in the prince’s mansion, you might very well damage your health from anger. How would this prince be responsible? Better to petition His Majesty’s grace now and establish a separate residence for your dwelling.”