The Duke of Jin was so furious that he almost exploded. In the past in this mansion, Liang would be very tactful if he just coughed or frowned, let alone got angry.
However, now he was already furious, but Liang still didn't shut up.
Master Ximen stepped forward and grabbed Liang's arm, "Alright, look, you've made your father angry, why don't you get out?"
Liang stared at her husband and really wanted to slap him. As his bedmate, he actually allowed Ximen Xiaoyue to sacrifice her, his wife of twenty years.
However, she held her breath. After she died once, she began to think rationally. Since she wanted to make things clear today, she had to speak properly.
Liang broke free from his hand and slowly knelt down in front of the guardian. She raised her head with tears in her eyes, "Sir, you are the elder of our Ximen family. Today, I dare to kneel in front of you and ask you to help me."
Taibao's face was sullen. "Go on!"
Liang then told everything that happened in the prime minister's residence that day, including her attempt to frame Zi'an against Guiyuan.
Several times, Duke Jin and Ximen Xiaoyue wanted to interrupt her, but the guardian glared at them coldly and told them to be quiet.
After Liang finished speaking, the old lady's face was already very ugly. "Second Madam, I didn't bother with you about hurting my servant in the prime minister's mansion and trying to frame my granddaughter. You should also not put the blame on Xiaoyue. Although she married into our prime minister's mansion, she is also a descendant of the Ximen family."
"Madam," Liang fought back mercilessly, "This matter has been investigated by the government. It is my fault and I will bear it, but Ximen Xiaoyue can't escape it. Now the government is investigating the fire dragon, but it has not investigated the poisoning of the wine. They poisoned my wine and caused me to be burned to death in the side room. Do you think this matter can be covered up?"
The old lady sneered and said, "This is ridiculous. Your second wife has no grudges against my family, why would she kill you?"
"The person you want to kill is not me, but Xia Zian. However, if I, the second wife of the Duke's Mansion, am buried with him, then outsiders will think it was an accident. After all, your Prime Minister's Mansion has no reason to attack me."
"All that you said is just your conjecture. I can only say that you, Madam, have a very rich imagination. It would be a waste of your talent if you don't go into storytelling with such a good imagination." The old lady said coldly.
After she finished speaking, she stood up and said to the Duke, "My Lord, it seems that I will not be able to have this meal today. I have been accused of a crime for no reason. I feel so ashamed and wronged. I will host a banquet at the Prime Minister's residence in the future and invite you to come to my house."
Seeing that the Grand Tutor had not said anything, the Duke of Jin slammed the table and said angrily, "Are you satisfied? Is this how you treat guests? You have really brought shame to our Duke's House. I used to think you were virtuous and steady, so I asked you to take charge of the household affairs. I didn't expect you to be such a barbaric and evil person. I really misjudged you."
Ximen Xiaoyue's mother, Li, seemed to be unable to hold back her accusation, "That's right, Second Aunt, how did my Xiaoyue offend you? Why are you framing her like this? I know you are jealous that she married the Prime Minister, while your daughter can only marry a small military commander, but we are still a family after all. How can you be so confused about right and wrong and allow outsiders to take advantage of you?"
Zi'an smiled faintly after hearing this. This outsider must be her, right
When the elders in the clan heard this, they all looked at each other. Liang's character in the past was indeed not very good, so it was normal for him to be jealous. In addition, he was scared half to death after being burned by the fire this time, so he started to speculate on conspiracy theories.
Or maybe he was really being used by someone. After all, outsiders said that Xia Zian was extremely scheming.
Ximen Xiaoyue looked at Liang with pride, thinking that she had some evidence, but it turned out that she was just bluffing. Who would believe her just by her words
However, she did not show her pride. She stood up, walked to the front of the guardian and knelt down. "Fifth Lord, this matter is not Second Aunt's fault. It was my fault for not handling it properly. On the day of the wedding banquet, because the Prime Minister's legitimate daughter Xia Zi'an was unwilling to respect me as her mother and did not kowtow to me and offer tea, I felt a little uncomfortable, so I told Second Aunt. Second Aunt thought that I had humiliated the Duke's Mansion and wanted to vent my anger for me. I have already tried to persuade her, but Second Aunt was very excited at the time and could not be persuaded. I told the Prime Minister about this matter privately. Because the Prime Minister did not understand Second Aunt's character, he thought she was just talking, so he told me not to pay attention to it. Who knew that Second Aunt actually colluded with my brother to deal with Zi'an, and by the time we knew it, it was too late. This is all my fault. If I could have persuaded Second Aunt more or had someone send Second Aunt back home, so many things would not have happened."
Taibao hummed and asked, "So, what about what happened next, the fire?"
Ximen Xiaoyue sighed softly, "Fifth Lord, the government is still investigating this matter, but we all hope it was an accident, because, in addition to the fire in the side room, the new house also caught fire that day, and my maid Honghua Shiliu and I were trapped in the fire. Look at the burns all over my body, they were caused by that sunset."
"You said you hope it was an accident, which means you don't rule out the possibility that someone set the fire?" Taibao Niexu asked.
Ximen Xiaoyue said, "It's hard for me to say about this matter, because the government is still investigating. As for the drugging, it's completely false. Everyone was at the table, drinking from a pot of wine. The old lady and Concubine Cui were also there. It's impossible to poison the pot. If the cups were poisoned, the bowls, chopsticks and cups were all placed in advance. Whoever sat in which seat was not determined. Everyone sat wherever they wanted. No one knew that Second Aunt was sitting in the upper left corner. May I ask Fifth Master, how could this be poisoned?"
"Well, she said she felt weak all over and dizzy. Did other guests experience these symptoms?" Taibao asked again.
Ximen Xiaoyue looked at the old lady, "Mother-in-law, did any guests report symptoms of dizziness and weakness afterwards?"
Seeing Ximen Xiaoyue turning the tide, the old lady's previous dislike for her was reduced a little, and she said, "No, all the guests did not feel uncomfortable when they left."
The guard nodded, then asked Liang, "Second Madam, according to what she said, it is indeed impossible to poison her. Think about it, is there anything missing?"
When Ximen Xiaoyue was speaking, Liang never interrupted to defend herself, making everyone think that she was irrefutable. However, only Zi'an knew that she came prepared today. She threw out sharp questions first but did not provide any evidence, just to make Ximen Xiaoyue and the people from the Prime Minister's Mansion say more. Only by saying more would flaws appear.
And the one who believed in finding flaws was this Taibao Sir.
Zi'an felt that this guardian not only had sharp eyes, but also had a very meticulous mind, because she noticed that he was very careful when listening, and when he heard a question, he would not ask it, but his eyes would be fixed.
(End of this chapter)