Chapter 58: Rumor

Chapter 58

Actually, the situation is quite simple.

In Mu En Marquis Mansion, the mother and daughter-in-law were desperate to seek help from Doctor Qiu for their irresponsible son who contracted a venereal disease. They forced their way into the residence of the Magistrate of Linghui County, hoping to coerce him into saving their son.

Cornered, Doctor Qiu had no choice but to seek refuge in the estate where the Magistrate resided.

The women from Wang family, accompanied by their entourage, followed them to the estate, attempting to deceive the Magistrate into allowing them entry. However, the Magistrate firmly refused, so they resorted to force.

Madam Zhong, the wife of Marquis Muen, even resorted to physically assaulting the three-year-old Magistrate of Linghui County. Although the Magistrate managed to avoid the slap, she injured her foot, reportedly fracturing her bones.

It was truly a pitiful sight!

The next day, as soon as the court session began, Wang Mian, the Marquis of Mu En, was accused by more than ten officials, including the Chief Minister of Justice. They accused him of failing to manage his household, condoning the violent behavior of his female relatives, pressuring the eminent Doctor Qiu, and causing harm to the Magistrate of Linghui County. They described his actions as a clear case of bullying the weak, and his conduct was deemed extremely malicious.

Emperor Xia Jing immediately ordered him to compensate the Magistrate for her medical expenses, amounting to ten thousand taels of silver. The Emperor personally visited her and publicly apologized.

Furthermore, Wang Mian was stripped of his salary for one year and was ordered to reflect on his actions in seclusion at home. It can be said that he had lost even the last shred of his dignity.

At the same time, the teacher of the Magistrate, Doctor Qiu, acting as the Master of Bianque Valley, issued a decree, forbidding disciples across the country from treating anyone from Mu En Marquis Mansion.

This caused the downfall of the eldest son of Mu En Marquis Mansion.

It was also heard that Madam Zhong, in her excessive rage, lost control and fell face-first into a pile of cow dung, ending up with a mouthful of excrement. The stench was so unbearable that it made several maidservants vomit.

The capital city was always teeming with idle onlookers.

Consequently, after the news of "Mu En Marquis' only son contracting a venereal disease" and "Mu En Marquis Mansion injuring the Magistrate of Linghui County," the shocking rumor of "Madam Zhong from Mu En Marquis Mansion eating feces" spread like a tornado, sweeping through the entire capital city and becoming the latest hot topic.

Especially the last rumor, it was the hottest of the hot, the biggest scandal among scandals.

Of course, rumors are irrational by nature, and those based on reason cannot be called rumors.

As the rumor spread, somehow it transformed into Madam Zhong from Mu En Marquis Mansion having a liking for eating feces, and subsequently, it became a rumor that everyone in Mu En Marquis Mansion had such a preference.

There were even some uninformed individuals who poured their own night soil at the entrance of Mu En Marquis Mansion...

In short, the people of the capital city were thoroughly entertained.

Meanwhile, Mu En Marquis Mansion, at the center of the gossip, found themselves in a dire situation every day.

Because they had angered the Master of Bianque Valley, they were subject to a ban. Now, not only Doctor Qiu but even ordinary physicians could not be employed by Mu En Marquis Mansion.

The sole heir of Mu En Marquis, confined to his bed, could only decay away.

The senior Madam Zhong of Mu En Marquis Mansion fell ill from anger and remained bedridden, moaning and unable to get up.

As for Madam Zhong, the wife of Mu En Marquis, who had brought such disgrace upon herself, she dared not step out of the house anymore and no longer cared for her beloved son.

Mu En Marquis himself despised her for her disgraceful and disgusting behavior. He chose to spend his nights in the chambers of his concubine instead.

Emperor Xia Jing punished Mu En Marquis with seclusion and reflection, without even specifying a deadline. Even a fool could see that the Mu En Marquis family had completely fallen out of favor with the Emperor.

But this was far from the end.

Just a couple of days later, another scandal emerged. Wang Mian, the son of Marquis Muen, forcibly abducted several young women from the common folk. During his tenure at the Ministry of Works, Wang Mian was found guilty of accepting bribes and embezzling funds meant for water conservancy projects. He also instructed his relatives and servants to seize land belonging to the common people.

The victims have now collectively appealed to the Court of Judicial Review.

Emperor Xia Jing was furious when he heard the news, and he ordered Wang Mian to be thrown into the dungeon. He instructed the Court of Judicial Review and the Ministry of Justice to conduct a thorough investigation into this case.

Upon learning of the situation, Consort Wang Zhaoyi, who resided in the palace, disregarded all obstacles and stormed into the imperial study to plead for her brother and seek justice. However, the enraged emperor immediately stripped her of her title and banished her to the cold palace.

Three days later, due to irrefutable evidence, the Marquis Muen Mansion was confiscated, and the entire family was exiled to the northwest.

On the day of the confiscation, Wang Mian's only son, the once notorious playboy, took his last breath.

And thus, she, a young child, became the one in need of care.

During the day, she had to take care of Tian Manor, her inattentive master, and the equally medical-obsessed martial nephew.

At night, she had to figure out ways to cultivate in the Spirit Realm. The days were chaotic and filled with hardships.

She vented her frustrations to Bai Xiaoshi, complaining about whether he was the master or she was, whether he was the one being cared for or she was.

The unscrupulous spirit took pleasure in her misfortune and sprinkled salt on her wounds: "Things that come to you on a silver platter are never good. You have to serve the master you chose, even if you have to kneel."

Jiang Yuqing "... " This life was unbearable.

After ten busy days, all the grains were finally sown in the rice fields, and she finally breathed a sigh of relief.

During a meal, Yu Zhu expressed her concern that Jiang Yuqing seemed to have lost weight.

Only then did her master, with a pang of guilt, stop incessantly demanding things from his disciple.

Jiang Yuqing stayed in the manor until early April, barely reaching a beginner level in cultivating the "Green Wood Derivation Technique" and the "Rejuvenation Technique."

Afterward, she remembered the black iron thorn seed that was sealed in the jade bottle.

Something that her ancestral master would place on the sacrificial table as an heirloom definitely wasn't ordinary.

She circled around the gate of the mountain hall and chose an empty flower bed, where she solemnly planted the seed. She watered it with spiritual spring water and then infused it with pure wood-element spiritual power.

For a while, the seed remained motionless.

Just when Jiang Yuqing was feeling disappointed, thinking that the seed may have lost its vitality due to its ancient age, the soil layer suddenly stirred, and a tender green sprout emerged. It quickly grew taller, sprouting leaves and transforming into a sturdy, vibrant vine.

The vine seemed to have consciousness as it gently sniffed in her direction and then tenderly wrapped around her legs, climbing upward.

After circling around her waist, it wrapped around her right hand, and soon bloomed a string of fragrant pale white flowers, offering them to her as if they were a gift.

Jiang Yuqing received this special gift with joy and carefully preserved it in a beautiful jade box.

Xiao Jing happily rubbed against her cheek, then pulled its roots out of the soil, swiftly shrinking and thinning its vine body. It wound itself around her chubby right arm, forming a complete circular shape.

At first glance, it resembled an exquisite carved jade bracelet.

The "bracelet" shyly extended a leaf and gently scratched the palm of her hand. "Master, Xiao Jing likes you!"

"Are... you talking to me?" Jiang Yuqing stared at the vine in her hand, her beautiful eyes widening.

"Yes, master! Xiao Jing is a spiritual plant that ranked among the top ten in ancient times. I can fight very well. From now on, let Xiao Jing protect you!"

"Okay, thank you!" She already had an ancient mythical beast as her spiritual weapon and mount, so having a spiritual plant as a weapon seemed natural as well.

"You're welcome, master. Xiao Jing needs to accumulate more power in order to grow quickly. I need you to feed me more often, okay?"

"Um... What do you like to eat?" A plant... Maybe some organic fertilizer?

As the old saying goes, crops thrive on good fertilizer. It should probably work on other plants... Well, she wasn't sure!

Xiao Jing cheerfully replied, "Spiritual energy. Master can feed me some spiritual energy every day, or even spiritual spring water."

"Oh, okay." As long as it wasn't eating corpses, anything was fine.

After a brief exchange between the two, Jiang Yuqing let Xiao Jing go to the spiritual spring to drink water on its own.

She still needed to continue her cultivation and didn't have time to waste.

Her diligence these days hadn't been in vain, as she had mastered several small spells to perfection.

She even began studying formations and successfully set up a simple defensive formation with stones the night before.

With this, she entered the ranks of novice formation mages, which was cause for celebration.