When Sun's mother tried to take him, Li held Dongge tightly, unwilling to let go.
“Aunt Li, the young master is crying so hard. If he keeps crying like this, I'm afraid he'll ruin his voice.” Madam Sun said calmly and restrainedly, “You don’t want to just watch the young master get sick, do you?”
After she finished speaking, even if Li was unwilling, she had no choice but to let go.
As soon as Dongge was taken away, the central hall immediately became quiet, with only a few people involved remaining.
"Your Highness, I beg you to do justice for me!" Having already set up the stage, Madam Li had no choice but to continue her act. "Dong-ge'er is so tiny; even if he encountered Ninth Miss, how much strength could he possibly have? Why would Ninth Miss push the wet nurse, almost putting Dong-ge'er in danger! If Ninth Miss is not satisfied, then punish me alone; Dong-ge'er is too young to withstand such punishment!"
Li quickly began to recount the events with tears streaming down her face. She described how Dongge accidentally bumped into Anran with the rattle drum, how Anran got angry and pushed the wet nurse away, almost causing Dongge to fall... Those who didn't know the truth might have thought that Anran was trying to harm Dongge.
"The Crown Princess and Ninth Miss rarely visit my Luoyue Pavilion. I am so happy to see them here today that I don't know what to do." Madam Li wiped away her tears with her handkerchief. "Ninth Miss likes to play with Dong-ge'er, which makes me very happy. I was hoping that Dong-ge'er would get closer to Ninth Miss... But I never expected this..."
Indeed, everyone knows that Third Sister dislikes illegitimate sons and rarely comes to Luoyue Pavilion. But such a thing happened as soon as she arrived, so it's hard to say that the two are not connected.
The wet nurse was also pulled over by Li, and the two of them, working together, practically slandered An Ran as a vicious and wicked person. Even An Ran's previous act of holding Dong Ge'er was considered a sin.
On the surface, it's about An Ran, but what's the reality? An Ran is San Niang's sister. Whether An Ran threw a tantrum and almost broke Dong Ge'er, or whether An Ran did it on San Niang's orders, San Niang is also involved.
It seems that An Ran and San Niang cannot escape the accusation that their intentions are despicable.
Li knelt on the ground, a hint of smugness flashing through her mind. Even if she could let Third Sister and Anran go today, it would still leave a rift in the hearts of the Princess Consort and the Heir Apparent.
"Ninth Sister, what do you say?" The Princess Consort asked calmly. When she looked up at An Ran, her eyes were calm and unwavering, revealing no hint of bias.
Third Sister wanted to stand up for Anran, but Anran refused. She took a deep breath and stepped forward to reply.
"In response to your question, before I can defend myself, there are some things I'd like to verify with Dongge'er's wet nurse." Even though she was in a vulnerable position, An Ran remained composed and dignified.
The Princess Consort nodded slightly. Readers, you can search for "" to find this site immediately.
Chapter 56 Verbal Battle
“I have a question for you,” An Ran said, turning her head to stare directly at the wet nurse. “You said Dong Ge’er is weak and couldn’t hurt me, which is true.” “But it was the pellet from the rattle drum that hit my face. How could Dong Ge’er, who is weak, lift the rattle drum?”
They deliberately obscured how Dong-ge'er met An-ran, only saying that An-ran shouldn't have bothered with Dong-ge'er.
Dongge'er is so young... if anything happens to him, he'll naturally be manipulated by others! This point of suspicion cannot be ignored.
The wet nurse immediately broke out in a cold sweat.
She stammered, "Perhaps you're mistaken, young lady, it's not a bullet..."
"Alright, let's just pretend it wasn't a bullet." An Ran adopted a magnanimous attitude, not holding it against her. "You said Dong-ge'er is young and weak. Even if he hit me, how much would it hurt me? Why would I hold a grudge against a child?"
The wet nurse opened her mouth to ask for the certificate, but An Ran didn't give her the chance. "The maids who were present when the accident happened are all here now." An Ran turned around, her clear gaze sweeping over each of them. Her tone was unhurried, yet it struck them like a hammer blow. "Did you hear me utter a single word of pain? Or a single complaint?"
“But the wet nurse’s voice got louder and louder, and she was making a huge fuss.” An Ran’s gaze finally fell on the wet nurse who was standing with her head down. She curled her lips and said, “I haven’t said a word yet, and you’ve already said everything, good and bad, and it’s all become your reasoning.”
The maids, swept over by An Ran's gaze, dared not utter a word of protest. The Ninth Miss held considerable authority at this moment, and although they had been instructed to do so, they feared that if she were to turn the tables on them, they would be in deep trouble.
The Ninth Sister hadn't said a word at the time; if she had stood up for herself, she might have been used as a raft.
Only Xiao Cui managed to say, "Perhaps she was worried that Dong Ge'er might offend you, Miss, and that you would be unhappy..."
"A collision? You're being far too cautious and making a mountain out of a molehill!" An Ran raised an eyebrow as if she had heard a joke. "Xiao Cui, when did you start working for Aunt Li?"
Not only was Xiao Cui stunned, but the Princess Consort, Yun Shen, Third Sister, and Madam Li were also puzzled as to why An Ran suddenly asked about Xiao Cui's origins.
"This servant came to serve by your side, Madam, half a year ago." Xiao Cui didn't understand An Ran's intention, but dared not not respond. She could only reply cautiously.
An Ran nodded and chuckled, "Since you came in from outside with your aunt, you naturally didn't recognize me before."
Xiao Cui was confused by An Ran and could only respond.
"You don't even know me, yet you think I'm narrow-minded and petty, arguing with a newborn baby." An Ran smiled faintly: "I wonder where you get this perception from?"
Before An Ran could finish speaking, a look of admiration flashed in the eyes of Princess Yi.
Xiao Cui was a maidservant to Lady Li, while An Jiu was the younger sister of the Crown Prince's wife... How could she possibly know An Jiu? At most, she had only heard about An Jiu from Lady Li. Therefore, her knowledge of An Jiu naturally came from Lady Li.
This clearly shows that Li had spoken ill of An Jiu behind his back.
But this Li Shi had no grudge against An Jiu. She only met An Jiu a few times because An Jiu was the younger sister of the Crown Prince's wife. She felt that An Jiu was bad, and tracing it back to the source, it was naturally the grudge between her and the Third Sister that was being settled against An Jiu.
Ultimately, it boils down to Li's disrespect for the mistress of the house. She appears docile and respectful, but is actually two-faced. While it cannot be definitively stated that Li has ever slandered Third Sister, she certainly hasn't spoken well of her behind her back. In fact, her resentment towards Third Sister has been noticed by the maids, and even extended to Third Sister's younger sister…
Li was not stupid; she quickly figured it out as well. She was anxious to explain, but found that nothing she said would be right at this point.
Yun Shen and the Princess Consort's expressions changed.
"Perhaps you guessed I was a narrow-minded person just because you met me once?" An Ran shook her head with feigned regret and sighed, "Don't worry, I naturally won't hold it against you. You are loyal to your master."
Xiao Cui sensed something was wrong. She felt like she had caused trouble for her aunt, but she didn't know how to resolve her predicament. She was so anxious that she broke out in a cold sweat, opened her mouth, but couldn't utter a word in her defense.
“Since you’re shouting so loudly, and the maids have all gathered around, yet you say I pushed you?” An Ran temporarily let go of Xiao Cui, whose face had turned pale, and turned her attention to the wet nurse. “I also said that someone bumped into me, which is why I fell to the ground. Did you see the person behind me?”
Seeing the situation was dire, and knowing she had no chance of escaping unscathed, the wet nurse could only force a reply: "It was too chaotic at the time, I didn't see clearly... Perhaps you accidentally pushed my head, it wasn't intentional..."
"You know how chaotic it was back then!" An Ran seized on her weakness and immediately retorted, "It was so chaotic, and there were so many maids around, yet you remember it all so clearly, insisting that I pushed you down. I doubt you even considered it chaotic!"
Originally, Li's plan was a spur-of-the-moment decision, intended to end things quickly. She didn't expect to bring down Third Sister and An Ran all at once; she merely wanted them to leave an impression of being vicious and intolerant in front of the Princess Consort and the Heir Apparent. Therefore, the more detailed the questions, the less plausible they became.
"If it was chaos, why are you so sure it was me?" An Ran's gaze turned cold as she pressed on. "It wasn't just the two of us at the time!"
“Ninth Miss, I was so worried about Dong-ge’er that I lost my mind and upset you.” Seeing that their planned methods hadn’t worked, the wet nurse grew anxious and wanted to give An Ran a bad reputation. “Punish me only!”
An Ran ignored her and continued, "You said I pushed you, which is why you lost your balance, right?"