Becoming a literary master starting from the story of Minglan

Chapter 293 Suing for the End of the Matter
Because Old Madam Sheng already knew about Shulan's situation, she had secretly investigated and found out the details of the Sun family mother and son.

At the same time, she also took the opportunity to learn more about Sun Zhigao's character.

However, the information she found was somewhat detached from reality, and she naturally didn't know as much about Sun Zhigao's latest developments as Shulan, who was directly involved.

That's why Old Madam Sheng asked this question.

Based on what she had found out, Old Madam Sheng discovered that Sun Zhigao was simply an exceptional scholar!
Good guy!
Ever since this person passed the imperial examination and became a scholar, he has become like a wild dog that has been released, completely letting himself go!

If others achieve something like him, even if they don't continue to strive for further success in the imperial examinations, they would at least make a living for themselves, earn some property for their families and themselves, and plan for the future.

However, Sun Zhigao was different.

He not only completely abandoned his studies, but also spent his days drinking and making merry, indulging in a life of debauchery and extravagance with his cronies.

For him, it was simply the most joyful thing ever!

The problem is that all these "elegant" gatherings were funded by him, the scholar.

In other words, Sun Zhigao's "friends" simply regarded him as a sucker, and there was no deep friendship between them.

The most fatal flaw was that Sun Zhigao, this scholar, was not from a wealthy or noble family. Therefore, in just one or two months, he had already spent all his savings.

That's why the Sun family was on the verge of collapse so quickly.

Therefore, what followed was the heartbreaking story of Scholar Sun, who had to swallow his pride and marry a merchant's wife.

In fact, when Sheng Wei and his wife were arranging a marriage for Shulan, they were not unaware of the Sun family's disdain. However, driven by self-interest—the desire for a high-ranking official to come from their own family—they intentionally or unintentionally ignored this matter and only focused on their future dreams.

May Sun Zhigao succeed in the imperial examinations and rise rapidly in his career, thus contributing even more to the main branch of the family.

Moreover, unlike Sheng Hong's second wife, Sun Zhigao was, after all, their son-in-law, so the Sun family was closer to them.

Of course, this was just Li's opinion, after all, she and her sister-in-law Wang Ruofu had some disagreements.

As a woman, Li was somewhat petty and believed that since she had a dirty relationship with Madam Wang, Madam Wang's child would naturally make things difficult for her child in the future. That's why she insisted on finding a way out to ensure the "safety" of her own descendants.

Unfortunately, Li Shi did not know that Sheng Changbai's character was far beyond what Wang Da Niangzi could control.
In fact, the relationship between the two of them is reversed—Sheng Changbai is the dominant one among them!
After all, in Madam Wang's eyes, Sheng Changbai was a "ruthless son" who looked just like her dead father!
As for Sheng Wei, he had even more to think about.

In his view, whether it was the second wife's family or the Sun family, they were ultimately outsiders.

The relationship between Yu Changsong and Changwu is not very significant. For the eldest son's family, having the second son's family and the Sun family is mainly to provide them with double insurance, ensuring that their assets will not be invaded in the future.

Of course, it's also possible that Shengwei wanted to use this to create a balance of power between the two.

After all, the first wife's family is currently extremely dependent on the second wife's family. Although there are no problems at the moment, it is too insecure and there is bound to be some bad things to come.

In addition, Sheng Wei secretly thought that if Changsong and Changwu's children had some talent in their careers, then they would have two reliable backers.

That is why he agreed to Li's idea and married Shulan into the Sun family.

On the other hand, the reason why Old Madam Sheng asked Shulan a question was simply to verify something so that Shulan could be sure of her own thoughts.

Indeed, at this point, Old Madam Sheng already had some ideas on how to resolve Shulan's troubles.

"Grandma!"

Although Shulan's face was pale, she still honestly revealed Sun Zhigao's plan: "Right now... he... he's thinking of taking a concubine..."

"He said... that courtesan is already pregnant with the Sun family's child, so..."

"So he wanted to... to take her into his home..."

Shulan found it difficult to speak.

After all, this was truly a disgrace to her.

"Grandmother, that's not all!"

At this moment, Pinlan couldn't help but speak up.

Knowing that her older sister couldn't talk about this, she couldn't help but add, "That beast Sun Zhigao even forced my sister to drink the tea that slut offered!"

At this point, Pinlan couldn't help but clench her teeth in anger: "Moreover, when my sister disagreed, he even tried to harm her!"

"These new wounds on my sister's body were actually inflicted by him the day before yesterday!"

really!

Grandma Sheng's eyes narrowed, and she immediately confirmed some of her thoughts.

As Old Madam Sheng's expression changed, the eldest old lady sitting next to her also couldn't help but change her expression.

"Second sister-in-law, have you come up with something?"

The two old ladies were, after all, old friends who had known each other for many years, so the reason for the change in Mrs. Sheng's expression could not be hidden from the eldest old lady.

"what?"

As soon as the old lady said this, everyone in the room immediately turned their attention to her, and their faces were filled with surprise and delight.

Not only the others, but even Sheng Changquan couldn't help but narrow his eyes and shift his gaze to Old Madam Sheng.

"Grandma has a solution?"

Sheng Changquan was surprised, but not suspicious.

In fact, it wasn't just him; everyone else in the room felt the same way.

Because of Old Madam Sheng's usual conduct and character, everyone, from the eldest branch of the family to the second branch, and even the third branch, who was not present, trusted her implicitly.

Whatever Old Madam Sheng says, whether good or bad, is absolutely true.

"Yes, Not Bad!"

Grandma Sheng didn't hide anything. She nodded, looked around at everyone in the room, and said calmly, "I do have some ideas in my mind!"

"what idea?"

The old lady asked impatiently.

In fact, it wasn't just the old lady who was anxious; everyone in the room was too.

Even more anxious than Shulan's mother, Madam Li, leaned forward, her eyes fixed intently on Old Madam Sheng, as if the words Old Madam Sheng spoke were not mere words, but supreme maxims to liberate the world from all suffering!

It is a supreme and wondrous method belonging to true immortals and gods.

Although Li was wrong in what happened to Shulan, it must be said that she truly cared for her daughter.

When she heard that Old Madam Sheng had a solution, her hands unconsciously clenched into fists, and her face showed extreme tension!

"Actually, resolving Shulan's matter isn't difficult!"

Grandma Sheng first turned to Shulan and smiled, offering her some comfort, and then said, "Our family only needs to walk a few steps!"

"Ok?"

Amidst the surprised and delighted gazes of the crowd, Old Madam Sheng said quietly, "Since Sun Zhigao insists on taking this courtesan as a concubine, why don't we start here and strike at his Achilles' heel!"

"No matter what, I don't believe the Sun family can really handle all the mess left by this woman!"

"Teao?"

Upon hearing those two words from Old Madam Sheng, both the old lady and Sheng Wei's eyes slowly lit up.

"Second Aunt, what do you mean..."

Sheng Wei gradually understood what Old Madam Sheng meant, and he couldn't help but ask, "Are you going to use the matter of these brothel girls to make a fuss?"

"Not bad!"

Grandma Sheng glanced approvingly at Sheng Wei below and nodded.

It must be said that although Sheng Wei's character and conduct are difficult to judge, his intelligence is certainly commendable.

After all, how could a family business be bad if it has grown to this extent?
Without those exceptional skills, he wouldn't have dared to join the Liangshan bandits.

"Actually, the Sun family is not one of those powerful and wealthy families, so there are some things they may not be able to understand!"

"Putting everything else aside, just take the matter of the Sun family wanting to take this woman as a concubine. He really messed it up!"

Grandma Sheng shook her head and began to comment on the Sun family's actions.

"If he were just taking a concubine, there wouldn't be much to say. However, the fact that he's using this to force Shulan to drink her sister's tea makes things quite interesting!"

"Humph!"

Old Madam Sheng snorted coldly and said, "Although he wanted to elevate the child in that woman's womb, what he did was truly favoring his concubine over his wife!"

"He is a prime example of someone who lacks moral character!"

Grandma Sheng turned her head and asked Sheng Changquan, who was not far away, "Quan'er, I remember that if a scholar or a graduate is accused of moral depravity, the imperial court will take action, right?"

"Ok!"

Sheng Changquan immediately knew what Old Madam Sheng wanted to say.

When Grandma Sheng asked him for confirmation, he immediately stood up and said loudly, "Grandmother, you are right!"

"There is indeed such a provision in the imperial law."

Sheng Changquan glanced at the slightly questioning looks in the eyes of the people in the hall and explained, "The current court governs the country with filial piety and values ​​the virtue of officials the most. If someone were to accuse Sun Zhigao of neglecting his personal morality and being morally corrupt, then the Education Commissioner would indeed punish him!"

"Regardless of the severity, it will certainly have some impact on his academic achievements!"

In fact, Sheng Changquan was not telling the truth, because if someone were to accuse Sun Zhigao, then the other party's academic achievements would definitely be stripped away completely.

Because the "person" in "someone" is naturally Sheng Changquan, and with him taking action, such a result is inevitable.

There are several reasons for this.

First of all, Sun Zhigao's academic title of Xiucai was only that of a third-class Xiucai, which shows that he had limited talent and no knowledge worthy of praise.

Moreover, he's not the type to work hard, so you could say his life will just be like that, with no future in sight.

Secondly, it should be noted that the Sun family was not a prestigious or wealthy family. In fact, if it weren't for the support of the Sheng family, the Sun family might have been struggling to make ends meet.

Therefore, Sun Zhigao had neither talent to rely on nor family power to assist him. Considering both factors, what qualifications did he have to stop the "just trial" of the provincial education commissioner?

Moreover, according to what Old Madam Sheng said, if someone were to be found to sue Sun Zhigao, then it would naturally be Sheng Changquan who would have to take action.

After all, the eldest son's family was a merchant family, which, in the eyes of upright and honest officials like the education commissioner, was probably the lowest of the low.

After all, officials who do not wield power, such as education commissioners and editors, are mostly learned scholars who enjoy mentoring younger students but despise those filthy people who reek of money!
Of course, there were also those rude and uncouth soldiers wielding swords and clubs!
It can be said that these military men and merchants were the two types of people that these officials looked down upon the most.

Among them, merchants were also among those who were looked down upon by martial artists. Therefore, it can be said that even though the founding emperor had elevated the status of merchants, in the old mindset of most people, merchants were still the lowest class of people.

Therefore, it is not difficult to understand why Sheng Wei and his group did this—marry Shulan to Sun Zhigao.

After all, Sheng Wei's family happened to be at the very bottom of this social hierarchy.

On the other hand, if Sheng Wei were to file the lawsuit, the provincial education commissioner might sympathize with Sun Zhigao and then ignore the case, treating it as a family matter, thus minimizing the issue and eventually letting it go.

After all, even an upright official finds it difficult to settle family disputes!
However, if Sheng Changquan were to handle this matter, things would be different!
Firstly, if Sheng Changquan doesn't take action, then among the Sheng family members, only Old Madam Sheng can personally step in.

After all, at this time, Sheng Hong, Sheng Changbai, Sheng Changfeng and others were not in Youyang, and the only one qualified to come forward was Old Madam Sheng, who had an imperial decree.

However, if Old Madam Sheng were to take action, it would inevitably be seen as bullying the weak and abusing her power. In fact, in the eyes of the Education Commissioner, it might even be seen as a sign of the powerful oppressing the common people.

While this would resolve the Sun family's issue, it would likely damage the Sheng family's reputation, which is undesirable.

Therefore, the safest course of action now is for Sheng Changquan to take action.

Moreover, from another perspective, both Sheng Changquan and Sun Zhigao were scholars, and the conflict between them was merely a dispute between peers. In the eyes of the provincial education commissioner, there was no sense of the older bullying the younger.

There's even a possibility that the opposite is true, that Sun Zhigao is bullying Sheng Changquan.

After all, Sheng Changquan is younger than Sun Zhigao!

Happy Qixi Festival everyone! May all lovers become siblings in the end... (Many thanks to the generous donations from Huaiye, Lao Liao 1218, and Bingxue Xinghong)

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(End of this chapter)