You expect me to serve your mistress? The mistress is driving this scumbag and his entire family cra

Chapter 39 It was clearly the city lord who poisoned them.

Upon returning to the Fang residence, Li Sheng shifted all blame onto the two cooks, denying everything.

"These two cooks must have something to hide. When I went to find them, I learned that they had already fled and were no longer in Fucheng."

"It's all my fault. I must have seen them cutting corners while preparing the banquet, trying to smuggle food out of the mansion, so I exposed them on the spot, and they hold a grudge. They probably put something unclean in the food."

Upon hearing this, everyone realized that the cook had fled to avoid punishment, so it was highly likely that the cook was behind it all.

After all, no family wants such a thing to happen on such a joyous occasion.

But someone has to take responsibility for this. Putting aside everything else, the medical expenses have to be reimbursed.

Then someone spoke up: "The cook was hired by your Fang family, so the Fang family has to take responsibility."

"Since this chef comes from Zuixianglou, Zuixianglou is also to blame, and they cannot stand idly by."

"The chefs of Zui Xiang Lou? Do you even know who owns Zui Xiang Lou?"

"who?"

"I heard it's a business under the city lord's name."

After hearing this, everyone hesitated for a moment.

“Even if it belongs to the city lord, there should be an explanation. But we got food poisoning at the Fang residence, so it's better for the Fang family to handle this.”

"That's right. No matter which link in the chain went wrong, ultimately it's your Fang family's responsibility. You have to pay back the money, and as for who else you want to hold responsible, we won't interfere."

As the saying goes, when faced with two evils, choose the lesser. Neither the city lord nor the Fang family wanted to offend them. But no matter how powerful the Fang family's background was, they were about to move to the capital, while the city lord was still the "current ruler" of Fucheng.

Besides, that's the principle behind this whole thing.

Everyone spoke in unison, and the doctor arrived late. He immediately went to check the situation, prescribed medicine to stop the diarrhea and vomiting, and asked the family to immediately make a count, get the medicine, boil it in water, and drink it.

Getting medicine costs money.

So many medicines represent a considerable expense.

Fang Chengxu, a hero, was stumped by a single penny, so he ordered his servants to find Old Madam Fang and take some silver from the dowry.

Grandma Fang was eyeing Tong Zhao'er's dowry again, wanting to keep some for herself.

So he went to the new house to ask Tong Zhao'er for money.

Tong Zhao'er had already learned about what had happened from Zhao Ma, and asked in bewilderment, "The guests must have given quite a lot of money as gifts today. Can't you even afford this little bit of silver? Are you trying to beg from me?"

Old Mrs. Fang naturally had an explanation: "The money spent on this banquet was borrowed by Chengxu from his old friends, which is exactly the same as the gift money. It will be returned tomorrow."

Now that we're family, why is my daughter-in-law still so distant, insisting on dividing us into "yours" and "mine"?

"What happened today has nothing to do with me. You can even go after Liang Jiang to settle accounts, that would be perfectly reasonable. Why should I be the one to take the fall?"

Grandma Fang was taken aback: "What does this have to do with galangal?"

"No problem? It's a big deal. You seem shrewd, but all you can do is scheme to get the little bit of money I have. Just wait and see."

He lifted the dragon and phoenix headscarf from his head and led Zhao Ma directly to the front yard.

In the front yard, everyone was urging Fang Chengxu: "Is it so difficult to get a sum of money from the manor? We're in so much pain here, and you're all dawdling like this. Don't you take us seriously at all?"

Fang Chengxu kept smiling apologetically and ordered someone to urge him in the backyard.

Tong Zhao'er appeared in the front yard dressed in a phoenix coronet and wedding gown, and declared loudly, "This money should not have been paid by our Fang family!"

The guests immediately erupted in protest: "Why should we? If the Fang family doesn't care, who will?"

"That's right, no matter how powerful the General's Mansion is, it still needs to be reasonable, doesn't it?"

Holding the prescription, Tong Zhao'er looked around and said loudly, "This matter is indeed Fang Chengxu's fault. He didn't even bother to find out the truth. If he had known that Zuixianglou was the property of his city lord, he would never have gone to Zuixianglou to hire a chef, giving him an opportunity to harm us. The one who should be held responsible for this matter is his city lord."

Upon hearing this, everyone was immediately puzzled: "We heard that your family once invited the city lord to your residence as a guest. Could it be that you have some kind of grudge in private?"

Fang Chengxu was taken aback, initially puzzled, but then immediately understood Tong Zhao'er's intention.

He had just learned that Zuixianglou was owned by the city lord of Fucheng, and he was already itching to shift the blame to Lu Xingzhan.

Otherwise, this matter would be very difficult, and I would have to pay out a large sum of money.

So they joined forces, saying, "Ah Zhao, stop talking, family scandals shouldn't be aired in public!"

Tong Zhao'er looked indignant: "Why didn't you say anything? Let everyone misunderstand that you are heartless and ungrateful, let everyone think that she, Tong Zhao'er, is a chaste and virtuous woman who has suffered a great injustice at the hands of your Fang family."
Forget all that, but now they've teamed up to frame us! We absolutely cannot tolerate this!

"Huh? What happened?" everyone asked.

Fang Chengxu sighed, lowered his head, and looked extremely ashamed and indignant: "I'm sorry to have made everyone laugh. My first wife and this city lord have been having an affair for a long time, secretly meeting each other."

Now they are openly colluding with each other, gradually seizing all of my family's assets. I have been angry but dare not speak out.

Today, seeing that I am getting married to the daughter of the General's Mansion, they still won't let me go and are trying to sabotage my banquet.

"It's all my fault, I've dragged all the villagers into this mess. Even if my family has to sell everything we own, we'll pay for the medicine."

After hearing Fang Chengxu's words, some people were skeptical, while others scorned and cursed him.

"The city lord has an affair with the Fang family's first wife? Impossible! Although there are rumors that this respectable woman is restless, the city lord is handsome and rich, what kind of woman can't he have?"

"That's because you haven't seen the original Fang family's wife. She's incredibly beautiful, with skin as white as ice and bones as blue as jade. Besides, I heard that although she and Fang Chengxu are married, they haven't consummated their marriage. She probably doesn't think much of the Fang family."

"This respectable mother and daughter have no known background, business, or property, yet they are extremely generous. They contributed eight thousand taels of silver to the Fang family in the first year after they married into it, and the source of this money is unknown."

"No wonder the Fang family wanted to divorce his wife and remarry. No man with any sense of righteousness could tolerate such humiliation. Marrying such a woman into the family is simply a misfortune for the family."

……

“You’re talking nonsense! My sister-in-law is definitely not that kind of person.”

Finally, someone in the crowd could no longer bear it and stepped forward.

It was Fang Chenghao, the second young master of the Fang family.

He received the news of his elder brother's wedding and had just returned to the Fang residence from Lishan Academy yesterday.

Although Liang Jiang had not been married into the Fang family for long, Fang Chenghao respected her greatly.

As a family of military generals, Fang had to practice riding and archery and equestrian skills from a young age, and was highly regarded.

Fang Chenghao has never been in good health since childhood. He lacks strength and feels tightness in his chest and weakness after squatting in a horse stance for a while.

Master Fang thought he was just making excuses to be lazy, so he often beat and scolded him, saying he was hopeless.

Fang Chenghao grew up under the oppression of his family. He felt that he was inferior to his older brother in every way, and he was very depressed and even gave up on himself.

Only after Liang Jiang married into the Fang family was she able to clear his name and exonerate him. Through pulse diagnosis, it was discovered that he indeed had congenital deficiency of vital energy and kidney qi, and therefore lacked the aptitude for martial arts.

Then, Liang Jiang discovered his talent for studying and persuaded Old Lady Fang to send him to the Lishan Academy, which he had always dreamed of.

He had a weak foundation and poor basic skills, but he was more hardworking than anyone else. In less than a year, he gained the teacher's recognition and praise, which restored his confidence and made him more cheerful.

Therefore, Galangal is his benefactor, even closer than his elder brother.

Liang Jiang once advised him not to argue with Tong Zhao'er because of her, lest he have a hard time in the Fang family in the future.

But how could Fang Chenghao tolerate Tong Zhao'er's slanderous accusations against Liang Jiang?

(End of this chapter)