Phoenix Cries Return to Court

It was already late morning when I came out of the East Palace.

Lin Xihe made a point of strolling around the market before heading towards the Minister's residence.

No sooner had she strolled leisurely to the vermilion gate of the Minister's residence than a sturdy figure suddenly rushed out from behind the gate, grabbed her wrist, and shouted, "The Minister's wife, Madam Wen, has not returned home last night!"

Lin Xihe's heart sank. She frowned and looked closely, discovering that the person was Li Mama, Tao Qingqing's attendant.

At that moment, she was clinging tightly to Lin Xihe's wrist, crying and shouting, putting on a great show.

Seeing this, Lin Xihe's lips curled into a cold smile. She knew that Tao Qingqing would seize every opportunity to cause her trouble.

Unexpectedly, she chose to do it at the gate of the mansion, showing no regard for appearances, which suggests she was prepared to completely break off relations.

The streets were quiet in the early morning, but the cries were like thunder, and the scattered people in the streets and alleys came running at the sound.

There were vendors carrying loads of vegetables and women buying groceries in the morning. In a short while, a crowd gathered at the entrance of the Minister's Mansion, pointing and whispering about Lin Xihe.

"The mistress of the Minister's mansion seems so dignified, how could she do such a thing?"

"Staying out all night is no small matter. If the Minister finds out, will he divorce her?"

"Perhaps she was framed?"

Hearing the whispers, Granny Li's lips curled into a smug smile, and her voice suddenly rose, "Madam Wen, you didn't return all night, and I was so worried that I stood guard at this door all night! If I hadn't seen you sneaking back with my own eyes, I wouldn't have believed it! The Minister has treated you so well, how could you do this!"

After saying that, he deliberately put on an act as if he was standing up for He Guangzheng.

Lin Xihe sneered inwardly. Before she could say anything more, she suddenly exerted force on her wrist and kicked hard with a clever trick.

With a cry of "Ouch!", Granny Li lost her balance and stumbled to the ground, wincing in pain.

"You insolent servant! How dare you cause trouble at the gates of the Minister's residence, spewing vulgarities and defaming your mistress!"

Lin Xihe's eyes darkened, and his imposing aura suddenly rose. He said loudly, "I wondered who was pretending to be crazy here so early in the morning. It turns out to be Granny Li from Madam Tao's side. She certainly has the ability to bully others by relying on her master's power!"

Granny Li scrambled to her feet, her face flushed red with anger and anxiety. "Madam Wen, stop spouting nonsense! Everything I said is true. What does your staying out all night have to do with Madam Tao? What else do you have to say for yourself?"

"Not returning home at night?" Lin Xihe raised an eyebrow, her gaze sharp as a knife, piercing straight at Granny Li, her imposing aura rising suddenly.

"Open your eyes and look carefully. My clothes are neat and my hairpins are in perfect order. Do I look even slightly like someone who hasn't returned home all night? Since you're so sure, let me ask you: did you stay at the gate of the mansion the entire night without leaving it for a moment?"

Upon hearing this, Granny Li's face turned pale. She had clearly not expected Lin Xihe to ask such a question, and she was speechless for a moment.

Forcing a calm demeanor, she said, "I...of course I've been guarding this place every step of the way! Otherwise, how could I have stumbled upon your shameful act?"

"Is that so?" Lin Xihe sneered, stepped forward, and said loudly, word by word, "At the end of Yin hour, the lanterns at the main gate were blown out by the wind. Who relit them? Since you were guarding this place, why didn't you lend a hand?"

"At the beginning of the hour of Mao (5-7 AM), soldiers came and exchanged a few words with the gatekeeper. Do you remember whether the soldier was wearing a blue or black uniform?"

The barrage of questions threw Granny Li into a panic. Her eyes darted around, and she stammered, unable to speak: "I, I... I dozed off for a moment and didn't see clearly..."

"Did you take a nap?" Lin Xi pressed closer, her eyes growing even colder. "You keep saying you've been guarding this place every step of the way, yet you can't even answer the details of the gate. Is this what you call 'seeing with your own eyes'? Is this your evidence to slander the mistress?"

"Then...then tell me! Who lit the lantern? What clothes were the soldiers wearing?" Granny Li retorted instinctively.

"I don't know," Lin Xihe shrugged. "Because I was sleeping in the yard at that time."

"You!" Granny Li gasped, barely able to catch her breath.

She shrieked, "You're lying! Around the end of the morning, your maidservant rushed in to report that you hadn't been in the courtyard all night, and the entire mansion had been searched but you couldn't be found!"

As soon as she finished speaking, a loud "slap" was heard as Lin Xihe slapped Li Mama hard across the face.

Granny Li covered her swollen right cheek, looking incredulous.

"Wen! You! How dare you hit me!"

"So what if I hit you?" Lin Xihe said coldly. "I walked through the main gate of the Minister's residence, openly and aboveboard. But you, hiding behind the gate, suddenly jumped out to slander me. Could it be that you had set a trap all along, deliberately waiting for me here to ruin my reputation and establish your Madam Tao's authority?"

"You keep accusing me of staying out all night and disgracing the family, and your evidence is some unknown little maid in my courtyard?"

"You claim to have witnessed it with your own eyes, yet you can't provide any details about your duty; you say I didn't come home at night, yet you can't produce any proof that I stayed out overnight! Now you've dragged a girl into this too."

"How about this, let's have a three-way standoff. I'll lay my cards on the table right now: if you still can't produce solid evidence, I'll charge you with slandering the mistress and disgracing the family, give you thirty strokes of the cane, and expel you from the Minister's residence!"

Granny Li was so dizzy from being slapped that she covered her cheeks, feeling both fear and hatred.

What evidence did she have? Tao Qingqing only told her to block the gate of the mansion and cry loudly to accuse Lin Xihe of slander when she returned, hoping to make a big scene and ruin Lin Xihe's reputation even without evidence.

"What? Can't you produce any evidence?" Lin Xi pressed on, her eyebrows furrowed. "As the wife of the Minister of Rites, I am upright and honest. How could I do anything so shameful? I was just at the market. If you want evidence, there are so many people at the market; surely someone can testify for me."

After saying this, she seemed to recall the past, her eyes filled with tears, "Back then, I was dressed in plain clothes and locked in the backyard, while the Minister was marrying a new bride in the front hall. I suppose that was when Madam Tao already disliked me."

"Now that Madam Tao is in charge of the household affairs, managing all aspects of food and daily life, I only had an upset stomach, so I got up early to go to the market to buy some medicinal herbs to treat it, and yet I've been slandered like this!"

As she spoke, she suddenly pulled out a packet of traditional Chinese medicine from her sleeve.

Granny Li's pupils dilated in shock. She had never expected this turn of events. Looking at the woman in front of her, who was on the verge of tears, she was at a loss for what to do.

The onlookers immediately erupted in uproar, their eyes filled with disdain as they looked at Granny Li, and the murmurs of discussion resumed.

"This old woman is obviously lying. How dare she slander the Minister's wife so early in the morning! Her intentions are despicable!"

"Exactly! How can someone who saw it with their own eyes remember nothing? It's clearly someone instigating them to deliberately slander you!"

"That Lady Tao is incredibly cruel!"

Just as everyone was discussing and feeling indignant on Lin Xihe's behalf, a sharp female voice rang out from the courtyard gate.

"Sister, you're so eloquent! You can even turn black into white! If I hadn't come, I don't know how badly Granny Li would have been wronged!"