A grandmother and granddaughter swap souls, causing chaos throughout the entire court.

Since her third uncle has come to her door asking for a beating, wouldn't it be a waste of most of the merit she had accumulated today if she didn't teach him a lesson?

"Let him in! Of course we should let him in."

She glanced at Granny Wu and ordered, "Go, open the courtyard gate. Also, call the master, Granny Li, and Granny Wu to the main hall to wait."

"Yes, this old servant will go right away!" Granny Zhou didn't dare to delay and turned to leave the bedroom.

Before long, all the candles in the main hall were lit.

Zhong Tingyuan was pushed in by two nannies.

Zhong Tingyuan was in his room when he heard the commotion outside the courtyard.

He knew without a doubt that his third brother, Zhong Tingyu, had returned and, upon learning of his wife's arrest, had come to Songhetang to demand an explanation.

He was nervous. His third brother was now the Marquis of Yongning, holding great power in the Marquis's mansion and always acting arrogantly and recklessly.

Now that Lady Hou has encountered such a serious incident, if the third brother goes mad, I'm afraid even Mother might not be able to protect the entire family.

The source of all unease.

All of this stems from the fact that he is a cripple and useless person who has been completely stripped of power, has no trump cards, and has no ability to protect himself.

After being ushered into the main hall, Zhong Tingyuan respectfully bowed his head to the old lady sitting at the head of the table.

"The son has met his mother."

Then, he tentatively asked, "I wonder if Mother summoned her son here so late at night because she has something to tell you?"

Guoguo paused for a moment before speaking: "Move the chairs from the main and secondary seats. The old man has difficulty walking, so let his wheelchair be parked directly in that spot. For the next few days, there's no need to put a chair in that area."

When Granny Li returned to the manor, she felt that she had missed something very important.

She quickly agreed and pushed the old man to the seat of honor, which was second only to the old lady.

Guoguo then explained, "I called you over so you could watch the show. It'll also be a good opportunity for you to see my determination to protect your main branch of the family from now on."

Zhong Tingyuan frowned deeply, a hint of confusion and wariness flashing in his deep eyes.

Watching a play?

The mother's determination?

He simply couldn't figure out what this unpredictable mother was up to.

Just then, a series of rapid footsteps came from outside the main hall, accompanied by pushing and cursing.

"Get out of my way! I want to see who gave you the audacity to block my path!"

With a loud shout, the heavy curtains of the main hall were violently ripped off.

Marquis Yongning, Zhong Tingyu, led several young masters and ladies from his two households, along with a group of servants, and arrived in a menacing manner, reeking of alcohol and filled with anger.

His eyes, red from drunkenness, swept across the main hall before settling on Zhong Tingyuan, who sat in the seat below the old lady.

"You piece of trash, who gave you the guts to sit here!" Zhong Tingyu's forehead veins bulged as he pointed at Zhong Tingyuan's nose and cursed loudly.

He was used to trampling this disabled older brother under his feet.

Now, seeing the other party dare to sit so openly in the position of honor, second only to her mother, she felt that her dignity had been greatly challenged.

Zhong Tingyuan subconsciously gripped the armrests of the wheelchair, his lips pressed tightly together.

His habit of being suppressed for years made him instinctively want to back down, but when he caught a glimpse of his mother sitting at the head of the table, he managed to steady himself and didn't move an inch.

"And you too!"

Zhong Tingyu turned his head and unceremoniously pointed his finger at Guoguo in the main seat, his tone full of imperious questioning.

"Mother, are you getting senile?! I've only been gone for half a day, and the house is in complete chaos! You've already taken that useless eldest brother and his family to Songhe Hall to provide for them, but why did you send Zhao Shi to the Jingzhao Prefecture jail?!"

He got angrier and angrier as he talked.

"She is the matriarch of the Yongning Marquis's household, the legitimate daughter of the Minister of Revenue! And she is also a county princess personally bestowed by the Emperor!"

"By doing this, aren't you putting our Marquis's reputation on the ground? Who knows what people outside are saying about me, the Marquis, and how they're making a fool of the Marquis's family!"

Zhong Tingyu stood stiffly, his eyes showing no reverence for his birth mother, only a sense of entitlement.

"You must immediately send someone to the yamen and do everything in your power to bring Zhao back to the manor! Then send your elder brother's family back to their dilapidated courtyard! As for the rumors circulating outside, you must personally quell them! Otherwise, your son will never forgive your outrageous behavior today!"

Guoguo looked coldly at her arrogant and domineering third uncle.

She had originally thought that the person who could bully her father to such an extent and seize his title must be a cunning and extremely difficult character to deal with.

Looking at him now, isn't he just a spoiled idiot who throws tantrums all the time?

Guoguo sneered inwardly, but quickly changed her expression on her face.

She suddenly raised her hand and clutched her chest tightly, her old face instantly turning bright red, as if she had suffered a great shock.

"You...you unfilial son..."

Guoguo shakily stretched out her finger and pointed it at Zhong Tingyu's nose, her voice trembling so much that she wailed in anguish.

"I carried you for ten months and raised you with great difficulty... Now that you've grown up, you dare to be so disobedient and unfilial in front of the servants, insulting your own mother as a senile old woman!"

She spoke while breathing heavily, as if she were about to pass out at any moment.

Guoguo glanced at Granny Li standing to the side out of the corner of her eye, giving her a frantic hint.

At first, Granny Li was a little confused, not understanding why the mother and son had suddenly become so tense.

But having served at Songhetang for so many years, her ability to read people's expressions and moods is first-rate.

Upon receiving the old lady's glance, she immediately understood and quickly stepped forward.

As she gently patted Guoguo's back to help her catch her breath, she turned her head and looked at Zhong Tingyu with a disapproving expression.

"My lord, please calm down. The old lady's health is already poor; how could you speak so recklessly, calling her senile?"

Relying on her position as the old lady's confidante, Granny Li boldly offered her advice.

"If this gets out, the censors and officials will impeach you for 'disobedience and unfilial piety.' What will become of your reputation as the Marquis of Yongning?"

*Smack!*

A sharp, resounding slap suddenly echoed in the main hall.

Before Granny Li could finish speaking, Zhong Tingyu slapped her hard across the face with a powerful backhand.

The slap was extremely powerful, sending Granny Li spinning halfway around before she fell heavily onto the blue brick floor.

Her cheeks, already swollen from self-punishment during the day, were now completely swollen, turning a purplish-red color, with traces of blood trickling from the corners of her mouth.

"You dog of a servant! How dare you interrupt when I'm speaking to my mother?!"

Zhong Tingyu looked down at Granny Li with a fierce gaze, as if he were looking at an ant that he could crush at any moment.

Granny Li covered her swollen cheek, her ears ringing.

Her lowered eyes reflected her anger.