Chapter 154, Then Take Your Punishment

Chapter 154, Then Take Your Punishment

Fearing that Xiao Yuming might develop a fever during the night, Lady Tang prepared a room for him in Shi'an Garden, so she could attend to him if anything happened.

At the residence of the Earl of Nanling, the earl arrived at the front gate by carriage, and without heading towards the lady's quarters, he marched straight to the study in the front courtyard, dragging Yan Wu by his collar. Seeing this, Yan Wu started to wail, "Father, I know I was wrong, Mother... My father is going to kill me..."

The Earl of Nanling, fuming with anger, really did feel like killing him. As he dragged Yan Wu, he barked, "Today, no matter who you call, it won't help. I’m going to end you, you curse."

Yan Wu looked back and saw all the servants with their heads bowed, standing motionless like wooden stakes, not one going to inform his mother. Truly scared, he pleaded with the earl, "Father, I know I was wrong. Besides, I didn't do anything; I just listened to some music."

The earl ignored him, and with gritted teeth, he flung Yan Wu outside the study and said to the servants in the courtyard, "Watch him. If you let him escape, your lives are forfeit."

Hearing this, the servants quickly surrounded Yan Wu, who crouched on the ground surrounded by a circle of legs, sitting in desolation.

It was over; this time, truly no one would come to his rescue.

In a short while, the Earl of Nanling emerged from the study with a whip in hand, and the servants encircling Yan Wu quickly stepped aside. The earl stood before Yan Wu and roared, "Kneel."

Yan Wu obediently knelt down, knowing that any further disobedience would only result in a harsher beating.

"What have I told you? No matter what you do outside, brothels and gambling dens are absolutely off-limits. Did you not agree?" the earl demanded.

Yan Wu nodded, "Father, I... I was just curious."

The earl raised the whip and it cracked down upon him, "Today you're curious about women and you enter a brothel, tomorrow you're curious about gambling, and what? You'll enter a gambling den? The day after tomorrow, if you're curious about bullying and committing arson, will you try that too?"

The more the earl thought about it, the angrier he became, and he lashed the whip down several more times.

"What's happened now? What trouble have you gotten into?" Lady Nanling, supported by her maidservant, approached. Upon seeing the wounds on Yan Wu's back, a tightness formed in her chest, accompanied by a dull pain.

"Why are you here? You'll just end up with chest pains again," Lord Nanling said as he went to support Lady Nanling.

"How could I not come and see with all this commotion? What did he do to deserve such punishment?" Lady Nanling inquired.

Her chest pains intensified. Although she often feigned illness, she genuinely suffered from heart pains when agitated.

Both Lord Nanling and Yan Wu, noticing her pallor, grew anxious. Lord Nanling soothed her chest while calling for a chair, and Yan Wu rose to assist her. Once seated, Lady Nanling felt somewhat better and asked again, "What did he do?"

Lord Nanling glared fiercely at Yan Wu, who immediately knelt down. Initially, he hadn't felt his mistake to be grave, but now, with his mother's illness flaring up, his regret was sincere.

"Speak," Lady Nanling urged Lord Nanling. "The more you withhold, the more anxious I become."

Lord Nanling, left with no choice, finally said, "He went to visit a brothel."

Upon hearing this, Lady Nanling felt a surge of tightness in her chest, but despite the pain, she said, "Beat him, and do it hard."

Concerned for her, Lord Nanling whispered, "You should go back. After I've dealt with him, I'll come to see you."

Lady Nanling gestured dismissively, "It's fine. I'll watch you discipline him."

"Are you sure you're alright?" Lord Nanling asked.

"Don't you know my condition by now? I'm fine," Lady Nanling replied.

Seeing her color return somewhat, Lord Nanling was somewhat reassured. He then approached Yan Wu and raised his whip to continue the punishment. This time, Yan Wu didn't cry out, truly acknowledging his fault.

At the Qi residence, Qi Liang alighted from the carriage and turned to see Qi Er, breathless, following him. He snorted and headed inside. Just past the main gate, he was greeted by the nursemaid from Old Lady Qi's side, smiling, "Master, you've returned. Has the Second Young Master returned? The Old Lady misses him."

Upon hearing this, Qi Liang's anger intensified, but he restrained himself in front of his mother's attendant, saying, "Tell the Old Lady that the scourge will be studying in the study tonight."

The nursemaid forced a smile, "Master, you should know the Old Lady's temperament. She won't be able to sleep tonight if she doesn't see the Second Young Master."

Qi Liang could no longer contain his fury and exclaimed, "Then go tell the Old Lady that Qi He Guang went to visit a brothel. I'll beat him to death to prevent future disgrace to our family."

The nursemaid was shocked upon hearing that Qi Er had visited a brothel, a grave mistake. She hastily bowed to Qi Liang and scurried back to Old Lady Qi's courtyard to deliver the news. Qi Liang turned and glared fiercely at Qi Er, commanding, "Follow me."

Qi Er, having run behind the carriage for nearly a quarter of an hour, was tired, but he didn't dare to complain at this moment and quickly followed. Once in the study, Qi Liang poured himself a cup of tea, took a couple of sips, and then interrogated Qi Er, "Why did you go to such a place?"

Qi Er muttered with his head lowered, "Just curious."

Qi Liangsheng didn't catch that clearly, and with a sharp clack, he slammed his cup down on the table, barking, "Louder."

"Just... just curious," Qi Er repeated.

Qi Liangsheng was almost amused by the anger, thinking to himself that he must be bored. Back when he was fourteen or fifteen, all he cared about was studying for the civil service exams, immersing himself in books until late into the night.

"I think you're just idle, with nothing better to do every day," Qi Liangsheng lectured.

"Aunt Xiao from the Xiao family said she's going to look for a property to build a guild hall in a few days. She'll take me along, and then I'll be busy," Qi Er said with his head still down.

Qi Liangsheng took a deep breath in silence and said, "A gentleman has things he does and things he does not do. Knowing something is wrong and still insisting on doing it is a grave mistake."

Qi Er bowed his head and listened to the scolding. Qi Liangsheng continued, "Do you realize your mistake today?"

Qi Er nodded. Actually, before they went, the three of them knew it was wrong, or else they wouldn't have kept it from their family. It was just sheer curiosity.

"Go out and take thirty lashes," Qi Liangsheng ordered.

Qi Er turned his head to look outside, calculating in his mind when his grandmother would arrive. Seeing this, Qi Liangsheng snorted coldly, "Don't bother looking. Even if your grandmother arrives, you can't escape this punishment."

Qi Er dragged his feet as he walked out. As soon as he exited the study, he saw a long bench placed outside, with Qi Liangsheng's attendant holding a rod, standing by.

"Second Young Master, please lie down on it," the attendant said.

Qi Er walked over sluggishly and bent over to lie on the bench. Just as he lay down, Qi Liangsheng's voice came from inside the room, "Don't go easy on him."

"Yes, Master," the attendant responded. He raised the rod to strike, but before it even touched Qi Er's bottom, a pig-like squeal erupted from Qi Er. At that moment, Old Madam Qi entered.

This time, she didn't cry or make a fuss, but instead looked at Qi Er with a pained expression, "Child, that's not a place you should go to. What if you caught a disease, what then?"

Old Madam Qi might be a bit muddled at times, but she understood the gravity of serious matters.

"Grandmother, I dare not do it ever again," Qi Er wailed.

Old Madam Qi hummed in pity, "Hmm, then take your punishment well, I'll go see your father."

Qi Er: "……"

Old Madam Qi resolutely ignored him and strode into the study. Qi Liangsheng stood up to help her sit down. As Old Lady Qi was about to plead for Qi Er, she heard Qi Liangsheng say, "Mother, I wish to take a wife."