Chapter 111: The Living King of Hell, Lu Chao Chao
This novel is translated and hosted on bcatranslation.
Despite his frail condition, Lu Yan Shu glanced at the servant assisting him and managed to kneel before the ancestral hall. Alongside him, all four children knelt in unison. “Father, we will not hinder the marquis’s future. We wish for you to achieve your desires,” they said, kowtowing to Lu Yuan Ze.
Lu Yuan Ze felt a heavy burden in his heart, as if he had lost something invaluable. His thoughts were a chaotic whirlwind as he sighed inwardly, lamenting that Yan Shu’s crippling injury had forever altered their path.
The old chief, his eyes twitching uncontrollably as he saw the document severing familial ties, muttered, “An unfilial son! If I were the old Marquis, I would be turning over in my grave.”
Lu Chao Chao grinned, witnessing the final severance between Lu Yuan Ze and his brothers, symbolized by the document.
The old chief then drafted the divorce papers, which Lu Yuan Ze and Madam Xu signed, and sent them along with the document severing familial ties to the government office.
Madam Xu, waving her hand, demanded, “And the dowry? Surely, the grand Marquis’s household wouldn’t swallow up the dowry of the former daughter-in-law?” Deng Zhi promptly ordered the account books to be brought.
Three chests of account books were presented, shocking the old chief. Madam Xu’s dowry was so substantial it hadn’t been depleted in eighteen years. The old lady, openly embracing Lu Jing Yao and kissing her repeatedly, exclaimed, “Who wants your dowry? Take it away!” She refused to be accused of embezzling the former daughter-in-law’s dowry.
“The old lady is right. Since we are to separate, we should do so cleanly,” Madam Xu declared, having awaited this moment.
“Marquis Zhongyong’s household is a family with integrity and honor. How could they embezzle the former daughter-in-law’s property?” Deng Zhi remarked, adding with a smile, “Just don’t cry later.”
“You’re now divorced, so move out of the house quickly!” commanded Madam Pei, struggling to contain her laughter. “Today, we still have to update the family register,” she continued, worried that Madam Xu would take the Marquis’s household’s property.
Unaware of the true situation of the Marquis’s household, Madam Pei felt triumphant, having risen to become the mistress.
“What are you still standing there for? Hurry up and update the family register for my son! If you delay the auspicious time, you’ll be in trouble,” she scolded.
The old chief’s face turned livid. “Lowly, uncultured woman from a small family,” he muttered, yet Lu Yuan Ze seemed indifferent, fueling the patriarch’s anger.
“Let’s recognize our ancestors and return to our clan,” Madam Xu smiled faintly, leading her children out of the ancestral hall without looking back.
The old lady cursed under her breath, “Jing Huai is a genius, destined to be a top scholar, while Yan Shu is crippled. What prospects does he have? Focus on educating Jing Huai well. He’ll bring glory by achieving top ranks in the royal exams.”
“Madam Xu is a divorced woman with four children. Can the Xu family support them for a lifetime? Once she’s suffered enough, she’ll come back to kneel and admit her mistakes,” Lu Yuan Ze nodded, believing Madam Xu’s eighteen-year love wasn’t merely a whim.
Meanwhile, in Sheng Feng Yard, orders were given to dismantle the mansion piece by piece.
“All the furniture in the mansion was
bought by the madam, so we can’t leave it behind.”
“Send a few people to Deshan Hall to move the furniture.”
“By the way, the artificial lake in this mansion was also funded by the madam. Fill it in.”
“And the bluestone slabs in the courtyard, pry them all up. Don’t leave a single stone.”
Lu Chao Chao, barely over a year old, wobbled as she walked, holding her dog on a leash and a small box tied to the dog’s head. “Wow, dey even dug up da tweeze in da couwt-yawd,” she babbled.
“Madam, when you married into the family, you even renovated the tiles in the mansion. Should we collect the tiles too?” Deng Zhi pointed to the roof.
Madam Xu, having spent a fortune on renovations, sneered, “Smash them on the spot!”
Deng Zhi grinned and swiftly bowed, “Everything follows the madam’s orders.”
She turned and shouted to the servants on the roof, “Smash them! Smash them all!”
Crash! Crash! Crash! The sound echoed throughout the mansion.
In the ancestral hall, the old lady felt uneasy, her eyelids twitching violently while Madam Pei supported the old lady.
“Mother, the family register update is complete. Let’s go to the gate. What if she takes the Marquis’s household’s belongings? We mustn’t let her take advantage. If you ask me, Mother, you’re too kind. We should have just dismissed her instead of allowing for this divorce,” Madam Pei grumbled, displeased that divorce still allowed Madam Xu to take her dowry.
The mention of Madam Xu’s generous dowry made the old lady furious. “If you hadn’t shamelessly clung to Yuan Ze in broad daylight, we wouldn’t have let Madam Xu take such a big advantage,” she snapped.
Madam Pei’s face stiffened, and she said no more. “Mother, we must hurry. We can’t let her take the Marquis’s household’s belongings,” she urged, supporting the old lady as they walked briskly.
Starting tomorrow, she would be the mistress of the Marquis’s household, the marquis’s wife, living a life of luxury! Madam Pei’s face was full of smiles, but stepping out of the ancestral hall’s gate, her smile slowly froze. The intricately carved railings, the pavilions, and towers collapsed before her eyes. The luxurious and grand Marquis’s household had become a wasteland.
“Ah!!!” The old lady clutched her chest in anger, and if not for Madam Pei’s support, she would have collapsed on the spot. “Wicked girl, what are you doing?” she cried out as a large tree in the courtyard crashed down.
“We’re taking away the madam’s property,” Deng Zhi replied calmly. “Every blade of grass and tree in this mansion was bought with the madam’s money. Surely, Old Madam hasn’t forgotten what the Marquis’s household looked like in the past?”
The old Marquis was a military man, and the old lady was a farmer from the countryside. Even with the king’s rewards, the Marquis’s household was struggling to make ends meet. The mansion was bestowed by the former king, but everything inside was pitifully sparse.
The day after Madam Xu married in, she went on a shopping spree. The furniture was made of huanghuali wood, the screens of red sandalwood. The pavilions, rock gardens, and flowing water were splendid, astonishing the old lady.
In addition, various hot springs and estates were acquired by Madam Xu, who even gifted jewelry to the old lady and Lu Wan Yi. Over the past eighteen years, the old lady had long forgotten the initial destitution of the Marquis’s household.
The old lady’s face turned ashen, her throat constricted with shock.
“Mother, are we just going to watch them ruin the Marquis’s household? Look at what’s become of it…” Madam Pei, feeling her heart bleed, was dizzy with despair.
The old lady’s breathing was heavy, clearly enraged. “The Marquis’s household has integrity. How could we use the former daughter-in-law’s possessions? If we’re to part, it must be clean.”
“Madam Pei is the new mistress; surely she doesn’t want to use my mistress’s things?” Deng Zhi smiled as belongings were continuously moved out of the mansion.
Eventually, the mansion became empty, resembling a disaster scene. The tiles were smashed, flowers and plants dug up, trees uprooted, and bluestone slabs pried up.
Madam Xu stood at the gate with her children, Lu Chao Chao blinking her eyes. “Is da Marquis’s household’s gate bought by Mama?”
Madam Xu smiled and nodded. “Yes, the gate was custom-made with a lot of money. Take it down and bring it along.”
The old lady, furious and always priding herself on her status, now cursed loudly, “You rotten whore, divorcing with a cripple, I’ll see how you live!! My Marquis’s household will surely trample you underfoot, making you regret it immensely!” After speaking, the old lady, unable to bear the shock, fainted.
Lu Chao Chao snorted softly, “A cwipe? If da cwipe stood up, it would scawe you to deaf!”
“Yay, Mama and I so in sync! Also, Gwampa, da coffin was bought by Mama back den, should we dig up Gwampa too?” she babbled.
The three older brothers looked at Lu Chao Chao in awe. They had never seen a living bodhisattva but were witnessing a living king of Hell for the first time.
lol, this chap title fits, Dengzhi char is awesome
This chapter was worth all the anger and angst.
Should we dig up grandpa too???