Xia Zhuoqin’s request was reasonable. The young shouldn’t meddle with the matters of the elders. Jinxuan had indeed been disrespectful, but she did all for Xia You. Xia You was conflicted as to what she should do.

The Old Lord was conflicted as well as he has developed a soft spot for his second daughter-in-law. Besides, Jinxuan took the initiative to kneel at the court so she obviously already knew that what she did was wrong.

“Chunyu’s wife was wrong, but her heart was in the right place. Since she has taken the initiative to start her punishment, I think we can order her to kneel for 4 hours.”

“4 hours? Old Lord, how can Jinxuan take that? She is so thin and delicate?” Xia You protested.

Tonight has completely changed You’s attitude toward Jinxuan. Her willingness to fight for her even though all You has done was challenge and snob her was very commendable and moving. You can’t let Jinxuan be punished that bad for standing up for her.

“Big Brother, you are clearly trying to protect her,” Xia Zhuoqin argued, unsatisfied with the proposed punishment.

Xia Chunyu has kept quiet through the whole thing but he’s had enough. He knew that Yaoyao must be punished, but four hours were too much. He knew how hard and cold the court’s floor was. He couldn’t let his wife suffer through that. The thought that she’s been there for more than half an hour already was distressing him.

He coughed twice to get everyone’s attention before starting, “The right assistant minister position will be opening next year and a lot of people want it. Fortunately, the Helian Royal mansion can appoint whomever they want to take that position. Unfortunately, if Elder Princess Yu De and Old Ancestress find out that Jinxuan has been punished because of the Third Auntie…”

The Old Lord realized what his son was trying to do and started playing along. “That doesn’t matter. Regardless of any reason, it’s wrong to offend the elders. No one is allowed to beg for pardons for her. Otherwise, the punishment will be doubled. I’m sure that Third Brother can wait for another three to five years for this position. There will always be a good place for him.”

Xia Zhuoqin and Zhou looked at each other, panicked. They forgot that Chunyu’s wife was also the god granddaughter of the Old Ancestress. The position of the right assistant minister was more important than their pride. They couldn’t lose that opportunity.

Zhou quickly backtracked, “Big Brother, we are family, there is no point fighting against each other. Your daughter-in-law made a mistake, but I am an elder, and I should be more understanding. A small punishment will do.”

“No, no, the rules of the ancestors can’t be ignored,” Xia Zhuofeng insisted.

Xia You finally understood what her husband and son were doing. To speed things up, she added, “Didn’t you want to punish Second Daughter-in-law for making you sign a letter of assurance? Didn’t you want to punish her because of her ‘rebellion’?”

“Oh, I was just angry. Don’t you know my temper by now? It has come fast and gone fast. I have calmed down now. Us elders should be more forgiving,” Zhou reasoned with a smile. She was willing to take this loss today. If her husband loses that position, he would blame her for the rest of their days.

“That depends on what Third Brother wants. The Old Lord would only consider his word since he values brotherhood a lot,” Xia You said, a bite in her tone. They wouldn’t have ended up in this position if the Old Lord had learned to handle his younger brother.

Xia Zhuoqin weighed the pros and cons and reluctantly said, “She’s new, it’s understandable that she didn’t know about the rules. We’ll let her go this time, but if it happens again, we wouldn’t be so lenient.”

The Old Lord shook his head. “No, no. It doesn’t matter if she’s new, she should still obey the rule. How can you just let her go?”

Xia Zhuoqin wanted to groan in frustration. He doesn’t care about the rules! He couldn’t lose that position.

He tried again, “Brother, Chunfeng will get married soon. This is not the right time to deal with family issues. If the word of what happened got out, what would the Empress Dowager think? Also, Zhou did something wrong as well. She was too impulsive and talked back to Big Sister. Zhou, apologize to Big Sister immediately.”

“I’m sorry for what I did Big Sister,” Zhou apologized, working hard to keep the hate off her face.

“Old Marquis, since Third Brother has said so, you can forgive Jinxuan this time. This is also for the sake of Third Brother’s future. Besides, what if Jinxuan is with a child?

Xia Chunyu almost choked on his spit. Mother, your imagination is really strong.

The Old Lord’s mouth twitched as he turned to Chunyu. “Go and tell your wife to get up. She doesn’t have to kneel for the penalty, but she has to copy the family rule 100 times.”

Xia Chunyu rushed to the court to see his wife, unaware that someone was following him.

Ye Jiayao had been kneeling in the court for more than half an hour. The first few minutes were okay, but after a long time, she felt as though her knees were being stabbed by thousands of needles. The place was also gloomy and creepy what with all the portraits of the ancestors seeming to stare at her.

She knew that Chunyu would think of ways to save her, but she was not sure what would the Old Lord want to do as he really favors his deadbeat of a brother.

She just hoped that she wouldn’t have to kneel for the whole night. This was torture!

Ye Jiayao heard the sound of footsteps and immediately knew that it was Chunyu. Was her husband bringing good news or bad news?

“Yaoyao!” Xia Chunyu called as he entered the court, heartbroken at the sight of her kneeling there weakly.

“Yaoyao, get up, come on,” Xia Chunyu urged, moving to help her.

Ye Jiayao ignored him and asked, “Who asked you to come?”

“Get up first.” Xia Chunyu could not bear to see her kneeling there for one more second.

Ye Jiayao asked stubbornly, “Who asked you to come?”

“It was my father! Third Uncle and Third Aunt begged my father to release you.” Xia Chunyu immediately pulled her up.

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“Aiyo, it hurts…” Ye Jiayao grieved. It felt like countless tiny needles were stabbing both of her knees.

Xia Chunyu lifted her in a cradle. “Come on. Let’s go home and I’ll get some medicine for you. The floor is cold and I don’t want you to get sick.”

He turned around and saw Chunguo standing behind them.

“Why are you here, Chunguo?”

Chunguo was crying as he stared at Second Sister-in-law lying in Second Brother’s arms.

“Chunguo, are you okay? Did your father tell you off?” asked Ye Jiayao.

Chunguo kept crying.

Ye Jiayao and Xia Chunyu looked at each other, confused.

“Let me go,” Ye Jiayao whispered.

Once Chunyu set her down, she walked over to Chunguo and squatted down to his level. She wiped his tears and asked softly, “What’s the matter? What did you do? Tell your Second Sister and I will help you.”

Chunguo’s tears flowed like a river as he threw himself into his sister-in-law’s embrace. “Second Sister, this is all my fault. If I didn’t say what I said, Second Sister would not have to be punished.”

Ye Jiayao rubbed his shoulder comfortingly. “Hey now, don’t cry. What you said today was correct. However, things like that must only be said in front of the people we trust. Okay?

Chunguo nodded. “I will only talk to Second Sister.”

Ye Jiayao smiled and used her handkerchief to wipe Chunguo’s tears. “Sure. You can always talk to me and I promise that I will not tell anyone else. Now, stop crying. Chunguo is a handsome kid. If you keep crying, you won’t look cool anymore.”

“Second Sister, what is cool?” Chunguo asked innocently.

Ye Jiayao pointed to Xia Chunyu. “It’s just like your second brother, has a cold, stern face all day long.”

Chunguo looked contemptuously to his brother and declared, “I don’t want to be like Second Brother.”

“Don’t listen to your Second Sister,” Xia Chunyu chimed in, a tiny bit offended. “It is called majestic and dignified.”

“Chunguo, ignore him,” Ye Jiayao said. “Can you help me go back to our courtyard?”

Chunguo nodded determinedly.

He carefully held Ye Jiayao’s hand and said to Chunyu, “Second Brother, hold her as well.”

Xia Chunyu immediately took her other hand. “Yaoyao, are you okay? I can carry you back.”

“I will walk on my own!” Ye Jiayao insisted as she limped across the hall. Last time she fell asleep and Chunyu carried her back to the house, Xia You disapproved.

As soon as they got back to their room, Chunyu ordered Song Qi to get her some medicine and for Qiao to fetch some hot water.

Meanwhile, Jiang Yue helped her roll up her trouser leg.

Although she only kneeled down for more than half an hour, her wound was already aggravated and her fair skin looked shockingly red.

Xia Chunyu told Chunguo, “Let Song Qi walk you back to your quarters. It’s late and you have school tomorrow.”

Chunguo insisted on staying until he sees her wound being treated.

Xia Chunyu reluctantly agreed. He poured some wine in the palm of his hand and softly told Yaoyao, “I need to use some force, so it can be effective. You try to endure it.”

“Just do it!” Ye Jiayao said bravely.

He went ahead with it and Ye Jiayao gasped at the pain.

Xia Chunyu looked at her worriedly and reduced some of the pressure from his hands.

It took two hours before they finished and only then did Chunguo leave.

Ye Jiayao leaned back on the bed and watched Chunyu pick up the medicine bottle.

She asked curiously, “You said that Third Uncle and Third Aunt pleaded for me in front of your father? Why?”