Chapter 266: Courtesy first, then attack
As the saying goes, be polite before fighting.

Even though she knew that Sun Zhigao would not agree to the divorce, Mrs. Shengda still sent the household manager to the Sun family to discuss the divorce.

In front of Sun’s house.

Sun Zhigao and his mother looked at the familiar face of the visitor and thought that the Sheng family was here to give them land and shops again, so they immediately put on a good face and welcomed the visitor in.

As a result, when the manager opened his mouth, he said something unexpected.

"Scholar, I came here to discuss with you the matter of my daughter's divorce."

"W-what? Divorce?"

An incredible expression immediately appeared on Sun's mother's wrinkled old face:
"Divorce? How dare that bitch ask you to divorce?"

At this moment, the image of the hardworking and conscientious figure appeared in Sun's mother's mind, and she could hardly believe her ears.

Does Sheng Shulan dare to ask for a divorce from me?

Hearing Sun's mother slandering her eldest daughter, the steward was immediately unhappy, but when he thought that the Sun family still had to agree to this matter, he didn't want to say anything, so he just said:
"Madam, you heard it right. My eldest daughter is planning to divorce her husband, the scholar. Everyone in the family agrees to this."

"You agree, but we don't!"

Sun Zhigao thought of Sheng Shulan, who had always been humble and submissive. Now she was not only jealous of him having a child, but also dared to have the idea of ​​divorce. He was furious for a moment, pointed at the steward, and shouted with a red face:
"Get out! Get out of our Sun family!"

The manager had come to the Sun family many times. He had been in charge of delivering the shop in the past. He had long known the faces of the mother and son of the Sun family, so he was not surprised at their reactions.

However, one has to act in full so that one appears to be in the right.

So he continued:

"Mrs. Sun, Mr. Scholar, please think about this carefully..."

"Moreover……"

The steward looked around the hall and said calmly:
"This house, if I remember correctly, is our daughter's dowry, and it cannot be considered as your Sun family's property."

Seeing that Sun Zhigao and his mother looked so angry, the manager waved his hands and said:

"No, no, no, you two misunderstood me."

"I mean, if you two agree to divorce, we can discuss how to keep the dowries of these older girls as a thank you."

"what?!"

Upon hearing this, Sun's mother became even more angry and yelled:

"What do you mean this house belongs to your Sheng family? What a joke! I have lived in this house for so many years, how come it has become yours?"

After saying this, Sun's mother was still not satisfied. She felt that the face of the manager in front of her was no longer as pleasing as before. No matter how she looked at him, she felt uncomfortable.

So he rolled up his sleeves and pushed the manager out of the house.

Caught off guard, the manager, who was about to persuade others, staggered.

Seeing the steward's embarrassed look, Sun's mother felt a little relieved, so she continued to drive people out, cursing:
"I was really blind today. I actually welcomed such an evil guest. It's really bad luck!"

"Yes, yes, who wants to divorce your family!" Sun Zhigao shouted all the way behind.

As a scholar, he couldn't do something like pushing people, but with his mother helping him, he felt happy watching her.

He went out shouting and cursing all the way.

When the three of them arrived at the gate, a group of neighbors who wanted to watch the excitement had already gathered at the door.

"Hey, mother-in-law Sun, what exciting thing happened at home today?" A teasing voice came from the crowd nearby.

Seeing the neighbors gathered around, Sun's mother suddenly remembered the quarrels she had in the streets, where she always won by relying on numbers. So she immediately came up with a plan to use her power to suppress them, and immediately shouted loudly:
"Come on, everyone, come and take a look. This is the daughter of the Sheng family, a wealthy family in Youyang. She couldn't give birth herself, and when she saw her concubine was pregnant, she became jealous and hid in her parents' home and refused to come back."

"Now they are using the pretext of divorce to blackmail my husband's family, and they want us, the Sun family, to abandon my wife and children."

"not us……"

However, before the steward could finish his words, he was interrupted by Sun Zhigao's loud voice:
"Yes! As a scholar, I would never do such a thing!"

"The Sheng family is in the wrong, so do they still want me to help them save face? This unvirtuous and unfilial jealous woman only deserves a divorce letter from me and be kicked out!

There is no divorce, only divorce!"

Feeling the surprised looks from the people around him, Sun Zhigao felt refreshed, as if he had shown himself to be a great figure in front of others.

Sun's mother also echoed and said to the steward in a domineering manner:
"You are also a slut who doesn't know what's good for you and only knows how to flatter. You rely on the Sheng family's few dirty money to dare to act wildly under the tutelage of the scholar. Pah!"

Someone nearby couldn't stand it any longer and said sarcastically:
"Mother-in-law Sun, you have been so nervous since the daughter of the Sheng family came into our family. You have completely forgotten how pitiful you were when you were doing laundry and mending."

"roll roll roll!"

Ever since Sun Zhi passed the imperial examination, his mother had become accustomed to looking down on others. She could not stand the sarcasm of a "low-class peasant woman" and immediately retorted:

"What do you know? My son is a scholar, the prime minister hand-picked by the old immortal. He will be able to enjoy all kinds of wealth and glory in the future. What does that have to do with that lowly maid?"

The man made himself look bad and stopped talking.

At this time, Sun Zhigao also came back to his senses from the afterglow of his long-lost divine appearance in front of people. He immediately pulled his mother up the steps of his house, looked down at the people below and said:

"Mother, don't bother with this kind of person. It's disrespectful!"

After saying this, Sun Zhigao pointed at the Sheng family steward and said:
"You, go back and tell the Sheng family right now that Sheng Shulan should come back immediately to kowtow and admit her mistakes, serve tea to my mother and apologize, and be a good wife from now on. Then our Sun family will still have her to eat in the future."

"I..." But before the manager could say anything, Sun Zhigao and his mother had already returned to the house and closed the door.

Shengfu.

After receiving the report from the steward, Mrs. Shengda did not look surprised, and it was obvious that she had expected this result.

"In that case, it's not our fault."

Old Madam Shengda chuckled, nodded and instructed the steward:

"Go, find a chance to take back Shulan's dowry, not only the money and goods, but also the maids and servants that she brought with her."

"Yes!"

A few days later.

As usual, Sun Zhigao went to the restaurant to host a banquet, but when he was about to leave, he was stopped by the restaurant waiter, who said that the wine bill had not been paid.

He couldn't even keep track of the accounts because the Sheng family said that from now on Sun Zhigao's accounts would no longer be recorded in the Sheng family's accounts.

Facing the strange looks from his friends, Sun Zhigao didn't want to lose face, so he had to take off the jade pendant from his waist.

After seeing his friend off, Sun Zhigao immediately returned home with an angry face.

"It's a rebellion, it's really a rebellion!"

Sun Zhigao pushed open the door of his house with all his strength and shouted as soon as he entered:

"Mother, mother, come quickly, let's go get some..."

Before Sun Zhigao could finish his words, he felt as if someone had pinched his throat and could no longer speak.

It was because he saw the empty hall of his house and the messy tables and chairs.

"My son, you are finally back!"

When Sun Zhigao was stunned, a woman with disheveled hair suddenly appeared in the corner. It was Sun's mother.

At this moment, she looked sad and her voice was hoarse:

"The Sheng family raided our house while you were out!"

After careful questioning, Sun Zhigao found out that the Sheng family not only stopped paying their debts to outsiders, but also took back the property and servants that Shulan brought as a dowry.

In such a huge mansion, there are only the mother and son of the Sun family, and a bunch of concubines behind them.

"Okay, okay, I want to see what this bitch is going to do!"

Sun Zhigao laughed out of anger. He originally thought that the Sheng family was just making a scene this time so that he would be nicer to Shulan in the future, but now it seems that their appetite is probably more than that!
"Are you trying to force me to sell Hua Niang?"

Sun Zhigao felt a little shaken.

But then he thought of Hua Niang's chastity and the child in her belly.
Then his eyes became firm again.

'Let's see who can outlast the other!'

At the same time, Mrs. Shengda also received a reply from Li:

"The judge will arrive in Youyang in two days."

……

Two days later at noon.

The day of divorce.

Shengfu.

Old Madam Sheng called all the relatives and elders of the Sheng and Sun families, as well as the prestigious elders in Youyang, to come over, and then asked the servants to call Sun Zhigao and his mother over.

When Sun Zhigao and his mother saw that the Sheng family had sent someone to invite them respectfully, they thought that the Sheng family could not bear it any longer and had compromised. They immediately changed into festive clothes and went to the door in a swagger.

After entering the gate of Sheng Mansion.

Mother Sun strode into the front hall, and Sun Zhigao followed behind.

However, when he saw the side hall where the conversation was taking place, Sun Zhigao suddenly stopped.

But just now he turned his head and saw Chen He, who was in casual clothes. He was standing under the eaves not far away, chatting with his step-father-in-law Sheng Wei.

At the same time, he also saw that there was a man with a dignified face and half-white beard next to Chen He. Although he was also in casual clothes, looking at the respectful attitude of Chen He and Sheng Wei, Sun Zhigao immediately understood that this man should be a man of a higher official position than Chen He.

Seeing the three people's friendly faces, and thinking about the Sheng family taking the initiative to talk to me today...

Sun Zhigao felt a strong sense of uneasiness in his heart.

As if possessed by some mysterious force, he quietly took a few steps closer.

As he got closer, he vaguely heard a voice saying "Mr. Tongpan".

This made Sun Zhigao feel even colder.

The responsibilities of the Tongpan include hearing cases, and today...

Could it be that the Sheng family doesn't want to compromise at all, or wants to divorce?
Sun Zhigao became a little uneasy.

But then he thought of the wedding in Changwu, when Chen He was so kind and friendly to him that he was just like his own nephew. Sun Zhigao still wanted to approach him and get close to him.

As a result, before he could get close, he was discovered by three people.

And at this moment, Chen He gave him a cold look.

Indifferent and cold.

It seemed as if the dear elder who had talked with me that day was just an illusion, a hallucination I experienced after getting drunk.

"Where did this scholar come from?" Chen He said nothing. Sheng Hong was also watching coldly from the side. Only the judge who didn't recognize his face asked.

Sun Zhigao was suddenly at a loss. He paused, and was about to speak hesitantly when he heard Sheng Wei whispering something in his ear.

Afterwards, Sun Zhigao saw the judge snorted coldly, then went straight into the side room without looking back.

Seeing this, Chen He also smiled at Sun Zhigao and followed him into the house.

But that smile was like the winter sunshine, seemingly there, but secretly cold.

Sun Zhigao was not a fool. He could see that these two people were specially invited by Sheng Wei. He also understood the attitude these two adults wanted to express. He was afraid that they had discovered him when he stopped just now.

"This is done on purpose for me to see," Sun Zhigao thought to himself.

It's just that we haven't yet torn our faces apart, so I just made a gesture and didn't want to be called a bully.

'It all depends on whether you know how to do it.'

Although he guessed the reason, Sun Zhigao did not feel happy at all.

Sheng Wei escorted the two into the house.

Then he walked out again, slowly came to Sun Zhigao's side, patted his shoulder gently, and whispered in his ear:

"My dear nephew, I'll take care of today's matter, please."

Sun Zhigao raised his head upon hearing that, and met Sheng Wei's meaningful gaze. His eyes were narrow and calm, which made people feel suffocated.

Only then did Sun Zhigao realize that his father-in-law, who had always been kind and tolerant to others, actually had this kind of face.

Today's situation made Sun Zhigao feel regretful and he began to ponder in secret.

'Should I put on a smile, admit my mistake, and let this go?'

I don't know if Sheng Wei saw through his thoughts, but at this moment he walked closer and said:

"My dear nephew, there is no need to say more if I regret it. My family made a mistake in this deal and we have lost a lot over the years. Now there is a rare opportunity to turn things around, and we will not miss it."

Seeing Sheng Wei's determined look, Sun Zhigao stopped pretending and sneered, stiffening his neck and saying:
"Father-in-law, don't forget that I, your son-in-law, have done nothing wrong. At most, I am just a little bit of a scholar. Even if the county magistrate and the judge are in front of me, I am not afraid!"

"is it?"

Sheng Wei then took out Hua Niang's old book from his sleeve and said with a smile:
"Your pregnant mistress is from Qianjin Pavilion, right? Your Sun family has never bought servants. I wonder if there is another contract besides the contract of selling the body..."

"Give me!"

Sun Zhigao immediately became anxious and pretended to snatch it, but as soon as he stretched out his hand, he was pushed back by the servants who had already gathered around.

Sheng Wei was not annoyed, he just took the deed back and said slowly:

"You are proud of your status, but your pregnant concubine..."

Sheng Wei raised his eyebrows towards the house behind him:

"Then it's not up to you."

"You are despicable!" Sun Zhigao cursed in anger.

"Haha, there is no business without fraud. Thank you for your compliments, nephew. Thank you for your compliments!"

"but……"

Sheng Wei suddenly leaned over to Sun Zhigao again and asked:
"How do you think my family found the county magistrate and the judge? Because of my cousin who is as close as a brother to me? He is far away in Bianjing."

Sun Zhigao also found this strange.

He knew that the second branch of the Sheng family was an official in Bian Jing, but even if Sheng Hong had a close relationship with the county magistrate and the magistrate, he didn't know that the information was exchanged so quickly.

And looking at the two people just now, they didn't have the domineering attitude of high-ranking officials.

You have to know that relationships are relationships and identity is identity.

"Do you understand?"

Sheng Wei patted Sun Zhigao's shoulders, whose clothes were a little messy.

The four looked at each other and said meaningfully:

"You can't tell in front of me, don't make me really angry, otherwise..."

Sheng Wei helped him straighten his cuffs.

"Otherwise, your reputation as a scholar is uncertain!"

(End of this chapter)