The princess was ordained by Heaven.

Chapter 322 The Liang Family's Reaction

Most people didn't actually listen; they were just there for the spectacle. As long as the attitude was right, they were tolerant enough.

Wei Yanxing clearly understood this principle; his ordinary testimony became twice as persuasive when he read it aloud.

The helplessness of the soil thieves and the bitterness of the common people are vividly portrayed in every word and sentence.

The people's anger gradually shifted to the Liang family.

So what was the situation of the Liang family at this time?

Liang Youde was being severely reprimanded by the elders of his family.

As the head of the family, he had always been in charge of the family business, and all the clansmen relied on him. When the elders came to see him, they would put on a smile even from a distance.

This was the first time he had ever been so disheveled.

But he didn't dare utter a single word, because the mess he had made this time was too big, dragging not only himself but also his entire family into a precarious situation.

The clan chief's face darkened, and his cane slammed to the ground with each syllable of his words.

"Liang Youde, I'm asking you, do you really want to sell the land to the Brown Country?"

Liang Youde lowered his head guiltily, neither admitting nor denying, but those who knew him knew that not refuting meant admitting it.

"You are confused!"

Liang Youde offered a small defense: "I'm just thinking about it, aren't I? I haven't put it into practice yet..."

"You can't even think about it!" The clan chief raised his cane high and finally landed on Liang Youde's knee.

Liang Youde's knees buckled, and he knelt on the ground.

Not satisfied with that, the clan chief raised his cane and struck him hard on the back several times.

“Liang Youde! You are quick-witted and ambitious. We old folks could have entrusted the Liang family to you with the utmost peace of mind. But look at what you have done! You actually wanted to be a traitor who betrayed the Great Yong! Do you even remember who you are? Do you still remember that you are a citizen of the Great Yong?”

He was enraged and showed no mercy. Liang Youde groaned, his face contorted for a moment in pain.

Xu, Liang Youde's mother, closed her eyes with heartache and took half a step forward, but still refrained from pleading for mercy.

However, the other clansmen, remembering Liang Youde's contributions, spoke up for him, saying, "Clan leader, please stop fighting. The most urgent thing now is to find a solution. Youde has the ability, and as for the rest, we can teach him slowly."

“When you’re teaching him, you need to show him the right attitude. Does he look like he knows he’s done something wrong right now?”

Liang Youde, already tempered by the beating, couldn't help but retort upon hearing these words: "We are businessmen, what difference does it make who we do business with? Why distinguish between different countries?"

"Business may be the same, but the people who do business are! Don't forget what kind of business you want to do. If that soil can really increase grain production, you're just an accomplice in the war between the Brown Kingdom and the Great Yong! You're feeding the enemy's army to fight our compatriots, and you're still proud of that?!"

"There hasn't been a fight yet!"

The clan chief clutched his chest and looked at the person who had just pulled him up: "Do you still think he can be saved?"

The man silently took the cane from his hand: "I am younger and stronger than you, so there's no need for the clan chief to do it. Let me do it!"

However, he ultimately failed to obtain the crutch, as it was intercepted by the Xu family midway.

Xu, who had just closed her eyes out of pity, now looked unusually stern. She dragged her cane to Liang Youde and asked, "Is this how I taught you?"

The unruly Liang Youde shrank back, instantly turning into a quail.

Madam Xu raised her cane: "Your father died early, and I have always been careful and attentive to you, afraid that I have not taught you well. You have always done very well, and I, as your mother, am very gratified. But now it seems that I still haven't done enough."

However, Liang Youde did not feel any pain.

He looked over in confusion, only to see Xu holding her cane out with both hands, turning around and kneeling down before the clan leader: "Clan leader, it is my fault for not teaching him well. Please punish me!"

The clan chief sighed softly: "What are you doing? We've all seen how you've always behaved. You haven't wronged Youde or his father in any way. On the contrary, the Liang family owes you a lot. If we hadn't stopped you back then, you wouldn't have had to waste so much of your youth in the Liang family."

“That was my choice. I am an orphan, but the Liang family did not despise me. My husband is very kind to me, and my family takes good care of us. Even though there are some disagreements, they have never thought of driving me away. They have never withheld what is due to us, my son and me. The Liang family has been extremely kind to me. On the contrary, it is I who have failed to fulfill my responsibility of educating them and have brought this disaster to the Liang family. I am sorry to the Liang family.”

As Xu spoke, her voice gradually choked with emotion.

Liang Youde stared at her blankly, his expression bewildered: "Mother..."

His mother was always a very strong-willed person, unwilling to admit defeat or bow her head, which often troubled Liang Youde.

But when his mother truly abandoned her usual strength and revealed her soft and vulnerable side to him, he didn't feel happy at all.

His heart felt like it had been soaking in a jar of aged pickled cabbage for years—sour, bloated, and astringent.

He opened his mouth, but seeing that the chieftain had actually taken the cane, he acted faster than he thought, tackled the chieftain to the ground, and snatched the cane from him: "You really hit me!"

The clan chief was already quite old, and after being pounced on and pinned down by him, he almost fainted from shock.

Those around them, terrified, pulled Liang Youde away and helped the clan chief up.

The clan chief coughed for a while, his face flushed, and pointed at Liang Youde: "You're trying to murder me!"

Liang Youde said dejectedly in a low voice, "I can't just stand by and watch you hit my mother, can I..."

"That's my cane! Mine! I have to get it back!"

Liang Youde was extremely embarrassed.

After a period of chaos and turmoil, the Liang family was finally able to sit down and discuss solutions.

"Chieftain, what should we do?"

"Or let's run away!"

"Escape?" The clan chief glanced at the speaker. "There have been many unfamiliar faces around here these past few days. We are now under the Emperor's and Princess Yuanjia's close surveillance. How can we escape? Where can we escape to?"

Thinking of this, the clan leader felt another surge of anger: "Liang Youde! Who gave you the audacity to provoke Princess Yuanjia!"

Liang Youde lowered his head and obediently accepted the scolding.

One of the clansmen said anxiously, "Can we escape this calamity? What will happen to us if we are convicted...?"

"The most important thing now is that everyone knows Youde plans to sell the soil to the Brown Country. Youde, have you made any contact with the people of the Brown Country?"

"Yes... but we didn't reach an agreement. I only said I had something good, but I didn't specify what it was."

Who knew that Princess Yuanjia was so perceptive that she knew even such a small matter? Could it be that her ability to predict the future is true?

"Things are escalating. Even if we didn't know before, we should know now. Colluding with an enemy country..." The clan chief frowned, his tone grave. "That's a crime punishable by the extermination of nine generations of your family..."

Liang Youde corrected: "They haven't even started colluding yet..."

The clan chief glanced at him: "What's the use of telling me all this? You'd be better off arguing with the angry emperor and princess."