Use a substitute on your wedding night to scatter the ashes of your entire family

Zhang Desheng was in a dilemma. After reading out Emperor Jingjing's vague verbal praise, he walked up to Madam He, not knowing how to start.

Madam He was clear in her mind: "Eunuch Zhang is also following the rules. The one who beats the drum for reporting is punished with twenty strokes of the cane, which is a rule passed down by our ancestors. Your Majesty is merciful in allowing me to return home to be punished. I thank Your Majesty for your grace. I will order people to prepare it now."

"Old lady!"

"Mother-in-law!"

Everyone was shocked, even Li Shuangwan's face changed. Old General He, all the men in the He mansion died in the battle and have not returned yet. If old Madam He falls, the general's mansion will be in chaos!

Li Shuangwan looked directly at Zhang Desheng and said, "Eunuch Zhang, does the law specify that the person who beats the drum must be punished?"

"This is not clearly stated." Is it necessary to write it down clearly? Naturally, whoever knocks will be punished.

"Okay. Then has the emperor ordered that the old lady must be punished?"

"Yeah, no."

Li Shuangwan's eyes contained a hint of coldness: "In this case, anyone in the general's mansion can be punished."

"But, there has never been such a rule." Zhang Desheng was a little embarrassed.

"In the two hundred years since the founding of the Northern Jin Dynasty, there has never been such an injustice! Eunuch Zhang, you are the chief eunuch of the palace, and it is understandable that you act according to the law. In my opinion, it is better to find twenty young and strong men, and beat each of them with a stick. After twenty beatings, Eunuch Zhang can report to the emperor."

"This, how can this be possible!" The eunuchs who followed to carry out the execution looked at each other in bewilderment. They had never heard of such a thing.

"Why not?"

"Princess Heng, Madam He is old and cannot bear twenty strokes of the cane. If someone else in the He Mansion takes the punishment, I can turn a blind eye. But if you find twenty people and each of them takes one stroke of the cane, that is absolutely unacceptable. This old servant cannot go back and report."

He's eldest daughter-in-law Zhuang stepped forward and knelt down to pay respect to Zhang Desheng: "I am in good health. I will take the twenty strokes of the cane for my mother-in-law."

Then he turned around and bowed to Li Shuangwan: "Princess, I can do it."

"I can too."

"I can too."

From the eldest daughter-in-law to the youngest granddaughter who was only seven years old and had two pigtails on her round face, everyone in the He family stood in front of Li Shuangwan.

Twenty strokes of the cane finally landed on Zhuang's back.

The dull sound of the stick hitting flesh reached everyone's ears.

As soon as the twenty strokes of the cane were over, a sturdy woman came up and carried Zhuang away to apply medicine.

Old Madam He's eyes were red. She held a dragon-headed cane in her hand, straightened her back, and looked towards the south. That was the Yanshan Pass that her husband, son, grandson, and all the men of the He family guarded but lost their lives due to the royal family's conspiracy.

Li Shuangwan knew that the reason why Old Madam He had been holding on and not falling down was because she had a strong spirit in her heart that was supporting her.

But now, General He's stigma has been cleared, and the remains of the ten sons of the He family are already on their way back to Shengjing. She is afraid that Madam He will collapse.

Luo Luo's injuries had almost healed, and in two days she asked Chen Ping to take her from the farm to He Mansion.

"Madam, you have to take care of your health."

Madam He smiled and patted Li Shuangwan's hand: "Princess Heng, don't worry. The man of the He family hasn't come back yet. My old bones won't fall down."

A group of He family wives stood in the front yard and knelt down to express their gratitude to Li Shuangwan. Their faces were covered with tears and they were unable to utter a word.

The General's Mansion is what it is today, thanks to the Princess Heng who came here against her own will that day and spoke from the bottom of her heart to the old lady.

Li Shuang helped them up one by one before going to bed: "Get up, get up quickly."

She recalled her past life, when the entire General's Mansion was speechless and powerless when faced with Ling Heng's butcher knife.

The He family is a loyal family, and the Hu family is also a loyal and upright family. Why should loyal and heroic ministers die in vain, while flatterers and traitors suffer disaster for thousands of years!

It's time for God to be fair.

Luoman and Yizhu leaned against each other and secretly wiped away their tears.

"Madam, someone is coming!" A servant's voice hurriedly reached everyone's ears.

Li Shuangwan turned around and saw a man coming towards them, supported by two servants.

Not only was the man covered in dirt and blood, he was dark and thin, with dishevelled hair, and looked awful. He was also seriously injured, with both of his legs almost broken.

When Li Shuangwan saw the man's face clearly, his heart skipped a beat.

The old lady hurried forward: "Liang Qi, how are you? Someone, go get the doctor."

Liang Qi was the steward of the general's mansion who was sent by Old Madam He to look for the military documents more than 20 days ago.

Immediately, a servant ran out to find a doctor. Doctor Liu in the pharmacy was known to be a good doctor, so he was invited!

Liang Qi grinned, "Madam, I have fulfilled my mission and brought our documents..."

Before he could finish his words, hot tears already poured out of his eyes.

"Hurry, go to the west wing and lie down."

Madam He immediately ordered the two people who were supporting Liang Qi to help him back to his room. She turned to Li Shuangwan and apologized, "Princess Heng, I have to leave you for a moment."

Li Shuangwan said: "Old Madam, don't worry about me. I will go with you to see Liang Qi. He is also a hero."

Old Madam He opened her mouth, her eyes turned red again, and she held Li Shuangwan's hand tightly, tears streaming down her face.

Doctor Liu, who had just lost the Golden Elixir Pill, arrived quickly. Half an hour later, he came out of the west wing and was led to the front hall.

Li Shuangwan and Madam He, who had been waiting, looked at him together: "Doctor Liu, how is his injury?"

Doctor Liu looked heavy-hearted. He nodded and then slowly shook his head, regretting that he only had one Golden Pill. "The injury is too severe. You need to take good care of yourself, especially your legs. They must have been frozen in the snow for too long, and you didn't keep warm in time. You had to force yourself to travel thousands of miles. Even if you recover, you will have a chronic disease in the future. It's the most uncomfortable when it's windy, rainy, or the weather changes."

"Please, Doctor Liu, please think of a solution. It doesn't matter what medicine is used or how much it costs." Old Madam He bowed deeply to him again.

Doctor Liu dared not accept her gift, and hurriedly held it with both hands: "Don't worry, old lady, I will do my best."

Li Shuangwan and Madam He entered the west wing together. Liang Qi had already been washed and changed into clean clothes. He was so thin that he was almost unrecognizable. His hands, face, and ears were covered with frostbite. When he saw Li Shuangwan and the others coming in, he struggled to get up.

Li Shuangwan and Madam He said in unison: "Don't move, lie down."

Madam He looked at Liang Qi's legs under the quilt and said, "You are a great contributor to my He Mansion."

"How can you say that, old lady? The old general and old lady have given my father and I a new life. Not to mention sacrificing a leg, even if it means sacrificing my life, you can never let the old general and the He family bear such a bad name."