Chapter 62: Lying Down and Getting Shot

  A voice full of anger suddenly rang out in the yard.

  "How bold!"

  Sun Xi Yi, who was burning with anger, immediately jumped out from behind and pointed at Pang Gang, scolding loudly: "You dare to be so presumptuous, you lowly little bailiff! You don't even kneel down when you see a superior officer, and yet you dare to speak such insolent words without any respect for your superiors. What crime should you be punished for!"

  This angry rebuke was so sharp and loud that Kong Wen looked at Sun Xiyu's scolding with a stern expression, his eyebrows furrowed slightly. Kong Lin was young after all, and when he heard Sun Xiyu scold Pang Gang like this, he couldn't help but feel some concern. Sun Zhili, on the other hand, continued to stroke his beard, looking like he was enjoying the show.

  But Pang Gang was different from them, although he didn't know why Sun Xiyi suddenly jumped out to scold him, but no matter in which era, whoever is pointed at and spoken to will not feel comfortable in their heart, even if this person looks more like the "Spring Brother" of later generations, but that's not a reason for him to point at himself.

  Pang Gang coldly sneered with anger in his heart: "What are you, daring to speak to this official like that?"

  "How dare you, you ill-mannered rascal! You actually say such a thing to me, the young master!" Sun Xiyu was so angry that his whole body was shaking with rage. As the son of a retired Minister of Rites who had always been given face by everyone in Yangzhou, including the Governor, he couldn't bear the idea that a mere servant would dare speak to him like this. In Sun Shilin's eyes, this was an unprecedented humiliation.

  "Cough..." At this time, Kong Wen lightly coughed and came out to mediate: "Young Master Sun, Xiao Xu is just a military man who doesn't understand etiquette, so he offended Young Master Sun. You..."

  "No way!" Sun Xi Yi abruptly interrupted Kong Wen's words, sternly shouting: "This lowly martial artist dares to be so rude and disrespect the current Minister of Rites, he should be arrested on the spot by the officials and handed over..."

  Bang!

  A dull thud sounded, and Sun Dapengzi, who was scolding with gusto, suddenly flew into the air, landing in a flowerbed four or five steps behind, unable to utter a word.

  It turned out that Pang Gang, who was getting more and more furious, could no longer suppress the anger in his heart. With one stride, he threw a straight punch, and his huge fist hit Sun Xiyu's chest, directly sending his light body flying.

  Pang Gang's punch stunned everyone, no one expected that this seemingly elegant young man would have such a fiery temper, and at the slightest disagreement, he would immediately start fighting, and with just one punch, he sent someone flying.

  After punching the man flying, Pang Gang took two more steps forward and came to Sun Xiyu's face with one foot on his face, coldly saying: "What are you, dare to talk to this official like that? Do you think this official can't handle a scum like you?"

  Sun Shilin, who was stepped on the face by Pang Gang's shoes, really couldn't bear this great shame and humiliation, and under the sudden anger, he fainted very simply.

  "How dare you! Let go of my son at once!" Just then, another angry shout rang out from the surrounding area. It turned out that Sun Zili had seen his son being beaten and could no longer pretend to be calm, shouting loudly in scolding tones.

  "Son-in-law, let him go quickly." At this time, Kong Wen saw that Pang Gang had punched Sun Shilin and flew away, and he was so scared that he hurried over to pull Pang Gang apart.

  Pang Gang put down his foot and glanced at Sun Zili with a slanted eye, saying: "Lord Sun, your son is not well-behaved, I'll help you discipline him, lest he gets you into trouble in the future."

  "Y...y..." Sun Zili followed in his son's footsteps, pointing at Pang Gang and stuttering unable to speak.

  It took him a long time to squeeze out a sentence: "You dare to be so rude, do you think I, an old man, can't handle you?"

  Pang Gang disdainfully rolled his eyes and sneered, "You're joking, you're a civil official, I'm a military officer. If you were the Minister of War, I might have believed you, but you're the Minister of Rites, and to make matters worse, you're just the former minister. Just now, I was giving you face, if the current minister isn't happy, he won't even give you face!"

  Pang Gang is not a fool, although the Minister of Rites is ranked as the second-grade official in the current dynasty, but the Ministry of Rites has always been responsible for etiquette, music, and education. It ranks at the bottom among the six ministries, belonging to the kind that sounds dignified but has no real power. Especially during the late Ming Dynasty, the Ministry of Rites was like a nursing home. On the other hand, due to years of war and the threat from the Li Zicheng rebels and the Qing dynasty, the military's influence rapidly rose after the mid-Ming Dynasty, when the situation was that "the aunt doesn't care about her nephew". Although the social status of the army in the folk is still not good, but in the court, especially for generals with real military power, they are becoming more and more popular.

  Pang Gang doesn't have to worry about any adverse consequences today, even though he beat Sun Xiyu. The imperial court won't take the lead for an official second-generation with no achievements. In Pang Gang's mind, it's just a retired Minister of Rites' son getting beaten, what can he do to me?

  Having been so thoroughly humiliated by Pang Gang, Sun Zili felt that the refinement he had cultivated over decades in officialdom was now utterly lost. "Fine, fine... although I have already retired, I don't believe you can't be dealt with! Just wait to be impeached!" After speaking, Sun Zili shot a venomous glare at Pang Gang, and two attendants came to carry away Sun Shilin, who was still lying on the ground.

  Watching the Sun family father and son leave, Kong Wen was so anxious that he stomped his feet, "Xianxu, you...you've made a big mistake! The Sun family father and son suffered such a great humiliation, how can they let it go? He will definitely go crazy to take revenge."

  "Hmph!" Pang Gang said nonchalantly: "A has-been Minister of Rites, a useless good-for-nothing who doesn't even have any achievements to his name, what can they do to me?"

  "Alas, things are not that simple. The local governor was promoted by Sun Zhiyi himself and is extremely obedient to him. Now that you've beaten his son, do you think he'll let the matter drop?"

  "It won't work!" Pang Gang shook his head, "Xiao Xu is a military officer, they are civil officials, the governor of Yangzhou can't control Xiao Xu even if he wants to. As long as Xiao Xu claps his hands and leaves, there's nothing they can do about it. What worries me is that the Sun family might vent their anger on your father's family instead."

  Kong Wen gradually calmed down, carefully weighing the pros and cons before saying: "Sun Xi Yi wanted to swallow our Jibao Zhai long ago, it's not just one or two days. Our Kong family and Sun family have been in a state of water and fire for a long time, and turning against them is only a matter of time. Today's events would have happened even if my son-in-law wasn't present, alas! It seems we also need to make arrangements as soon as possible."

  Pang Gang thought for a moment and asked in puzzlement: "Father-in-law, since the Sun family and Kong family don't get along, why would they still come together today as father and son?"

  Kong Wen and Kong Lin exchanged a glance, Kong Lin looked somewhat embarrassed and said: "Sun Zili came over personally today with Sun Xiyu to propose to Ruo Lan."

  "What the...!" As soon as he heard this, Pang Gang almost jumped up. He had just found a beautiful daughter-in-law with great difficulty, and now they were coming to steal her away from him. Did they want to die?!

  "Easy, son-in-law, don't be impatient." Kong Wen had already realized that the son-in-law he had chosen was simply a fool. He didn't care about some of the established practices in official circles and was used to speaking with his fists. Even the young master of the Ministry of Rites' household had been beaten by him before. At this moment, Kong Wen didn't know whether choosing this son-in-law would bring good fortune or disaster.

  "The efforts of the Sun father and son are naturally known to me. Some days ago, Sun Xi Yi mentioned this matter to Shi Lin, but was rejected. However, they have not given up yet. Today, even Mr. Sun himself came in person. I told them that Yu Lan has already been promised to someone else, but the two of them did not believe it and forced me to bring them here to see the groom for themselves, which led to the scene earlier."

  After hearing the explanation, Pang Gang only knew that the other person had come to find him on purpose, and he was caught off guard today!

  Three rivers have ended, asking for recommendations and collections!