“Go ahead and ask! I’d like to see how you attempt to turn the tables in public!”
“I see. Then Chief Wuma should listen closely.” Jiang Pengji smiled indifferently. “First question: who is Liu Xi?”
“Your blood-related elder brother. It’s also the identity of the man you took the name of.”
Wuma Shang answered without hesitation.
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Jiang Pengji’s expression remained calm while she responded with ease, “Ha, this is incorrect. I am Liu Xi, and Liu Xi is me. Who said that a younger sister was not allowed to use the name of her late brother to console the grievances of their parents? This is a respectful act, and I don’t think there’s anything wrong with it.”
Wuma Shang glared, wide-eyed, at her and almost choked on those words.
The minister audience watched his expression excitedly, while the audience in the live streaming room continued cheering Jiang Pengji on.
[Yan RiAn]: Danger up ahead! Non-combat personnel should evacuate immediately! The host is charging up for a big attack!
[Bandwagon Xiao DingDing]: Hello, 911? There’s a patient about to get wrecked. I’m pre-ordering an ambulance.
[Gufeng YisiYuan]: Host’s charge is at one hundred percent. I have a feeling that there’s going to be a slaughter up ahead.
[WuYe ZhongSheng]: Sigh... Is living not fun? You just had to pick a fight with my husband. Now, you see, you’re going to be destroyed.
“Such distorted logic!” Wuma Shang’s face was a little dark, but he also couldn’t manage to find an appropriate rebuttal now.
Jiang Pengji asked her next question with a smile and became more cunning with her words, forcing the ministers to hold in their laughter in their seats. “Second question. Please listen carefully, Chief Wuma—do you believe the statement ‘anyone wearing men’s clothes is a man, and anyone wearing women’s clothes is a woman’ is correct?”
Wuma Shang opened his mouth and didn’t know whether to answer yes or no.
No matter what he said, Jiang Pengji still d a bellyful of responses for him.
If he said yes, he would be clearly lying through his teeth.
How could a person’s gender be determined simply through a piece of clothing?
Men who wore dresses were still men. His body would not become a woman’s simply because of his outfit.
Similarly, women who wear men’s clothing were still women and wouldn’t turn into real men.
If Wuma Shang answered that the statement was wrong, he would jump right into Jiang Pengji’s trap and slap his own face.
He answered in distress: “This statement is clearly wrong.”
Jiang Pengji laughed, “Yes, this statement is fundamentally wrong. In the same way, I, Liu Xi, am fundamentally a female who simply likes to dress as a man before people. Is it my fault that people assume I am a man simply because of the way I dress? I don’t ever use cosmetics to hide my face and always show my true face. Outsiders mistake me for a man. Am I supposed to correct everyone and say I am a woman all the time? In other words—why are you blaming others for your own blindness?”
Wuma Shang’s face reddened in anger, and he pointed at her as he said, “You ignorant youth, this is clearly an excuse. If you had no intention of hiding, then why did you say you would confess after the assembly? It’s clearly because you have a hidden agenda! This is obviously a lie before the crown.”
“This statement is wrong,” Jiang Pengji answered. “Everyone thought that Liu Xi was a man, and His Highness and the empress dowager were simply the same. I had no intention of hiding, but I also didn’t explain myself in time, let alone tell everyone I met that I was a female and admit that I had been lying all along. In other words, I am simply saving an exit for you in case you couldn’t find a way to back down. I didn’t think the Chief would be so aggressive about this!”
Wuma Shang’s anger had reached a peak due to Jiang Pengji’s endless games.
“No matter what excuses you use, you still can’t hide the fact that you have attempted to lie about your gender in order to obtain Wanzhou!”
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“I see. So Chief Wuma is only so insistent on this matter because you think a woman like me should not claim the title of Wanzhou magistrate?”
Wuma Shang gave a mocking laugh and said, “You hid your gender in order to claim the title of Wanzhou Magistrate and committed the felony of lying before the crown. What other excuses do you have?”
Jiang Pengji shot a cold glance at Wuma Shang.
“I thought that a real crime would be a third party claiming to be Liu Xi in order to obtain the Wanzhou Magistrate title. I didn’t think that your definition of a crime would be a woman keeping her gender a secret to claim the title of Wanzhou Magistrate. Liu Xi is still Liu Xi, the real one, and not a fake in disguise, so why can’t he take on Wanzhou?” Jiang Pengji sneered. “Or should I say, the Chief doesn’t think a woman has the right to become the Wanzhou Magistrate?”
Wuma Shang questioned Jiang Pengji back.
“Did I say anything wrong?”
“Indeed, it is wrong! This is a laughable, grave mistake!” Jiang Pengji’s voice suddenly rose as she pointed at Wuma Shang with the ritual baton in her hands and said confidently, “If you say that a woman is not qualified to become the Wanzhou Magistrate, shall I ask you if the former Marquis General Xu is a man or woman?”
Jiang Pengji single-handedly dragged the brothers Xu Pei and Xu Fei down with just this one line, simply because these brothers were descendants of General Xu.
The Xu brothers, thinking they were just part of the audience, exchanged a glance and then turned their heads away in disgust.
Before Wuma Shang could answer, Xu Pei announced, “General Xu was a woman.”
Wuma Shang’s face twitched as he clenched his fist under his sleeve. His glance toward Jiang Pengji carried a thick aura of hatred and toxicity.
“General Xu was indeed a woman and was an excellent general even among her male colleagues.”
Jiang Pengji bowed with her hands toward Xu Pei and a smile on her face.
Xu Pei also dumbly answered, as he was still in a daze.
How had his younger brother suddenly turned into a younger sister?
The face was still the same, and the body was still the same, but the gender was completely flipped.
Jiang Pengji then continued, “I don’t dare to say that I will be better than my predecessor, but I’ve always admired General Xu and respected her as my role model. Our dynasty is a direct descendant of the Great Xia Dynasty and should naturally follow the lead of our predecessors in order to regain our past dynastic glory. And for my last question, Chief Wuma, please listen closely—do you still think that it is wrong for female Liu Xi to take on the title of Wanzhou Magistrate?”
Wuma Shang was just about to say that Jiang Pengji was too arrogant in comparing herself with General Xu, only to hear that Jiang Pengji had already addressed his concern and fought words with words.
“...Unless Chief Wu Ma also agrees with the Zhongzhao cultural standard ‘Four Self-Accomplishment Classics for Women,’ which states women should abide by the three obedience and four virtues, and thinks that the great General Xu was a disgrace to womanhood, that she should have been deprived of her title and been left pinned onto the pole of shame? I’ve heard that the Classics were popular within Zhongzhao. Many great scholars also wrote books to slander General Xu and other female generals alike. I’m sure Chief Wuma is aware, correct?”
Jiang Pengji said forcefully, “You only need to answer yes or no!”
Wuma Shang’s face was pale. There was a buzzing sound in his ears, and cold sweat began to appear on his palms.
He answered in a stammering voice, “S-such unrefined arguments! This woman has broken the rules of womanhood...”
“That’s enough!”
A stern, hard voice forcefully interrupted Wuma Shang’s words. An elephant-tooth ritual baton swung at his face, almost knocking him to the ground.
Xu Pei’s face darkened to the color of the ashes in a frying pan as he questioned harshly, “Mister Wuma! Who are you saying is a disgrace to womanhood?”
Xu Fei wasn’t as kind as Xu Pei. His baton swung immediately in anger.
The Xu brothers didn’t get along, but it wasn’t time for civil war right now. An outsider had just insulted their ancestor. How could they remain silent?
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