Chapter 166: Greetings
The eldest wife sent Baozhu to the second gate to pick up the second master to have dinner at Yangxin Garden. Xiuer hoped that her cousin's wife would make a scene at the second gate so that hundreds of eyes in the Xiao Mansion would see it, but she didn't expect her cousin's wife to say a word and went back to Xiaoxiang Courtyard directly.
What made Xiu'er disappointed but secretly glad was that her cousin came over without saying a word as soon as he heard the message from the eldest wife. It seemed that the relationship between her cousin and his wife did not change at all because of the incense-burning trip, and he was still thinking about her.
Xiu'er has been thinking about her cousin hiring a doctor for her cousin's wife, and wanted to discuss with her cousin what would be the best excuse to use to attack her. But she is a girl after all, and she was afraid that if she said it too bluntly, her cousin would think she was too scheming.
After weighing it for a long time, I finally decided that when my cousin came, I would find an opportunity to bring it up. My aunt and cousin would naturally take responsibility for it and figure out the best way to get rid of my cousin's wife.
But things went against one's wishes. Perhaps it was because the old lady forced my cousin and his wife to go fulfill their vow together, which made my cousin unhappy. My cousin has been gloomy since he came to Yangxin Garden. After greeting his aunt, he didn't say a word. During the whole meal, the number of words my cousin said could be counted on one hand. Seeing my cousin like this, Xiu'er gave up her original plan. She couldn't mention his wife when my cousin was depressed, as that would make him even more unhappy. At this time, she just had to accompany him silently. Xiu'er was the person who understood feelings the most.
After dinner, the cousin left. Because his cousin was in a bad mood, Xiu'er was also very depressed. She leaned on the couch bored, and even the enthusiastic preparation of her dowry could not be mustered.
Bing Xin saw this and complained:
"Young lady, you are the same. You think things are going well, but you don't mention them when you see that Second Master is unhappy. I think Second Master might be worried because he can't divorce Second Madam. Young lady, bring it up and tell the matter. It will relieve Second Master's worries. Who knows, Second Master might be happy."
Xiuer glanced at Bingxin and said:
"That's what I thought, but you didn't see how gloomy my cousin looked. My aunt started talking about several things, but my cousin either nodded or hummed in response. He didn't continue with any of the questions. I guess he wasn't in the mood to speak."
"Miss, you are right. The Second Master has been busy lately and is rarely in the mansion. It's rare to have the opportunity to see him. If we don't discuss it, I'm afraid something will go wrong and we'll miss the opportunity."
"Don't worry. Now, besides not knowing what my uncle thinks, the old lady, my aunt, and my cousin all want to divorce my cousin's wife. The only thing missing is an opportunity. When my cousin's wife comes to pay her respects tomorrow, I will find a chance to bring it up. If my aunt pushes it, the old lady will go along with it. Maybe it will be done without my cousin even asking."
"But, can Second Madam go to Shouxi Hall to pay her respects tomorrow?"
Xiuer glanced at Bingxin. How could this girl be so stupid? She couldn't figure it out. The Second Mistress could already go to burn incense, but why didn't she go to pay respects? She really hoped that her cousin's wife wouldn't go to pay respects tomorrow. That way, she wouldn't have to worry about it.
Xiu'er is smart. Except for her cousin's heart, her judgment can be said to be accurate. Unfortunately, she is just a little woman, a little woman who pursues love wholeheartedly. She never cares about the affairs of the court. That is a man's business and it is none of her business. But she doesn't know that the affairs of the court are related to the interests of the Xiao family. How can the old lady, who puts the interests of the Xiao family first, not care about these things, even though the old lady is also a woman.
Because the prince's illness was unexpectedly cured, the wind direction in the Xiao Mansion changed in an instant. She was enthusiastic about preparing the dowry, but she didn't smell any smell at all.
Without answering Bing Xin's question, Xiu'er's eyes flashed with viciousness, and she thought to herself:
Cousin, you'd better not go to pay your respects tomorrow. You can stay in the East Wing for a few more days. The day you pay your respects will be the day for you to leave!
…
"Second Madam, wake up quickly. You have to go and pay your respects to the old lady today. It will be too late if you don't get up now."
I guess Mengxi had been sleeping until she woke up naturally these days, so she was not used to getting up early all of a sudden. When she heard Zhiqiu calling her, she responded, turned over and continued to sleep.
Seeing that he couldn't wake up the Second Mistress, Zhichun had already boiled some hot water. Realizing that it would be too late to pay his respects, and fearing that the First Mistress would pick on him, he directly pulled the Second Mistress out of the warm bed. It was already late autumn, and when he suddenly got out of bed, Mengxi woke up a little.
Opening her sleepy eyes, Mengxi glared at Zhiqiu with dissatisfaction. Perhaps it was because she had just woken up, so not only did she not have any power at all, but she also made people feel full of charm. Of course, Zhiqiu was not aware of it at all.
While helping her put on her clothes, he said:
"It's been a while since Second Madam went to pay her respects. You should go earlier today, or else the First Madam will find fault with you and punish you again."
Mengxi looked at the maid who ignored her angry eyes and just kept chanting scriptures. She simply closed her eyes powerlessly and sighed to herself that she had a miserable life and met the wrong person, which resulted in her being a slave and bullying her master.
Zhiqiu thought she was still asleep, so he helped her put on her clothes and shoes, then helped her get up and sit in front of the dressing mirror, where he helped her wash up...
Mengxi supported Zhiqiu and walked into the hall. After turning around the screen, he looked up and saw that the Second Master had come earlier. He was sitting there chatting and laughing with the old lady. Seeing Mengxi come in, Xiao Jun was slightly stunned. How could she come here when she was not well yet? He had just told grandma that she still needed some days to recuperate.
Mengxi helped Zhiqiu forward, paid her respects to the old lady first, then to the second master, and then sat down below Xiao Jun.
After Mengxi sat down, the old lady looked up and down at her granddaughter-in-law whom she had not seen for many days. She was thinner and it seemed that she had suffered a lot from the illness. She said:
"I haven't seen you for a few days. Xi'er has lost weight again. How is Xi'er's illness? If you are not feeling well, don't force yourself. We are all family, there are no so many rules. Just take good care of yourself. There is no need to rush to come and pay your respects. Jun'er just said that Xi'er still needs to recover for a few days, so I paid my respects on your behalf. I didn't expect that Xi'er would come over."
"Thanks to the old lady, my granddaughter-in-law is now well. Thank you for your concern. It is my granddaughter-in-law who is unfilial..."
Before Mengxi could finish her sentence, the master, mistress, and cousin came over to pay their respects, and Xiao Jun and Mengxi both stood up.
The eldest master was walking in front, and the eldest wife and Xiu'er came in with the support of several maids and old women. The two were talking about something, and the eldest wife still had a faint smile on her face. But when she saw Mengxi when she entered the room, her smile disappeared immediately and her face darkened.
The three of them came over to pay their respects to the old lady, Mengxi and Xiao Jun also paid their respects to the eldest master and the eldest mistress, and then they all sat down. Xiu'er saw that her cousin's wife was sitting below her cousin, taking her usual seat. A hint of displeasure flashed in her eyes, and she clenched her handkerchief. Her face changed, but then she returned to her normal self. She walked over slowly, bowed lightly to her cousin and his wife, and sat down gracefully below her cousin's wife.
Since my cousin's wife got married, the number of times my cousin and his wife have been together can be counted on one hand. Seeing the two of them sitting there together today, Xiu'er thought they came together. She felt sour for no reason. She looked around and saw that no one was talking. She turned to look at my cousin's wife, showing a look of concern, and said softly:
"I haven't seen you for a long time. My cousin's wife came here today because she had some free time. I heard that she was sick. I don't know what the disease was. She has been bedridden for many days. I can't go to Xiaoxiangyuan to visit her, so I've been thinking about her. I just told my aunt that I want to ask the old lady to visit my cousin's wife."
Damn, what do you mean by having the time to come here! Meng Xi frowned and said softly:
"Thank you for your concern, sister. I vomited blood a few days ago. I asked the doctor to check it out. It's not a serious illness. He said it was a deficiency of Qi and blood, and it's not easy to work hard. He told me to stay in bed and rest. Now I'm much better now."
After hearing what Meng Xi said, Xiao Jun was shocked, his hand holding the tea shook, and a thin layer of sweat broke out on his forehead.
She was desperate. Couldn't she hear the hidden meaning in Xiu'er's words? She even agreed with her and said it was not a serious illness? If it was not a serious illness, she would not come to pay respects! Isn't this giving others a handle?
The eldest wife heard this and said with a gloomy face:
"It is the rule of our ancestors to wake up at the same time every morning and evening. Don't you understand that filial piety comes first in everything? Since you are not seriously ill and you are still young, and your elders love you and pamper you, you should behave with dignity, know when to act, and abide by the rules. Why do you become so spoiled and lose the rules? Have you forgotten that the first of the seven reasons for divorce is disobeying your parents?"
Mengxi heard this and thought to herself, "It's coming."
She stood up, walked slowly forward, knelt on the ground, and said calmly:
"The eldest wife's teaching is correct. I know I was wrong and I beg you, the old lady, to punish me."
After hearing this, everyone in the hall was stunned. They all realized that the eldest wife's words were too far-fetched. She could have denied it completely. Didn't she know that if she did, she would be exiled? How could she say it so easily?
The eldest wife knew very well that Mengxi did not come to pay her respects because the old lady had allowed it. The accusation of committing the seven offences was far-fetched, and she thought she would argue, and she had prepared some excuses. However, Mengxi did not argue at all and just accepted it calmly, which saved her a lot of worry.
I thought to myself, you said it wasn't a serious illness, and you yourself admitted that you committed the first of the seven grounds for divorce, so don't blame me for being ruthless. Thinking of this, I was about to speak , but I saw Zhiqiu kneeling on the ground with a plop, kowtowing and saying:
"I beg the old lady, the eldest master, and the first wife to investigate. The second grandma vomited blood a few days ago and is indeed bedridden. The old lady can ask the doctor who treated the second grandma and find out. Besides, the second grandma is recuperating in the courtyard with the old lady's permission. I dare to ask the old lady, the eldest master, and the first wife to forgive the second grandma for her illness that has not yet recovered."
"How dare you! The masters are talking, and it is not the place for a servant to interrupt. Who did you learn to be so presumptuous? You don't know any rules at all. Come, slap him in the face!"
The first wife was just about to say what Xiu Mengxi had said, but she didn't expect Zhiqiu to show up and defend herself. After Zhiqiu's explanation, she couldn't say directly that her daughter-in-law had committed the first of the seven grounds for divorce. She got angry and started to scold Zhiqiu.
Two old women had already come forward, pulled Zhiqiu up and were about to slap him. Mengxi was also shocked at this time!
She hadn't come to pay her respects for so many days, and she had expected Xiu'er and the first wife to make trouble. She came to pay her respects today with the intention of leaving the couple. She wanted to tell Zhiqiu and Zhichun about it yesterday, but seeing how surprised they were when she mentioned "divorce", she gave up the idea of telling them, thinking that since the matter was already settled, they would just accept it.
So when Xiu'er and the eldest wife mentioned it today, she went with the flow and calmly accepted all the blame. At this moment, seeing the old woman coming forward to pull Zhiqiu to slap him, she secretly regretted why she didn't expect this loyal girl to show up at this time and defend her at the risk of her life.
If I had known this would happen, I should have said it yesterday, held a briefing, and done some ideological work.
