Chapter 198 It turns out that my cousin's wife is a concubine
When Xiu'er heard Bingxin say that the King of Yan wanted her to go and ask for help in person, she angrily cursed:
"This old fox!"
After Xiuer finished scolding, she rolled her eyes and said casually:
"It would be nice to meet the Prince of Yan. After all, we are at my aunt's house. It is much more convenient to go out than to stay at the Censorate."
Yu Xin was so frightened that her face turned pale. She was really afraid that the young lady would do something irreversible in the moment of impulse, so she hurriedly advised:
"Miss, you must stay calm. There is no rush for this matter . When I was in the Censorate, I often heard the master say that the Prince of Yan was cunning. Miss, don't fall for his tricks and tarnish your reputation. We will try other methods later."
"I'm not a three-year-old child who can be fooled so easily! Besides, is there any better way to get rid of my cousin's wife than this? Exposing her ugly behavior before marriage will not only make her get rid of her, but also let my cousin see her true face and completely give up on her. I can't let go of such an opportunity!"
Bing Xin heard what the young lady said and said with some worry:
"Miss, you are right. I am just worried that King Yan will..."
As he was speaking, a little maid came in and reported that Aunt Zhang had arrived.
Xiu'er was stunned when she heard this. Although they all lived near Yangxin Garden, due to her relationship with her aunt, her uncle's concubines rarely came to her place. What was the wind that brought Aunt Zhang here today? She was distracted and said hurriedly:
"Please come in"
As soon as she finished speaking, Aunt Zhang came in with Qing'er. Xiu'er hurriedly stood up to greet them. Although she was a lady and a guest, she dared not neglect her uncle's concubines.
"How come Aunt Zhang has time to come here today? Come on, Bingxin, please sit down and serve tea to Aunt Zhang."
"Miss Xiu, please sit down. You are the master. You are killing me like this."
"Mrs. Zhang is so polite. Please take a seat."
At this time, Bingxin had come over to help Aunt Zhang sit down. A little maid had brought in the tea. Yuxin took it and held it in both hands. Aunt Zhang took it and drank a sip, then put it on the table. She looked around Xiu'er's room and said:
"It's still quiet here, Miss Xiu. It's not like my maidservant's place, where a few troublesome maids are making trouble. I haven't had any peace this afternoon."
"What happened in Aunt Zhang's room?"
After hearing this, Xiuer asked casually.
"It's all because of the little things that happened in Second Madam's family. The legitimate daughter married as a concubine's daughter, and the concubine's daughter married as a legitimate daughter. It's a mess. Our concubine couldn't even sleep well in the afternoon, so she came to your place to avoid the peace and quiet..."
Seeing Miss Xiu asking, Qing'er couldn't help complaining without waiting for Aunt Zhang to speak.
"Slap your face! I just told you to keep this to yourself and not to gossip about it, and now you've forgotten it again!"
Aunt Zhang saw Qing'er talking nonsense without restraint, and her face changed immediately. She hurriedly stopped her and scolded her. Qing'er listened, lowered her head and replied in a hurry:
"Madam, please calm down. I was so angry that I forgot your instructions. I should be punished."
Qing'er said this, pretending to hit herself in the face. When Xiu'er heard that it was about her cousin's family, she thought there must be something fishy about it. She quickly signaled Bingxin to stop Qing'er and advised:
"Madam Zhang, you don't have to be so careful. You can rest assured about Xiu'er. Bing Xin Yu Xin has been with Xiu'er for so many years. They are close friends and are very tight-lipped. They are not the kind of people who gossip. Madam Zhang, do you still not trust Xiu'er?"
"Miss Xiu, please don't say that. Miss Xiu is dignified, generous, and knows the big picture. We live in the same courtyard, so who else can worry about you? It's just that the matter is serious and it concerns the reputation of the Second Madam, so it's not good to gossip about it. It's always better to be careful, for fear that someone might die."
After Aunt Zhang finished speaking, she glanced at Xiu'er, and seeing that she was sitting there in silence, she pretended to hesitate for a moment, looked at the door, sighed, and said:
"Hey, these are all nonsense . The slaves below hate their masters, so they are gossiping. It's better not to say anything. What has Miss Xiu been busy with these days? I haven't seen the Second Master come here for a few days."
Seeing Aunt Zhang like this, Xiu'er quickly signaled Yuxin to go out and close the door, and then she turned to Aunt Zhang and said:
"What else can Xiu'er be busy with? She can only do some needlework. My cousin has been busy these days and has no time to come. Besides, my cousin and I are grown up now. We are not like when we were little and don't avoid anything. There are many gossipers in such a big Xiao Mansion. There are always those who don't make trouble and gossip about nothing. It's always better to avoid them. By the way, what did Qing'er say about legitimate and illegitimate children just now? Xiu'er is also very curious. Aunt Zhang might as well tell us. Don't worry, if the words reach Xiu'er, they will never be spread out."
After hearing this, Aunt Zhang sighed and said:
"Miss Xiu is curious, so I might as well tell you about it. However, this matter is serious. If it comes out of my mouth and enters your ears, you can just treat it as a joke and laugh it off. Don't spread it to anyone else."
"Please rest assured, Aunt Zhang."
"A few days ago, Yue'er's mother in my room fell ill and cried every day. I was soft-hearted, thinking that she had been with me for so many years, so I granted her leave. But she brought back a lot of new things after returning, and there was nothing to gossip about."
"How is Yue'er's family related to my cousin's family?"
"Miss Xiu, you may not know that Yue'er's brother is the personal servant of Qian Junhao, the son of Qian Mei, the councillor of the Ministry of Public Administration. Mr. Qian got married last year and married Li Mengfei, the illegitimate sister of our second wife."
"Oh, that's right, Xiu'er has never heard that my cousin's wife has a half-sister."
"Yes, I just heard that when Mengfei just got married, the couple loved each other very much. Young Master Qian treated her like a treasure, but the good times didn't last long. Mengfei got pregnant soon after she entered the house. When Young Master Qian saw that she was pregnant, he took in two concubines and doted on them, leaving his wife aside. This spring, Mengfei gave birth to a daughter, and Young Master Qian changed his attitude even more and completely ignored her. A few days ago, Mengfei was jealous and beat the concubine. The concubine cried and complained, but Young Master Qian was so distressed that he beat Mengfei. Mengfei was also a fierce person. She smashed a room full of things and cried and shouted, saying that Young Master Qian had no conscience. She also said that she was the legitimate daughter of the Li family and had a noble status. She was destined to be the mistress of a noble family. She said that the eldest aunt of the noble family was the imperial concubine in the palace and had great power. She was not tempted at all, so how could she be so blind as to fall in love with him."
"Didn't you just say that Meng Fei was a concubine's daughter? How come she became a legitimate daughter now?"
"I was confused at first, but later I understood. Meng Fei said that she was originally engaged to the second master of our mansion, but because she fell in love with Young Master Qian, she begged mother to let her concubine's sister marry into the Xiao mansion on her behalf. Because she was afraid of the power of the Xiao mansion, she had to marry as a concubine's daughter. But Young Master Qian didn't cherish her. He started beating her after less than two and a half days of kissing her. Meng Fei even shouted that she wanted to rush to the Xiao mansion and let her sister testify that she was the legitimate daughter of the Li mansion, and it was an injustice for her to marry a young master of the fifth rank. The crying was so loud that it shook the sky, and all the servants in the room heard it. It is said that Young Master Qian was so scared that he quickly covered Meng Fei's mouth and sent away all the servants. He persuaded her for a long time with both coaxing and threatening, and finally she stopped."
When Xiu'er heard this, she immediately became alert and asked in surprise:
"Auntie Zhang means that my cousin's wife is not a legitimate daughter, but a concubine's daughter who married in on her behalf?"
After hearing this, Aunt Zhang quickly covered Xiu'er's mouth with her hand and said:
"Miss Xiu, please stop saying that. You just treated it as a joke. It can't be counted. It's unfounded and you can't talk nonsense. It's okay if it happens to an ordinary family, but in our Xiao family, it can cost lives. Miss Xiu may not know that our Xiao family has an ancestral precept that the legitimate wife of the head of the Xiao family must be a legitimate daughter. Just at noon, these two ignorant girls were arguing about it. They said that there is only one legitimate daughter in the Li family, who is the second wife in our house. How come Li Mengfei suddenly appeared? It must be Yue'er who talked nonsense. When I heard about this, I was so scared that I punished the two girls. Now they are still kneeling in the room. I don't want to see them, so I hurried out to hide. Miss Xiu, please don't go out and say anything. If it gets to the old lady's ears, it will be a big deal."
It is really true that after searching for a long time, I finally found it without any effort!
Xiu'er nodded her head repeatedly, her eyes flashing with a strange look, and her face couldn't hide the smile. She was so happy that she didn't notice that Aunt Zhang also had a glimmer of pleasure in her eyes when she saw her happy look.
After chatting for a while, Aunt Zhang got up and said goodbye.
After seeing off Aunt Zhang, Xiu'er returned to the house and walked back and forth in excitement, shouting:
"Yuxin, go and ask Yue'er from Aunt Zhang's room to come over."
Yu Xin responded and walked out. Xiu Er clutched her handkerchief tightly and said viciously:
"Cousin, if you don't get out of here this time, it will be really unfair!"
…
After returning from Shouxi Hall, Mengxi's eyes flashed with the strange excitement that Xiu'er had revealed when she looked at her just now. That moment made her tremble with fear. Even now, when she was sitting in the east wing, the feeling was still there, making Mengxi breathless. She vaguely felt that Xiu'er was going to attack her, but she seemed to have missed something. Since returning from Shouxi Hall, a sense of uneasiness has been lingering in her heart.
"Second Madam, you have been sitting here for almost an hour. The meal is already served in the upper room. Second Master has asked someone to bring you over to eat."
Zhiqiu saw that the second wife had been sitting there since she came back from Shouxi Hall, wondering what she was thinking about, so he opened his mouth to wake her up.
Hearing Zhiqiu's call, Mengxi raised her head and saw Zhiqiu. Suddenly, an idea flashed in her mind. Yes, it was Zhiqiu and the others. They had been so busy fighting with the Second Master these days that they had forgotten to send them out of the mansion.
Mengxi subconsciously believed that according to her original plan, even if she angered the Second Master and divorced her, the Second Master would let her take the four maids away. However, her plan was obviously not feasible, and in the end she had to rely on joining forces with Xiu'er to find her way out of the house.
But Xiu'er would not be as merciful as the Second Master. The Second Master had some feelings for her, but Xiu'er only hated her. Especially in the past two years, Xiu'er and the First Madam had long regarded Zhiqiu as a thorn in their eyes. It was only because of her protection and Zhiqiu's cleverness that she did not fall into the hands of the First Madam. After she was divorced, no matter how much the old lady loved her, with the First Madam's interference, she might not let her take away the four maids. Taking away two would be enough. The one who stayed in the mansion would definitely fall into the hands of the First Madam, and the result was predictable.
It seems that it is time to let Zhiqiu and the others leave the house first, but given Zhiqiu's personality, can she leave her behind and go first?
"Second Grandma..."
Zhiqiu saw that the second wife responded and then looked at her in a daze, so she hurriedly called out again.
Mengxi came back to his senses, as if he had made an important decision. He stood up and said:
"Let's go to the upper room to eat!"
