Chapter 201 Dream Flying Comes
Mengxi and Zhixia were chatting in the backyard when Zhidong came in a hurry and told them that the old lady wanted the second wife to go to Shouxi Hall as soon as possible. Mengxi asked casually:
"Didn't say anything?"
"She didn't say anything, but she looked very anxious. I'm afraid it's not a good thing. The maid who delivered the message was evasive. When I asked her anxiously, she said that she would know when the Second Madam went there. Without waiting for me to say anything, she turned around and ran away, as if she was afraid that I would eat her. I have already asked Xiao Qiao to go to Shouxi Hall to inquire. Second Madam, please follow me into the house and pack up."
After hearing Zhidong's words, Mengxi's heart moved, and she helped Zhixia stand up and said:
"Whether it's good or bad, you'll know when you get there. Don't make a fuss."
The three of them returned to the north room. Zhixia quickly tied up the second grandmother's hair into a long bun and inserted a silver hollow butterfly hairpin diagonally at the temple. Mengxi adjusted her bangs in front of the dressing mirror. Looking left and right, she always felt that it was not as good as Zhiqiu's. Seeing Zhixia's serious expression in the mirror, she stood up with the help of the dressing mirror and said:
"That's good. Hurry up and change your clothes. If you're late, the old lady will be unhappy."
Zhidong had already prepared a set of light blue lily brocade wedding clothes. Mengxi took a look and nodded, feeling very satisfied. This Zhidong was not like Zhichun, who was superstitious about the color red.
After changing clothes, Zhixia was helping to button her clothes when she heard a commotion outside the door. Mengxi motioned Zhidong to go check it out. After a while, Zhidong came in and replied:
"Replying to Second Madam, Second Master sent Xiao Xia from Shouxi Hall to tell you that you should not be afraid of anything, because he will take care of any big problems. Second Madam, what Second Master said is so confusing, I don't know what he means."
Mengxi's heart skipped a beat when he heard this, and he asked casually:
"Didn't the Second Master leave the house early in the morning? How come he is in Shouxi Hall? Didn't Xiao Xia tell me what the old lady wanted to tell me?"
"I forgot to ask when the Second Master came back. Xiao Xia didn't say what the old lady wanted. She only said that your sister Meng Fei came and was waiting in Shouxi Hall."
"Second Madam's elder sister is here. That's great. In the past two years, I have never heard you mention your parents' home. No one from Second Madam's family has come to see you, let alone pick you up. I thought you were not popular at your parents' home, so I never dared to mention it. I didn't expect your elder sister to come to see you. Let her stay in our courtyard tonight."
When Zhixia heard that someone from Second Grandma's family had come, she thought that the old lady had sent a message for this, and with Second Master's words, the haze in her heart was swept away. Thinking that someone from Second Grandma's family had finally come to see her, she chattered excitedly. She didn't notice that Second Grandma's hand, which was tidying up her clothes, trembled when she heard the word "Meng Fei". What was supposed to come finally came.
Looking up and interrupting Zhixia who was looking excited, Mengxi said to Zhidong:
"Zhidong, follow my previous arrangements and go to the backyard to deal with everything that needs to be dealt with, leaving only the pigeons. Send a letter to Zhiqiu and ask them to get ready. We may leave the house in a day or two."
"Second Grandma, what's wrong with you?"
When Zhixia and Zhidong heard Second Mistress suddenly say that they could leave the house immediately, they both looked at her with their eyes wide open. They saw that she was lowering her head and carefully arranging her clothes. Even if there was a slight wrinkle, Second Mistress would gently smooth it out. After arranging the clothes, she looked up and saw Zhidong still looking at her in surprise. She said again:
"Go quickly."
Seeing that Second Madam looked calm and nothing unusual happened, Zhidong felt relieved. He responded, turned around and walked out.
"Second Madam, everything is ready. Let's go too. If we are late, the old lady will be unhappy."
Seeing that everything was packed, Zhixia urged, Mengxi nodded in agreement and was about to go out when she suddenly remembered something. She glanced at Zhixia who was about to help her, thought for a moment and said:
"When I went to the south room this morning, I think I left my handkerchief there. Can you go find it for me?"
"Second Grandma..."
"Go quickly"
Zhixia was worried that the old lady was getting impatient, and wanted to persuade the second grandma to come back and look for her again, but seeing that the second grandma insisted, she had to swallow her words and turned around and walked out.
Seeing Zhixia go out, Mengxi turned around and walked to the cabinet, opened the door, found a pair of scissors from the small box that Zhiqiu usually used for needlework, hid it in the sleeve, closed the door, then stood up, patted his clothes, and sat upright in the chair waiting for Zhixia.
After a while, Zhixia hurried in and said:
"Which handkerchief did Second Madam mention? What color is it? I looked around but couldn't find it."
"Forget it if I can't find it. I think I remembered it wrong. The old lady must be waiting anxiously. Let's go first."
Zhixia looked at the Second Grandma in confusion. She had looked anxious just now, but now she changed. She felt that her trip was in vain. But she was still anxious and afraid that if she was late, the Second Grandma would be punished. When she saw that she was about to leave, she hurried forward to help her out.
When they arrived at Shouxi Hall, they saw Shihua pacing back and forth at the door. When she saw Second Madam coming, she hurried forward and bowed, saying:
"Second Madam is finally here. Everyone in the room is getting impatient. The First Madam has urged us several times. Fortunately, the old lady said that it is not possible for the maids to find you when you are summoned suddenly, so she asked me to wait at the door. As soon as you come, I will take you in immediately."
Mengxi listened, nodded in response, followed Shihua into the room, turned around the screen, and saw that the hall was full of people, even more crowded than when she paid her respects in the morning. When the old lady saw Mengxi come in, she frowned slightly and looked at her with a complicated expression, as if she was reluctant to let her go. Mengxi felt a pang in her heart and looked away.
The eldest wife has been ill these days, but today she made an exception and dressed up brand new. Although she looked a little haggard, she could not hide her excitement. When she saw Mengxi coming in, her eyes shone with a strange light, as if she was a hungry and cold beggar who was suddenly excited to see a bowl of hot porridge.
Xiu'er, who was dressed up carefully, sat next to the eldest wife, her little face rosy and her eyes looking at her brightly. Mengxi gave Xiu'er an indifferent look in return. Seeing it, Xiu'er actually smiled and nodded at her calmly.
The eldest master made an exception and did not go out. He sat there, looking at Mengxi who was slowly walking towards him with confusion in his eyes.
The Second Master sat there expressionlessly, and had been staring at Meng Xi since she came in. When he saw her looking at him, he nodded firmly at her, with a hint of tenderness in his eyes. Facing the Second Master's gentle gaze, and remembering what he had sent Xiao Xia to say, Meng Xi felt a pang in her heart, and quickly avoided the Second Master's affectionate gaze.
Scanning everyone's eyes, Mengxi didn't see Meng Fei that Xiao Xia mentioned. She thought he had temporarily settled in another room.
Although there were many people in the hall, since Mengxi came in, there was complete silence, as if a memorial service was being held. The maids and old women on both sides stood there straight, holding their breath, their eyes following Mengxi's figure, as if they were mourning. The whole hall seemed unusually quiet and solemn, exuding an invisible aura that made people feel suffocated. Even Zhixia broke out in a cold sweat and subconsciously lightened her steps. The hand that was holding Second Madam's could not help but tremble slightly.
In the huge hall, only Mengxi's steady and slow footsteps could be heard walking up step by step.
Like usual, Mengxi greeted the old lady, the eldest master, the eldest mistress and others as if nothing had happened. At the old lady's signal, she sat next to Xiao Jun.
After watching Mengxi sit down and pondering for a long time, the old lady finally spoke:
"Xi'er, I called you here so urgently. It's nothing else. Your sister Meng Fei came to see you."
After the old lady finished speaking, she stared at Mengxi's eyes, but she saw that her eyes were still as calm as usual, without a trace of panic. She couldn't help but wonder, could it be that Xier has been in the mansion for two years and still doesn't know the ancestral precepts of her Xiao family?
Feeling that everyone's eyes were focused on her, Mengxi also looked around, and finally looked at the old lady and said:
"Sister, you are here. How come granddaughter-in-law didn't even know about this? Since she married into the Xiao family, she hasn't been back to her mother's home for two years. I wonder if sister will blame her for not attending her wedding?"
After hearing Mengxi's words, the old lady's face looked a little unnatural. After she finished speaking, she said awkwardly:
"Xi'er hasn't been back to her parents' home for two years. It's also her fault that her in-laws haven't sent anyone to pick her up. Xi'er mentioned it a few days ago at the wrong time, which really wronged Xi'er."
"Since my granddaughter-in-law married into the Xiao Mansion, the old lady has treated her like her own granddaughter. There is no way my granddaughter-in-law has any grievances. But since my sister is here, why don't you come out?"
After Mengxi finished speaking, she began to look around again.
"Xi'er, don't worry. Meng Fei has come from afar and is resting in the side room. There is something I want to confirm with Xi'er first."
After hearing this, Mengxi asked in confusion :
"What does the old lady want to confirm?"
The eldest wife has been staring at Mengxi since the old lady started speaking. Seeing that Mengxi was not at all panicked even after the old lady said this, she actually started chatting with the old lady about family matters. She couldn't believe that she had been in the mansion for two years and didn't know the ancestral precepts of the Xiao family!
She had hated the Second Mistress to the core for the past two years, and simply divorcing her would have been too easy for her. She was so eager to see this Second Mistress being tortured to the point of wanting to die, with a look of fear on her face, kneeling and kowtow in public, trembling with fear, and begging like a dog.
Seeing Mengxi asking calmly again, he thought to himself: It's almost cooked, but you're still pretending to be stupid and stubborn. It seems that you really won't cry until you see the coffin! Thinking of this, he glanced at the old lady and couldn't help but say:
"It's like this. Today, the servant at the gate brought a message saying that someone came to the second gate, claiming to be the second madam's sister, named Li Mengfei. I heard that and thought it was the second madam's sister who came to see you, so I ordered the second gate to take her directly to Xiaoxiang Courtyard and let the second madam settle her down so that you sisters can reminisce about the past. But who knew that Li Mengfei kept saying that she didn't want to see the second madam, and she was clamoring to see the old lady."
"Why, sister, you came all the way here, but not to see your wife?"
Mengxi was disappointed after hearing what the eldest wife said. The eldest wife looked at her with amusement and said in a particularly good-tempered manner:
"I was also puzzled at the time. Later, when I met her in person, I understood that Meng Fei came to the mansion to ask the old lady to help her correct her identity. She said that she was the legitimate daughter of the Li family. It was her who had the engagement with the second master, not the second mistress. The second mistress was originally the seventh daughter of the Li family, who was married in her place. When I heard that this was a big deal, I dared not delay it, so I eagerly brought her to see the old lady. Now, even the first master and the second master were invited back from outside the mansion."
