Chapter 257 Couple Arguing

Afterwards, Gu Jingxi went to the study, leaving only Meng Jinyao and her servant Chan'er in the room.

Chan'er touched her face and asked curiously, "Madam, do I really look like Aunt Du? Madam Meng called me Aunt Du when she saw me in broad daylight today."

Meng Jinyao carefully examined Chan'er's face and replied truthfully, "The temperament is similar, both have oval faces and willow-leaf eyebrows, and at first glance they look somewhat alike. With makeup to enhance their faces, they are probably six or seven parts alike. She was not in a good state of mind and mistook her for someone else. But anyone in a good state of mind would not mistake you for Aunt Du."

Chan'er nodded knowingly and said, "No wonder she was always scared half to death by me. She would kneel down and kowtow to apologize. Sometimes, even if I only showed my back, she would be suspicious and think that I was your mother's ghost. She would curl up in the corner of the bed, crying and confessing her sins and begging for forgiveness."

Meng Jinyao smiled mockingly: "She has a guilty conscience. If she hadn't done anything wrong, she wouldn't be this scared even if she really saw the ghost of someone she knew." As she spoke, she asked Chan'er again, "Chan'er, are you really going to do the chores of cleaning the yard and fetching water?"

Chan'er replied, "This servant finds this quite easy, much easier than completing the tasks assigned by the master before."

Meng Jinyao remained silent for a moment, then said, "There are even easier ones."

Chan'er quickly waved her hands and shook her head, pleadingly saying, "Madam, please forgive me. I'm just a rough person and can't do anything too delicate. I feel uncomfortable doing it. I only managed to scare people this time because I thought it would be fun. If you need me to do anything, just give the order. If you need me to accompany you when you go out, I'll dress myself up and follow you. I promise to act like a first-class maid, but I can only do it like this for a short time. I can't keep up the act for long."

Seeing her resolute attitude, Meng Jinyao did not force her and nodded, saying, "Alright then."

Chan'er glanced down at her outfit. Today, she was going out with the madam, dressed as a first-class maidservant by the side of the Marquis's wife. Her clothes were even more impressive than those of the daughter of a minor official. Although she looked good, it was inconvenient for her to do things. So she said, "Madam, this servant will go and change my clothes first."

Meng Jinyao nodded, then suddenly remembered something else and instructed, "Chan'er, once you've changed your clothes, go and keep an eye on Sun Shi's every move."

Chan'er respectfully replied, "Yes, Madam."

Just as she was about to dismiss Chan'er, Meng Jinyao remembered something else and asked, "By the way, Chan'er, has everything been taken care of with Granny Qiao?"

Chan'er replied, "Don't worry, Madam. I destroyed all those incense. I secretly went through Granny Qiao's room and she didn't leave a single trace. I also changed the incense in Madam Sun's room today."

Upon hearing this, Meng Jinyao felt relieved.

-

The Yongchang Earl's Mansion.

Today's events not only damage the reputation of the Yongchang Marquis's Mansion, but are also a major blow to Meng Jinyu and Meng Chengxing, siblings. The blow they suffer is second only to their mother, Madam Sun.

Although the Meng family had declined, they still held a noble title. The two siblings, one the daughter of an earl and the other the heir of an earl, had a sense of superiority compared to families that had also declined but did not hold a noble title.

Now things have gotten even worse. The mother has been accused of murdering the father's first wife and also of murdering the father's illegitimate son. Who knows how the outside world will mock the siblings.

To make matters worse, the mother was divorced by the father, leaving the household affairs unattended. The grandmother was old, and the father was only thirty-five years old. It was very likely that they would marry a stepmother to take care of the household chores.

It was nearly dusk when Mrs. Sun finally woke up. Seeing her two children sitting by her bedside, she felt gratified. Even without a husband, she had at least two sensible children.

Seeing that she had opened her eyes, Meng Jinyu said happily, "Mother, you're awake?"

Madam Sun nodded: "Ayu, Chengxing."

Thinking of her miserable situation without her mother's support, Meng Jinyu couldn't help but cry, choking out, "Mother, Father said that you should go back to your maternal grandparents' house as soon as you wake up. What will we do if you go back to your maternal grandparents' house?"

Looking at her two children, Madam Sun gently comforted them, "Silly children, why are you panicking? Ayu, you are still the second daughter of the Earl's mansion. Chengxing, you are the heir apparent, the one who will inherit the title in the future. If you miss your mother in the future, just go to your maternal grandparents' house to visit her. It would be bad if your mother stayed in the Meng family. Your father would send me to the estate and I would never be able to return home. If I go back to your maternal grandparents' house, I will have your uncle and aunt to take care of me."

Meng Jinyu had another worry: "But what if Father remarries? My second and third brothers are thirteen and twelve years old respectively, and they are not yet of marriageable age. My grandmother is getting old. If they don't marry, there will be no wife in charge of the household affairs. Moreover, they need a wife to maintain the relationships with other families. So, Father will have to marry."

Upon hearing this, Madam Sun's heart tightened. She had been preoccupied with the matter of that unclean thing lately, and her mind hadn't been as sharp. She hadn't thought of this. Meng Dongyuan was only thirty-five, and it was inevitable that he would remarry. Other men would remarry when they lost their wives in their forties.

She had been someone's stepmother. How could a stepmother possibly like her husband's ex-wife's children? What if her children had a stepmother and were mistreated by her? Especially Ayu, who had reached marriageable age, was ruined by her stepmother arbitrarily arranging a marriage for her. What would happen then?

Chengxing is in a better position. He has already been established as the heir apparent. As long as he doesn't make any major mistakes, his stepmother can't do anything to him. Chengxing will remain the heir apparent. However, there are so many schemes in the inner quarters. If she encounters someone with high skills, she might try to kill Chengxing, just like she tried to kill Chengyu back then.

Sun's mind raced, trying to think of a way to stop Meng Dongyuan from remarrying.

Just then, Meng Dongyuan's voice came from outside. The mother and her two children immediately fell silent to avoid being overheard.

A moment later, Meng Dongyuan came in from outside. Seeing that Madam Sun had woken up, he didn't waste any words with her. He threw the letter of divorce at her and said coldly, "Madam Sun, now that you're awake, take this letter of divorce and go back to your Sun family. You can't take any of the things that belong to the Meng family with you. All the jewelry and ornaments you use belong to the Meng family."

Seeing his cold-heartedness and disregard for their marital bond, Madam Sun suddenly sat up in bed, grabbed a pillow and threw it at him, angrily demanding, "Meng Dongyuan, where is my dowry? You and your old hag mother cheated me out of my dowry, you owe me my dowry!"

Meng Dongyuan was also annoyed: "Who told you to touch Zhou's dowry? If you used Zhou's dowry, you should use your own dowry to fill the hole."

Enraged, Madam Sun disregarded the fact that her two children were still alive and immediately confronted him, saying, "Why would I touch Zhou's dowry? Don't you know that your family is a poor, destitute household that tries to put on a show of wealth even when it's not rich, suffering for the sake of saving face? If it weren't for Zhou's dowry, do you think your family could maintain its dignity?"

Seeing Meng Dongyuan's increasingly grim expression, she became more and more agitated: "Wasn't it you who instructed me to touch that dowry, both openly and secretly? If you didn't allow it, would I dare to touch it? Would I dare? All that money was spent on your Meng family, and now you're blaming me? The benefits went to your Meng family, but I took the blame. When the truth came out, you and your son pushed me, a mere woman, out to be scolded. Don't you and your old hag have any shame?"