Chapter 19 Chapter 19 It's Not Unforgivable

Everyone greeted each other, and Nan Xu responded with a smile. Only when she looked up and met Zhao Yuqin's gaze did she see that she had a dull expression.

She was not the type to rush to get close to someone, so she curled her lips in an open-minded manner, turned around and took the dried fruits on the table to tease Yao Ge'er who was beside Yin Wu.

Yao Ge'er was of school age. He recited a few lines of poetry as if he was presenting a treasure, which made Nan Xu rub his chubby face lovingly.

Zhao Yuqin looked at the ground with a sour taste in her mouth. She swallowed the food in her mouth and said without thinking, "Since Ah Xu likes children so much, when will you and your brother-in-law have one? That way, mother can become a grandmother sooner."

Yao Ge'er didn't understand the twists and turns in the adults' words. He just heard that there was going to be another child. He looked at Nan Xu's belly with bright eyes and said curiously, "Auntie, give me a brother or sister to play with."

Seeing Nan Xu's mouth stiffen, Yin Wu quickly covered Yao Ge'er's mouth and signaled the maids to take Yao Ge'er away. She said to Nan Xu with an apologetic look, "Children's words are innocent. Ah Xu, don't take it to heart."

However, he stared at Zhao Yuqin who was covering her lips and smiling across from him, thinking to himself that this sister-in-law had a problem and was going to act up again!

Sure enough, after hearing this, Second Aunt Zhou and the two aunts turned to look at Nan Xu, their eyes full of concern.

"Second girl, why did you come back by yourself today? Where is Wei Yangbo?"

The eldest aunt also said, "Your uncle also specifically told me that he couldn't come today because he had important matters to attend to. He asked me to say hello to Uncle. I didn't see Uncle, and I was wondering, but I saw that my eldest sister-in-law's eyes were red when she saw you. I was afraid of disturbing the fun of you and your daughter, so I didn't dare to say anything..."

They are all family and they all care about her. Nan Xu knows it in her heart, but her heart still feels pounding and she feels anxious.

She didn't know how to explain why Duan Wenpei didn't come, and what excuse to make.

It was as if there were two little villains fighting in his heart. One was clamoring to be more direct and say that he didn't know about the return visit; the other was trying to persuade her more tactfully, saying that the yamen was busy and he, as the assistant minister of the Ministry of Justice, was too busy to accompany her back.

There was a struggle between the two, and the one who was shouting had the upper hand for a while. At the last moment, Nan Xu still explained softly, "Thank you for your concern, elders. My uncle also asked me to apologize to you all. You said you would accompany me back yesterday, but before you left, someone from the government office called you away."

She acted embarrassed, which aroused the admiration of Zhou and her two aunts, who already liked her, and they all said it was not a big deal.

The second uncle at the men's table even praised Duan Wenpei for being worthy of being a close minister of His Majesty, knowing the big picture and not being trapped by the feelings of his children.

When he got excited, he said to this side: "When I came here, I saw that Liu Chong's mansion was surrounded by people from the Ministry of Justice. I learned that the entire Liu family had been killed. Alas, poor those two boys... The murderer has not been caught yet. Everyone, don't go there too often recently. It's not peaceful!"

He spoke loudly, and Zhou glanced at him and told him to speak more quietly. It was such a nice day, and he was talking about whether to wipe his neck or not, and he didn't know the taboo.

The second master was a henpecked husband, and for the sake of face he retorted a few words, but he dared not mention anything about Liu Chong again.

Everyone smiled with their hands covering their mouths as if they were used to it, and no longer cared whether Duan Wenpei had returned to the Marquis' Mansion.

Nan Xu breathed a sigh of relief, finally managing to save her dignity.

The Marquis's wife beside her had already noticed her abnormality, and she held her hand under the table and patted it gently.

"Second Young Master's Wife, stop talking and try the crab roe steamed cake. There are few crabs this year, and if you don't eat them now, they will be gone." He looked at the maid next to him and said, "Why don't you serve the food to your Second Young Master's Madam?"

The crab roe steamed cake is not a very good thing, especially the rice cake which is very sticky, but it is white with a hint of tender yellow, which symbolizes prosperity.

The Marquis's wife said this specifically, and how could the people present not hear the profound meaning behind it.

He was just about to point his finger at Zhao Yuqin's nose and tell her to shut up!

Yin Wu was already annoyed that she didn't know the occasion when she spoke. Seeing that the maid was stared at by Zhao Yuqin and didn't dare to pick up her chopsticks, she quickly signaled the nanny beside her to place the crab roe steamed cake in front of Zhao Yuqin.

Zhao Yuqin wanted to refuse, but was stopped by Nan Yiling, who was sitting at another table. "Didn't you say a few days ago that there weren't enough crabs this year? Mother is kind enough to let you try it, so why are you still hesitating?"

After saying that, he didn't forget to glare at Zhao Yuqin.

Zhao Yuqin felt a little aggrieved that her husband did not stand on her side, but she did not dare to disobey, so she had to reluctantly pick up a piece and put it in her mouth.

The glutinous rice wrapped around the lips and teeth was not unpalatable, but extremely humiliating.

Zhao Yuqin resisted the urge to vomit, and when she looked up again, she met a pair of calm eyes.

He's pretending to be so calm again! He looks like he's not affected by praise or criticism!

What noble lady would go home alone? And what sister-in-law shouldn't be respectful to her sister-in-law? It was clearly Nan Xu who couldn't lower herself and win over Wei Yangbo's heart. No matter how much she cared, it was all for the Second Master and the Marquis' Mansion. Why did she end up being treated as if she had bullied Nan Xu?

If Nan Yun had married him instead of Nan Xu, would everything have been different?

*

After dinner, the men went to the front yard to drink tea, and the women went to the marquis's courtyard to talk.

Zhao Yuqin followed behind with a dusty face, no one paid any attention to her, so she had to find an excuse to go back to her own yard.

Seeing her leave Jiahui Hall, Yin Wu, who was following Nan Xu, hurriedly put his hands together and chanted "Amitabha".

Nan Xu caught a glimpse of this and said with a smile, "When did sister-in-law become a Buddhist?"

Yin Wu raised his head towards the door and whispered, "We just sent away a 'big Buddha', so we have to say a few words."

Nan Xu understood what she meant, but since she was her sister-in-law after all, Nan Xu didn't want to discuss it any further. She replied, "Second sister-in-law wasn't like this before. I think it's because of Second Brother's frustration in the officialdom. I can understand that."

After all, it didn't cause any substantial harm to me. We are my family and I can't be so tolerant of him.

Yin Wu praised her so much that Nan Xu blushed, then changed the subject and said, "That's right. Your second sister-in-law used to be soft-tempered and didn't have much of a say. But thankfully, she and the second master have a harmonious relationship, and she has two sons to support her. She lives a smooth life and naturally doesn't get into trouble."

He spoke without knowing what he was thinking about, and it seemed difficult to speak. After a while, he said, "Ah Xu, I'm not saying anything, but you don't know that the Second Master has completely changed. A few days ago, he sold two servants who didn't serve him well. Yesterday, he drank too much and took in your Second Sister-in-law's maid. Your Second Sister-in-law was so angry that she wanted to make a scene, but she didn't dare to act rashly in front of the Second Master, so she had to swallow her anger."

At the end, Yin Wu was also moved. After all, they were both women, and both were wives and daughters-in-law. There was no big hatred between them. It was more of empathy.

Nan Xu didn't expect that so many things would happen in just a few days when she was away from the Marquis' Mansion. She couldn't help but sigh.

"Does mother know about this?"

Yin Wu waved her hands, her voice dropping even lower. "I had someone keep this secret and didn't let Mother know. But Mother has always been very discerning and insightful. How many things in this mansion could escape her notice? Zhao Yuqin's behavior at the banquet today was clearly an attempt to make things difficult for you, yet Mother only gave her a warning. I think she felt sorry for her..."

Several maids came running over and interrupted Yin Wu, saying with a smile that the Madam and Auntie asked them to stop whispering and go in quickly, as it would be more fun with more people around.

Seeing that he was being urged, Yin Wu didn't dare to be late, so he smiled and hurriedly pulled Nan Xu and walked inside.

Looking at her, Nan Xu recalled the time before she got married, when she was looking at the picture album of handsome men in the house, and her eldest sister-in-law accidentally let slip, "This uncle has no father or mother, and he doesn't visit his mother-in-law every morning and evening."

Suddenly she felt that it was not unforgivable that Duan Wenpei did not accompany her back home.

The weather was hot in the afternoon, and the Marquis' Mansion had used ice early. Everyone sat in the waterside pavilion, looking at the lush trees outside the window, admiring the koi in the pond, and listening to the cicadas. It was quite charming and charming, like being in a Jiangnan water town.

The third aunt got married late and understood the shame of being questioned after marriage. Seeing that everyone kept asking Nan Xu whether Wei Yangbo was good to her, and almost asked about the couple's sexual matters, she kept saying that it was rare for her to return to the marquis's mansion, so she had to let the marquis's wife treat her and play cards.

The Marquis's wife also felt that her daughter's face was about to turn red, so when she saw someone interrupting her, she naturally agreed happily.

It's easier to get together when there are more people. Madam Zhou and two aunts sat at one table, while the eldest young lady Yin Wu, the third young lady Li Wan and Nan Xu sat at another table. Seeing that there was still one person missing, Yin Wu asked a senior maid who was nearby to fill in, and as she said this, she took out five taels of silver from her own purse and gave it to the maid.

Rolling up his sleeves and grabbing Nan Xu who was about to run away, Yin Wu smiled mischievously: "I'm even giving away my silver, you can't leave. You're still the master, don't tell anyone and let them laugh at you."

Everyone burst into laughter. Nan Xu reached out to pinch her, embarrassed, "Sister-in-law, you're really unforgiving."

There was a reason for this. Nan Xu had been very smart since childhood and could learn anything quickly, except for playing mahjong, which she did not learn from the Marquis's wife.

One year during the Chinese New Year, she played a few games at the table and lost almost all the red envelopes she had received before they were even warmed up. However, she refused to admit defeat and insisted on competing with others to play. As a result, she lost more and more money, and finally lost her temper.

Since then, I have been afraid of playing mahjong and get scared when I see it.

Yin Wu came in person to pull it, and Nan Xu is also an open-minded person. It's just a matter of losing more money. How could he be looked down upon?

After letting Yu Ming tie up his armband, Nan Xu pressed Yin Wu down with his backhand, ready to kill everyone. "The next village can't be too small, let's start with one hundred yuan!"

Big words do make you look good, but lack of real ability only makes people frown.

An hour later, Nan Xu propped up his chin, looked at the silver and money piled up like a mountain in front of the other three people, and then looked at his own deflated purse, feeling like crying but unable to cry.

It wasn't that she cared about the money, but it really did not suit her former majestic style.

"Sister-in-law, your maid is really good at playing mahjong."

Seeing that the three of them were playing with cards enthusiastically, while she was the only one holding all the cards tightly in her hand, she was speechless.

Yin Wu was just taking a few cards in a row and didn't have time to reply. She pushed the maid sitting below her and said, "Your second lady is asking you a question!"

The maid touched a card and smiled with restraint, "To answer the young lady, I am not very good at it. It was only after watching the masters play a few games that I got the hang of it."

Nanxu: ...

I feel even more ashamed and angry!

"A Xu, why are you just staring? It's your turn to draw a card." Yin Wu called her.

Nan Xu shook her head, not knowing if she had heard it wrong, but all she heard was the clanging sound of water.

Touch it, she made up her mind that after this hit, she would say she was going to the toilet and hide away.

Just as she was about to touch the cards, a hand suddenly appeared from behind her and methodically placed the cards into her hand.

Nan Xu was a little confused when she heard Yuxiang behind her call out, "Uncle...Uncle?"