Chapter 54, Interception

Somehow, the news that Hongmei was loaned to Teacher Zhu reached Daohua's ears.

In response, Daohua did not react at all and continued to do what she was doing.

Wang Man'er looked at the rice flowers in surprise: "Girl, aren't you angry?" She knew that in order to make the two pots of red plum blossoms bloom earlier, the eldest girl would spend time taking care of them before going to bed every night.

Daohua said calmly, "I've already given Hongmei to mother. As long as mother is not unhappy, I won't be angry."

After Madam Li knew that Hongmei had lent the money to Teacher Zhu, she came to explain to her that her father had a hard time in officialdom and had to spend some time to win over his colleagues and subordinates. Otherwise, it would be difficult for a county magistrate without a foundation to carry out his work.

She understood this.

Wang Man'er: "But it was Master Lin who persuaded Master to lend out the red plums."

Hearing this, Daohua put down her needlework and pondered for a moment, "Man'er, why don't the people over at Shuangxinyuan just quiet down a bit?"

Wang Man'er had no scruples and said directly: "It's all because of the master's indulgence." In private, she didn't have so many scruples when talking to the girl. As long as there were no outsiders around, she could speak freely.

Daohua picked up the needle and thread again. Now she could embroider some things. Although they still didn't look good, she could at least recognize what was being embroidered.

"Yes, the root of it lies with my father."

If his stepfather hadn't been so indulgent towards Master Lin, how could he dare to do that?

Wang Man'er sighed, "That's the downside of being in a wealthy family. There's always fights between wives and concubines. When I was escorting with Dad, I heard a lot about the dark secrets going on in the backyards of the mansions."

"Either the wife sells out the concubine and beats her to death, or the concubine becomes powerful and turns around to bully and oppress the wife. Some are even more ruthless and bring harm to their children, even fetuses and children."

Hearing this, Daohua was stunned for a moment.

She never expected that a scene that only appeared in novels and TV in her previous life would actually appear in real life, and so close to her.

She has always thought that men are very rational and that stupid things like favoring a concubine over his wife would never happen.

Apart from anything else, the wife can manage household affairs, socialize and contribute to the prosperity of the family; while the concubine, apart from using her beauty to please men and having romantic affairs, cannot bring any substantial benefits to the man. As long as the man is not mentally ill, he should know how to treat the wife and concubines.

But there is a gap between reality and theory.

In reality, few men can clearly face everything about themselves, especially men in ancient times. Women are just appendages of men, and they prefer to be flattered to satisfy their patriarchal psychology.

Concubines have a low status, and if they want to live a good life, they must know how to win favor and please men. Therefore, some men who are weak in self-control or have some dark sides in their psychology are conquered by the concubines' tenderness and thoughtfulness.

Isn't Madam Li beautiful? No, even though she is a few years older than Aunt Lin, when the two stand together, Madam Li is definitely more beautiful.

Is Madam Li not virtuous? Who in the Yan family dares to say that Madam Li has contributed to the success of the Yan family today?

But why does Yan Zhigao prefer Aunt Lin?

Daohua thought about it carefully and felt that there were three reasons. The first was her mother's background. In this feudal ancient times with strict hierarchy, most merchants were looked down upon by scholars.

Second, her father was unwilling to give in.

He passed the imperial examination at a young age and could have married a wife of equal status, with whom he could live in harmony and enjoy the company of his wife. However, due to his poor family background, he had to marry a merchant woman whom he himself looked down upon. How could such a proud and arrogant man accept this?

Third, my stepfather feels inferior.

In this era, it is natural for a man to support his family, but he has to rely on his wife's dowry to live and manage his career. This is a great denial of his ability, making him always feel insecure when facing his wife.

With these three reasons, and Aunt Lin's deliberate attempt to please him, it's no surprise that my stepfather would favor Shuangxinyuan.

"Why!"

Daohua sighed and continued to practice needlework.

The situation in her family cannot be changed in the short term.

The principal wife had no reaction to Hongmei being loaned out, but Shuangxinyuan was not happy about it.

Mr. Lin went to Zhu Jiaoyu's house in person to retrieve Hongmei, and invited Miss Zhu Xiuyun to play in the backyard of the county government office.

Zhu Xiuyun and Yan Yishuang have a good relationship and readily agreed.

Master Lin carried Hongmei and did not send her to the front yard to County Magistrate Yan, nor did he return her to Madam Li in the back yard. Instead, he carried her directly to Shuangxin Courtyard.

Previously at the county government office, County Magistrate Yan did not name which daughter raised Hongmei. So, when Zhu Xiuyun saw Master Lin walking towards Shuangxinyuan, she naturally thought that Hongmei was Yan Yishuang's.

Yan Yishuang, on the orders of Aunt Lin, came out early to greet Zhu Xiuyun, and the two met halfway.

"Xiuyun!"

"Yishuang!"

The two hadn't seen each other since they stopped attending classes. When they met now, they immediately hugged each other happily.

Master Lin smiled and said, "Yishuang, why don't you invite Xiuyun to sit in the pavilion?"

Yan Yishuang was stunned. She looked at the ventilated pavilion not far away and wondered why her uncle let them stay outside when the weather was so cold.

However, she always listened to her uncle, so she smiled and took Zhu Xiuyun's hand and walked towards the pavilion without thinking much.

Zhu Xiuyun did not object, but said happily: "Yishuang, wait a minute, you have to let me take a good look at Hongmei. After my father brought her back, I wanted to take a closer look but he wouldn't let me, as if he was afraid that I would damage Hongmei."

Yan Yishuang thought that Hongmei was now in the hands of her uncle, so it would be okay to let Zhu Xiuyun see her, and it would be a good opportunity for her to take a look too.

The bright red plum blossoms were in full bloom, and she wanted to see them too.

Master Lin followed the two little girls with a smile, and the three of them quickly entered the pavilion. Master Lin placed the red plum on the stone table in the pavilion, and the two little girls immediately surrounded him.

After a while, Yan Yihan and Yan Yile, who received the news that Zhu Xiuyun had come to the backyard of the county government office, also came to the pavilion.

The four little girls chattered and laughed around Hongmei.

Master Lin looked at the four people with a smile, and his eyes occasionally glanced towards Songheyuan.

He had already found out that at this time, Miss Yan had finished her walk with Old Lady Yan and would usually return to the main courtyard via this road.

Sure enough, not long after, Daohua and Wang Maner appeared in Master Lin's sight.

"Miss, look, it's the Second Miss and the others, as well as the girl from Teacher Zhu's family. She must be here to return Hongmei!"

Wang Maner had sharp eyes and immediately saw Hongmei surrounded by several people.

Daohua also saw the people in the pavilion, but her attention was more focused on Master Lin who stayed in the pavilion.

(End of this chapter)