As soon as these words were spoken, the atmosphere in the private room suddenly changed subtly.
"Which Madam Liang? Is she the young lady of the commander of the patrol department? She's my cousin, how come you haven't seen her before?"
"No, it's Lord Liang Fushan who returned to the capital to report on his work. He married the daughter of the Earl of Ning'an three years ago."
"I've never heard of it..."
"If I told you that his stepmother and step-grandmother were the Zhangs from the Ning An Earl's family, would you know?"
"So it's this Liang family."
The conversation at the table became lively for a while, because this pair of mothers-in-law were also a famous topic of conversation in the capital a few decades ago.
No one noticed that Xue Huichun's teacup was not held firmly in her hand, and a few drops of tea spilled out.
Three generations ago, Liang Fushan’s grandfather, Old Master Liang, inherited the last generation of the title. After his wife passed away, he only had one son.
At that time, the Ning'an Marquis's Mansion had a large population, with a large number of legitimate and illegitimate children. Even with the dowry from each branch, it was still unable to fill the hole, and the family gradually declined.
Old Earl Ning An started to make a plan. In order to save some dowry, he married his youngest daughter, who had just come of age, to Old Master Liang as his second wife.
As soon as Zhang got married, she became a stepmother. She was at a loss as to what to do with the baby in swaddling clothes and could only endure day after day in the backyard.
As soon as Liang Fushan's father had his coming-of-age ceremony, Old Master Liang arranged a marriage for him so that he could start a family and build a career.
Up to this point, Da Zhang still had no offspring of her own.
However, the Liang family's misfortune seemed to be passed on to the next generation. Liang Fushan's mother also passed away when he was five years old.
Meanwhile, Da Zhang's family, the Ning'an Marquis's Mansion, was in turmoil due to the fight for the family property, which was on the verge of collapse. They became the laughing stock of the whole capital.
Just like the reincarnation of the past, another Zhang came into the family, and the five-year-old Liang Fushan finally had to be taken care of by his mother.
When he grew up, he realized that his grandmother and mother were not his biological children. However, Liang Fushan had already started to learn to read and understand that filial piety and respect for elders came first. He was respectful and polite to both Zhangs.
Life like this was originally uneventful, but the backyard of the Liang Mansion seemed to be hiding an unusual layer of weirdness.
When Liang Fushan was twelve years old, he passed the examination for becoming a Tongsheng. That same night, Old Master Liang passed away in his sleep with a look of satisfaction on his face.
Within two years, Mr. Liang died of illness in the provincial capital where he was exiled.
At that time, there were already rumors in the capital.
"If this young master Liang doesn't live to be twenty, then the Liang family will have to be named Zhang."
In the same year, Liang Fushan's wet nurse came to the Xingyuan Marquis' Mansion, hoping that the old marquis Xue Yonghuai would protect Liang Fushan because of their past friendship as colleagues.
Xue Huichun looked towards the waterside pavilion in the distance. Jiang Lun was chatting happily with several like-minded poet friends, and she knew what the women around the tea table were talking about without having to listen.
She still clearly remembers that day when her father was preparing to leave the house in a carriage. The naughty girl took the opportunity to hide in the carriage. It was not until the carriage drove out of the city gate that her father was surprised to discover her presence.
Their destination was a small farm on the outskirts of the city, which was not as big as the farm of the marquisate, but had more extensive fields.
The nanny who came to the mansion led them to a simple brick house.
It was here that Xue Huichun met Liang Fushan for the first time. That winter was very cold. There was no heater in the brick house, and the air was filled with a biting chill that seemed to penetrate one's bones.
Xue Huichun had seen her elder and second brothers studying in Yunmoxuan. The red charcoal there was always available throughout the winter, and the servants kept tea on the stove from morning to night to maintain the appropriate temperature.
Although the twelve-year-old Liang Fushan had not fully grown up, he had already begun to show an upright posture. He had a handsome face, but there was a sense of determination between his eyebrows. The blue shirt he wore made him look particularly energetic.
His fingers had frostbite, but he continued to write the article from memory, each stroke neat and powerful.
With his father's intervention, everything went smoothly as if it were a natural process. At that moment, Xue Huichun truly realized that his father not only showed his iron will on the battlefield, but was also able to handle the secrets of the rear house with ease.
"The Madam and the Sister-in-law doted on Fu Shan, and their deep concern inevitably made them lose their composure at times."
"Before his death, Cheng An entrusted me with the important task of teaching Fu Shan, hoping that Fu Shan would become a successful person and bring honor to the family."
"The Marquis' Mansion has hired a famous teacher to teach us. It would be a shame if we missed out!"
At that time, Xue Yonghuai cordially invited the highly respected Mr. Yang Kaitai to serve as the Western Tutor of the Marquis' Mansion.
If the Zhangs still insisted on refusing at this time, it would undoubtedly appear that they were unreasonable and even intended to obstruct Liang Fushan's study and education.
"Madam Jiang, I heard that both of your brothers were taught by famous teachers, and even Lord Liang studied at your residence. Is this true?"
This sudden question woke Xue Huichun from her deep thoughts. She only responded with a faint smile.
"My brothers all studied in the outer courtyard," she said softly, with just the right amount of modesty. "As for the details, I don't know much about them."
This answer was both appropriate and logical, leaving no one present with any further reason to question it.
At this moment, a young woman slowly turned around.
She had been gazing quietly at the water pavilion with her back to the crowd, but now she half-covered her face with the round fan in her hand and quietly cast a scrutinizing glance at Xue Huichun.
"Madam Qi, I was wondering why I didn't see you today. You were sitting here."
A female voice was heard, and the woman sitting by the waterside turned around and smiled.
"The poetry club has raised koi in this pond, and I'm counting how many there are!"
As she spoke, she slowly stood up, but did not sit down at the tea table.
"Mrs. Jiang, there's a lantern with a riddle hanging on it up ahead. How about going with me to take a look?"
Xue Huichun had never seen the lady from the Qi family before. Although they were of similar age, the lady's dressing style seemed calm and reserved.
She was wearing a dark blue smock, and her hair accessories were simple and low-key, with two ebony hairpins. She looked even more old-fashioned than her mother Hong Yingrong.
Since the other party was not called "Madam", it was obvious that her husband was not an official, so everyone just called her "Madam".
Mrs. Qi directly invited her to visit the poetry club together. Xue Huichun was a newcomer, so it was inconvenient for her to refuse.
What's more, she was just planning to hang out in the poetry club to avoid the current discussions about the Liang family.
"That's good. When I was at my mother's house, I often worked on riddles with my younger sister." Xue Huichun stood up happily, obviously agreeing to the invitation from the Qi family's wife.
Cui Yuping watched from the side and although she was puzzled as to why the wife of the Qi family took the initiative to get close to Xue Huichun, she did not follow and disturb her.
"Many of these riddles were given by my husband. I already know them all, so I won't join in the fun." Cui Yuping explained with a smile and decided to stay and continue drinking tea.
Seeing this, the other female relatives also wanted to go to the Zi Mi place, but they were embarrassed to leave Cui Yuping alone in the private room, so they tactfully chose to stay and accompany her.
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