As soon as Qi Zhenheng returned, he played with the twins for a while before going to the study, without even glancing at Shen Qing.
Shen Qing knew he was still angry, but she couldn't care less and followed him into the study.
He closed the door and walked to the desk.
Qi Zhenheng glanced at her, then looked back at the book.
"What are your plans to do about Xia Zhu's situation?"
Qi Zhenheng didn't look up, and coldly asked, "Who is Xia Zhu?"
Shen Qing said expressionlessly, "The girl you slept with on your birthday."
Upon hearing this, Qi Zhenheng looked up, a hint of panic flashing in his eyes, but he quickly concealed it and calmly asked, "What girl?"
Shen Qing found it somewhat amusing and said disdainfully, "I came to ask you about this not to confirm whether it happened or not. I know it happened. Because that night, you didn't go back to your room to sleep, and the wet nurse and her daughter, even if they had ten times the courage, they wouldn't dare to spread rumors about the governor."
Qi Zhenheng didn't say anything, but his nostrils flared, and he seemed to be angry as well.
Shen Qing continued, "Whether we take Xia Zhu as a concubine and bring her to the camp, or kick them out, it doesn't matter. The important thing is to resolve this matter quickly. We can't let the children stay at the silk factory all the time. The children have their own homes."
Qi Zhenheng looked up again, staring at her in astonishment: "What does this have to do with the children?"
Shen Qingliang laughed: "Xia Zhu's mother is the children's wet nurse, responsible for taking care of them daily. Now that you have slept with Xia Zhu, if I don't handle this matter properly, do you dare say that the mother and daughter won't take it out on the children?"
"She wouldn't dare!" Qi Zhenheng slammed his fist on the table and stood up. "If either of them dares to mistreat the child, I'll have their heads!"
Shen Qing felt he was being wise after the event and scoffed, "By then, the children will already be injured. What's the point of chopping off their heads then?"
Qi Zhenheng stopped talking and sat back down.
Looking at him, Shen Qing realized that she had been misjudging this man all along.
I thought he was bold and responsible, daring to marry a widow like myself and become her father, but now he doesn't even dare to admit that he slept with a maid.
Shen Qing was a little annoyed and reiterated her position: "I'm not trying to force you to do anything, but I'm thinking about the sake of this family. Xia Zhu was slept with by the male head of this family. Although I am the female head of the family and have the right to deal with Xia Zhu, I still want to respect your opinion. After all, you are the one who slept with her. If you like Xia Zhu very much and want to take her as a concubine, I have no objection."
Qi Zhenheng looked at her coldly: "I slept with a girl, aren't you angry?"
Shen Qing took a deep breath: "Don't be angry."
Qi Zhenheng's eyes reddened, but he nodded with a smile: "Okay. It's best if you're not angry."
"What should we do with Xia Zhu?"
"Give us some silver to get rid of us!"
"Okay, I'll take care of it right away."
She turned to leave the study.
Behind him, Qi Zhenheng suddenly called out, "Qing'er..."
Shen Qing paused, but did not turn around.
“I was drunk that night…” he explained, “and thought that girl was you…”
Shen Qing forced a smile that looked more like a grimace: "It's alright. The laws of the Qing Dynasty allow you to take concubines. You haven't broken the law, so there's no need to explain."
After saying that, he pushed open the door to the study and left.
She prepared the banknotes and went downstairs, calling Xia Zhu into the room.
Upon entering, you'll see a small wooden bed about 1.2 meters long, covered with a red and green magpie-patterned quilt commonly found in rural areas.
To be honest, it's really tacky.
Thinking that Qi Zhenheng had taken Xia Zhu's virginity on this very bed that night, Shen Qing felt a pang of unease. She crossed her arms and walked to the window.
Xia Zhu bowed her head and stood in front of her: "Madam."
"Xia Zhu, do you want to go out and make money? I have a factory and a silk shop in Shanghai. You can choose a job you like. Later, you can save up money, buy your own house, find a man you like to marry, and be the master of your own life."
She was giving Xia Zhu a choice.
If Xia Zhu was forced into submission to Qi Zhenheng by her wet nurse, then she is willing to give Xia Zhu a chance.
A girl who has nothing can take control of her life in this era, given the opportunity.
Shen Qing confirmed this possibility through Su Lan.
So Xia Zhu is also an option, it just depends on whether she's willing or not.
Unexpectedly, Xia Zhu blushed and shook her head: "I want to serve you, sir, and I want to have children for you."
Shen Qing: "..."
She pressed her temples and said, "What can I do? The master told me to give you some silver so you can leave."
Xia Zhu suddenly looked up, her eyes red, and shook her head: "Impossible! Impossible! The master said he likes me and will give me a proper status! He would never let me leave!"
Shen Qing had a headache.
She didn't want to confront Qi Zhenheng about whether he had made those promises to Xia Zhu. Now that Qi Zhenheng wanted to let her go, she had no way to keep her there.
Handing over the prepared envelope, Shen Qing said, "Here's some silver, enough for you to live comfortably for the rest of your life. Take it and see if you want to take it with you when you get married, or start your own small business."
Xia Zhu shoved Shen Qing away with such force that Shen Qing almost fell over.
She leaned against the window frame, watching Xia Zhu run out crying, and thought: Fine, let the mother and daughter confront Qi Zhenheng.
This is something Qi Zhenheng brought upon himself, and she has done more than enough in dealing with it; she doesn't want to get involved anymore.
Shen Qing returned to her room on the second floor.
After feeding the twins, Chunju was preparing to bathe them.
Shen Qing stepped forward to join them.
She hadn't bathed the children in a long time, and after washing two at once, her back was so sore she could barely straighten up.
In the past, the wet nurse and Chunju worked together.
Since the wet nurses are not allowed to approach the children, she has to come by herself.
As Chunju dressed the children, she asked, "What did the adults say?"
Shen Qing said calmly, "I offered to pay her off, but Xia Zhu wasn't happy, so we couldn't reach an agreement."
Chunju said, "Thinking about it later, I realized that the wet nurse definitely wanted my daughter to be the master's concubine, which is why she brought my daughter here. At first, she said my daughter was coming to Shanghai to avoid trouble and would only stay for a few days, but later she just kept my daughter as a maid. Every time the master came back, that maid would deliberately dress very tightly. If she wasn't trying to seduce the master, what was she trying to do?"
"Perhaps so," Shen Qing sighed. "She chose this path herself, so what can we do?"
"But now the adults want to bribe her with money, but she's not happy about it. What should we do?"
"I have no idea."
Shen Qing carried her dressed son to the crib and began to lull him to sleep.
Chunju glanced at the closed door and asked softly, "Are you still going to see that person who looks like Young Master Cheng?"
Shen Qing's hand, which was gently patting the child's back, stopped. Her heart felt like it was being torn in two; it hurt terribly.
"He didn't react at all when he saw the children. I really wonder if he's forgotten about me..."
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