As Jiang Shuyue's tall figure walked further and further away, Jiang Zhengming felt a sense of unease.
Suddenly, images of Su Shi's voice, appearance, and smile flooded his mind.
The daughter was learning to speak, calling out "Daddy" in her unclear words.
The image of my daughter, when she was learning to walk, reaching out her little hands to me and calling out "Daddy, hug me!" comes to mind.
Then, the scene of Su's daughter fainting from crying after her death seems like it was just yesterday.
The receding figure became blurred.
Outside the door, Granny Qu hurried over. Yang understood from the look in Granny Qu's eyes that her daughter and the young master of the Wei family were getting along.
Seeing Jiang Zhengming's distraught state, Madam Yang quickly changed the subject, "Husband, such a wretched daughter is better off without. We still have our precious child."
"Shut up!"
A furious rebuke sent a shiver down Yang's spine.
He stepped forward and stood in front of Jiang Zhengming, bringing his face, which bore the fingerprints, closer.
She shouted hoarsely, "You still want me to shut up? Look at what your wretched daughter has done! She even dared to hit me in front of you, and you're still yelling at me!"
"I am truly unfortunate; being a stepmother is so difficult!"
After yelling, Yang continued to cover her face and weep.
The red finger marks were very clear, and Yang's cheeks were swollen.
Jiang Zhengming stumbled and leaned against the door frame of the ancestral hall, as if all his energy had been drained away.
He said weakly, "Forget it, forget it, just pretend this family never existed."
"I will personally go to Grand Commandant Wu to explain."
Madam Yang was overjoyed and immediately stopped crying. "Is what my husband said true?"
"What can I do now? I, Jiang Zhengming, will just pretend I never gave birth to her?"
Ignoring the pain on her face, Madam Yang grabbed the swaying Jiang Zhengming and said, "Husband, don't be angry. Our darling is filial and well-behaved. The God of Marriage will surely arrange a good marriage for her. Just wait and see."
The tense atmosphere eased, and Granny Qu quickly bowed: "Madam's face is swollen. This old servant will go and get some ice to apply to it for Madam."
The butler rubbed his swollen knee and hurriedly stepped forward, saying, "Master, please calm down. This servant will see the young lady off."
Watching the butler limp away, Jiang Zhengming said, "The Jiang family no longer has an eldest daughter. The eldest daughter of the Jiang family died suddenly long ago. She just has the same name and looks somewhat similar."
Madam Yang immediately issued a gag order to the servants of the Minister's mansion, continuing to claim to the outside world that Miss Jiang had already died suddenly and that not a single word should be revealed, or she would be beaten to death with sticks.
...
Jiang Shuyue carried the memorial tablet out of the Minister's residence, got into the carriage, and Qiuju laughed heartily.
"Miss, that slap you gave me just now was so satisfying. I've wanted to slap that snake-hearted woman for a long time."
"If only I knew how to peel skin, I would really like to peel off that hypocritical face and see what kind of ugly face is under it."
"What are you looking at? Aren't you afraid of getting your hands dirty? Go home and wash your hands." Jiang Shuyue glanced at Yang's right hand with a look of disgust.
Back at the mansion, Qiuju brought out scented soap, and Jiang Shuyue vigorously washed her hands several times.
"Miss, are we now completely detached from the Minister's Mansion? Should we return Madam's memorial tablet to the Su family or keep it in the mansion?"
As Qiuju helped the young lady change her clothes, she asked.
Jiang Shuyue remained silent for a moment, then decided to avoid getting involved with the Su family if possible. She was a modern person and knew that some relatives were born with the feeling that you owed them something. No one had come to her for so many years, so she decided to cut ties if possible.
“My mother met the wrong man, and I want to send her memorial tablet to Qinglian Temple for worship and ask the monks to perform a Buddhist ceremony.”
“If I don’t go back to the Minister’s residence, given Jiang Zhengming’s personality, he will definitely insist that I am dead. We must also try our best to deny any relationship with Jiang Zhengming in the future.”
“What you say is true, Miss. There are many families with the surname Jiang. Miss is even more beautiful now than before. Even if we don’t admit it, others will just think that Miss looks a bit like Miss Jiang.”
The following day, Jiang Shuyue, along with Sui Sui, personally delivered Su Shi's memorial tablet to Qinglian Temple, along with two prescriptions.
"I never expected you to have developed a prescription so quickly, Amitabha." Master Huiyuan held the prescription for the epidemic medicine in both hands with the same piety as if he were holding a sutra.
"There is another ingredient in the prescription that is being developed. It will be complete once the prescription is finished, as it is only missing one ingredient."
Jiang Shuyue clasped her hands together and said, "I heard that there are places to enshrine memorial tablets in temples. My daughter's mother passed away early. I would like to ask the master to arrange for someone to perform a memorial service for my daughter's mother and then enshrine her in the temple."
“Amitabha Buddha, the Buddha is merciful. Your filial piety is commendable. This humble monk will go and do it now.”
Master Huiyuan led Jiang Shuyue and her group to a hall on the back mountain.
After setting up the memorial tablet, Sui Sui knelt down, bowed, and looked up at Jiang Shuyue, asking, "Mother, does Grandmother know that Sui Sui is kowtowing to her?"
Jiang Shuyue: "..."
Qiuju quickly replied, "Sui Sui is so adorable, of course the old lady knows."
"Can Grandma hear Sui Sui when she speaks?"
“Of course, Young Master Sui Sui can say whatever he wants to the Old Madam.” Qiu Ju knelt beside Sui Sui and said earnestly.
Sui Sui imitated her mother's actions, putting her hands together and muttering incantations.
The gist of it is that he told his maternal grandmother not to worry, that he would take good care of his mother, and that he would earn lots and lots of money for her to spend.
Master Huiyuan said the ritual would take three days, and Jiang Shuyue also had a clinic to manage, so she left behind enough money for incense offerings to last for several years before going down the mountain.
On the way back, Qiuju asked Suisui, "Young Master, you just said you wanted to earn a lot of money. Could you tell Aunt Qiuju how you do it?"
These past few days, Nangong Zeyue has been taking Sui Sui out early and returning late, and Miss has been too busy to take care of them. Qiuju has been wanting to ask about it for a long time.
Sui Sui's phoenix eyes darted around, and she shook her head, pursing her lips. "I can't say. Uncle Nangong and I made a pinky promise, so it has to be a secret."
Jiang Shuyue felt a jolt when she thought of Nangong Zeyue's traditional craftsmanship.
"He led you to rob and plunder?"
Sui Sui looked up, completely bewildered, and asked in her childish voice, "Mommy, what does 'robbery' mean?"
"Is it a betting game involving cockfighting?"
Seeing that her mother didn't explain, Sui Sui pressed for an answer.
"Young master, do you know what cockfighting is?"
"I know! It's two chickens fighting, and people can place bets. If they bet correctly, they win."
Sui Sui paused for a moment and then said, "Uncle Nangong said this is a legitimate business."
Jiang Shuyue and Qiu Ju exchanged a glance, as if they knew the answer. Jiang Shuyue raised her hand and buried her face in her palm.
My God!
So that guy took her son to gamble on cockfighting!
Jiang Shuyue pretended not to know anything. She coughed lightly and said, "Sui Sui, Uncle Nangong has been very busy lately. Would it be alright if Mother took you to school?"
“Mother, the lessons taught by the teachers at the school are too boring. Uncle Nangong and Brother Jingxiu from the study have agreed that I will go to Brother Jingxiu’s private school, and Brother Jingxiu will be my teacher.”
"Zhen Jingxiu agreed?"
Jiang Shuyue's expression softened considerably; Nangong Zeyue had finally done something decent.
She was also planning how to send Sui Sui to the Zhen family's private school, but unexpectedly, Nangong Zeyue had the same idea.
"Mother, guess what conditions Brother Jingxiu proposed?"
Jiang Shuyue: "..." Still making demands?
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