Chapter 30 Chapter 30 Without saying anything, Luo slapped her in the face...
Yuxiu had been listening to the noises next door since returning to her room. Seeing Li Che approaching with a gloomy face, she smiled shyly, "Master, today is a special day for you and Aunt Zhao. I'm afraid it's not appropriate to ignore her like this."
Li Che paused in taking off his outer robe and glanced at her sharply.
Zhao Qingyi made him lose all face, and Zhao Manyi loved to throw tantrums. He could only find a moment of comfort when he came to Yuxiu.
Now, Yuxiu dared to reject him, which made Li Che even more annoyed.
Yuxiu immediately went over to help him undress, then changed her tone and said with a smile, "Of course I hope that Master will come to my place every day, but Aunt Zhao is, after all, a daughter of the Zhao family, and she has her parents and brothers to support her..."
As she spoke, she observed Li Che's expression. Her delicate hands reached into the man's collar and spoke with concern, "I'm just afraid. I'm afraid that you'll favor me, Master, and that this will cause displeasure for the Zhao family..."
Yuxiu's gentle attitude slightly eased the anger in Li Che's chest, and he slowly regained his rationality.
Yuxiu's words did remind him.
If he had not seen it with his own eyes, he would not have believed that the Zhao family, which prided itself on being a clean family, could actually spend nearly ten thousand taels of silver as a dowry for a daughter born out of wedlock.
You have to know that the second wife is different from the first wife. The second wife, Zhao Huailiang, is only a sixth-rank official in the Ministry of Personnel's Selection Department with a meager salary, and his wife's family is not as wealthy as the Meng family in business. So where did these nearly ten thousand taels of silver come from?
Thinking of this, Li Che suddenly realized that Zhao Huailiang might not be as honest as he appeared.
If this is true, the second branch of the Zhao family cannot be underestimated.
"You make sense." After Li Che figured it out, he put on his outer wedding robe again and pinched her jade sleeves. "I'll come see you another day."
Yuxiu chuckled coquettishly, her eyes seductive as silk, and she watched Li Che go to the next room. The smile on the corner of her mouth faded instantly.
Just as the grandmother said, men are nothing more than that, and Li Che is not worthy of trust.
Zhao Manyi was still thinking about him, lying on the couch and crying breathlessly. After seeing Li Che coming back, she threw herself back into Li Che's arms.
After the two quarreled that night, they reconciled again.
—
The autumn weather was getting thicker, and five days later, the results of the autumn examination were announced. As expected, Li Heng passed.
Even someone as mean as Mrs. Luo had expressed her feelings towards this illegitimate son, and so had Li Che. As the mistress of the house, Zhao Qingyi could not pretend to be deaf and dumb, so she ordered Tan Yue to prepare a gift and send it to Cuizhuxuan. That day, Tan Yue came back to report that the second master Zhao had sent an invitation, inviting Li Heng to teach at the Zhao Family School.
Zhao Qingyi understood after a little thought. His second uncle was probably using this as an excuse to show his goodwill and devote all his resources to helping Li Heng prepare for next year's examination. If Li Heng passed the examination next year, he would have to repay the favor in the future, and then it would be natural for his second uncle to propose a marriage.
This is a common practice among most aristocratic families. Not to mention the Zhao family, ordinary wealthy families will also sponsor students from their hometown to take the exams, hoping that someone can soar to the sky and bring greater benefits to the family.
Zhao Qingyi didn't think much about it and put the matter aside.
For nearly a month afterwards, she had little peace and quiet. In addition to taking care of the backyard every day, she spent more time in the shop outside. The servant who had been sent to follow Luo Gui earlier also sent back news.
Three years ago, Luo Gui used the money given by his sister Luo to open a pawnshop in his hometown Tongxiang, and used the convenience of the pawnshop to lend money privately at high interest rates.
If this is investigated, it would be a serious crime punishable by exile at the least and death at the worst. The Luo siblings dared to be so presumptuous, probably because they relied on Li Che's official position in the capital.
Zhao Qingyi held back for the moment and just had someone continue to stare.
As for Li Che, he rarely appeared in front of Zhao Manyi since she came in.
No matter how embarrassing Zhao Manyi's incident was, it was not entirely without benefits. For example, now she had the status of a concubine, and she and Li Che were entangled in love every day.
Luo even took the initiative to send Jun'er to Liulizhai to live with Zhao Manyi, nominally adopting the child to her.
As a result, the servants in the courtyard did not dare to treat Zhao Manyi as a lowly concubine, and treated her with more respect. As a result, Zhao Manyi became even more arrogant than before.
Early that morning, Yuxiu came to pay her respects, chatted with Zhao Qingyi for a while, and then began to talk about Zhao Manyi's faults.
"Grandma, I think you are too kind. Look at the past month or so. I only came to pay my respects to you on the second day of my wedding. After that, I kept saying that my waist and legs were sore and weak, and I kept making excuses. With such arrogance, those who didn't know me would think she was the real master."
Yuxiu naturally had her own thoughts when she said this. She didn't mind Li Che's favor, but she didn't like Zhao Manyi's smug look. Besides, they lived in the same courtyard and saw each other all day long. She had to endure Zhao Manyi's spoiled daughter's temper a lot.
And every time she was bullied, Li Che would always side with that lowly concubine, which made Yuxiu even more dissatisfied.
She missed the peaceful days of the past.
Zhao Qingyi heard the hidden meaning in Yuxiu's words. She hoped that she would take action to deal with Zhao Manyi, but secretly, she didn't want to get involved.
Just as she was thinking of how to politely refuse, she suddenly heard Yuxiu covering her lips and retching. The accompanying maid quickly brought out a spittoon, which she obviously brought with her.
This means that the symptoms are not a one or two-day thing.
Zhao Qingyi's almond-shaped eyes moved slightly, and she immediately asked someone to call a doctor.
Yuxiu retched for a while before she recovered. Her face flushed slightly as she said, "I'm fine. I've just been feeling nauseous recently. I think I'm pregnant again."
When she first started serving Li Che, Yuxiu was afraid that Zhao Qingyi would mind, so she took contraceptive soup. Later, Zhao Qingyi didn't let her do that, and she became pregnant naturally.
This was also beyond Yuxiu's expectations. She originally thought that at her age, it would not be so easy to get pregnant again.
Zhao Qingyi's eyes swept across Yuxiu's belly, but he didn't feel much emotion. After the doctor came, he confirmed that she was pregnant and had been pregnant for more than a month.
Zhao Qingyi did not hide the secret and announced it to the whole mansion that day. He also assigned two more maids to serve Yuxiu and exempted Yuxiu from the morning and evening visits.
Luo was naturally the happiest one. One more grandson meant one more blessing. Isn't it important to have a large house full of children and grandchildren? So she symbolically went to see Yuxiu.
That night, Li Che found out that Yuxiu was pregnant, so he left Zhao Manyi to accompany Yuxiu.
At that time, Zhao Manyi prepared a large table of dishes as usual, hoping that the family of three would sit together for dinner. However, she watched Li Che turn into Yuxiu's room and did not come out all night.
Zhao Manyi also learned from her subordinates that Yuxiu was pregnant. She thought Li Che would not care, but now she was slapped in the face and became furious.
Yuxiu, that bitch, relied on her closer relationship with Zhao Qingyi to let Li Jiao take the position of the eldest son. Now Yuxiu is pregnant again. If the baby is born, regardless of whether it is a boy or a girl, Yuxiu's status will far exceed hers.
She would never allow this to happen!
But Yuxiu was also wary of her, and all personal items were handled by the maids sent by Zhao Qingyi. For a long time, Zhao Manyi could not find an opportunity.
Until this day, Yuxiu had finished her dinner and was digesting the food in the yard.
It was almost three months, but her belly was still not noticeable. However, having given birth to a child before, she knew that not eating enough could easily lead to a difficult labor, so she took a walk around Liulizhai with the help of her maid.
When Zhao Manyi saw her in the room, she asked her maid to bring the bird's nest over and congratulated Yuxiu insincerely.
"Master dotes on me very much. He sends bird's nest and ginseng to my room every day. Now that you are pregnant, I will give some to you as a congratulations."
After the last drugging incident, Yuxiu didn't dare to take anything from her casually.
"Thank you for your kindness, Aunt Zhao. However, with the care of my eldest wife, I have never lacked nourishing food. This is all I have given you, so you should keep it for yourself."
"You don't know what's good for you." Zhao Manyi snorted coldly and looked her waist up and down.
Although she was only three months old, Yuxiu was well taken care of by Zhao Qingyi, and her body became visibly plumper.
Zhao Manyi seemed to have finally found something to criticize, and suddenly laughed, "Ah, they say that pregnant women age faster. You're already old, and your looks are fading. If you have another child, your waist will probably be as thick as a water tank, right? In my opinion, it's better not to have children. Keep some of your looks. Maybe I'll even look at you more."
Yuxiu was not a pushover. She smiled faintly and retorted, "My Jiao'er was raised by Grandmother. He is the legitimate eldest son of the Li family. I am Jiao'er's biological mother. I will have a place in the Li family in the future. So whether I can enjoy Master's favor or not is not a big deal."
Yuxiu stroked her belly and said in a mocking tone, "Besides, it's because I'm old that the old man and the old lady are particularly concerned about me, fearing that I might get into an accident because of this child."
"Unlike some people who have unmediated affairs and are content with being lowly, unable to raise their heads in public, relying only on that little bit of favor. When you reach my age, your beauty will fade and your love will fade, and I'm afraid you will be nothing."
The two maids following Yuxiu lowered their heads and laughed silently. The three of them, master and servants, walked around to the corridor and continued their walk.
Zhao Manyi was so angry that her face turned blue. Every word he said was like a knife stabbing her heart. She rushed over angrily, grabbed Yuxiu's arm and started to argue.
"What do you mean? How dare you, a companion, make fun of me?"
Zhao Manyi raised her hand to hit someone, but Yuxiu dodged it nimbly. At this critical moment, Yuxiu caught a glimpse of a green figure passing by the gate of the courtyard.
The one who came back wearing official robes must be Li Che.
Regardless of whether Li Che came to see her or to accompany Zhao Manyi, Yuxiu simply gave up resisting and took the opportunity to let Zhao Manyi grab her hair.
Once she succeeded, the anger that Zhao Manyi had suppressed in her chest for months suddenly burst out. Without thinking, she pressed Yuxiu's head against the corridor pillar.
But before she could use all her strength, Yuxiu screamed, and her body lost control and crashed straight into him with a dull "bang".
The two maids were stunned. When they reacted, Yuxiu had already hit her head and her body leaned against the corridor pillar and fell down limply.
The maidservant screamed for help.
Zhao Manyi also stood there in a daze, looking at her hands.
Just now, she clearly hadn't used any strength.
At this moment, Zhao Manyi was grabbed from behind and thrown away. The moment she fell to the ground, a green figure passed by her, bringing with it a gust of cold wind.
Seeing that the person coming was Li Che, Zhao Manyi panicked, "Husband..."
She was a concubine and actually had no right to call him "husband". It was just that when Li Che was in love with her, he did not bother with these trivial matters.
But this time, Zhao Manyi's cry did not get a glance from Li Che.
Li Che picked up Yu Xiu and went back to the house, while the servant Qingshi hurried to call the doctor.
Zhao Manyi followed, her lips trembling as she tried to explain, but was stopped outside the house by Yuxiu's maid. She stared at the person on the couch, and when she saw Yuxiu's injuries clearly, her heart sank.
This was a terrible blow. The skin on her forehead was broken and blood flowed down her cheek. It looked very horrifying.
The news that Yuxiu was pushed and hit on the head by Zhao Manyi soon reached Luo's ears, and Luo hurriedly followed the doctor to Liulizhai.
Seeing Zhao Manyi at the door, Luo slapped her without saying a word.
Zhao Manyi covered her face and screamed.
"Bitch, if anything happens to my grandson, you will have to pay with your life!" The Luo in front of him spoke harshly, no longer as gentle as she was a few days ago.
But Zhao Manyi was also arrogant. She covered her face and glared at Luo, "It wasn't me who hurt her! She clearly bumped into him herself!"
"You still dare to quibble?" Luo slapped her again with his backhand, and this time with such force that Zhao Manyi fell to the ground.
She pointed at Zhao Manyi's nose and cursed viciously, "Yuxiu has always been obedient and steady. Is she really necessary to risk her own safety to frame a lowly concubine like you? In my opinion, you've had enough of the comfortable life and have lost your sense of identity!"
"From today on, I, as your mother-in-law, will set the rules for you!"
Mrs. Luo waved her hand and called over Mother Luo, "Go, tie her up and take her to the ancestral hall to kneel! Deprive her of food and water, and make her sincerely repent! I'll release her when Yuxiu is out of danger!"
Zhao Manyi was so frightened that her face turned pale. "I don't want to kneel in the ancestral hall, I don't want to kneel!"
She was raised by her parents and raised in their arms. How could she have ever suffered such a hardship?
She struggled to break free from Luo's mother, rushed into the house and grabbed Li Che's sleeve, "Husband, please save me, believe me, I didn't mean to push her! She really bumped into her...ah!"
Before she could finish her words, Li Che shook her off, his eyes as cold as if he was looking at a stranger, "I saw you push her with my own eyes, is this true?"
"Even you don't believe me?"
Zhao Manyi felt aggrieved and tears welled up in her eyes.
"Seeing is believing, how can I believe you?" Li Che pretended to be reluctant and turned his head away, "Besides, my mother has said that I can't save you."
Of course he was angry, but he couldn't offend anyone too much, so the bad guy had to be played by Luo. The mother and son had to play the good cop and the bad cop respectively to appease Zhao Manyi.
Thinking of this, Li Che showed a bit of just the right amount of pity, "You are indeed wrong in this matter. You should not have clashed with her when you knew she was pregnant. Now go to the ancestral hall and kneel down, don't make it difficult for me..."
Hearing the fatigue and pity in his words, Zhao Manyi bit her lip tightly.
Yes, in the final analysis, it was Yuxiu who framed her. She could take revenge later, but if it caused her to become estranged from Li Che and his wife, then it would be a loss.
She couldn't lose Li Che.
After realizing this, Zhao Manyi closed her eyes, accepted her fate, and let Luo's mother take her away.
After she walked away, Luo rolled her eyes in annoyance and said, "If she wasn't still useful, I would have beaten her to death with a stick this time!"
Fortunately, after the doctor's diagnosis, he only said that Yuxiu had a skin injury, which looked scary but not serious. The fetus was still stable, and it was just that she fainted due to excessive shock. He then prescribed some calming soup and external application medicine.
That night, Li Che rarely stepped into Zhao Qingyi's Lanyue Pavilion and asked her to separate the two concubines.
Zhao Qingyi did not refuse immediately, but started to think about it.
"The mansion is so small. If we want to live separately, we'll have to expand on both sides. To do that, we'll have to buy the house next door and connect the two sides. Now, only the house on the east side is vacant. It's not big, but it's located in the inner city. If we want to buy it, it will cost at least one or two thousand taels. I wonder if this money will come from the public treasury, or..."
She glanced at Li Che and reminded him, "If you want to pay for it, you don't have that much money."
Li Che knew that he couldn't avoid money, so he took out a stack of banknotes from his sleeve.
This was the result of his discussion with Mrs. Luo. Yuxiu and Zhao Manyi were incompatible, and sooner or later there would be trouble if they lived together. Besides, there were two children in the mansion. When the one in Yuxiu's belly was born, it was inevitable to expand the mansion. Instead of paying for it themselves in the future, it would be better to let Aunt Fang solve it now.
"We've discussed this matter. Aunt Fang is worried about Man'er, so she will take out the money and let Man'er live in the expanded house first."
Li Che said this cleverly. He only said that Zhao Manyi would live there first, but he didn't say whether anyone else would live in the courtyard that Aunt Fang had paid for in the future.
Zhao Qingyi simply pretended to be stupid, took the banknote, and sent someone to handle it the next day. Only then did he find out that the house next door had been bought two days ago.
When Mrs. Luo learned about this, she couldn't help but scold Zhao Qingyi in private for his incompetence. However, although she didn't buy the house, she was reluctant to return the money she had earned.
Then we can only send her back to the old house and bring her back after Yuxiu gives birth safely.
Zhao Manyi didn't know that she was about to be sent away. She knelt in the ancestral hall for two days without eating a single grain of rice. She was extremely weak. When she was about to collapse, the door of the secluded hall finally opened.
When she saw Li Che, she felt like she had found a life-saving straw. She hugged him tightly and cried out that she was wronged.
Li Che gently stroked her back, and her emotions gradually calmed down. When she learned that Li Che planned to expand the new hospital for her, she felt even more regretful.
"I thought my husband had already forgotten me...it turns out that I was just a mean person..."
A woman who indulges in love is always the stupidest one.
During the two days Zhao Manyi was punished by kneeling in the ancestral hall, she reviewed all the events that had happened in the past and also noticed something about Li Che.
It's not that she couldn't guess that this man was using her, but when she saw Li Che again and listened to his sweet words, those suspicions disappeared in an instant.
She always believed that there was true love between her and Li Che.
Seeing that he had almost coaxed her, Li Che prepared to leave and had no intention of taking anyone out with him.
"Husband!" Zhao Manyi hurriedly grabbed his hand and asked anxiously, "Husband, how long do I have to kneel before I can leave?"
"That depends on what Mother wants." Li Che simply put the blame on Luo. "Yuxiu is still unconscious, and Mother is still angry. I can't let you go."
"But I was wronged!"
Zhao Manyi cried so hard that her eyes were filled with tears. In just two days, she became visibly thinner and her lips became frighteningly white.
"That bitch Yuxiu framed me. She relied on her son being the legitimate son and never took me seriously. She even said...she even said that I was willing to be a lowly person by following you!"
"I was so angry I was about to fight her, but she slipped and hit her head..."
At this point, it doesn’t matter whether Zhao Manyi pushed Yuxiu or not.
However, Li Che was not happy to hear these words. You know, he was severely impeached because of the teahouse incident, and Yuxiu even mocked him in private.
What do you mean by following him is willing to be lowly? It's as if he is trying to climb up to Zhao Manyi.
As Zhao Manyi wiped her tears, she looked at his expression and realized that he was angry. She struck while the iron was hot, "Husband, you must find a way to dampen her temper. Li Jiao and Jun'er are both your children. How about changing the title of legitimate son?"
Li Che's expression was complicated for a moment.
In fact, he didn't treat his two sons much differently. It was just that Li Jiao was the eldest son. Not only was he liked by Zhao Qingyi, but he also made a name for himself in the Zhao family school. Now he was also taught by Mr. Kong, which added a lot of glory to his face. Naturally, he would not change his legitimate son.
Moreover, Li Jiao's identity was well-known in the government, so it was not easy to change the legitimate son, unless Zhao Qingyi was willing to adopt another child.
But this is obviously impossible.
Zhao Manyi seemed to see through his worries and continued to persuade him, "My husband, Jun'er is just young. He is your biological son, as smart and outstanding as you. In the future, he will definitely surpass Li Jiao and inherit the family business..."
"I understand. Let's discuss this later. The most important thing right now is to calm down mother so that she can let you out." Li Che didn't want to continue this topic.
Zhao Manyi refused. "No, we can't postpone this discussion. Jun'er will be four next year, and he's at the age where he can start learning. But he's so unknown and without any status. Which teacher would be willing to teach him?"
If she loses at the beginning, her brother Jun will be suppressed by Li Jiao in the future and will never be able to make a breakthrough.
Li Che had no choice but to say, "Then when this storm is over, I will find a way to make you a concubine, and then let Junge register you under your name, so that you can have a legitimate status..."
"No!"
Zhao Manyi refused again, "I have already wronged myself, you can't wrong our Jun brother again!"
She was too emotional, and coupled with being punished by kneeling for two days without food, she had already exhausted all her energy. After saying just a few words, she was already out of breath.
Li Che had no choice but to give in. "Okay, okay, I promise you, I will go back and persuade your elder sister to recognize Jun Ge'er."
Zhao Manyi finally calmed down and snuggled in his arms, sobbing softly. However, there was no trace of weakness and pity in her eyes anymore, instead, they were filled with hatred.
Although she and Yuxiu were incompatible, she had to admit at this moment that some of Yuxiu's words were right.
A man's love and favor are only temporary. He can give it to her and take it back at any time. Only Jun Ge'er is the foundation of her future.
Zhao Qingyi's attitude was obvious. She rejected Jun'er and would never raise him under her wing. Now that Li Che was not interested, she could only rely on herself to fight for him.
By then, Li Che should not blame her for being cruel.
As long as that little bastard Li Jiao dies, her brother Jun will naturally come to the fore.
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