Chapter 151 You're Really Useless
Yu Qingyan glanced over and noticed Ruan Shi's unusual expression, but she pretended not to notice and said to her grandmother:
"It's so good that my eldest uncle and his family are back, Grandmother. I've missed Sister Shuang'er for so long, and my eldest and second cousins too."
I remember the last time we met Sister Shuang'er was two years ago. We've been corresponding since then, but it's never as good as seeing each other anytime. When her family returns, I'll definitely invite Sister Shuang'er to stay at the Earl's residence for a while longer."
Madam Wen smiled with satisfaction: "You two ungrateful little brats, you only have your cousins in your hearts, and no place for an old woman like me?"
Taking advantage of the situation, Yu Qingying rushed to Wen Shi and acted coquettishly: "How could I? Qingying's favorite person is Grandmother. Grandmother, please be kind to me and give me a few more purses later."
Mrs. Wen held her granddaughter in her arms, beaming with joy. The others joined in, and the room was filled with laughter.
Amidst their laughter and conversation, Madam Wen looked up and saw Madam Ruan standing behind her. Her face immediately darkened, and she said:
"I don't need you to serve me here. Go to the kitchen and see how the feast is going. Also, has your sister's yard been cleaned? How many charcoal braziers are there?"
Your sister's family finally came back for a visit, and you, as their sister-in-law, shouldn't you be more welcoming? What kind of attitude is that? Anyone who didn't know better would think you were upset about their return.
Ruan hurriedly smiled and said, "Mother, don't worry. I have already checked everything you mentioned. There is absolutely no mistake. After lunch, my sister and niece can go back to the courtyard to rest. The charcoal brazier was set up early this morning, and my nephew Qingyun's resting place has also been arranged."
Wen didn't take it to heart: "Then go and take another look, don't just stand here like a block of wood."
Lady Ruan curtsied and left silently.
Madam Wen watched her daughter-in-law's retreating figure and snorted coldly through her nose: "She's a disgrace. Whenever Yuexiuniang and the others are mentioned, she cries like her mother has died. She's such a bad omen."
Madam Qiao glanced at her niece Qiao Ning, who was sitting blankly below her, and said with a smile, "My sister-in-law didn't mean it. She's just quiet and not good at socializing. She's also busy with household affairs every day. Mother, there's no need to be angry."
Madam Wen: "Which high-ranking family didn't start out as the mistress of the house? It's only natural for them to work hard. How tired can they be? Humph, they just started to feel uneasy when they heard that Yuexiu's family was coming back."
If my family hadn't been so weak back then, a good girl like Yuexiu would have become Chengfeng's principal wife long ago. How could she have gotten the chance to marry into my household? She got a free ride into my Vice Minister's mansion, yet she's always jealous and ungrateful.
Ning'er, you mustn't be like your mother, so narrow-minded and petty.
Upon hearing this, Qiao Ning, who was sitting at the lower end of the table, quickly stood up and bowed her head in agreement.
Madam Wen looked at her only granddaughter with displeasure. Her timid and submissive manner was just like her mother's, which was not endearing.
She had always looked down on her daughter-in-law, Ruan Shi. A few years ago, she handed over the management of the household to her daughter-in-law, pretending to be an old lady who didn't care about anything. In reality, her daughter-in-law was just a puppet. Everyone in the household still listened to her, the old lady. To put it bluntly, Ruan Shi was just a gofer and a mouthpiece, being bossed around by her.
When arranging a marriage for her eldest son, Madam Wen was determined to marry her niece, Yuexiu, into the family. Unfortunately, Minister Qiao looked down on the already declining Yuexiu family and arranged for his son to marry Madam Ruan instead.
Wen dared not disobey her husband, but she felt resentful towards her daughter-in-law. From the moment Ruan married into the family, she began to establish rules for her, making her pay her respects morning and evening, serving her tea and massaging her back like a personal maid. If she was slightly dissatisfied, she would scold Ruan harshly.
Not long after Ruan entered the household, Wen took it upon herself to bring her niece Yuexiu into the house as her son's concubine.
Two months later, her son secured a post outside the capital and went to work as an official. Madam Wen even took it upon herself to keep Madam Ruan in the mansion to serve her, and told her son to take her niece with him to take up the post.
The excuse was that the household affairs couldn't be managed without the daughter-in-law, and the son couldn't be left alone, so it was most appropriate to have a concubine serve him.
Now, more than a decade later, niece Yuexiu has given birth to two sons and a daughter with her son, and her eldest son has also gotten married and had children. When they return, the Qiao family will be a harmonious four-generation household.
Wen's heart was entirely biased towards her niece's branch of the family.
As for her daughter-in-law, Ruan, who was trapped at home, she was simply unlucky. Who could she blame but herself? She had only given birth to one daughter over the years; she could only blame her own misfortune.
After chatting and laughing for a while, Madam Wen waved her hand and said to the Yu Qingyan sisters:
"Alright, you two have come all this way, so let Ning'er take you somewhere else to have some fun. You don't need to stay with this old woman."
And Qingyun, you've been studying very hard. Now that you're at your maternal grandparents' house, you don't need to be so restrained. Go talk to your half-brothers; they may be a little slow-witted, but they can keep you company."
When Qiao Ning heard her grandmother speak, she quickly stood up and called Yu Qingyun, Yu Qingyan and the others to prepare to go out. The maids serving nearby stepped forward one by one to drape fox fur cloaks over the masters, and the group walked out chatting and laughing.
After sending the children away, Wen looked at Qiao and her smile faded.
Madam Wen: "Tell me, ever since your son-in-law brought Su and her two children back, you haven't had a good time, have you? I heard that he actually demoted you to a secondary wife and even changed the family genealogy. You didn't even tell me about such a big thing? By the time your father and I found out, it had already spread throughout the capital."
Wen pointed at Qiao's forehead with her finger, looking disappointed and frustrated.
Facing her own mother, Qiao no longer concealed her grievances. She took a deep breath and spoke with a bitter tone:
“How could it be my choice? Before entering the ancestral hall, the old man didn’t reveal a word, only saying that it was for the two younger ones to be added to the family genealogy. How was I supposed to know that he would rewrite the Su family’s name on the genealogy?”
Madam Wen was once again filled with disappointment: "You, all these years you haven't been able to win over the Earl's heart, letting him have his way with that vixen for so many years, and even have a son and a daughter. You're really useless."
I truly regret that I went to such lengths to help you marry into the Marquis of Nanping's family.
Qiao felt increasingly uncomfortable when her mother brought up the events of that year.
Seeing her daughter's low spirits, Madam Wen sighed again and said, "It was because I was too soft-hearted back then. I thought that Su Shi would not amount to anything after being driven out of the Marquis's mansion by your mother-in-law, so I simply let her go and did not take the opportunity to kill her."
Who would have thought that even after that slut left the capital, she could still seduce my son-in-law and make him search for her all over the world, and he actually found her. The two of them have been living together like lovers for so many years, but my daughter has suffered so much.
Alas! Letting a tiger return to the mountain will bring endless trouble.
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