Chapter 239 Internal Conflicts within the Yongning Marquis's Residence
"The Grand Madam is so kind, she would never scold the Madam!" Aqi said subconsciously. "The Madam is just too reserved."
Su Rongrong nodded, then changed the subject, saying, "However, the Grand Madam doesn't seem very happy today. Could it be because I stuck to her without her permission?"
“Madam is overthinking it.” Wei Jia explained, pursing her lips, “The Dowager Madam is angry with me, so she is unhappy because she saw me. It has nothing to do with you, Madam.”
If she could, she wouldn't want to come out so soon and get in the way of the Dowager Madam. However, today's flower banquet involved many of her plans. Therefore, she had no choice but to come and oversee it personally.
If the old lady hadn't been angry with her, she could have come with her.
But now, she can only sneak in by using her relationship with Su Rongrong.
Meanwhile, in the carriage of the Duke of Jin's mansion, Madam Zheng looked at Min Qiaoshi, who had a bad expression, and asked curiously, "What's wrong with you? Your face is so long. If you didn't want the Earl of Enping to come along, you could have just refused. Why did you agree and then give her such a hard time?"
Madam Min Qiao shook her head, "It has nothing to do with the Lady of Enping."
"It can't be because I left home too early, can it?" Madam Zheng joked.
Madam Min glanced at her, then asked, "Come to think of it, why did you leave so early? You'll probably just sit there for half a day."
Seeing that she was unwilling to say more, Madam Zheng did not press the matter. Following up on her question, she smiled and explained, "The Seventh Princess and several princes are also going to the Yongning Marquis's residence today."
"You know the Seventh Princess's temperament; she's impulsive and unpredictable. If we arrive late, we might fall behind the princesses and princes."
"That's not good."
Madam Min suddenly realized, "Look at me, I had completely forgotten about that."
Qiao Yuanyao still needs to go back to the palace with the Seventh Princess. The Seventh Princess is definitely coming.
But, "Are the princes coming too? I haven't heard anyone mention it before?"
Madam Zheng shook her head, "She said that the princes met the Seventh Princess in the Empress Dowager's palace yesterday, and the topic came up on the spur of the moment."
Upon hearing this, Madam Min couldn't help but click her tongue in amazement. How could Madam Zheng know about what happened in the palace yesterday so quickly? She was so well-informed that she didn't know what to say.
Before long, the carriage entered the alley where the Yongning Marquis's residence was located.
The flower banquet held by the Yongning Marquis's Mansion this time was very grand. Firstly, it was the first banquet held by the Dowager Lady of the Yongning Marquis's Mansion after returning to the capital seven or eight years after leaving.
Secondly, the Dowager Lady of Yongning Marquis has always enjoyed extravagance and pomp, and this time she wanted to introduce her granddaughter to the world in a grand manner.
Therefore, most of the officials' families in the capital received invitations.
Madam Min Qiao, Madam Zheng, and Su Rongrong were among the more distinguished members of the group, and according to common sense, they should have arrived later.
But the group deliberately took an unconventional route and arrived much earlier than expected.
When the coachmen in line saw the carriages of the Duke of Jin, the Marquis of Xuanping, and the Earl of Enping, they immediately informed their hosts and then hurriedly made way for the people from the three mansions.
The carriage stopped at the gate of the Yongning Marquis's residence. As soon as Madam Min Qiao and Madam Zheng got out of the carriage, they were greeted warmly by the Marquis's wife and several daughters-in-law.
Lady Yongning was not yet forty years old and looked quite young, but there were mottled white hairs at her temples, which looked rather out of place.
Lady Min Qiao knew that the white hair of the Lady of Yongning Marquis had grown overnight after she learned that her daughter had been lost by her mother-in-law.
For this matter, the usually filial Marquis of Yongning unusually sided with his wife and sent the Dowager Lady of Yongning back to her hometown.
For years, the couple had been searching for their lost daughter, but the Dowager Lady of Yongning Marquis had adopted a grandniece from her maternal family back in her hometown, who then took over the title of the child who had been lost. This infuriated the Dowager Lady of Yongning Marquis.
But the Marquis of Yongning was foolishly filial and actually agreed to the old lady's absurd request, and actually registered the girl under her name, replacing her daughter.
Lady Yongning wept bitterly and from then on, she lost all affection for the Marquis of Yongning, focusing only on her sons.
Now, the three sons born to Lady Yongning all have promising futures, and the three daughters-in-law she married are all virtuous and filial. The Yongning Marquis's mansion is also managed by her to be as solid as a rock.
Originally, Lady Yongning had no intention of letting the old lady and her adopted daughter return to the capital. However, the old lady tricked her, pretended to be sick, and sent letter after letter to the capital. In the end, she even asked a young man from the clan to come to the capital to find the Marquis of Yongning and tearfully recount the hardships and suffering the old lady had endured in her hometown.
Marquis Yongning softened his heart, and the old lady and her adopted daughter were brought back to the capital.
When the people returned to the capital, the Marquis of Yongning learned that the old lady had decided that her granddaughter was now twelve years old and it was time to start looking for a suitable husband. That's why she was in such a hurry to return to the capital, hoping to find a good family for her.
When Marquis Yongning learned the truth, he was furious, but he couldn't send the person back. He could only try to comfort his wife.
The die is cast, and the person was sent away again after just returning, which has damaged the reputation of the Yu family and their sons.
Lady Yongning had no choice but to accept it, even if it meant refusing to admit it.
Fortunately, she was in charge of everything in the Marquis's mansion, and given the past grievances, the old lady didn't dare to cause too much trouble, for fear of completely angering her and being sent back to her hometown.
The old lady was sensible, so the Lady of Yongning Marquis gave her some face.
The old lady said she wanted to hold a flower banquet, and after thinking about it, Lady Yongning did not object.
In the end, holding a flower banquet is not a big deal. On the contrary, it can show the world her magnanimity, the harmony of the Yongning Marquis's Mansion, and also build her reputation and foster good relations with her neighbors. Why not do it?
Lady Yongning warmly greeted Lady Min and the others for a while before personally leading them inside.
"You go about your business, just have someone lead us in," Madam Min Qiao quickly declined.
Madam Zheng smiled and whispered, "Don't go away. The prince and princess might arrive at any time. Don't neglect them because of us two old women."
The two knew from seeing Lady Yongning at the gate that she had also received advance notice and was waiting there early to welcome the prince and princess.
They weren't so oblivious as to not let Lady Yongning miss the opportunity to welcome the princes and princesses first because of them.
Seeing the sincerity of the two old ladies, Lady Yongning was moved and did not insist. She sincerely said, "Thank you for your consideration, ladies. I will have my eldest daughter-in-law lead you inside."
He then instructed his eldest daughter-in-law to lead the people inside.
After everyone left, the second daughter-in-law of the Lady of Yongning Marquis whispered, "The two matriarchs are quite reasonable, aren't they? How come those people outside are spreading such terrible rumors about them?"
"Yes," the third daughter-in-law chimed in softly, "Why does everyone say that the two matriarchs are domineering, troublemakers, and difficult to get along with?"
"Neither of the two matriarchs seems like that kind of person to me."
Lady Yongning said with a smile, "You can't judge a book by its cover. Take our old lady, for example. She seems like a kind person on the surface, but what's she really like?"
The two daughters-in-law couldn't help but shudder at the thought of what the old lady had done after returning to Beijing.
Once the old lady returned to the capital, she put on the airs of a grandmother, making her granddaughters-in-law follow the rules, paying their respects morning and evening, serving them meals, and dressing them... treating them like servants.
She would often make veiled insults in front of them, clearly wanting to criticize their mother-in-law for sending her back to the countryside for seven or eight years, but not daring to offend her mother-in-law, so she vented her anger on them.
But they always find a plausible excuse, leaving them with no way to express their suffering.
Even outsiders who see it can't find fault with her. It's truly infuriating.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com