It's no wonder Qinghua was so angry. After all, she had been serving Shen Yuerong since she was a child, and Shen Yuerong treated her like her own sister.
Chen Yuerong took the account book handed over by Qinghua. On the book was recorded: bird's nest, angelica, Sichuan brocade, silk, and night sandalwood.
The expenses of a favorite concubine in the palace are no more than this.
Shen Yuerong thought of the prosperous style of the young lady Jiang Cai when she entered Lu Linxuan, and felt unhappy.
She was so arrogant just when she first arrived. Was it really as Fu Hengyu said, that she was just a plaything sent to the bed by the Jiangzhou governor's dirty tricks?
Shen Yuerong didn't want to delve into it, let alone suspect Fu Hengyu.
She put the account book next to the chair and said, "Let's talk about our own affairs. What happened to her has nothing to do with me. My husband is busy with official duties, so I have to take care of the affairs of the mansion on his behalf. Let's go back to Yunlan Courtyard and ask the steward to send the accounts."
"Miss!"
Qinghua still had some complaints, but was stopped by Shen Yuerong, "Don't say too much, be careful of being gossiped."
There is a lot of gossip in this mansion. After living in a noble family for a long time, Shen Yuerong is no longer the straightforward person she used to be.
She is the lady of the house, so she must be careful with her words and actions.
After comforting Qinghua and returning to Yunlan Courtyard, Shen Yuerong was not really able to calm down, because Lu Linxuan was right next door, separated by a half-foot-high wall, and all she could hear was the sound of stringed instruments and the playing of the zither.
She fiddled with the beads on the abacus, but couldn't find her heart.
Normally, she only needs two hours to sort out the income and expenditure details of the eight shops and five major industries.
Today, it was late at night and there was still more than half left.
Qinghua came to trim the wick several times, and only when Lu Linxuan's side quieted down did Shen Yuerong close the account book.
She didn't sleep for long at all. Just after the Mao hour and the Chen hour, Shen Yuerong opened her eyes.
When Qinghua walked in with the water for washing her face, he saw a thin woman with black hair leaning against the head of the bed, clumsily putting on her clothes.
"Miss, you won't go to pay your respects to the old lady today, right? The sky is cloudy and windy, and your health is important!" Qinghua put down the water for washing her face, hurriedly went to the bedside, and supported Shen Yuerong to help her.
Shen Yuerong shook her head, "It's been three years, but if I don't go at this critical moment, what will my mother think? My husband will be in trouble again."
Qinghua felt that her young lady was as stubborn as a donkey, and her heart and eyes were full of her son-in-law. It seemed that since she married into the general's mansion, her backbone was with her son-in-law!
Looking back to the past, the young lady wore armor, marched among the troops, cured countless illnesses, and was awarded the rank of a third-rank female official.
After washing and dressing, Shen Yuerong looked haggard and even more fragile.
Qinghua was about to push her out, but unexpectedly the old lady came in person.
"Mother?"
Shen Yuerong looked at the old woman who came to her door. She was over sixty years old, half of her hair was silver-white, and her weathered face was full of wrinkles. When she smiled at Shen Yuerong, it was like a shriveled loofah that was rotting from the inside.
"I think you are not feeling well, so there is no need for all those red tapes." The old lady walked into the room with her seven-inch golden lotus feet, and with the help of the old maid, she sat down on the throne with four screens, leaning her elbows casually on the golden pillow.
Shen Yuerong was flattered. How could she have received such treatment in the past?
Even if it was raining knives from the sky, she had to pay her respects, otherwise people would always gossip about her, saying that she was disrespectful to her elders and did not understand etiquette.
She was not stupid. She must have come to comfort the old lady because she felt sorry for having an uninvited guest in her house.
Shen Yuerong's expression changed again and again, and the old lady said gently, "Yuerong, come to your mother's side."
Qinghua pushed the wheelchair to the bottom of the four-screen throne, and the old lady took Shen Yuerong by the withered hand, "My child, it's all Hengyu's fault. You have been wronged. I have already reprimanded him. The matter is done. I, an old woman, am also in a dilemma."
Speaking of which, the old lady looked very sad. Shen Yuerong treated her with respect and was also attached to Fu Hengyu, so how could she bear to vent her anger on the old lady?
"Mother, my husband has no choice but to be plotted against. As his wife, I should put the overall situation first and must not add insult to injury at this time." Shen Yuerong was tolerant and generous from the bottom of her heart.
Although she was the descendant of a miraculous doctor, she was born into a poor family after all, so marrying Fu Hengyu was considered marrying into a wealthy family.
Therefore, she reflected on herself every day and must not be criticized by others. She was a person from a small family with shallow eyes and was not worthy of the young general of the Fu family.
Shen Yuerong's words were beyond the old lady's expectations. She was stunned for a moment and asked in disbelief, "Yuerong, do you really think so?"
If I don't think this way, wouldn't it just cause a big fuss, embarrass Fu Hengyu, and end up in the family falling apart?
Shen Yuerong raised her lips with bitterness, but the old lady praised happily, "Good, good, good, Hengyu can marry you, what else can a husband ask for."
Then, the old lady spoke impartially, "To be honest with you, Yuerong, mother has already made a plan. When Miss Du Wan gives birth to a child, she will be adopted by you. With her status, how dare she try to compete with you, Yuerong, for your favor!"
"Mother……"
Shen Yuerong's heart trembled violently, and she was grateful to be protected by her elders.
The old lady patted her hand and said firmly, "It's settled. You can focus on taking care of the house affairs. As long as I am here, the seductive woman will never be able to cause trouble in the house!"
With the old lady's assurance, Shen Yuerong felt much more at ease.
After all, she was the legal wife who was married into the general's mansion in a grand sedan chair. The girl did act a little arrogantly, but she was not presentable after all.
After taking the reassurance pill, she realized belatedly that the old lady had left. Qinghua probably went to prepare tea and snacks, and there was no one serving her, but she could not ignore etiquette.
He forced himself to stand up, holding onto a chair, picked up the crutch beside the four-screen throne, and limped out of the door. No matter what, he had to get the old lady out of Yunlan Courtyard.
She was so focused on this that she ignored the pain in her stiff legs.
But just as they reached the Bauhinia Path in Yunlan Courtyard, they saw Fu Hengyu, who was eight feet tall and had a straight back, beside the old lady.
"It's done, don't let it leak out."
The old lady whispered to Fu Hengyu, "Then you can adopt the child under her name. With the help of her as a miracle doctor, she can enter the government in the future. Anyway, she is a disabled person and can't give birth to a son. It can be considered a good thing for you and Du Wan to raise the child."
Shen Yuerong stopped under the thorny branches of the Bauhinia tree, wondering if she was hallucinating.
The mother and child were strolling leisurely for a while, and the old lady chuckled and said, "The child is old enough, she has to accommodate him even if she can't."
Fu Hengyu just responded softly.
What does it mean that the child is old enough? In other words, they deliberately waited until Du Wan was about to give birth before bringing her back to Beijing?
Was it the old lady’s idea?
Under the leaden clouds, the two men disappeared.
Shen Yuerong recalled the way the old lady Jiangcai had tried so hard to make the decision for her, and a chill ran from the soles of her feet to her forehead.
Her body, which had felt like it had fallen into an icy cave, regained consciousness. The pain was piercing, as if millions of steel nails had pierced her leg bones.
Suddenly, her arms lost strength, her crutches tilted, and she fell down.
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