Chapter 211 New Year (Part 1)

The two brothers talked until very late that night. Eleventh Lady was afraid that Fifth Lady would worry, so she sent Amber to report to her.

The Fifth Lady, accompanied by Shi Mama, was leaning on the kang by the window, doing needlework and waiting for Xu Lingkuan to come back. Hearing that Xu Lingkuan would come back very late, she raised her eyebrows slightly and said with a smile: "In the years since I got married, this is the first time that the Marquis has asked our Fifth Master to talk to him. It's really rare! Please tell the Fourth Sister-in-law that I won't wait for the Fifth Master. Please ask the Fourth Sister-in-law to take care of him and let our Fifth Master rest in the Fourth Master's study for one night. It's freezing cold, and he's coming and going in the middle of the night. It's no joke if he catches a cold."

Amber heard the hidden meaning in her words, but pretended not to understand. She smiled, bent her knees and replied "yes", and was sent out by the Fifth Lady's maid.

The Fifth Lady's face fell: "What do you mean? Something happened in their house, why did they call the Fifth Master to do it?" Then she smiled coldly, "I don't believe that the Marquis will say anything from his heart to the Fifth Master!"

Mother Shi's eyelids jumped when she heard this, and she immediately laughed and said, "If something like this happened at home, who else can the Marquis tell if not the Fifth Master? After all, they are brothers from the same mother."

Madam Wu listened and murmured, "I think something is wrong. You didn't see how excited Master Wu was when Madam Tai mentioned the child. It seemed..." When she said this, her heart skipped a beat, "It seemed as if this matter had something to do with him..."

The Marquis has a concubine...

Others believed it, but Mother Shi didn't. Apart from other things, when the old marquis married his daughter to the Xu family, he not only saw that Xu Lingkuan was the youngest son in the family, had a gentle personality and good looks, but also saw that the Xu family was friendly and respectful to each other, and that the Marquis of Yongping was a man of both military and literary talents, and had a good character. In the future, his daughter would have a big tree to lean on and enjoy the coolness. The old marquis of their family had never made a mistake!

Thinking about what Fifth Madam said, Mother Shi's face turned pale.

She had been working in the Dingnan Marquis's mansion since she was seven years old. She had seen and heard so much. She had long understood that the truth was not important, but the result was. Since the lady said that the child was the Yongping Marquis's, then the child was the Yongping Marquis's!

We can't add any more complications.

You know, Danyang attaches the most importance to face.

Everyone in the family knew about it, except for her... Some might think that it was because her family felt sorry for her, but others might feel resentful - we are both daughters-in-law, why do you have to step on me to help others become virtuous?

Mother Shi was upset, but a smile appeared on her face. "What's wrong with you? You were not so suspicious before."

"I'm not suspicious." Madam Wu frowned slightly, revealing a thoughtful look, "There's something wrong with this... The person that Master Wu respects the most is Madam Tai, and the person that he fears the most is Master Hou." As she spoke, she looked at Madam Shi, "How could she suddenly be so bold as to interrupt when Madam Tai was speaking? And Eleventh Lady, she's the best at adapting to the situation, and usually acts according to Madam Tai's instructions when she sees her. But today, she was also very strange, and actually spoke before Master Hou!"

The more Mother Shi listened, the more frightened she became, but the smile on her face grew brighter: "In my opinion, what you said is wrong!"

The Fifth Lady raised her eyebrows and showed an expression of "you say".

"I think that our Fifth Master is most filial to the Madam, but the one he respects the most is the Marquis." Mother Shi said with a smile, "Do you still remember? When you first got married, one day you made a joke about the Marquis, and the Fifth Master got angry on the spot... You know, the Fifth Master has always been very tolerant..."

The Fifth Lady was slightly startled and then remembered.

It is true.

At that time, they were newlyweds, and were in the prime of their love affair... It was also because of this incident that she understood what the Fifth Master valued most... and then asked everyone around him to call her "Fifth Madam".

Mother Shi saw clearly and went on to say, "Speaking of which, the Marquis is of noble status. It's no big deal for him to have a concubine and give birth to a son. But it was spread all over the place. Firstly, the Marquis is in a high position and has great power. Secondly, it's because the Marquis is strict in his daily behavior and it's rare for people to see him lively. The old Marquis in the mansion died early. In the eyes of the Fifth Master, the Marquis is both a brother and a father. Others think it's just a trivial matter, but if it's put on the Marquis, I'm afraid the Fifth Master will feel bad. It's common to want to defend the Marquis. I don't see any difference."

"No." Madam Shi's words made Madam Wu shake her head. "It's clear from the way he acts that he wants to take the blame for this..."

"That's right." Before the Fifth Lady could finish her words, Shi Mama interrupted and said, "Who is the Marquis? He is the Junior Tutor of the Crown Prince, the Grand Commander of the Five Military Commands, and the general who suppressed the Miao Rebellion and conquered the northwest. The Fifth Lady would rather have this happen to him than to the Marquis, who would be pointed at and laughed at by others!"

After hearing what Mother Shi said, the Fifth Lady, who had been very sure, couldn't help but become a little hesitant.

This husband has many shortcomings, but he is a good person at heart. Otherwise, she would not be able to live with him.

When Mother Shi saw this, she immediately decided to talk more deeply.

"The Marquis usually treats the Fifth Master like a child. If you don't mention anything else, wouldn't you feel uncomfortable seeing this? This time the Fifth Master showed that he wanted to take the responsibility on himself, and the Marquis was so happy that he couldn't stop smiling! We have to talk to the Fifth Master anyway. Don't worry about it." After saying this, he felt that this was too strong, and said, "How about we ask the old Marquis when we go back to Hongdeng Hutong on the second day of the New Year? He has walked more roads than we have eaten salt. We don't understand it, so could it be that he doesn't understand it either?"

"That's right!" Madam Wu finally nodded. "Dad is very knowledgeable. Just ask him and you'll know!"

Mother Shi finally breathed a sigh of relief and smiled as she changed the subject: "Since the Fifth Master is staying at the Marquis's place tonight, you should also go to bed early! Let the maids do the sewing work, it will hurt your eyes if you are careful."

"It's just making a pair of socks." Mrs. Wu smiled and put down her needle and thread, then let Mama Shi help her to get on the bed.

Eleventh Lady fell asleep out of exhaustion. When she woke up early the next morning, she was a little surprised to see that the bedding was not wrinkled at all.

Amber, who was directing the maid to fetch water for washing her face, said with a smile, "Master Hou and Master Wu rested in the study last night!"

Long talk by candlelight?

Judging from the situation, the two of them should have reconciled their past grudges!

Eleventh Lady smiled and got out of bed with the help of Amber.

"Master Hou and Master Wu haven't gotten up yet?"

"Not yet." Amber smiled, "Luyun, Hongxiu, Chunmo, and Xiayi are all waiting in the study, so don't worry!"

Eleventh Lady nodded and was about to go to the bathroom to wash up when Mother Tao hurried over.

"She must have heard about the Fifth Young Master." Eleventh Lady left her in the hall, "Let her wait."

Amber smiled and answered to pass on the message. Eleventh Lady came out after washing up, sat on the big kang by the window, drank half a cup of tea, and then asked the maid to call her in.

"Madam, I heard something yesterday, and I don't know whether it's true or not, so I came here to ask you. I hope the maids won't spread rumors without knowing the seriousness of the matter." She said it more tactfully.

"What did they talk about?" Eleventh Lady smiled and asked the maid to bring a stool to Mother Tao.

She half-sat on a stool and then asked cautiously about Xu Siqi: "...it was said that after offering sacrifices to the ancestors today, it will be included in the family tree?"

Eleventh Lady nodded and repeated what the Madam said last night, and then said, "...she was raised under the name of Aunt Tong and will live with me for the time being. I also consulted the opinions of Gongxian Hutong beforehand."

Hearing that the Luo family knew about it, Mother Tao nodded and whispered, "Who is the biological mother of the child?"

It was obvious that he didn't believe that the child was brought back from the charity.

Eleventh Lady really wanted to laugh.

This is a typical case of covering one's ears and stealing the bell, but everyone has to unanimously say that they did not hear the bell.

“Since he was brought back from the charity, he must be an orphan!” Eleventh Lady was also one of those who did not hear the ringtone.

Mother Tao was obviously very satisfied with this answer - "no father, no mother", so the child's biological mother would never appear!

She turned her eyes slightly and asked Shiyi Niang in a mosquito-like voice: "How about you let me take care of the child? Anyway, I don't have anything to do now!"

Eleventh Lady immediately thought of Luo Zhensheng... and then refused without a second thought: "It depends on what the Marquis thinks!"

Before Mother Tao could say something, Nan Yong's wife came over to comb her hair, so Mother Tao had to retreat.

Eleventh Lady suddenly remembered something and asked Nan Yong's wife, "Do you want to be a housekeeper mother?"

Nanyong's wife was surprised.

The mother who worked as a housekeeper in the Xu residence received a monthly allowance of two taels of silver.

"I..." She hesitated, afraid that she might not be able to do it well.

"Can you take care of a child?" Seeing her anxious look, Shiyi Niang said with a smile, "The Marquis brought a child home and raised him under the name of Aunt Tong. Now his family is in need of a mother to take care of things. Go back and discuss it with your husband. Is it okay? Just let Amber know before the tenth day of the first lunar month."

Nanyong's wife murmured in response and was distracted several times while combing her hair.

After she left, Amber couldn't help but say, "Nanyong's wife is too honest!"

"It's good to be honest!" Thinking of Xu Siyi's voice as sweet as a yellow warbler, Shiyi Niang couldn't help but let out a long sigh, "Fifth Young Master needs honest people around him."

Amber smiled and helped Shiyi Niang put on an emerald green silk jacket with vines patterned on it.

The three concubines came to greet them. Also accompanying them was Binju, who was holding Xu Siyi.

Xu Siqi wore a pink satin bangs, combed his hair into a bun, had a pointed chin, and eyes as clear as autumn water. At first glance, he looked like a little girl. He saluted Shiyi Niang in the same way as Binju, his eyes rolling around as if he was looking for something!

Are you looking for Xu Lingyi?

Eleventh Lady found it very interesting.

Bin Ju was already explaining, "…I was helping the Fifth Young Master get dressed, and Aunt Qin came over to invite us to come along."

Aunt Qin smiled and said, "I thought that the Fifth Young Master had just arrived and didn't know some of the rules, so I asked Sister Binju to hold the Fifth Young Master and come over to greet you."

Her smile seemed cautious, with a hint of blue under her eyes.

After all, as you get older, you will have dark circles if you don’t get enough rest.

Eleventh Lady thought about it and looked at Madam Wen.

She looked rosy, refreshed and energetic, as if she was even more energetic than herself.

It seems that the matter of the child has no effect on her at all.

Eleventh Lady looked towards Qiao Lian's room again.