Chapter 35: Means (Part 2)

The only son of Duke Mao and his legitimate wife...

Eleventh Lady never believed that pie would fall from the sky!

She looked at Sixth Aunt, her expression becoming somewhat serious.

Finally, the person in front of her was moved, and a trace of relief flashed in Sixth Aunt's eyes.

"When the first wife told the eldest master about this, the eldest master kept shaking his head. He said that although Duke Mao's family had fallen into decline in recent years, he was still a contributor to the founding of the Great Zhou Dynasty. There are still three pounds of nails in a rotten boat, so why would he agree to marry a concubine's daughter as his daughter-in-law? There must be something unknown between them. Don't agree lightly."

Eleventh Lady was very surprised.

All along, the eldest master was just a name, a title to Eleventh Lady. He could not help her when she was in trouble, could not rely on her when she was helpless, and could not support her when she was struggling... In her impression, he was just the one who gently asked her if she had eaten... She never thought that one day he would say such words!

"When the eldest lady heard what the eldest master said, she sneered. She said, of course it was because Wang Lang had a problem, so Duke Mao Guo would settle for the next best thing. He didn't ask for family background, but only wanted the woman to have a clean family background, gentleness and kindness. But even so. That’s right, there are three levels of “problems”: the ugly ones are first, and the ones that can’t stand up to the wall. Fighting is first class, and the one who is sick and has a short time to live is second class. You think I am the kind of person who doesn't care about everything. When I hear what kind of country the prince is, I will be eager to marry my daughter... ...The elder was a little annoyed after hearing this. In that case, tell me, what is wrong with the prince of Maoguo?"

Eleventh Lady's thumb stroked the bright red plum blossoms on the teacup.

"The eldest wife covered her sleeves and started crying. She said that this was originally the kindness of the eldest aunt. Considering that there are many concubines in the family, they should be treated decently! They can't either marry a concubine's son, or become someone's second wife, or marry a poor man... When the eldest master heard this, his momentum was reduced by three points. He murmured, "Then we have to ask, right?" The eldest wife glared at him. She said that the Xu family and the Wang family live together in Yanjing, and we don't know what will happen. You are not willing to act like a coquettish person here, and others may even look down on you! This is just the eldest aunt's own opinion. As for the final result, we have to ask Baoshan to find out!"

"And father agreed?" Eleventh Lady put down the teacup in her hand with a calm expression.

Her attitude made Sixth Aunt slightly stunned. After a while, she said, "Yes. So the eldest master agreed. He told the eldest wife that this is a matter for you women. It's up to you as long as you feel good about it!"

Eleventh Lady nodded slightly, looking thoughtful.

There was no worry, fear or anger as Sixth Aunt had imagined... She was a little unsure.

Gritting her teeth, Sixth Aunt grabbed Eleventh Lady's hand and said, "Silly child, can't you see the danger in this? A skinny camel is bigger than a horse. No matter how poor the Duke of Mao's Mansion is, it is still a rich family that eats imperial food and gets iron rolls. Can't the whole of Yanjing find a woman with a "clean family background, gentle and honest" to match the prince of their mansion? Although our Luo family is prominent, it is only a small area of ​​Yuhang. When we come to Yanjing, we are nothing more than country bumpkins in the eyes of those wealthy families. If the problem of Prince Wang is not serious, why would he go to such a faraway place to find a country wife?"

Different life experiences, different perspectives on issues, and different choices...

All she wanted was a shelter where she could breathe naturally!

Compared with the complexity of the Xu family, even if the young master of the Wang family wanted to find a woman of unknown origin because he was sick... weighing the two, she felt that she could accept it. By then, as a chaste widow, as long as she followed the rules, the Wang family would not make things difficult for her even if they disrespected her!

Eleventh Lady listened absentmindedly to Sixth Aunt's nagging while thinking about her own thoughts.

"You and Wu Niang, you have two choices. Either marry into the Wang family or marry into the Xu family. The Luo family is not what it used to be. The careers of several masters can only rely on the Xu family. If you can marry into the Xu family, think about it. By then, from the eldest master and the eldest wife to Madam Xu and Madam Yao, the Luo family will not only be disrespectful to you, but they will also be too busy to curry favor with you. Wu Niang has suffered all her life, and she can be proud of herself. If you marry into the Wang family, firstly, you don't know her background, who knows if she is stupid or crazy, and your life will be ruined; secondly, the Wang family is inferior to the Xu family in every way. In the future, if there is anything wrong with the Luo family, the Wang family can't help, and the Luo family will not care about you as their daughter. You have no If you lose the support of your natal family, your husband’s family will certainly look down on you. When that happens, you will be helpless and will never have a comfortable life. Think about it again. What if it is Wu Niang who marries you? Not only will she get all the honors, but she will also look down on you with her nature of looking down on the weak. If she sees that your mother and your mother-in-law are not doing well, she will always treat you as a younger brother. I am afraid that she will add insult to injury... If you have a hard time, Wu Niang will be so sad to see it. Eleventh Miss, I treat you the same as our Twelve Niang, so I am not afraid of offending you when I say these words. You should think more about what I say. It will not be in vain for me to be a villain for once.”

What this means is that unless she marries into the Xu family, she will be dead.

Eleventh Lady had her own opinion and didn't say much to her. She smiled and said, "I know your kindness, Auntie. But I'm confused now and can't come up with an idea for the time being. Please let me think about it!"

After all, she is just a thirteen-year-old girl...

The Sixth Aunt was relieved.

She squeezed Shiyi Niang's soft hand and whispered, "You better hurry up. I don't know how long this matter can be kept secret! Whoever gets the first chance will be able to take the lead. You can't let down your aunt's kindness."

Eleventh Lady nodded solemnly and sent Sixth Aunt out.

As a result, I met Mother Xu at the door.

"Auntie is here?" Mother Xu's eyes flashed, "The eldest lady is asking you!"

The Sixth Aunt nodded nervously, said hello to the Eleventh Aunt, and left in a hurry.

Mother Xu asked Shiyi Niang, "Why did Auntie come to see you?"

Eleventh Lady smiled and said, "Ask about my twelfth sister!"

Mother Xu nodded, and the wariness in her eyes disappeared at once.

Perhaps influenced by Sixth Aunt's words, Mother Xu's eyes made Eleventh Lady, who always understood her situation very well, feel cold for the first time.

"Mom, come sit in the room!" She greeted Mother Xu with a smile.

But Mother Xu said, "No. The Marquis is here, and the First Madam wants you and Wu Niang to wash up and go and pay your respects to the Marquis."

Eleventh Lady was slightly startled. Mother Xu had already turned around and went to Fifth Lady.

Dong Qing hurriedly pulled Shiyi Niang back to the house, called Binju to fetch water for her to wash her face, and rummaged through the boxes and cabinets: "Miss, what should you wear? Otherwise, just wear the beautiful jacket that the first wife asked someone to make when you came here..."

"Can you calm down?" Eleventh Lady said with a smile, "That's a spring dress, do you want to freeze me to death?"

"Or you can wear that pink silk-engraved jacket with a picture of a hundred children playing with babies. It was given to you by the eldest lady, so you will look decent when you wear it."

"I usually have plenty of silk and satin." Eleventh Lady teased her, "If Mother Xu knew what you said, she would call you in for questioning. Where did you put all my clothes?"

She was in a good mood and chatted with Dongqing for a while, then told her to take out her embroidery tools: "Take advantage of these two days of free time to make a spring dress for Brother Zhue."

Dongqing was delighted to hear this, and responded to the call to bring out the rattan basket filled with embroidery needles, large and small bands, etc. Shiyi Niang had her hair done up by Binju, and changed into an apricot-yellow plain jacket with floral decorations, and put on a pair of pearl earrings, and went to the east chamber to invite Wu Niang: "... Let's go together."

Wu Niang had her hair done up in a high bun, wore a red gold hairpin, inserted large pearl and jade flowers into her hair, and wore a rose purple jacket with a pattern of "Everything Goes Well". She had her face lightly powdered and rouge applied, looking radiant and bright.

Seeing Shiyi Niang coming to invite her, she curled up her lips and showed an extremely charming smile: "I'll be there right away." She then ordered Ziwei: "Bring out some of the honey-pickled plums."

Zhuo Tao and Sui'er were squatting there painting Wu Niang's nails.

Eleventh Lady ate honey-pickled plums while waiting for Fifth Lady to finish cleaning up.

"Time is too short, so we can only make do with it for now." Sui'er explained with a smile, "I originally prepared it for tonight."

Wu Niang looked at her fingertips, which were blooming like peach blossoms, and smiled, "The color is a little light... I'll add more color tonight!"

Sui'er replied "yes" with a smile, and together with Ziwei and others, she saw Wu Niang and Shiyi Niang off.

Zhuo Tao lowered her head and eyelids, following silently behind the maids.

The sisters went to the eldest wife's main house.

The room was silent. The servants were all silent. Du Wei blinked at them expressionlessly.

"Why did you come at this time?" The eldest wife's voice sounded calm, but like the sky in front of her, one could feel the hidden irritability.

Wu Niang smiled and said, "My sister and I came here together."

Make the obedient people think that she was late because of Eleventh Lady.

Normally, Eleventh Lady didn't care too much when she said these things, but today, she felt it was very harsh.

This girl never forgets to put the blame on others.

But she remained the same as before, looking uneasy and keeping silent.

The eldest wife's eyes swung at her with a sharp knife-like look and shouted in a low voice: "Get out of here."

Everyone in the room suddenly changed color and immediately lowered their heads, pretending that they had not heard or seen anything.

Wu Niang's face turned pale, and she and Shiyi Niang retreated. After leaving the door, she still grabbed Du Wei beside her and said, "Madam..."

Du Wei looked around and saw the maids standing under the eaves, all standing there respectfully and solemnly with their hands down. She whispered, "The Marquis said he came to see the Madam, but as soon as the Madam showed up, the Marquis said he had something to do and had to leave... He sat there for less than a cup of tea..."

So you are unhappy?

Eleventh Lady's heart was moved when she heard this.

Amber reported that Lord Hou had talked to Lord Da for an entire afternoon during the second year of the Lunar New Year.

Wu Niang was slightly startled, then her eyes flashed with regret. She looked at her pink nails and said angrily, "I didn't paint my nails properly!"