She slowly put down the teacup, and the warm Ru porcelain base fell on the rosewood table with a light and crisp "click" sound.
"Oh?" Madam Xu raised her eyes. Her well-maintained face showed no emotion. Her gaze rested calmly on Sang Wenyin. Her tone was as gentle as ever, but her words were like a hidden needle hidden in cotton. "I remember that the marriage between Miss Sang and my son was arranged three years ago by Old Master Sang when our old marquis was still alive, right?"
Her voice was not loud, but it seemed to have an invisible weight, which made the smile on Mrs. Sang's face freeze for a moment.
Xu's gaze turned to Madam Sang, still gentle, but with an undeniable weight of authority. "It would have been right to welcome Wenyin into our family sooner. Unfortunately, first there was the national mourning period, then there was the mourning period for Elder Sang. This delay lasted for three full years."
She paused, her fingertips gently stroking the smooth rim of the cup. Her tone was tinged with a well-placed sigh and the tolerance of a head of household. Her eyes flickered over Sang Wenyin, "My Jin Zhao is also a sensible man. Even at his age, he didn't say much and waited patiently. Now, his mourning period has finally ended."
She looked at Jiang Jinzhao, her eyes revealing genuine pity, and her sigh deepened. "He's been through such an unexpected misfortune, and his injuries are not light. Normally, he should rest and recuperate, and put everything else aside. But his injuries aren't fundamental, after all. Once he recovers, he'll be fine. Miss Sang is too old to wait any longer."
She shook her head slightly, as if lamenting this twist of fate. "When the Marquis was alive, he often said that a girl's blooming season is the most important thing to not waste. My cousin from my mother's side got married in the spring of the year before last, and this spring she gave birth to a big, fat boy. Missing the timing of this marriage is something that both our families feel bad about."
Xu spoke these words slowly and gently, but every word was heart-wrenching.
Observing mourning is a national law and ethics. The three-year delay was the Sang family’s excuse, but the Marquis’ Mansion also waited.
Now that the mourning period has passed, the injury to the prince of the Marquis' Mansion is not a matter of life or death. If they talk about delaying the wedding date at this time, neither the Sang family nor Sang Wenyin herself will have a tenable moral justification.
Mrs. Sang's face changed slightly after hearing Xu's veiled words, and a trace of panic flashed across her eyes.
She immediately calmed herself down, leaned over and took her daughter's slightly cold arm, her voice filled with anxious comfort and earnest persuasion:
"Wenyin! Be obedient! Madam Xu is right! Look at your elder sister from Shangshu Wang's family and your younger sister from Duke Qi's mansion. Which one of them didn't get married at the age of sixteen or seventeen? Some of them are your age and already have children running around! Do you want to be an old maid and stay at home and be laughed at?"
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