Dispute over inheritance
"Third uncle? Why not second uncle?"
On the carriage to Zhaohua Town, Zhao Mingyan quickly discovered a suspicious point after learning about the good things that the Zhao family's branch had done behind their backs.
"He, like the lady, was kept in the dark and had no idea what was going on." Nanny Li frowned.
When Zhao Mingyan returned home, her uncles saw that she was too stubborn and had no intention of taking over the shop, so they had to change their strategy and secretly nominated her third uncle Zhao Guangzu as the new patriarch of the Zhao clan. Then, taking advantage of the patriarch's status, he led the other branches to try to divide up their family's land and houses on the grounds that Zhao Mingyan had no son.
Before Nanny Li arrived, they had already been to the house twice, using both soft and hard tactics to force Li Yuzhu to hand over the land deed.
My second cousin Zhao Guangyao was completely excluded. He wanted to help but had no way to do so.
Because apart from him, the other three families had already colluded with each other.
"Miss, I know you have a grudge against the Second Master. When the old master first left, he did want to take over Mingyue Zhai, but he didn't want to take advantage of you, an orphan and a widow. He just felt that as a woman, you would marry into another family sooner or later. If he didn't take it over, it would sooner or later fall into the hands of others." Nanny Li said earnestly.
"Over the years, if he hadn't helped negotiate with the other families, the Third Master and his men would have taken action long ago. That's why those idiots who were secretly cultivating in public didn't recruit him."
"Right now, all he can do is help us secure more land and property, so that we don't end up with only the shops in Huadengfang and the houses in town."
"Strive for it? That originally belonged to our eldest family's land and property!"
When Zhao Mingyan heard this, he became furious.
"That's true, but according to our dynasty's laws, daughters don't have inheritance rights. If a family has no direct male heir, collateral relatives can fight for the property through the government. If it gets to that point, it will be very difficult to deal with!"
As soon as Zhao Mingyan returned to her parents' home, she heard these words from Zhao Guangyao and became even more furious.
She slammed the table and stood up suddenly. "Isn't it just a matter of going to the government? I'm not afraid!"
"If you want to file a lawsuit, I can assist you." Merlin said seriously.
"But once the family scandal gets out..."
Li Yuzhu frowned and looked at the two of them, "Is there no better way?"
"Mom, the best way is to make those people give up completely. Otherwise, they will never stop and will become even more aggressive." Zhao Mingyan said sternly.
"If we had adopted that child back then, there wouldn't be..."
"mother!"
Zhao Mingyan immediately interrupted her "If I had known this earlier" and said firmly: "I will definitely give birth to a son for our Zhao family!"
After discussing the lawsuit, Zhao Mingyan took Xiaozhu and hurried back to the Tan family in the Zhao family's carriage, just in time for dinner.
She didn't bother to tidy up her clothes and composed herself, she jumped out of the carriage and trotted straight to the main courtyard.
"Young Madam?"
Just outside the main courtyard gate, he bumped into Tan Linshuang and his servant.
Seeing her and Xiaozhu looking exhausted, Ayun suddenly became suspicious.
He and Tan Linshuang had gone out early in the morning and had only returned a little earlier than them. They still didn't know that they had been called back to Zhaohua Town by Nanny Li, but it was clear at a glance that they had been out for a long time and had traveled quite a distance.
If you go to the Chastity Hall, you won't have to travel so long.
Tan Linshuang, who was standing by, asked directly, "Where did you go?"
Meeting his questioning look, Zhao Mingyan, who was already upset and angry, became even more displeased. She left after saying "What's it got to do with you?"
When passing by Ayun, Xiaozhu gave him a cold look, which made him feel that he was the victim of the disaster and felt wronged.
"Master, why did you upset the young mistress again?" He couldn't help but complain.
If you make her unhappy, Xiaozhu will give me a bad look.
But what did I do wrong? I didn't even say a word, just standing there and being ignored.
Tan Linshuang did not answer and walked into the main courtyard with a frown.
They ate without talking until dinner was over. Then Tan Linshuang put his arm around Zhao Mingyan and asked softly as they walked out, "My lady, what's wrong with you?"
Zhao Mingyan opened her mouth, hesitated for a moment, and then said, "You should ask grandma to change the chef. The Dongpo pork tastes like Li Bai's."
"What does Li Bai's taste like?" Tan Linshuang asked with a smile.
Zhao Mingyan said: "It's bold and unrestrained, even the hair hasn't been removed."
"Ahem!" Tan Linshuang couldn't help laughing.
"You haven't told me where you went today?" He asked quickly while her mood improved.
Zhao Mingyan lowered her head and said, "I went back to my parents' home."
"Is there something going on at home?" Tan Linshuang asked hurriedly.
Zhao Mingyan pursed her lips and began to hesitate again.
Tan Linshuang continued to ask, "When will you go to the Chastity Hall?"
I don’t have time to go to the Chastity Hall right now.
Zhao Mingyan frowned and answered in his heart.
The last time it was put on hold was because of Fan Wenlan’s poisoning. Later, he was angry with Tan Linshuang and was not in the mood to find Aunt Zhuang to open her heart face to face.
After this delay, Aunt Zhuang and the others received another letter, so she had to use Fan Wenlan's poisoning as an excuse...
“If you avoid it for too long, you’ll be at a loss when you finally face it.”
Seeing that she didn't say anything, Tan Linshuang urged her again.
Zhao Mingyan raised his head and squinted at him, asking sarcastically, "You want to be a father?"
"Um?"
Tan Linshuang didn't hear the sarcasm in her words for a moment. He was stunned for a moment and nodded. "I'm going to take a shower. You light the red candle and wait for me."
After counting on his fingers, he realized that the two of them had not had sex for quite some time.
After further calculation, these days are the days when Zhao Mingyan should get pregnant.
Tan Linshuang soaked in the soup, his lower abdomen gradually tightened. The long-lost heat made him impatient. Before he even dried himself, he returned to the room with half-wet hair. "My wife."
He shook his wet hair and smiled.
"My wife?"
The flickering candlelight illuminated the snoring figure on the bed.
Tan Linshuang walked over lightly, leaned over to look at Zhao Mingyan's sleeping face, and smiled helplessly.
"The time, the place, and the people are not in harmony."
The next day, after having breakfast, Zhao Mingyan and Xiaozhu hurried out again, but they did not take the carriage of the Tan Mansion. Instead, they hired a carriage on the street and headed straight to Zhaohua Town.
As soon as they left, Ayun came to the study and said to Tan Linshuang, "Young Madam and Xiaozhu went out again and didn't take the mansion's carriage."
"So mysterious and sneaky, what's going on?"
Tan Linshuang frowned, then asked, "Where's my uncle? Is he out too?"
Ayun nodded, "Atong is driving the carriage. When Aye comes back, we'll know where the Second Master went today."
"But, at a time like this, he shouldn't be messing around outside, right?"
"Oh!"
Tan Linshuang pulled the corners of his mouth apart and laughed sarcastically, "A dog will always eat shit. How long can he endure this?"
"Send A Ri to Zhaohua Town to see if Zhao Mingyan has returned to her parents' home." He then ordered.
Um?
Ayun hesitated for a moment, but didn't ask any more questions and nodded to do as he was told.
When Zhao Mingyan arrived at the Zhao Mansion with Xiaozhu, Zhao Guangyao and Meilin were already there. The two of them gathered around the dining table, on which were scattered many papers and booklets. Zhao Mingyan took a closer look and saw that among them were their family's land deeds, family tree, and so on.
Although he was unsure, he felt a little relieved when he saw the two of them responding so positively. He then looked at Li Yuzhu, who was sitting beside him sighing, so he walked over, put his arm around her shoulders, and whispered to her in comfort, "Mom, Dad's spirit in heaven will definitely not let us suffer any harm."
Li Yuzhu was still frowning, looking down at her belly, seeming to want to say something but stopping herself.
"If I could have a son..."
Zhao Mingyan suddenly remembered that she had fallen asleep last night and made Tan Linshuang work in vain.
So, after returning home tonight, she took a careful shower. Seeing that Tan Linshuang was already lying down, she lifted the quilt and reached in.
"My wife."
Tan Linshuang grabbed her hand as she was unbuckling her belt and opened her eyes at the same time, "Are you going on a long trip again today?"
Facing his scrutinizing eyes, Zhao Mingyan did not feel guilty, but was still unwilling to tell him about the changes that were happening at home.
They are husband and wife, but not relatives.
In addition, there is Fan Wenlan, a man with more tricks than a beehive, between them, so they are even more reluctant to mention this matter.
"I went back to my mother's house. My mother hasn't been feeling well lately." She could only half-tell the truth and half-hide it.
"What's wrong with my mother-in-law?" Tan Linshuang immediately raised her neck and looked at her nervously.
"Oh! Women are dirty and irritable, happy and sad and want to cry." Zhao Mingyan opened his eyes and made up nonsense.
"I see..."
Tan Linshuang understood and felt sad.
He lay down again, gently stroked Zhao Mingyan's head, and said, "Let's use the carriage in the mansion. It's always inconvenient to hire a carriage outside."
"I'm afraid my grandmother will think too much." Zhao Mingyan blurted out.
Tan Linshuang was stunned and suddenly realized that Zhao Mingyan had changed. She had become cautious and prudent. She was no longer as bold and careful as when she first got married, and she was outspoken.
He suddenly felt distressed and mixed emotions.
"Madam... well..."
He was about to tell her something from the heart, but his mouth was blocked, and his waist loosened, and a fleshy hand touched inside, gently rubbing and touching.
"My wife..."
He closed his eyes, his breathing becoming increasingly heavy, his voice breaking. "You and I are husband and wife. If you encounter any difficulties, remember... to tell me."
Zhao Mingyan said "hmm" and then sat on it, jumping like a jade rabbit, appearing and disappearing at random, as if catching the soul of a toad in the sky.
“Haha…”
Xiaozhu, who was sleeping in the side room, was woken up by the noise of the two people. She yawned and pricked up her ears to listen carefully. "Huh? Why does it sound like my son-in-law is crying tonight?"
The rain and dew had all dried up, and Zhao Mingyan lay down and fell asleep contentedly, while Tan Linshuang continued to breathe heavily, her heartbeat still not calming down.
"My wife."
"Hmm?"
"I……"
"What?"
"Nothing, it's getting late, go to bed."
"Then blow out the candle."
Tan Linshuang: ...
He turned over and sat up, stretching his neck to blow out the candles.
The moment the candle went out, Zhao Mingyan's voice was heard softly, and it seemed that she had fallen asleep.
Tan Linshuang laughed in silence, looking at her soundly sleeping face, and couldn't help asking himself: Apart from letting her bear children, is there anything else that is worth mentioning about me as her husband?
It is the height of summer and the chirping of cicadas is disturbing.
Five days later, Zhao Mingyan and Meilin came to the county government with a complaint, accusing the Zhao family's branch of the family of usurping their position.
"Who are you from the Zhao family?"
The magistrate Qi did not let the chief clerk take the complaint handed over by Meilin, but instead examined his identity.
"I, Meilin, am a close friend of the late Zhao clan leader, Zhao Guangliang."
"Close friend? Not a relative of the Zhao family?" Lord Qi narrowed his eyes slightly.
"No." Merlin shook his head.
"Why aren't you here to file a complaint?"
Lord Qi sneered, "Don't you know that according to our dynasty's laws, women must go through male relatives or family representatives to participate in lawsuits?"
As he spoke, his gaze turned to Zhao Mingyan, who was kneeling on the ground with her head bowed. The corners of his mouth stretched even wider. "Ms. Tan Zhao, bring a male relative with you next time. Otherwise, no matter how close your personal relationship with Hall Master Gu is, I will not be able to help you handle this case."
"Back off!"
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