pity
"Miss, what did Aunt Zhuang say to you? Why are you so angry?"
On the way back to the Tan Mansion, Xiaozhu looked at Zhao Mingyan's gloomy face and asked carefully.
"I'm not angry, I just..."
Zhao Mingyan frowned, thinking back to what Aunt Zhuang had said. It was obviously very different from what Tan Linshuang had told her. At least in terms of the attitude of Tan Moxiang's in-laws towards her, there was a world of difference.
Tan Linshuang said that her in-laws treated her badly, so Fan Wenlan sent her to the Chastity Hall.
But Aunt Zhuang said that Tan Moxiang's in-laws treated her much better than Fan Wenlan's. It was Fan Wenlan who was jealous of her biological mother, so he took his anger out on her and made her marry a man with a serious illness. When he saw that she was still treated well by her in-laws after she became a widow, his resentment arose again, so he simply sent her to the Chastity Hall to live out her life in loneliness.
Is grandma really that cruel?
Zhao Mingyan couldn't help but feel a little confused.
Fan Wenlan is definitely not a good person, but does not being good necessarily mean being evil?
I don’t know if it’s because I’ve been with Fan Wenlan for too long, but I feel like I’m in Mount Lu without knowing its full picture.
"Do you feel sorry for your aunt?"
She looked up at Xiaozhu who was sitting opposite her, a bystander who was relatively detached from the matter.
Xiaozhu nodded without thinking, "Poor."
"Huh?"
After she finished speaking, she suddenly revealed a puzzled expression, tilted her head and murmured, "Didn't the young lady say last time that she was very pitiful?"
"Did I?" Zhao Mingyan seemed to have forgotten.
She only remembered the scene of her and Tan Moxiang drinking tea and chatting about virtuous women under the bamboo forest that day. The other party looked carefree and free, without any sense of sadness.
Xiaozhu nodded vigorously. "Although I can't remember your exact words, I feel that you feel quite sorry for Sanniang and think that she has lost her freedom."
“Hmm…”
Zhao Mingyan gradually recalled the past, and at the same time, Aunt Zhuang's words once again lingered in her ears.
"I heard that just when Mr. Tan from your family was about to make Ah Xiang's mother his concubine, he fell ill a few days later and never recovered. The matter was left unresolved. After he passed away, Ah Xiang's mother also died of illness. But that vicious old woman sent her mother to another village under the pretext of not wanting the child to be infected with the disease. She died there too. The mother and daughter didn't even get to see each other for the last time. How could such a coincidence happen?"
"Miss, we're here."
Xiaozhu's words interrupted Zhao Mingyan's memories. Looking at the brocade she was holding in her arms, Zhao Mingyan said decisively, "Let's go to the South House first."
"Looking for Sanniang? Miss, why don't you ask the old lady first?"
Xiaozhu followed her with two pieces of brocade in her arms, feeling surprised and suspicious.
Zhao Mingyan raised her chin and said confidently, "I'm helping the sisters from Chastity Hall bring brocade to my aunt. I'm sure grandma won't mind."
"Can……"
Xiaozhu wanted to say something, but seeing her clothes fluttering and her steps taking big steps, he had to give up.
She felt that it was inappropriate for her young lady to be so rash as to meet the imprisoned Sanniang, but she couldn't put her finger on what was inappropriate, as Sanniang was not a prisoner.
Bang, bang, bang—
As soon as he reached the big door leading to the backyard, Zhao Mingyan knocked hard.
The door was opened quickly, but there was still only a crack, revealing half of Aunt Qiu's face.
Seeing it was Zhao Mingyan, she was quite surprised, but then she calmed down and nodded and asked, "What's the matter, Madam?"
Zhao Mingyan pointed at the brocade in Xiaozhu's arms, smiling but still maintaining her ladylike airs. "These two pieces of brocade were woven by the chaste women of the Chastity Hall. We want to show them to our aunt for inspection. After all, she's half their master. Now that she's not in the weaving room, they can't be sure."
"This..." Aunt Qiu still had a look of refusal on her face.
Zhao Mingyan took a step forward and reached out to push the door open. "It just so happens that I also have some questions about brocade weaving that I'd like to ask Auntie. I hope Auntie Qiu will be accommodating."
Looking at her outstretched hand and her expression that brooked no refusal, Aunt Qiu had no choice but to open the door and let her and Xiaozhu in.
On the way, she followed him closely and waited by his side, not giving them a chance to be alone together.
Zhao Mingyan didn't take it seriously and told Tan Moxiang the purpose of his visit without changing his words.
Tan Moxiang did not suspect anything, spread out the brocade flat on the low table, and examined it carefully in the light of the setting sun.
"First, look at the grain. Yan'er, whether it's plain, twill, or satin, the grain is clear at a glance. The grain must be distinct."
"Look at the colors. The colors of our Shu brocade are clearly layered, three-dimensional, and rich, just like a highly skilled landscape painting. At first glance, the clouds and mist seem to be moving."
"Then there's the luster. The color of Shu brocade changes with the light, creating a sense of brilliance."
"Finally, the touch feels thick and bumpy."
As he said that, he took Zhao Mingyan's hand and touched it.
"Yeah! It's indeed thick and layered." Zhao Mingyan nodded with a smile.
"Madame Qiu, come and touch it too."
Then she looked up at Aunt Qiu.
“No, no, no!”
Aunt Qiu, who was peeking in, was suddenly called out by her and quickly waved her hand and stepped back.
"I'll make some tea."
As soon as she left the room, Zhao Mingyan immediately looked at Tan Moxiang and said frankly with a blushing face: "Aunt, I lied."
Tan Moxiang just smiled faintly, "Sister Zhuang and the others are already proficient in brocade weaving. They don't need my guidance."
"The advice is fake, but the real purpose is to give you brocade. These two pieces of brocade were personally selected by Sister Zhuang. She asked me to bring them to you to make two summer dresses."
"Who are you wearing this for? Are you just admiring yourself?" Tan Moxiang shook her head and smiled bitterly.
"Why can't I just admire myself? Then who..."
Zhao Mingyan couldn't recall who had said this, but she remembered something like, "No one's watching, so I'll just indulge myself in front of the water tank."
"puff!"
Tan Moxiang laughed dumbly, "That must have been what Chen Yaomei said, right?"
"Yes, yes!" Zhao Mingyan remembered.
Then, she frowned again, "She is one year younger than me, at the age when she loves beauty, but because of her widowhood, she has to spend half her life here."
Chen Yaomei'er's family was poor. In order to save money for her brother's marriage, her parents married her to a widower as a second wife before she even reached the age of 15. However, her husband passed away soon after the marriage. In order to bring honor to the family, her family members sent her to a chastity hall.
Trade her life for their fame and fortune.
From then on, she was deprived of the last touch of color, and her life was left with only gray and white, just like the walls of the Chastity Hall, dull and lifeless. But she still painted colors on this gray and white, even if the wind would blow it away, she wanted to grasp the brief splendor.
Therefore, she was very positive about weaving brocade, as if the colorful brocade she wove could make up for the shortcomings in her life.
When Tan Moxiang thought of Chen Yaomei, he felt upset and the calmness on his face disappeared immediately.
"Is she okay?" Her voice couldn't stop trembling.
Zhao Mingyan nodded. "I feel happy and content wearing the clothes I made myself every day."
"Won't Hall Master Gu scold her?" Tan Moxiang asked with a frown.
"Aunt, I guess you have some prejudice against Master Gu. He is not that rigid. As long as you don't show off outside, close the door, and don't set the house on fire, he will turn a blind eye." Zhao Mingyan said with a smile.
"Really?" Tan Moxiang's eyes moved slightly.
“Ahem!”
Suddenly, Xiaozhu coughed. Zhao Mingyan and Tan Moxiang exchanged a glance and made a gesture to say goodbye. "Since these two pieces of brocade are flawless, let's leave them to Auntie and Aunt Qiu to make new clothes."
"Madame Qiu, what do you think?" She turned and looked at Madame Qiu who was bringing in tea.
Aunt Qiu didn't know how to respond for a moment and could only smile awkwardly.
Crunching——
In the dead of night, the bed began to shake again, and the red curtains swayed.
“Ah…ha…”
Zhao Mingyan was breathing rapidly, like a monkey struggling to grab fruit from a branch, mumbling incessantly, her hair bun tilted to one side, and her blue chest rippled like waves.
"Madam, you...you should slow down..."
Tan Linshuang held her waist, feeling that she was too vigorous tonight.
Zhao Mingyan was indeed very excited tonight. Firstly, she had calculated that tonight was a good time to prepare for pregnancy. Secondly, everything had been going well for her recently, which made her a little too proud of herself.
Behind the bed, she had to observe the code of conduct for women and not show her emotions, lest others look at her with suspicion.
But in bed, you can do whatever you want.
"My dear husband, I want the sun and the moon to be in my arms."
She moaned softly, the desire for a child was particularly urgent at this moment.
"Then lie down."
Tan Linshuang also hoped that she could get pregnant quickly so that she could pay off the betrothal gift owed to the Zhao family.
So, taking advantage of her indifference and emptiness, as if she had forgotten her feelings, he held her legs with both hands, lifted them up to his chest, suddenly entered the red door, and penetrated deeply into her valley.
"ah!"
Zhao Mingyan's body trembled, saliva overflowed, and he shuddered. His toes curled inward, and his instep tensed. Under Tan Linshuang's attack like a black tortoise, he gradually entered a state of ecstasy...
"Madam Qiu, these are the refreshments that the sisters from Chastity Hall asked me to bring to my aunt."
The next day, Zhao Mingyan, with a rosy face, knocked on the door of Nanzhai again.
This time, Aunt Qiu opened the door wider, revealing her entire face.
He glanced at the food box in Zhao Mingyan's hand, hesitated for a moment, and let her and Xiaozhu in.
Zhao Mingyan smiled and asked, "Have you decided what kind of clothes to make with the two pieces of brocade you brought yesterday?"
"Not yet... not yet." Nanny Qiu answered hesitantly.
Zhao Mingyan still smiled, "Don't worry, I'll make it for you after you think about it. Don't forget to make one for Nanny Yin as well. It's not easy for you to serve Auntie."
"Although the South House has everything, it can't compare to the outside world."
"If it's inconvenient for you to ask Madam Fang to buy something, you can tell me. Now, I run between my business and the Chastity Hall, so it's more convenient for me to buy things than before."
Aunt Qiu didn't respond, but just nodded.
Xiaozhu stole a glance at her and found that her attitude was a little softer than the previous two times.
As the saying goes, once there is a second, then there will be a third. Zhao Mingyan has come so many times that Nanny Qiu has gotten used to it.
As for the Nanny Yin who never showed up, Zhao Mingyan guessed that she should be a second-class maid who was only responsible for Tan Moxiang's daily life and did not serve her.
But she didn't know that every time she came here, a pair of eyes would always spy on her every move through the layers of bamboo forest...
"Yan'er, I have something to ask of you."
That day, after Nanny Qiu went to change the water for making tea, Tan Moxiang grabbed Zhao Mingyan's hand and her expression suddenly became earnest.
"What's the matter? Aunt, please feel free to tell me." Zhao Mingyan nodded.
Tan Moxiang held Zhao Mingyan's hand tightly, her tone filled with pleading and longing, "Can you please ask your grandmother to bring my second aunt back?"
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