One stone stirs up a thousand waves.
The maid's words boomed in the room.
The bustling main hall fell silent in an instant, so quiet you could hear a pin drop.
The second wife, who was chatting with the ladies with a smile, suddenly froze, not fully reacting yet, and subconsciously said, "A mistress? What mistress?!"
A mistress is a mistress, a woman the second master keeps outside the home.
The young maid was bewildered by the Second Madam's question and replied, "A woman came to the main gate of the Marquis's mansion just now, accompanied by two children. The two children called the Second Master 'Father'..."
Swish.
The second wife's face turned green.
The old lady sat on the daybed, her face even more unpleasant than the second wife's. She was almost furious. "How could the second son keep a mistress?! Could it be that someone is jealous of the second son's promotion and is deliberately causing trouble to ruin his reputation?!"
"Get them out!"
The old lady's voice was sharp and urgent, and she coughed at the end.
Shen Wan sat to the side, her eyes wide open.
Xie Jingyan said to wait until we were done watching the excitement before heading back, and then the excitement would begin.
Without a doubt, the fact that the Second Master's mistress came to their door was definitely that scoundrel's doing.
He didn't even give her a heads-up beforehand. She was worried about not finding a chance to leak the matter to the second wife, but he had already decisively sent his mistress with the child to his door. He even did it in front of a bunch of guests who came to offer their congratulations, so that not only could she have a good show, but everyone who came to give gifts also got a share.
Seeing the second wife's green face, suppressing her anger as she got up and quickly went out, the old lady's chest heaved with anger. Worried, she quickly gave Sun Mama a look, telling her to follow her out and keep an eye on things.
There were several other ladies in the room, and they looked at each other, unsure of what to do.
It is said that family scandals should not be aired in public, but the maids of the Pingyang Marquis's mansion reported the matter without any attempt to hide it from outsiders like them. However, since the mistress has come to the door and their master is still in the front yard, even if they can keep it from them, they cannot keep it from their master. They will find out eventually, so there is no need to hide it.
But they were so embarrassed to hear such a scandal. Although Madam Shen said that someone was ruining the reputation of Second Master Shen, she did not rule out the possibility, but it was unlikely. After all, there were quite a few people who were promoted in the capital. Not long ago, the Fourth Master of the Pingyang Marquis's Mansion was promoted two ranks and became the Director of the Military Equipment Bureau, which had real power. He was even more prestigious than Second Master Shen today. Others did not have mistresses coming to their door, but Second Master Shen did. Moreover, Madam Shen's reaction was also strange. If it really was someone who came to ruin Second Master Shen's reputation, hitting them would not stop the rumors. They would have to send them to the authorities.
Even if the authorities can't find out who sent them to ruin Master Shen's reputation, they can still teach that treacherous person a lesson and throw them out... It all seems like an attempt to cover up the truth.
The old lady fiddled with her prayer beads rapidly, saying, "I'm sorry to have made you ladies laugh."
One of the ladies smiled and said, "With fame comes trouble. We trust Master Shen's character. It's getting late, so we'll take our leave now and come to pay our respects another day."
The ladies all stood up, not giving the old lady a chance to persuade them to stay. The old lady was not in the mood to persuade them to stay either, and immediately asked the fourth wife to see them out of the mansion.
As soon as the ladies turned around, the old lady's smile, which she had been trying so hard to maintain, fell off, and her face turned so ugly that she looked as if she wanted to skin the mistress alive.
She knew that the second master had a mistress, and that the mistress had given birth to a son and a daughter for him. As long as the second master and his wife were harmonious in the Marquis's mansion and there was no concubine causing trouble in the inner quarters, the old lady would turn a blind eye. After all, the second master only had two children, Shen Li and Shen Ying, which was too few. If something unexpected happened, the family line would end. The old lady had hoped for one or two more sons born out of wedlock.
However, the mistress's identity was too shameful, so she could turn a blind eye. But getting past the second wife was not an easy task. There was also Shen Jing. As long as the second master's family background was respectable, Shen Jing would not question it. But if a courtesan was brought into the mansion, Shen Jing would never agree to it.
The second master knew in his heart that in order to keep the inner quarters quiet and to avoid angering Shen Jing, he simply kept her outside, which kept it a secret for so many years.
The old lady turned a blind eye to the mistress, but with Shen Li's unexpected death, the second master had no sons born of concubines. The old lady began to waver. If there were a legitimate son to inherit the family name, it would be one thing if an illegitimate son was ruined. But the second master only had one son. Who knew what kind of person he would become if he was raised by a woman from a brothel? The old lady would only feel at ease if he raised him by her side.
The old lady had the idea of taking her grandson back, and she asked the second master to deal with the mistress. With a mother of such a lowly status, the grandson would be criticized for the rest of his life. Not to mention outside the mansion, even the maids and servants in the mansion would look down on him. But the second master couldn't bear to part with her, after all, they had been together for more than ten years.
The old lady had considered taking direct action, but she was afraid of hurting her relationship with the second master and her son, so she hesitated until now. As a result, the mistress came to the door with the child!
If a high-ranking official keeps a mistress, it is a breach of private morality. If the censors find out, they will surely impeach him. In addition, the eldest prince and the Prince of Jin are already locked in a fierce battle for the position of crown prince. If the eldest prince finds this as a pretext, he will definitely join forces with the censors to impeach him. At that time, not only will the second prince be punished, but even the Prince of Cheng, who recommended the second prince, will probably be implicated and reprimanded by the emperor.
The old lady fiddled with her prayer beads rapidly, her mind in turmoil, unsure of what to do.
Shen Wan took in the old lady's anger. The worse the old lady's mood was, the better she felt. She didn't know how many times she had praised Xie Jingyan in her heart.
His move prompted his mistress to come knocking on his door, and she directly put the second master on the stake.
If the Second Master denies having a mistress, then the two children are not his, and those two children will never be allowed to set foot in the Pingyang Marquis's residence again, otherwise he would be deceiving the emperor.
If he were to accept that mistress, who knows how many memorials would be submitted to the Emperor tomorrow accusing the Second Master of moral failings. Such a scandalous affair has already surfaced so soon after his promotion; the Emperor will surely be furious, and no one knows what punishment the Second Master will receive.
The excitement was all in the front yard, and Shen Wan, growing impatient, got up.
Outer courtyard, main hall.
As Shen Wan walked in, she saw the mistress that the second master was keeping. It has to be said that she was quite beautiful, even more beautiful than the second wife, and several years younger. She was dressed in silk and wore a gold hairpin. This was no mistress at all; she was clearly the second wife being kept outside.
The second wife's face was ashen, and she roared almost hysterically, "Can't you hear what I'm saying? Throw them out!"
The concubine paled, shielding the two children in her arms. The boy broke free from her embrace and ran to hug the second master, saying, "Father, please don't send us away..."
The second master let the child hold him; he wasn't afraid of angering the second wife, but he was afraid of Shen Jing, who sat in the head seat with a grim expression.
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