Chapter 264 is no worse than her
Having received Grand Tutor Yan's order, Yan Shuyang immediately returned to the backyard. Upon seeing him, Madam Yan immediately said, "I have already arranged for Fengju's maids to go to the Duke of Chu's mansion, and I have also selected a set of writing implements from the storeroom as a thank-you gift for the Duke of Chu."
Seeing that she had made proper arrangements, Yan Shuyang's serious expression softened somewhat. However, after sitting down, he still said, "The marriage of Fengju..."
"I will go to the Fei family tomorrow to discuss the marriage with them," Madam Yan said immediately.
Yan Shuyang's expression darkened after being interrupted. He frowned and said, "The marriage is naturally off. Fengju will be an official in the future, so her marriage must be taken seriously. You don't need to worry about Fengju's marriage anymore, but you can't let the mistake you made this time go unpunished. For the next two months, you will stay in the Buddhist hall and chant sutras. Leave the affairs of the inner quarters to the eldest son's wife."
Madam Yan was so shocked that she couldn't find her voice for a while. After a while, she said with tears in her eyes, "It was my fault that I didn't find out more about Fei Si. But my lord, this whole family has to take care of our food and clothing, as well as our social interactions outside the manor. If I fail to do one thing well, am I so unforgivable?"
Yan Shuyang frowned. "Something that almost the entire capital knows, how could you not know?"
"Doesn't the master also not know?" Madam Yan retorted.
Yan Shuyang was speechless, and then heard Madam Yan say again: "I know that Fengju is promising and that Master and Grandfather want to focus on nurturing her, but what about our Hua'er?"
The Hua'er she mentioned was named Yan Fenghua, and was Yan Shuyang's eldest son.
“Hua’er is Hua’er, and Fengju is Fengju. Why are you bringing up Hua’er now?” Yan Shuyang felt that Madam Yan was being unreasonable.
Madam Yan was advocating for her child's rights. She said, "Fengju is going to join that Heavenly Crafts Bureau. I heard the lowest rank there is seventh grade. Hua'er's sister is already seventh grade. What will people say about him?"
Yan Shuyang took a deep breath. If it weren't for Madam Yan's prestigious family background, he would never have tolerated her like this. He then heard her say, "Aren't you just afraid that if Fengju becomes an official, she'll take away Hua'er's resources?"
Madam Yan was momentarily embarrassed when her thoughts were exposed. However, for the sake of her son's future, she disregarded this. "That's exactly what I mean. My lord, Hua'er is a boy, and the eldest son of the legitimate wife. You and the old master cannot abandon him!"
Yan Shuyang scoffed. His wife had always seemed so virtuous and understanding, and he never worried about matters within the household. He had no idea she was so narrow-minded. A matriarch of a large family, if her vision was too narrow, would also hinder the family's development.
Thinking of this, Yan Shuyang's expression grew even colder, but he still had to make things clear to Madam Yan, otherwise who knew what foolish things she might do?
“Hua’er failed the imperial examination last year. My father and I let him participate in the next one instead of recommending him for an official position. This is because he has the family backing him up, and as a Jinshi (a successful candidate in the highest imperial examinations), his future will be brighter. Fengju’s appointment as an official will not affect Hua’er. As you said, Hua’er is a man, and he will be the one to inherit the family business in the future.”
Madam Yan was relieved. As long as her son's interests were not affected, the confinement and the loss of her management power were minor matters in comparison. Moreover, since the management power had been handed over to her daughter-in-law, her losses were not significant.
Thinking of Yan Fengxi, she added, "What about Fengxi? Why don't you recommend Fengxi for an official position, sir?"
"What?" Yan Shuyang thought he was hallucinating.
Madam Yan repeated what she had just said, and then said, "Fengxi is the legitimate daughter, while Fengju, the concubine's daughter, has already become an official. How will she socialize among those noble ladies in the future? Besides, the Duke of Chu has become a fourth-rank official. My Fengxi is no less capable than her."
Yan Shuyang: "..."
After a long while, Yan Shuyang finally found his voice, "Do you think just anyone can compare to the Duke of Chu? Putting everything else aside, let Yan Fengxi participate in the provincial examination. If she can pass the examination and become a Xiucai (a successful candidate in the county-level imperial examination), I will recommend her."
Yan Shuyang stood up abruptly and shouted outside, "Someone, take Madam to the ancestral hall!"
As soon as she finished speaking, several old women came in. Madam Yan also had her pride, so she naturally wouldn't let the old women escort her into the ancestral hall. She bowed to Yan Shuyang and said, "My lord, everything I've done is for the sake of the child."
Yan Shuyang ignored her. Madam Yan gritted her teeth and walked out. Yan Shuyang watched her retreating figure, his brows furrowing deeply. He used to disregard the inner quarters, but now it seemed his wife was no ordinary hypocrite; the inner quarters needed a serious overhaul.
...
Chu State Duke's Mansion
The steward of the Grand Tutor's mansion, accompanied by Yan Fengju's two personal maids and a gift of thanks to Jiang Yu, arrived at the Duke of Chu's mansion. Jiang Yu received him. The steward relayed Yan Shuyang's message, presented the gift of thanks, and then said with a smile, "Thank you very much, Duke of Chu, for your care for my third young lady."
Jiang Yu glanced at him for a moment, then looked at the two maids behind him. Seeing that all three of them were respectful and not perfunctory, she grunted in agreement, told the steward to go back, and left the two maids behind.
Dongshuang, accompanied by two maids, entered the inner courtyard. Instead of going directly to Yan Fengju's guest quarters, she went to Lu Yifang's courtyard first. Lu Yifang met the two maids, asked them a few simple questions, and then told them to go and serve Yan Fengju.
But when the two maids reached the door, she stopped them and asked, "Did you bring anything your young lady usually uses?"
Two maids were carrying a box, which prompted Lu Yifang's question.
“Reporting to Madam,” a maidservant bowed to Lu Yifang, “we have brought several sets of clothes that my young lady often wears, as well as her usual cosmetics.”
"Hmm." Lu Yifang glanced at the boxes in their hands and said, "I have already prepared clothes and cosmetics for your young lady. Please let your young lady use what I have prepared. This is also a token of my appreciation."
The two maids dared not refuse and quickly agreed. Lu Yifang then instructed her head maid, Ruizhu, "Miss Yan is a guest, so go and keep an eye on her and make sure she is not mistreated."
Ruizhu responded and, accompanied by two maids from the Grand Tutor's mansion, went to Yan Fengju's guest courtyard. After they left, Granny Feng asked, "Is Madam worried that the people from the Grand Tutor's mansion might harm Miss Yan the Third?"
Lu Yifang sighed, "I was thinking about Jiamu's poisoning. I didn't know before, but now I know how cruel the struggles in the inner quarters are. That Miss Yan ran away, knelt on the street to stop Zhu'er's sedan chair and offered herself up, and the Yan family wants to marry her off to a man with syphilis. Just thinking about it makes me realize that the Grand Tutor's mansion is not peaceful. We don't care about the Grand Tutor's mansion, but Miss Yan cannot be allowed to have any problems in our mansion."
After hearing this, Granny Feng nodded repeatedly and said, "This old servant will go and remind the people in the guest courtyard to be more vigilant."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
