Chapter 82 Willing
Looking at Madam Wu's hypocritical face, Lu Yifang felt disgusted and said, "I'll have someone take you there."
Madam Wu quickly stood up with a smile, "Thank you, Madam of the Heir Apparent."
Lu Yifang waved for Granny Feng to take her to Jiang Jiamu's courtyard, and Madam Wu bowed to her again. At this moment, Lu Yifang spoke again: "I suppose you already know that Zhengyan is now my daughter-in-law. If she is unhappy, then I am unhappy too."
Madam Wu's smile froze for a moment. She hadn't expected Lu Yifang to value Wu Zhengyan so highly, and she felt a surge of jealousy and regret. But she still smiled, "What are you saying? I'm only happy to see my eldest daughter, how could I possibly make her unhappy?"
Lu Yifang gave a faint "hmm" and asked Granny Feng to take her there. On the way, Madam Wu spoke to Granny Feng several times, but was only met with indifferent responses. She tried to slip Granny Feng some silver, but Granny Feng gave her a cold look and said, "Madam, this is not customary in our household."
Mrs. Wu smiled awkwardly and withdrew her hand, sensing that things wouldn't go smoothly this time. But she was unwilling to let Wu Zhengyan continue to enjoy such success. Moreover, she firmly believed that if Wu Zhengyan prospered, she would definitely not let her off the hook.
After much deliberation, she arrived at Wu Zhengyan's courtyard and met Wu Zhengyan and her husband in the hall. After exchanging greetings, she sat down. Madam Wu, seeing that Jiang Jiamu was not leaving, said, "Son-in-law, I have some private words I would like to say to Zhengyan."
Since she had already said so much, Jiang Jiamu had no choice but to get up and leave, but he was worried about Wu Zhengyan. Actually, he wasn't thick-skinned enough; if he were, he could have just sat there and refused to leave, and Madam Wu wouldn't have been able to do anything about it.
He only realized this after he stepped outside, but it was too late. Looking up, he saw Granny Feng and Chunxue, Jiang Yu's head maid, standing by the window in the corridor.
Upon seeing him, the two quickly bowed. Granny Feng added, "The young mistress was worried that the young lady might be mistreated, so she asked this old servant to stay here and watch over her."
“This servant is also,” Chunxue said. “The young lady asked me to come and keep an eye on things. If Madam Wu does anything wrong, she told me to go and inform her immediately.”
Jiang Jiamu was touched and smiled, saying, "Thank you for your concern, Mother and my younger sister."
He strode towards the study, but the atmosphere in the hall was far from pleasant. Madam Wu still maintained her kind mother demeanor, offering words of concern, while Wu Zhengyan remained cold and aloof.
Seeing that this tactic was not working, Madam Wu had no choice but to be direct. She said, "I already know about the switch between the legitimate and illegitimate sons of the Duke of Chu's mansion. I came here today to try and persuade you."
Although your husband has become the legitimate son, the former wife of Jiang Jiarong was the legitimate daughter of the Marquis of Jiangling. How can you compare? The Duke of Chu will not abandon the marriage alliance with the Marquis of Jiangling. Do you think your status will be awkward then?
Wu Zhengyan clenched her hands tightly. It's said that once a woman gets married, she still relies on her maternal family. But that wasn't the case for her. When trouble came, her mother-in-law and sister-in-law cheered her on and supported her, while her own family members suppressed her at every turn, saying that her status was unsuitable.
"Just say what you have to say." Wu Zhengyan didn't want to see her extremely hypocritical face anymore.
Madam Wu clenched her fist and then said, "Then I'll be frank. Yesterday, the wife of the Marquis of Jiangling came to our residence and said... that you should have Yun Kang adopted by the Marquis of Jiangling's legitimate daughter..."
"What?" Wu Zhengyan looked at Madam Wu in disbelief.
She knew Madam Wu's visit today was ill-intentioned, but she never expected her to suggest that Yun Kang be adopted out. He was the child she had carried for ten months and raised with such care for three years; how could she say such a thing?
Madam Wu continued, "This is also for Yun Kang's good. Every mother has to think about her child, and you have to think about Yun Kang too. If he's adopted by the legitimate daughter of the Marquis of Jiangling, he'll have a powerful maternal family, which will..."
She leaned closer to Wu Zhengyan and said in a voice only the two of them could hear, "Yun Kang will be able to inherit the title more smoothly then. Don't think that just because Yun Kang is the only great-grandson of the Duke of Chu, he can rest easy. Your husband can have Yun Kang with you, and he can have him with someone else."
He's the legitimate son now; taking a concubine is a piece of cake. Even if your husband didn't have any children with other women, wouldn't the Duke of Chu's mansion have collateral branches? If the Marquis of Jiangling's legitimate daughter adopted a child from that collateral branch as her son, what chance would Yun Kang have then?
"Shut up." Wu Zhengyan pushed Madam Wu away fiercely, tears streaming down her face, and said, "No matter what you say, I will not give Yun Kang away. Get out, get out."
Madam Wu wanted to "persuade" her again, but at that moment Jiang Jiamu and Jiang Yunkang rushed in, blocking Wu Zhengyan's way and looking at Madam Wu with hostility.
“Madam Wu, if you have any schemes to make, go home and do them there. Our Duke of Chu’s mansion is not a place for scheming,” Jiang Jiamu said to Madam Wu.
Xiao Yun Kang stared at Madam Wu with a murderous look in his eyes. If looks could kill, Madam Wu would have been dead countless times by now.
Madam Wu gripped her handkerchief tightly, gritted her teeth, and said, "Eldest daughter, your father said you'd better agree to this. If you don't, he'll sever ties with you. Think about it, what kind of good life can a married woman without a family to rely on? You..."
“Having a family like yours is worse than having no family at all.” A voice interrupted Madam Wu’s words. She turned her head and saw Lu Yifang and Jiang Yu walking in.
The two quickly walked to Wu Zhengyan's side. Jiang Yu looked at Madam Wu and sneered, "The Marquis of Jiangling is treating you like fools, and you really think you're fools too. Go back and tell the Marquis of Jiangling that Jiang Jiarong's funeral will be held soon, and it will be held as a son of a concubine."
Today, everyone in the capital will know that Jiang Jiarong is a son of a concubine, Jiang Jiamu is the legitimate grandson of the Duke of Chu, and Wu Zhengyan is the legitimate grandson's wife.
These words were spoken clearly and plainly. Madam Wu knew that what the Lady of Jiangling Marquis had told her was somewhat untrue, but she did not expect that the Chu State Duke would shamelessly publicize the scandalous affairs of the mansion.
Indeed, otherwise, how would Lady Jiangling have found her? Lady Jiangling had calculated that she and Wu Zhengyan were not on good terms, and she didn't want Wu Zhengyan to be happy.
She was indeed blinded by jealousy and fear, and now that she thinks about it, she really was a fool.
“Jung-yeon,” Lu Yifang said, looking at Wu Jung-yeon, “are you willing to write a letter of severance and cut ties with the Wu family?”
Looking at the pale-faced Madam Wu, Wu Zhengyan thought of what she had just said, and of what Madam Wu had done to her when they were still young. She also thought of her own father's selfishness and indifference towards her. Gritting her teeth, she said, "I'm willing."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
