Chapter 534 Utterly Despicable
At this moment, the Ling family physician broke the silence: "Madam, Madam, the young master suddenly developed a high fever after catching a cold. Once the fever subsides and he rests for a few more days, he will be fine."
Upon hearing this, Madam Meng felt sorry for her grandson, but also regretful and saddened for him. Chengxing had been studying diligently for the past six months and was about to take the exam, but he suddenly fell ill and would not be able to attend the exam on time.
Soon, Madam Meng turned her attention to the maids serving in the courtyard. After the physician left, she immediately punished the maids for their negligence, which caused Meng Chengxing to miss the Lingshan Academy's assessment. Each of them had two months' wages deducted as punishment.
Zhao said, "Mother, Chengxing is so ill, how can my husband, as his father, not know? I will go and find him right away."
Madam Meng glanced at her daughter-in-law. Her daughter-in-law's maid had gone before, but her son was nowhere to be seen. Now that her daughter-in-law was going in person, her son might not even see her. So she said, "No need. I'll send someone to look for him later."
Zhao replied softly, "Okay." After saying that, she added dutifully, "Mother, it's so late, why don't you go back and rest first? Your daughter-in-law is here, and I will take good care of Chengxing. And Chengzhang, you are setting off back to the academy tomorrow, so you should go back and rest first."
Although Meng Chengzhang was not worried about his younger brother's illness, he changed his mind. He decided not to set off so soon tomorrow, but to go to the Marquis of Changxing's residence to see his elder sister first. He said, "I am also very worried about my third brother's illness. I will cancel tomorrow's trip and wait until my third brother's high fever subsides before I go back."
Hearing her daughter-in-law and grandson's words, Madam Meng felt very comforted and said gently, "You are so kind. I will go back now. If anything happens, please send someone to find me."
Zhao replied, "Yes, Mother."
No sooner had Madam Meng left than her face darkened. She instructed her maid to tell her son to come to Rongfu Hall to see her immediately.
Meanwhile, Meng Dongyuan and his concubine were at a crucial moment when they heard a maid's voice outside the door: "My lord, the old lady wants you to go there immediately, without delay."
The good time was interrupted, and Meng Dongyuan's mood was instantly ruined. His face was also very ugly. Earlier, when Zhao Shi sent a maid to ask him to go back, he refused to see her. He didn't expect that Zhao Shi would go to his mother to complain. But his mother ordered him to go over, so he had no choice but to obey. He immediately got up, put on his clothes, and hurried to Rongfu Hall with a displeased expression.
When Madam Meng saw him, she was even angrier at his tense face and displeased expression. She immediately launched into a tirade: "Your son is so sick, and you're out having an affair with your concubine. We had to beg you three or four times to come back to you. What kind of father are you?"
Meng Dongyuan froze, then asked blankly, "Mother, why is Chengzhang sick when he was perfectly fine?"
Upon hearing this, Madam Meng's face darkened: "You only have one son, Chengzhang? No wonder Chengxing did something foolish before. How could you be so biased? Sun was wrong back then, but your son is yours, he has your blood in his veins, and he is the child you cherish. How can you bear to treat him like this because of Sun?"
Knowing he was in the wrong, Meng Dongyuan didn't dwell on the issue and asked awkwardly, "Mother, I really didn't know Chengxing was sick. He's so healthy, how could he suddenly fall ill?"
Madam Meng snorted coldly: "Of course you don't know. When Qianyi sent someone to look for you, you simply refused to see them. She didn't even have a chance to tell you. You actually embarrassed Qianyi just to have fun with that slut. How is that any different from favoring a concubine over your wife?"
"You can't be accused of favoring a concubine over your wife," Meng Dongyuan quickly said. "Mother, you're too kind. I just thought she was up to something again, which is why I ignored her."
Madam Meng asked in a deep voice, "Qianyi is gentle, virtuous, considerate, and filial. What do you have to complain about? You're always slandering her and twisting the truth to say bad things about her."
Meng Dongyuan explained: "Mother, she..."
Madam Meng glanced at him and interrupted him: "Alright, I don't want to hear your excuses. It's normal for men to love young and beautiful women, but your wife can't stay young and beautiful forever. Even if you marry a fifteen-year-old now, she will grow old eventually. Qianyi is such a good woman. Apart from being a bit older, she has no other flaws. When choosing a wife, choose virtue; when choosing a concubine, choose beauty. You need to understand this principle. No matter how much you like a young and beautiful concubine, you still have to give Qianyi face."
Meng Dongyuan was humiliated. No matter what he said, his mother wouldn't believe him. The gentle woman in his mother's eyes was like a shrew in front of him. When he faced Zhao Shi, he could only suffer losses.
If the Zhao family sent someone to find him tonight and explained that Chengxing was ill, would he refuse to see them? It was precisely because the person sent by the Zhao family didn't say anything and only told him to go back that he was so angry that he refused to see them. He even suspected that the Zhao family deliberately left things unclear, thinking that if he ignored it, they would complain and then have his mother cause him trouble. That woman is truly despicable!
Madam Meng said regretfully, "Chengxing has developed a high fever and will miss the Lingshan Academy's assessment. We don't know when the academy will recruit students again."
Meng Dongyuan, however, was quite relieved and said dismissively, "Even if Chengxing went, he might not pass the test. It's good that he's sick now, so he won't embarrass himself. I'll have an excuse to tell others that he was sick and couldn't participate, instead of failing again."
Madam Meng frowned, her face grim: "What do you mean by that? Chengxing has been clever and quick-witted since he was a child. His tutor said that he would definitely pass the imperial examination with flying colors. For the past six months, he has been studying hard every day. Passing the Lingshan Academy's examination will be a piece of cake for him."
Meng Dongyuan didn't take it seriously: "Mother, which teacher doesn't praise the employer's children when they're hired to teach? Just listen to this kind of flattery, don't take it seriously."
Old Madam Meng had never noticed her son's sharp tongue before, but now, in a fit of rage, she blurted out something she shouldn't have: "You blind and deaf wretch, you deserve a lot of credit for the decline of our Meng family!"
Upon hearing this, Meng Dongyuan was immediately stunned.
As Madam Meng spoke, she grew increasingly angry: "If I had known you were utterly useless, I should have passed you over and let Chengxing inherit the title."
Meng Dongyuan's pupils suddenly contracted as he stared at his mother in shock and disbelief. He was, after all, the child his mother had carried for ten months and given birth to, yet his mother treated him this way. Other mothers, no matter how much they loved their grandsons, would choose their sons over their grandsons, but his mother was different.
In an instant, Meng Dongyuan felt a strong sense of crisis. It was of utmost urgency to depose Chengxing, that wretched child, from his position as heir. Otherwise, if anything happened to him, that wretched child would inherit the title.
However, under what pretext should they petition the Emperor to depose that wicked prince and install Chengzhang as the new prince? That is also a problem.
When Madam Meng saw her son remain silent, she realized that she had inadvertently spoken her true feelings. But once the words were spoken, they could not be taken back. She was the elder, and what could she do if her juniors were so disappointing?
Thinking this, Madam Meng said again, "Alright, you're already in your forties, and your career path is basically set. I won't ask for too much. I just hope you'll do well in the future. I'm tired, you can go back now."
Meng Dongyuan lowered his eyes and replied softly, "Mother, please calm down and rest well. I will come to see you again tomorrow."
On the way back, Meng Dongyuan's mind was filled with thoughts of how to depose Chengxing from his position as heir apparent.
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