Chapter 150 Zhang Shi Gets a Reprimand
When Madam Gu heard her eldest daughter-in-law mention these young masters, she was not satisfied with any of them. The one she was least satisfied with was the heir of the Marquis of Wu'an. However, her daughter-in-law was the most satisfied with the heir of the Marquis of Wu'an. Seeing her eldest daughter-in-law's smug look, she replied indifferently, "I don't think they are all very good, especially the heir of the Marquis of Wu'an."
Upon hearing this, Zhang's face froze instantly. She felt that her mother-in-law was going against her, and she didn't know if her mother-in-law couldn't stand seeing the eldest son's family doing well or that Xuan Yi was marrying well. She asked in return, "Mother, your daughter-in-law thinks the Marquis of Wu'an's son is quite good. Why are you not satisfied?"
Madam Gu said calmly, "The heir of the Marquis of Wu'an is quite good. He comes from a good family. When the Marquis of Wu'an passes away, he can inherit the title. If Xuanyi marries into the family, she will become a countess in the future."
Upon hearing this, Madam Zhang's expression softened, and she asked with puzzlement, "If that's the case, then why does Mother think it's bad? Xuanyi has married well, and she can help her maternal family in the future."
Madam Gu said bluntly, "Eldest daughter-in-law, don't you know what kind of person Xuanyi is? Her personality is not suitable to be the matriarch."
Madam Zhang asked awkwardly, "Why is Xuanyi unsuitable to be the matriarch of the clan? The wife of the Marquis of Wu'an has met Xuanyi and likes her quite a bit. She even hinted that she wanted Xuanyi to be her daughter-in-law."
Seeing that she only saw the title of Marquis of Wu'an and was only thinking about marrying her daughter into a high-ranking family, while putting all other issues aside, and was about to make a foolish mistake again, Madam Gu frowned and said frankly, "Eldest daughter-in-law, Xuanyi is arrogant and spoiled, and does things her own way. How can she be a wife of the head of the family with such a personality? Marquis of Wu'an has several concubines, four sons and daughters born out of wedlock, two legitimate sons, and one legitimate daughter."
Aside from the Earl of Wu'an, there are still the second, third, and fourth branches of the family that have not yet divided the property. The old lady is the old master's second wife, and she is only a few years older than you. By the time she passes away, it will be a long time before the brothers divide the property.
"In such a large family, even if she marries into it and the Lady of Wu'an entrusts her with the management of the household, she won't be able to handle it. Even if the Lady of Wu'an supports her, she won't be able to manage the household affairs in a short time, and the Lady of Wu'an will likely have many complaints about her. Putting aside the management of the household, just considering the interpersonal relationships, in such a complicated family, her personality will only lead to her suffering. Aren't you just pushing Xuanyi into a fire pit by doing this?"
Upon hearing this, Zhang was immediately stunned.
Chen glanced at Zhang indifferently, and cursed inwardly: Fool!
Given the complicated nature of the Marquis of Wu'an's household, a normal noblewoman would not want to marry into such a family and suffer. Otherwise, why would the Marquis of Wu'an's wife want to leak information to Madam Zhang?
Xuan Yi is the daughter of the eldest son's concubine. Gu Jingsheng is useless, and neither of his two sons have entered officialdom. Xuan Yi's status is not qualified to be a match for the heir of the Marquis of Wu'an. However, the family has not yet separated, and Gu Jingxi is currently enjoying the emperor's favor. As a result, the Changxing Marquis's mansion has also risen in status, and the eldest and second sons have also benefited. Moreover, Zhang Shi is currently in charge of the household affairs, and she, as the second wife, is only assisting. This makes the eldest son's family seem quite prestigious.
The second and third sons of the Marquis of Wu'an were born out of wedlock, while the fourth son was born to the old Marquis's second wife. The fourth son is about twenty-two or twenty-three years old now. He has passed the imperial examination and entered the court as an official. He has also caught the emperor's eye and his popularity is gradually overshadowing that of his elder brother, the Marquis of Wu'an. The old lady, who is the mother-in-law, and the wife of the Marquis of Wu'an, who is the daughter-in-law, are only a few years apart in age, but she can suppress the wife of the Marquis of Wu'an as an elder.
The fact that Lady Wu'an was able to be suppressed by her mother-in-law for so many years shows that the old lady was no pushover either.
Therefore, Lady Wu'an wanted her eldest son, who had already been established as the heir apparent, to marry Xuanyi. This way, the heir apparent of Wu'an would have the support of the Marquis of Changxing's mansion, relieving the pressure on the eldest branch of the family. Moreover, Xuanyi's lower status would make her easier to control. Lady Wu'an had been controlled by her mother-in-law for so long, and now that she had become a mother-in-law herself, she would definitely control her daughter-in-law. However, Zhang Shi was not clear-headed and could not understand this.
The atmosphere remained silent for a long while before Zhang stammered, "Mother, I... I didn't think that far ahead. I'm so grateful for your reminder, Mother. But I've already made plans to go boating on the lake with the Lady of Marquis Wu'an. What should I do?"
Seeing her clueless and stupid appearance, Old Madam Gu got angry and scolded her in an unpleasant tone: "You have to clean up the mess you made yourself. Don't push the child into the fire pit. You almost made a mistake in Xiuyuan's marriage before. Now it's Xuanyi's turn and you're making a mistake again. I don't think you have ever reflected on your mistakes."
Zhang was scolded and kept her head down, not daring to say a word. She was just a little resentful. Both of her younger brother's wives were there, but her mother-in-law didn't give her any face.
Chen didn't say a good word for Zhang, just sat and watched the show. Originally, Zhang wanted Xiuyuan to find a good in-law, so that he could help Xiuyuan in his career in the future. But her mother-in-law stopped her from getting married, saying that the girl was not easy to deal with. Instead, she directly arranged for Xiuyuan to marry his current wife, Jiang, which made Zhang very angry.
As it turned out, the mother-in-law was farsighted in this regard. Jiang was gentle and virtuous. The girl from before had already married and caused a lot of trouble in her husband's family, but she had a good father who could not do anything to her. Only then did Zhang realize that her mother-in-law's approach was correct, and she hurriedly apologized to her mother-in-law.
Seeing that Chen was silent, Meng Jinyao also shut up and acted as if she were invisible, since it had nothing to do with her anyway.
Old Madam Gu picked up her teacup, took a sip, and suppressed her anger. She glanced at her daughters-in-law and said earnestly, "When choosing a wife, choose someone virtuous; when marrying off a daughter, choose someone with good character. Moral character is more important than social status. Marriage should not be based solely on social standing, but also on virtue, ability, and the other party's family situation. Families with complicated backgrounds cause a lot of trouble. It's better to marry the girl from such a family, but if the girl herself doesn't have the ability to turn things around, it's like falling into a fire pit."
Meng Jinyao and Chen Shi hurriedly replied, "Your daughter-in-law will follow your mother's teachings."
Madam Zhang was taken aback for a moment, then replied, "Your daughter-in-law will heed your teachings, Mother." She paused, then boldly asked again, "Mother, I have made an appointment with the Lady of Wu'an Earl to go boating on the lake tomorrow. Should Xuanyi go with us?"
Madam Gu replied, "You promised them that Xuanyi would be introduced to the heir of the Marquis of Wu'an. What kind of behavior is it for Xuanyi not to show up at the appointed time? This is a slap in their face and will only create enmity."
Madam Zhang's heart tightened, and she asked worriedly, "Have you arranged for Xuan Yi to meet the heir of the Marquis of Wu'an? What if they hit it off?"
Madam Gu glanced at her and said, "It's just a quick look, it's not like we're going to settle things right away. You should make it clear to Xuanyi. If she's not stupid, she'll be smart enough not to have taken a liking to the Marquis of Wu'an's son. Even if she does like him, you as parents can politely decline the Marquis of Wu'an's wife on her behalf, and keep Xuanyi at home. There's no need to dress Xuanyi up specially tomorrow, just dress her properly."
Zhang quickly replied, "Mother, your daughter-in-law understands."
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