Chapter 382 Question
Wei Tingzhen was furious when he heard this and was about to say something back to Pang Yulou when Dou Ming's wet nurse, Madam Zhou, came over with Dou Ming.
"I'm sorry to have caused trouble to all my aunts, uncles, and sisters-in-law because of my affairs." She knelt down and saluted the women from the Dou and Wang families. The scarlet silk gown hung on her skinny body, looking empty and making people feel sad.
Pang Yulou was used to putting on a show, so she immediately stepped forward and took Dou Ming's hand, wiping her eyes while choking with sobs, "My dear aunt, how come you have become like this after just one year? We are all experienced people. Whose daughter-in-law is not taken care of well during the confinement period and gains a few pounds after the confinement period, but how come you are so thin that you look like a ghost? If our ancestors knew about this, they would be so heartbroken for you, so anxious!" "I'm urging your uncles to write to your grandfather and ask him to find some of the best Yunnanese herbs for you to heal your body!" She said, looking at Wei Tingzhen, and said sincerely, "Your family is a century-old family, how come you don't even have the best herbs?" She looked at Cai again, "Sister-in-law, I still have two packets of the best Gastrodia elata and a pound of blood swallows, but the century-old ginseng was not feeling well a few days ago, so I gave it to my mother-in-law, and only a small part of it is left. I don't know if it's enough?"
What this means is that the century-old ginseng was produced by the Dou family.
Cai cursed Pang Yu Lou in her heart.
What is the price of a hundred-year-old ginseng? Can it be compared with a little bit of Gastrodia elata and blood swallow?
But in front of Wei Tingzhen, she couldn't refuse.
Otherwise, according to the customary rules, the Dou family is the one that is not decent.
They are indeed wicked people with evil intentions and are not worthy of being companions.
She smiled and said, "There is no one in Fifth Aunt's husband's family, so she can only count on us, her family. I will ask the nanny to send some ginseng to Fifth Aunt to nourish her body, so you can rest assured, her aunt."
But it does not say how old the ginseng is.
Pang Yulou curled his lips inwardly.
They boast that they are a family of scholars every day, but at the critical moment, their true colors as merchants are revealed, and they look down on the Pang family everywhere!
The two of them argued openly and secretly, and the Fifth Madam was secretly unhappy. She turned around and said to Wei Tingzhen in a friendly manner: "Since your wife is not feeling well, why don't we go sit in Sister Ming's room?"
This is where the real action begins.
The people present naturally smiled and agreed.
A group of people went to the banquet room in Dou Ming's upper house.
The maids served tea and snacks, then all left quietly.
The Fifth Madam, who was sitting in the upper seat, said with a smile, "The bride's family prepares dowry for the married girl so that she will have someone to rely on. The eldest aunt is also a married girl, but she proposed that the Dou family should take charge of Ming Jie'er's dowry. This is really against etiquette. Not to mention Ming Jie'er, even our Dou family will not agree to it.
Originally, we would have ignored this. Even if the eldest aunt brought the lawsuit to the court, it would not be approved. But the eldest aunt mentioned this matter again and again, as if she didn't want our fifth aunt to give a dowry. Several old men in our family were puzzled. How could the Wei family come up with such an idea? So they asked me and the two wives of the Wang family to ask the fifth aunt.
As the saying goes, an elder sister-in-law is like a mother. Marquis Jining has no brothers, only you, his sister, so you should take good care of him. However, this matter involves the dowry of Ming Jie'er, and I think it is inappropriate for the eldest aunt to make a decision without consulting Marquis Jining. There is no one else here, so why not invite Marquis Jining over and ask him what he thinks, and then we can make plans."
The Dou and Wang families were more numerous and powerful, and Wei Tingzhen had no intention of engaging in verbal disputes with them. Upon hearing this, he immediately sent someone to invite Wei Tingyu and said, "Who doesn't want a daughter-in-law to have a larger dowry? Not only is it respectable, but the offspring can also benefit from it. But my sister-in-law has a bad temper and always brings up her parents' family. We just want to live a peaceful and stable life, and we really can't stand my sister-in-law's harassment. We have no choice but to resort to this last resort and invite the elders of the two families to discuss this matter."
As soon as she finished speaking, Wei Tingyu, who had been waiting in the study, rushed over in a hurry.
As soon as Dou Ming saw him, tears immediately fell uncontrollably.
When she had a miscarriage, Wei Tingyu comforted her with a few words without any sympathy, and then he teamed up with his mother and sister to start planning how to make things difficult for her.
Wei Tingyu was such a disappointment to her.
Her heart was half cold.
Didn't he know that if she handed over the dowry, he and his wife would have to live their lives according to Wei Tingzhen's wishes?
Isn't the purpose of life to be happy?
Can you be happy by reading people's faces?
Why doesn't he think about anything and just listen to his mother and his sister?
She cried and fell on Nanny Zhou's shoulder.
Nanny Zhou hugged Dou Ming lovingly and comforted her in a low voice.
Wei Tingyu hadn't spoken to Dou Ming for more than half a month, and now seeing her crying like a crabapple tree hit by rain, he couldn't help but feel soft in his heart, and a bit of hesitation appeared on his face.
The Fifth Madam nodded secretly, and after Wei Tingyu finished his greetings, she said, "The request made by your Wei family is too absurd. Several elders in our family have sent me to ask you, what exactly are you dissatisfied with Ming Jie'er, so that you want to torture her like this? Not only did you cause her to have a miscarriage, but you also want our Dou family to take care of Ming Jie'er's dowry - you have to give us a reason, right?"
Wei Tingzhen knew that things were going to get bad when she saw Wei Tingyu's expression. Before Wei Tingyu could say anything, she interrupted him and said, "My dear madam, what you said is wrong. Why are we torturing Dou Ming..."
The Fifth Madam made a gesture to signal Wei Tingzhen to stop talking, and said softly: "Aunt, whether these shoes fit or not, only the feet know. Although we are all outsiders, we hope that they can live a good life. Let's listen to what the Marquis has to say."
Dou Ming also raised his head and sobbed, looking at Wei Tingyu with tears in his eyes, as charming as autumn medicine.
Wei Tingyu's face flushed immediately. He didn't dare to look at Dou Ming again. He murmured, "I, I have nothing against Ming Jie'er..." Before he finished speaking, he felt his sister's knife-like eyes. Thinking of his mother who was bedridden, his head was buzzing. He murmured again, "It's my mother-in-law. She has a bad character. People get tainted by the company they keep. Ming Jie'er always goes to see her mother, and we can't persuade her to stop. That's why we have to resort to this desperate measure... It's Ming Jie'er who is disobedient, not us who want to torture her..."
The whole room was filled with astonishment.
The fifth wife couldn't help but exchange glances with Gao.
If this is the reason, it does make sense.
But this time they came to stand up for Dou Ming, so how could they let Wei Tingyu get away with it?
The Fifth Madam had no choice but to lie and say, "Your Majesty, what you said is inappropriate! Even a son should not criticize his father. How can you, as a son-in-law, casually criticize your mother-in-law? And your so-called bad character is not justifiable. Your mother-in-law and I have been sisters-in-law for more than ten years. Apart from not liking to socialize, there is really nothing wrong with her..."
"Fifth Aunt!" Dou Ming suddenly interrupted the Fifth Madam, stood up suddenly, looked at Wei Tingyu with red eyes, and said in a sharp voice, "Doesn't the Marquis dislike the fact that my biological mother was promoted from a concubine? It just so happens that people from both my mother-in-law's family are here, so let's make this matter clear." As she spoke, she looked at the Fifth Madam with tears in her eyes, "Although my mother was a concubine, she was promoted to the first wife a year after my biological mother passed away. "I was promoted to the position of the legal wife later. At that time, I also obtained the consent of my uncle Zhao. According to my uncle's wishes, I gave half of Xidou's property to my sister as a dowry. This was all documented in the government office and can be verified." She stood straight and stared at Wei Tingyu intently, "You said my mother has a bad character. Tell me, what did my mother do wrong to make you, a younger generation, criticize her like this?"
Wei Tingzhen spat in Dou Ming's face: "How dare you say that? How did you marry into our family? You may have forgotten, but we in the Wei family haven't forgotten."
The color on Dou Ming's face immediately faded away, leaving only paleness.
She choked up and asked Wei Tingyu, "Does Lord Hou think so too?" In the end, she still cared about the affection between husband and wife, and did not tell Wei Tingyu that he had agreed to meet her in Daxiangguo Temple before marriage, and she was unwilling to make the matter over.
Wei Tingyu was extremely embarrassed. He glared at Wei Tingzhen fiercely, then turned his head to look at Dou Ming and comforted her softly, "That's not the case. I was willing to get married!"
Wei Tingzhen gnashed her teeth in hatred, she stood up and said, "Since you've married into our Wei family, you're a member of our Wei family. If your biological mother was just a concubine who was made the legal wife, with the recognition of the elders in the Dou family, our Wei family would have accepted this humiliation! But who is your biological mother? She entered the Dou family in January and gave birth to you in May... What a thing!" She spat and said, "Otherwise, how come your sister got half of Xidou's property for nothing, but you only got a dowry of 20,000 taels of silver when you got married? You don't understand, I I'm telling you clearly, you don't even have a concubine's child, you have an adulterous child!" She pointed at the women of the Dou and Wang families, "Your family members are all here. If you don't believe me, you can ask them! See if I'm telling a lie! It's because my brother is honest and simple-minded that I have to live with you like this. You don't know what's good for you. I asked you to set rules for your mother-in-law, and you deliberately bled our Wei family's bloodline. You clearly know that my brother is the only son in two generations. Aren't you trying to make our Wei family extinct?"
Her words were like a sharp knife stabbing straight into the hearts of the Dou and Wang families. The banquet room was silenced for a moment and Dou Ming began to tremble like a leaf in the wind.
"You're talking nonsense!" She screamed, "My mother is not that kind of person! You just can't stand the fact that the Marquis and I are living well, so you're spreading rumors and slandering us here! What exactly are you thinking? Why do you always dislike me? How have I ever let down your Wei family? The Marquis was given a job at home because I asked my grandfather to find him a job; my mother was bedridden because I took the herbs from my dowry to help her recover; on your mother-in-law's birthday, I spent a lot of money to save your face and gave her a generous gift. What else do you want from me?!"
She asked Wei Tingyu in a hoarse voice, her frail body swaying as if she was about to fall.