No matter how prominent the Gu family was, a death in the first month of the lunar year was still a sad event. Therefore, everyone urged the Fifth Elder to wait until after the first month of the lunar year to hold the funeral. After all, it was freezing cold, and there was no need to worry about the corpse's aura. However, the Fifth Elder was determined to get the matter over with as soon as possible. He asked his second son, Tingdi, to quickly arrange the funeral and keep it simple, with the burial to be held ten days later.
The mourning hall was deserted. Only clan members and one or two families with whom the family was on good terms came to pay their respects briefly. After sitting for a while, they said goodbye. Except for the fourth old master who was not feeling well and the fourth old lady who had to stay to serve, the rest of the three families sat there.
The fifth old lady cried so hard that she almost fainted. She jumped up and scolded Ting Di and his wife, accusing them of being unfilial. She said that they had made things difficult for Ting Yang during his lifetime and did not properly arrange for him after his death, which made him die uneasy.
Mr. and Mrs. Tingdi were scolded until their faces turned red. Mrs. Di Er was used to her mother-in-law's unreasonable behavior and could still endure it. However, Mr. Di Er was indignant and was scolded so harshly that he simply knelt down in front of the fifth old lady with a thud, his neck swollen.
"...Mother, you don't know how expensive food and fuel are until you take the household. My eldest brother alone covers the expenses of father, mother, all the concubines, and our entire family! Is he studying for the imperial examination, or is he making money through business?! There are more than a dozen people in the family, young and old. We need medical care, medicine, food, and clothing... The future of the shop and farm all depends on this. My sister Tingling and my eldest nephew (Gu Tingyang's eldest son) are already engaged. Where is the dowry? The rest of the little ones are growing up, and all of this will cost money!"
Ting Di became angrier and angrier as he spoke. Usually the fifth old lady favored the eldest son in everything. When they lived together in the mansion, everything was covered by the eldest son's family, and he didn't bother to care about it. Now that the mansion was divided, even the smallest thread had to be paid for by his family. How could he not be angry?
"Big brother spends all day hiring actors, visiting brothels, and spending lavishly. Even now, he still hasn't paid off his debts. Do we really have to go hungry just to let Big Brother have his fun?" Ting Di kowtowed several times, his forehead banging against the blue bricks. "If mother still thinks her son is a bad person, then use the family law to beat him to death!"
The conversation was so rapid and urgent that it nearly stunned the Fifth Elderly Lady. She stared at her second son, trembling all over, speechless for a long time. The Madam sat at the head of the table, slowly stirring the tea leaves with the lid of the bowl, expressionless. Everyone else looked at each other in bewilderment, some unwilling to intervene, others unable to. Finally, the kindly Gu Tingxuan came over, pulled Tingdi to his feet, and said a few words to smooth things over.
The fifth old lady was still furious. Tears streamed down her face as she thought of her beloved eldest son's tragic death. She dared not blame her husband, nor could she scold her second son. She could only vent her anger on others. She stood up and rushed to her eldest daughter-in-law, crying and cursing, "It's all because of you, you unlucky star! My son is fine, but you're useless. You can't keep your man together, so he has to go out and make trouble! I shouldn't have welcomed you into the house in the first place..."
Madam Yang, wrapped in white, had grown increasingly sallow and thin, her cheeks wrinkled and her appearance withered. No matter how her mother-in-law hurled insults at her, she simply lowered her head, silently holding her tongue. In the center of the mourning hall knelt her only son, Gu Shixun, a teenager in mourning, his eyelids lowered, and he remained silent.
Madam Xuan leaned close to Minglan's ear and whispered softly, "If you ask me, it would be better for Xun'er not to have such a father! If he passes the imperial examination in the future, he will have a father like this who spends his days in debauchery, bringing shame to the public. Tsk tsk... Don't you think that's right?"
Minglan already disliked Tingyang, and upon hearing this, she felt the same way. She nodded without hesitation, but then remembered that this was someone else's funeral and quickly shook her head. Madam Xuan couldn't help laughing, lowering her head to cover her mouth, "My silly sister."
The fifth old lady cried and cursed at the top of her lungs, and kept pushing, twisting and hitting Madam Yang. Seeing that the situation was getting out of control, the female relatives could no longer sit still and wanted to try to persuade them. At this moment, the fifth old master, who had been sitting as still as a wooden statue, seemed to wake up from a dream. He suddenly stood up and walked over, grabbed the fifth old lady and slapped her in the face.
The sound of clapping was so loud, like a thunder in the mourning hall, and everyone in the place was stunned.
"You raised a son who's worse than an animal, and you still have the nerve to cry?!" The Fifth Old Master seemed like a completely different person, no longer his usual elegant demeanor. His eyes were bloodshot, his body hunched, and he squeezed out the words coldly, "I'm going to divorce you!"
The fifth old lady staggered after being hit, but her daughter-in-law beside her supported her. She was so frightened that she forgot to cry and just stood there in a daze. The old lady was the first to shout, "Di'er's daughter-in-law, why don't you help your mother-in-law go back and rest!"
Mrs. Di Er finally reacted and hurriedly dragged Mrs. Wu out. Mr. Di Er also hurriedly helped his father sit down. Mrs. Tai just opened her mouth and said, "Uncle Wu, I'm not saying anything to you as your sister-in-law, but beating or scolding your daughter-in-law is not a custom in our family. Now that our children are so grown up, where can you put your face to your younger sister-in-law..."
The Fifth Old Master interrupted solemnly: "Brother, you will take care of your own family affairs. Since we have separated our family, sister-in-law, please don't worry about it."
The Madam's expression changed instantly, and she sneered, "I am the one who is meddling. If I wasn't afraid of angering your eldest brother, I wouldn't bother to defend and stop them all." This was a double entendre, and a trace of pain flashed across the Fifth Old Master's face. He said in a hoarse voice, "Thank you, sister-in-law."
Everyone could tell that these words were not meant literally.
Mrs. Xuan's face was not quite clear, and she pulled Minglan to a corner and whispered, "...No wonder Fifth Uncle is angry. It's clearly a large scar. If the pus and blood had been squeezed out, it might have healed. But they kept it covered up, and it rotted into the bone day by day, becoming irreparable. Alas, my Second Uncle is also stubborn and has gotten himself into trouble again."
Minglan hurriedly asked what was going on, and Madam Xuan said, "The letters that arrived a few days ago were all exiled far away. Even though he had people serving him, he still wasn't content. He saw that border trade was booming and actually wanted to do some business. I don't know how they got into an argument and ended up killing someone."
"How come I don't know this?" Minglan was stunned.
Madam Xuan said quickly, "Your elder brother Xuan hesitated for two days before informing the Marquis. He came all the way here, and he's already been convicted. For the sake of the Marquis's residence, he's been sentenced to a few more years of exile."
Minglan was silent for a moment and said, "Poor sister-in-law Bing, I'm afraid the family reunion will be delayed again."
"Who said it wasn't? She has been crying and making a fuss these past few days, and even made her father sick." Mrs. Xuan sighed. In fact, deep down in her heart, she hoped that Tingbing would come back later, and she also had a vague idea of being unfilial. It would be best to wait until the fourth old master passed away before asking Tingbing to come back. The eldest brother could control the younger brother, but he could not resist the confused old father who was instigated by the second son - but no one could say this.
Madam Xuan glanced at the lady in the hall and lowered her voice, "If it weren't for someone's 'kindness' that had covered up his crime for so many years, my second brother wouldn't have been so ignorant of his own limitations, still refusing to behave himself despite his crimes. Well, never mind, it's just a few more years of punishment, that's good enough."
Minglan comforted her with a few words, thinking that the two cases were different. Tingyang got into trouble without telling the Fifth Old Master; Tingbing got into trouble because the Fourth Old Master probably asked the Lady Dowager to help cover it up.
This time, the quarrel ended in a bad mood. The lady took her son and daughter-in-law and left early. In the following days, she claimed that she was not feeling well and refused to come again. Tingwei did not feel embarrassed at all. He still smiled brightly and talked to Tingdi and his cousin, saying "If you need any help, please let me know." Tingxuan, on the other hand, was restless and kept saying good things to both sides, hoping that the whole family would be in harmony.
Gu Tingye watched coldly without saying a word, but he would come every day, sit for a while, and then take Minglan away.
A few days after the funeral, the first lunar month arrived. After the Yu family celebrated their Lunar New Year reunion, Lord Yu immediately sent his two sons and daughters-in-law (carrying red silk) back to their home in Dengzhou, while he and his wife accompanied their eldest son on his assignment in another province. Before leaving, Fourth Madam Yu visited Minglan again, reminiscing about trivial matters. In just a few months, Lord Yu, leveraging his old connections, quickly secured an outpost for his eldest son, resolved his dispute with the family of the previous First Madam Yu, and even more quickly found the next First Madam Yu.
Minglan was very impressed that Lord Yu was still as agile as he was in his youth.
"She's the niece of Hong Zhubu, the Chief of the Imperial Observatory," the Fourth Wife recounted calmly. "...She became a widow soon after her marriage. Her husband's family couldn't accept her, so she had to return to her parents' home. She was a devoted woman, refusing to remarry for seven or eight years. Only when she saw my father's declining health did she relent. My father said that marrying a virtuous woman with good moral character was the most important thing."
At this age, he is still only an eighth-rank chief clerk, and his official career may not be very smooth. However, the Hong family of Yanzhou is a famous family after all, and the two families are a good match. It is not a glorious thing for the Yu family to divorce his wife and remarry, so they are preparing to hold the wedding in another place. Moreover, Miss Hong has been able to resist her family's persuasion to get married for seven or eight years, so she must be very determined, and it is just right to use her to discipline the erratic Lord Yu.
Minglan couldn't help but envy him secretly. Where on earth did she find such a man who could give advice on the country in the court and take care of trivial matters in the inner house? He was omnipotent and affectionate. This was the character that Old Lady Yu had accumulated for several lifetimes.
As the snow melted, spring arrived, and early spring buds burst forth from moist branches. Suddenly, Minglan was flooded with invitations. Some to admire the plum blossoms, some to celebrate birthdays and see operas, some to celebrate full moons and first birthdays, and even some to poetry societies—all of which she politely declined. Minglan calculated that if she went everywhere, even the top courtesan would be busier than she was.
Making friends with the women in the inner house is also a science. You need guidance on which ones to refuse, which ones to accept, and how to deal with them.
Gu Tingye touched Minglan's face lovingly and said, "If you like, go ahead." This was nonsense from a man who had no idea about the inner chambers.
Old Madam Sheng frowned and said coldly: "If you don't like it, don't go!" This is the personal experience of being a widow for half a lifetime and despising the warmth and coldness of human nature.
Shaw's specialty is how to care for the bedridden, but he knows nothing about anything else.
It was not easy to ask Wang, and Hualan had a different social circle. Minglan sighed and had to find other helpers. So she carried a lot of bags and went to visit Xiao Shen and her sister-in-law, Piers. The latter was the focus.
Little Shen was feeling rather bored and anxious, so she was naturally delighted to see Minglan and her son visiting. Seeing Minglan rather puzzled at her sudden surge in popularity, she bluntly said, "You're so foolish! What was your family's situation like then? They only wanted to invite you, but couldn't leave out your wife. Then they invited your wife, but you didn't want to go. And when you two finally went together, either your wife was the only one putting on a show, or you looked so wooden, so defensive, as if there was a trap waiting for you to step on. Which host would be happy with that?"
Minglan suddenly realized what was going on. To express her gratitude to Little Shen for clearing up her confusion, she put her chubby son on the kang and rolled him around, saying, "Play as you please," and then ran to ask Madam Zheng for advice. Although Madam Zheng was usually quiet, she had been in this powerful circle for more than a decade, and her explanations were well-organized and organized, far beyond the reach of Little Shen's gossip skills.
Which families have upright traditions and are worth making friends with; which families have promising descendants and should not be neglected; which families are useless and cause a lot of trouble, so you only need to deal with them perfunctorily; and which families have conflicts within the family and should be carefully avoided... And so on and so forth, Minglan only wished she had four ears, but was too embarrassed to take out a notebook to write it down.
After comparing and calculating, Minglan only picked a few families to visit. She only gave detailed instructions on sending gifts to the remaining families and asked the steward to politely convey a message that the family has been very busy recently and hoped that everyone would forgive them as a cousin had died, another cousin's sentence was to be extended, and two cousins' wives were crying and sick, and the whole family was in a mess - this was a good excuse.
The eighteen-year-old Marquis Gu's wife walked slowly and leisurely before the crowd, dazzling the eyes of the nobles. She was as delicate and beautiful as a magnolia, a rare beauty. Everyone recalled the rumors about Marquis Gu and his wife and felt that this was quite reasonable.
Sometimes Gu Tingye would accompany her to banquets, or if it was just a gathering of women, he would come to pick her up whenever he was free. When Minglan jumped into the carriage, the first thing he would ask her was usually, "Has anyone bullied you?"
Minglan smiled and said, "My husband is well-known, who would be so bold as to be so ambitious?"
It's worth mentioning that the Duke of England's wife, no matter where or who she was, would always be there to chat and laugh with Minglan, and would also be considerate and warm, taking her around to introduce her to people, showing her great care. Minglan, under the Duke of England's wife's meaningful gaze, could not help but understand, and without further delay, she went to visit the Duke's wife, Zhang, who was at home nursing her pregnancy the next day.
When I saw this, I was shocked.
Zhang, holding up her enormous belly, struggled to get up to greet the guests. Minglan watched with fear as she trembled. A pregnant woman so close to giving birth was so thin that she was just skin and bones! She wanted to offer some advice, but she didn't know where to begin. She had just said, "Take care of the child," when Zhang changed the subject.
"These two plum trees are stubborn. Despite all the water and fertilizer, they refuse to bloom. Years ago, the gardener got fed up and stopped paying attention to them, but now they've blossomed. Look, how gorgeous they are, like the misty clouds over the Changchun Cliffs of the Western Hills, so beautiful it hurts, as if you could blink and they would disappear."
Zhang tilted her face slightly to the side, bent her neck and looked out the window. Her face was yellow and covered with spots. Her fragile and thin skin covered her protruding cheekbones, and there were two abnormal blushes on her cheeks, as if she was drunk.
After hearing these confusing words, Minglan wanted to pull her sister-in-law Tingcan over to show her what the arrogance of a lady from a wealthy family and the nobleness of a talented woman were. Zhang seemed to not care about anything and just stayed sick and weak.
Minglan was silent for a while. The two of them were not very familiar with each other, and the other party was trying to avoid her, so it was even more difficult to start a conversation.
"After all, people are neither flowers nor mist. We have parents to care for us, and we are innocent children. How can we be like the dew on flowers or the morning mist, disappearing in an instant, without any worries? Sister, you are a smart person. Even if you don't miss anything, you still remember your parents' love and care for you." Minglan held Zhang's hand, and every word came from the heart. Zhang couldn't help but be slightly moved. She whispered, "It is because of my parents' kindness in raising me that I..."
Before he could finish his words, a high-pitched and sharp cry was heard outside the house.
——"You slaves, why didn't you tell me that Madam Gu was coming?"
Hearing this voice, Zhang's expression gradually turned cold again. She broke free from Minglan's hand and leaned back against the pillow.
The person who came in was a petite woman with overly heavy makeup and a smile that was so sweet that it was sickening. Minglan had met little Zou Shi several times, and each time she was dazzled by the splendor she wore. Although she was dressed like a mature and beautiful woman, she was actually only seventeen or eighteen years old.
Zhang said calmly, "I told you long ago that you should stay out of my yard."
Little Zou burst into tears and said, "I really don't know what I did wrong to make Sister despise me so much. It's my duty to serve Sister, so how could I not come?" She wiped her eyes and turned to Minglan, smiling tenderly through her tears, "I've made Sister Sheng laugh at me."
Minglan didn't know what others would think of this scene, but with Aunt Lin's beauty in the spotlight, little Zou's affectation was simply not worth watching. Minglan smiled and said, "I was just about to leave."
Little Zou quickly said, "Sister, you are in a heavy body and can't bear the fatigue. Why don't you come to my place and sit for a while?"
Minglan clearly saw the sarcasm in Zhang's eyes - the wife of Marquis Gu, a dignified and first-rank official, went to a concubine's room to drink tea and talk. If this matter got out, Minglan would never be able to go out again.
"I just came here on my way, but I have something to do at home." Minglan politely refused. Xiao Zou had no choice but to insist on seeing Minglan out. As they walked, she talked all the way, chattering incessantly to herself. Sometimes she boasted about how well Uncle Shen treated her, and sometimes she hinted to Minglan that she looked down on her and why she was unwilling to sit in her room.
Minglan suddenly stopped and looked at Xiao Zou intently: "When I was a child, my teacher told me a story. I wonder if you would like to hear it?" Xiao Zou was stunned: "...Sister, please go ahead."
"Long, long ago, there were two virtuous princesses, each betrothed to a prince consort from a distinguished family. However, neither prince consort disliked the princesses and favored only their concubines. Because the princesses were kind, they concealed their prince consorts' neglect. Over the years, one of the concubines grew increasingly arrogant and domineering, forcing the prince consort to stay away from them. Whenever the princess wished to summon him, she resorted to all sorts of tricks, threatening him with death. Relying on her prince consort's indulgence, the concubine prospered, while the princess remained lonely and frail. The other concubine, on the other hand, dared not overstep her bounds, serving the princess with respect and humility, and often urging her prince consort to see the princess. Sometimes the two concubines would meet, and the one in front, enjoying immense glory and a constant stream of guests, would mock the one behind for her dullness."
Xiao Zou was stunned by what she heard. Minglan took a breath and continued, "Later, the princess died of grief. The princess's wet nurse took the opportunity to go to the palace to express her gratitude and confessed the whole story. After the emperor's investigation, he was furious and stripped the prince consort of his title. The prince consort was exiled three thousand miles away, with no right of return. And that concubine..."
Minglan glanced at Little Zou's pale face and said, "She will be cut into pieces and executed by slow slicing. Her children will also be demoted to palace slaves, to be trampled upon and humiliated by others."
"Then, what about the other one?" Minglan was good at telling stories, and little Zou couldn't help but ask.
"The other was blessed. The princess appreciated her tenderness and kindness. Although she and her husband were not on good terms, he treated her like a sister and her son as his own. Later, when her son achieved academic success, the princess personally went to the emperor to ask for his favor. Later, both the princess and her husband passed away, and their children were extremely filial to their mother. The concubine enjoyed the greatest happiness in the world, living to the ripe old age of over eighty."
After the story was finished, Xiao Zou bit her lip tightly. "Although her Zhang family is prominent, she is not really a princess. Besides, there is the Queen and Sister Qingping (Xiao Shen). I am not afraid..."
Minglan sighed: "Qingping always talks to me about your sister, her eyes are always filled with tears and she is choked with sobs and unable to speak, that's why I said all these words today. Now, I just hope that Zhang's sister can give birth to the baby smoothly. Otherwise, if the Zhang family insists on giving an explanation, who will take it out?... It certainly won't be the uncle of the king." It certainly won't be the queen and Xiao Shen.
Little Zou's expression changed several times, and she sneered a few times: "It seems that my sister is on the side of the Zhang family. It's true that the Duke of Ying's Mansion is powerful, and everyone is afraid of it. But I'm not a lowly concubine who can be bullied by others. I have an imperial decree!"
Minglan looked at her quietly for a long moment before she said, "Qingping said you haven't recovered yet. You should start taking care of yourself soon. Otherwise, if you get sick after a while, it'll be hard to cure. Also, don't put on so much powder; it's not good for your health."
Little Zou stood there in a daze, moving her lips a few times, but ultimately said nothing.
After leaving the Prince's Mansion, they met Gu Tingye who came to pick her up halfway. The couple sat in the carriage. Minglan said first, "No one bullies me, my lord, don't worry."
Seeing her depressed look, Gu Tingye frowned slightly and asked, "What's wrong?"
Although the two concubines had very different fates, we can also say that the first concubine treated her husband sincerely and would not allow anyone else to take away her love, while the second concubine was hypocritical and would rather let her lover get close to the princess for her own safety.
Sometimes, it is really hard to distinguish between stupidity and cleverness, sincerity and falsehood.
Minglan was silent for a while before she said, "Nothing."
After thinking for a while, he made up another sentence, "The wife of the emperor's uncle is not feeling well. I am a little worried."
Gu Tingye stared at her deeply and for a long time, as if he wanted to look deep into her heart and explore something.
They were very happy, very perfect, could talk about anything, had similar personalities, this was all true; but between them, there was still a layer of silence, a small, secret forbidden area hidden in the heart of his beloved woman.
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