Chapter 64: Really Bewitched
On the kang in the main hall of the west courtyard, Feng was leaning over and eating melon seeds, staring blankly at the oil lamp on the table, no one knew what she was thinking about.
Yu Jin lifted the curtain and came in.
"Mom, where's my dad?"
When Mrs. Feng heard her daughter come in, she came back to her senses and spat out a piece of melon seed shell from her mouth.
"I don't know. He said he was going out to talk to someone. Humph, what can he talk about? He's probably going out drinking again."
Yu Jin is almost seventeen years old. She has inherited Feng's appearance, but she is not as tall as her elder sister Yu Zhong. Fortunately, she has a fair complexion, a plump figure, and is still young, so she is quite pretty.
She climbed onto the kang, grabbed a handful of melon seeds from the dried fruit plate, and sat down cross-legged opposite Feng.
"Mom, I saw someone coming to the east courtyard. He went to the east room and didn't come out for a while."
"East Courtyard? Who's here?"
"Who else could it be? That girl from that poor family."
"You, don't call me a broke woman now. I'm the grandmother who's in charge of the household now! She's in charge of buying clothes, buying groceries, keeping people, horses, maids and nannies all by herself. That's a lot of money that must pass through her hands! Oh, just do the math and think about how much profit she can make!"
Yu Jin imitated her, rolled her eyes, spoke sarcastically, and sneered.
"How long can she, a young daughter-in-law, be in charge of the household? You are her elder, and you are the only one in our backyard who can suppress her. Mother, why have you been so lazy lately? Come up with the money you paid earlier, and you will still be the one to take charge of this household."
Second Aunt threw away the melon seed shells and sighed.
"I, your mother, simply don't have the energy to do this anymore. Alas, even if I tell you, you wouldn't understand. Your eldest nephew was already five months old, and he died. I quietly asked the doctor, and he said the Sun family wouldn't be able to have any more children. I was so worried I woke up crying several times at night!"
Second Aunt lamented for a long time, and thought of her disappointing son.
"I don't even want to say anything about your good brother. Ever since I learned that the Sun family couldn't have children, I've repeatedly told him to divorce his wife and marry another this year, picking a good one! I know that childlessness is one of the seven grounds for divorce!"
Otherwise, I can take him a concubine, a young and beautiful one, and let him choose as he pleases. Isn't that enough? Hey, guess what, as soon as I said that, he got anxious and started yelling at me, saying that I was going to force his wife to death. Tsk tsk, look at you, you foolish brother, you took my mother's kindness for granted!
Yu Jin ate some melon seeds and hummed a few times, breathing only through his nose.
"I guess the Sun family definitely won't ask my brother to take a concubine. But it's no wonder, mother, don't you dislike Concubine Yun too?"
When this was mentioned, Second Aunt straightened up immediately, looked around to see if there was anyone around, picked up a scratcher from beside her, and hit her daughter on the head across the kang table.
“Ouch, that hurts so much!”
"Bah! Silly girl, what do you know? Back then, I gave birth to two of you, two deadly ghosts, in my intestines one after another. How could I have let down your father, that wimp? Besides, your brother is the eldest grandson of the Xie family, older than the second son of the East Courtyard! How can that sickly guy of the Sun family be the same as me?"
Second Aunt dropped the tickler and turned back.
"Besides, that little bitch in our backyard is totally different from the concubines outside. She was raised by Old Lady Wu like a daughter. Back then, your aunt was sick all the time, and Old Lady Wu didn't like me, so all the big and small matters in the family had to be approved by that little bitch. She doesn't look like a maid at all, she looks more like a young lady than you do!"
Speaking of Aunt Yun, Second Aunt felt a little guilty and didn't want to talk much about it with her daughter, so she quickly changed the subject.
"Let's not talk about her. They also said that your good-for-nothing brother was handsome and playboyish when he was young, so he married this rich girl. I don't know what happened, but before the wedding, he wouldn't let go even after I beat and scolded him. After the wedding, the couple quarreled all day long, fighting like black-eyed chickens. Now, after it's like this, your brother has become infatuated with her, and the two of them are back together! He's really bewitched."
Upon hearing this, Yu Jin threw down a handful of melon seed shells and wiped her mouth with a handkerchief.
"In the future, if you want to find a marriage for me, please don't look for someone like my big brother."
"Hmph! Then what kind are you looking for?"
"Look for someone like my second brother! He's smart and treats his wife well. I remember that when my second brother came home in previous years, he was always cold and indifferent, never smiling at anyone. I didn't even dare to talk to him. But ever since he got married, no, ever since this marriage was decided, he's become a completely different person. He talks and laughs, and his temper seems much better than before."
"Hey, did you see him smile at you or at me? He only knows how to smile at the Shen family!"
"No wonder, the Shen family's are good-looking."
"Hmph, I don't think she's even prettier than you! Your third cousin from your aunt's family is so pretty, and she's from the county, so he knows her inside and out, but he refused to marry her. He was so obsessed that he had to travel all the way to Baihe Town to marry a girl from such a humble family. I can see that woman has some tricks up her sleeve. She's got him under her thumb, afraid he'd melt if she held him in her mouth, afraid he'd fall if she held him in her hands. She dotes on him to no end! It's probably because she thinks human flesh is sour, otherwise, she'd even have my second son right in front of her mouth!"
Yu Jin was a little impatient.
"It's already this late, and you're still talking about my third cousin! She's a year older than me, and she's not engaged yet?"
"Who knows if it's settled? I don't care about that. Anyway, while the second brother's business is doing well, I can arrange for you to meet someone. I heard that he has business dealings with many shops in the city and is very close, even more powerful than your eldest brother. He is known to all the merchants in the city. If you fall in love with a young man from a certain family, ask him to let them know first. They will definitely take a good look at you!"
Yujin snorted and rolled his eyes.
"Mom, why are you so short-sighted? I want to marry in the provincial capital. I don't want to live in Pingshan County all my life."
"Yes, yes, the provincial capital is good. But you have to consider the families in Pingshan County, too. Here, people get married at the age of fifteen or sixteen, and you're already seventeen! Last year, weren't you laughing at the Shen family in the East Courtyard? They didn't marry into our family until they were eighteen, making them old maids. So, do you want to be like them and become an old maid before going out?"
Speaking of this, Yu Jin became impatient, threw the melon seed shells on the table, and walked out.
Just as she reached the threshold, she stopped again, turned back and smiled.
"Oh, I almost forgot something important. The Shen family went to visit the Sun family and must have brought back a lot of goodies. Mom, don't you want to go and take a look?"
When Second Aunt heard this, she stopped cracking the melon seeds, patted the shells on her hands, and got up quickly.
"Go! Why not? The East Courtyard has a lot of good things, and the gifts they give out are always better than those from other families. I have to go take a look and pick out some good things."
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