Chapter 22: Mother Li begs for connections, Sister Li begs for a man...
Zhao Xian continued, emphasizing her words: "Being scolded is the least of your worries; the worst that can happen is being demoted or even exiled."
Li Zhoushi looked unconvinced and joked, "How could she be as amazing as my in-laws say?"
"Not serious?" Zhao Xian's expression changed. "Wei'er, what crime is buying and selling official positions?"
Jiang Wei slightly raised his eyes and said, "Buying and selling official positions involves corruption and bribery. According to the laws of this dynasty, any official who accepts money shall be punished according to the amount of the bribe."
Li Zhoushi's face turned pale instantly, and her hands trembled uncontrollably.
Zhao Xian raised an eyebrow. She had said too little.
Seeing that Li Zhou was afraid, Zhao Xian waved her hand and said casually, "Let's not talk about these court matters. We are just commoners, why should we worry about such things? Let's eat."
When Li Zhou heard about the punishment stipulated in the law, the fear in his heart had not yet dissipated.
He felt that the silver he had brought out this time was a bit too hot to handle.
Seeing Li Zhou's pale face from fright, Zhao Xian felt the nausea in her body subside a little, and seemed somewhat relieved: "My dear in-law, please have your meal, don't be shy."
“Okay.” The smile on Li Zhou’s face seemed a bit forced.
Start using chopsticks.
The Li family mother and daughter noticed that the dishes on the table looked exquisite and varied, but each dish was gone after the maidservant served each of them only one bite.
I thought it was delicious and wanted to try it again, but the dish was sold out.
Each dish was prepared to perfectly suit the mother and daughter's tastes, but each dish was only meant for one bite.
Because there was so little food, I felt uneasy about eating it.
Before they were even half full, they looked up and saw that Zhao Xian and the Jiang family members had already started rinsing their mouths and wiping their mouths.
The mother and daughter looked at each other in bewilderment. Even though Li Zhou was thick-skinned, she couldn't continue eating when everyone had put down their chopsticks, especially since there was no food left on the table for them.
I had no choice but to put down my chopsticks.
The maids filed in and quickly cleared away the evening dishes.
The Li family mother and daughter were obviously not full, so the Jiang family sent people to pick them up, and they knew all about their situation.
How dare Li Zhoushi say that Li Lianniang is fat?
It's important to understand that raising even a little bit of flesh on Li Lianniang's body was incredibly difficult.
I had to use both food and medicine to nourish myself during my postpartum period, and only then did my complexion become rosy and my overall appearance improve slightly.
Thinking back to Jiang Wei's previous actions, which had caused Li Lianniang to wither like a fallen flower, she was extremely worried when she heard the servants relaying what Li Zhoushi had said, fearing that the female protagonist of the tragic novel might have taken it to heart.
After all, the female protagonist in the book is a stubborn girl who is easily swayed.
When they are obedient, they are truly obedient; the problem is when they hear bad things from others and become stubborn and insist on arguing.
Zhao Xian slowly wiped her mouth with a handkerchief: "My dear in-law, have you finished eating? Our family's dinner is simple. The imperial physician advised us to take care of our health and not to overeat."
Li Zhou felt that these words sounded familiar, "We must listen to the imperial physician's advice."
Zhao Xian smiled, but the smile was faint and had already faded upon closer inspection. "It's getting late. My dear in-laws, please have dinner and rest early."
He Mama understood and said, "My dear in-law, the sedan chair is ready. I will send someone to take you back to Xiequ Pavilion right away."
As soon as the two men left, the servants brought the food back to the table.
The four of them used it again.
Jiang Wei hesitated, then said, "Mother, why must we do this?"
On his way back, a servant informed him of what had happened that night, so Jiang Wei cooperated, but he didn't understand.
"Isn't this to please your mother-in-law? Ask Lian Niang if she ate little at each meal when she was in the Li family. As soon as your mother-in-law came today, she immediately scolded Lian Niang for being fat and telling her not to be greedy. Since your mother-in-law said that, we should naturally treat our guests with the utmost respect."
Li Lianniang lowered her head and drank her soup, listening to her mother-in-law's ramblings.
But it warmed my heart.
Jiang Wei put down his chopsticks: "Is intimidating your mother-in-law considered proper hospitality?"
How did the two women in the inner quarters of the house become involved in the "buying and selling of official positions"?
Zhao Xian blinked, her eyes full of innocence: "What does this have to do with me? When did I threaten your mother-in-law? I don't know anything about the law. Didn't you say so?"
Jiang Wei: "..."
Cui Tingyue nodded and chimed in, "Yes, Madam Li's face turned pale after hearing what my elder brother said. She looked quite frightened."
Li Lianniang also wholeheartedly agreed.
Jiang Wei looked at the three of them. He was not good at arguing with women, and for some reason, he felt excluded.
"Mother, please enjoy your meal. I have other matters to attend to, so I'll head back to my study now."
"Don't forget to copy the scriptures after you're done," Zhao Xian reminded her from behind.
Jiang Wei paused, but without turning back, he turned and walked away.
For some reason, the three of them looked at each other and laughed at the same time.
"We're leaving too."
Zhao Xian stood up. This meal was meant to put Li Zhoushi in her place, and now that her purpose had been achieved, it was time for everyone to return to their respective courtyards.
Li Lianniang didn't leave; instead, she helped Zhao Xian up, saying, "Mother, your daughter-in-law will take you back."
"Aren't you afraid the boss will come pick you up later?"
Hearing her mother-in-law's teasing words, Li Lianniang blushed slightly and shook her head, saying, "Isn't it a matter of course for a daughter-in-law to serve her mother-in-law? Let my husband wait."
Humorous, but has made progress.
"Mother, thank you."
She had told her father that she was feeling unwell, but he didn't care because her stepmother was eloquent.
Becoming a concubine for someone else would be a disgrace to the Li family, but becoming a concubine for King Yu would be a great honor, and even her father was persuaded.
No one knows the hardships she endured back then.
She loved painting but disliked dancing. However, because King Yu preferred women with slender waists who could dance on a palm, she was forced to practice dancing until she couldn't stand up and felt nauseous.
Her waist was tightly bound every day, causing her discomfort.
There are strict rules even for eating a single bite of food.
My older brother is a boy, and he is often away from home to pursue his studies.
She couldn't find anyone to confide in.
Zhao Xian saw Li Lianniang as a little white lamb, easily grateful for even the smallest favor; such people are most likely to suffer losses.
"What's there to thank me for? I didn't do anything."
After saying that, Zhao Xian looked at Granny He and said, "Tell the kitchen staff to put more effort into the food sent to Xiequ Pavilion. It must be exquisite and delicious, but the portions should be kept to a minimum. Make sure that the lady of the house feels at home."
We must ensure that we eat well, so as not to give anyone cause for criticism.
But once you're full, don't think about it anymore.
When people eat too much, they are prone to having nothing to do. When they have nothing to do, their minds are most active and they have the most ideas, which makes them most likely to get into trouble.
The best state is being hungry but not starving, with only the thought of eating and no energy to think about anything else.
"Mother." Li Lianniang nestled against Zhao Xian, resting her head on her shoulder. She couldn't help but want to get closer to her mother-in-law, just like she would lean on her own mother.
Her mother died early, and she lived as a dependent in her maternal grandparents' home for several years. She returned to the Li family, but she still couldn't shake off the feeling of being a dependent.
She was full of anticipation when she married Jiang Wei, thinking that he would be her life's support.
Now, Li Lianniang only regrets that her mother-in-law is not her own mother, and for the first time she understands what it feels like to have someone protect her and stand up for her when she has been wronged.
Smelling the sweet fragrance emanating from the heroine of the angst-filled novel, Zhao Xian felt a surge of affection; her daughter was truly considerate.
He reached out and patted Li Lianniang's arm. "It's getting late. Go back and rest early. You must be very busy these days. Don't overwork yourself."
--
The next morning, the maidservants helped Zhao Xian with her makeup.
A moment later, Granny He entered the room, bent down slightly, and whispered, "Madam, last night the Miss Li wandered around the mansion and got lost. She frightened the servants and alarmed the eldest young master and his wife."
Zhao Xian picked up an earring and, while putting it on, asked, "Why is she wandering around aimlessly? Have you asked her why?"
"Miss Li said she misses her sister and wants to sleep next to the eldest young mistress."
At first glance, this statement seems harmless, but upon closer inspection, it's quite strange.
There were servants from the Jiang family attending to her at Xiequ Pavilion. She missed her sister, so why didn't she let a maid lead the way? Why did she have to search for her everywhere on her own?
"How was it resolved?"
Granny He took the other earring for Zhao Xian and said, "In the end, it was Madam Li who took her daughter back."
After putting on the earrings, she looked at the person in the bronze mirror. Although they were ten years apart in age, she wondered if it was because the original owner of the body had taken such good care of herself that their faces looked almost identical.
As a result, Zhao Xian adapted to the role of mother-in-law very smoothly.
"Keep an eye on it."
Since the full moon celebration was still four days away, Zhao Xian did not plan to see the Li family mother and daughter again during this period.
Firstly, the original owner's emotions were too intense, causing him to feel nauseous and uncomfortable.
Secondly, she didn't know what to talk about with Li Zhoushi.
She didn't want to be talking when Madam Li Zhou suddenly pulled out a silver note and begged her to pull some strings for Lord Li.
However, there were many servants in the mansion, all of whom were informants, so nothing they did escaped her notice.
For example, for some reason, the younger sister of the Li family took a purse and wanted to give it to her brother-in-law.
Jiang Wei neither answered nor scolded the younger sister of the Li family. Instead, he went to argue with Li Lianniang, blaming her for not teaching her younger sister well.
Zhao Xian was pleased with Li Lianniang's actions. She sent Jiang Wei to the study and did not feel guilty or lose heart because of his words.
Xiequge
"Fool, I brought you here to be my wife, and you're giving my brother-in-law a purse? What are you trying to do?"
“If your sister were dead, you could take her place as her second wife, but since she’s not dead, you should give up on that idea as soon as possible.”
It's clear that Li Lianniang is well-liked by her mother-in-law, but after giving birth to a daughter, she took over managing the household.
I never expected that the taciturn fellow would have such abilities.
The younger sister of the Li family had her face full of resistance. "But I haven't even seen the second son of the Jiang family yet. If he's ugly, I won't marry him."
Hearing her daughter's foolish words, Li Zhoushi was so angry that her chest heaved, and she wanted to hit her but forcibly restrained herself.
The conversation inside the Xiequ Pavilion reached Zhao Xian's ears without missing a single word.
Granny He's face fell, and she said with disdain, "What kind of thing would look down on our second young master?"
After she came to the Jiang family, she watched the two young masters grow up. She believed that her own children were the best and couldn't stand hearing others speak ill of them.
Zhao Xian rested her chin on her hand, took out the script she had memorized and flipped through it, but didn't see this part.
"Did you forget something?"
To be honest, because the original owner disliked Li Lianniang, he also disliked her daughter, and therefore did not hold a grand full-moon celebration.
The Li family did send people to the book, namely Li Zhoushi and her daughter, which is consistent with the book.
After thinking about it for a while, Zhao Xian recalled some plot points from the book.
Because of the original owner's dislike for this family, the original owner acted with great disgust and disrespect.
While reading the book, I felt that the original owner's mother-in-law was too wicked.
In retrospect, everything seems understandable.
In the book, Xiu'er's full moon celebration was not a grand affair; the tragic heroine only held a simple celebration with her family.
Afterwards, the Li family mother and daughter left, seemingly after a very unpleasant departure. The original owner of this body even used this incident to mock the female protagonist in abusive novels for not valuing filial piety.
Looking back on this now, it seems so strange, utterly inexplicable.
The book doesn't mention what unpleasant things happened.
It seems that the purpose is simply to arrange some unpleasant words for the wicked mother-in-law to say, thus exacerbating the conflict between mother-in-law and daughter-in-law.
"Madam, Miss Li ran into the eldest son at the hanging flower gate."
"Madam, Miss Li has gone to consult the eldest son about his poetry collection."
"Madam, Miss Li personally made some pastries and sent them to the eldest son."
Zhao Xian listened to the servant's report.
Could the reason for the unpleasantness in the book be that the younger sister of the Li family fell for her brother-in-law?
A note from the author:
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Grandma is so busy!!!
When Mu Shuwen opened her eyes, she found herself transmigrated and had become the matriarch of the General's Mansion.
The original owner had five sons and two daughters.
The sons are either dead or missing, and the daughters are either dead or married far away.
The huge general's mansion was left with only the original owner, his daughter-in-law, and a bunch of little kids including his grandson, granddaughter, great-grandson, and great-granddaughter.
Servant: "Madam, Dalang beat up the Minister's son, and they've come to our door to demand an explanation."
Servant: "Madam, the Second Madam's parents have come to our door, wanting her to remarry, and they also request that the General's Mansion prepare a dowry."
Servant: "Madam, the Third Master is not dead. He has returned, and he brought back a concubine and two children."
servant: "Madam..."
Mu Shuwen opened her eyes and tried to close them.
There was no other way; the general's mansion was full of the old, weak, sick, and disabled.
Yes, at forty-six years old, it's the perfect time to take risks.
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