Chapter 100 A Precise and Subtle Satire of Qing Ling's Filial Piety
Yao Qingling had just returned to Mulan Courtyard and hadn't even had a chance to sit down when the nanny from Cangbo Courtyard came over to inform her: "Miss Qingling, the old lady wants you to come over."
It's a call, not a request.
The nanny's attitude reflected the master's attitude, indicating that the old lady was very angry.
Yao Qingling guessed that the eldest son's family was going to complain to the old lady, so she replied, "I'll come after I change my clothes."
The old woman said coldly, "Miss Qingling, do you expect the old lady to wait? No need to change your clothes, just go."
Lou Yue glanced outside and looked at Qing Ling. Her clothes were still wrinkled. Would she be able to go over like this?
"Miss, why don't you just change your outer clothes? You'll look more presentable."
She quickly opened the wardrobe and looked for clothes.
Xia Chan acted swiftly, stepping forward to unbutton Qing Ling's clothes while saying quickly, "Last night, the Lady of the Marquis sent people to the courtyard, but Miss wasn't there, so I didn't let them in. They didn't say anything at the time, but I didn't expect them to wait all night. They're keeping a closer eye on our courtyard, Miss, please be careful."
I changed my coat as quickly as possible, and surprisingly, the color and style matched the skirt fairly well.
Qingling smiled and said to Louyue, "Your skills are quite good."
Lou Yue: "Miss, how can you still laugh? Go on your way."
Upon arriving at Cangbo Courtyard, the old lady sat in the main hall, her face unusually grim.
Ma Peizhen stood beside the old lady, handing her ginseng tea and glancing at Qingling. Qingling was expressionless, like a high-ranking maid, both present and seemingly absent.
Below the old lady sat Madam Ma, whose face was equally grim and very serious.
Not only Madam Ma, but all the women and children of the Marquis's residence, except for the men on duty, were present.
Upon seeing this setup, Qingling chuckled, "Is this some kind of joint trial?"
She entered the room and bowed, saying, "Greetings, Madam; greetings, Aunt; greetings, Sister-in-law."
Madam Lu glanced at Qingling with some sympathy, opened her mouth as if to say something, but was glared at by Madam Ma and shut up.
Ma said, "What's so good about it? You didn't come home all night, everyone was worried about you and didn't sleep a wink, and you still don't know you're wrong?"
The old lady slammed her hand on the table: "You wretched child, kneel down!"
Qingling: "..."
That's how the old lady has always been; she believes everything she hears and is easily manipulated.
She was widowed at a young age and raised three sons. Her greatest hope in life was that her sons would take care of her in her old age and see her off in death.
Qingling's grandfather was a scholar who passed the imperial examination, but he did not become an official. He worked as a teacher at a prestigious academy. His family had a respectable background, but he died young.
The eldest son, or uncle, was good at flattering people. He managed to persuade the old lady to concentrate all the family's resources on his education. Eventually, he passed the imperial examination and became an official. Although his official position was not high, it was enough for the old lady to value him.
Seeing that his family was poor, Qingling's father went to the border to join the army, earning military pay to support his mother in her old age, and gradually rose from a lowly soldier to a general.
However, since the general's son was not around to be filial, the old lady only had eyes for her eldest son.
If there's anything good in the family, give priority to the eldest son; if there's anything bad, never ruin the eldest son's future.
Consequently, his uncle's descendants also received preferential treatment.
Yao Qingling stood still, quietly looking at the old lady: "Why do you want me to kneel down?"
She glanced at Madam Ma, then looked at the old lady: "Because I didn't come home all night?"
The old lady was furious: "Not returning home all night, isn't that big enough! Even men don't act so casually, do you not know how awful the rumors are about you, a divorced woman?"
Yao Qingling didn't say anything.
From the powerful and wealthy to ordinary people, everyone has their share of gossip and rumors.
As a woman who had just divorced, Qingling was the subject of much gossip during this time. She returned to the Marquis's residence and lived a quiet life for many days, while the general store was undergoing renovations.
She didn't go anywhere else; she was just keeping an eye on the workers doing renovations. How bad could the gossip be?
Madam Ma then chimed in, adding fuel to the fire: "Qingling, you have to be strong, you have to show people. You did nothing wrong by getting a divorce, and you can make other contributions to the Marquis's mansion. We all have high hopes for you, and no one wants you to suffer."
“You’re busy every day, leaving early and returning late, and everyone can see that. It’s one thing to come home late, but how can you be so inconsiderate as to not even come home or send a message?”
She was heartbroken: "Qingling, you need to know you have a family. Don't you feel anything seeing your family worry about you?"
Yao Qingling looked at Madam Ma. She had seen her two-faced behavior before, but now she was doing this again. She was clearly up to no good, but she was pretending to care about her.
She sneered, "Aunt, when the Duke's mansion sent word of my death, did you ever consider that I was a member of their family?"
Actually, she wasn't that angry about the Marquis's family's indifference; after all, they were just relatives, not her biological parents. She died, the Duke's family promised compensation, and that was the end of it.
But she suddenly returned, and before she could even reap the benefits of the Duke's mansion, she divorced him. Madam Ma hated her too much to even think about it.
Worried about her?
hehe.
Madam Ma's expression changed, but she looked at the old lady with a wronged expression: "Mother-in-law, look at her, she's still arguing about that matter."
During this time, through constant persuasion, the old lady came to believe that simply not confirming whether Yao Qingling was dead wasn't a big mistake. Even the Duke's mansion claimed she was dead; how could the Marquis's mansion be more capable than the Duke's?
The old lady slammed her hand on the table again: "How dare you! She is the wife of a marquis! Don't you have any sense of respect?"
"You're always out showing your face in public. What woman acts like you? There are so many women in the Marquis's mansion. Outsiders who know this won't say anything, but what about those who don't? They all think the women in the Marquis's mansion are as shameless as you?"
Have you thought about your sisters? How will they find husbands?
"Your aunt is just trying to help you; what's wrong with her saying a few words to you?"
Qingling pursed her lips, appearing stubborn and unyielding.
He thought to himself that the old lady was terribly naive.
After her grandfather passed away, it was tough for her to raise her three sons alone. However, her grandfather had left some savings, and with the help of the clan, she didn't have to worry about food and drink, although her life was a bit poor.
Her sons grew up and were able to support the family, so all the money was given to her to use; she never really earned any money herself.
They couldn't show their faces in public, yet they wanted to bring a lot of money home—unless the roof of the Marquis's mansion suddenly had a huge hole, and Heaven would precisely drop the money into the mansion.
What is this if not naive?
The old lady clutched her chest in anger and coughed a few times. Ma Peizhen quickly brought her tea and half-jokingly coaxed her, "Sister Qingling is young and vigorous. She has a good constitution. If you get angry with her, you'll suffer."
During this period, Ma Peizhen spent almost every day at Cangbo Courtyard "fulfilling her filial duties".
The old lady was easily swayed, and her grandniece Ma Peizhen was even more considerate than her own granddaughter. Every day, she would either cook her favorite dishes herself, massage her back and legs, or tell jokes to make her happy. The old lady liked her very much.
The old lady took a sip of tea, turned her head away from Yao Qingling, and said to Ma Peizhen, "You are the one with filial piety."
This is a precise and veiled criticism of Qing Ling's filial impiety.
Yao Qingqi seized the opportunity and said to Qingling, "Look at you, you've made your grandmother angry."
“Grandmother is giving you face, and my mother is your aunt, so she can’t say anything to you directly. But I can’t stand it anymore, so I’ll just say what I have to say.”
"I'm asking you, did you sell the shops belonging to the Marquis's mansion?"
"You said you wanted to do business and make big money, and quite a bit of time has passed. Have you brought back any big deals yet?"
The old lady immediately recalled what Madam Ma had said in the room and said coldly, "I think you should give up this business. The Marquis's estate is not enough for you to squander."
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