Chapter 23 Chapter 23 Fang Ying doesn’t want to have children, it’s best if…
Ji Guangting and his party arrived in the city earlier than expected. Before noon, Li received the news that Ji Yanlang and his brothers had come to greet them. All the women in the room were delighted. Even An and Cheng stopped saying sour words because their husbands were about to come home.
Soon the luggage was sent back home, and Mrs. Li asked everyone to disperse first and come back when the head of the family returned home.
Fang Ying was planning to go back to her room, but just as she came out of the main courtyard, she met a little maid sent by Yue Qing'e. She said that she was too busy and asked Fang Ying to help.
The three sisters-in-law were all there. Normally, An and Cheng would have grumbled a few words, but they were all busy going back to sort out the luggage their husbands had brought back, so they hurried away, pretending they hadn't heard anything. Only the fifth sister-in-law, Gao, said thank you for your hard work before bidding farewell to Fang Ying.
Fang Ying followed the little maid all the way to the West Flower Hall. She saw the maids coming and going, moving furniture and furnishings. Although busy, it was not chaotic. Then she looked at Yue Qing'e, who was sitting leisurely by the stove drinking tea. How could she look like she was overwhelmed?
"You can't drink enough tea, so you want me to help you?" Fang Ying asked with a smile.
Yue Qing'e pulled her to sit beside her and said with a smile, "I just heard an interesting story and can't wait to tell it to you."
"Interesting?" Since no one was out today, Fang Ying guessed it wasn't something that happened outside. She didn't say it out loud, and asked flatteringly, "What's interesting?"
Yue Qing'e didn't answer but asked, "Have your third and fourth sisters-in-law gone back?"
It has something to do with them. Fang Ying nodded: "We just came out from mother's place together."
Yue Qing'e came over and whispered to her, "By now, they should have seen the 'luggage' that Sanlang and Silang brought back." Her face was full of a smile, as if she was looking forward to the show. "Two delicate beauties, oh, I wonder if Sanniang can suppress her anger."
"Two beauties?" Fang Ying was surprised. "Are they Third Uncle's concubines?"
"No, one is Sanlang's and the other is Silang's. They are said to be sisters and look somewhat alike."
Fang Ying frowned unconsciously: "Did you bring it back from Xiangzhou, or on the way?"
"They say she's been serving for over a year." Yue Qing'e explained in a low voice, "It's impossible for them to be without concubines when they're away. It's just that they never brought any back home, so the Third and Fourth Mothers just ignored them and pretended they didn't know. Who would have thought that this time, they would bring her back without a word."
These two sisters-in-law always laughed at her for not being able to give birth to a son. Today, she finally got to see them laugh. Yue Qing'e was particularly happy. "No wonder Sanniang asked me to bring her along as a maid to accompany Sanlang last time, but Sanlang refused. He said that it was unacceptable to bring a maid into the military camp. In fact, there are already stunning beauties there, so he didn't like her, did he?"
Fang Ying herself didn't think there was anything to be happy about. After all, it was just a shameless man's lust, and making fun of the third and fourth sisters-in-law for this was quite boring. But these two, relying on the fact that they had given birth to a son, had made fun of the second sister-in-law first, so now they were being made fun of in return, which was not unfair.
Then he said, "Third sister-in-law really believes it. Father is the governor, holding the imperial seal and opening the government office, why must he bring it into the military camp?"
"That's exactly what she said. She's actually quite proud of it. Taking advantage of Sanlang's absence these past few years, she's sent away all the maids who served him, leaving only her own ordinary-looking girl as a dowry. Do you think she'll make a scene when she sees this?"
"No way. Father's back, and it's time for the family to reunite. Even though Third Sister-in-law is a little...she wouldn't dare to make a scene right now, right? Besides, what can she do? At most, she could just have a quarrel with Third Uncle behind closed doors, right?"
Yue Qing'e felt deeply regretful: "That's such a pity."
Fang Ying laughed: "Don't feel sorry, there's still a long way to go."
Yue Qing'e's eyes lit up. "Yes, with Sanniang's temper, she can tolerate it for a while, but not forever. And Si Niang, don't look at her soft-spokenness, unlike Sanniang's bad temper, but when it comes to scheming, the two Sanniangs can't match her. Sooner or later, she will instigate Sanniang to make trouble first, and then take the opportunity to bring Si Lang back and deal with him as well."
Fang Ying couldn't help but frown again: "Sister-in-law, do you know the origins of these two women?"
"They said someone else sent it to the Jiedu Mansion." Yue Qing'e leaned close to Fang Ying's ear and added, "It's likely that they wanted to give it to my father, but he didn't want it."
Since the matter also involved her father-in-law, it was difficult to continue the conversation. The two sisters-in-law stopped talking and drank a cup of tea each. Yue Qing'e suddenly remembered something: "Oh, I haven't congratulated you yet."
Fang Ying smiled and said, "What do I have that's worth congratulating you for?"
"Don't you know? Mother sent your second uncle to find someone to calculate an auspicious date," Yue Qing'e said, smiling at Fang Ying, "and she specifically asked for the nearest date. Shouldn't I congratulate you?"
"Auspicious day?" Could it be what she was thinking of?
"It's the wedding ceremony!" Yue Qing'e held Fang Ying's hand and said sincerely, "It's better to consummate the marriage sooner, so that everyone can feel at ease."
It was true. Upon hearing this news, Fang Ying couldn't laugh at all. Yue Qing'e saw this and thought she was a virgin. She was afraid and said softly, "Don't be afraid. It will be fine after the first time."
But she just didn't want to have this first time. Fang Ying began to regret that she had acted too much that day, and at the same time secretly blamed Ji Yanlang for being too quick. If he hadn't spoken like that in front of his mother-in-law yesterday, his mother-in-law wouldn't have been in a hurry to ask someone to calculate an auspicious day. They had originally agreed to wait until her father-in-law came home before choosing one.
Yue Qing'e had no idea what she was thinking. Seeing that she seemed upset after hearing this, she thought about it and guessed that it was probably because Fang Ying's mother died early and Liu Lang had no news when she got married, so no one told her about matters between men and women, which made her feel flustered.
But as a sister-in-law, she couldn't explain it in too much detail. Yue Qing'e took note of the matter and decided to report it to her mother-in-law later and let her make the arrangements.
"Okay, we're almost done here, you can go back and rest." She pulled Fang Ying's hand, "I'll go back and see the kids too."
Fang Ying came back to her senses, stood up and said goodbye to her sister-in-law, and went back with a lot on her mind.
Lichun probably knew what his mistress was thinking. He pondered it all the way, and when he returned to his room, he advised, "Madam, why did you lose your smile in front of Second Mother today? The Madam is holding the wedding ceremony out of pity for you, to make up for the loss of your husband's absence at the wedding. You looked so dignified when you heard about this. What if Second Mother tells Madam..."
Fang Ying was startled and quickly recalled what had happened. "It shouldn't be a big deal. My second sister-in-law probably thought I was scared." Then she emphasized as if to convince Lichun, "I was scared too!"
What if she was unlucky and got pregnant quickly? Fang Ying was not one of those ignorant young ladies who, after getting married, hoped to get pregnant quickly so that they could have a boy, but knew nothing about the dangers of childbirth for women.
She had witnessed her mother giving birth prematurely and was in excruciating pain. What Fang Ying could never forget was that her mother had been through a near-death experience and finally gave birth to a boy, but due to premature birth, the baby died and her own health collapsed. She left her and passed away within a year.
She doesn't want to have children, and it would be best if she never gets pregnant.
"Today is the day when the Duke of the County returns home. Everyone is happy. My lady, you must always have a smile on your face when you are in front of others." Lichun knew a little about his wife's worries, but he didn't dare to persuade her too much. He could only say this.
"I know." Fang Ying sighed and asked Lichun to take off her shoes. She leaned against the pillow and sat in the warm room in a daze for a while.
It was almost noon when the little maid came to report that the Duke and Sanlang and Silang had already entered the mansion. Fang Ying got up, packed up hastily, and rushed to the main hall. She and her sisters-in-law accompanied Li to welcome Ji Guangting and his son.
Ji Guangting was not wearing armor, but his purple official robe still gave off the bearing of a battle-hardened general, making people dare not look directly at him.
Fang Ying followed her sisters-in-law in bowing down. When her father-in-law called her, she stood up with the help of Lichun's hand. She saw that the third son Ji Yanchang and the fourth son Ji Yanqing had also bowed down in front of Li.
Li smiled and called out, comforting the two illegitimate sons with a few words. Ji Guangting then asked everyone to disperse and wait for Erlang, Wulang and Liulang to return home from office and continue the conversation at the family dinner.
As soon as Fang Ying left the main hall, she asked Yue Qing'e to hold her hand and walk out with her.
"Have you seen Sanniang's expression?" Yue Qing'e asked impatiently as soon as she walked away.
"Yeah." Fang Ying smiled and nodded, "It's not a good look. She's staring at Third Uncle with eyes that look like they're going to burst into flames."
Yue Qing'e smiled and said, "We have to start this fire when we get back. After you left, someone came to report that there was a lot of commotion in Sanniang's courtyard and they didn't know what was being smashed."
"Uncle Chong should be burned. I'm afraid she won't be able to make such a fuss, and will resort to trickery against the helpless person."
"That's for sure. She must have been coaxed into submission by Sanlang, so she can go back and deal with her concubines." Yue Qing'e said with disdain. "I despise her for being like this. She instigated my aunt to come out and fight with my mother, and then turned around and killed all the concubines in her room. If she has such ability, why doesn't she just deal with Sanlang?"
"So she is a confused person." Fang Ying sighed.
Yue Qing'e agreed, took a few steps, and then said, "But she's probably happier living like this than we are."
Since she married into the Ji family, she has always imitated her mother-in-law in her behavior, and she feels that she is blameless. But when she thinks about it, she has indeed lived a very frustrating life for several years.
Fang Ying held her hand and said, "Life is full of unpleasant moments, but they will eventually pass. As long as you have a clear conscience, that's all that matters."
Yue Qing'e nodded and didn't say anything else. She asked Fang Ying to accompany her to review the family banquet menu and go to the West Flower Hall to look at the furnishings. Then they separated and went back to wait for their husbands to come home.
Fang Ying went back to her room and took a nap. When she woke up and had just drunk a cup of tea, Ji Yanlang came back.
He changed his clothes and came to the hall. He first asked his father when they returned home. Fang Ying answered. Ji Yanlang was a little puzzled: "Back so soon? So, the emperor summoned my father, but they didn't say a few words..."
Fang Ying was also unaware of this matter, so she had nothing to say. Ji Yanlang pondered for a moment, then stood up and said, "Let's go to mother first."
Fang Ying put on more clothes and went out with him. When they arrived at the Li family courtyard, they found out that no one from other families had come.
But Fanggui came out quickly and said that the Duke and his wife asked them to come in.
Fang Ying followed Ji Yanlang into the hall and saw her parents-in-law sitting side by side. Her father-in-law had changed out of his official robes and looked much more amiable than before. She bowed and listened to her father-in-law say, "Please sit down."
"Dad, I heard that you returned home before noon?" Ji Yanlang asked as he sat down.
Although Fang Ying heard her father-in-law say "Please sit down", she still felt that it was not appropriate for her as a daughter-in-law to just sit there, so she quietly stood below Ji Yanlang.
Li saw this and said to her husband with a smile, "Even Ying'er doesn't dare to sit down since you came back."
Ji Guangting stroked his beard and asked, "Do I look ferocious?" He smiled at Fang Ying and said, "Don't be afraid, Sixth Lady. Sit down and talk."
Ji Yanlang turned around and said, "Sit down."
When Ji Guangting heard this, he turned around and exchanged glances with his wife, then they both smiled.
Fang Ying was sitting down at the moment and didn't see it, but Ji Yanlang happened to turn around and saw this scene. He asked with a smile, "What are you laughing at, Daddy and Mom?"
"Our Liu Lang has finally grown up," Ji Guangting said with a hint of emotion, "I hope everyone will be like this in the future."
Ji Yanlang didn’t understand what “so” meant.
Ji Guangting did not explain, but turned around and ordered that at the family banquet, men and women should not sit at separate tables, but should eat at separate tables, one table for each room, and a separate table for the unmarried fourth mother and grandchildren.
The maid responded and went to pass on the message, and he replied to Ji Yanlang's previous words: "The emperor is considerate and asked me to go back to the palace to wash off the dust of the world and summon me again the day after tomorrow."
Li interrupted, "You two can talk, father and son. Ying'er, come with me."
The author has something to say:
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Sorry, I was traveling these two days and I was always too tired to sleep at night.
I will add more to it tomorrow~
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