Having served as the matriarch of the Cheng family for over forty years, Madam Cheng has experienced the ups and downs of life. She is patient, has great patience, and knows how to assess situations.
But she never truly cared about her niece, Cheng Mei! Back then, that proud young lady with the spirit of a winter plum blossom was only able to be led by the nose by her, but now she's just a widowed woman who can only rely on her maternal family after marriage. What is there to fear?
Thinking of this, Madam Cheng quickly regained her composure and, adopting the demeanor of the matriarch of the Cheng family, said with a light touch, "Mei'er, what are you saying? We are family, why be so polite with your aunt!"
Jiao's mother smiled but didn't say anything.
There's plenty of time ahead, so let's not rush things.
When they took their seats, Madam Jiao glanced at the seat that Old Madam Cheng had prepared for her, but did not sit down immediately. Instead, she smiled and said, "Auntie is really getting on in years. She doesn't even know the most basic etiquette and rules for entertaining guests. It's fortunate that we're at home. If we were outside, wouldn't we make a fool of ourselves?"
Madam Cheng's expression began to waver. She looked over expressionlessly and said patiently, "Mei'er, you said it yourself, this is home, so naturally the elders should be respected. What's wrong with that?"
Madam Jiao then asked Cheng Mu with a smile, "May I ask, Uncle, when did family rules become superior to the law? The eldest and second branches of the Cheng family have long since separated. To put it mildly, my father and I are guests, yet my aunt places me, her married-out niece, in the lowest rank. Isn't that extremely inappropriate? To put it more bluntly, both my aunt and uncle are commoners, while my father is the Grand Tutor of the court. Even I, her married-out daughter, now hold the rank of a fourth-grade noblewoman. Looking around the capital, I have never seen any other matriarch do such a thing! If this gets out, what will become of my father's reputation? How will the Cheng family face people in the future?"
"Since Auntie treats us so badly, Father, let's go back to the Grand Tutor's mansion!"
Jiao's mother was alive, and turned to leave.
Madam Cheng grabbed her arm, her face turning pale and then flushed before she forced a smile and said, "It was my oversight, Mei'er, don't take it to heart... Come, please take a seat!"
The maidservant hurriedly stepped forward and moved the chair aside, respectfully inviting Madam Jiao to sit down next to Grand Tutor Cheng.
After the exchange of witty remarks, Old Madam Cheng's expression tightened even more.
At the dinner table, apart from Old Madam Cheng's displeased expression, the others chatted and laughed freely, and enjoyed the meal quite well.
The Cheng brothers originally had a very good relationship, and all the estrangement stemmed from the Cheng family's unfair and unjust treatment of Cheng Mei. After twenty years apart, the brothers' attitudes had changed. As long as the conflict didn't resurface and Cheng Mei didn't suffer any losses, nothing seemed a big deal.
After dinner, the people in the west courtyard went to bed early, and nothing happened that night.
To everyone's surprise, the first to visit Grand Tutor Cheng were Princess Liyang and her son, Rong Yue.
As soon as Rong Yue entered the door, she started shouting, "Grand Tutor, Grandmother Jiao, where are Sanlang and Shitou?"
After shouting, he received a slap on the forehead from Li Yang.
After everyone exchanged greetings, Li Yang grabbed Jiao's mother's hand and said with great resentment, "We can't call each other that, we have to address each other as sisters! Yue'er can call me whatever she wants, but Huai'er is still my adopted son! Tell me, how come you've taken such a big advantage of me without saying a word!"
Jiao's mother smiled, "You won't admit you're blind. If only you had adopted Shan'er as your goddaughter back then! You didn't even take advantage of the opportunity that was offered to you. What can I say about you!"
Li Yang was speechless for a moment. "How would I know that girl is your daughter? You have no idea how capable she is... She's like you in that respect, never willing to suffer any loss. It's too late to say anything now! I really like Huai'er... Oh well, why worry about so much? We'll talk about it later!"
Rong Yue chuckled beside her, "Mom, if Aunt Jiang calls you 'sister' later, you should call Grandma Jiao 'sister' in return... Ahahaha...!"
"Shut up!" Li Yang glared at Rong Yue and said as if shooing away a fly, "Go, go, go find Sanlang to play!"
Rong Yue happily went to the west courtyard.
As Jiao's mother watched Rong Yue walk away, she said with relief, "In the blink of an eye, your child has grown up so much. I was so worried that you wouldn't be able to get married back then, but now I'm just so happy for you!"
Li Yang rolled her eyes at Jiao's mother and said, "Shan'er told you about Rong Yue's weight loss by imperial decree, right? Can you imagine how I've been these past few years? If it weren't for Shan'er, I wouldn't dare to return to the capital! This time, I'm determined to stay in the capital for a while longer and regain all the face and dignity I lost in the past few years!"
After saying this, Li Yang glanced at Grand Tutor Cheng and said, "Grand Tutor, I came from the palace. My brother asked me to pass on a message to you; he is waiting for you in the palace!"
Grand Tutor Cheng, dressed in a slightly worn, coarse gray-blue cloth shirt, took a sip of flower tea and said, "The mansion is not yet ready, don't rush."
Li Yang hesitated for a moment, then simply pulled Jiao's mother to her feet and said, "Let's go to your room to talk!"
So they think Grand Tutor Cheng is in their way?
On their way to the west courtyard, the two encountered Old Madam Cheng.
As Madam Cheng was about to greet him with a smile, before she could even bow, Li Yang had already pulled Jiao's mother away.
He didn't even glance at her.
"Why didn't you stay at the Grand Tutor's mansion? How could you eat with that old hag around?"
Li Yang's voice was not concealed at all, and it all went straight into Madam Cheng's ears.
Madam Cheng's face immediately darkened.
She had only come to pay her respects after hearing from the steward that the Grand Princess Liyang had arrived, but she never expected that the princess would not give her any face at all.
Madam Cheng swallowed hard, swallowing the bitter taste in her mouth, and turned to walk back.
"Tell me, how have you been all these years? I was really shocked when the Duke told me that you raised that boy from the Fu family and that the empire was your daughter! He can't explain anything else, so tell me quickly!"
Li Yang's eyes were full of gossip; her purpose for coming here couldn't be clearer: to hear stories.
Jiao's mother knew perfectly well that the untold truths were not only her past, but also the life her children needed to face.
She personally made Li Yang a cup of fruit tea and said with utmost solemnity, "My past is not important. What matters is my children! You know better than anyone what kind of people they are. My only request for the rest of my life as their mother is that my children never be bullied again! Li Yang, you must help me!"
Li Yang puffed out her chest and said arrogantly, "Who would dare to bully the people under my and the Duke's protection? Besides, do you have some misunderstanding about your daughter's fighting ability?"
Jiao was speechless. "What do you mean by that?"
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