Old Madam Xu was not a difficult person to get along with. Now that the people from the second house were gone and Gu Shaoqing had also calmed down, the entire Marquis Gu's Mansion became much more harmonious than before, including Old Madam Xu and Liu.
Mrs. Liu was originally a gentle person, and she didn't like to make trouble. After all, Old Madam Xu was a person with a lot of experience. Without those little guys whispering in her ears, she didn't have such a big prejudice against Mrs. Liu. Instead, she thought she was gentle and considerate. Over time, their relationship improved.
Early in the morning, the birds on the eaves were still chirping when the servants of Old Lady Xu came over.
Gu Yong made a fuss until midnight yesterday. He was in good spirits and got up to attend court before dawn. But Liu was kept up until midnight. Her son would not have come out unless someone urged him. She hurriedly asked Mother Chen to put clothes on him and comb his hair with a comb before she hurried out.
"Did the old lady tell you what it was about?" Liu walked forward anxiously.
Since the second house had passed away, Old Madam Xu had always been kind to her and had never sent her there so early as today. Liu wondered if it was something important. The servant did not hide it from Liu and shook his head, "It seems that the one in Duke Xiao's mansion is not doing well. The old lady was not feeling well when she got up this morning and was thinking about going to see her."
Liu frowned slightly. The only person in the Xiaoguo Mansion who was on good terms with the old lady was the old lady You. Her image flashed through her mind. She didn't know why she felt a little depressed when she knew that she was seriously ill.
Soon they arrived at Old Lady Xu's place.
"You're here." The old lady raised her eyelids slightly.
After Liu paid her respects, she saw that her face was pale, so she walked over and said worriedly, "You are not feeling well, why don't you ask a doctor to come and take a look."
Old Madam Xu shook her head and said, "I know my own body well, there is nothing wrong with it." She sighed again, "It's just that I heard about the Xiao family's incident yesterday, and I feel a little unhappy."
Liu knew that her old lady had a good relationship with Old Lady You. Although they were more than 20 years apart, they were still close friends. "Since you are so worried, why don't I go over and visit her for you?"
Old Mrs. Xu nodded and said, "That's why I asked you to come over. I originally wanted to go see her in person, but I'm not feeling well, and I'm afraid of causing trouble for them if I went." After all, a relative had died, and the old lady was old and overly sad, and her body was also injured.
After hearing this, Liu said hurriedly: "Duke Xiao's Mansion has a close personal relationship with the Gu family. Granddaughter-in-law should go to visit Old Lady You."
Seeing this, Old Mrs. Xu felt relieved.
After meeting the old lady, Liu did not delay for long. At noon, she went to the warehouse to organize the gifts to be prepared for the Xiao family. At night, she was ready to leave.
Shen Qingqiu came back at this time, and wanted to follow her when he saw her go out. Liu originally thought that Old Lady You was dying, and she was afraid that she would be contaminated by death if she took her daughter with her. But now looking at her daughter again, she suddenly felt that she had to ask her daughter to see her for the last time.
So he took Shen Qingqiu with him.
——
For a family as prominent as the Xiao family, seeing that the deceased was about to pass away, the funeral supplies were naturally prepared in advance, and even the expressions on the servants' faces today could not be funny.
Shen Qingqiu got off the carriage and saw the white lanterns hung by the Xiao family. He frowned unconsciously, "This man is not dead yet, but he's been hung up. Isn't that a curse?"
Liu pretended to hit her mouth, and Shen Qingqiu closed her mouth reluctantly.
"The Xiao family is such a big family. If we wait until people arrive before making arrangements, it may be too late..." Liu said.
Mother Chen was well-informed and immediately shook her head, "It's understandable that the funeral supplies might not be ready in time, but there's no reason to hang up the white lanterns in advance..." Then she looked at the servants of the Xiao family who were still far away and said, "It's strange that Old Lady You doesn't have a daughter of her own. Now even her daughter-in-law hopes that she dies soon so that she can take charge!"
It was clearly someone else's family's business, but Liu felt particularly uncomfortable when she heard it.
"Okay, Mom Chen, stop talking."
Soon they arrived at Duke Xiao's mansion. Mother Chen was afraid of saying too much, so she kept her mouth shut. Soon they arrived at the main hall of Duke Xiao's mansion. The current mistress of Duke Xiao's mansion, Lin, had heard that someone was coming from Marquis Gu's mansion, so she had also been waiting early. She came over with a smile to greet the person, but when she saw that the person was Liu, her originally enthusiastic expression suddenly changed.
"Why didn't the old lady come?" asked Lin.
Others were cold to her, and Liu didn't get too close to her. "My mother-in-law felt unwell early this morning, and she was worried about Old Lady You's health, so she asked me to come and see her."
Seeing her like this, Lin raised her eyelids slightly and said, "It's rare that the old lady is so thoughtful. But my son, my mother-in-law, has just taken the medicine given by the doctor and has gone to bed. If Madam Hou wants to see her, she may have to wait for a while." Lin was naturally angry and resentful that the woman in front of her had snatched the position of Madam Hou that should have been her daughter.
But now she is already the wife of Marquis Gu. Such an identity would be embarrassing for everyone, but she just doesn't give it.
If it were another lady like Lin, she would have started a fuss long ago. However, Liu didn't like to cause trouble. She also knew about the recent unhappiness with Duke Xiao's Mansion. In addition, she came to visit the old lady today, so she ignored Lin's fussing and just said, "If the old lady's son is taking a rest and not seeing guests, I can wait."
Lin smiled and said, "Then make tea for Madam Hou." Then she said embarrassedly, "I still have some things to deal with in the shop, so it's inconvenient for me to continue to accompany Madam Hou."
After saying this, he left in a hurry without waiting for Liu's response.
As soon as she left, Mother Chen said angrily, "What a person! How dare she not respect our Madam! The Xiao family has fallen on hard times, how can it compare to our Hou Mansion? Look at how arrogant she is!"
"Shh!" It was only when Shen Qingqiu and Liu made a shushing gesture towards Mother Chen that Mother Chen finally calmed down.
Shen Qingqiu said: "You know she's stupid, why are you arguing with her?"
Lin was indeed extremely stupid. Anyone with a discerning eye could see that the biggest support of the entire Gu family was her stepfather. Xiao Ruqin now had little hope of getting into the Gu Marquis's mansion. How could the Xiao family treat the current Gu Marquis's wife so coldly? Could it be that they wanted to make an enemy? Duke Xiao probably wouldn't think so, but who could blame Mrs. Lin for being short-sighted? "Then shall we wait here?" Jin Cai asked, "What if Lin never comes back and says she has forgotten us?"
Shen Qingqiu curled his lips slightly, "Since she has forgotten, we can stay here and come back when she remembers."
"Qiu'er, this..." Liu frowned, not wanting to make things too awkward with Lin.
Shen Qingqiu only said: "If someone respects me, I will respect him. Mother, you and Lin are both wives of high-ranking officials, each of you carries the face of your husband's family. Now that you are in Duke Xiao's mansion, it's not just you, but also the Gu family. If we go back in disgrace like this, it won't just be you who will lose face."
In fact, Shen Qingqiu's words were a bit too much. After all, there was no deep hatred between Duke Xiao's Mansion and Marquis Gu's Mansion.
But Liu has a soft temper. If she is not given strong medicine, her temper may not be saved. How can she gain a foothold in the rich and powerful family?
"Yes, Qiu'er is right," As expected, Liu lightly grabbed the table. She was naturally soft-hearted and there was nothing she could do about it, but it was also because of this that she did not want the Gu family's reputation to be damaged because of her.
"Mother Chen, do you know what to do?" Shen Qingqiu asked.
Mother Chen is best at taking advantage of the power of others. She immediately led Jin Cai out of the house in a swagger. Her powerful shouts could be heard from inside the house.
"Arrange a guest room for our lady and girl!"
"Our lady wants to stay here to serve your old lady... No, of course not. I'm telling you, Duke Xiao's Mansion is on good terms with our Marquis' Mansion. If you dare to refuse again, I'll take care of you!"
——
In Lin's mansion, she did not go out to take care of the shop's affairs as she said.
Instead, she said to her confidant in great panic: "What should I do? I can't just kick them out, right?" Let's not talk about Liu being a proper wife now. Just say that her mother-in-law is seriously ill, and she is trying not to let others see her, which can easily arouse others' suspicion.
The confidant comforted Lin while thinking of a countermeasure quickly. After a moment, a vicious look escaped from his eyes, "Madam, it has come to this point. Liu has taken away our eldest daughter's position as the Marquis's wife. It is better to kill two birds with one stone. If Liu is gone, the relationship between our family and the Gu family will definitely make our daughter the Marquis's wife!"
Lin gritted her teeth, she was a little afraid, "Is she that stupid? I think that little bastard born by Liu is very smart." She had done all kinds of evil things in the mansion. It was not because she had a guilty conscience, but because she was afraid of being discovered.
The confidant sneered, "No matter how capable she is, can she control the King of Hell to take people in?" He added, "The old lady's illness has been dragging on, and now they are here at the right time. Isn't this God's will? Madam, God is helping you again!"
These words from his confidant finally made Lin harden his heart.
The two of them plotted in the room for a while, and soon the confidant left the room. Not long after, the servants of Duke Xiao's mansion settled down with Liu's mother and daughter. However, although there was a room, there were not many people to serve.
The maid lazily took a few people to the guest room, put down the tea and was about to leave.
Shen Qingqiu held a tea bowl in his hand and looked up and down at Duke Xiao's guest room, revealing a cold smile at the end. However, Liu stopped him and asked, "When will your wife come back?"
The maid turned around and said, "To answer Madam Hou's question, how dare we, as servants, ask about the affairs of our master's family? Madam Hou went out without telling us when she would be back."
She called Madam Hou in her words, which did not mean she was respectful at all. Jin Cai was about to speak indignantly, but was stopped by Mother Chen.
"Then there must be a letter. When do you usually come back?"
The maidservant still didn't know anything.
Liu had no choice but to ask, "Then when can we go see Old Lady You?"
The maid replied, "Madam Hou is here to visit the patient, so she can visit at any time. If you want to visit the patient, just tell me, and my servants will show you the way." But there is no such thing in the world. How can you visit a patient without the master's company? "If Madam Hou has nothing else to say, I will leave first." The maid said and left.
Jin Cai pouted, "What rules?"
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