Ouyang Zhen had never been so speechless in her life. No matter what topic she wanted to talk about, Jiang Jiuniang could always steer it towards bragging about men. She was a complete love-struck fool.
Because she had been listening to her talk about men, Ouyang Zhen was very impatient and her emotions were starting to get out of control. So when Jiang Jiuniang suddenly changed the subject and asked her why she had separated from Old Man Ouyang, she blurted it out.
"What else could it be? My grandfather favored boys over girls. My parents only had me as their daughter. He forced my father to divorce my mother. My father disagreed, so he took my mother and me with him and moved away."
Speaking of this, she seemed to have found an outlet for her pent-up grievances, and she spoke eloquently: "My grandfather was a great Confucian scholar and a great sage in the eyes of others, and was respected and revered by everyone. However, he was not a good father, much less a good grandfather. He felt that his achievements were beyond the reach of others, and he looked down on my father and my uncle, who were just ordinary students. He thought that my father and my uncle were the failures in his life, and he disliked them since he was a child."
"Later, my parents had me, but never had another brother. My grandfather's attitude became increasingly worse... Actually, it wasn't that we wanted to separate the family, but my grandfather forced my father to make a choice. If he didn't divorce my mother, he would take me and my mother and get out of the house. My father chose the latter."
Last night on the street, it was difficult to say anything, but today Jiang Jiuniang talked so much about things between husband and wife, and I suddenly felt that my own family matters were not something I couldn't talk about, so I told her everything without reservation.
"Actually, my father didn't want to stay in that house anymore either. Even though he only had ten taels of silver with him when he left home with my mother and me, our whole family was happy because we no longer had to suffer from my grandfather's contempt and oppression. Our family's life only started to improve after that. As you can see, I now have my own teahouse."
Unlike Ouyang Zhen's impatience, Jiang Jiuniang listened to her story patiently. When she heard about Ouyang Zhen's past experiences of being oppressed by her grandfather, she sighed with great sympathy.
This made Ouyang Zhen feel a little ashamed, since she hadn't really wanted to listen to her speak just now.
"It's tough being a girl in this world. Luckily, you have wonderful parents who allow you to live so freely and unrestrainedly. But is it because of your parents' health that they couldn't have more children? If so, I might be able to help take a look. Oh, I forgot to tell you, I'm a doctor."
Her expression, full of concern for Ouyang Zhen, was truly touching.
At this moment, Ouyang Zhen had completely forgotten her mission here. Holding Jiang Jiuniang's hand, she said with great emotion, "Thank you, Sister Jiuniang, but it's no need. My mother almost died during childbirth, and my father was worried about repeating the same mistake, so he never had any more children after that."
Upon hearing this, Jiang Jiuniang understood and was immediately moved to tears: "So your parents have a very good relationship, just like my husband and I! Look, I'm sitting in a teahouse drinking tea right now, while my husband and son are working to earn money for others. My mother-in-law is so good at raising her son. I forgot to tell you, my husband took care of me during my postpartum period. He didn't care at all about those rumors that women who give birth are unlucky..."
The topic successfully shifted to bragging about men again. Given how patiently Jiang Jiuniang had listened to her talk about her parents, Ouyang Zhen refrained from rolling her eyes when Jiang Jiuniang mindlessly praised men again.
Unexpectedly, time flew by while they were gossiping. Soon, both plays were over, and the crowd in the teahouse began to leave. Jiang Jiuniang, holding her daughter, said to Ouyang Zhen, "Sister, I really like you so much. Let's stop here for today. Let's meet again another day when we have time. Then I'll tell you how I got through those years when my man and I were separated!"
Ouyang Zhen was speechless; she really had no interest in what happened between the couple.
She wished Jiang Jiuniang would leave immediately, but then she remembered that she hadn't finished her mission for the day, so she hurriedly said, "Sister Jiuniang, we hit it off right away, how about we have dinner together? It's on me!"
"No, no, my husband and son have worked hard all day. I have to have dinner with them when they get back, otherwise I'll feel guilty. You should cherish your own husband. You're not married yet. You'll understand this when you get married."
As she spoke, she winked at Ouyang Zhen, casting an ambiguous glance at her.
Ouyang Zhen: ...
She had never been so speechless in her life.
Since they had already gone this far, she couldn't stop the couple from having dinner together, so she could only watch them leave with a forced smile.
Jiang Jiuniang returned to the inn and ordered food. A short while later, Lu Baichuan returned with the dog.
"No matter what you find out, don't say anything yet. Let me tell you what I found out first."
Jiang Jiuniang waved her hand, gesturing for them to sit down and eat first, then spoke first: "What I understand so far is that Old Man Ouyang has a very bad relationship with his two sons. He has always suppressed them since they were young. The elder son was forced out of the house because he only had one daughter, while the younger son was luckier, having two sons, which is why Old Man Ouyang kept him at home. The sick grandson of Old Man Ouyang that we investigated before is the younger son of the second son's family."
"Old Man Ouyang's suppression of his two sons has led to their somewhat extreme personalities. After the eldest son's family was kicked out of the house, he started from scratch and amassed a considerable fortune in just a few years. Moreover, he didn't achieve it step by step; it was more like getting rich overnight. To put it bluntly, someone was helping him behind the scenes. So I suspect that the person behind the eldest son's family is the organization of the mysterious person you mentioned last night."
After hearing what Jiang Jiuniang said, Gou'er was very excited: "Mom, you're amazing! It's almost exactly what we found!"
Lu Baichuan nodded and said, "Yes, but what we found out is that the eldest and second eldest brothers' families don't have a good relationship. They've been competitors in business for many years, so I think starting with the second eldest brother will be a faster way to find out who's behind the eldest brother."
Ouyang Zhen didn't mention this.
Jiang Jiuniang's smile widened: "Isn't this a coincidence? The second son's youngest son is sick, and I happen to be able to cure him."
"Alright, since the eldest brother knows we're here, the second brother must know too. Let's wait for the second brother to come looking for us."
After explaining all this, Lu Baichuan's tightly furrowed brows relaxed. As long as they found out who was behind it all, they could leave the rest to the emperor.
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