After the original owner married into the Cheng'an Marquis's mansion, she gradually learned many things.
Her mother-in-law passed away from illness when Pei Han was very young. Not long after, Pei Boye remarried and had three daughters and one son with his second wife.
Most importantly, when he was young, Master Pei was a big playboy who loved eating, drinking and having fun, and frequented brothels.
This situation has not improved at all to this day.
He spends twelve hours a day, barely enough time to focus on himself, let alone spare any time for the inner courtyard of the Earl's mansion. Even on the day the news of Pei Han's passing the imperial examination arrived, he merely drunkenly muttered, "Hahaha, no wonder he's my son."
Then, amidst the flattery of his tablemates, he continued to enjoy his wine, with two beautiful women leaning against him, embracing each other on either side, thoroughly enjoying himself.
If even her biological father was like this, one can imagine what her stepmother, Liu, would be like.
Before giving birth to her own child, Liu was focused on quickly taking control of the internal affairs of the Earl's Mansion, especially its various financial assets.
Lord Pei spent his days in debauchery, ignoring worldly affairs, which suited Liu's tastes perfectly. Her strategy was that as long as she had control of a man's money, she wouldn't have to worry about him not coming home.
After Liu gave birth to her first daughter, her focus shifted slightly as she began to dedicate herself to having a son.
Because she suddenly realized that if she didn't give birth to a son, wouldn't everything she managed in the future fall into the hands of her ex-wife's son?
This was unbearable for her.
Fortunately, heaven was on her side, and after giving birth to three daughters, she finally gave birth to a son. Liu breathed a sigh of relief, glad that one of her major tasks had been accomplished.
Liu tried for six whole years to have a son.
Over the course of six years, she searched for all sorts of folk remedies, some of which were so unorthodox that they could hardly be called remedies at all. Yet, she never gave up on even the slightest opportunity and bravely tried them nonetheless. This courage left her personal nanny and maids speechless with astonishment.
To be fair, however, she did not mistreat her daughters. She personally took care of all the arrangements for her three daughters and never neglected them.
It's easy to imagine that Liu's life was exceptionally fulfilling after she married into the household. She was busy with chores every day, and never had a single bit of energy to spare for little Pei Han.
Of course, Lady Liu would not openly mistreat the eldest son of the Earl's family, as this would harm her reputation for virtue.
Moreover, secrets don't stay hidden forever. If word gets out, she's afraid she won't be able to bear the guilt of harming her future husband.
However, for a child who is not yet able to take care of himself, indifference is the most powerful weapon.
Fortunately, the old lady of the Earl's Mansion was still alive at that time. She was Pei Han's grandmother. Although she was old, she had not yet lost her sight.
She coldly observed what her son and stepdaughter-in-law were doing, and decisively took Pei Han to her own yard to raise him herself.
The old lady's health was not very good at that time. Although she could protect Pei Han, she didn't have much energy to care for him. She could only instruct the nannies and maids in the courtyard to take good care of him.
Pei Han grew up day by day and soon showed extraordinary intelligence. In addition, he was naturally good-looking and became more and more favored by the old lady.
The old lady was both happy and worried; what she couldn't let go of most was her eldest grandson.
On her deathbed, she held tightly to Lord Pei's hand, using her last strength to admonish her unfilial son: "Treat Han'er well, don't mistreat him. If anything happens to him, you don't need to come see your father and me again... cough... cough..."
Although Master Pei was a complete scoundrel, he hadn't completely lost his mind yet, so he couldn't stand his mother's words.
It should be understood that this dynasty governs the country based on filial piety. If someone is labeled as unfilial, it could easily ruin his current good life.
Upon thinking of such serious consequences, Master Pei's tears instantly streamed down his face like beads from a broken string.
He sobbed as he assured his mother, "Your son would never mistreat him, please rest assured."
The old lady then closed her eyes and passed away.
There's no need to elaborate on how Lord Pei managed his second wife afterwards. As it turns out, the scoundrel wasn't necessarily incompetent; he was probably just too lazy to care.
Despite growing up in this environment, Pei Han neither became narrow-minded or extreme, nor did she become timid. Instead, she remained true to herself and even gave her son double the care and love that she herself had not received as a child.
Whenever the original owner thought of this, she felt that she hadn't loved Pei Han enough, and that she could have loved him even more.
"Husband, are you tired today?"
Pei Han held his son and looked at her, shaking his head slightly.
Since he became an official, he had always reported good news and not bad news, so the original owner was not surprised to receive this answer.
Perhaps it was a woman's sixth sense at work, but the original owner felt that after Pei Han officially took up a post in the court, he was not as cheerful as before, and a faint melancholy would often appear between his brows and eyes.
"Miss, dinner is ready."
Ah Mei came in from outside and invited us to dinner.
The original owner had four personal maids at home, and to save trouble, they simply named them after plum blossoms, orchids, bamboo, and chrysanthemums. After marrying Pei Han, she brought two personal maids with her, namely Amei and Azhu.
Even though the original owner's children are all grown up, Amei and Azhu still habitually call her "Miss" in private.
"Husband, please change out of your official robes first, and let's go have dinner together." The original owner said as she reached out to take the child.
Little did anyone know that although Pei Ji was young, he was very clever and quick-witted. As soon as the original owner started speaking, he knew that this meant he was to get off his father.
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