Becoming a literary master starting from the story of Minglan

Chapter 290 Confessing to Taking a Concubine
……

Because Pinlan went in first, when Shulan and Minglan stepped into the house together, the entire room was already filled with Shengwei's whole family.

The first thing Shulan saw when she entered was her entire family, including the matriarch, Shengwei, and three generations of people including Changsong.

"grandmother!"

When Shulan saw the old lady sitting at the head of the hall, she couldn't help but choke up.

"grandmother……"

"Shulan!"

“My Shulan…”

Not only was Shulan deeply moved, but the old lady was also overwhelmed with emotion!

She forced herself to stand up, her body trembling. She quickly took a few steps toward Shulan, swaying as she reached out her hand, calling out, "Child, you... have suffered!"

"It's Grandma...it's Grandma...I'm so sorry!"

I'm so sorry!

"..."

The old woman kept muttering to herself.

Right now, the old lady is in immense pain. She feels as if her heart is being cut by a knife, and she is inexplicably agonizing!
It was exactly the same feeling she had after her eldest daughter, Sheng Hong, died young.

Not only did the old lady look strange, but Shengwei and his wife, as well as Pinlan and her siblings, were also in the same boat. In fact, Li, Pinlan, and Changsong's wife, Wen, had red eyes and were shedding tears, looking extremely disheveled.

It was obvious that Pinlan had already told them what the Sun family had done; otherwise, the crowd's reaction would not have been like this.

"grandmother!"

Shulan quickly stepped forward and helped the old lady up. At the same time, the tears she had been holding back all the way suddenly flowed down her cheeks.

"grandmother!"

"This isn't your fault, it's just that Shulan was unlucky!"

Shulan bit her lip and shook her head.

"Grandmother, you mustn't get angry because of your granddaughter's matter; it's not good for your health!"

Shulan suppressed the lump in her throat and forced a strange tone to comfort the old lady.

This strange feeling arises from the incongruity that occurs when a person cries, forcibly violating physiological phenomena. It is not only difficult to do, but also very harmful to the body.

"Shulan..."

Seeing that Shulan was in such a state, yet she was still concerned about her health, the old lady felt even worse!

"Good boy!"

"Don't cry!"

The old lady was a strong woman who had experienced most of her life's ups and downs. Seeing that Shulan's reaction was indeed as Rulan had said, she naturally had to take action and stand up for her granddaughter!

"Shulan, don't be afraid!"

"Tell your grandmother quickly, what kind of life did you have in the Sun family?"

"Is it really true, as Pinlan said, that we're on the verge of not surviving?"

The old lady wiped away the tears rolling down Shulan's face with her hand, her tone filled with hatred and anger, as if a flame was burning within her.

However, amidst this anger, there was also a trace of tenderness and affection for Shulan.

"grandmother……"

Shulan shook her head first, seemingly still unwilling to tell the truth.

"Say!"

The old lady gave a cold shout!
"Now that things have come to this, Shulan, are you still going to keep it from your grandmother?"

The old lady rolled up Shulan's sleeves, stared intently at the colorful scars on her wrists and elbows, and angrily questioned, "Or do you think that your grandmother is too old and doesn't need to listen to me anymore?"

The old lady used a strategy of retreat as a means of advancement, and her attitude was extremely firm.

"Grandma~"

Shulan ultimately couldn't withstand her grandmother's forceful demands. Under the sharp questioning of the old lady, she finally couldn't hold back and had to reveal the truth.

"grandmother!"

Shulan lowered her head, her words tinged with unconcealed bitterness: "Actually, after I married into the Sun family..."

"..."

When Shulan finally confessed to her family about the life she had led over the years, Sheng Changquan and Minglan walked in and quietly found a seat.

The brother and sister kept their achievements and fame hidden.

However, while everyone else was focused on Shulan and didn't notice their actions, Shengwei did spot the two of them.

He looked up and gave Sheng Changquan and the other man who walked in a bitter smile, as if he had only learned of Shulan's situation today.

It's both frustrating and heartbreaking!
He perfectly portrayed the image of a loving father who dotes on his daughter.

Because the old lady was still talking, Minglan and her brother couldn't speak up, so they simply bowed respectfully to Shengwei to show their respect.

"Judging from this, it seems that Uncle really doesn't know about Sister Shulan's matter?"

"Could it be that all of my brother's guesses were wrong?"

Upon seeing Sheng Wei's expression, Minglan immediately softened and secretly chose to believe him, thinking that Sheng Changquan's previous speculations were all nonsense.

After all, she felt that no father would stand idly by and watch his daughter suffer.

Even if Sheng Hong, who is somewhat muddle-headed in the inner quarters, were to do something like that, he would never do it!

Minglan thought to herself.

However, Minglan chose to believe Shengwei, while Sheng Changquan did the opposite.

Seeing Sheng Wei's regretful and self-reproachful expression, he became even more wary of the other party.

"My uncle is really something else!"

Sheng Changquan raised an eyebrow, a hint of apprehension in his eyes: "No wonder he was able to build the main branch's business to this extent!"

It should be noted that over the years, Sheng Wei has not only covered the expenses of the main branch of the family, but also been responsible for all of Sheng Hong's activities in the capital. In fact, they have even provided some of the living expenses for the second branch of the family in the capital.

Living in the capital is not easy.

With such financial resources, it's clear just how large Shengwei's business is!

After all, he had seen the luxurious mansion of the eldest son's family in Youyang.

Thick-skinned! Black-hearted!

Ruthless!

Upon seeing Sheng Wei's behavior, these three words immediately came to Sheng Changquan's mind.

It seems that these qualities have played an absolutely crucial role in Shengwei's success today.

While listening to Shulan's past, Sheng Changquan secretly analyzed Sheng Wei's personality in his mind, subconsciously regarding him as a potential future enemy, and constantly sketching out future plans in his mind as a way to deal with him.

It has to be said that over the years, Sheng Changquan's steadiness has only become more steadfast, to the point that even his own uncle has begun to subconsciously become wary of him.

……

Meanwhile, Shulan finally revealed the whole story of her life in the Sun family.

From the very first day she married into the Sun family, Shulan never received the respect she deserved from them. Whether it was her status as a daughter-in-law or a wife, in the eyes of the Sun family mother and son, she was utterly worthless!
At first, Shulan could comfort herself by saying that her husband Sun Zhigao's indifference was just the arrogance of a scholar, and that her mother-in-law Sun Huangshi's setting of rules was just to give her a hard time so that she would respect her.

Therefore, Shulan believed that as long as she persisted in giving sincerely, the other party's attitude towards her would definitely change, and they would regard her as a member of the Sun family.

Therefore, whether it was Sun Huangshi's deliberate provocation or Sun Zhigao's alienation and disdain, Shulan had no regrets.

but!

Shulan never imagined that she would have to live like this for six long years!

It might even be longer than six years...

In fact, their behavior became increasingly outrageous after Shulan married into the family in the first year!
From the initial morning and evening greetings to her mother-in-law, to cooking and serving meals three times a day, Shulan had to do all of these things herself. In fact, over the years, Sun Huangshi went even further, demanding that Shulan sleep in her room every night and serve her at all times.

Shulan had to do all the extremely humiliating tasks herself, including keeping watch at night, adding blankets, and even emptying the chamber pot.

It seems that the other party wanted to use this to demonstrate her authority as a mother-in-law!

But what are the results of doing this?

It only made Sun Zhigao, who already disliked Shulan, hate her even more, because Shulan had to serve Sun Huangshi in her room almost every night, so the two of them basically didn't have the opportunity to share a room more than a few times a year.

In that case, how could Shulan possibly conceive a child of the Sun family?
Therefore, in the end, Shulan became the kind of "hen that doesn't lay eggs" in the eyes of the Sun family mother and son, and her status in the Sun family became lower and lower!
In the end, Shulan became the scapegoat for the Sun family mother and son. Not only did she suffer occasional beatings from Sun Huangshi, but she also had to endure Sun Zhigao's drunken punches.

Over the years, Sun Zhigao's studies have become increasingly neglected. Although he pretends not to say it, deep down he knows better than anyone that he has no chance of taking the imperial examinations in the future.

In his entire life, the highest he can achieve is a scholar (xiucai). As for anything higher, forget about it!
However, although Sun Zhigao knew what he should do, he had now let his mind wander freely.

In other words, he had really gone wild and no longer cared about his studies. Therefore, once he got drunk with his "friends," he would "reveal his true feelings," exposing the fear and self-blame that he had nowhere to vent deep inside.

And these things, under the influence of alcohol, will turn into extreme violence!
Therefore, in recent years, Shulan has suffered more and more "drunken boxing" attacks.

They've become increasingly ruthless!

What made Shulan feel most desperate was that in the past few days, Sun Zhigao actually wanted to take a courtesan into his family and even forced her to drink a cup of tea offered by the other party as a sisterly gift!

Shulan naturally disagreed with this.

Because that was something she would never agree to, even if it meant death!
Actually, it wasn't because Shulan didn't want Sun Zhigao to take a concubine, but because she couldn't ruin the Sheng family's reputation and let the family's honor be destroyed in her hands.

A courtesan can be a slave, a maid, or even a concubine, but she would never serve tea to the legitimate wife!
A concubine is nothing more than a servant, not a proper mistress. No matter how much she is favored, she is ultimately not respectable in the eyes of the world. Moreover, even this kind of sisterly tea cannot elevate their status.

In fact, the only purpose of this kind of "sister tea" is to lower one's social status.

If the lady drinks this cup of tea, her status will be reduced, and she will be equated with a concubine from a brothel.

In other words, if any matriarch drinks this kind of "sister tea," not only will she be affected, but her entire family will also be affected.

This only proves one thing: the girl in this family has willingly fallen into depravity and is willing to associate with prostitutes. In the future, not only will it be difficult for their daughter to get married, but it will also be extremely difficult for their son to find a spouse.

At the very least, it's very difficult to find a girl who is both well-matched in terms of appearance and personality!
"what?"

"That beast actually tried to force you to drink tea from the sister of a lowly courtesan?"

The old lady was furious!

"How dare the Sun family insult my Sheng family like this!"

"Shameless!"

"mean!"

"The Sun family is courting death!"

"..."

Not only were the elders like the old lady and Shengwei angry, but even Changsong and Changwu couldn't stand it anymore!
Especially Changwu, who was originally planning to become a military officer, so he was the most impatient person in Shengwei's family.

Therefore, when he saw the Sun family humiliating his eldest sister and about to ruin the reputation that his family had worked so hard to maintain for decades, he was so enraged that he decided to personally go to the Sun family and beat Sun Zhigao to death!
"Grandmother, let me go there now and beat this beast to death!"

Changwu suddenly stood up and volunteered directly to the old lady, saying, "This will save the family's reputation from being ruined, and at the same time, it will avenge my sister!"

"After a few punches, I'll make those two beasts from the Sun family regret it!"

After saying that, Changwu didn't wait for anyone to reply and started walking out on his own, seemingly intending to really storm the Sun family's gate.

"shut up!"

Seeing that Changwu was really going to do this, Shengwei immediately became furious!

"Changwu, you stop right there!"

Sheng Wei shouted, "What are you trying to do, kid?"

"Are you really going to risk your life to be buried with those two beasts?"

Sun Zhigao was, after all, a scholar. If he were to be killed by Changwu, it would be a huge disaster. Putting aside everything else, Sheng Changwu would definitely have to pay with his life.

This is the law of the imperial court, and it cannot be changed!
At the very least, this is something the Sheng family cannot change right now.

"Father, I'm not afraid!"

Sheng Changwu stopped in his tracks, straightened his neck, and retorted, "I will make those two beasts from the Sun family regret this!"

As he spoke, he began to walk out again.

"You little beast, is this a question of whether you're afraid or not?"

Sheng Wei was so angry that he blurted out, "You may not be afraid, but I am!"

"If you dare take another step, I'll break your legs today!"

Sheng Wei knew his son's character well and knew that he meant what he said. Therefore, for the sake of his son's future, he was willing to take drastic measures to prevent him from actually going to the Sun family and killing the mother and son.

"Father, even if you want to break my legs, you'll have to wait until after I've been to the Sun family!"

Sheng Changwu not only kept running, but even took the lead in starting to run.

"At that time, you can do whatever you want with our son!"

"you……"

(End of this chapter)