The system asked me to chase his wife

No matter whether it is a wealthy family or a commoner's home, as long as the elderly are seriously ill, they will prepare funeral supplies in advance, one to ward off bad luck, and the other to be prepared for emergencies.

But the way Guo asked was very inappropriate.

Xiang Xiu'an frowned when he heard this and was about to retort, but Qiao Yuandong spoke first to stop him.

"What are you talking about, my grandmother? My grandmother is still alive and well, why would you talk about her funeral?"

Guo sneered, took a sip of hot tea, and looked at Qiao Yuandong for a long time with squinted eyes, acting like an elder.

"Don't blame me for being harsh. We are all family, and I am also considering you young people. With the old lady in this state, shouldn't we make plans early?"

The Madam has been in a coma till now and even the imperial physician is unsure, so Qiao Yuandong naturally cannot guarantee that the Madam is absolutely fine.

Although Guo's words were harsh, they made sense. Qiao Yuandong listened silently without refutation.

Guo said, "Now the Duke's Mansion only has An Xiaozi. If the old lady passes away, we need to announce the death, ask a fortune teller to write a letter, pay condolences, and have a small or large funeral. There are so many rules and regulations. Is it appropriate to let An Xiaozi run all the chores by himself? "

Xiang Xiu'an stood by and clenched his fists without saying anything. Guo said to herself, "It is inevitable that the uncles and aunts in the family will help to carry the coffin for the old lady and mourn for her. This will make the scene less lonely and the Duke's Mansion more prosperous in the future, right?"

After listening to what Guo said, Qiao Yuandong nodded and said, "My dear aunt, what you said is absolutely right."

When Guo saw Qiao Yuandong nod, she immediately climbed up the pole. She leaned forward with a gleam in her eyes.

"It's just that the Duke's Mansion is a clan of our great-great-grandfather's generation. Although they all have the surname Xiang, they are still quite distant. I would agree to the suggestion of my father-in-law and adopt a son from the clan to the Duke's Mansion. That way, it would be more legitimate to guard the coffin and hold the funeral."

Guo's words had finally revealed their true colors.

After all, it was all for Cheng Jue.

Xiang Xiu'an is only fifteen this year, not yet an adult, and cannot inherit the title. As long as he does not inherit the title, the Xiang family will not give up.

Xia Mang looked at Guo's face and whispered to Xiang Xiukai: "This way of eating is too ugly. Do you want me to scold her for you? It's free!"

Without waiting for Xiang Xiukai to reply, Xiang Xiu'an couldn't help himself. He was trembling slightly, and looked at Guo with red eyes: "My grandmother will be fine, she will live a hundred years!"

The ancestors of the Duke's Mansion built their family business with their lives, hoping to bring honor to the family, but they never imagined that they would raise a blood-sucking evil ghost.

Now Xiang's greed is insatiable and he always wants to swallow the fat piece of meat of the Duke's Mansion.

Guo glared at Xiang Xiu'an: "How can you, little bastard, talk to your elders?"

Qiao Yuandong knocked the teacup on the square table with a crisp sound: "Xiang Guoshi, be careful with your words, Xiu'an is the heir of the Duke's Mansion!"

When Guo met Qiao Yuandong's deep, dark eyes, she couldn't help but shrink back, and then she became a little unconvinced.

"My nephew's wife is so arrogant. You are just an outsider. As an elder, can I say anything bad about the younger generation of the Xiang family?"

Qiao Yuandong said bluntly, "I am Xiang's daughter-in-law, and my aunt is also Xiang's daughter-in-law. Does that mean I am also an outsider?"

Guo was so angry that she slammed the table and pointed at Qiao Yuandong, saying, "What an uneducated thing! Believe it or not, I will go back to the clan and tell the father-in-law to divorce you from the Xiang family!"

For a widowed daughter-in-law, the clan has the power to divorce her deceased husband.

Guo was clearly threatening Qiao Yuandong. This matter was the Xiang family's affair and it was not her turn to intervene.

When Xia Mang saw Guo pointing at Qiao Yuandong insolently, she suddenly felt angry and rolled up her sleeves to start scolding her.

"Who wants to divorce my granddaughter-in-law?!"

A not-so-loud sound was heard, like the sound of a huge bell striking in everyone's heart, instantly causing an uproar.

"Madam!"

"grandmother!"

The lady came in, supported by Ji Tong and Xing Zhu on each side. She seemed to have just woken up. She had not changed her pajamas and only wore a robe on the outside.

The lady wore a warm jade headband embroidered with a pattern of fortune and longevity, and her silver hair was tied loosely behind her head.

She walked slowly, step by step, her eyes emitting sharp light as she scanned the people in the room, finally falling on Guo.

Guo stood up after being watched by the lady, her expression changing again and again, and finally she forced a smile: "Sister-in-law is awake and can stand up, is this a good thing?"

If facing Qiao Yuandong and Xiang Xiu'an, Guo can still show off her power by relying on her status as an elder.

Facing the lady at this moment, she was no longer so dignified.

The Dowager was of the same generation as her and had a first-rank imperial title. Guo had no advantage on either side, so when she met the Dowager, she could only put on a smile.

This lady had once caused trouble in front of the head of the Xiang family. She was notoriously unruly and even Mrs. Guo had suffered at her hands.

Now when she met the lady, Guo couldn't help feeling a little scared.

The lady pretended not to hear Guo's greeting and was helped into the main room.

Lian Bi and others had already brought in a soft couch and laid thick cushions on it, waiting for the lady to sit down.

For a moment, everyone's eyes were fixed on the lady, and Qiao Yuandong and Xiang Xiu'an held their breath, as if the scene before them was an illusion.

The lady sat down slowly, Lian Bi put a warm heater in her hand, and Ji Tong squatted down to massage her still numb legs.

She then looked at Guo and said, "The clan leader sent my sister-in-law to see me out of consideration. Now that I am not going to die for a while, I am afraid my sister-in-law's hopes will be dashed."

After being scolded by the lady-in-waiting, Guo looked a little embarrassed.

She forced a smile and said, "What's the point of hoping or not? I can't even write two characters for Xiang with one stroke. Why is my sister-in-law so distant?"

The lady shook her head and spoke without any regard for human feelings, "We are a family only if we have affection and care for each other. You are so ungrateful and heartless, so you can't blame us for being estranged."

Qiao Yuandong and Xiang Xiu'an could not say this, but given the seniority of the lady, she could definitely say it.

How could Guo not be angry at being humiliated like this at her age? She immediately turned cold and looked at the lady with a smile.

"Sister-in-law, you are so arrogant. Aren't you afraid that I will tell the clan leader about this?"

The lady leaned back a little to feel more comfortable before saying, "Don't use those words to pressure me. Do you think I'm afraid of the clan leader? Even if the clan leader was right in front of me, I would still say those words!"

When the old Duke Xiang Yingyan was still alive, the Xiang clan was eager to please him, and the clan leader often bowed to the old lady. But as time passed, the Xiang clan saw that the Duke's Mansion had declined, and their behavior became even more dirty!

Guo narrowed her eyes, her face showing a sinister look: "Sister-in-law, don't you consider the younger generation?"

Her meaning was obvious. Now the lady could act arrogantly and was not afraid of offending Xiang family at all. But how long could she be so arrogant?

When you get older, something bad will happen to you. If that day really comes, who will the younger generation in the Duke's Mansion rely on?
So what if Qiao Yuandong is just a first-rank lady, and so what if she has the support of the queen?
Xiang drove her out of the Duke's Mansion with a divorce letter. Could the Queen still interfere in Xiang's family affairs?

How will Xiang Xiu'an deal with it then?

The old lady understood that Guo was threatening her with the younger generation, but if she was afraid of the threat, she would not be the old lady.

"I remember that your eldest grandson is preparing for the civil service examination this year. I heard that he is planning to find a young lady from a scholarly family in Beijing?"

When Guo heard the lady say this, she thought she was giving in and was flattering her, and for a moment she couldn't help but become arrogant.

"That's right. My Shao'er is very promising. He will surely be very successful in the future!"

The lady smiled faintly and continued, "Is your granddaughter old enough to talk about others?"

Guo asked with a smile: "Are you going to help with the matchmaking, sister-in-law?"

Guo knew the power and means of the lady, if she was really willing to be a matchmaker for her granddaughter, then the family must be very good!

Thanks to the financial support from the Duke's Mansion, the Xiang family now lives a comfortable life, but they are still not as well off as the official families in the capital.

Xiang’s family was not qualified to enter some gatherings of officials’ wives.

If her granddaughter really married into a wealthy family, then Xiang would have a chance to join the upper class, and her Shao'er would also have a helper in the officialdom in the future!

Guo's dream became more and more beautiful, but a word from the lady brought her back to reality in an instant.

"I can't help you, but I can help my sister-in-law raise the child."

Guo looked at the lady's smile and felt something was wrong.

The lady continued, "The most popular prostitute in Beijing can give your grandson some handkerchiefs and purses, or a servant can take him to the gambling house to play, or give your grandson some gifts."

It is also acceptable for a woman to send some of The West Chamber or poems, books or letters from a man outside her family. "

Guo never expected that a lady of the first rank would say such a thing. She was furious but could not utter a word: "You! You!"

The Madam didn't care about Guo's anger at all, and added bluntly: "By the way, which child do you plan to adopt into the Duke's Mansion?"

Guo asked coldly, "What are you going to do?"

The lady said calmly, "Last year, our An Ge almost ate something he shouldn't have. I found it and I still have it, just waiting for your boy to have a taste of it."

The words were said vaguely, but Guo knew what the lady was referring to, because the medicine was originally brought back by her husband through business.

As long as they eat it, adult men will have difficulty in having children, and half-grown children will become disabled.

"You old hag, you dare to harm my son? I'll fight you to the death!" Guo was touched by the lady's back scale and she rushed up to tear him apart without caring about anything else.

How could the maid of the Duke's Mansion watch Guo act rashly? She just came up and held down the mad Guo.

The Madam looked at Guo coldly and continued, "My cousin is now in charge of the palace procurement and has enriched the entire Xiang family. This real position was obtained by my son for you. Now you don't care about the favor and want to harm my only grandson. You even want to divorce my granddaughter-in-law. How dare you do this?"

The old lady couldn't help but sneer as she said this: "How ridiculous! I just gave you a taste of your own medicine, and you started shouting and killing me. It's obvious that you don't know how painful it is unless you get hurt by the knife!"

Guo shouted angrily, "How dare you!"

"Do you think I dare to do this? You are threatening me with An Ge'er. I can just take care of those troublemakers in the Xiang family one by one while I still have a few days to live."

Guo: “You”

"I don't have any other skills, but I am used to controlling people. Go back and tell the clan leader that instead of hoping that I will die early, it is better to beg me to live for two more days!"

In the end, Guo was "properly" asked to leave the Duke's Mansion by the servants.

It was not until Guo left that Qiao Yuandong and Xiang Xiu'an recovered. They looked at the old lady's appearance and found that she did not look weak at all while lying on the bed.

Even the imperial physician had concluded that the Madam didn't have much time left, so why was she still conscious today and saying so many words?

It seems like a last gasp? ! !
The uncle and his sister-in-law thought of this possibility almost at the same time. Their eyes both turned red, and they looked at the lady and didn't dare to go over for a while.

The lady talked for a long while and was indeed a little tired. She rested for a while before she recovered.

She looked at her two grandchildren who were standing there in a daze and crying, and waved them over.

Qiao Yuandong thought that the old lady was going to tell her last words, so he hurried over, held her hand, and said in a trembling voice, "Grandma!"

Xiang Xiu'an also leaned over and cried, "Grandma, you will be fine!"

The lady rolled her eyes at him in annoyance: "You are getting worse at talking as you get older. Grandmother is fine, what's the matter?"

Xiang Xiu'an was sobbing and sobbing. When she heard the lady's words, she was stunned and didn't react. But Qiao Yuandong asked in surprise, "Grandma, are you okay?"

The lady nodded, also finding it a little unbelievable.

"During the days I was asleep, I felt very confused and had a stuffy feeling in my chest. Then I suddenly felt relaxed and woke up."

Qiao Yuandong couldn't suppress the joy on her face. She carefully observed the lady's expression and saw that although she looked haggard, she was in good spirits. She believed what the lady said more.

To be on the safe side, Qiao Yuandong immediately ordered someone to invite Doctor Wang to come for a visit.

Even as they were talking, the old lady started to complain of being hungry. Ji Tong brought a bowl of porridge with tears in his eyes, and everyone stared at the old lady as she ate it all up in one mouthful.

The servants rode on horseback to invite Doctor Wang, who ran around the Duke's Mansion carrying a medicine box, his beard fluttering.

A few days ago, he and the imperial physician issued a critical illness notice together, but today, the servants of the Duke's Mansion said that their Madam was well again? !

really?
A last gasp, huh?
(End of this chapter)