Dream of the Red Chamber

Chapter 196 The Three Sisters Decide to Marry Their Mother

It was only one day after Chen Siyuan left that Mrs. Xing began to worry. She was afraid that Chen Siyuan would be further tired from the journey, that he would encounter bandits on the road, and even more afraid of a storm.

Mrs. Xing was so upset that she couldn't hold it in any longer, so she gave the child to the wet nurse and went to Lady Wang's courtyard to look for him.

Because of their previous visit, the two sisters-in-law had naturally calmed down a lot. After chatting for a while, Baochai came over.

Mrs. Wang smiled and called out, "Baochai, come quickly."

Sister Bao's face was calm as she stepped forward to greet Mrs. Xing and Mrs. Wang. Then she thought, "Madam, Aunt, the old shopkeeper just received a message... saying that Lai Shangrong will be hanged tomorrow."

The two sisters-in-law immediately shared a common hatred for the enemy. Madam Xing could not help but curse, "Such a useless fellow deserves to die early. If it weren't for the court's keen observation, Brother Yuan would have been wrongly accused by him!"

Mrs. Wang wished the Lai family bad luck, so she said, "You can see why you shouldn't harbor such jealousy. Lai Shangrong was raised by maids and nannies, and who knew he would acquire so many bad habits?"

Baochai nodded gracefully and added, "The maids in the mansion said that Nanny Lai wasn't any good either."

Nanny Lai has served the Jia family for several generations, so the two sisters-in-law are not in a position to comment, but they don't know why Baochai mentioned this matter.

Sister Bao then said softly, "Madam, Aunt, as the saying goes, you shouldn't have the intention to harm others, but you must always be on guard against them. Lai Shangrong repeatedly framed Brother Yuan and ended up dead. Nanny Lai doesn't seem to be in a good situation, so we must be on guard against anyone taking risks."

Mrs. Xing was startled at this. She quickly turned to look at Mrs. Wang and said, "Sister-in-law, Baochai is right. A cornered dog will jump over the wall. Who knows, Lai Da and his wife might do something terrible... Yes, Brother Yuan is not here now. Do you think...?"

Mrs. Wang smiled comfortingly and said, "Brother Yuan is a thoughtful man. How could he not have thought of this? Two days before he left, he asked me to look after him. I was also worried, so I sent a few servants to keep an eye on those two." After a pause, she looked at Baochai and said with a smile, "They say minds are connected. I didn't expect Baochai to think the same way as Brother Yuan."

Sister Bao's pretty face flushed instantly, and she tilted her head, blushing and silent. She thought to herself, "I'm just too worried. Brother Yuan is always so thoughtful, how could he not have thought of such precautions?"

He then whispered, "It turns out that Brother Yuan had already told me about this, but I was just being superfluous."

Mrs. Wang smiled and beckoned, embracing Baochai in her arms. Turning to Mrs. Xing, she said, "My niece is so beautiful and well-rounded, and it just so happens that Brother Yuan is just as good-looking. Sister-in-law, you see, I'm so unattractive, yet my niece and nephew are so outstanding. I'm truly envious."

"That's absolutely right," Mrs. Xing agreed with a smile, but then she felt something was wrong. Why did Mrs. Wang sound like she was trying to bring Yuan and Baochai together?
At this point, Sister Bao said, "I just thought of this too. I'm not as good as Brother Yuan in foresight. So, the First Madam and Auntie can talk while I go find Yun."

Mrs. Wang naturally agreed and sent Jin Chuan'er to send Baochai away.

When Mrs. Xing saw that Mrs. Wang never mentioned the two little ones again, she became suspicious and thought she was being too suspicious.

Let's not talk about the two sisters-in-law, but Bao-jie left Lady Wang's courtyard and went back to the northeast upper courtyard first. Tomorrow was the day when her brother Xue Pan would come to meet her in person. Bao-jie was going to go back to the old house with Aunt Xue to help out, but Aunt Xue said everything was ready and Bao-jie didn't need to work, so Bao-jie had to stay in Rongguo Mansion.

She entered the room and sat for a moment, Ying'er the only one waiting on her. Bao-jie thought that by this visit, Chen Si-yuan would surely secure Jia Yu-cun's approval, thus confirming the marriage. Furthermore, since Dai-yu was still young, it would take five or six years before she could marry. During this time, she would have to marry first before becoming the principal wife.

By then, although Daiyu would be the principal wife, she would also be a concubine of the emperor. If an imperial decree was awarded in the future, it would fall on me.

Thinking of this, Sister Bao couldn't help but smile. She also thought to herself, Sister Lin has always been proud. If she doesn't try her best to make friends with her now, she might become estranged in the future.

As the principal wife, she was expected to support her husband, raise the children, and manage household affairs to assist him. Disharmony between the wife and concubine was bound to cause unrest in the household. After some thought, Bao-jie made up her mind and said to Ying-er, "I remember we just got some snow frogs at home."

Ying'er said, "The old shopkeeper brought them from the north. He got two jars in total. The mistress just opened one of them two days ago."

Snow frog, also known as forest frog oil, has the effect of nourishing yin and lungs and is extremely precious.

Sister Bao then ordered, "I noticed that Sister Lin has had a cough these past two days. Go get her a jar."

Ying'er blinked in confusion, but she didn't dare to disobey Baochai, so she bowed quickly and left.

After a while, Sister Bao brought Ying'er to the back building of Rongqing Hall.

That day, Li Wan was still teaching Sanchun the Four Books for Women in the three small rooms. Xiangyun, who was reluctant to go to bed, clamored for a day's rest. Grandmother Jia, who was very tolerant of her grandchildren, saw that Baoyu was also refusing to go to private school, so she left the two younger ones to play in Rongqing Hall.

Just as Sister Bao entered the corridor, she heard Xiangyun shouting from the Rongqing Hall ahead, "If Second Brother Bao says anything more nonsense, I'm going to get angry!"

Then Baoyu laughed and said, "Sister Yun, you are so unreasonable. I am just telling the truth. How can I be so unreasonable?"

Then they started chattering and playing non-stop.

Sister Bao kept walking, a sneer on her face. "Brother Bao is just playing those exquisite tricks again, with no ambition at all. Even in a few years, how can he compare to Brother Yuan?"
If I believed my mother's words and followed this playboy who was hanging out with women, I'd be worried about my family every day. How could I compare to being with Brother Yuan day and night?

As she approached the back building, she heard the sound of a zither, and Sister Bao's face became calm again. She happened to run into Xueyan in front of the building, and she smiled and said, "Miss Bao is here?"

Sister Bao smiled gently and asked, "How is Sister Lin? Are you still coughing today?"

Xueyan said, "I feel much better today. Maybe it's because I caught a cold wind that day."

Sister Bao said, "Sister Lin is a little frail after all. You'll need to wear more clothes when you go out again." Turning her head to glance at the snow frog in Ying'er's hands, Sister Bao said, "I just happened to have some snow frogs. I thought they would nourish the yin and moisten the lungs, so I quickly brought them to Sister Lin."

Xueyan thanked her profusely, hurriedly let Baojiejie in, and hurried upstairs, calling out, "Miss, Miss Bao is here to see you!"

When the zither music stopped, Baochai came upstairs and saw Daiyu, looking at her with a puzzled look, at the stairwell and saying, "Sister Bao, why did you think of visiting me?"

Sister Bao reached out and poked Daiyu with her finger, then smiled and scolded her, "Isn't it all because of you? I was afraid you'd have a relapse of your old illness, so I remembered the snow frogs we had just found at home, so I rushed to bring them to you."

Daiyu was filled with wonder and gratitude, and she said, "Oh, if I had known that Sister Bao had such a kind nature, I would have gone to her and coughed a few times every time I was sick. Who knows, she would have found some miraculous remedy in the past few years, and this illness... would have been cured long ago!"

She covered her mouth and laughed after she finished speaking. Zijuan came over and said, "Miss Bao, our girl was just joking."

Sister Bao was trying to be friendly, so why would she mind Daiyu's harsh words? She just smiled and said, "Don't I know what her character is like? Even if no one provokes her, she can still find some faults."

Daiyu said jokingly, "But this is my fault, isn't it?"

Sister Bao said, "You are very sharp-tongued. I can't argue with you. That snow frog won't last long. Use it up quickly. If you get it again someday, I'll keep it for you."

Daiyu lost her mother at a young age and has lived in the Rongguo Mansion ever since. As the saying goes, only the person who drinks the water knows whether it is hot or cold, and living under someone else's roof is certainly not easy. Despite the care and attention of her grandmother, she is always cautious. Is there anyone else who truly cares about her?

It was also because of the marriage certificate that Chen Siyuan thought of her from afar. Before leaving, he secretly found Xueyan and stuffed her with a lot of Cordyceps. He also asked Xueyan to ask Doctor Wang to check her pulse every two weeks, and to have Nanny Wang send the pulse report to Heniantang the next day.

Having lost her father and mother, Daiyu's grandmother, who had originally loved her, now loved Xiangyun. However, Chen Siyuan, who had only treated her well, had gone south. Naturally, she felt a little lonely.

But at this moment, Sister Bao brought a jar of snow frogs, and Daiyu, no matter how clever she was, could not help but feel relieved. She guessed that Sister Bao must have something to ask of her, but she didn't want to think about the reason behind it.

Seeing Baochai about to leave, Daiyu quickly pulled Baochai aside and said with a smile, "My dear sister, why are you so angry when I was just joking? It's all my fault. Come on, sit down and talk for a while."

Baochai glanced at him with a smile and said, "You."

Daiyu smiled and hugged Sister Bao's arm, and the two of them went to the embroidered bed together.

............................................................

Two days later, Lai Shangrong was hanged. Nanny Lai, who had been hanging on for a while, passed away upon hearing the news.

The Lai brothers had a big fight with each other, and then turned around and sent the two people away sadly.

Nengren Temple is near the Chen family's new house.

In the past few days, Third Sister You's period was approaching, and she was already in a bad mood. In addition, Old Lady You came to ask for money for her support with a shameless face, so the mother and daughter had a big quarrel.

You Erjie, like a quail, kept silent. She had originally hoped to use that day's incident to gain some benefits, but she didn't expect her third sister to take it as a firecracker and went to Ningguo Mansion to make a scene the next morning.

Although Old Lady You was unsure, she had no idea that her secret had already been discovered by the two sisters. She simply thought that Third Sister You was reluctant to part with the money. No matter how fierce Third Sister You was, she was too embarrassed to say that her mother had done such a shameless thing.

So the mother and daughter were talking at cross purposes and arguing incomprehensibly.

Old Lady You called on Second Sister You to join in the discussion, but Second Sister You remained silent, which made her even more angry. She was about to make a scene, but at this moment, the maid Xia Zhu came in and said, "Second Miss, Third Miss, the eldest lady is here!"

Upon hearing this, Old Lady You's heart trembled, and her demeanor inevitably dropped. She muttered, "We agreed on thirty taels per month. If you don't want to pay, just say so!"

"Hmph!" Third Sister You crossed her arms, tilted her head and said nothing.

Seeing that the situation was getting out of control, You Erjie hurried to meet Youshi.

After a moment, Mrs. You came in, nodded to Sister You San, and glanced coldly at Mrs. You.

If you don't want others to know, then don't do it yourself. How could Old Lady You have the courage to look You in the eye? She immediately avoided her gaze and said to Third Sister You: "Forget it, forget it. Widow Dou is having a banquet today. I'll come to see you another day!"

He said nothing more and left in shame.

Only then did Third Sister You glance at Youshi and ask, "What are you doing here again?"

The frost on Youshi's face faded, and she smiled and said, "I heard she was coming, so I rushed over to help her."

Third Sister You thought about it and realized that it was indeed true. If it weren't for Youshi's arrival, she and her mother would have been talking at cross purposes. Knowing that Youshi was trying to please her, her expression softened a bit.

Yu Shi continued, "On the other hand, I sought out my second and third sisters to discuss a solution... otherwise, we'd all be completely disgraced!"

Some things couldn't be said in the courtyard, so Third Sister You turned and walked towards the main room. After a few steps, she said, "Then follow me."

"Oh." Yu Shi responded with a smile on her face.

After a while, the host and the guests were seated. Third Sister You leaned against the table, crossed her legs, and looked defensive; Second Sister You sat beside them with lowered brows and a submissive look; Youshi sat upright at the bottom, her face calm.

Yu Shi said, "As the saying goes, truth cannot be hidden. If things continue like this...it's really not a solution."

Third Sister You had already sent the maids and servants away. Upon hearing this, she couldn't help but wonder, "Don't I know what kind of person this Jia is? He's always fickle, and he's not tired of the old yet?"

Yu Shi smiled bitterly and said, "Master, you won't look for me anymore...but Rong'er——"

Third Sister You’s eyes suddenly widened, and she clenched her fists in anger, shaking all over!

What is this!
You Erjie, standing nearby, was also worried. If this matter were to get out, she was afraid that the reputations of the three sisters would be ruined. After a moment's thought, You Erjie said, "I think it would be better to bring Mom home and take care of her in the future, so that she won't cause any more trouble."

Third Sister You nodded at first, then immediately shook her head like a rattle and said, "No, no, you absolutely can't accept it!"

Since Old Lady You can hang out with Jia Zhen and Jia Rong, who knows if she will develop other thoughts about Brother Yuan in the future?

If she follows her elder sister's example... Third Sister You won't even have anywhere to cry! How can this be considered caring for her mother? This is clearly like bringing a bombshell to her own home!
Seeing that the third sister was so determined, Youshi and You Erjie looked at each other and immediately guessed what the third sister was thinking. They felt a chill in their hearts.

If she couldn't be brought here, it would naturally be difficult to bring her to Ningguo Mansion. Third Sister You frowned and thought for a long time, at a loss for a moment.

Seeing Youshi's serene face, You Erjie said, "Eldest sister, do you think you have a plan?"

After Third Sister You looked over, You Shi slowly nodded and said, "This is a matter of great importance. I've been pondering it for several days and finally came up with an idea." After a pause, she lowered her voice and said, "What do you think? If An Ren goes crazy... those two won't keep pestering her, right?"

"Crazy?" You Erjie was puzzled.

Yu-shih said, "The maids in the mansion say that Ma Dao-po has a strange magic that can drive people mad in two days. Then, when the magic is removed, the person will return to normal. Why don't we ask Ma Dao-po to perform a ritual, and then, when An-ren becomes hysterical, my second and third sisters will go home to take care of him. Then, we can take the opportunity to replace all the servants in the house, and from then on, we can provide them with good food and drink, isolating them from the outside world. Wouldn't that save us a lot of trouble?"

You Erjie and You Sanjie looked at each other without saying a word.

Yu Shi continued, "I know this isn't very appropriate, but we have to keep it under wraps for now. To put it bluntly, if this gets out, it'll be too late!"

You Erjie remained silent, but You Sanjie, who was rather sharp and forthright, gritted her teeth and said, "Things have their priorities. We should use this method to trap Mother first, to prevent a disaster from happening in the future. As for the future... we'll talk about it once we find a suitable solution."

Yu Shi and You Sanjie nodded in agreement, both breathing a sigh of relief. You Erjie, however, muttered softly, "It would be nice if Mom had a man to tie her up with."

As soon as the words were spoken, everyone in the room was shocked!

Marrying off the mother? It sounds absurd at first, but upon closer inspection, it makes perfect sense. If Old Lady You gets married, it won't be possible to mess around anymore, right?

But Old Lady You was reluctant to give Anren the imperial decree, and it was not easy to find a husband for her.

Third Sister You and Mrs. You exchanged a glance, and seeing that they were attracted to each other, Mrs. You said, "I've looked around and heard that I'd rather spend a fortune on my dowry than find a poor official in Beijing."

After the plan was finalized, it went without saying that the three sisters would act separately.

..........................................................................................

Jinmen.

The street was crowded with people. The servant Qing Yu squeezed over and saw from a distance that Chen Siyuan, along with his maids and servants, was arguing with a candied haws seller, so he hurried over to find them.

When they got closer, Xiangling had already paid the copper coins and she and Qingwen each took a candied haws. When they turned around, they saw Chen Siyuan frowning and looking distressed.

Xiangling asked, "What are you thinking about, Master?"

Chen Siyuan said, "How can this thing not be called a sugar pile? Is there any justice in the world?"

Qingwen rolled her eyes and said, "I don't know where you learned that weird word, sir. The vendor said it's been called Tanghulu since the day before yesterday!"

"Oh." Chen Siyuan sighed to himself.

If people from Tianjin don't speak the Tianjin dialect, how can we get justice? No wonder there are only men and women telling jokes these days. Without the foundation of the Tianjin dialect, crosstalk is like losing half its territory.

He didn't know much, but he didn't know that in the previous life, the Tianjin dialect was integrated with the Anhui dialect. This was because most of the Huai Army stationed there at that time were from Jianghuai. Later, it was integrated with the local Jinghai dialect, which formed the very distinctive Tianjin dialect.

At this time, the servant Qing Yu squeezed over, holding up his tilted hat and said, "Master, I heard that there will be a ship leaving for Songjiang and Hangzhou at noon tomorrow. It's a large ship with a capacity of 15,000 dan, one Tianzi ship and two Dizi ships. The fare to Songjiang is 27 and a half taels, and another 5 taels to Hangzhou.

Seeing that the cabin was clean, I paid the deposit."

Chen Siyuan came to his senses and nodded. "That's right, then let's set off tomorrow afternoon." As they were nearing the end of the street, he said to Qingwen, "Do you want to go somewhere else?"

Qingwen pursed her lips and said, "It doesn't look much cheaper than in the capital. Never mind, I'll just give up shopping."

Xiangling also laughed and said, "That's right. Tianjin is much cheaper here, but who would have thought it would be almost the same as the capital."

Chen Siyuan thought: "Then let's find a restaurant and try some seafood."

Along the coast of Tianjin, seafood is fresh and cheap. It's said that fish, shrimp, and crabs are even cheaper than rice. Chen Siyuan was puzzled at first, but after asking the driver, he finally understood.

Fish, shrimp, and crabs are all high in protein, and eating them requires the consumption of oil and water. At that time, ordinary people worked hard all day and it was difficult to fill their stomachs, so where would they get the extra oil and water to eat seafood?

Qingwen and Xiangling agreed, and they left the street and took a carriage to the restaurant. On the way, Chen Siyuan felt melancholy and couldn't help humming: "I came to Tianjin, and I haven't learned anything. I learned to drive a car and crushed more than 200 people..."

The strange accent made Qingwen and Xiangling laugh uncontrollably, but Chen Siyuan kept saying that this was the Tianjin dialect, and with a red face and thick neck, he said words like "Lao Guo" and "crosstalk" that were incomprehensible, so the carriage was full of a cheerful atmosphere.

The next day, the group hired a carriage to go to the dock. When they arrived at the dock, Chen Siyuan was shocked by the scene in front of him.

Thick smoke was rising from the shore. It was from a tall boiler spewing out thick smoke, which drove the flywheel to rotate slowly, and then, pulled by hemp ropes, transported barrels of cargo to the side of the ship... Is this a steam engine?

A chestnut vendor happened to pass by. Chen Siyuan reached out and pulled the vendor over, pointing at the steam engine on the dock and saying, "Young man, do you know what that is?"

The servant said in authentic northern Mandarin, "Steam engine! You have asked the right question, sir. In June, the English brought a huge boiler to the capital to show off. Our Tianjin scholar Sun Jing'an was not impressed and thought that Western things were rather crude and unacceptable.

Everyone thought Sun Xiucai was just boasting, but within a month or so, he'd actually built one—" Pointing to the thick smoke at the dock, the vendor said proudly, "See? That's the third one Sun Xiucai has built. The owner of the dock did the math and saw that Tianjin is very close to Leting, so shipping is possible, and coal is cheap. This thing only needs to boil water and can be used continuously, which is much more cost-effective than hiring porters."

"I see."

Chen Siyuan was about to leave when the vendor, feeling craving for something, said, "Sir, you may not know that the prefect wrote a memorial specifically mentioning this. Who would have thought that in September, a deputy minister of the inner court would approach Mr. Sun and invest eight thousand taels of silver to set up a factory with him, saying that they would continue to produce this kind of thing.

Tsk tsk, Mr. Sun's luck has really turned. Within five years, even if he fails the imperial examination, he can still become an official in the Imperial Palace."

After saying that, he looked at Chen Siyuan eagerly. Chen Siyuan waved his hand, and Qingyu went forward to buy some chestnuts before sending the vendor away.

Chen Siyuan was thrilled. It turned out that the Dashun hadn't fallen behind. He had previously been traveling around Jiangsu and Zhejiang. There were many local weaving mills, but most of them used water power. He had never seen a steam engine before and had thought that the Dashun was just complacent.

Looking back now, that was a huge mistake! Jiangnan lacked coal and iron, so it couldn't develop steam engines. They could only exploit their water resources to develop industries. The north was different. Hebei and Liaodong had abundant coal and iron, and Liaodong had a sparse population, making it a perfect place for steam engines.

Going further, I saw many capsized boats of all sizes parked at the berth. The small ones were not worth mentioning, but the larger ones were at least forty steps away, with towering masts that blocked out the sun.

As it was almost noon, Chen Siyuan did not ask too many questions and led everyone on board the ship to settle down. Only after the ship started sailing did he find the captain to talk.

The captain only said that this ship could carry 15,000 dan of cargo for north-south travel. Chen Siyuan converted it in his mind and found that one dan was about 71 kilograms.

Fifteen thousand shi, doesn't that mean the load capacity is more than one thousand tons?
That would have been fine, but the captain actually said the ship was only medium-sized and that the imperial fleet had larger ships with a capacity of 30,000 dan. Its side was equipped with 36 cannons and was made of Liaodong oak. Its hull was extremely strong, able to withstand all kinds of winds, and it was often used to sail to the South China Sea.

Chen Siyuan was stunned! A wooden ship could carry 2,000 tons. No wonder the imperial court had struck a deal with the British for 10 million jin of pig iron. Converted to 10 million jin, that's only 60,000 tons, which could be transported from Sindhu with only 30 large imperial ships.

Chen Siyuan secretly calculated that this was the prosperous period of Yankang. Apart from the fact that the Supreme Lord was a little unreliable, the successive emperors of Dashun were very clear-cut, so Dashun had an excellent foundation.

In terms of national strength, it was second to none, and with both land and sea power, it could be said to be the hegemon of the Far East. Furthermore, because of the continuous flow of East-West exchanges, the Dashun Dynasty did not need to imitate the "Great Qing" and remain closed-minded. Therefore, the gains of the Western Renaissance could be transmitted to the Dashun Dynasty with a lag of only three or two years.

Moreover, the imperial court treated the British delegation with state courtesy for the first time ever. The officials in the court have already opened their eyes to the world, and the next opportunity to expand territory may be just around the corner.

This golden opportunity was the perfect time for Chen Siyuan to showcase his talents. While he might not have mastered the art of building guns, cannons, or steam engines, he had lived two lives and possessed considerable experience. If he were to ascend to the throne and become a prime minister someday, perhaps he would also be remembered in history.

With his heart pounding, Chen Siyuan tossed and turned all night, feeling very confident.

............................................................

Ningguo Mansion.

In the main room of the east courtyard, Yindie served fragrant tea. Madam Xing took a sip and waited for Yindie to leave before whispering to Youshi, "You should be more at ease. Men are like greedy cats. There's no one who doesn't steal food. I think Zhen'er was just looking for something new. He stayed at home for the past two days. Didn't he go looking for...that person?"

Truth cannot be hidden. Jia Zhen, Jia Rong, and Old Lady You were hanging out behind closed doors. How could such an outrageous act remain unspoken? Within a few days, Lady Xing received the news.

He secretly spat in his heart, thinking that the little thief was an imposter and had nothing to do with him. It was definitely different from the incident in the East Palace.

Since Youshi had frequent contact with her parents after giving birth, Mrs. Xing found an excuse to comfort Youshi.

Yu Shi was in a state of confusion, wondering if she had been in a better position than Lady Xing a year ago. Both were childless and disliked by their husbands, but at least Yu Shi didn't have a mother-in-law who disliked her. Now, Lady Xing had given birth to her fourth son, and she was actually feeling sorry for herself.

What could Youshi say? She could only say, "Aunt, what you said makes sense. What does it matter if I'm upset? Yesterday, I only mentioned it briefly, and he changed his expression. I'm afraid if I say a few more words, he'll pick up a stick and hit me!"

"Ah, it's not easy for them all," Mrs. Xing said with gratitude. "They say that the rich and powerful live a life of luxury, but who would have thought that there are constant conflicts within the family? It really is true that every family has its own problems."

As noon approached, the two chatted briefly, and Youshi said, "Aunt, why don't you stay and have dinner with us?"

Mrs. Xing quickly stood up and said, "Oh, it's almost noon. No, no, Fourth Brother will definitely be making a fuss right now. This child will make a fuss if he can't see me for a moment. It's really annoying."

Yu Shi forced a smile and stood up to escort her out of the ceremonial gate. Watching Madam Xing leave in her sedan chair, Yu Shi clutched her handkerchief and frowned.

Mrs. Xing seemed a changed person after giving birth, appearing cheerful all day long, without a trace of sadness. Thinking of her own affairs, Youshi realized that Jia Zhen and Jia Rong were not to be relied upon, and she longed even more for a child of her own.

But she had only had sex with Brother Yuan twice before, and Brother Yuan, who didn't know where he got the ability, hadn't ejaculated even after such a long time. How could she possibly get pregnant? On the other hand, her uterine coldness hadn't been cured yet.

She turned back while thinking about it, but after walking a few steps, a maid came after her: "Madam, Third Aunt is here." Youshi stopped, and the maid whispered again: "She looks much better than last time."

Yu Shi simply stopped in front of the ceremonial gate, and soon saw Third Sister Yu enter with a gloomy face.

The two of them said hello and returned to the main room in the east courtyard. Yu Shi dismissed the attendants and hurriedly asked, "Third sister, how is the matter going?"

Third Sister You nodded and said, "That Daoist woman Ma is greedy for money. She's easy to talk to once she gets some money. She said we'll fast for three days and then perform a ritual on the twelfth. I guarantee Mother won't be able to bear it."

Yu Shi heaved a sigh of relief and hurriedly took out her purse and asked, "How much did it cost this time? You have to count me in."

Third Sister You glanced around and saw the purse was filled with banknotes, barley, golden melon seeds, and everything else. She felt relieved. She thought to herself, after more than a decade as the mistress of Ningguo Mansion, she'd only saved a few hundred taels—perhaps even less than what she had herself.

Because Third Sister You said generously, "You can keep it for yourself. I have plenty of money now."

Yu Shi sighed, holding her purse as she pondered how to tell Third Sister Yu... She couldn't just tell her to wait until Brother Yuan came back before allowing her to hang out with him again, right?

Unexpectedly, Third Sister You was a very impetuous person. She picked up the teacup and gulped down the whole thing. Then she stood up and said, "That's it. I'll be going back first. If anything happens, I'll come find you again!"

Having said this, he hurried off. Yu-shi hurriedly sent her maid, Jin-e, to see him off, while she herself paused at the door, lost in thought. On one hand, she thought of Chen Si-yuan, and on the other, wondered if Ma Dao-po would succeed this time.

Three days passed in a flash. Youshi was restless all day, and it was not until the afternoon when a maid suddenly rushed in and said, "Madam, this is terrible! Master Xiaorong is hurt!"

Yu Shi was puzzled and asked, "Injured? How did he get hurt?"

The old woman shook her head and said, "I don't know. I just saw that Master Xiaorong had been scratched all over his face, and he was... and couldn't walk well. He just came back, so I quickly sent for the imperial physician."

Yu-shi frowned and thought for a moment before ordering, "Go and bring one of Rong-ge'er's servants here for questioning!"

The old woman quickly agreed, and soon led the servant into the main room.

When Youshi asked, the servant rolled his eyes and made up a story, "Mr. Rong got some bird's nests today, and he wanted to give them to Old Lady An. Old Lady An was grateful for Mr. Rong's filial piety, so she arranged a banquet to entertain him... Who would have thought that Old Lady An would have a hysterical attack just after the banquet!"

Pulling Uncle Rong and scratching him randomly, he just said... just said..."

"Just say what?"

The servant swallowed and said, "They said Master You had arrived." He paused, then looked up and saw that Youshi was still thinking and hadn't asked any questions. The servant continued, "There was a lot of commotion for quite some time. It just so happened that the Second and Third Aunts arrived and called the maids to rush over, and that's how they rescued Master Xiaorong."

Yu Shi heaved a sigh of relief upon hearing this, and stood up and said, "Prepare the car, I'll go check it out at home!"

(End of this chapter)