Chapter 879: Explanation
Chapter 879 -882: Explanation
Song Xiuyang slumped to the ground, the figurative basin of cold water chilling her to the bone.
“Grandma, I won’t divorce,” she suddenly shrieked. “You can’t treat me like this! I’ve committed no grave mistakes. On what grounds are you forcing a divorce?”
“Being childless is the greatest mistake!” Xie Ruyi had endured her for years. Had she not needed to maintain the face of the entire household, and had there not been clan rules suppressing such a daughter-in-law, she would have kicked her out long ago.
In the past, she had rejoiced that Old Seventh drafted such clan rules, sparing them from future worries. Now, however, she felt a certain revulsion toward them. These very rules had caused her son to suffer immensely.
Jin Qianqian had spent years dealing with shrewd, cunning Madams. A careless glance from Xie Ruyi was enough to make her narrow her eyes.
Xie Ruyi continued pointing at her daughter-in-law and scolding, “They say marriage should follow the orders of parents and the words of matchmakers. Back then, you lured my son into marrying a widow like yourself—that was your first mistake.
“Failing to bear a single son or daughter for the Gu family over so many years is your second mistake.
“Disrespecting your parents-in-law and being at odds with the other wives is your third mistake.
“Furthermore, throughout all these years, you have failed miserably at managing the household—”
“Mother, are you trying to force me to die?” Song Xiuyang covered her face, stopping Xie Ruyi from listing any more faults. She suddenly burst into whimpers. If she let her mother-in-law continue, she wouldn’t have the face to walk out of here alive unless she bashed her head against the wall.
“Go die, then! Your death would give me some peace and quiet!” The thought that this woman had delayed her son’s entire life and was now about to ruin the Le Family’s future brought out the harsh words Xie Ruyi had buried years ago. “If you’re going to die, do it far away from here. Don’t dirty the village’s land.”
Song Xiuyang stood up, trembling. “Fine. If I had known you despised me so much, I would have died for you to see right now…”
Just as she turned to leave, Li Cuicui grabbed a cup and hurled it to the ground. SMASH! The shattering sound startled everyone present.
“Have you all made enough of a scene? You of the Song Family, don’t always resort to crying, making a fuss, and threatening suicide. You’re taking yourself far too seriously.
“If you truly wanted to seek death, you would have succeeded years ago.
“After all these years, you still play the exact same trick over and over. You haven’t improved at all! No wonder you can’t even hold onto your own man’s heart.
“And you, wife of the eldest, what kind of nonsense were you spouting just now? This is a human life, not a joke!”
“Mother, it’s not like she actually dares to kill herself.” Xie Ruyi was also simply irritated, which was why her words had escalated to that point. Besides, it wasn’t as if this woman hadn’t made a scene before. She was just waiting for everyone to coax her again—but why should they?
Song Xiuyang found her feet unable to advance or retreat. She simply squatted down, covered her face, and wept helplessly.
Liu Liu curled her lips at Jin Qianqian, then stood up with practiced ease to play the peacemaker. “We are all one family. People always say things they don’t mean in the heat of the moment.
“Now that it’s out in the open, let’s just move past it.
“Our family has always been harmonious. Having a little row like this occasionally is only human nature.
“Mrs. Ma, you and Mrs. Xie hurry up and help Xiuxiang back to wash up. Making such a spectacle in front of the elders is truly unsightly.
“Eldest Sister, let’s calm down. If the younger generation doesn’t know any better, we can just teach them slowly.”
The olive branch had been extended; it was now up to the mother and daughter-in-law to see if they would accept it.
Xie Ruyi still wanted to speak, but Li Cuicui glared at her. “The boys are about to leave on their journey! Have you finished packing their luggage? Even though they can stay at Seventh Uncle’s Mansion during this trip, you still need to prepare what must be prepared.”
Jin Qianqian felt quite speechless. Just as she had mentioned in her previous letters, Liu Liu truly had playing the peacemaker down to an absolute science. The village wasn’t large, and there weren’t many clan members, yet there was a never-ending stream of petty drama. However, dealing with these trivial village matters was far more relaxing than navigating the treacherous backyards of officialdom. Still, all this constant bickering was rather annoying.
The younger wives present looked even more guilty. They had been so entirely focused on the prospect of going along on the trip that they hadn’t actually packed their men’s bags yet.
Li Cuicui saw right through them but didn’t want to meddle any further. She turned to her daughters-in-law and said, “One generation shouldn’t manage the affairs of two. Go back and sort out your own household matters yourselves. Old Seventh’s wife, come take a walk with me in the village.”
Naturally, Jin Qianqian had no intention of staying to listen to her sisters scold their daughters-in-law. She walked over and supported Li Cuicui by the arm. “Mother, the wind is a bit strong today. Why don’t we go sit at my place for a while?”
Although the old lady said she wanted to walk around the village, she certainly wouldn’t just drop by other people’s houses to gossip. Rather than braving the wind outside, it was much better to drink a hot cup of tea indoors.
“That works out,” Li Cuicui replied. “I haven’t seen Luo Luo today anyway. What has he been busy with at home?”
The two women walked out slowly, leaving the rest of the crowd behind.
“The weather hasn’t been great these past few days, so he’s been hiding at home practicing his calligraphy and reading.”
“That child works too hard.” Li Cuicui felt a pang of heartache, though she knew this was the only way to get ahead in life. “You must order the servants to prepare some good food for him. I think he’s lost weight recently.”
Jin Qianqian covered her mouth and chuckled. “Mother, you say he’s lost weight every single time…”
As they walked along the path, with no one around except their attending servants, Li Cuicui finally spoke her mind. “I’ve been wanting to ask you for days—what exactly is going on with you and Old Seventh? Such an enormous achievement, so why did you completely bypass Luo Luo?
“Cancan is still just a little child, yet he already holds a noble title! How do you expect the two brothers to get along in the future?”
Jin Qianqian understood the underlying meaning in Li Cuicui’s words. The old lady was feeling indignant on Luo Luo’s behalf, believing they were showing favoritism. In the eyes of the people of this dynasty, the eldest legitimate son was the true foundation of a family.
Jin Qianqian knew that everyone had harbored doubts over the past few days, even if they hadn’t voiced them aloud. “Mother, this whole matter was originally something Cancan whipped up all on his own…”
“You might be able to fool others, but can you fool us?” Li Cuicui snorted. “He’s just a little boy! Where would he find such high-quality seeds? The two of you arranged all of this, didn’t you?”
“Mother, my husband and I discussed this, and we also spoke with the children about it,” Jin Qianqian explained.
“Luo Luo is already a scholar. He is determined to carve out his own future.
“If he were to take the credit for this achievement, it would actually become an obstacle for him later in officialdom.”
“How on earth is it an obstacle? Since when is having merit a mistake?” Li Cuicui didn’t care about the complexities; she still felt the couple was simply playing favorites.
“Precisely because the merit is so immense. The Emperor is bound to bestow heavy rewards. If Luo Luo were to enter officialdom with that hanging over him, he would definitely draw the jealousy and wariness of others…” Jin Qianqian tried her best to explain it in simple, easy-to-understand terms for the old lady.
“But that is a Second-Grade Earl! Aren’t you afraid Luo Luo will resent you in the future?” Li Cuicui still couldn’t comprehend it. “It took Old Seventh so many years to climb to a high position. Can you guarantee Luo Luo will achieve the same later on?
“We are both mothers. Even though I might be partial sometimes, I at least tried my best to treat all you siblings equally.
“Even if there was a slight imbalance occasionally, it was never this drastic.”
When Li Cuicui first heard that her youngest grandson had been granted an Earl title, she had simply been overjoyed. However, the more she thought about it later, the more it left a bad taste in her mouth. She felt that Old Seventh and his wife were far too biased toward Cancan.
Seeing the blame in the old woman’s eyes, Jin Qianqian could only explain carefully, “Mother, we brought this up with Luo Luo beforehand. This was his choice.”