Chapter 8.1: Greetings, Ninth Uncle Chapter 8.1 \nCheng Yuanjing was tall and handsome. When he stood at the door waiting for Cheng Yujin, other peopleâs gaze secretly attracted to him. After Cheng Yujin dressed neatly, they lifted the curtain and departed together.\n
After the two left, the Shouâan hall seemed to be half empty. Ruan-shi and Qingfu Junzhu each had their own mind. They stood for a while and saw old Madam Cheng seem tired and took the opportunity to leave.
Both daughters-in-law took their people away, leaving only old Madam Cheng in the warm and cozy room. The old Madam finally showed the feebleness brought by her old age. She leaned on the pillow, closing her eyes tiredly.
Her dowry servant, Zhang Mama, quietly approached. She put another pillow behind the old Madamâs waist and asked softly, âOld Madam, whatâs wrong with you?â
After a long silence, Zhang Mama thought that the old Madam wouldnât reply. Suddenly, she heard a long sigh: âHe already nineteen. In a blink of an eye, thirteen years have passed.â\n
Zhang Mama was also silent. Although âheâ was not named, Zhang Mama has accompanied the old Madam for more than thirty years. How could she not know the old Madamâs entanglement? After so many years, little Xue-shi has almost become a gnawing disease in the old Madamâs heart.
Zhang Mama paused for a while and whispered: âOld madam, you should relax more. Although she was favored, in the end, you are the legal wife. She is forever just an outside mistress. Besides, little Xue-shi had been dead for four years. Why should you worry about a dead woman? No matter how much the old Master favored her, no matter how good her son is, one has to have the life to enjoy it.â
Old Madam Cheng snorted coldly. When she opened her eyelids, her eyes were full of hate: âIâm just angry. At that time, Xue familyâs reputation was known all over the world, while my natal family was just an upstart. If the Xue family didnât get involved in the court struggle, resulting in their exile, the Cheng family would not even look at me. The Marquis and little Xue-shi were childhood sweetheart. At twelve years old, they already had a marriage contract, only waiting for little Xue-shi to have her hairpin ceremony (1) to marry in. As a result, on the eve of the marriage, the Xue family was implicated. Parents-in-law didnât dare to offend Yang family, and hastily proposed marriage to my family. But I know, from the beginning, the Marquis was unwillingâŚ.â
Zhang Mama knelt beside the old Madam and sighed, âOld Madam⌠â\nâItâs okay, after so many years, I already accept this fact. Love and affection are all vain. The most important thing is to give birth to a son and solidify my status as the legal wife. After getting married, although his treatment towards me was lukewarm, he still gave me face anyway and never allowed those concubines to step on my head. His two sons and one daughter crawled out from my stomach, which is enough. I donât want to compete with the childhood sweetheart in his memory. But I didnât expect that after 20 years, he even found little Xue-shi and brought her back! â
Old Madam Cheng sneered. In the ninth year of Jianwu, her twin granddaughters Cheng Yujin and Cheng Yumo have just been born for half a year. Old Madam Cheng was still immersed in the joy of being a grandmother. But one day in the fourth month, his husband suddenly took back a child from outside and said that he was the son of him and little Xue-shi. The child had just turned six and had to be recorded into Cheng clanâs genealogy. The old Madam was very suspicious. The young boyâs appearance was excellent, and there were no calluses on his hands. His movements and conducts were even more refined than her own sons. Could a powerless little Xue-shi really raise up such kind of child in the exile?
Besides suspicion, the old Madam also had a selfish thought. She didnât want the old Master to hook up with his former lover. The old Madam refused to let the child entered Cheng clanâs genealogy. However, old Master Cheng showed a rare stubbornness. He kept saying that the boy was his bloodline, whom he secretly raised outside for so many years. Although the boy didnât have no worry about food and clothing, he couldnât stay outside forever and had to be brought back to recognize his ancestors.
Old Madam Cheng has been doubting Cheng Yuanjingâs identity for so many years. He was probably little Xue-shiâs son, but not old Master Chengâs blood. Little Xue-shi had a pretty face and was exiled into the frontier. That kind of weak, beautiful woman in such a place, one could imagine what kind of fate she might meet. Since she wasnât sure who her fatherâs son was, little Xue-shi pushed the blame to old Master Cheng. And that man was also foolishly deceived. He really took back the mother and son to the capital, raising other manâs son.\n\n(1) Hairpin Ceremony : Coming-of-age ceremony for girls. Usually held at the age of fifteen.
(2) Tongfang : A servant girl also used for bedroom matters. Unlike proper concubine, beside sleeping with her master a tongfang still had to do her usual servant duties. She might be promoted into concubine if particularly favored or after giving birth to a child.
T/N:
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