chapter 120

After quite a while, the Old Lady stared at Qiu Shi and asked, “You’re saying that this idea came from Yuxi?” The idea was indeed excellent, as it would solve all the future troubles. It was just that the idea was from Yuxi, which made her want to think a little more about it. After all, she was still not at ease with Yuxi.

Qiu Shi didn’t think too much about it as she nodded, ”Yes. Yuxi said that if we directly married Ye-er with the Lu family girl, the whole Han family would be gossiped, but if Ye-er wanted to marry her himself, there would be no harm.” As a daughter-in-law, she had thought about it carefully and she felt that this method was feasible.

The Old Lady nodded and said, “That’s a good idea. But make it realistic and don’t let too many people know the inside story.”

Qiu Shi responded and left.

When Mama Luo noticed the beads spinning fast in Old Lady’s hand, she knew that the Old Lady’s heart was not calm, “Old Lady, it’s good that the Fourth Miss can give the First Lady an idea!” It was the same thing with Han Jianming who put forward an idea that took advantage of goodwill sentiment. This matter had been single-handedly set up by Han Jianming from the beginning till the end, in which case forced the Second Master to marry the Lu family girl. It would be too much if Han Jianming also thought of this idea of using Han Jianye. But if it was Yuxi’s idea, it would be a completely different story. Yuxi wouldn’t get half a dime out of it, and she came up with this idea entirely for the sake of the state residence and the First Lady.

The Old Lady softly said, “I always thought that I could see through that girl, but I didn’t think…” she didn’t continue saying the following words. If it wasn’t for this matter this time, she might not have known the other side of that girl until now. She thought she knew this girl, but she didn’t think that what she knew was only the tip of the iceberg.

Mama Luo didn’t know how to respond to this statement.

The Old Lady asked, “Mama Luo, what do you think of the Fourth Girl, if she is compared to Chen-er?” She asked this because she remembered what Han Jianye had said to her. In many ways, Yuchen was not as good as Yuxi.

Mama Luo understood the meaning of this sentence. “Old Lady, Fourth Miss is rather outstanding, but she still can’t be compared with the Third Miss.” Third Miss had a beautiful appearance, which was a woman’s biggest capital. A woman’s greatest happiness was not on how hard she worked, but rather the men who wanted her would present her everything she wanted with both of their hands. Third Miss had this kind of ability.

The Old Lady nodded slightly.

It seems words had spread in the streets overnight, about Second Master Han had fallen in love at first sight with Fourth Miss Lu and he was adamant to marry her. The gossip spread so fast that an average person couldn’t imagine it.

Heshou Xianzhu¹he = harmonious, shou = long life, xianzhu=Princess of the Fourth Rank/usually granted to daughter of a Junwang heard the rumor that afternoon and asked, “What is the stance of the Han family?”

The messenger said, “This servant doesn’t know what the stance of the Han family is, but this servant heards that the Second Master Han has started a hunger strike.”

Heshou Xianzhu¹he = harmonious, shou = long life, xianzhu=Princess of the Fourth Rank/usually granted to daughter of a Junwang narrowed her eyes. “Tell me immediately if anything happens.” In her previous life, Ye Shi had no children at all, and Han Jianming had married the Ke family, Miss Biao²family relationship via females as his concubine, which eventually led to mother-in-law and daughters-in-law become enemies, and sisters³relationship between main wife and concubines had a fall out. While Second Master Han married Wu Shi’s niece, Qiu Yanfu, the daughter of a merchant, the Qiu family, who was stunk of copper⁴filthy rich. At that time, the Duke Han of the State official residence became the laughing stock of the upper class women. But now, Ye Shi had gotten pregnant, and her biaomei⁵younger female cousin had become Second Master Ye’s concubine; Han Jianye got entangled together with Miss Lu. All of this, with each of it had pointed to one thing, which was, her error of judgement.

The messenger replied, “Yes.” With that, the messenger withdrew.

Heshou Xianzhu¹he = harmonious, shou = long life, xianzhu=Princess of the Fourth Rank/usually granted to daughter of a Junwang waved off everyone, and when there was only her left in the room, she murmured, “Han Yuxi, you have hidden yourself really deep.” It was only now that she was certain that Han Yuxi was in the same situation as her. Once was a coincidence, but it couldn’t be a coincidence every time. How many changes have Han Yuxi made in this life? A mountain could not have two tigers⁶Chinese idiom : (of two rivals) to be fiercely competitive, and she would never allow such a big threat to exist.

Yuxi did not know that she had just been blacklisted by Heshou Xianzhu¹he = harmonious, shou = long life, xianzhu=Princess of the Fourth Rank/usually granted to daughter of a Junwang. By this time, the state residence was already in uproar because Han Jianye was determined to marry Lu Xiu. Of course, those who were well-informed knew it was just a show, and the uninformed were taking joy in calamity and delight in disaster⁷Chinese idiom : rejoice in other people’s misfortune. Wu Shi belonged to the second group.

Wu Shi sneered, “I don’t know what Ye Shi would think once she knows that her brother-in-law will marry a girl who has a broken engagement with her own younger brother.”

Old woman Chen said, “Da Nainai⁸da=eldest, nainai=young mistress of the house just got pregnant, so this matter must have been hidden from her till now!” Even after three months, Ye Shi was still very careful. Besides walking around her own yard, she did not go out to visit others. That was why old woman Chen estimated that this matter was still unknown to Ye Shi.

Wu Shi said with a sneer, “Let someone pass this news to Ye Shi and see how she will react.” Those who just watched the play were not afraid of raising the matter up, even more when it was Qiu Shi’s play.

With Wu Shi deliberate interference, Ye Shi soon knew about the marriage. She thought about old woman Hua’s recent abnormality, thus she asked, “Mama Hua, tell me, what happened recently?” Lu Xiu was her Erdi⁹er=second, di=younger brother’s fiancee, and their marriage had already been decided. Now, her brother-in-law got into the mix, and he should not marry a girl who had already been betrothed. Something must have happened in the Ye family.

Old woman Hua knew that she could not hide the matter from Ye Shi anymore, hence she replied, “Nainai¹⁰young mistress of the house, you must hold on. Nothing is as important as the child in your belly. ”

Ye Shi touched her slightly swollen belly and said, “Go ahead, I can hold on.”

Old woman Hua skipped over the part where Ke Minjie had tried to hurt Ye Shi and only telling her in the most concise words about Ke Minjie’s scheme on Second Master Ye.

Ye Shi was not a foolish person. How could she not know that there was something fishy in it? “Why did Biaomei⁵younger female cousin suddenly schemed Erdi⁹er=second, di=younger brother? Moreover, why did Mother not want Erdi⁹er=second, di=younger brother to marry Biaomei⁵younger female cousin anyway? Mama Hua, don’t keep it from me. Tell me everything.” Her mother treated her biaomei⁵younger female cousin just like she was her own daughter and sometime ago, her mother had said that she had already chosen someone for her. Without sufficient reasons, her mother would not send her biaomei⁵younger female cousin back to Suzhou without taking care of her.

Old woman Hua knew that she could not hide it even if she wanted to, so she lightly said about the sachet.

After listening to old woman Hua’s words, Ye Shi asked, “Why did she want to harm my child?” There was always a reason for someone to do bad things! She thought to herself that she hadn’t been mean to her biaomei⁵younger female cousin and she would always give a piece of whatever she had to her. She didn’t understand why Ke Minjie wanted to harm her.

Old woman Hua revealed the heart of the matter, “Miss Biao²family relationship via females has a crush on the Shizi¹¹heir of a noble family. Da Nainai⁸da=eldest, nainai=young mistress of the house, she knows very well in her heart¹²Chinese idiom : be well aware of the situation regarding your body. If the child slips, it will be very difficult for you to have children. Then Master Shizi¹¹heir of a noble family will have to take a concubine…” The omitted part was for Ye Shi to think of it on her own.

Ye Shi’s face turned black with anger. “No wonder…”

Before Ye Shi could finish speaking, old woman Hua hurriedly said, “Da Nainai⁸da=eldest, nainai=young mistress of the house, you mustn’t be angry. Did you forget that Imperial Physician Le said you should not be angry?” Anger was really harmful for the body, and what one most feared was miscarriage.

Ye Shi took a deep breath, again and again. It took quite a while before she calmed down and asked, “What is the attitude of my mother-in-law when my second brother-in-law wants to marry Miss Lu?”

Old woman Hua sighed, “The First Lady is ill with anger.”

Ye Shi pursed her lips, as she found that this matter was really difficult to handle. If this was her mother-in-law’s idea, she could still move her mother-in-law’s mind to make her refuse the marriage. However, it was her brother-in-law himself who had taken fancy to Lu Xiu, therefore, she couldn’t ask him to withdraw. Ye Shi could not help being angry with Lu Xiu. “It was really unbecoming of her to withdraw from the marriage and yet, still flaunts around. It is Ye’s good fortune to have broken off the engagement, otherwise I don’t know what will happen.” If she let her brother-in-law marry Lu Xiu, she didn’t know how she would get along with Lu Xiu in the future. ᵀᴺYe Qing, it wasn’t Lu Xiu’s fault. It was your brother’s fault. You want Lu Xiu to stay at home for a year?

When old woman Hua saw that Yeshi was going to intervene, she immediately objected, “Da Nainai⁸da=eldest, nainai=young mistress of the house, let’s leave the matter of Second Master Ye alone. The most important thing for you now is to raise the child.” Imperial Physician Le said that the child was stable now, but it still needed to be nursed carefully. She did not want Ye Shi to take any risks.

Ye Shi knew old woman Hua’s misgiving. To old woman Hua, even if the sky was falling now, it would never be as important as the child in her belly. Ye Shi thought for a moment and then said, “Please invite Fourth Miss over.”

After Yuxi came over, she knew that Ye Shi wanted her to persuade Erge¹⁴er=second, ge=elder brother, short form for Gege to give up his mind. She shook her head and said, “Dasao¹³eldest sister-in-law, I have also persuaded Erge¹⁴er=second, ge=elder brother, short form for Gege, but Erge¹⁴er=second, ge=elder brother, short form for Gege is like being possessed by the evil spirit¹⁵obsessed that he won’t listen to anyone. There is nothing I can do about it.”

After saying a few words, Yuxi made an excuse to leave.

Zisu didn’t even want to complain, but for Da Nainai⁸da=eldest, nainai=young mistress of the house consulting such a big matter with her Miss? She wondered if Ye Shi’s IQ plummeted after she had her pregnancy. On the way back, Zisu’s face was full of unhappiness, “What does Da Nainai⁸da=eldest, nainai=young mistress of the house mean? Can she let Miss get involved in this? I don’t know what she’s thinking.” If it wasn’t for her Miss, Da Nainai⁸da=eldest, nainai=young mistress of the house would nine times out of ten¹⁶most likely lose the child. Not only did she not appreciate it, she also posed problems to her Miss. This noob translation was translated by a noob translator きつね. Please read this chapter at xin-shou.blogspot.com.

Yuxi didn’t blame Ye Shi as she said, “It is difficult for Dasao¹³eldest sister-in-law do.” Originally, Lu Xiu was her Dasao¹³eldest sister-in-law’s own younger brother’s future wife, but now she was going to be her husband’s sister-in-law. This feeling must be very unpleasant.

Zisu snorted coldly, “Since she herself finds it difficult, then that’s her business. What’s the point of involving a girl like Miss?” If Ye Shi wanted Lu Xiu to be good, then she should just blame Second Master Ye, for losing his mind in breaking the engagement.

As soon as Yuxi arrived at Rose Courtyard, she heard Kufu say, “Miss, Lord Duke is back.”

Yuxi found it odd. “Eldest Uncle is back?” This uncle of hers was really a man of distinguished appearance. After the death of Concubine Rong, he basically treated it like he just lost his family. As for what exactly he was going to do next, Yuxi wasn’t sure, as she didn’t bother to inquire or ask anyone since it was unnecessary.

Kufu nodded and said, “Yes, he just got back. On his return, he first went to see the Second Master, and then he went to the main courtyard. Miss, shall we go and have a look?”

Yuxi thought for a moment, then shook her head and said, “We will go later!” It would have been embarrassing for her to go if her Eldest Uncle was having a fight with her Eldest Aunt.

Less than half an hour later, Yuxi heard the news that Qiu Shi fainted. She hurried to the main courtyard, and when she met Liu yin at the door, she asked, “Why did Eldest Aunt faint?”

Liu Yin answered, “Lord Duke said that he would invite an official matchmaker to propose marriage to the Lu family and he also said that he would make the decision regarding this matter. The physician said the Lady fainted because she was so angry.”

Yuxi felt awkward. What a huge turn of event this was. When she walked into the yard, she heard Qiu Shi’s crying. Yuxi’s three steps changed to two steps as she rapidly walked towards the inside of the house. Seeing Qiu Shi’s red eyes, she asked, “Eldest Aunt, what’s wrong?”

Qiu Shi wiped her tears and said, “It’s nothing.” She was only a little bit sad, and she just couldn’t hold back her tears for a moment.

Yuxi was full of doubts, but she also knew the discretion. This kind of thing was not something that she could inquire about. So she just accompanied Qiu Shi by telling her some irrelevant gossip.

After talking for sometime, Qiu Shi’s mood eased a lot. It was at this time that Liu Yin walked in and informed her, “My Lady, the Lord Duke has invited an official matchmaker to the Lu family to propose marriage.”

Qiu Shi’s face turned ugly.

Yuxi waved everyone out and softly said, “Eldest Aunt, we hit the mark with a fluke¹⁷have a stroke of good luck because of Eldest Uncle. Then, Erge¹⁴er=second, ge=elder brother, short form for Gege doesn’t have to pretend to go on hunger strike any more. It was suffocating when I looked at him.” In any case, her Eldest Uncle had been weird lately. In this way, it was not a big deal for him to do more weird things. However, with her uncle’s intervention this time, all future troubles had been totally resolved.

Qiu Shi only sighed and said nothing.

The Lu family saw a matchmaker come to their house to propose marriage, thinking the matchmaker was invited by Qiu Shi. Both families had a good discussion. Naturally, the Lu family did not make things difficult and they quickly agreed. The matchmaker took the matchmaking gift and was overjoyed.

When Lady Ye knew that the Han family had sent a matchmaker to propose marriage to the Lu family, she nearly crushed her silver teeth¹⁸to be in extreme anger. What did the Han family mean by deliberately creating a marriage alliance with the Lu family? Were they going to break up with them or what? Just as Lady Ye was going out to find out the reason from Qiu Shi, she heard that the matchmaker was not invited by Qiu Shi at all, but rather by Lord Duke Han.

With this news, Lady Ye couldn’t say a word. Who in the capital didn’t know that Duke Han was an unreasonable person? If she tried to reason with him, it would only be her who would be so angry without anyone knowing why.