Zheng Meiyu cried out in pain and said hatefully, "That's the truth! I know everything that happened! You and your seventh cousin were in this room, you..."
"Shut up!" Mei Niang's tone was still cold and calm: "I'm too lazy to hit you. I feel disgusted when I see you! Seventh cousin, Xu Junjie? Are you worthy of calling him cousin? Hasn't he loved you since childhood? You sold him out the next time. You are such a good cousin! No, I have to hit you again! I have never seen such a hateful woman like you!"
Mei Niang didn't know what she had caught, so she chased Zheng Meiyu and beat her. Zheng Meiyu finally cried out: "Qin Mei Niang, you are too cruel!"
"Humph! Not as good as you! How did you treat me in the beginning? You pinched my Heng'er, occupied my room, let you pick and choose my clothes and belongings, even took my husband to use, and you wanted to piss me off to death and become the housewife yourself, which I can't even do!"
Outside the door, Xu Junying stood with his hands behind his back, facing the damp courtyard outside the corridor, listening to the noise inside with a cold face. When he heard Mei Niang scolding Zheng Meiyu, his brows frowned.
In her eyes, her husband was just an object, and Zheng Meiyu was allowed to "use" him? How could this be possible!
Zheng Meiyu screamed, "He is not your husband! He should not marry you! The person he should marry is me! I have been by his side since he was a child, accompanying him, happy with him, sad with him... I know what he likes and what he doesn't like. Only I can truly understand him, love him, and protect him! What kind of rich lady are you? The daughter of a poor and impoverished family, how can you marry him and become his wife so easily!"
"This is fate! Do you understand? You can only blame yourself for not doing good deeds in your previous life. You were born with bad horoscopes! If you want to be a marquis' wife, wait for your next life! It's in vain for you to love him. He just wants to play with you, make you happy, and get things you know. But you, a fool, sold out your dear cousin for your own selfish desires! I'm the daughter of a poor and destitute family, not a rich lady. At least I don't have to live under someone else's roof! You're a lady from a famous family, but you're raised in someone else's home, and you have to pay for it to be my concubine. Isn't that disgusting?"
"Qin Mei Niang! Don't be so proud!" Zheng Meiyu couldn't stand being scolded, and gnashed her teeth: "Don't you have any dignity? Don't you love my seventh cousin? Why are you still alive? You should die with him!"
Mei Niang slammed Zheng Meiyu and said, "You are not allowed to call him cousin anymore! No matter what kind of person he is, you are not worthy of being his cousin! Qin Mei Niang does not allow you to call him that!"
Zheng Meiyu cried, "Qin Meiniang, I will remember you!"
Mei Niang sneered: "Remember it, remember it, heaven and earth are waiting for you!"
Zheng Meiyu took a breath, calmed down, and said, "Do you really not remember what happened before?"
"Nonsense! If I remembered, would I still have the leisure to waste time with you here?"
"Okay! As you wish, I'll tell you everything!"
"Just a few words, then leave quickly, Xu Junying will be back soon!"
"Humph! I can't describe all your ugly deeds in a few words! My cousin... Master Qi and you always have a tryst in this room!"
Mei Niang was impatient: "Let's talk about the important things: how it started, how we got together, and what happened next!"
Zheng Meiyu laughed, "Qin Meiniang, you are crazy! I won't fight with a brainless and rough woman like you by strength. I rely on my mind and strategy. I have already won a battle before. I am not afraid that you will not die. A gentleman's revenge is never too late. I won't use a stick, but I will make you die ugly!"
"Really? That's a story for later. Now let's get back to the topic and don't waste time!"
Zheng Meiyu's tone was filled with malicious pleasure: "It's no accident that you and Master Qi are destined to be together. It was me who tied the red string for you two! Hahaha!"
Mei Niang was very calm: "How do you hold it?"
"I have liked my cousin Ying since I was a child, and he has always been very kind to me. My aunt said that she would make the decision for me and let my cousin Ying marry me... But you took away what should have belonged to me. Do you know how sad and painful I am? I hate you! From the day you entered the Hou Mansion in a sedan chair and got married, I wanted you to die! If you don’t die, there will never be a place for me in Qinghua Courtyard and by the side of cousin Ying. Cousin Ying got married in a hurry, and two days later he went to the border to fight. I also began to plan for you. Killing is impossible. I have been well-educated since childhood, and I am well-educated and polite. I will not be so stupid! I know that the Seventh Master likes your beauty. When you went to Qiuhua Courtyard to pay your respects, the way he looked at you revealed his thoughts. So I pulled the Seventh Master in from the east corner gate and went to the East Garden Study to read military books. I settled him down, and then went to coax you, saying that there were many rare and good books in the East Courtyard Study, and there were poems and songs that you liked. You were really well-behaved, like a three-year-old child and easy to coax. You followed me to the East Courtyard Study, and that was the first time you met alone - I sent you in and then went out, and you said to the Seventh Master After a few words, he came out. Seventh Master selected two books for you and asked me to take them back with you. Do you think you are a disaster when you look like this? All men are crazy about you! The next afternoon, Seventh Master came back from drinking outside and asked me to play chess with him. I said why not go to the study in the East Courtyard to read military books. He agreed. We still came in from the East Corner Gate. After reading for a while, he felt sleepy and lay down on this bed to rest. I went to the upper room over there. You were sitting on the couch copying poems. You were a beautiful and elegant bride, a quiet and graceful bride. Your red soft satin embroidered robe caught my eyes! I pulled you to the study in the East Courtyard, but you didn't go. I said there was no one in the study. I found a very good book and I had to take you to read it! How gentle you were at that time, not as rough as you are now! You followed me, took a few books in the study and sat down to read them. When you were thirsty, you drank the fragrant tea I brewed by myself. Then what happened, guess what? "
Mei Niang said calmly: "I can't guess, go on!"
Zheng Meiyu laughed crazily for a while and continued, "I put aphrodisiac powder in the fragrant tea I gave you! Do you know where the aphrodisiac powder came from? My aunt gave it to my father. I stole a packet and brought it into the Hou Mansion. I wanted to give it to that bitch Zhuang Yulan, but I didn't expect that she would get sick after you married in. So I gave it to you first! The medicine is really good. When it took effect, you had no strength and your whole body was hot. I helped you into the secret door, pushed you into the curtain, took off all your clothes, covered you and the Seventh Master with a thin quilt, then pinched the Seventh Master's face, closed the door and left! What did you do in there, do you remember? Hahaha... Qin Meiniang, I don't have to be angry with you. I can still be husband and wife with the Hou Master and have children, but you can only be exiled to the cold courtyard and live a lonely and desolate life! One day, if this matter gets out, will you die miserably?"
Xu Junying's lips were pressed into a line, his face was livid, and his fists were just about to touch the door. When he heard Mei Niang's words, he paused again:
"Zheng Meiyu, if any man marries you, it's like bringing disaster into the house. You're too scary! To be honest: I'm really scared of you! But I don't understand: when you put Mei Niang and Lao Qi in that situation, no one knew about it? Maybe you stopped my maids from following you, and didn't you have servants in the East Courtyard?"
Zheng Meiyu said proudly, "If you want to do something, you must plan it well first. Cousin Ying is away all year round and may not be able to come home for two or three years. Only the Seventh Master comes to the East Courtyard Study occasionally to look at military books, leaving a few maids to guard it. Who among those maids doesn't recognize me? I gave them a little bit of money to buy wine, and they left without a trace! As for your maids, I hate them and didn't let them follow me. You are very obedient, and you do what I say!"
Just as Mei Niang was about to speak, the door was suddenly pushed open with great force. Both she and Zheng Meiyu were startled!
Xu Junying stood tall at the door, his face solemn and his eyes cold as ice. When he glanced over, Zheng Meiyu seemed to be frozen in an instant, solidified and stiff. Mei Niang and Zheng Meiyu were standing opposite each other across a round table. Seeing Xu Junying's expression, she was secretly surprised. She dropped the feather duster in her hand, stayed away from Xu Junying, slipped out the door from his right, and ran away!
She had already stated that she was not Qin Mei Niang. As expected, Xu Junying believed her and expressed his understanding. After slowly sorting out some relationships, they should be able to reach a consensus that he was a magnanimous man and would let her go. But she was bored early in the morning or something, and saw Zheng Meiyu. She couldn't resist her curiosity and went to explore the secret. Why? It would be strange if there were no secrets in such a century-old mansion. There are all kinds of privacy. If Xu Junying's case is not there, there will be others. It may be even more bizarre and sensational. The more you know, the faster you die. This truth has been understood for a long time. Smart for a lifetime, confused for a moment, and then you get leprosy at the last minute. How stupid!
Walking out of the moon cave door quickly, Cui Xi and Cui Lian came to meet them. Both of them had red and swollen eyes and their faces were filled with anxiety and worry:
"Grandma! Are you okay?"
Mei Niang said, "I'm fine, I'm fine! Let's go back to the room and talk!"
Two maids supported her back to the upper room, and Cui Xi said softly, "Last night we wanted to go in, but there was someone guarding the moon-shaped gate. He didn't say a word, but he stretched out his scabbard and blocked us all! We went in three times, and it was the same every time. The Marquis was like that, too. I was really scared... I was afraid he would beat you!"
Cui Lian touched Mei Niang's hand, looked at her face carefully, and said, "Your eyes are a little red. Did Grandma cry? Did Lord Hou really bully you?"
Mei Niang smiled and said, "Aren't your eyes red too? I didn't cry, I stayed up all night... The East Courtyard is really not a place for people to live. I didn't sleep well!"
Xiang Xiang said, "I sleep on Lord Hou's bed. His bed is not comfortable at all!"
Cui Xi and Cui Lian looked at her, Mei Niang looked at this one, then that one, and suddenly slapped them, and the three of them laughed. Cui Si ran out of the room and shouted in surprise:
"Grandma is back! Mom, come quickly, Grandma is back!"
Cheng'er and Ping'er helped Mother Wang out of the other room. Mother Wang wiped her eyes with her sleeves, crying and laughing: "Okay, okay, I'm back!"
Mei Niang felt like she was back to the night of her resurrection. This group of people surrounded her, crying and laughing. This was also family love! They shared the same fate and hardships. Mei Niang was unfortunate, but she was lucky to marry into the Xu family and fall into the hands of Zheng Meiyu. She once had such a deep and unyielding love.
Suddenly, it occurred to me that it was right to let Xu Junying hear her conversation with Zheng Meiyu. While he hated Zheng Meiyu, he should have forgiven Mei Niang and Lao Qi. They fell in love because of this and gave birth to Heng'er, but they were set up. Zheng Meiyu's viciousness ruined them, but they had no regrets. Lao Qi died in battle, Mei Niang refused to live alone, and faced Xu Junying gently and indifferently, dying calmly, without even a word with a little emotion left for Xu Junying. No wonder Xu Junying was unwilling to give up, and in his madness, he used Zheng Meiyu as a commodity. (To be continued. If you like this work, you are welcome to vote for recommendations and monthly tickets at Qidian. Your support is my greatest motivation.) (To be continued)