Xu Junying and Qin Meiniang sent Zheng Meiyu back to Madam Zheng's courtyard and paid their respects to Madam Zheng.
Madam Zheng asked Mei Niang, "I heard that you prepared a hot pot feast for the old lady today. Was it a lively and enjoyable feast?"
Mei Niang leaned forward and replied, "Yes. Eating hot pot in winter warms the body. If mother is willing, your daughter-in-law will also make one for mother to try?"
Madam Zheng smiled and said nothing. She looked better today, leaning against the warm couch, wearing a royal blue satin cotton gown embroidered with the word "Fu". Her headband was decorated with a dark purple necklace that shone with a faint glow, which made her eyes look brighter than usual.
In fact, Madam Zheng was not very old, only in her early forties. Before her beloved youngest son, the Seventh Master Su Junjie, died on the battlefield, she was still a very glamorous and beautiful woman, managing the huge mansion in an orderly manner, without the old lady having to worry about anything. In just over a month, the huge pain of losing her son in middle age knocked her down, and she was completely like a different person. She was so thin that she was out of shape, her hair was half white, her face was full of wrinkles, and she lay in bed all day, lifeless.
Xu Junying couldn't help feeling sad when he thought of Mrs. Zheng's meticulous care for him when he was a child.
His mother was gentle and kind at that time. She would touch his face from time to time and wipe his sweat with a handkerchief. She would personally bring clothes for all seasons to his room, shake out the clothes one by one for him to try on, and then carefully instruct the maids to hang them up. When she spoke to him, she smiled and coaxed him in a gentle voice. When she turned around and told the old women and maids to serve the master well, she had a cold expression on her face. Her aura would not allow the maids to disobey, so everyone in his room was well-behaved, and no one dared to have any grudges against him. The maids would be replaced when they grew up, and because he was a serious and solemn person, his mother did not allow him to have a concubine, and he never had that idea. He lived in the army for many years, and he had never touched any woman until he met Qin Meiniang at the age of 23.
In this regard, he didn't know whether to thank his mother or complain. He never cared about defending the border, fighting for years, and risking his life many times. When he was 22 years old, he went home for the New Year, but could only stay for one night. The next day, he got up early to say goodbye to his grandmother. He heard his grandmother angrily blame his mother, saying that she didn't care about her eldest son and didn't even give him a woman to warm the house. He didn't know when he would be back. What if something unexpected happened? He was already this age, and he had been in the army all year round. It was fine that he had no chance to get married. As a mother, she should find a way to leave him some bloodline, even if it was a bastard, he was still the heir of Weiyuan Hou...
It was then that he suddenly realized: he had no heir, no son who could inherit his title and fame, or carry on his name and surname!
The next year, he went home to visit his family during the war. He met his cousin Zhuang Yulan. He knew his grandmother's arrangement, so he did not object. He didn't know many women, but he had known his cousin since childhood. She was well-behaved and cute, and maybe they could be a good match. He never expected that the emperor would invite him to visit Ming Lake and meet Qin Meiniang. As the saying goes, "The orioles are singing in the river, and the gentlemen are looking for a beautiful lady." At that moment, he felt the feeling of love and asked for the imperial decree without hesitation. The emperor was the same age as him and had known him since childhood. As the saying goes, they had worn the same pants before. He laughed and the imperial decree of marriage was immediately issued to him. When he came back, he made his grandmother very angry.
However, his mother was very proactive and decided to marry Qin Mei Niang to him.
Two days after the marriage, he returned to the frontier and went to the front line. He was in life-and-death situations several times. When he returned victorious, he learned that Mei Niang had given birth to Heng'er...
"Cousin Ying, have a cup of hot tea!"
Zheng Meiyu stood gently in front of Xu Junying and presented him with an exquisite blue and white porcelain cup. Mrs. Zheng blinked and recognized that it was the cup that her niece usually used.
Zheng Meiyu handed Mei Niang a white cup with fine red flowers. Mei Niang thanked her and took it and placed it on the table: "I just drank from the old lady. I can't drink any more!"
Xu Junying also put down the cup gently. Zheng Meiyu glanced at him and lowered her eyes.
"Mother looks very good today. Did she use Doctor Su's prescription?" Xu Junying asked.
Madam Zheng nodded: "Yes, the imperial physician Su hired by Ying'er is much better than the imperial physician Chen hired by Lao Liu!"
"Doctor Su is in charge of the treatment of the concubines in the six courtyards of the palace. He is difficult to invite. Last time, my son asked someone to invite him. He heard about Mei Niang's situation and came to see her voluntarily. My son asked him to come and treat my mother again, and he came as asked. Normally, he would never accept invitations from ordinary people."
"Ying'er is filial, I feel much better now!"
Xu Junying said: "After taking Doctor Su's medicine, there is nothing wrong with it. Mother, just relax and take care of me. My seventh brother sacrificed his life for the country and he is a hero... I am still here, and I will take care of you!"
Madam Zheng covered her eyes with the handkerchief in her hand and choked up, "I know... I know it in my heart!"
She felt extremely regretful!
He regretted that he had sent Junjie thousands of miles away to fight in the war, hoping that with the protection and support of Junying, he could earn some military merits so that he could find ways to be appointed as an official when he came back. His eldest son Junying had been defending the border all year round and was obsessed with wars. If something happened to him, Junjie could also inherit his brother's title as the second son of the old Marquis of Weiyuan based on his military merits.
But man proposes, heaven disposes. Who could have thought that Junjie was young and competitive, and ignored the advice of Junying's personal guards, and pursued the enemy. The enemy was not weak, and had no way out, so they jumped over the wall in desperation, and fought to the death. Junjie rushed in the front, but was ambushed and chopped off his horse by the enemy. It was a pity that he had been reading military books and practicing martial arts since he was a child, and took his father as an example, vowing to compete with his elder brother, but he was killed after only one battle.
When she first heard the bad news, she fainted, and refused to believe that her son, who had a bright smile and was handsome and tall, was no longer in the world. She even suspected that Junying deliberately let Junjie perform such a dangerous mission and deliberately wanted him to die on the battlefield. She was so angry that she scratched several bloody marks on Junying's face when he escorted Junjie's coffin home. She had raised Junying since he was three years old and had never seen him cry. At that time, Junying shed tears, closed his eyes and did not move, allowing her to scratch him. The old lady stopped her from the side and had someone take her away. She struggled hard and banged her head against the wall to ask for death. Junying hugged her, knelt in front of her and said:
"Seventh brother died tragically. He died on the battlefield. He was a hero! Mother still has me. I am also your son. Mother can also regard my son as Seventh brother's son!"
Junying's words were like a bolt of lightning that struck her. She became more sober and remembered something. She stopped making a fuss and instead held Junying's head, shouting "son, son" and crying miserably.
Afterwards, Mei Niang's poor child fell ill quietly. She asked Chunyue to visit her from time to time. Knowing that Mei Niang was determined to die and had no chance of survival, she brought her niece Zheng Meiyu to live in the mansion. Meiyu often came to live in the mansion and had feelings for Junying since childhood. She asked Meiyu to get close to Junying and create a situation where Meiyu could succeed Mei Niang as the wife of Marquis Weiyuan. With the support of her grandmother in the future, her grandson Heng'er would definitely be the crown prince.
She married into a marquis's mansion and became a widow in her thirties. After so many years of hard work, she failed to help her son gain fame and title. She should do something for her grandson.
Madam Zheng was sad, and Zheng Meiyu beside her also looked sad, gently pressing her eyes with a handkerchief. Although Mei Niang sympathized with Madam Zheng, she did not dare to comfort her. After all, the pain of losing a child was too heavy, and improper words of comfort would make people fall into a more sad situation. She did not know the Seventh Master Su Junjie, and had no feelings for him. Apart from the look of mourning on her face, she really could not make a tearful expression. Su Junying glanced at her, and she felt a little uneasy, wondering if he blamed her for not persuading his mother-in-law? So in order to distract Madam Zheng's attention and alleviate her sadness, she talked about the housekeeper that had just been discussed in Jinhua Courtyard. Madam Zheng was really attracted by this topic and stopped crying.
"The old lady wants you to be the housekeeper? Can you do it?"
Mrs. Zheng asked in surprise. Mei Niang before this knew nothing and never fought for anything. If she hadn't had the extra care from her mother-in-law, her life in the Hou Mansion would have been very difficult.
Mei Niang smiled and said, "Isn't it too difficult, daughter-in-law? There is still mother behind us! For ordinary things, daughter-in-law can think about it and do it, but for bigger things, I always have to ask mother to know how to make a decision. Learn slowly, I don't believe I can't do it!"
Mrs. Zheng smiled approvingly: "No one is born knowing how to manage a household. Didn't I know nothing before? Gradually, I can manage all the affairs of this big family. As long as you are not afraid of hard work, I will go and talk to the old lady. If you don't understand anything, come and ask me!"
"Well! Thank you, mother. Mei Niang is willing to learn to do something!"
After chatting for a while, Mrs. Zheng looked tired and waved her hand for them to go back.
Zheng Meiyu led the way and sent the two to the gate of the courtyard. After hesitating for a moment, she said to Xu Junying:
"Cousin Ying, my embroidery stand seems to have fallen in the East Garden. I'll go with you to get it back."
Xu Junying nodded: "When Ruizhu and Ruibao were cleaning the room that day, they saw it and put it there for you."
Ruizhu and Ruibao, the maids who served Xu Junying in the East Garden, right? Yes, they were given by the old lady, and they were of the same rank as the older maids Ruixue and Ruiyun.
It seems that Madam Zheng doesn't like to send maids and women to Xu Junying's room, so the old lady did it for her, giving the maids and the concubines. The old woman is so bored that she has nothing to do and thinks about teaching her grandson bad things all day long. Is it a good thing to have too many women? If we fight, I will make your mansion a mess!
Mei Niang was thinking about how she could walk back to Tsinghua Courtyard with Xu Junying again. They were the only couple on this road. She was thinking whether she should say a few ambiguous and sweet words to him in private. Suddenly, she heard that Zheng Meiyu was also coming. She was not willing to let her be a light bulb, so she said softly:
"Cousin Yu, you are so careless. How did the embroidery stand end up in my cousin's study? It's late at night and there are people everywhere. How can you, an unmarried girl, go with my cousin? If those gossipy maids see it, they will definitely gossip about it. It's better to keep it here and I will ask Cui Xi to bring it back tomorrow!"
Just one sentence stopped Zheng Meiyu.
Just now when coming out of Jinhua Hall, Mei Niang saw Zhuang Yulan and Xu Junying looking at each other, as if they had a lot to say but were not expressed in words. She was quite stimulated. "My cousin's wife is right next to us, so can you please not go too far, cousins?"
When he turned around to leave, he pretended to be afraid of the cold, deliberately got close to Xu Junying, and followed his pace. No matter what he thought, he was bound to be irritating to his cousin Lan'er.
Xu Junying was tall and strong, and he exuded a warm aura. Even though he had no intention of extending a hand to help her, she still felt protected. This was what it meant to be a little bird relying on its owner.
The handsome man she called her husband, although he was cold and lukewarm, he was indeed hers and the father of her child. She had not gotten to know him well enough, so she could not believe all the rumors. He was handsome and well-mannered, and her character seemed to be good. Mei Niang had a cold relationship with him before, because they had not seen each other for a long time. Now that she was his wife, no matter from which aspect, she should not allow the relationship between husband and wife to continue to fade and let other women take advantage of the opportunity to move in. Having two concubines was already heartbreaking enough, and she did not want more women to move into Tsinghua Courtyard!
In front of Zheng Meiyu, she held Xu Junying's hand tightly and said in a tender voice: "Husband, it's so cold standing in the snow, let's go!"
She clearly felt Xu Junying's body stiffen, and she didn't care about him. She used her strength to drag him away. Xu Junying gave her this face and said to Zheng Meiyu: "Cousin Yu, go back. We'll talk tomorrow!"
So he followed Mei Niang. Bao Ju walked in front with a lantern to light the way. Cui Xi and Cui Lian each took a lantern and hid far behind. After they walked a little further away, he slowly followed them. When he passed Zheng Meiyu, he deliberately chuckled twice.
In the darkness, Zheng Meiyu's face was burning. She bit her lip and stood there, refusing to go into the house for a long time. It was not until Madam Zheng sent Chunyue to call her that she used her cold hands to warm her face, lowered her head, and followed Chunyue back. (To be continued)