The maid Cheng Zheng sent back to Jinling to get information wrote to her and told her that Madam Yuan had a quarrel with the people from the second and third wives. Not only did she postpone the wedding with the Min family, which was originally scheduled for September, to February of next year, but she also clamored to split up with Jiuru Lane.
The entire Cheng family was in an uproar.
The old ancestor of the second house and Old Madam Guo both remained silent.
But the rumor spread in Jiuru Lane that the eldest master of the first branch became arrogant after entering the inner cabinet, and dared to say anything and do anything. Didn’t the ancestor of the second branch also enter the inner cabinet? Didn’t he say anything? Not only did he not say anything, but he also took care of everyone in the family without saying a word. In the past, didn’t the first branch receive a lot of favors from the ancestor of the second branch? Now the ancestor of the second branch is old, and the eldest master of the second branch has passed the imperial examination at a young age. It is the time to make further progress and need the support of the eldest branch, but the eldest branch is clamoring to split the branch... Madam Yuan is just a woman in the inner house. If she didn’t have the approval of Elder Jing, how could she dare to say such a thing. It can be seen that splitting the branch is a small matter. The real fear is that the second branch’s master will become powerful and suppress the eldest branch’s talent...
Cheng Zheng couldn't catch her breath, her eyes went dark, and she passed out.
The wet nurse turned pale with fear. She crumpled the letter into a ball and stuffed it into her bellyband. At the same time, she called out to people loudly and pinched and pressed Cheng Zheng. It took a long time for Cheng Zheng to catch her breath.
Fortunately, Gu Xu went to the government office, and the two children were taking classes with their teacher in the study in the outer courtyard. The other relatives of the Gu family all lived in the house on the west road, so no one else was disturbed.
Cheng Zheng sent the servants away and asked the wet nurse where the letter had gone.
The nurse took out the letter from her bosom.
Cheng Zheng read the letter carefully again.
The more she read, the more frightened and confused she became, so she told her nurse to burn the letter.
The wet nurse did not delay. She lit a candle and burned the letter in front of Cheng Zheng.
Cheng Zheng finally breathed a sigh of relief, leaned against the bed and thought for a long time, then said, "Go and tell the steward of the outer courtyard to prepare a car for me. I'm going to Xinglin Hutong. If this matter really gets out of hand, I'm afraid someone will take the opportunity to impeach my father. We have to think of a countermeasure quickly."
Unfortunately, they were out of reach, had no idea of the situation in Jinling, and could not respond in time.
In the end, my father had to step in on this matter.
The wet nurse had been through a lot with Cheng Zheng and was a person who understood everything clearly. Upon hearing this, she immediately nodded, called a maid in to help Cheng Zheng wash and dress, and then she quickly went to the outer courtyard.
Cheng Zheng was absent-mindedly being served by the maid, but she was still thinking about this matter in her heart.
If the news that the companion heard was true, the silence of the second wife's ancestors and grandmother was intriguing.
Secondly, my mother is not an ignorant person. The division of the clan is selfish at best and a violation of the traditions of several clans at worst. So whoever proposes the division will bear the blame. This is why so many families in the rich and powerful families have to endure their unhappiness. My mother's family, the Yuan family, and my maternal family, the Fang family, are both rich and powerful families. Moreover, my father has just entered the cabinet and has not yet established a firm foothold. He cannot withstand any disturbance. If he is known to be ungrateful, then this cabinet elder will be done for. My mother should know this very well. Why is my mother still clamoring for the division of the clan at this time
Then there are the rumors in Jiuru Lane. It seems that they are speaking up for the Second House, but they are actually targeting the First House and blaming the First House in every sentence. She doesn't believe this is a coincidence!
The nurse acted very cautiously. Before Cheng Zheng had finished dressing up, she came in and said, "The carriage is ready. I also asked the steward to send someone to Xinglin Hutong to announce the news in advance."
In this way, if Cheng Jing is not at home, the people in Xinglin Hutong can go and find Cheng Jing.
Cheng Zheng nodded with a gloomy face, called the head maid and gave her some instructions, "Take good care of the eldest and second young masters. When the master comes back, serve him meals first and don't wait for me to come back." Then she took the wet nurse to Xinglin Hutong.
Cheng Jing was indeed not there.
A servant went to the yamen to report the news.
However, after two sticks of incense, Cheng Jing returned home.
Cheng Zheng stepped forward and bowed to her father, and couldn't help but look at her father carefully.
Cheng Jing is fifty-three years old this year. He is tall and straight, with handsome and gentle features, and a humble and elegant temperament. Because he maintains himself well, he looks no more than forty years old and has an excellent demeanor.
Facing such a father, Cheng Zheng was speechless.
How could my father possibly allow my mother to split up the clan
But without my father's tacit consent, how could my mother dare to clamor for dividing the clan
Cheng Jing saw his daughter hurriedly looking for him, but when he stood in front of her, his face became solemn and he said nothing. He couldn't help but smile and said, "What's wrong? Did you have a quarrel with Da Lun? Don't worry, I will go and help you deal with Da Lun. He is so bold that he dared to bully my daughter. I will make him apologize to you..."
When she was a child, if she got into trouble, her father would stand on her side for no reason.
The distance of more than ten years away from home after marriage was made up in an instant.
Cheng Zheng said what was in her heart without hesitation: "Dad, I sent someone back to Jinling to do something, and the steward told me that mother had a falling out with the second and third wives..."
She told her father everything she knew.
Cheng Jing listened quietly, and the smile on his face slowly faded.
Cheng Zheng felt a chill in her heart and shouted "Dad" in surprise.
Cheng Jing pursed his lips, and all the gentleness on his face disappeared, replaced by coldness and sternness.
"I didn't tell you much about Jiashan's matter before." He opened his mouth slowly, and said, "Because that matter was not a good thing. It was Jiashan who did the wrong thing. So we didn't pursue the matter about your fourth uncle's maid. We just regarded it as a lesson for your brother. But what your mother and I never expected was that this matter was actually a joint effort of the second and third houses to frame your brother..." He told Cheng Zheng how Cheng Zheng informed Cheng Shi and led Zhou Shaojin to the garden, how Cheng Shi drugged Cheng Xu's wine, and how Cheng Yi attacked Cheng Xu afterwards.
Cheng Zheng was stunned and speechless for a long time.
"Zheng'er," Cheng Jing's face was full of fatigue, his expression was complicated, and his voice became low and hoarse. "We are of the same roots, why are we so anxious to hurt each other? I am not afraid of competing for the future nephews and nieces to inherit. Our eldest house has what it has today, and we have also received the support of the second house's ancestors. In this world, it turns out that those who are virtuous will get what they want. But I can't tolerate them scheming against your brother like this. Even if he is wrong, he is sorry for the second girl of the Zhou family, but he has never been sorry for them, the brothers. Their minds are too vicious. Think about it, if it wasn't a coincidence that when the second girl of the Zhou family went to the garden, your fourth uncle's maid also followed her. What would have happened? How can we explain to the Min family and the Zhou family? Does your brother still want to keep his innocence for his whole life? Can he still serve as an official? Can he be a son of the eldest son? Your mother cried to me, and I had no way to refute her..."
Cheng Zheng just felt bitter in her mouth.
She whispered, "What did Grandma say?"
"Your grandmother thinks your mother is too impatient." Cheng Jing rubbed his brows and said, "But the facts and evidence are there, and your grandmother has nothing to say."
"Factual evidence?" Cheng Zheng felt a little uneasy when she heard this, and asked, "Did mother catch them? Didn't Fourth Uncle try to smooth things over when he was at home?"
Whether in vision, methods, strategy or insight, Fourth Uncle far surpassed her mother. Now that Fourth Uncle had smoothed things over, why did her mother bring up the past again and even find evidence
Would this be detrimental to the eldest son's family
Cheng Zheng asked, "Where is Fourth Uncle? Is he still in Jinling? What did he say?"
"He is still in Jinling." Cheng Jing said, "You know him. He doesn't care about these trivial matters at home. That's why the second and third branches dare to talk nonsense in front of him. He didn't say anything about the division of the clan, but I think he should be in favor of it, otherwise he would definitely stop your mother. As for the evidence, your mother accidentally discovered that a maid was stealing things from the house, which involved the matter of drugging the wine... Because of this, your mother even wrote to me to complain about your fourth uncle." He smiled bitterly, "I scolded your mother, but I don't know how much your mother listened. When you see your mother, you must persuade her not to talk about your fourth uncle in the future. He has contributed a lot to this family for so many years. Your second uncle and second uncle can serve as officials with peace of mind because of the wealth in the public. By doing this, she not only ruined the relationship between us brothers, but also made your grandmother unhappy. Why did she become such a bad person!"
Cheng Zheng was also quite helpless.
She always felt that her mother's resentment towards her fourth uncle was due to jealousy and envy.
She was jealous of her fourth uncle who passed the imperial examination without any effort, and she envied her fourth uncle who was in charge of the household affairs. All the families in Jiuru Lane had to look to his face.
However, how could Fourth Uncle agree
Cheng Zheng couldn't figure it out.
I always feel that something is wrong!
The mother's behavior was too radical.
She said "OK" hastily, and started talking about the division of the clan: "…Have you made up your mind? What about the censors? Where will the second and third houses move to?"
Cheng Jing did not answer the second question, but evasively said: "Your mother and I have made up our minds. Even if we cannot divide it this time, we must make sure that the second and third houses will never interfere in the affairs of our first house again. Otherwise, if they fail this time, there will definitely be a next time. There is only a thief who catches a thief a thousand days, but there is no thief who guards against him a thousand days. We can't always be on guard against the second and third houses. As for moving, your mother and I mean that we move out - we move to the capital and give Jiuru Lane to the second house. As for what to do with the third, fourth and fifth houses, we have no right to interfere."
Cheng Zheng's expression changed drastically, and she said, "But we are the eldest branch! There is no reason for the eldest branch to move out when the clan is divided. Wouldn't the people in Jinling City think that we are unreasonable?"
Cheng Jing sneered and said, "The genealogy of Jiuru Lane is still in the hands of the second branch! Isn't he unwilling to let it go? Then give it to them. We will find a way to register as a resident in the capital, buy sacrificial land in Daxing, Wanping and other places, and rebuild the ancestral hall. Move the graves of your great-grandfather, grandfather and others here."
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Sisters and brothers, today’s extra update.
Update, everyone can check it out tomorrow morning!
O(∩_∩)O~
※(To be continued)