Chapter 266

Upon hearing that her husband, who suffered from an unspeakable ailment, had fathered a fine, big daughter with another woman, Lady Zhang stood frozen on the spot, her face twisting and her entire body beginning to tremble.

She was a woman of strong character who had always believed the problem lay with Qiao Fang. Since he kept a mistress, she had thought of committing adultery with the groom—first, to satisfy her own desires, and second, because if she became pregnant, it would shut Qiao Fang up, forcing him to settle down and raise the child with her and the groom.

But now, the groom was telling her that it wasn't Qiao Fang who was ill, but she, the lady of the house?

"If I cannot bear children, how is it that you can?"

Lady Zhang was furious, but she could not vent her anger on Qiao Fang. Now that she was the barren hen and Qiao Fang was crowing perfectly well outside, if she broke with him and word got out, she would surely be branded a jealous shrew. Then, not only would she be unable to face anyone, but it would also be difficult for her to remarry.

That is how things were in this day and age: the duty to carry on the family line was greater than heaven itself; if you could not bear children, you had to compromise and step aside.

Even as the primary wife, one had to be tolerant.

By the same token, if it were Qiao Fang who had the unspeakable ailment, it would be common practice for her, as the primary wife, to bear a child with an outsider and then gift money to the man who provided the seed to send him away.

Not to mention families like theirs of "humble origins," even the wealthy and powerful, those who produced generals and ministers, were even more so.

This matter concerned not only reputation but also the inheritance of the family estate.

But could Lady Zhang be willing to pass the family estate to an outsider?

"Kong Youde, you have been a widower for many years, without wife or child. It is I who have often provided for you, helping you relieve your loneliness. If you know how to repay kindness, shouldn't you repay me?"

Hearing this, the groom nodded immediately: "I, Kong Youde, am not a man who doesn't know what's good for him. That the Great Mistress does not despise my low status and is willing to humble herself to accommodate me is something I keep in my heart at all times. Whatever the Great Mistress commands, Youde will surely obey."

"Good! Then I want you to kill that wanton woman and the wild seed she bore. Will you do it?"

"This, this cannot be done!" Kong Youde's eyes widened. Seeing Lady Zhang's expression turn sour, he thought quickly and said: "If the Great Mistress asks me to kill the mother and child, and word leaks out for the authorities to discover, I fear neither of us will escape death."

"Besides, that wanton woman has no family of her own and only associates with the Master; it cannot be called adultery, so the authorities would not find the Mistress in the right."

"You are right! I must vent this anger, but I cannot drag myself into it!" Lady Zhang was restless, unable to eat or sleep. She left the groom's quarters and pondered for a day and a night, until she suddenly had an idea.

Early that morning, while the groom was cleaning the stables, Lady Zhang came to the backyard. The two said nothing, first indulging in their illicit affair in broad daylight, after which Lady Zhang coaxed Kong Youde, saying: "I have thought of a brilliant plan. In two days, I will have the Master bring that wanton woman and the wild girl into the manor and give her the status of a concubine."

"Once she has this status, she will have a flaw."

Kong Youde asked suspiciously: "What flaw?"

"Doesn't Zheng Dadan in the kitchen have a foolish son who suffers from dementia? That Zheng Dadan often brings his foolish son to the kitchen to cook private meals; he cannot hide this from me."

Kong Youde interjected: "How would Zheng Dadan dare to cook private meals? I see that his son usually eats the same food as the servants."

"So what? I don't like that fool anyway. Once that hussy marries in, you find a way to bring the fool to the woodshed. I have my own ways to lure that wanton hussy there. Once the door is locked, I will frame her with the crime of adultery; I don't fear that I won't be able to deal with her!"

"There is one more thing. After breakfast, prepare the carriage. I need to go to Ziyun Mountain outside the city. I hear the Baosheng Temple there is extremely efficacious; I must go and make a pious vow."

Kong Youde didn't think much of it, figuring that once Lady Zhang had vented her anger and made her vow, the matter would be over.

About half a month later, Qiao Fang returned home with Lady Ye and their illegitimate daughter, Qiao Tian. Upon their first meeting, Lady Zhang showed the full demeanor of a primary wife, not only addressing Lady Ye as a sister but also fussing over the two- or three-year-old Qiao Tian, and even having someone order several brand-new dresses from the Chen Family Cloth Shop as gifts.

Qiao Fang knew exactly what kind of person Lady Zhang was. He was very vigilant for the first two months, but when he saw that Lady Zhang was truly devoted to the family, his heart relaxed.

One day, Lady Zhang mentioned that there was a liquor business that required Qiao Fang to go to the prefectural city in person, which would take at least ten days round trip.

Seeing Qiao Fang hesitate, Lady Zhang said: "I see you aren't worried that this business is hard to do; you are afraid that after you leave, Sister Ye and Tian'er will be wronged by me, aren't you?"

"Absolutely not. My wife is virtuous and kind; how could I think such a thing? You are overthinking it!"

Because of taking Lady Ye as a concubine, Qiao Fang had always felt he owed Lady Zhang, so he obeyed her every word and agreed to the matter.

Once Qiao Fang left, Lady Zhang turned and sought out the groom, Kong Youde, telling him to strip the cook Zheng Dadan's foolish son of his clothes and lure him into the woodshed.

Lady Zhang then went to Lady Ye's courtyard, claiming that Lady Ye's daughter, Qiao Tian, had been abducted into the woodshed by Zheng Dadan's foolish son, and that the fool was holding the door shut; others dared not enter for fear of provoking the fool and harming the child.

"Sister, don't be anxious. I have already sent Kong Youde to the government office to report it. Once the officers arrive, I think it will be fine."

Lady Ye had only this one biological daughter. Hearing that her daughter had been abducted to the woodshed by a fool, how could she sit still? She immediately rushed to the woodshed in a panic.

There was no one outside. She pushed the door open and entered, calling her daughter's nickname as she searched inside, but she did not see her daughter's figure.

There was only the second fool, stripped of his clothes, squatting in the corner, happily gnawing on a roasted chicken.

Lady Ye felt something was wrong. Just as she wanted to turn around, the woodshed door was locked from the outside.

Immediately after, she heard someone outside shouting, "The Second Mistress is stealing a man! The Second Mistress is stealing a man in the woodshed!" The voice was not Kong Youde's, nor was it Lady Zhang's; it sounded like the voice of the guard, Qin An.

Before long, everyone in the Qiao household—stewards, servants, accountants, gatekeepers, nannies, maids, the newly hired wet nurse, and the kitchen cooks and laborers—all rushed over upon hearing the noise!

With Qiao Fang not at home, Lady Zhang, as the head of the household, led the crowd and ordered the guard to open the woodshed door.

Everyone craned their necks to look, only to see Lady Ye running out from inside in a panic, and behind her, in the woodshed, was the bare-bottomed second fool.

"Aiya! The Second Mistress is taking advantage of the Master's absence, bored and stifled, and has come to the woodshed to steal a taste of a fool!"

These words came from the guard Qin An, and everyone who heard them believed them to be true.

With the matter right before their eyes, could it be fake? Could it be that someone forced the Second Mistress to come to the woodshed?

Seeing this, Lady Ye was just about to explain when a stinging pain struck her face.

The once "tolerant, generous, virtuous, and kind" Lady Zhang now wore a different face.

"You wanton woman! You have disgraced the Qiao family's reputation! Qin An, what are you standing there for? Why don't you beat this wanton woman to death!"

Lady Ye had no chance to explain. Qin An came up and struck with lethal intent. Zheng Dadan took off his apron to wrap his foolish son and protected him behind his back; as for the Second Mistress Ye, he ignored her.

In Zheng Dadan's eyes, his foolish son was innocent and naive, and must have been deceived by Lady Ye. Not only did Zheng Dadan think so, but everyone else did too.

Poor Lady Ye, a delicate woman, how could she withstand the beating of a strong guard? After three punches and two kicks, she breathed her last.

"Mother! Mother!"

Shortly after Lady Ye died, the old nanny beside Lady Zhang brought the two- or three-year-old Qiao Tian over.

Lady Zhang scolded: "What are you crying for, you little bitch? Your mother hooked up with a wild man and stole a man right into the manor; she deserved to be beaten to death. Even if this matter goes to the authorities, it is our Qiao family that is in the right!"

Qiao Tian only ran to Lady Ye, clinging to her mother's corpse and crying. At her young age, she could not understand Lady Zhang's words; she only knew her mother was gone.

Not long after Lady Ye died, Kong Youde arrived late with people from the government office. After the officials asked everyone in the manor about the incident and learned that the deceased was a concubine who had been beaten to death by the head of the house for adultery, they hastily closed the case.

Kong Youde looked at the beaten Lady Ye and the little girl whose voice was hoarse from crying, feeling somewhat uneasy.

He found Lady Zhang and said with some annoyance: "You could have just driven her away; why did you have to beat her to death?"

"I didn't kill her; Qin An did. Besides, she was a bitch; if she's dead, she's dead. I only regret that she died too quickly and my heart isn't satisfied!"

Kong Youde suddenly frowned: "Could it be that you and Qin An..."

"Kong Youde, you are a groom. You should know clearly who is in charge of this house. What I do with Qin An is not for you to gossip about."

"Don't think too much; we have a long life ahead of us!" Seeing Kong Youde's ugly expression, Lady Zhang suddenly walked up, reached out to stroke his chest, and spoke soothing words again.

After Lady Ye died, her body was buried by Kong Youde in the mass grave outside the city. When Kong Youde left the city, Lady Zhang made it clear: "A wanton woman like this, who brings chaos to the household and lacks private morals, should be thrown into the mass grave and let the wild dogs gnaw on her!"

Kong Youde agreed with his mouth, but when he reached the mass grave, he still dug a pit and buried her in a straw mat.

"Second Mistress Ye, grievances have their source and debts have their masters. If you have grievances or grudges, don't come looking for me. I never thought of harming your life; these were all evil deeds colluded in private by the Great Mistress and Qin An. If I had known the Great Mistress had such a temper, I would never have stripped that fool's clothes and lured him to the woodshed..."