Chapter 373

When Sui Sui was happily sharing gifts with her brothers, the atmosphere in the Jin Yangzi Residence was heavy.

Xu Yue Yao was so frightened that she hurried back to her own room early, not even daring to peek her head out.

Jin Yangzi was demoted, Xu Lao Fu Ren fell gravely ill, Xu Madame was confined to the Buddhist hall, and Concubine Su, who had previously been favored and often interfered in household affairs, was sent off to Zhuangzi, where people arranged by Xu Lao Fu Ren kept a strict watch on her.

Now the residence is run by Concubine Zhou; her ability is decent, but she shares one trait with Concubine Su and the others.

That is, she also looks down on Xu Yue Yao and the other concubine daughters.

Xu Yue Yao understood this, so she didn't dare to step forward, honestly keeping her head down as she prepared to observe the situation.

All the women in the residence were thrown into turmoil, which ironically left Jin Yangzi with nothing to do.

Feeling depressed, he went straight to the Flower Pavilion to drink, completely disregarding the well-being of the people in the residence.

Xu Lao Fu Ren had already suffered a stroke; she could no longer speak clearly, only able to emit strange 'heh heh heh' sounds.

Even so, Jin Yangzi's son does not attend to her nearby.

Xu Lao Fu Ren does not blame her son for being unfilial; instead she feels that the wife he married and the concubines he took are at fault, which is why the household cannot be at peace.

At this time, Xu Lao Fu Ren continues to make strange noises there.

Concubine Zhou attends nearby, but cannot clearly understand what the old lady wants to express, occasionally anxiously glancing at Liu Pozi beside her.

Liu Pozi has served the old lady for many years and can sometimes interpret a bit of her thoughts.

At this time, there isn't much that can be interpreted, but it's still somewhat useful.

"Heh heh heh..." Xu Lao Fu Ren strained to lift her hand, expressing her anxiety.

After thinking it over, Liu Pozi ventured to say: "Does the old lady mean to have the eldest daughter marry into the Cui family of Qiong Zhou?"

Xu Lao Fu Ren strained to nod.

Concubine Zhou, after hearing this, felt somewhat embarrassed; seeing the old lady's unsightly complexion, she gritted her teeth and whispered: "... but the Cui family has already declined; marrying the eldest daughter into the Cui family might not be appropriate, right?"

Now the Jin Yangzi Residence has declined; this is precisely the time when assistance is needed.

Marrying her off to an even more declined Cui family—wouldn't that be an even greater loss?

Xu Lao Fu Ren was so anxious she almost spoke outright, gesturing with her hand for a long time.

However, her movements were stiff; after gesturing for a while, she collapsed back heavily.

Pozi Xu thought for a long time before uncertainly speaking: "Does the old lady mean that the Cui family still has a chance to rise? Moreover, Qiong Zhou is remote; even if we let the eldest daughter enter the Cui household as a concubine, at least we could tie the two households together—but if the eldest daughter truly becomes a concubine, would she still be willing to help her natal family?"

Xu Lao Fu Ren heard this and gave a cold snort; Pozi Xu immediately understood: "Yes, I understand—without support from her natal family, the eldest daughter would have a hard time in the Cui household."

The scandal involving Xu Yue Ling and Xu Yue Jiao needs to be covered up.

Therefore, send Xu Yue Ling far away in marriage; regardless of whether she is of legitimate or concubine birth, just marry her off, so as not to let those remaining in Jing Cheng find her an eyesore.

Xu Lao Fu Ren's health is no longer good; from now on, the residence will be managed by Xu Madame.

Xu Lao Fu Ren is not entirely willing in her heart to hand over the authority of managing the household to Xu Madame.

Thus, sending Xu Yue Ling far away to become a concubine is actually a roundabout way of disgusting Xu Madame.

Concubine Zhou is not stupid; after hearing this, she roughly understood the old lady's thoughts.

At this moment, Concubine Zhou felt a chill in her heart; she thought, the Xu residence has fallen to such a state, yet the old lady only thinks of her own tiny plot of land, only wants to maintain her prestige in the residence, and completely disregards the fate of the Xu residence...

With such an old lady, will the Xu residence fare well?

Concubine Zhou felt a chill in her heart, but showed nothing on her face; she only silently pondered a way out in her mind.

Pinning hopes on the Xu family is certainly impossible; but besides the Xu family, who else can she and her son rely on? When the Xu family is in utter chaos, the Wei family of the Huaiyang Hou Residence is also in utter disarray.

Because the currently favored young master of the Wei residence, Wei Lanqiao, was beaten up—his nose swollen, face bruised, and one leg broken.

The opponent dealt a lethal blow, yet left him a breath of life at the end.

The young master Wei was discovered and sent back to the Residence; they directly spent a large sum to summon a Doctor, and only then did he manage to save his life.

However, who dealt the poisonous hand has not yet been discovered.

Madame Wei, Xu Shi, directly went mad, tossing everyone in the residence about.

The Huaiyang Marquis thought she was too troublesome; after showing some concern for his son and knowing he wouldn't die, he turned and went to find an old friend to play chess.

Madame Wei, upon hearing this, became even angrier.

She suspected that these concubines in the residence were responsible, but she had no evidence.

"Could it be Concubine Qian? This wretched woman, for the sake of getting her son ahead, what means wouldn't she employ?"

"Perhaps it's Concubine Mei; she has no son, so she envies my little treasure?"

"And there's Concubine Cui; the people that old hag arranged—what good could they be?"

"It could even be that little prostitute of the eldest!"

……

Xu Shi, because of her young son's injury, was driven to various fits of madness.

She didn't just rave verbally; she also went to each courtyard, getting into all sorts of fights.

Upon learning this, the old Madame Wei saw black and nearly fainted from anger: 'This troublemaker, last time she almost harmed my good grandson, and now she has the nerve to call others poisonous women?'

Wei Yongmei had just been shoved by her stepmother, and she was still in a disheveled state.

She wasn't entirely at ease, so after a quick tidy-up, she went to find her brother.

At this moment, Wei Mingqiao was practicing calligraphy; seeing his elder sister approach, he hastily put down his brush to go pay his respects.

Wei Yongmei looked at her quiet, taciturn younger brother, but couldn't bring herself to ask those questions.

She thought, this couldn't possibly have been done by her younger brother, could it?

He is that timid, unwilling to cause trouble, and still young.

Moreover, their status in the residence is awkward, and the stepmother regards them as thorns in her eye.

Over these years, just managing to survive has already been no easy feat.

The younger brother surely wouldn't go looking for trouble on his own, would he?

After Wei Yongmei had figured it out herself, she gently patted her younger brother's head, expressed concern in a few warm words, then gestured for Wei Mingqiao to continue reading and writing.

Wei Mingqiao watched Wei Yongmei leave, then turned around, and his expression sank slightly.

Wei Mingqiao thought, he shouldn't have held back; he should have just beaten Wei Lanqiao to death.

Those bastards who bullied his benefactor all deserve to die!

Sui Sui, who had already entered a sweet dream, seemed to have dreamed of something in her sleep; her cute little mouth gave a soft smack, as if savoring.

Xiang Gugu happened to come by just then; seeing the child's cute appearance, she fanned Sui Sui for a while, and only after seeing the little girl sleep more comfortably did she get up and leave.

After checking that the mosquito-repelling incense in the censer was still burning, she then felt at ease and went back to rest.

Second watch.