Lin Shi still held some hope for Zhou Yu.
During the years Zhou Yu had lived with the Ye family, he had been humble and courteous, truly seeming unlike someone who would do such disgraceful things.
Perhaps there was some misunderstanding. Outsiders only said the wet nurse of the Outside Woman had brought the child to Zhou Yu’s residence—maybe they were merely acquainted.
Lin Shi didn’t want the rumors to be true. With her elder sister-in-law’s wedding to Zhou Yu approaching, if it were true, what would become of her elder sister-in-law?
A girl who had her engagement broken off could only marry beneath her station, especially since the Ye family had no powerful backing in the court.
Catching a glimpse of her elder sister-in-law out of the corner of her eye, Lin Shi felt a pang of heartache. Before entering the room, she whispered reassuringly, “Sister, don’t worry. Your elder brother and I are here for you.” As the eldest daughter-in-law, she might not usually take charge, but at times like this, she must uphold the dignity of the Ye family.
Seeing her sister-in-law feigning composure, Ye Wanning sighed inwardly. She needed to resolve these troubles with the Zhou family quickly.
The two entered the main hall. Mother Zhou looked up as they came in. Lin Shi performed a formal bow, while Ye Wanning gave a slight, perfunctory curtsy beside her.
Zhou Yu had tried to stop Mother Zhou from coming, saying he would go to the Ye family himself to clarify matters. But Mother Zhou, feeling heartbroken for her son, had hurriedly ordered a carriage to be prepared before Zhou Yu could leave.
She found fault with Ye Wanning at every turn. What kind of well-bred young lady from a respectable family would go to someone’s doorstep to drive people away? That was simply uncouth.
Before the Ye family could speak, Mother Zhou put on airs and said haughtily, “I just arrived in Jingcheng yesterday and heard about this matter. It’s not that I’m being petty, but our two families are about to become in-laws. Since Wan Ning is here today, I’ll speak plainly. Couldn’t you have discussed this behind closed doors? Why make such a public spectacle? Zhu Ling is a girl from my maternal family. If my maternal family loses face, what face do you have left?”
Lin Shi had thought Mother Zhou came to explain the rumors and apologize. Instead, she started by blaming her sister-in-law. Even with her gentle temperament, Lin Shi’s expression darkened. “Madam Zhou, what do you mean by that? My elder sister-in-law acted according to propriety. How could she lose face?”
“According to propriety? If she truly followed propriety, she shouldn’t have made a scene. Even if there were something between my son and Zhu Ling, she should have magnanimously accepted Zhu Ling. An unmarried girl being so jealous—if that’s not lacking in upbringing, what is?” Mother Zhou didn’t think her son or niece had done anything wrong. “I came today to make things clear to you: pay no mind to the rumors outside. Zhu Ling is the only niece left in my maternal family. I cannot send her away. If Wan Ning cannot accept this, then let’s call off this marriage.”
She assumed the Ye family would be intimidated upon hearing this.
In these times, any girl who had her engagement broken off before marriage would be ruined. Her son had achieved the rank of Zhuangyuan—the Ye family should be the ones currying favor with them. Without Ye Wanning, her son and niece could be together. What a wonderful outcome that would be.
Mother Zhou looked down on Ye Wanning from the bottom of her heart, and her tone lost all respect.
Lin Shi’s face flushed, then paled. The Ye family hadn’t even mentioned calling off the engagement, yet Mother Zhou brought it up first?
“Madam Zhou, are you serious?” Lin Shi choked back her anger, but breaking an engagement was a serious matter—she didn’t dare agree rashly. “Is this your idea, or Zhou Yu’s?”
“Is there a difference?” Mother Zhou snorted. Unless Ye Wanning apologized to the Zhou family today, she would never accept her as a daughter-in-law.
Lin Shi: “You—!”
“So the rumors were true after all.” Ye Wanning sighed softly as she saw her sister-in-law retreat from the argument. “Madam Zhou accuses me of lacking propriety, but I fail to understand—what kind of propriety is it to keep an Outside Woman before marriage?”
“What Outside Woman? I already said it’s not true!” Mother Zhou refused to admit it.
“Then why are you making such a scene?” Ye Wanning pressed on. “Normally, when a family is involved in a scandal, their first instinct is to apologize. Yet you come to my home to make trouble—are you feeling guilty and trying to intimidate the Ye Family into submission, forcing us to accept this situation?”
If the Ye Family were to publicly declare that Zhou Yu had not kept an Outside Woman and that they were still willing to proceed with the marriage, the rumors would mean nothing. Soon enough, they would be replaced by new gossip.
“What are you talking about? Why would I feel guilty?” Mother Zhou nearly jumped to her feet, instinctively raising a finger to point at Ye Wanning before remembering she wasn’t in the village. She snorted and sat back down.
Ye Wanning sneered. “You know very well why you’re guilty. You accuse me of being jealous, but I won’t accept that. The upbringing of our Ye Family is not something you can question. Since Madam Zhou believes the Ye Family is unworthy of the Zhou Family, let us call off this engagement. A forced marriage brings no happiness. As for Zhou Yu’s expenses during his years with our family, I will calculate them clearly and have them delivered to the Zhou residence.”
“Wan Ning!” Lin Shi grew anxious, hurriedly signaling her sister-in-law with her eyes.
Ye Wanning patted her sister-in-law’s shoulder reassuringly. “I know you care for me, Sister-in-law, but you’ve seen it yourself. Madam Zhou is fiercely protective of her niece and clearly looks down on me. Even if I were to marry into their family, do you think I would have a good life? Moreover, from start to finish, Madam Zhou has never explicitly stated that Zhou Yu and Xu Zhuling have no child. Think about it—not denying it is as good as admitting it, isn’t it?”
Lin Shi fell silent, frowning in thought.
Mother Zhou couldn’t contain herself any longer and stood up. “Ye Wanning, how dare you slander us like this!”
“Then dare you swear, Madam Zhou? Swear on Zhou Yu’s future and his descendants—if Zhou Yu and Xu Zhuling have a child, may he fail in his official career and die without an heir!” Ye Wanning spoke these words with bitterness, her gaze fixed on Mother Zhou as memories of her past life’s suffering flooded back.
In her previous life, Mother Zhou had been just as critical of her.
She had believed that time would reveal a person’s true heart—that if she remained filial and persistent, she could eventually win Mother Zhou over.
But reality had proven her wrong.
She had been punished by standing for hours in the summer heat, doused with cold water during her menstrual cycles, and forced to kneel in punishment at the slightest provocation. Whenever Ye Wanning tried to defend herself, Mother Zhou would suppress her with accusations of filial impiety.
And Zhou Yu? He would always offer belated consolation afterward: “Wan Ning, don’t take it to heart. Mother only has me as her son, so her expectations of you are higher. She means well.”
Means well?
What a joke, she now realized.
Seeing the murderous glare in Mother Zhou’s eyes, Ye Wanning intensified her tone, refusing to back down. “Well, Madam Zhou? Do you dare?”
“Ye Wanning, I’ll tear your mouth apart! How dare you curse my son!” With that, Mother Zhou lunged at Ye Wanning, but several maidservants restrained her.
By now, Mother Zhou was thoroughly enraged. Having achieved her goal, Ye Wanning ordered the maidservants to throw her out.
Mother Zhou had come to assert her authority, but ended up seething with rage. After being unceremoniously dumped at the entrance of the Ye residence, she pointed at the Ye family’s name plaque and cursed loudly, “Do you still think you’re what you used to be? A family of destitutes, and you dare curse my son? Why don’t you take a good look at yourself, Ye Wanning! Even if my son keeps an Outside Woman, she’s still better than you! He’s the new Zhuangyuan, while none of you in the Ye Family are worth a damn!”
After venting her fury in one breath, Mother Zhou finally noticed the crowd that had gathered around her.
Many had already heard about Zhou Yu keeping an Outside Woman, and some even said that the woman was the cousin whom the Ye Family had driven out just days before. Hearing Mother Zhou’s words now, everyone was convinced it was true.
“What are you all staring at?” Mother Zhou, still oblivious to the severity of the situation, was accustomed to making scenes back in the village. Especially in the past year, after her son had become the Zhuangyuan, she had swaggered around without a care.
Someone who couldn’t stand it any longer spoke up, “How can you be so shameless? Your son lives off his wife and keeps an Outside Woman, and you have the nerve to curse here? Like mother, like son—no wonder Zhou Hanlin is capable of such deeds.”
“Exactly, it’s truly a pity for the eldest daughter of the Ye Family. A woman of both talent and beauty, yet she ended up with a heartless scoundrel.”
“The Ye Family is unlucky to be tied to such in-laws. In all my years, this is the first time I’ve seen a shrew making a scene in public. That’s why they say marriages should be between equals. The Ye Family was too kind-hearted back then—they should have called off the engagement when Zhou Hanlin’s father passed away!”
…
The crowd grew more and more agitated. The gates of the Ye residence remained tightly shut, exactly the effect Ye Wanning had intended.
No matter how loudly Mother Zhou shouted, she couldn’t drown out the voices of the crowd. Just as she was about to run out of breath, Zhou Yu arrived.
Before Zhou Yu could even get close, he overheard what people were saying and nearly fainted from anger. The very reason he hadn’t allowed his mother to come to Jingcheng earlier was her lowly background and lack of awareness—and now, as expected, she had caused trouble.
Steeling himself, he pushed through the crowd and tried to pull his mother away, only to hear her wail to him, “My son, you’re finally here! If you hadn’t come, I would have been bullied to death by that wretched Ye Wanning! We don’t need this marriage anyway—she’s not worthy of you!”
Zhou Yu’s vision went black, and he staggered, nearly collapsing to the ground if not for Feng Ran steadying him.
His mother had openly spoken of calling off the engagement in front of so many people. It was over—this marriage was truly finished.