The grand houses of the wealthy and noble all had a pair of stone lions placed at their gates.
The residence of the Marquis of Shuling was no exception. Early in the morning, after seeing off the Marquis, Lady Zhao, the marquis’s wife, was about to turn back when she noticed some dust on the stone lions.
These days, she had grown increasingly fond of things that were pure and flawless, unable to bear the sight of dust or stains. Frowning, she ordered someone to clean them.
“Tomorrow is the banquet. Remember to clean them once today and once again before the guests arrive tomorrow.”
The gatekeeper hurriedly agreed and sent someone to fetch water for cleaning. Only then did Lady Zhao nod in satisfaction. Upon returning to her chambers, the stewardesses were already waiting for her.
After taking her seat, Lady Zhao began distributing tokens to everyone, carefully instructing them on their duties for the following day.
“This year is different from previous years. With the Emperor’s grace and the Crown Prince’s congratulations, the banquet is bound to be grand. Each of you must fulfill your responsibilities without any mistakes.”
The women acknowledged her orders, took their tokens, and left. Before they had all dispersed, a personal maid from the old lady’s quarters arrived to summon Lady Zhao.
Lady Zhao felt deeply annoyed.
She came from a prestigious family, which made her a suitable match for the military household of the Marquis of Shuling. Her husband was brave and accomplished in battle, his career flourishing. He cherished her deeply, never taking a concubine over the years, and all their children were hers. For so long, she had devoted herself to raising and educating them, nurturing them into outstanding individuals praised by all. Thus, she was quite content with her current life.
Unfortunately, while the Marquis of Shuling hailed from a military lineage, his mother did not. This was the greatest source of Lady Zhao’s grievances since marrying into the family.
The old lady was originally a peasant woman who, after saving the old marquis, rose to prominence overnight, becoming the matriarch of the Marquis of Shuling’s household.
But how could such a coarse woman shoulder such a heavy responsibility? As a result, the affairs of the marquis’s clan and household had long been managed by the old marquis’s sister-in-law, the Second Old Lady.
The old lady harbored deep resentment, determined to learn everything she could. She poured all her energy into studying, yet after more than a decade, she still hadn’t mastered the skills. It wasn’t until Lady Zhao entered the household and the Second Old Lady relinquished control that the old lady felt a glimmer of hope.
She hoped her daughter-in-law would voluntarily hand over the household authority, but Lady Zhao did not. As a woman from a noble family with a strong personality, and with the old marquis’s support, she saw her mother-in-law as shallow and lacking knowledge of the various noble families. While the old lady could manage social visits, entrusting her with household management would surely lead to chaos.
Thus, Lady Zhao firmly retained control of the household. From then on, the old lady grew to hate her.
Being a peasant woman, the old lady was well-versed in the ways of shrewish quarrels. Lady Zhao was often driven to tears by her, but fortunately, her husband was understanding, and she gradually adapted. Over time, she learned to remain unmoved by the old lady’s provocations, ignoring her entirely. After a few outbursts, the old lady would lose face, and Lady Zhao’s ears would finally find peace.
But not long after, chaos erupted in Yunzhou, and she and her husband were forced to abandon their youngest daughter in the desert.
Though it was an act of desperation, she was already heartbroken. Yet her mother-in-law seemed to have seized this as leverage, frequently bringing it up in a mocking tone to torment her.
Sure enough, this time, when summoned to discuss the birthday banquet, the old lady wasted no time in taunting her: “I told you back then to take the children and leave Yunzhou, but you insisted on playing the heroine, vowing to live or die with Yunzhou. Well, you survived, but my granddaughter died a tragic death.”
The old lady’s words carried a tone of sarcasm, which stung Lady Zhao’s heart. Her face darkened, and she glared with wide eyes. The old lady stepped back, furious, “What? How did your Zhao family teach their daughter! Do you dare to strike your mother-in-law?”
“Fine! I’ll make sure everyone knows just how well your Zhao family raises their daughters—not only forbidding their husbands from taking concubines but also threatening to strike their mother-in-law with such arrogance. Truly excellent upbringing!”
Lady Zhao was so enraged that her chest ached, yet she dared not actually strike. She could only return resentfully, remaining in low spirits all afternoon. When the Marquis of Shuling returned home and saw her in such a state, he understood everything at once. With a grim expression, he went out, first heading to his mother’s quarters to argue.
“It was my decision to abandon Shi’er. Why blame her instead of me? Mother, are you deliberately trying to ruin our family’s peace?”
The old lady burst into tears, “Has your wife been stirring up trouble again? I said no such thing.”
The Marquis of Shuling sighed, “Mother, what happened back then was unavoidable. It’s all in the past now. As Shi’er’s parents, we suffered the most. By causing such a fuss, you’re only hurting your own child.”
The old lady pretended not to understand. Having finally found a weakness in her daughter-in-law, she naturally pressed her advantage. Over the past decade, she had grown accustomed to mocking her and had no intention of stopping.
The Marquis of Shuling could do nothing about his mother, but his reprimand usually kept her quiet for a few days. He returned dejectedly, only to find Lady Zhao staring at him coldly. His heart softened, and he went over to embrace her. “It’s my fault for letting you suffer.”
Lady Zhao immediately lowered her head, wiping away tears. “She can say anything else, but not this. She saw with her own eyes how desperate we were back then. Taking one child might have given them a slim chance to survive, but taking both would have meant certain death. We had to make a heart-wrenching choice—how can she use that to mock me?”
She sobbed, “If she truly mocked me for Shi’er’s sake, I could bear it. But when that child was born and she saw it was a girl, she showed nothing but displeasure, not even glancing at her once. You know how deeply that hurt me.”
The Marquis of Shuling knew all too well. Hearing his wife recount the past, he felt his mother had grown increasingly unreasonable. “If she continues like this, our family will surely fall apart.”
Seeing her husband stand by her side, Lady Zhao felt somewhat comforted. “There’s no other way. She never liked Shi’er, yet she uses her death to wound me. Every time, I feel so enraged I could faint.”
The Marquis of Shuling understood perfectly and resented his mother for this. Gently patting Lady Zhao’s back, he unconsciously uttered, “Don’t take it to heart… If it comes to it, perhaps I could send her back to our ancestral home in Yunzhou?”
These words startled Lady Zhao, who quickly looked up. “Absolutely not! If you do that, the old lady will be deeply upset, and it will be seen as unfilial. Your career is thriving, and our children still have to serve in the court. How could that be allowed?”
The Marquis of Shuling had only entertained the thought briefly. Upon further reflection, he knew it was impossible and sighed, “I only hope Mother won’t continue to act so foolishly.”
As they spoke, hurried footsteps echoed from outside. Four children entered the room—three boys and one girl. The boys were between fifteen and eighteen years old, while the girl was younger, around twelve or thirteen.
All four children had grown into outstanding individuals. The eldest, more composed, glanced at his mother and, seeing her expression was still calm, breathed a sigh of relief.
The second son had a fiery temper. He slammed the table and said, “Grandmother is going too far again. She does this from time to time—it’s simply outrageous!”
But as soon as he finished speaking, the Marquis of Shuling smacked his arm. “She is still your grandmother.”
The second son sulked unhappily.
The third son, more tactful, appealed to reason. “Who in the capital doesn’t know about Grandmother by now? Who isn’t aware of our family affairs? Other times it might be manageable, but tomorrow is a major occasion. Both the Crown Prince and Prince Duan will be attending. We can only hope Grandmother doesn’t cause any trouble.”
The Marquis of Shuling agreed inwardly, hesitating over whether to have his mother feign illness. Just then, his little niece coughed and spoke up. “Uncle, Aunt, Third Brother is right. Tomorrow is a big day—we can’t afford any mishaps. Grandmother’s tongue… she speaks without thinking. It’s not that we’re disrespecting our elders, but her temper is too volatile. Once she loses her temper, she stops caring about consequences.”
She speaks without thinking and could easily cause a scene at the banquet—such incidents had happened more than once before.
The Marquis grew increasingly alarmed by their words. But after some thought, he still shook his head. “Although tomorrow is my birthday, Mother did give birth to me and raise me. How can I exclude her?”
“Still, what you say makes sense. I should go and explain the importance of the occasion to her, so she doesn’t cause trouble tomorrow.”
With that, he hurried off, leaving the children behind to speak with Lady Zhao.
By now, Lady Zhao felt much better. With all the children on her side, what did she have to fear? She hugged her little niece and patted her cheek. “It’s cold today. Why aren’t you resting in your room? Don’t fall ill again.”
“It’s fine. Although my health isn’t the best, it’s not too bad either—just a few coughs.”
The young girl’s surname was Zhe, and she was called Mingzhu.
She had a cheerful disposition. “Aunt, I’m fine, don’t worry about me. It’s you who should take care of yourself—you’ve been working so hard lately.”
Lady Zhao sighed softly, then looked at her three outstanding sons with contentment. “With all of you here, I’m not afraid.”
…
“I’m not afraid of her,” Zhe Junwu sighed. “I just find her annoying.”
On the seventeenth day of the twelfth lunar month, the Crown Prince went out in the evening to attend a banquet, so Zhe Junwu didn’t have to serve in the study. With this rare leisure, she couldn’t stay idle either. She picked up the literacy book the Crown Prince had given her and diligently practiced her characters.
She couldn’t sit still in her own room—Yurong was always stirring up petty trouble, and Zhe Junwu found it irritating. Instead, she went to Chunyin and Xia Yin’s place.
Chunyin poked Zhe Junwu’s forehead with her finger. “Look at you, still afraid of her, driven out of your own room by her bullying.”
Zhe Junwu frowned in distress. “Even if she ‘accidentally’ knocks over your things, can you really hit her?”
Xia Yin, cracking melon seeds nearby, laughed. “That’s why they say it’s easier to deal with the king of hell than his little minions.”
Lately, Qiuyin had been keeping a low profile, afraid they would join forces to find fault with her and push her out. She wore a smile for everyone she met. But Yurong dared to stir up trouble behind their backs, which was deeply unsettling.
Chunyin said, “It’s only because she’s too soft that Yurong dares to target her. Try someone else, and see if she’d dare.”
Zhe Junwu simply found it annoying—she didn’t feel anything beyond that. She hadn’t yet learned to be ruthless. Her philosophy was still: if you treat me well, I’ll treat you well; if you treat me poorly, only then will I retaliate.
However, since Yurong only knocked over a few of her things and would even say sorry, she was somewhat unsure how to handle it. Could it be that just because someone knocked over your belongings, you had to rush forward shouting and threatening?
Zhe Junwu had never experienced such situations before and didn’t know how to deal with them. But letting things continue like this was certainly not a solution, so she said, “If she does it again tomorrow, I’ll give her a scare.”
Chunyin then snatched some melon seeds from Xia Yin to crack, saying, “Oh, our paper tiger is about to show its claws.”
Zhe Junwu knew she was teasing her and smiled sheepishly. But with the thought of “bullying” someone weighing on her mind, she couldn’t focus on her reading afterward. Giving up, she said, “I’d better make socks for His Highness instead.”
By now, she had become quite skilled at making socks and could even multitask while doing so.