“Mother, that’s not what you said before coming here,” Fourth Madam Yu couldn’t hold back, blurting out thoughtlessly, “My Fourth Master and Second Brother are your own flesh and blood!”
“Hold your tongue!” Madam Zhang’s face darkened as she rebuked, “Eldest Sister-in-law and Sheng’er have always treated you as family. What nonsense are you spouting about who’s blood-related or not?”
Fourth Master was never the brightest, and the wife he married was equally loud and brash. Going on about blood relations here—was she afraid people might forget that Yu Yuan and all the family assets were actually Eldest Brother’s private property, with no share for them at all?
Seeing Madam Zhang’s stance, Yu Sheng understood that her earlier words had taken effect.
Now, without needing to say more, Old Madame had already reprimanded Second Master Yu and the others:
“Sheng’er manages her own household and makes her own decisions—what does that have to do with anyone else? Informing you was treating you as elders. As uncles and aunts, if you know what’s good for you, you should be supporting her instead of stirring up trouble and pouring cold water!”
“You live in grand courtyards, feast on delicacies—have you grown too comfortable with your easy lives? Do you want to go back to living in thatched huts and eating chaff?”
Madam Zhang grew genuinely angry as she scolded her sons and daughters-in-law, even slapping the table, “Let me tell you, as long as I’m alive in Yujia, none of you can turn things upside down! No one is allowed to make trouble for my precious granddaughter!”
“Mother!”
“Oh, Mother…”
The sons and daughters-in-law, seeing the reinforcement they had called upon turn against them, were thrown into disarray, unable to defend themselves, and were soon scolded into shamefaced silence.
Second Master Yu still wanted to say something, but Madam Zhang raised her hand to stop him first: “Don’t speak!”
“Let me think—what did Sheng’er ask you to do yesterday?” Old Madame pondered carefully, “She asked you to organize the account books and bring them over for inspection, right?”
Fourth Master Yu desperately tried to catch Madam Zhang’s eye, hoping to remind his mother why she had come.
But even as he nearly exhausted himself, Old Madame paid him no attention.
Yu Sheng spoke up at just the right moment, “Speaking of inspecting the accounts, since you’ve come so early today, uncles and aunts, have the account books been organized? Perfect timing—bring them here for me to review.”
Second Master Yu and the others hadn’t organized the account books at all, only hoping to enlist Old Madame to avoid this ordeal.
Who would have thought the old lady would switch sides at the last moment, making things even more difficult?
Their expressions turned sour.
Seeing this, Madam Zhang knew they hadn’t done what was asked and scolded them again, “Then why are you still standing here? Shouldn’t you hurry and attend to your tasks?”
Turning to Yu Sheng, Old Madame became exceedingly gentle, “Sheng’er said today was for inspecting the accounts, but there’s no need to rush so early in the morning, right? Noon… or even the afternoon would do, wouldn’t it?”
Yu Sheng granted her this courtesy, replying calmly, “Since Grandmother has spoken, I’ll extend the deadline by half a day this time, but let it not happen again.”
Hearing this, Madam Zhang was very pleased and immediately urged Second Master Yu and the others to hurry and get to work.
Second Master Yu and his group had arrived today full of arrogance but left feeling awkward and stifled.
Their discomfort was indescribable.
After they left, Madam Zhang inquired with great concern about Father Yu’s injuries and even intended to visit him personally, but Yu Sheng stopped her, citing the doctor’s advice that he “still needed quiet rest.”
Old Madame didn’t insist. Having spent this time with Yu Sheng—both mentally taxing and exhausting from scolding her sons and daughters-in-law—she said she would personally oversee the organization of the account books and left first.
Yu Sheng allowed the matron to take two maidservants to attend to Old Madame and let her go.
As soon as Madam Zhang left, Madam Lin, Yu Qing, and Yu Wan all breathed a sigh of relief in unison.
“Eldest Sister, you’re amazing.” Yu Qing gave Yu Sheng a thumbs-up while leaning in to ask, “Is this what the storytellers call ‘holding the emperor hostage to command the nobles’?”
Who would have thought that military strategy could be applied to handling family affairs?
Yu Sheng thought for a moment, “There does seem to be some common ground—holding Old Madame hostage to command the uncles and aunts?”
Yu Qing and Yu Wan were both amused by this analogy.
Only Madam Lin remained worried, “Sheng’er, earlier you told Old Madame and the others that your father had woken up. Is it true?”
Yu Sheng was about to explain that it was merely a temporary measure to stabilize Old Madame and the others when she saw Yu Xuan hurriedly enter the main hall, rushing straight toward her.
“He’s awake!” Yu Xuan gasped for breath, gripping Yu Sheng’s hand with immense excitement. “He’s awake! Father is awake!”
Upon hearing this, Yu Sheng immediately instructed Feihong to summon Ye Feibai to Songfeng Yuan, then led the emotionally overwhelmed mother and daughters straight to Songfeng Yuan to see Father Yu.
When the maidservant lifted the curtain to invite them inside, Uncle Li had just finished giving Father Yu some water and was excitedly uttering words like “Heaven bless us.”
Yu Zhengda, who had been unconscious for many days, looked pale and sallow, his lips chapped and dry. At this moment, he was extremely weak, his eyelids half-drooping.
But he was truly awake, within the one-day timeframe Ye Feibai had mentioned.
The sisters entered the room one after another, and upon seeing this scene, their eyes reddened simultaneously, their voices trembling with tears as they called out, “Father.”
“Father.” Yu Sheng’s eyes also stung, her voice soft and hoarse.
“Master, Master…” Madam Lin had walked here in great haste. Upon reaching the bedside and confirming that Yu Zhengda’s eyes were open, she suddenly lost strength and slumped weakly.
Yu Sheng swiftly supported Madam Lin, helping her sit by the bed. “Mother, Physician Li said you must avoid extreme emotions. Father waking up is a good thing. You should be at ease.”
“Yes, yes, it’s a good thing, a truly wonderful thing.” Madam Lin grasped her husband’s hand, which he had struggled to raise to comfort her, holding it tightly. Though she had countless words to say, tears fell faster than she could speak.
“Don’t… don’t cry.” Yu Zhengda wanted to raise his hand to wipe Madam Lin’s tears, but his injuries were too severe—his arm simply wouldn’t lift, and his voice was so faint it was almost inaudible.
Having been married to him for over a decade, Madam Lin could tell what he wanted to say just by looking at his expression. Her tears flowed even more freely.
Earlier, in front of Madam Zhang and the other sisters-in-law, she had forced herself to remain strong, but now, in her husband’s presence, she could no longer suppress her emotions.
As if venting all the worry and fear she had endured these past days, Madam Lin clenched her left hand into a fist and pounded the edge of the bed, crying and reproaching:
“For the sake of a mere concubine-born daughter, you offended Houfu, plunging our entire Yujia into deep trouble. How could I not cry?”
Upon hearing this, Yu Xuan’s face instantly turned pale.
Father Yu was not a frivolous man. On the contrary, he and Madam Lin had fallen in love at first sight in their youth and were once an enviable couple.
It wasn’t until Madam Lin was pregnant with their fourth child that she suddenly learned he had long kept a mistress outside and had brought that mother and daughter to Yu Yuan. From then on, the older woman became a concubine of Yujia, and the younger one became the fourth young lady of Yujia.
Madam Lin had cried and argued with Yu Zhengda, and they had even grown distant for several years. It wasn’t until that concubine passed away from illness that Madam Lin, for the sake of her children, reconciled with her husband.
However, Madam Lin always had a thorn in her heart, so she usually kept her children away from Yu Xuan, as if Yujia had no such person.
But this time, Yu Xuan had brought about a calamitous disaster.
Madam Lin’s resentment and anger could no longer be suppressed.
Yu Zhengda opened his mouth, wanting to say something but lacking the strength, and could only call out helplessly, “A Sheng…”
Upon hearing this, Yu Sheng spoke up in support: “Earlier in the main hall, I told Grandmother and the uncles and aunts that this was all Xu Liu’s fault and couldn’t be blamed on Xuan’er. Mother agreed at the time, so why have you changed your tune now that Father is awake?”
Madam Lin’s handkerchief was soaked with tears as she retorted indignantly, “When did I ever agree?”
Yu Sheng smiled faintly. “You didn’t refute me or say anything at the time, so doesn’t that mean you agreed?”
“I was only trying to save your face,” Madam Lin said, taken aback by her daughter’s matter-of-fact tone. “You were contending with Second Uncle and the others—how could I, as your mother, publicly undermine you?”
Yu Wan silently stepped forward and handed Madam Lin a fresh handkerchief, thinking to herself: I can’t undermine Mother, but I can distract her by changing her handkerchief.
“Of course not,” Yu Qing chimed in. “Mother has always taught us that a merchant family should value ‘integrity’ above all. Since Mother tacitly agreed with Eldest Sister’s words earlier, it wouldn’t be right to go back on them now.”
Madam Lin was momentarily stunned into silence by her second daughter’s use of her own past words, forgetting to cry.
“This matter… was my mishandling,” Yu Zhengda said with difficulty. “Blame… blame me, don’t blame…”
“What good does blaming you do?” Madam Lin wiped her tears. “Our Yujia is a merchant family that deals with people from all walks of life. You can barely speak now, and I’m constantly ill… We can only let A Sheng take charge. If she manages the household, she’ll have to appear in public. How will she ever marry then?”
The more Madam Lin thought about it, the more worried she became. “Don’t forget, our A Sheng has already been rejected twice.”
Yu Zhengda was momentarily speechless.
“Then I won’t marry,” Yu Sheng said calmly.
After all, it had always been her father who tirelessly sought “suitable matches” for her. During the first two broken engagements, she wasn’t even home and only heard about them through rumors.
Truthfully, she wasn’t prepared to marry and bear children in this feudal era.
This could be seen as an opportunity to avoid something she didn’t want to do.
Madam Lin glared at Yu Sheng. “You’re so headstrong—if you say you won’t marry, you won’t. But what about Qing’er and Wan’er?”
Before Yu Sheng could answer, Madam Lin continued, “The reputation of the Yu family’s daughters rises and falls together. If you, as a woman, take charge, conduct business, and appear in public, I fear your sisters will struggle to find suitable matches in the future.”
Earlier in the main hall, she had remained silent for two reasons: she couldn’t publicly undermine Yu Sheng, and she was also torn between whether it was more important for Yu Sheng to take charge or to preserve her daughters’ reputations and ensure favorable marriages.
“If Eldest Sister managing the household and conducting business would ruin the reputation of us Yu family girls and make us all unmarriageable, then the men out there must be fools,” Yu Qing said crisply, stepping to Yu Sheng’s side. “And they wouldn’t be worth marrying anyway.”
“I won’t marry either,” Yu Wan said as she also moved to Yu Sheng’s side. Though she spoke only four words, her stance was unmistakably clear.
Yu Xuan remained silent, but as she moved to stand beside Yu Sheng, she made an effort to straighten her posture and lift her head high.
The four sisters stood together, as if forming a natural barrier.
Yu Sheng glanced at her three beautiful younger sisters, her resolve growing even stronger.
She must hold up the sky for Yujia and protect them well.
“Qing’er, Wan’er, you…” Madam Lin wanted to say that what they were doing was wrong, but at this moment, she couldn’t quite pinpoint exactly where they had erred.
Nanny Wang, who had served Madam Lin for many years, couldn’t help but speak up on her behalf: “Even if the young ladies don’t marry, the Fifth Young Master will still need to take a wife, won’t he? If you all stay in Yujia as old maids, what respectable family would dare marry their daughter to the Fifth Young Master?”
Just as Yu Sheng was about to retort, a clear and bright young voice came from outside the door, “If my future wife can’t even tolerate my sisters, then I’d rather not marry such a woman!”