Shen Ying’s words were extremely impolite, almost implying that she had neither a loving husband nor children to rely on.
Rong Shu glanced at her coldly and took a sip of tea slowly.
She didn’t get angry or immediately retaliate. This attitude made Shen Ying, who was originally arrogant, tremble.
Did she see it wrong?
Jiang Rongshu looks a bit like Xie Shi.
“Sister-in-law is right.”
Rong Shu took a few sips of tea before speaking, “Songtao Garden is indeed quiet, unlike your fifth branch, where the concubines can get together to play mahjong or something on weekdays.”
Her voice was gentle, as if she were just casually chatting.
“You’re not any luckier than me. You have five concubines, and in the future, you’ll not only have the child in your arms, but other children will also call you mother. Isn’t that a blessing that comes one after another?
After Shen Ying and his group left in anger, Mei Yun still couldn’t calm down.
“Madam, the Fifth Madam is far too arrogant!”
Rong Shu was still sitting by the window embroidering a brocade pouch.
Her brows furrowed slightly, and Mei Yun assumed she was deeply hurt by Shen Ying’s words.
Mei Yun calmed down, turned around and went outside, bringing in a bowl of sweet soup.
“Madam, please rest for a while and taste the sweet soup I made today.”
Rong Shu actually put it down, picked up the spoon, and took a bite.
“Very good, your skills have improved again.”
Mei Yun looked at her bright eyes and saw no sign of discomfort, and thought she was just pretending to be okay.
“lady……”
Rong Shu drank the sweet soup and then drank a few sips of flower tea to cleanse her palate.
She looked at Mei Yun, who was holding a tray and staring blankly, and smiled.
“Don’t worry or be angry, she’s just stating the facts.”
Mei Yun was taken aback and quickly tried to cover it up: “No, Madam, she was deliberately trying to sow discord between you and Third Master. Our Third Master isn’t a dissolute person like Fifth Master. He’s focused on passing the imperial examinations, so naturally he won’t be preoccupied with the inner quarters, nor will he be like Fifth Master, who has women on both sides…”
Rong Shu found it amusing, but didn’t offer any further explanation.
Mei Yun now is just like she was in her previous life.
They assumed that Song Wenjing rarely stayed at home because he was preparing for the imperial examinations.
If Song Wenjing hadn’t gone to the capital later and heard some things, she would have really thought that way.
As Mei Yun spoke, her voice grew softer.
Rong Shu stopped her from explaining further, “Alright, I know everything.”
“I’m not angry, and I didn’t listen to what she said. She was just resentful and wanted to make things difficult for me as well.”
She blinked: “If I really get angry and upset, wouldn’t that just make her feel good?”
Mei Yun breathed a sigh of relief, “It’s good that you’re so optimistic!”
Mei Yun used to think that his wife was too quick to take what others said to heart.
In addition, Rong Shu is soft-hearted and doesn’t know how to argue back, so she always suffers alone in private.
Things are a little better now.
After Mei Yun left, Rong Shu finally finished sewing the brocade pouch.
She put away the needles and placed them in a box containing about ten purses. She silently counted in her mind how much income she could expect.
…
Meanwhile, after leaving Songtao Garden, Shen Ying had just returned to Tinglan Garden, where the fifth household lived, when she broke a jade porcelain bottle.
Her personal nanny quickly had the maids collect the broken porcelain, and then began to persuade her.
“My dear girl, how could you forget again? You can’t get angry now, the little boy in your belly can’t take it.”
Shen Ying then touched her flat stomach with some regret: “I was so angry that I lost my mind.”
She was still indignant, remembering that Jiang Rongshu was unwilling to plead with her father-in-law.
Song Wenping is probably almost at his ancestral temple by now.
It’s freezing cold there, and life is very hard. How can anyone endure it for more than a month?
Granny Zhao understood her meaning. She wanted to bring up how Fifth Master had treated her yesterday, but she was also worried that if the young couple started arguing again, she would not get away with it either.
Remembering Madam Shen’s instructions, she advised, “No matter what, you shouldn’t have said those things in front of the Third Madam, over there…”
After thinking for a moment, Granny Zhao said with a heavy heart, “No matter how much the master favors Fifth Master, it’s only because he is the youngest son. Moreover, Fifth Master is not the old lady’s son. In the future, the eldest master will inherit the family business, and the third master will pursue an official career. The brothers will support each other. If our Fifth Master wants to be protected by the family, he must not offend these two.”
Shen Ying really did say those things in a moment of impulse.
But she often went around badmouthing Jiang Rongshu behind her back, thanks to Qin, who was from the second wife’s family.
Now that the old woman had spoken to him, he felt a little regretful.
But she was still unconvinced and would never admit that she was wrong.
“What I said is true. Jiang Rongshu is nothing but a woman from a poor family. She’s shameless enough to come to someone’s door and ask them to marry her…”
“If it weren’t for the Song family’s commitment to their promises, why would Third Master need to marry someone like her?”
Shen Ying’s tone even sounded somewhat sour as she spoke.
Her family was also a wealthy household in Jiangzhou City, although they were nowhere near as well-off as the Song family, who had the title of imperial merchant.
But in her opinion, even if Jiang Rongshu was a daughter of an official in the past, that was all in the past.
After Jiang’s father died, it was said that the Jiang family was almost starving.
She was better than anyone else, yet she married the wealthy and famous Master Song of Jiangzhou.
Shen Ying didn’t want to admit it, but she knew very well that Song Wenping was actually not even half a finger’s worth of Song Wenjing.
She scoffed, “Who knows if Third Master will still look at her if he succeeds in the imperial examination? There are plenty of noble ladies in the capital, so he might just divorce her!”
Shen Ying thought about it more and more and it seemed possible. Otherwise, why would Madam Xie be so strict with Jiang Rongshu? She clearly didn’t like this daughter-in-law!
Seeing that she had suddenly gone off on such a tangent, Granny Zhao was about to try to persuade her again when someone came in from outside the door.
“Madam, someone has arrived from the east courtyard.”
Shen Ying couldn’t help but feel a little smug.
It must be her mother-in-law who sent her something.
She is now pregnant with Song Wenping’s first child.
As the legal mother, Madam Xie always treated everyone equally, so she naturally never lacked food or drink.
Now that she’s pregnant, shouldn’t we send her all the best things?
“Quickly, let them in.”
Shen Ying was in high spirits. Yesterday, because of that wretched Aunt Huo, things were in complete chaos. Xie Shi had only instructed people to take good care of her, and hadn’t sent anything yet.
Seeing that Granny Zeng had come in person, with two maids behind her carrying things, she quickly had someone invite Granny Zeng to have some tea.
“There’s no need to trouble Fifth Madam. This old servant is here on the orders of the Old Madam to bring you a few words.”
Shen Ying smiled warmly as always, but all she said was to tell her to rest and take care of her pregnancy.
But the smile on Granny Zeng’s face faded.
“The old lady said that now that you are pregnant, you should stay home and not wander around before your pregnancy is stable.”
Shen Ying’s smile froze.
The implication was that she should take good care of herself during her pregnancy.
But why does it sound so unpleasant when you say it?
“Fifth Master is disrespectful to his elder brother and sister-in-law, and his behavior is dissolute. Going to the family temple is to pray for blessings and also to make him reflect on himself. If Fifth Madam is also disrespectful to her sisters-in-law and elder brother and sister-in-law, and speaks rudely, the old lady would not mind sending you to the family temple to accompany Fifth Master as well. It just so happens that you want Fifth Master by your side…”
Every word Granny Zeng said felt like a slap across her face!
Shen Ying’s face was pale, and her fingers were curled up and trembling slightly.
She explained, “I didn’t…”
Granny Zeng: “You should know whether it’s true or not. Besides, the Third Madam’s affairs are being handled by the Old Madam, so there’s no need for you to say anything here.
The Old Madam said that if you don’t change your temperament in the future, you won’t be able to shoulder the responsibility of raising the Song family’s offspring.
At that time, the Old Madam will find a suitable person to raise the child in your womb.”