Chapter 58 Past Events

  Chu Xinyi stopped abruptly, "...... Where did you hear that from, Zheng Nian?" She turned around and stared straight at Zheng Nian.

  "It's been circulating outside that it will be announced next year... " Zheng Niangniang's expressionless face showed a few hints of flattery, "Doesn't Chu Niang know about the general's household affairs?"

  No wonder the old lady and Anqing Houfu have been moving around so diligently these days, no wonder these people are no longer as enthusiastic towards her as before. Thinking of the cold treatment she received among the noble ladies-in-waiting, Chu Xinyi's fingernails under her sleeve were clenched tightly into her flesh.

  This is no idle rumor!

  It must be that the old and cunning Dark Night and the Old Lady of Anqing Houfu had promised something, waiting for Shen Zhongjie to succeed in his mission on one side, and then propose a marriage on the other.

  It's laughable that she was still in the dark, yet wholeheartedly urged Shen Zhongge to divorce as soon as possible, dreaming of taking the position of the mistress of the house.

  She never thought she would be a substitute bride!

  This old thing, actually dares to badmouth her behind her back!

  A surge of anger rose to the sky, Chu Xinyi used all her strength to maintain herself without jumping up and scolding loudly, "...... The general has a legitimate wife, who is recuperating in the countryside." The cold voice was somewhat stiff, "Zheng Nian's mother is not allowed to talk nonsense."

  "It was just a rumor, I knew it." Zheng's nanny patted her hand and said with a sudden realization, "Our second lady of the house is still complaining, saying that General Mo is a close friend, but his mouth is as tight as an iron bucket. Such a big thing happened and Master didn't know anything about it." Seeing Chu Xinyi's changing expression, she cleverly added, "You shouldn't blame this rumor for spreading so fast, it's just because General Shen is too handsome, any girl who sees him can't move her eyes away."

  One sentence made everyone burst into laughter.

  The tense atmosphere suddenly relaxed.

  As the horse carriage of General's Mansion gradually disappeared into the distance, Zheng Nian's mother lowered her head to look at the two silver ingots handed over by Chun Hong and let out a long sigh.

  It doesn't matter if General Manor will make a big fuss, what's most important is that Zhong Tang Manor cannot afford to offend General Manor.

  As soon as the carriage left Zhong Tang Fu, Chu Xinyi's face suddenly turned black, and she violently slammed the hand warmer onto the carriage, "...this old thing won't die!" The dark red charcoal jumped onto the grass-green brocade, making a "whoosh" sound as it ignited, emitting a hissing sound like a venomous snake.

  "Halt!"

  "Auntie, be careful with the iron!"

  Chun Hong and Chun Lan were so frightened that they cried out in succession.

  It's a good thing the fire was put out, Chun Hong's heart racing as she looked at Chu Xinyi's pale face. "...it's still early, I heard the plum blossoms in Nanyuan have bloomed, would you like to take a look on the way?"

  Just as she was about to get angry, Chun Hong worried that if she returned to the mansion at this time, her aunt would quarrel with the old lady without regard for anyone. This kind of thing had happened before, but Shen Zhongge didn't know about it because he was on a expedition outside.

  "Return to the mansion!" Chu Xinyi said coldly.

  She was so angry she could have stormed back to the mansion and torn the old lady limb from limb.

  "The general dislikes Big Nanny precisely because she talks back to Old Lady and scolds her for being an ignorant countrywoman..." Seeing the gate of General's mansion in sight, Chunhong carefully advised.

  Chu Xinyi shivered with a chill, thinking to herself, "......Yes, it's all just underhanded dealings. If I go back and confront her in anger, I'll definitely be counter-attacked and won't get any benefits out of it. Not only that, but General Shen will also become disgusted with me." Even if she had something on the old lady, no matter how fiercely she argued, the old lady wouldn't dare do anything to her. But once Shen Zhongjie found out that she dared to defy the old lady, forget about being made a proper wife again.

  Seeing her hesitate, Chun Hong hastily poked out his head and asked the driver to stop.

  "...go to Chu's residence." Chu Xinyi let out a deep breath.

  Without the mistress's consent, the aunt was not allowed to return home casually, but the mistress of the General's Mansion had been abandoned early, and Shen Zhongqiu had always indulged Chu Xinyi. After hearing the order, the coachman hesitated for a moment before whipping the horse to turn its head around.

  "Yi'er, how did you come back?" Seeing his daughter suddenly return, Chu Song was shocked. "But what happened to General Shen?"

  "It's all Father's good idea!" Chu Xinyi burst into tears, "If I had married Dài Gōngzǐ back then, even if we were poor, I would still be a proper wife and mistress of the house. Who would have thought that now I'm just someone's concubine, suffering from all sorts of humiliation, not to mention being controlled by a despicable folk doctor who bullies my daughter!"

  Dai Gongzi's name was Dai Shuo, and he used to be the fiancé of Chu Xinyi. The Dai family had been merchants for generations, and although they didn't have much power in the imperial court, they were a prominent family in Yong'an County. Marrying into their family would at least guarantee a life of wealth and luxury. It was seven years ago that Chu Song heard that the then-prince, Emperor Wu, had taken a liking to Shen Zhongshu, a candidate for the military examination, and was convinced that he would rise to greatness in the future. So she instructed her daughter to pretend to run into him by chance and seduce him. Later, when Shen Zhongshu promised to marry Chu Xinyi, Chu Song personally intervened and broke off the engagement with the Dai family.

  The Dai family was not in the capital at that time, and Shen Zhongge had not yet become a champion scholar. His reputation was not loud, and Chu Xingyi's retreat from marriage was also kept secret, so few people knew about it. After Shen Zhongge became famous, he fell into the calculation and married Zhen Shining instead. Chu Xingyi also entered the champion's mansion as a concubine two years later, so even Dai Shuo didn't know until now that Chu Xingyi had retreated from marriage in order to climb higher and marry Shen Zhongge.

  In just a few years, Shen Zhongge rose from a sixth-grade official to a renowned general. Chu Song had always been proud of his own vision. Seeing his daughter complaining, he straightened his face and said, "Who dares to bully my daughter? I'll go bind him up and make him kowtow to apologize to you." He turned his head towards the door and shouted at the butler, "Lai Fu!"

  "Old Master, calm down, Miss is just angry and wants to vent a few words..." Chun Hong and Chun Lan immediately knelt down. Jian Dafu is now the honored guest of the Zhong Tang Fu, how can a fifth-grade Tongzheng Si Canyi provoke him?

  Just pretending to make his daughter happy, Chu Song wouldn't really go and take someone. Seeing the maid kneeling down, he furrowed his brow and asked in a pretentious tone, "What's going on?"

  Chun Hong recounted the events at Zhong Tang Fu, "...the rewards from the palace, even if the maidservants had bigger guts, they wouldn't dare to steal a taste, it must be that Jian Dafu was eating and heard we were coming, so he hastily hid. Thinking of the second miss of Zhong Tang Fu's arrogant behavior, "it's hard to say whether she wasn't incited by someone, intentionally embarrassing our aunt in public."

  "Xiao Zhong Tang is a straightforward and upright person, he would never tolerate his family members doing such despicable things." Unexpectedly, Chu Xinyi had a grudge against the Zhong Tang household, so when she heard this, she ambiguously said, "I heard from the people at the Imperial Hospital that this Jian Dafu is too arrogant, the imperial physician came to visit and he didn't even show his face, what's with learning about governing behind a curtain? Can one curtain really block everything? If she truly knew shame and understood the importance of separating men and women, she shouldn't have come out to practice medicine!"

  "Father!" Chu Xinyi cried out.

  Seeing his daughter's face turn red, Chu Xiang also realized that he had been a bit rude and felt somewhat embarrassed. His tone softened, "However, she just cured Old Lady Xiao and is feeling triumphant at the moment, so Yier should not provoke her for now." He smiled slightly, "Yier, don't worry, when she returns to the countryside, I will have my own way of dealing with the imperial physician and getting revenge for you!"

  I saw in the comments that someone suggested updating earlier, and I'll try my best to move the time forward. As for double updates, I'm too slow at typing and have work, so I really can't guarantee it. I can only promise to do my best. Out of seven days a week, I guarantee three to four days with double updates, okay?

  Hehe......, this book is one of the fastest updated ones. The other books I've written usually take two or three months to reach tens of thousands of words. Please forgive me and give me your support.

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