Chapter 110: Taking a Concubine (I)
Once Ruan-shi entered the state, the rest of her words came smoothly and sleekly: “Crown Princess may not have known, but after Mo’er entered Huo family’s gate as a bride for a year, she has to serve her mother-in-law and also take care of the manor every day, and she is so busy that she has never gone out. We all know that di-born children are different from shu-born ones, but now that the eldest di son has not yet been born, how can the Huo family let shu children be born and muddy the difference between di and shu? If it was just a nameless tongfang1 or low-ranked concubines, then it might still be okay, but to welcome a woman with a proper background as an honorable concubine, aren’t they creating trouble for the next generation? Mo’er refuses to allow the Marquis to accept a concubine at this moment is for the sake of Jingyong Marquis Manor. But her mother-in-law seems to have lost her mind and vehemently wants to make her niece the Marquis’ concubine. That Su Ke’er looks delicate and weak, but she is very scheming. She has just entered the manor as a guest and already caused a rift between Mo’er and the Marquis. If this goes on, won’t Mo’er be forced to death by her?”
Ruan-shi’s words were prattling and one-sided, but Cheng Yujin quickly sorted out the key clues from the long passage: “Su Ke’er? Is she Huo Xue-shi’s maternal niece, that is, Marquis Jingyong’s cousin?”
“That’s right.” Ruan-shi wiped the tears from the corners of her eyes with a handkerchief and continued to say with red eyes, “Crown Princess, you don’t know anything about this Su Ke’er’s methods. My child has swallowed so much wrong under her hands. On the day Su Ke’er arrived in the manor, Mo’er was kind enough to welcome her, but she instead instigated Mo’er’s mother-in-law, causing Mo’er to be scolded as unfilial. Not only that, Huo Xue-shi even said that she wants to give the Marquis a caring woman of her liking as a concubine. Heaven pities my child! Even since Mo’er entered Huo family’s manor, she has been working from dawn to dusk, doing everything personally, and never having free time of her own. Yet Huo Xue-shi doesn’t acknowledge Mo’er’s hard work and keeps insisting that Mo’er is unfilial. Mo’er was wronged, so she argued with Huo Xue-shi. Who would think that the Marquis just happened to be back at this time? In the end, in the end…”Cheng Yujin asked cooperatively, “In the end, what happened?”
“He pushed Mo’er, which caused Mo’er to bump into the eight immortals table next to her and killed the one-month fetus in her belly.”
When Cheng Yumo heard this, she finally couldn’t help it anymore and began to cover her face and cry. Cheng Yujin wasn’t surprised about the concubine matter, but she didn’t expect that Cheng Yumo would have a miscarriage because of it. In an instant, Cheng Yujin’s expression changed. Her eyes suddenly became sharp as she glanced at Cheng Yumo, “Why didn’t you talk about such an important matter from the beginning? Someone come, put on a soft cushion for Marchioness Jingyong.”
A palace maid in green clothes immediately stepped forward, putting a soft cushion behind Cheng Yumo’s waist in a swift but gentle movement. Another palace maid also came forward to change the tea into something that warmed and nourished the body. Cheng Yujin held back her anger and asked: “What exactly is going on? Start from the beginning.”
Cheng Yujin had been nothing but warm and amicable — until she suddenly lowered her voice just now. The expression on her face hadn’t changed much, but the aura around her was clearly different. Ruan-shi was taken aback and no longer dared to make any fuss or use roundabout words. She lowered her head and quickly recounted what happened that day from start to finish.
After Cheng Yujin listened to the whole story, she was speechless. She then looked at Cheng Yumo. It was obvious that she should be annoyed at the latter’s uselessness. However, when Cheng Yujin saw Cheng Yumo’s thin, pale face and the skinny wrists coiled with jade bracelets, she was unable to say harsh words.
Cheng Yujin was also helpless with this mother and daughter pair. Was the main point now Su Ke’er? Obviously, it was Huo Changyuan. Huo Xue-shi was Huo Changyuan’s mother, and Su Ke’er was also his cousin. As long as Huo Changyuan made it clear that he didn’t want to take a concubine, could Huo Xue-shi force Su Ke’er into his bed? As for excuses like ‘couldn’t hold back when drunk,’ those all were nonsense. Nothing would happen as long as the man didn’t have such intention.
Moreover, Huo Changyuan taking a concubine and Cheng Yumo’s miscarriage were actually two different matters. Regardless of the role of this Su Ke’er, it was a fact that Huo Changyuan failed to harmonize the relationship between his mother and his wife. As the head of the family, he didn’t take care of his family affairs. Cheng Yumo and Huo Xue-shi had no blood relationship; wasn’t it normal that they couldn’t get along well?
Even Huo Xue-shi’s word of unfilial should be directed to her son Huo Changyuan. Not to mention that Cheng Yumo miscarried because Huo Changyuan pushed her.Cheng Yumo seemed to think of the child she had lost again and cry louder. It was such a sad cry that moved everyone who heard it. Cheng Yujin also sighed and said: “Don’t cry. What is the use of crying now? You might as well recompose your mood and look forward. If you destroy your health because of this, it will be very worthless.”
After speaking, Cheng Yujin glanced at Ruan-shi. The tip of her eyebrows moved up lightly as she said: “Second aunt, second sister is still grieving and cannot think straight, but how can you be so ignorant? She had just lost her baby at the beginning of the month. Miscarriage is extremely damaging to the body, and she should still have stayed in bed and recuperated. But you took her to the palace to attend the Mid-Autumn Festival banquet. Do you love her or want to harm her?”
Hearing this, Ruan-shi panicked, and all of a sudden, she stammered: “I…I didn’t mean that. If that Su Ke’er doesn’t leave, won’t Mo’er suffer for nothing? Su Ke’er is still living in Huo family manor. If Huo Xue-shi gives her the honor and makes her the Marquis’ concubine during Mo’er’s recuperation period, then what to do? Mo’er is still unable to serve the Marquis. In the case of Su Ke’er gave birth to the eldest son before Mo’er, what will Mo’er do for the next half of her life?”
Tongfang: servant girls who also sleep with her master. They are not yet a concubine and generally still have to do maid work until they are promoted to be a concubine.