Chapter 13: Madam Wang's Rhetoric

In the Ningguo Mansion, under the dim light, Shen Ning leaned against a table, marching in place.

Although she was already exhausted and longed for sleep, she wanted to persist a little longer with this exercise, which was akin to a slow jog.

"Have the rewards been distributed?"

Seeing Qingzhu enter on tiptoe, Shen Ning shifted her focus.

"Yes!"

Qingzhu hurried over to pour her a cup of warm water. "As you instructed, Mother Wang and the other five were each rewarded with ten taels of silver."

They had all performed meritorious service at the school today.

"Mm."

Shen Ning did not stop her movements. "You and Qingping and the others have also worked hard today. Tomorrow, go to the treasury yourselves and take a gold ring each."

"Thank you, Mistress, for the reward."

Qingzhu curtsied. "Mistress, it is getting late; you should sleep."

She wondered if the Mistress had been waiting for the Master.

Usually, the Master was quite shameless; if the Mistress said she wouldn't see him, he would barge right in. Yet today, he had been obedient, waiting outside in the cold for over an hour, and only left dejectedly when he realized the Mistress wouldn't relent.

And now...

"Mm~" Shen Ning stopped marching. "What time is it?"

"It is the third quarter of the Xu hour (7:45 PM)."

Qingzhu craned her neck to glance at the clock in the living room.

"Then let's sleep!"

Shen Ning yawned. With Qingzhu's help, she took off her outer garment and lay down on the bed, which had already been warmed by several hot water bottles.

Unlike the previous few nights, when she felt uncomfortable no matter how she lay, today she fell asleep the moment her head hit the pillow.

She didn't know if the baby in her womb had been exercising along with her, but it didn't fuss at all, remaining exceptionally well-behaved, only turning over twice in the middle of the night.

But that night, Jia Zhen tossed and turned, unable to sleep.

He couldn't bear to part with his head steward.

He and Lai Sheng had grown up together; in those years, he had taken many punishments on Lai Sheng's behalf from his father.

Logically, it wasn't Lai Sheng who had committed the offense, so only his wife should be punished.

But You-shi was right—the Lai family's main branch also lacked heirs. It was rare that Lai Sheng's wife had given birth to three sons at once. If he dealt with her, not to mention Lai Sheng, even his three sons would likely harbor resentment.

And with his mother at a critical stage, if someone were to offend her...

Jia Zhen had a headache. "If there's no other way, for the sake of the Lai family's many years of loyalty, spare his wife and let her return to her maiden home!"

You-shi: "..."

She wanted to say that as long as he wasn't afraid of his mother beating him with a heavy stick, she didn't care.

But thinking of his temper, she could only close her eyes and pretend to be asleep.

"That's what we'll do."

Receiving no response, Jia Zhen simply got out of bed. "Someone, call Lai Sheng."

As for how to deal with the others, they would be dealt with accordingly.

This matter still had to be handled by Lai Sheng.

And so, before long, the Ningguo Mansion, which had not yet settled into the night, became lively once again.

Jia Zheng, who had returned late and tipsy after a rare drinking session with his colleagues, was being served hangover soup by Lady Wang. Just as he was soaking his feet, he heard a knock at the door.

"Mistress!"

Zhou Rui's wife knocked softly from outside. "There is a commotion at the East Mansion again. Should I inform the Master?"

"The Master is drunk; we'll talk about it tomorrow."

Lady Wang glanced at Jia Zheng, who had his eyes closed in feigned sleep. After a moment of thought, she added, "Report it to the Eldest Master instead."

"What is the matter?"

Jia Zheng opened his eyes slightly.

"You're awake? Don't even ask, a major incident happened in the family today."

Lady Wang was still pained by the loss of her thousand taels of silver. "Big Brother and Zhen-ge'er caused a scene at the clan school all day and beat quite a few people. Granduncle Dai Ru can no longer stay at the school and wants to take his grandson back to their hometown."

What?

Jia Zheng opened his eyes wide. "What exactly happened?"

Although he also looked down upon that twelfth uncle's teaching ability, for such a major event to occur without anyone telling him... "Does the Old Matriarch know?"

"The Old Matriarch knows."

Lady Wang sighed.

"She knows?"

Jia Zheng's tense body relaxed slightly. He didn't look at the servant woman who had entered. "And the Old Matriarch didn't stop them?"

His mother wouldn't let his big brother act recklessly.

If she knew, and the twelfth uncle still had to leave the school, then it could only be that twelfth uncle's own problem.

However...

"Why didn't you have Lian-er notify me?"

"Weren't you scheduled to drink with Magistrate Chen and the others since early this morning?"

Lady Wang sighed. "Today's turmoil started with a fight between Rong-ge'er from the East Mansion and Rui-xiazi. Rui-xiazi said some things, and when the Eldest Sister-in-law found out, she was so angry she fainted. That's when Zhen-er flew into a rage."

"Mm~" Jia Zheng closed his eyes again and asked as if casually, "What did he say?"

"The Eldest Sister-in-law's pregnancy has been difficult. Hasn't everyone been worried about her health? Back then, Big Brother Jing didn't want her to keep this child either, and he apparently said some harsh words, claiming the child was here to collect a debt."

Lady Wang spoke in a gentle, soft voice. "No one knows who spread it, but you know how rumors go—they always get more outrageous as they spread. Rui-xiazi is young, and I don't know who he heard it from, but after fighting with Rong-ge'er, he said the child was here to collect a debt and that the Eldest Sister-in-law would die because of him (her). He even brought up the fact that the East Mansion only has one heir per generation. Then, Rong-ge'er pushed him into a ditch."

At this point, she glanced at Jia Zheng, who remained motionless. "Actually, it's not that big of a deal. Children will be children; fighting and bickering is normal. Who knew that while the Eldest Sister-in-law hadn't exploded when she heard such things before, she exploded today? She kept talking about filial piety and slandering ancestors, and insisted that Zhen-er arrest all the children who spread or listened to the rumors and beat them one by one."

Jia Zheng: "..."

"Now that he's dealt with the outside, I'm afraid he'll start dealing with the gossiping women in the household next."

What Wang Xifeng could guess, Lady Wang, having managed the household for so long, could certainly guess as well.

She just hadn't expected that after waiting so long, the fallout would only come in the middle of the night.

"Mistress is wise."

Zhou Rui's wife hung her hands. "Just now, my husband said that even Head Steward Lai Sheng is in trouble. Lai Sheng's wife went crying to Mother Lai. They say more than half the people in the East Mansion are going to be purged. With the New Year approaching, who knows how many families won't be able to make ends meet."

"..."

Jia Zheng opened his eyes slightly. "Keep an eye on things. Don't disturb the Old Matriarch for now. Whatever happens, we'll talk about it tomorrow."

He lifted his feet, and the maidservants hurried forward to dry them. "It's late, sleep."

Lady Wang: "..."

Zhou Rui's wife: "..."

The two exchanged a look. Lady Wang waved her hand, helplessly followed Jia Zheng, and personally helped him change his clothes. "The Eldest Sister-in-law is at a critical time. If you ask me, shouldn't she be accumulating blessings for the child? With such a huge commotion now, I'm afraid our entire mansion will be a laughingstock."

"Mm~" Jia Zheng closed his eyes slightly. "I'll go talk to them tomorrow."

Zhen-ge'er still listened to his advice.

During this New Year season, one should be accumulating blessings for the children.

"The Eldest Sister-in-law is the most compassionate toward the poor and weak. Perhaps she will come to her senses tomorrow. When that time comes, you should come with me to persuade her."

Jia Zheng added with filial piety, "Don't tell the Old Matriarch about this." He had heard those rumors from Concubine Zhao several times.

Hmph, not everyone could be as blessed as he was—having an old wife pregnant while also having a concubine give birth to two children in succession.

In the past, he admired Big Brother Jing the most, but now, Jia Zheng felt that he was the most blessed of all.

"Master..."

Lady Wang hesitated. As she straightened his clothes, she said, "Because of today's incident, the Eldest Sister-in-law wants to reform the school. She says that all Jia clan descendants who attend school must eat 'bitter-remembrance' meals every seven days and practice martial arts with Jiao Da. Although our Baoyu and Huan-er are growing up, their bodies are weak. In the future..."

"Practice what martial arts?"

Jia Zheng glared.

Their family had already left the military, and for two generations, they hadn't allowed their descendants to practice martial arts. The transition was nearly complete; how could they change it now?

"I'll go talk about it tomorrow."