Shaoshang’s prediction was extremely accurate. When Cheng Shi returned to the manor and learned of this matter, he immediately wanted to grab a knife and carve someone up like a butcher. Madam Xiao barely managed to restrain him, and using the excuse of reciprocating New Year gifts, overnight she packed up that Steward Fu and Changpu and sent them back to the Ge family.

Therefore, aside from racing against time to give these two people a severe beating before their departure, Cheng Shi accomplished nothing else. This time he even blamed Madam Xiao as well. To express his protest, he ate three consecutive meals with Cheng Cheng, and slept two consecutive nights with Cheng Zhi. Cheng Zhi tactfully suggested “eldest brother, you could reverse this order—second brother is separated from his wife while I’m not,” which resulted in him getting a beating from Cheng Shi.

Lady Qing Cong felt this couldn’t continue, so she begged Sang Shi to mediate. Sang Shi took advantage of the situation and passed it to Cheng Zhi, who grabbed hold of his three nephews and made them come up with a solution. The three brothers had just finished kowtowing and apologizing before their tiger-like mother, so how would they dare approach their hungry-wolf-like father? Thus none of them would agree. Finally, the professional traitor Young Master Cheng Shao had a flash of inspiration and said “whoever tied the bell must untie it,” so the ball was kicked to Shaoshang’s feet.

Originally Cheng Zhi and the others were still hesitating, but unexpectedly Miss Cheng the Fourth was magnificently heroic and agreed in one breath, swiftly resolving the problem. She only said three things to Cheng Shi:

“Currently the household only knows that day’s disturbance was caused by servants making trouble. If Father continues to be estranged from Mother, Second Uncle will inevitably learn the true reasons.”

“Before long Second Uncle will go to White Deer Mountain to study, which will take several years at least before he returns home. I hope Second Uncle can set out with peace of mind, without worries. I believe Father feels the same.”

“Elder Cousin is not only born of Second Aunt, but is Second Uncle’s own flesh and blood. Second Uncle is not good with words, but I know in his heart he not only loves Elder Cousin, but also feels guilty toward her.”

Seeing his daughter’s righteous and stern appearance, Cheng Shi’s teeth itched with irritation: this ungrateful little thing—who exactly was he aggrieved for, worried for? So General Cheng fired back: “Since my daughter is so profoundly righteous, why did you absolutely refuse to relent that day? You should have just swallowed your anger and let your mother slowly handle it later!”

Shaoshang quickly fired back: “Of course one can be profoundly righteous when the knife hasn’t cut one’s own flesh. That day I was the one who suffered, so naturally I wasn’t willing to be righteous; now that Father has already regained face for me, naturally I can be magnanimous!”

Translated, this sentence meant “being generous is fine, but be generous with others’ suffering, not with one’s own suffering.”

Cheng Shi was amazed that his daughter could actually speak such shameless words so righteously and confidently. He had always thought only he in the whole family possessed this skill! However, thinking that he now had a successor, he let go of his anger and took the opportunity to reconcile with Madam Xiao.

Madam Xiao also didn’t put on airs or throw tantrums. She magnanimously stated that she was also at fault, and this matter would be put to rest. So that night the husband and wife candidly exchanged opinions about their only daughter.

“…At that time it was extremely urgent, your mother was possessed by confusion, and you and I had no time to wrangle with her. Moreover, we didn’t even know when we could return.”

Ten years ago, several vassal kings who had already surrendered suddenly rebelled, and in an instant the already small imperial territory was filled with beacon fires everywhere. This was bad news for most people in the current dynasty. While Cheng Shi was still worrying, Madam Xiao stated with certainty: wealth comes from risk, this matter was a tremendous opportunity for generals like Wan Cheng who had just pledged allegiance.

The situation arose suddenly, and the Emperor’s trusted generals and troops could not be recalled from the front. Sure enough, he employed the two brothers to respond to the emergency. Cheng Shi went to battle, and Madam Xiao as usual had to accompany him, but at this time Cheng Mother, who was normally robust as an ox, caught a minor cold for once in eight hundred years. Ge Shi found a shaman from somewhere who eloquently proclaimed that dragon-phoenix twins were auspicious and must remain by her side for Cheng Mother to maintain good health.

With Madam Xiao’s intelligence, this scheme was not unbreakable, but the summons was urgent and time could not be wasted.

Moreover, with the army’s departure, the baggage, weapons, and assembly of military units—all these things kept the husband and wife so busy their feet didn’t touch the ground. In haste, Madam Xiao seized upon the loophole in that divination and found another shaman to proclaim “keeping just one of the twin children is sufficient.” Afterward the couple immediately departed, and even their three sons were escorted later by the military units.

The Emperor was indeed very pleased with Wan Cheng’s attitude of responding immediately to the summons. In the following years, the two brothers fought wherever directed, fighting ever farther afield. The more the Emperor used them, the more smoothly things went, and the more smoothly things went, the more he trusted them. Looking at it now, that initial decision could not be called incorrect.

“Since we had no choice but to leave a child behind, naturally the fewer the better. Let me ask you, with the same children, is it sons or daughters who can bring catastrophic disaster upon the family? Sons can serve in the military or government above, or engage in commerce and travel below—you cannot restrain them! Zhi Xiang Zi, believing himself supremely intelligent, devised the strategy of ‘nibbling away at feudal territories,’ but ultimately died in defeat, and over two hundred members of his entire clan were slaughtered to extinction—how lamentable that the Zhi family’s foundation of over a hundred years was destroyed in one day! And that Grand Master Chao, who advised the Emperor to reduce fiefs and consolidate power—his father couldn’t dissuade him, and as a result three generations of his family were executed, and this was a loyal minister! As for traitorous ministers who destroyed their families, they’re countless!”

Madam Xiao spoke eloquently. Whenever this happened, Cheng Shi could only lower his head and listen obediently.

The righteous should not manage wealth, the compassionate should not command troops. The husband and wife had both been tempered through mountains of blades and seas of fire. On the battlefield, a moment’s hesitation could cause the situation to collapse like a landslide. Since they couldn’t wrangle with Cheng Mother, they had to minimize their losses.

“You and I rose from humble beginnings and have seen how many families suffered calamity because their sons acted improperly. To speak an improper word, when Lord Marquis Li initially raised forces to pledge allegiance to His Majesty, his father, brothers, and clan relatives—over sixty people were killed and their corpses burned, truly horrifying to hear! But from ancient times to the present, how many daughters have brought great disaster upon their families?”

Hearing this, Cheng Shi couldn’t help but say: “But hasn’t the Li family prospered again now?”

Madam Xiao glared and said: “That’s because Lord Marquis Li pledged to a wise ruler! What if he had pledged to a tyrant? Back when heroes rose up throughout the land, those who called themselves kings and emperors also had many followers—what became of their families and confidants afterward?”

Cheng Shi surrendered, repeatedly saying: “Fine, fine, fine, I understand what you mean. Sons must be properly raised, otherwise being down-and-out and slovenly is actually the better outcome—it’s just raising one more mouth in the family. What’s truly frightening is if their will goes bad and they become treacherous and evil people. At the least they’ll ruin the family, at worst they’ll implicate the entire clan. As for daughters, daughters…”

He couldn’t continue. The following words were too vicious and immoral, only to be spoken between closest kin—daughters would eventually marry out. For the Cheng family, no matter how bad it got, it couldn’t get that bad. As long as she didn’t enter the palace as an imperial consort or concubine, didn’t marry into prominent noble households, in these peaceful times, she couldn’t stir up great waves.

“That may be so, but Niaoniao is our own flesh and blood. Treating her this way, I can’t bear it in my heart.” Cheng Shi sighed.

Madam Xiao looked at her husband’s face, suddenly remembering her former husband once said she was born with a heart of iron and stone, harder and more unyielding than men.

She said: “When I originally proposed leaving Niaoniao behind, I had already prepared for the worst. Any petty wickedness or evil doesn’t matter. I was originally worried Niaoniao would be raised with too weak a character. A single word ‘weak’ is more unbearable than cunning wickedness. Once a woman’s character becomes weak with no opinions of her own, she becomes like meat on the chopping block, waiting to be abused. Therefore I even had Younger Sister Qing select a clever but honest maid for her—don’t say again that I’m prejudiced, ten years ago I had no idea she would later grow to resemble my mother. Who knew, who knew…”

“Who knew you were completely wrong.” Cheng Shi was full of pride. “Originally you worried she’d be weak, now you worry she’s too formidable. In any case you just can’t see her favorably from any angle.”

Madam Xiao sighed: “This time you got it right. She’s also too intelligent.”

Cheng Shi said thoughtfully: “Yet you’re even more worried instead?”

Madam Xiao nodded: “Don’t keep saying I’m partial. Though Yangyang is stupid, she’s dutiful and steady. I can confidently marry her into any household—she won’t cause trouble. But as for Niaoniao…” She let out a long sigh and raised her voice: “She fears neither heaven nor earth. If she becomes unhappy, she could yank off the beards of her husband’s family’s ancestors going back eight generations and twist them into writing brushes—do you believe it or not! Then we won’t know whether we Cheng family are forming a marriage alliance or forming a blood feud!”

Cheng Shi struggled not to laugh, then sighed: sharp intelligence and untamed rebelliousness—these two traits combined were truly deadly. He said: “So what do you want to do?”

Madam Xiao said calmly: “In the future, find her a sincere and honest prosperous household to marry into, and live out her days smoothly. Even if the husband and wife quarrel later, you father and sons can back her up. This is truly for her own good!” Then she mocked: “However, she’s so formidable that her husband may not be able to bully her. Instead we should worry whether you father and sons will need to apologize daily at the in-laws’ place!”

Cheng Shi frowned. If the child had mediocre qualifications, such arrangements would be fine, but the intelligence and spirit in his younger daughter was visible even to the blind. He said: “You and I have always striven upward ourselves. Yet now you want Niaoniao to settle for mediocrity—will she be willing?”

“Marriage is decided by parents’ command. Why wouldn’t she be willing?” Madam Xiao said.

Cheng Shi was silent for a long while before saying: “You’re too overconfident. Don’t regret it in the future.”

Madam Xiao said proudly: “Once the piece is placed, no regrets! In this lifetime I would rather die than regret what I’ve done. Moreover…”

She gave her husband a sidelong glance: “You think the noblewomen outside are all blind and deaf? They’ve either not heard of Niaoniao’s domineering reputation, or can’t see her rebellious behavior? Shunhua told me, the first time she saw Niaoniao she knew she was definitely not an ordinary gentle lady!”

“You’re talking nonsense!” Cheng Shi said. “Just now Third Brother told me his wife said she extremely loves Niaoniao.”

Seeing the two were about to argue again, Lady Qing Cong, who had been waiting outside the door to verify the results of the marital reconciliation, couldn’t help but shake her head: couldn’t Sang Shi just like that type?

In fact, Cheng Zhi was also very interested in his wife’s preference.

Because in just these few short days, Sang Shi had already managed to give Shaoshang one jade bracelet, two golden phoenixes, and three volumes of treasured books. If he hadn’t desperately restrained her, Sang Shi nearly even changed the brocade belt she was originally weaving for him to give to Shaoshang instead.

Right now she was caressing a newly obtained jade belt hook, murmuring about how it would complement Shaoshang.

“Yangyang is gentle and kind, why don’t I see you loving her as much as you love Shaoshang?” Not trying to sow discord, Cheng Zhi was just curious.

Sang Shi stroked the jade belt hook’s smooth texture, tilting her head in thought—actually she also liked Yangyang, but she didn’t deny she liked Niaoniao more.

Ordinary girls of ten-some years old, no matter how strong, more or less hope to receive their parents’ loving care and approval. But Niaoniao was completely different. She seemed never to care whether Madam Xiao understood her, pitied her, or even loved her.

Whatever she wanted, she would find ways to obtain it herself. And this time, she got everything she wanted.

Sang Shi observed coldly: Madam Xiao taught Yangyang hand-in-hand how to manage household affairs, while Shaoshang was confined at home unable to move, envious beyond measure. But Madam Xiao’s temperament was decisive, ordinarily difficult to change her mind, making appeals useless. Who knew a storm would descend from heaven, giving the girl a perfect opportunity to kill two birds with one stone.

First, Shaoshang exposed her birth mother’s partiality. Previously Madam Xiao’s favoritism fell on subtle details—if they actually quarreled about it, everyone would just say Shaoshang was jealous and petty. But after this incident, Madam Xiao couldn’t act according to her heart as casually as before. On the contrary, everything she did could be criticized, with her husband and sons suspecting whether she was being “partial” again.

Second, Shaoshang wanted to see the outside world, wanted to act freely, but Madam Xiao wanted her to cultivate her temperament in the inner quarters. Both had their own reasoning and both were people of firm will. Now, though Madam Xiao didn’t say it aloud, Sang Shi knew she felt quite uncomfortable in her heart. These past two days the brothers drove Shaoshang all over the city, and Madam Xiao hadn’t said half a word—presumably this counted as tacit permission.

Recalling the situation at Jiuzhui Hall that day, Madam Xiao was thunderously furious, Lady Qing Cong gently persuaded, and the three elder brothers all vigorously tried to stop Shaoshang from continuing to speak, yet the girl still refused to bow her head.

Why did she love her? Thinking carefully, perhaps it was because she too had once opposed the entire world alone like Shaoshang.

“Elder Sister Yuan Yi is good in every way, just somewhat stubborn.” Cheng Zhi shook his head and sighed. When Madam Xiao married over he was still young, and having grown accustomed to calling her that, sometimes it still slipped out. “But Shaoshang isn’t right either—who schemes like this?”

Sang Shi placed the jade hook in its brocade box, turned around smiling and said: “Then let me ask you. Our Weiwei, do you hope in the future she’ll be like Yangyang, or like Niaoniao?”

Cheng Zhi thought about it and sighed: “Then still like Niaoniao. I’d rather she scheme against us than be like Yangyang, suffering losses yet helpless to do anything. In this world there may not be people to protect you everywhere.” Cheng Yang had incredible luck, but no one could guarantee luck would follow forever.

“I love Niaoniao precisely because she never complains about heaven or people. When she has difficulties she thinks of solutions, even if it’s a terrible idea.” The girl possessed a vivid charm—even though she was arrogant and rebellious, she was full of vitality.

Speaking of this, Sang Shi became worried again: “However, being naturally fortunate like Yangyang, having people everywhere who cherish, love, and consider her welfare, only needing to be dutiful and simple herself without any need to plan and calculate—that’s perhaps the true blessing.”

—Thus, the two couples arrived at two completely different conclusions.