Lady Tian looked at the oil spots on her clothes and became increasingly convinced of her daughter’s words.
This daughter-in-law had been spoiled beyond measure! She couldn’t even hold a spoon properly after all this time. She needed to learn the rules thoroughly; otherwise, after Lady Tian passed away, wouldn’t the household fall into chaos?
Lady Tian finished her lunch without showing any emotion.
Dou Ming breathed a sigh of relief, rubbing her sore waist. She knelt and bowed as usual, preparing to withdraw, but Lady Tian stopped her: “From today on, put aside the household matters for now. First, learn the rules from me.” Then she instructed her maid, “Have the young madam stand against the wall for the time it takes two incense sticks to burn, then teach her how to perform the full courtesy bow.” With that, she spread a Buddhist sutra on the kang table and began to recite it silently, not sparing a glance at the bewildered Dou Ming.
Lady Tian’s maid smiled insincerely and invited Dou Ming: “Young madam, please follow me!”
Dou Ming was not naturally a patient person. Her recent submissiveness was due to her guilty conscience. Now, seeing Lady Tian push her limits by making her learn basic standing and walking, was intentional harassment. Thinking of her substantial dowry and how she had never taken advantage of the Wei family for food or clothing, she wondered why the Wei family was treating her so poorly. Moreover, Wei Tingyu was in cahoots with his mother and sister.
Despite knowing his mother was making things difficult for her, he remained secluded in his study. She had tried to bring him food several times but was turned away, making her a laughingstock among the servants. This was truly beyond endurance! Anger welled up in her chest, her face flushed red, and she spoke harshly to Lady Tian: “Mother-in-law, if you’re dissatisfied with something, just say it directly. Why resort to such petty behavior? It’s embarrassing to watch!”
“You!” Lady Tian’s face turned pale with anger. After a while, she calmed down and said coolly, “No wonder your mother could be elevated to primary wife after causing the death of the first wife. Like mother, like daughter. You certainly have a sharp tongue.”
Now it was Dou Ming’s turn to pale.
Her mind buzzed, and it took her a while to regain her composure. She replied with false bravado, “Since I’ve married into the Wei family, I am a Wei family daughter-in-law. Mother, speaking like this doesn’t just shame me, but also shames the Marquis and the entire Wei family.”
Lady Tian wasn’t skilled at arguing. After a long pause, she finally said, “If you know you’re a Wei family daughter-in-law, then you should follow the Wei family rules. If you feel that me asking you to stand against the wall is shaming you, you’re welcome to stop being our Wei family’s daughter-in-law and return to your maiden home!”
I won’t do it then!
The words were on the tip of Dou Ming’s tongue, but she lacked the courage to say them.
In the past, she was confident in her ability to manipulate Wei Tingyu, but now, with everyone turning against her, the Wei family might be looking for an excuse to send her back to her maiden home.
Dou Ming was so angry she could spit blood, but she had to swallow her pride.
She obediently followed Lady Tian’s maid to the resting room and stood straight against the wall.
Before half an incense stick had burned, her legs were already shaking.
Seeing no one around, she sat on a small stool near the floor-length screen to rub her calves.
Suddenly, she heard a cold snort behind her. Turning around, she saw Lady Tian looking at her with a frosty expression.
Too tired to say anything, she stood up and leaned against the wall again.
Lady Tian handed a ruler to her maid: “Stand here and watch the young madam. If she slacks off, punish her on my behalf.”
The maid looked troubled but dared not refuse.
Dou Ming gritted her teeth in hatred.
After another half incense stick had burned, not only did her legs feel like lead, but she also felt a dull pain in her lower abdomen.
She touched the red envelope in her sleeve, then let it go.
She would rather stand until she died than curry favor with a servant.
Dou Ming took a deep breath.
But the pain in her lower abdomen intensified, and she felt a warm liquid flowing out.
Startled, she wondered if her monthly cycle had begun… As this thought crossed her mind, her vision darkened, her legs gave way, and she collapsed on the ground.
Lady Tian’s maid was shocked. She quickly sent a young maid to inform Lady Tian while she rushed to Dou Ming’s side to pinch her philtrum.
Dou Ming remained unresponsive for a long time.
Lady Tian, who had hurried over, turned pale and ordered the maids and older women to carry Dou Ming to her bed.
One of the older women shuddered and pointed at the blood on Dou Ming’s skirt: “Madam, look!”
Lady Tian became flustered and hurriedly instructed a maid: “Go, fetch Madam Zhou!” She also sent someone to call for a doctor.
Madam Zhou, being experienced, took one look and her voice changed: “Madam, I’m afraid the young madam is pregnant!”
Hearing this, Lady Tian became furious and shouted, “Why didn’t you tell me earlier?”
Madam Zhou was filled with regret.
Dou Ming’s cycles had always been irregular. Although it had been some time since her last one, Dou Ming had been eating and sleeping well, showing no signs of pregnancy, which is why she had overlooked it.
“Madam, it’s all this servant’s fault!” Madam Zhou knelt with tears in her eyes, begging for forgiveness.
She had raised Dou Ming like her own daughter, and it pained her most to see Dou Ming suffer. She would rather be punished herself; at least it would ease her conscience a little.
Lady Tian, not being a decisive person, was in a panic and didn’t know what to do. She kept urging her maid: “Quickly, go fetch the eldest young madam!”
Madam Zhou couldn’t help but sigh and weep.
Oh, Fifth Miss, how did you end up with such a family?
She brewed some brown sugar water to feed Dou Ming.
The doctor arrived.
After checking her pulse, he said she had started bleeding and lost too much blood; the pregnancy couldn’t be saved.
Lady Tian was stunned with fear.
Wei Tingzhen rushed over. She instructed Lady Tian’s maid to follow the doctor to get medicine, told Madam Zhou to stay and take care of Dou Ming, and then helped Lady Tian to the adjacent room.
Lady Tian grabbed her daughter’s hand like a drowning person clutching at straws: “Who knew she was pregnant… I wouldn’t have punished her… How can we explain this to her family now? This was Peijin’s first child…”
Wei Tingzhen was also a bit flustered when she first arrived, but after seeing Madam Zhou, she calmed down.
“Mother, how can this be your fault?” She comforted her mother, her voice very calm, “Dou Ming has her wet nurse to take care of her. Wouldn’t she know if she was pregnant? She knew you were teaching her the rules, yet she didn’t say a word. What do you think her intentions were? Don’t forget, she even dared to steal her own sister’s marriage. What wouldn’t she dare to do? You mustn’t soften your heart now! As you said, this was Peijin and her first child. If she could be so heartless as to use this child to defy you, she truly has a heart of stone!”
Lady Tian nodded repeatedly.
Viewed this way, it wasn’t her fault. Dou Ming had intentionally concealed her condition, pushing the blame onto her to make her look like a wicked mother-in-law.
“I want to confront the Dou family about this!” Lady Tian thought that since Dou Ming was so cunning, she had probably already planned how to cry to her family and get them to intervene. At that point, the Wei family would be on the defensive. It was better to strike first. “The daughter they raised not only defies her mother-in-law but also harms our family’s offspring. If the Dou family doesn’t give us an explanation, I won’t let this matter rest!”
Perhaps with such a commotion, the Dou family would have to compensate the Wei family to save face!
Wei Tingzhen, thinking of Dou Zhao’s stack of silver notes, felt a burning sensation in her heart. She supported her mother and said, “Mother, I’ll go with you!”
Lady Tian nodded, feeling more confident. Thinking that there was no one managing the household in Jing’an Temple Alley and that the most prominent branch of the Dou family was the fifth, she decided to seek an explanation in Locust Tree Alley.
Wei Tingzhen was on the same page as her mother.
The mother and daughter didn’t even wait for the maid who had gone to fetch medicine to return. They ordered a servant to prepare a carriage and set off for Locust Tree Alley.
With the New Year approaching, the Fifth Madam of the Dou family, as the wife of a high-ranking official, had many social obligations. She had been extremely busy since the winter solstice.
When she heard that the young madam of Duke Jing’s mansion had accompanied her mother, the Dowager Marchioness of Jining, to visit, she was very surprised.
Although the two families were related by marriage, Dou Ming was still a step removed from the Locust Tree Alley branch. By custom, the Dowager Marchioness of Jining should have sent a visiting card first. Such a sudden visit likely meant something important had happened.
She instructed her maid to receive Lady Tian and Wei Tingzhen in the small reception hall and serve tea, while she changed her clothes and brought along the eloquent Madam Cai to meet the Wei mother and daughter.
However, as soon as she stepped into the reception hall before she could exchange pleasantries with Lady Tian, Lady Tian came forward, took her hand, and began to cry: “Fifth Madam, by rights, I should have gone to Jing’an Temple Alley. But there’s no one capable of managing household affairs in the inner quarters there, and that Wang woman isn’t from a proper background. Even if I spoke to her, I doubt I could make myself clear. Your family’s daughter has such a strong temper! I, as her mother-in-law, can’t control her anymore. Among the women of the Dou family in Beijing, only you are sensible. I had no choice but to come to you to speak to your husband and ask him to take Ming’er back! Our Wei family temple is too small to house such a great deity!”
The Fifth Madam’s mouth gaped open wide enough to fit an egg.
How long had it been since Dou Ming’s marriage?
Moreover, it was Wei Tingyu himself who had accepted this marriage. Why did they suddenly want the Dou family to take their daughter back?
Family affairs were indeed difficult to judge.
The Fifth Madam’s temples throbbed with a headache.
She cautiously asked about what had happened.
Wei Tingzhen, of course, complained with exaggeration: “Our Wei family doesn’t have many descendants, so my mother treats her daughters-in-law like her own daughters. Not to mention setting rules, even for morning and evening greetings, she only asks Ming’er to pay her respects when the weather is good. Who would have thought Ming’er would become increasingly unruly, often quarreling with my brother over trivial matters, and becoming more and more negligent towards my mother? The household affairs are also in a mess without any order. When my mother called her for a talk, she relied on her substantial dowry to talk back to my mother.
My mother, unable to bear it, made her face the wall to reflect on her actions. Who knew she would collapse without a word after standing for just half an incense stick’s time? My mother quickly called for a doctor to examine her, only to discover she was pregnant… Fifth Madam, Ming’er’s wet nurse came with her when she married into our family. How could such a significant matter as pregnancy not be mentioned to us? It even led to a miscarriage! Tell me, how can we keep such a daughter-in-law?” Then she muttered, “No wonder they say like mother, like daughter. This marriage might as well not have happened!”
The Fifth Madam was no ordinary person. Even in marital disputes, people tend to say hurtful things, let alone in conflicts between mother-in-law and daughter-in-law. She didn’t believe that Lady Tian had treated Dou Ming as well as Wei Tingzhen claimed, but the fact that Dou Ming had miscarried the Wei family’s heir was undeniable…