The matter of Shen Cui’s return home could hardly be called glorious. Ji Lan wanted to keep it under wraps, but she couldn’t stop the Qi family from causing a scene at their door. They demanded an explanation from the Shen family, threatening to make the incident public and even take it to court if necessary.
Given how the situation had escalated, the Old Madam couldn’t remain unaware. Fortunately, the Qi family still had some reservations and only made a fuss at the Third Branch. The relatives staying at Qing Garden to attend the ceremony were still unaware of the situation.
When the news reached the Old Madam’s ears, Ji Cheng was keeping her company at Rui Ying Hall. Upon hearing the news, she asked in surprise, “Wasn’t that child not even a year old? How could he have fallen into a pool and drowned?”
“Exactly!” Mrs. Shen Wanli exclaimed angrily. “Our young lady may be a bit willful, but she would never do anything to harm others.”
Mrs. Shen Wanli had been with Ji Lan for nearly twenty years and had watched Shen Cui grow up.
“The Qi family is being too unreasonable. They even said that if our family can’t resolve this issue, they’ll place the child’s body at our doorstep for everyone to see,” Mrs. Shen Wanli added anxiously. Ji Lan had sent her to seek help.
Hearing this, Ji Cheng thought that the Qi family was ready to burn all bridges. But given the Shen family’s current prosperity, even if Qi Zheng was foolish, he should know better than to offend the Shen family. Why was he making such a fuss this time?
Seeing the Old lady’s face turn pale with anger, Ji Cheng quickly had Yun Jin prepare a medicinal pill for her to take and helped soothe her chest. “Old Ancestor, don’t worry. I’ll go over and see what’s happening.”
After catching her breath, the Old Madam said, “Send someone to fetch A’che back.” In times of trouble, the Old Madam trusted Shen Che the most, perhaps without even realizing it. After all, entrusting matters to Shen Che was never wrong.
She then held Ji Cheng’s hand and said, “It’s good that you’re going over first. Just don’t stoop to their level. If a fight breaks out, you might get hurt. Take a few sturdy maids with you.”
Ji Cheng nodded in agreement. As soon as she stepped outside, she was hit by the scorching sun and quickly retreated. Liu Ye’er hurried to open an umbrella and hold it over Ji Cheng’s head. “Young Miss, don’t rush. The weather is too hot. If you hurry, you might get heatstroke.”
“Mm,” Ji Cheng responded, unexpectedly recalling the ointment Shen Che had prepared for her when they went to the great grasslands last year. It was something she hadn’t even thought of, but Shen Che had been considerate enough to remember.
The smell of that ointment was truly unpleasant. Ji Cheng knew it was Shen Che’s trick to keep people from getting too close to her.
It was just a trivial matter, but now, remembering it brought a mix of sweet and sour feelings, lingering in her mind.
“Young Miss,” Liu Ye’er called out, “it’s the First Young Madam.”
Ji Cheng snapped back to reality at the sound. Cui Long was also heading towards the Third Branch, presumably having received the news as well. The two women exchanged a glance, both feeling a headache coming on.
At this time, Third Master Shen Ying and Fourth Young Master Shen Jing were both away, leaving only Ji Lan and Li Rui to deal with the Qi family.
The person leading the Qi family group was someone familiar to Ji Cheng—Qi Hua. This aunt of the Qi family, who technically shouldn’t be considered a Qi family member anymore, had come to be the spokesperson. Her intentions were unclear.
Behind Qi Hua was a young woman whose eyes were swollen like peaches from crying. She looked quite delicate, with a certain fragile charm. She must be Qi Zheng’s cousin, the mother of Qi Zheng’s deceased eldest son. Shen Cui had caused quite a stir with Qi Zheng over this matter in the past.
Ji Cheng pretended not to see Qi Hua and turned to look at Shen Cui. She was shocked by what she saw. Shen Cui’s face was bruised and swollen, with a large bump on her head. Her eyes were lifeless, and she sat there as if everything happening around her was unrelated to her.
Cui Long had also noticed Shen Cui’s condition.
No wonder the Qi family was threatening to bring the child’s body over. Ji Lan must have seen Shen Cui’s state and started arguing with the Qi family, with neither side willing to back down.
Seeing that representatives from the First and Second Branches of the Shen family had arrived, Qi Hua stopped badgering Ji Lan and turned to Ji Cheng and Cui Long, saying, “You two have come at the right time. Please, judge for yourselves. Your young lady has been married into our Qi family for so many years, and she hasn’t even produced a single egg, let alone a son. My elder brother finally had a son, but she had a poisonous heart. She initially insisted that my brother get rid of the child, and after the child was born, she constantly found fault with him. We endured all of this, but who would have thought she would be so heartless as to not even spare a child? That was our family’s only seedling. My mother is now unconscious in bed because of her, and we don’t know if she’ll pull through. How can you bully people like this? You can’t just hide back at your maiden home without giving us an explanation, can you?”
Upon hearing Qi Hua’s words, the cousin began to cry again, her shoulders shaking like a sieve. Her cries gradually grew louder until she was wailing.
Neither Cui Long nor Ji Cheng said anything. Li Rui had always been thoroughly annoyed with her sister-in-law. Don’t think she didn’t know that Shen Cui and Qi Zheng had been involved before their marriage. Li Rui had found out all the details, and she looked down on the Qi family, so she didn’t want to get involved in Shen Cui’s affairs.
Now that Qi Hua had come to make a scene, Li Rui was just standing by Ji Lan’s side, making disapproving noises. She hadn’t even settled her grievances, so how could she possibly help Shen Cui?
Ji Lan, irritated by the cousin’s crying, was already struggling. She had been under stress recently, first worrying about Shen Jing’s affairs, and now dealing with Shen Cui’s situation. Her face was pale, and she looked like she might not be able to hold on much longer. However, for her daughter’s sake, she mustered her strength and said, “What nonsense are you spouting? Just because you say our A’cui did it, it must be true. You’re making baseless accusations. For all we know, she might have killed her son. How dare you come here and point fingers without any proof?”
This enraged the cousin, who dramatically fell to the ground, crying out to heaven and earth.
Qi Hua became even more aggressive, pointing at Ji Lan and saying, “Listen to this! Listen to this! Is there any justice left in this world? We came here in good faith, just wanting your young lady to give us an explanation. And what do we get? Without any investigation, you accuse us of harming our own Huan’er. He was our family’s only hope, the grandson who kept my mother alive for two more years. And you dare accuse us of harming Huan’er ourselves? This reasoning wouldn’t hold up anywhere. If your Shen family refuses to be reasonable, we’ll find a place that is. I don’t believe your Shen family can cover the sky with one hand!”
The more Ji Cheng listened, the more she felt that Qi Hua was acting under someone’s instructions. The phrase “cover the sky with one hand” was not something the Shen family would dare to claim. However, as the second brother’s wife, she first looked to Cui Long.
To her surprise, Cui Long had furrowed her brows and was pressing her belly with a pained expression. Ji Cheng quickly asked, “Sister-in-law, what’s wrong?”
Cui Long shook her head, “I don’t know. My stomach is cramping.”
Ji Cheng thought to herself, well, it seems everyone wants to avoid Shen Cui’s troublesome affair. If you handle it well, neither Ji Lan nor Shen Cui will be grateful, and if you don’t handle it well, you’ll end up in a mess yourself.
The maid who had accompanied Cui Long immediately looked at her with concern, “This won’t do! We should quickly call for a doctor. You’ve been having poor appetite these past few days, and now you’re having stomach pains. Could it be…”
Everyone present was married, so they immediately understood the maid’s implication. Li Rui, being the quickest, went over to support Cui Long and said, “Sister-in-law, let’s go to my room to rest. We’ll call a doctor to check your pulse right away. It’s troublesome for you, to come over when you’re not feeling well. If it’s a happy pulse and something happens to the child, we’d be committing a great sin.”
While Li Rui and Cui Long, both clever women, avoided Shen Cui’s troublesome affair, they left Ji Cheng to deal with those unreasonable people.
For some reason, Ji Cheng suddenly felt a pang of sadness for the Shen family. Despite its current prosperity and harmony, it was only because of the Old Madam’s presence. If the Old Madam were gone, it seemed unlikely that the Third Branch would ever be united again. Cui Long’s self-preservation, and Li Rui’s arrogance—neither boded well for the family’s future. Looking at herself, Ji Cheng thought she might be just as indifferent.
Intelligence is a good thing, but sometimes being too smart can lead to estrangement.
Ji Cheng looked at Shen Cui. She didn’t want to get involved in her affairs either, but she couldn’t help thinking of Shen Che, who would protect his family regardless of right or wrong.
Ji Cheng had no choice but to gather her spirits to deal with the situation at hand. She ignored Qi Hua, knowing that arguing with her and following her lead would put her at a disadvantage.
Instead, Ji Cheng walked towards Shen Cui, then looked at her face with surprise. “A’cui, what happened to your face? How did you get hurt so badly? Thank goodness the Old Ancestor didn’t come. If she saw you like this, who knows how heartbroken she’d be?”
Qi Hua was about to speak, but Ji Cheng interrupted her.
“Speak up, A’cui. Look at you, suffering in silence. Are you trying to worry us to death? Although our family is known for being kind, we certainly won’t stand by and watch our daughter being bullied,” Ji Cheng said. In her heart, she was already anxious. The usually talkative Shen Cui had suddenly become as silent as a clam, and even if Ji Cheng wanted to help her, she needed someone to play along.
Fortunately, Ji Lan was able to muster some energy and said, “Who else could it be? She came back with this face late last night. If it wasn’t the Qi family who beat her, then who?”
Ji Lan turned to glare at Qi Hua. “This is too much. The ones who beat her are the first to come and make a scene at our door. Do you think our Shen family is afraid?”
Hearing this, Qi Hua immediately raised her eyebrows in anger. “She’s cruel and vicious, daring to harm an innocent child. Even if my brother beat her, so what?”
Ji Cheng said, “How can you say it was our young lady based on your one-sided words? Without investigating, you beat our young lady so badly that she had to flee for her life in the middle of the night. We should be the ones demanding an explanation from your family, not the other way around.”
“How are we not investigating? We have both witness testimony and physical evidence. Shen Cui can’t deny it. Stop trying to pin this on us. Someone as vicious as Shen Cui—wasn’t my brother right to beat her? Is there anything wrong with a husband disciplining his wife behind closed doors?” Qi Hua shouted.
Ji Cheng looked at Qi Hua with a smile and sat down, adjusting her clothes. “If Qi Zheng was disciplining his wife behind closed doors, may I ask why you, a married aunt, are here yelling at our family?”
Qi Hua was stunned for a moment, then shouted even louder, “My mother is bedridden because of her. My brother, remembering the bond of a night’s marriage, dares not make it public. As his sister, how can I stand by and watch my brother’s line end?”
Not daring to make it public? Was this implying that the Shen family was using their power to suppress the matter? Ji Cheng mockingly said, “Your brother is still young. How can you say his line has ended? No wonder our young lady hasn’t even conceived in all these years of marriage.”
Ji Cheng was also quite the troublemaker. Perhaps Cui Long was right to avoid this mess.
Qi Hua knew she had misspoken and shouted again, “Stop trying to change the subject! Just tell me, is your family going to give us an explanation or not? Don’t blame us for burning bridges if you don’t.”
Ji Cheng smiled, “What kind of explanation does your family want? We’re all one family, and naturally, we don’t want to burn bridges either.”
Hearing Ji Cheng’s tone soften, unlike Ji Lan’s stubbornness, Qi Hua secretly rejoiced. However, her face still maintained an expression of hatred, as if she wanted to eat someone. “You tell us!”
Ji Cheng smiled, “Since you’re asking me to speak, I’ll be frank.”
Qi Hua remained silent.
Ji Cheng continued, “As a married woman, you can’t make decisions for your brother. There’s no use in talking to you. Go back and tell Qi Zheng to come. We can discuss things face to face, to avoid any misunderstandings caused by intermediaries.”
Qi Hua frowned and was about to explode, but Ji Cheng continued, “Aren’t you just trying to take advantage of our family’s happy occasion, forcing us to settle this quietly? Qi Hua, I advise you to quickly go back and find your brother. If we discuss this calmly, we might be able to agree. If you insist on making a scene, our Shen family isn’t afraid of trouble either. As for the truth about your family’s Huan’er’s death, you must know it clearly in your hearts. I know my fifth sister best. She might be a bit spoiled, but she doesn’t have the guts to kill someone. While we’re still willing to talk to you out of consideration for our family ties, you’d better find someone who can make decisions. Otherwise, feel free to make a scene.”
Qi Hua opened her mouth, then closed it again. Ji Cheng’s words made some sense. She couldn’t make decisions, she was just the vanguard. Seeing Ji Cheng’s attitude, it seemed there was a willingness to settle the matter quietly. She needed to go back and discuss this thoroughly with her brother.
“Fine, wait here. I’ll go find my brother,” Qi Hua said, then turned and left.
As soon as Qi Hua left, Ji Lan started complaining to Ji Cheng, “How could you say that? Are you hoping for our family to be in even more trouble? Now you’ve dragged Qi Zheng into this mess too?”
Ji Cheng was used to her aunt’s temperament. “Aunt, what happened with A’cui this time? Did she harm the child?”
“How could that be possible?!” Ji Lan glared. “You know your sister. She wouldn’t even dare to step on an ant.”
That was a bit of an exaggeration. Ji Cheng turned to look at the still-dazed Shen Cui, who did look pitiful. “A’cui, tell me the truth. Did you do this?”
Shen Cui remained silent.
Ji Cheng spoke again, “You don’t need to worry. Even if you did this, we have ways to settle it quietly. Look at Qi Hua’s attitude. Their talk of demanding an explanation is just a pretense. They’re here to seek benefits. They probably want to get something not just for her brother but for her in-laws too. As long as they have demands, we’re not afraid.”
Hearing this, Shen Cui finally looked at Ji Cheng with a dazed expression and said, “It wasn’t me.”
Ji Cheng leaned towards believing it wasn’t Shen Cui. “Alright. Don’t be too heartbroken. The Qi family is being too overbearing. Our family will certainly seek justice for you.”
Ji Cheng turned to Ji Lan and said, “Aunt, while Qi Hua has gone back, you should quickly send someone to the Qi family to find out exactly what happened. A’cui must have some useful contacts in the Qi household. We can’t just accept whatever others say when we’re completely in the dark. Also, ask A’cui what her plans are for the future. It pains me to see A’cui like this. Qi Zheng was so brutal, showing no regard for their relationship. Does she still want to live with the Qi family in the future?”
Ji Cheng’s earlier words were meant to buy time. She started tough and then softened her stance to make Qi Hua think she was feeling guilty, to make the Qi family believe that the matter could be negotiated, and to temporarily appease them. Ji Cheng estimated that by now, Shen Che must have already sent people to investigate the Qi family. Knowing both sides is the key to winning every battle.
Ji Cheng didn’t stay too long at the Third Branch. Shen Cui’s wooden expression would probably take time to recover, and who knew what these two mother and daughter would eventually decide?
Ji Cheng first returned to the Old Madam’s Rui Ying Hall and reported everything that had happened earlier. “A’cui seems to have suffered a great shock. She looks completely dazed.”
The Old Madam remained silent with a gloomy face.
Unexpectedly, a maid ran in from outside, joyfully announcing, “Old Ancestor, the First Young Madam is with child! The doctor has checked her pulse and says she’s almost two months along.”
Usually, people bringing such good news would be rewarded, but the Old Madam was in such a bad mood that she only nodded. The maid, seeing the Old Madam’s displeased expression, realized she had chosen a bad time and left without lingering.
Ji Cheng, mindful of Cui Long’s face, called over a young maid and had her catch up with the maid who brought the news, giving her a tael of silver as a reward.
Cui Long’s pregnancy was not something Ji Cheng found particularly joyous. Thanks to Shen Cui’s incident today, Ji Cheng didn’t have to force a smile and could maintain a neutral expression.
Speaking of which, Ji Cheng was not young anymore. She was already twenty, and there weren’t many women her age without children.
What’s more, for Shen Zheng’s wedding this time, both Great Aunt Shen Yun and Third Aunt Shen Wan couldn’t come to help because they were pregnant. Even Shen He hadn’t arrived in the capital yet for some reason. Ji Cheng couldn’t help but wonder if she was pregnant too.
With all the sisters-in-law in the family pregnant, it made Ji Cheng’s “uniqueness” stand out even more.
Just as Ji Cheng was lost in thought, a young maid came to report that Shen Che had returned. Ji Cheng realized she hadn’t seen Shen Che for nearly a month. She heard that he returned to Jiuli Court every day, but mostly when Ji Cheng was already asleep, and he left when Ji Cheng was busy.
Shen Che walked in from the outer room wearing a dark blue robe embroidered with flying cranes and auspicious cloud patterns. The floral pattern was woven in bright blue, adding a touch of brightness to the otherwise deep-colored robe, highlighting his unique elegance and grace.
Having held an official position in the government office and now “benefiting” from the great victory at Leyuan Pass to become an official in the Da-Li Temple, Shen Che’s clothing colors were not as flamboyant as they were a few years ago. He had lost a bit of his former playboy air and appeared increasingly dignified and refined.
Men don’t fear the passage of time as much as women do. At Shen Che’s age, he was becoming increasingly charming due to the experiences and maturity that came with time, like a fine wine whose fragrant and intoxicating aroma could be sensed even before opening the bottle.
Ji Cheng had to admit that if she didn’t know Shen Che and saw him on the street, she would probably be captivated and lose herself in admiration. She didn’t know exactly what had changed about Shen Che, but she knew that when she looked at him, she couldn’t take her eyes off him, feeling a surge of desire not to lose him.
This was also why Ji Cheng could never muster the courage to confront Shen Che. Hanging on in this half-dead state, at least she was still considered his wife. But if she really left, and many years later saw him surrounded by wives and concubines, with children and grandchildren, Ji Cheng couldn’t bear to imagine it.
Ji Cheng was staring at Shen Che almost absent-mindedly, while Shen Che didn’t even glance at her.
As soon as the Old Madam saw Shen Che enter, she asked, “Have you heard about A’cui’s situation? Ah, she’s really troublesome. It’s as if she can’t go a month without causing a scene. She’s made everyone in the family tired of dealing with her affairs. It’s hard on your wife too, having to run around for her in this heat.”
The Old Madam mentioned Ji Cheng’s efforts in front of Shen Che, hoping to reconcile the young couple. However, Shen Che acted as if he hadn’t heard and said, “I already know. I’ve also sent people to investigate. Old Ancestor, don’t worry too much.”
The Old Madam said, “How can I not worry? A’cui has a bad temper and often quarrels with Qi Zheng. Every time she comes back, we side with the Qi family and scold her. But this time, A’cheng says Qi Zheng has even raised his hand against her, beating A’cui so badly that she’s unrecognizable. What are we to do? When she was in our family, we couldn’t bear to harm a hair on her head, but now she’s being bullied like this.”
The Old Madam sighed deeply.
Indeed, she was protective of her own. Even if her child had grown up poorly, she couldn’t stand to see others bully them.