Chapter 9

Chapter 9

When Mengyu returned home, her mother held her and wept, telling her only to stay and live at home with peace of mind, for it wasn’t as if they couldn’t afford to support her.

However, as time passed, the two sisters-in-law in the house grew restless.

The eldest sister-in-law took a more roundabout approach, mentioning that her own family had a distant relative-a widower who didn’t mind that Mengyu had been married before and was willing to take her as his wife. What if he was over forty? Older men knew how to cherish a woman!

The second sister-in-law was more direct. She said it was a sin for a woman to fail at tethering her husband’s heart, and that Mengyu shouldn’t be living at home; she should go to a nunnery to cultivate herself and atone for her sins.

Both sisters-in-law had married into the family before the Gu Family had achieved their current prosperity. Even though they were wealthy now, they still couldn’t stand the sight of their sister-in-law eating and living at home.

Xiaowu was nearly fainted with rage. Disregarding the hierarchy of masters and servants, she cursed, “Heartless wretches! The Master and Madam haven’t said a word, yet it’s their turn to drive the Young Miss away!”

Mengyu said, “Events come one by one, but the underlying logic remains the same. It’s like I said: if Father and Mother truly intended to protect me, those two sisters-in-law wouldn’t even be able to step through the gates of my courtyard.”

“Does Miss mean that the Master and Madam also want you to leave? They just don’t want to be the villains, so they’re letting the two young mistresses put on this show?”

“Father and Mother have likely already picked out a family for me. It won’t be a great family, but it will be slightly better than the fates my sisters-in-law have prepared for me.”

After a strike from a heavy club, a date tastes exceptionally sweet.

Mengyu was barely nineteen years old. At this age, anyone felt they could fool a young woman with a few words.

Sure enough, Lady Gu broached the subject while having tea with Mengyu.

She wanted Mengyu to help her elder sister.

Mengyu asked, “How should I ‘help’ her?”

Lady Gu said awkwardly, “Your sister has been unable to conceive for a long time…”

Mengyu understood. “Mother wants me to become my brother-in-law’s concubine.”

Lady Gu’s eyes reddened as she said, “Your sister isn’t like you. She suffered through the hard times with us. Back then, the family had no money, so she had no chance to study and barely knows a few characters. Because of this, the people at the Marquis Mansion look down on her. To make matters worse, her womb has been unproductive, and now the Marquis Mansion is considering divorcing her… Just think of it as pitying her. After all, you’ve already been married once; it would be difficult for you to become a primary wife in another respectable family anyway.”

Mengyu said, “Does Mother still remember that the one who originally had the marriage contract with the Liang Family was my elder sister? I have already married once in her place. Must I now sacrifice the rest of my life for her sake as well?”

Mengyu was the child born after the Gu Family had moved to the capital. Naturally, the marriage contract from their old hometown had nothing to do with her.

Unfortunately, parents cannot cure the habit of favoritism, and children cannot easily withdraw their instinctive devotion to their parents.

Hearing her words, Lady Gu’s shame turned into anger. “Are you blaming me? I gave birth to you and raised you, and yet you dare to blame me?”

Mengyu shook her head. “If Mother wants me to marry, I shall marry. If Mother wants me to be my brother-in-law’s concubine, I shall be. I have only one condition: after I enter the Marquis Mansion, you must give me that Silk Shop in Jiangnan.”

A small shop wasn’t worth much, so Lady Gu agreed immediately.

Mengyu knew in her heart that while her parents favored her elder sister, more importantly, they couldn’t bear to lose this connection with the Marquis Mansion.

The Gu Family didn’t want to make things too obvious and give their political enemies an excuse to claim they were social climbing, so they had Mengyu move into the Marquis Mansion under the pretext of visiting her elder sister.

The Marquis Mansion already looked down on her elder sister, and they thought even less of this younger sister who seemed to be throwing herself at them. They specifically arranged a remote and desolate courtyard for her.

Just as she had settled in, her elder sister, Yilian, came to find her, weeping.

“Mengyu, you have to help me!”

Yilian was married to Luo Ruizhi, the eldest son of the Marquis Mansion’s second branch. He was the third-ranked son in the family and was an expert in eating, drinking, gambling, and visiting prostitutes. By the age of thirty, he was already riddled with venereal diseases.

Yilian did her best as a primary wife. She was filial to her parents-in-law, kind to the children of the concubines, and even used her dowry to pay off Luo Ruizhi’s gambling debts. Yet, Luo Ruizhi still disliked her.

She wailed, “I treat him with all my heart and soul, but he never gives me a kind look. Even those sluts in the courtyard walk all over me!”

Yilian was muddled. She used her own sacrifices as a weight on a scale, constantly expecting a man to measure them. But a man is no judge; why would he care how many ounces that weight weighs?

He didn’t care if his wife’s actions were right or good; he only cared if a woman’s face was beautiful and if her waist was supple.

Especially for a lecher like Luo Ruizhi, how could a thousand pounds of sentiment compare to four ounces of flesh?

Mengyu lowered her gaze. “How does Sister wish for me to help you?”

Yilian wiped away her tears. “Sister, your beauty is peerless. You will surely be able to make my husband settle down, and you will surely be able to bear a child that unites our two families. At the family banquet tomorrow, dress yourself up well and accompany me. Make him like you, alright?”

After Yilian left, Mengyu sat in her chair for a long time in silence.

She held a cup of hot tea, letting the rising mist cling to her eyelashes until it scalded out a single tear.

By the time the tear track had dried, she had already decided how she would escape from this quagmire.