Chapter 107: Not Like Before (Middle)

  The elder lady's tone was harsh, causing the old lady to furrow her brow as well. In the future, Ronghua would be a noblewoman with a title, how could she still be called out so casually like before?

  She followed the madam to the back room, and the madam had Chunyao and Chen Mama talk at the door. Only then did she sit down with Ronghua, "How is the Xue family doing?"

  Rong Hua nodded, "The old lady is very kind and gentle, and the madam is also good to people."

  The big wife couldn't deny it and asked again, "What about the second house?"

  Ronghua smiled and said: "Xue's second wife is also very good."

  The elder lady snorted, "That's just on the surface. You must always remember that everyone covets the hereditary title. If the eldest house commits a crime, the title will naturally fall to the second house. The second lady is a cunning person, and you should think carefully about everything she does."

  Rong Hua nodded slightly.

  "Did you tell Lord Hou about what happened with your father?"

  As expected, he asked anxiously.

  Ronghua smiled and said to her mother, "After my daughter got married, she always thought about this matter, but didn't know how to bring it up. However, hearing the servants at home say that the Duke is a just and unyielding person, my daughter thought that Gu Yan was falsely accused, and others might make a big deal out of this. If the Duke finds out, he will definitely investigate until everything is clear... Didn't the Duke handle Su Xi's case clearly? My daughter was thinking, now that she's back, should we discuss with the Duke directly?"

  The old lady suddenly shouted, "Nonsense! I was just testing the tone of Lord Hou. You directly said it, what if Lord Hou is unwilling to help? Wouldn't that be a loss of face?"

  Also knowing that it would be a waste of effort, Gu Ying was not falsely accused at all. She just wanted her to clarify things with Lord Hou. In case something happened, she could cover it up for him. Unfortunately, Lord Hou was upright and impartial, so this couldn't be said.

  Besides, Tao Zheng'an still has secrets that cannot be told to outsiders. What if Master Hou gets involved in this matter and it leads to other things?

  The lady hesitated, "I'll have to discuss this with your father and see what's best."

  This is for the best, at least giving her some time to think of a way to stand firm in the Xue family. In this matter, she neither wants to help Tao Zheng'an nor does she want the Tao family to have trouble so early on.

  Ronghua nodded gently.

  The lady thought for a moment and then said: "You go take a look at your second sister, your second sister is not easy to get along with, if it wasn't for her, you might not have married into the Hou Mansion so smoothly."

  Ronghua smiled and said: "Mother didn't say it, I was just about to go see too."

  The elder lady nodded, "Your second sister is a kind-hearted person. After what happened with Gu Yan, she was so righteous for the sake of this family. You must remember this kindness in your heart and never forget it no matter what."

  Her eyes sparkled with a radiant glow, and a smile from the heart gradually crept up to the corners of her mouth. "The affection I have for my second sister is forever in my heart, not forgotten for even a moment."

  ……

  At the previous banquet, Tao Jingyuan and Tao Jingxuan, two brothers, toasted a glass of wine to Xue Mingrui.

  Hong Ge was still young and only drank a cup of tea instead of wine. Hong Ge's eyes kept sizing up Xue Mingrui as he drank his tea.

  Xue Mingrui picked up his wine glass and drank it all in one gulp, with an indescribable elegance.

  Tao Jingyao couldn't help but secretly admire him, not expecting that Eighth Brother-in-law's capacity for liquor was so good. After downing over a dozen cups, his face didn't change color at all. Tao Jingyao used her arm to poke Hong Ge and said in a low voice, "Isn't someone who can't drink liquor not a hero? Are your heroes all naturally robust? Eighth Brother-in-law isn't robust either."

  Hóng Gē's face suddenly turned a lot darker. Looking at Liù Jiě Fū Mèng Chūn Zhī beside him, he picked up his wine cup and took a sip before putting it down again. Earlier when drinking with Xue Mingrui, he had taken a deep breath and gulped down more than half the cup, now his face was still flushed red from holding back.

  Tao Jingyuan said: "Didn't you hear that Master Hou rarely goes out to socialize?"

  Tao Jinglian said, "Brother, don't tease him anymore. This is not an ordinary occasion. We must drink this toast." The more you drink, the more satisfied you are with the marriage. How many grooms have passed out on their wedding day? Not to mention others, just take Meng Chunzi for example. That day, he was so drunk that he didn't know what was going on, and he shouted loudly throughout the courtyard, "If it weren't for the examiner's poor eyesight, I would already be a jinshi."

  He made a joke and Sixth Sister came to support him, but he vomited on her face, what a mess.

  The day when the elder sister returned home, her husband started refusing to drink and later got drunk and lost consciousness, so they sent him back in a horse-drawn carriage.

  It now seems that Master Hou will be able to get away with it without any issues. After all, everyone has already toasted him a cup according to etiquette, and no one dares to mention a second cup.

  Hong Ge felt uncomfortable because of what he said to Tao Jingyuan and his brothers earlier. He poured himself a glass of wine and was about to go forward to toast, but Tao Jingyuan saw this and hastily pulled him back, saying "What are you doing? When we get back, Grandfather will punish you."

  Hong Ge suddenly became stubborn, with unknown strength, broke free from his brother, stood up with a "hug" sound, picked up the wine cup and toasted, "Just now it was tea, now it's wine, I toast to Eighth Brother-in-law for one cup."

  Tao Zheng'an couldn't help but frown and scolded: "What kind of wine is a child like you drinking?"

  Tao Zheng'an's anger did not intimidate Hong Ge, his arm remained raised and refused to come down.

  Meng Chun's eyes rolled, and the person beside him intervened, "Young uncle is afraid that he won't be polite enough, but since they are all family members, where did so many rules come from? Young uncle just needs to make a gesture of drinking, Lord Hou won't blame you."

  Hong Ge refused to raise his cup and "gulp" swallowed it down, the wine fumes made him almost cough up, but he stubbornly held back the cough.

  Tao Zheng's face sank.

  Meng Chun couldn't help but laugh along with everyone else, and that was how the matter was settled.

  Throughout the banquet, only Hong Ge and Xue Mingrui had an extra cup of wine.

  The banquet ended and Old Master Tao invited Xue Mingrui to the main house to talk, Meng Chunzi also wanted to follow, but was pulled by Tao Zhengchuan to test Qiu Ge's homework.

  Tao Jingyue and Tao Jinglian hurriedly ran far away, fearing that they would also be caught by Third Uncle to ask questions. Hong Ge took the opportunity to go to the inner courtyard to talk to Rong Hua.

  Tao Zheng'an and Xue Mingrui chatted for a while, but didn't ask about his own daughter. The custom of returning the door is to entrust the uncle to take good care of the daughter, but Tao Zheng'an even omitted this, carefully asking Xue Mingrui about government affairs, "Su Xiuyao's case, I don't know how it will be arranged above. Will it involve a large number of people?"

  Xue Mingrui said: "Following the old practice, it would take one or two years to investigate whether there are any special chapters, and we have to wait for instructions from above."

  Tao Zhengan anxiously asked: "Nor does one know when there will be news."

  Xue Mingrui put down his teacup, "Let's wait a little longer"

  Tao Zheng'an's heart sank and he had nothing more to say.

  ……

  Rong Hua took Chun Yao into the Jade House.

  Compared to the lively scene earlier, Yao Hua's courtyard was quiet and deserted. Xiang Zhu sat on a brocade stool doing needlework, when she looked up and saw a lady in a bright red dress walking towards her. Upon closer inspection, she realized it was Eighth Miss and exclaimed in surprise: "Eighth Miss has arrived."

  Compared to the solitary green in the courtyard, Hong's red clothes seemed even more vibrant. Xiang Zhu's eyes suddenly became a little shy and she looked away, tugging at her own blue sleeves as she stepped forward to pay respects, "Greetings, Eighth Miss."

  Ronghua smiled and let her get up, then asked, "Where's Second Sister?"

  As soon as Rong Hua's voice fell, Yao Hua was already being supported by Fei Cui and welcomed out.

  In front of everyone, Rong Hua smiled and said: "Second sister, don't come out quickly, be careful of catching a cold."

  Feicui glanced at Ronghua a few times, and was immediately dazzled by the dazzling sight. When she looked again at Chunyao beside Ronghua, he was no longer dressed in his usual attire from the mansion. He wore expensive clothes made of fine materials, and the rouge on his face naturally bloomed on his cheeks, with a hint of joy between his eyebrows.

  Feicui couldn't help but envy Chunyao. It turned out that being a senior maid in the mistress's quarters was nothing compared to her current state of bliss, and now that she had followed her to the Hou estate, she seemed even more extraordinary. If at that time she hadn't returned to the second young lady's chambers, wouldn't she have also gone to the Xue family? Thinking this, Feicui's expression became even uglier.

  Yao Hua invited Rong Hua to enter the house and had someone brew a pot of high-quality flower tea. Rong Hua took a look around the room, but found that many decorative pieces were gone, "How come there are so many fewer things in the house?"

  The bamboo of Xiang wants to speak but stops.

  Yao Hua forced a smile and said, "It's just that I found those things useless and annoying, so I had the maids take them down."

  Hunan bamboo eyes flashed a few points of grievance.

  Yao Hua, however, avoided talking about the matter and stood up to walk into the study. She took out a painting and said, "This is a 'Five Sons Sending Good Fortune' picture that I painted over the past two days. It's for Eighth Sister." As she handed it over to Rong Hua, her throat suddenly felt itchy and she coughed twice with a handkerchief.

  Anyone who saw this painting and then looked at Yao Hua's current appearance would soften their heart.

  Especially Yao Hua at this moment, without any makeup, the big deer eyes were shining with tears, and her thin body was trembling with a cough, which was pitiful.

  Rong Hua hastily asked Yao Hua to sit down, "Second sister is ill and shouldn't be worrying about anything. I previously heard Grandmother say that the doctor instructed Second Sister to relax and not think too much. In my opinion, it's better for Second Sister to not think about anything at all and focus on quietly recovering from her illness."

  Yao Hua suddenly lifted her head, which had been hanging down, and looked at Rong Hua.

  Rong Hua's face had a faint smile, nothing else could be seen.

  Yao Hua calmed down and smiled slightly, "It's nothing, siblings are supposed to take care of each other. I just worry that Hong Ge is still young and impulsive, he might do something wrong. He's the only son of our main house, there aren't many people who can help him. You're one of them, sister. If we can all support him a bit, it'll be good fortune for us when he succeeds in the future."

  Yao Hua is trying to be nice to her, and also mentions Hong Ge. Brothers and sisters are all dependent on each other, this statement is not wrong, but for someone like Yao Hua, how can she be relied upon? In her past life, she treated Yao Hua as her best sister, but in the end, what happened to her?

  Rong Hua's eyes narrowed, "We are people of the Tao family, naturally we must consider the interests of the Tao family in everything we do. Just like my sister, who has done so much for the Tao family... In the future, not only will Father and Mother understand, but also Brother Hong will come to know the reason when he grows up. Isn't there a saying that goes: 'Good and evil will ultimately be rewarded'?"

  Yao Hua's expression stiffened, what else did she want to say?

  Ronghua smiled and said: "It's getting late, I still have to rush back before dark, take good care of yourself, sister, I'll take my leave first." Ronghua stood up and was about to leave.

  Jade flowers must be sent out.

  Ronghua insisted on not staying, "Sister, hurry back and rest." She said, taking Chunyao away with her.

  The majestic figure was gone, and Xiang Zhu only supported Yao Hua back into the house to sit down.

  Xiang Zhu furrowed her brow, looking dejected, and brought a cup of water for Yao Hua to drink. "Miss, what should we do? It sounds like Eighth Miss doesn't want to help."

  Yao Hua took a sip of water and didn't speak for half a day before saying, "There's always tomorrow."

  ……

  Ronghua returned to the old lady's Millennium Residence and sat for a while. The old master and Xue Mingrui came back from the front hall.

  The old master said: "It's getting late, so I won't keep you any longer." As he spoke, he had someone bring out the three ceremonial gifts.

  Xue Mingrui and Rong Hua bowed again before leaving the main house.

  The sky grew dark and the wind picked up, and Rong Hua felt a chill. Chun Yao draped his cloak over Rong Hua's shoulders and said in a low voice, "Master Hou told me to give it to you, madam."

  Xue Mingrui's cloak.

  Ronghua went out of the second gate and got into the sedan chair. She was just about to take off her cloak and give it to Xue Mingrui.

  Xue Mingrui only said, "It's cold in the sedan chair." Then he turned over and mounted his horse.

  Ronghua felt a warmth in her heart as she pulled up the cloak, and just as she sat steadily in the sedan chair, she heard Hongge shout, "Sister."

  Rong Hua lifted the curtain of the sedan chair and met with Hong Ge again, the siblings exchanged a few words before Rong Hua got back into the sedan and left the Tao residence.

  Returning to the Xue manor, the two of them went to pay their respects to Old Madame.

  Ronghua walked to the door and heard Second Mistress's voice inside, "I think she is a very reliable person, handing it over to her will be fine, besides, there are still many people helping out on Mother's side, and over the years, there have been quite a few savings, so there won't be any mistakes."

  Mrs. Xue nodded and said, "That makes sense too."

  The maid at the door saw Xue Mingrui and Rong Hua, and hastily reported.

  Mrs. Xue's voice finally stopped.

  The old lady asked about Ronghua's family affairs, "Are they all right?"

  Rong Hua nodded, "It's all good, and I'll make sure to bring it to Old Lady as well."

  The old lady said: "We are at such a big age, and in the future, we will have the opportunity to gather together and talk about it."

  Rong Hua smiled.

  The old lady said: "Don't go to your mother's place either, I've already sent someone to call her, we'll have dinner at my place tonight." She then told the maid to go and summon everyone again.

  The people from the second house, third house and fourth house have all arrived one after another.

  The second lady smiled and introduced Xue Qian's wife to Rong Hua, "You haven't met before, she is your elder sister-in-law."

  Xue Qian wore a light yellow jacket, with a pink pom-pom on her head, and a jade-inlaid beaded hairpin. Her slender eyebrows and eyes narrowed slightly as she saw Rong Hua, revealing a hint of unnaturalness.

  Rong Hua stepped forward and bowed: "Elder sister-in-law."

  Xue Qian said: "These past few days Rong Ge has been ill and can't get out of bed."

  As soon as the words fell, the old lady asked urgently: "How is my great-grandson today? Is he any better?"

  Xue Qian's eyes glanced at the second wife and said: "Like yesterday, from time to time, she still says a few nonsense words."

  The old lady said: "Is there anyone taking care of her?"

  Xue Qian nodded, "There are people left in the house, don't worry, old lady." As soon as she finished speaking, a maid rushed in and said, "It's not good, something has happened to the young master!"

  Guess what happened to Run Ge.

  I will try to update between 8-9 pm from now on.

  Sorry for the inconvenience recently due to being busy, moving and buying a house is a big deal.

  Because a chapter was sent incorrectly, it can't be divided into volumes, so I'll use the number of characters in the chapter title to divide it.