Yunchu’s Vengeance - Chapter 42
Chapter 42: Indecency in the Inner Courtyard
The Xie manor was not particularly large, containing only a small garden.
Yun Chu and Madam Yuan, the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law, led a large group of madams around the garden for a stroll, but everyone showed very little interest.
One madam hesitated and said, "I heard that Madam Xie planted many jujube trees in the manor. I wonder if the jujube trees have blossomed in this season yet?"
Yun Chu smiled. "Jujube blossoms don't bloom until May at the earliest."
"Even if they aren't in bloom, it doesn't matter; let us go take a look at something novel," Madam Hu spoke up to support the mood. "In terms of Feng Shui, jujube trees symbolize an abundance of smooth-flowing descendants. We should all go and bask in a bit of that good fortune."
The social standing and status of all the madams were inferior to that of the eldest miss of the Yun family, so naturally, they each followed along to chime in with flattering remarks.
Madam Yuan spoke up, "The jujube trees are planted right beside the wall in the southeastern corner of the manor. If you ladies don't mind that jujube trees are not much to look at, then please walk this way."
The group followed her toward the southeast.
This place used to be a flower garden, planted with whatever was in season. Every spring and autumn, flower-viewing banquets were arranged here, but this year they had all been replaced with jujube trees.
These were mature jujube trees purchased and transplanted from the outskirts of the capital. Every single tree towered above the courtyard wall, with lush branches and leaves.
Madam Hu remarked, "It looks like they will bear fruit this year. When the time comes, I'll have to come to the Xie manor to ask Madam Xie for a few jujubes to taste fresh."
Yun Chu said politely, "Once they bear fruit, the Xie family will arrange to send some to various households. I just hope you ladies won't mind that green jujubes taste somewhat astringent."
"Eh? Why does it seem like I hear some kind of sound?" asked a madam with particularly sharp hearing. "In that direction."
Madam Yuan looked over. "That is an uninhabited small courtyard in the Xie manor. Usually, only maidservants go there to clean."
As the sound of her voice faded, a gust of wind suddenly blew over, carrying the sounds from that small courtyard along with it—sounds that were utterly unbefitting for the ears...
The complexions of all the female guests shifted uniformly.
Among them was a madam whose husband was a political rival of Xie Jingyu. Both were fifth-rank officials, and both were eyeing the same fifth-rank promotion position.
Although the Xie family no longer held much advantage right now, what if?
She spoke up, "This sound is exceedingly strange. Let's go see what it is."
She took the lead and walked toward that direction.
Yun Chu smiled.
She had deliberately reminded Xie Ping to add this Madam Yuan to the banquet invitation list, and Madam Yuan certainly had not disappointed her.
Madam Yuan, a woman in her forties or fifties, how could she not recognize what kind of situation those sounds indicated? Seeing Madam Yuan lead the group toward that direction, she was frightened out of her wits.
Yun Chu gently tugged at her mother-in-law, lowering her voice as she said, "The Xie servants aren't that bold; it's impossible for them to commit such acts in broad daylight. If we don't let these madams see for themselves, who knows how they will gossip about our Xie family in the future? Let's just go take a look."
This reasoning made sense. Furthermore, today was the old matriarch's birthday banquet, and all the servants were busy with the banquet affairs; it was impossible for anyone to have the time to hide here and engage in illicit acts.
There was nothing going on to begin with. If she acted all secretive and evasive, it would be over once people slapped a label of being utterly promiscuous and chaotic onto the Xie family's inner quarters.
Thinking of this, Madam Yuan felt considerably more at ease. The crucial point was that Yun Chu looked completely calm, which made her feel as though she had found her backbone. She smiled and said, "I suppose it's just stray cats making a commotion."
The group of over a dozen people walked a few steps and arrived at the uninhabited small courtyard.
After stepping inside, those sounds became even more distinct, causing several young madams who had just recently married to flush red from head to toe.
"This is my first time hearing stray cats howling in spring," Madam Yuan walked quickly up the steps and shoved the door in front of her open. "Let's just see what kind of stray cats these are."
The door swung open, and everyone clearly saw that on the couch inside the room, a man and a woman were half-undressed, embracing one another.
When they clearly recognized the faces of that man and woman, Madam Yuan stood frozen in place, her mind blasted like a thunderbolt, wishing she could simply faint away on the spot.
Several thin-skinned young wives retreated repeatedly.
A madam in her thirties like Madam Yuan had seen all sorts of battles and immediately spoke up in a loud voice.
"How can it be Lord Xie!"
"On the day of Old Madam Xie's birthday, what are Lord Xie and a servant girl from the manor hiding here to do?"
"Lord Xie's figure wasn't to be seen during the birthday banquet at all. So he was actually tangled up with a servant in an unseemly mess here. If we had come even a little later... Tsk tsk."
Many madams cast disdainful glances toward Xie Jingyu while simultaneously filling Yun Chu with boundless sympathy.
As if unable to believe her eyes, Yun Chu stood blankly in place without any reaction whatsoever, until Madam Yuan tugged at her.
Madam Yuan's voice was trembling. "Chu... Chuyu, what should we do? What on earth is to be done..."
Yun Chu finally seemed to recover her wits. She moved quickly up the steps, bent down to pick up the garments from the floor, and draped them over Xie Jingyu and Mother He.
Blocking the two of them from view, she looked toward the crowd and said, "Esteemed madams, you have misunderstood. This person is not a servant girl of my Xie manor; she is Auntie He. She is very skilled at singing tunes, and earlier I was the one who called her to the front courtyard to sing and liven up the atmosphere. However, her constitution is poor, so she must have felt unwell halfway there, which is why my husband carried her here to rest for a moment..."
Madam Yuan's trembling heart finally steadied.
Being intimate with a concubine was still much better than illicitly coupling with a servant girl.
Once again, she admired this daughter-in-law; she was able to think of a way to defuse such a chaotic situation. Their Xie family simply could not do without Yun Chu.
Yet this explanation only filled the madams present with even greater sympathy for Yun Chu.
Her husband and his concubine were hiding here, entangled and clinging to one another during the banquet—this completely showed a lack of regard for the head matron.
They had long heard that Madam Xie could not bear children, and now she had lost even her husband's respect. One could easily imagine how difficult her days must be.
Clearly, Madam Xie was grieving to the extreme, yet she still had to step forward to protect the dignity of her husband and the Xie family. The apple of the Yun family's eye had actually fallen to such a plight...
"Madam Xie must still have a pile of matters to attend to, so we will take our leave first."
"Do attend to your busywork, Madam Xie. We shall gather again another day."
Displaying great tact, a group of madams successively offered their farewells.
When they reached the front courtyard, those madams who were still watching the opera did not understand what had happened. Exchanging glances with one another, everyone likewise began proposing that they leave.
Once outside the Xie manor, the crowd finally dared to voice their discussions aloud.
Yall who were watching the opera up front probably don't know yet, but we caught Lord Xie and a concubine committing those kinds of deeds in the back courtyard.
"In broad daylight, why go hide away to do such a thing? Were they really that impatient?"
"That concubine must possess peerless beauty; otherwise, Lord Xie wouldn't be so muddle-headed."
"Now that you mention it, I recall that concubine looking a bit older, and her appearance wasn't outstanding either—she's miles and miles worse than Madam Xie."
"So Lord Xie likes older women..."
When the events that transpired in the inner courtyard reached the old matriarch's ears, they made her head ring with a buzzing sound on the spot, nearly causing her to faint.
Madam Yun, Lady Lin's face was as dark and cold as water, looking as though she might erupt at any moment.
She had only known that the Xie manor possessed Auntie Yu, Auntie Jiang, and Auntie Tao—when on earth had an Auntie He appeared?
On the very day of the birthday banquet, Xie Jingyu had engaged in illicit acts with a servant girl in the back courtyard and even had the daughter she held in the palm of her hand step forward to help cover for him.
Just how much grievance must her daughter have suffered!
"Mother, go home first," Yun Chu personally escorted the Yun family out. "First Sister-in-law, please properly comfort my mother. I am fine."
Liu Qianqian's gaze was filled with worry.
The men of the Yun family also took concubines, but taking a concubine required the consent of the legal wife; they would never engage in illicit behavior prior to that. This showed a complete disregard for the legal wife.
With the Yun family right here today, Xie Jingyu still dared to pull such a stunt; one could only imagine how much he normally looked down upon Yun Chu behind closed doors…