Yunchu’s Vengeance - Chapter 44
Chapter 44: What Should I Do
As the head of the Xie family, Xie Jingyu was the most appropriate person to open the ancestral hall and enter the name into the family genealogy.
The entire process was extremely simple: writing Mother He's name onto the genealogy, followed by offering incense and kowtowing. From then on, Mother He became an official member of the Xie family.
Yun Chu wore a smile on her face. "Mother He can move into the Bige Garden."
Mother He was somewhat surprised.
The Bige Garden was situated right beside the Xie manor's garden and possessed an exceptionally prime location, usually reserved for entertaining distinguished guests. She never expected the legal wife to grant it to her.
Xie Jingyu's expression was exceedingly complex.
He thought back to four years ago, when she was pregnant, and he and Tingyu had climbed onto the same bed. He still remembered her expression that morning.
Despondency, grief, pain, disbelief... At that time, he could distinctly sense that Yun Chu cared deeply about him.
Yet now, from beginning to end, a faint smile hung on her face. He could not see any disappointment toward him, nor could he detect any hostility toward Mother He.
She seemed to have completely stopped caring about him.
An indescribable emotion surged within Xie Jingyu's chest.
"I imagine Husband and Mother He still have things to discuss, so I shall go tend to other matters."
Yun Chu curtsied, turned around, and walked out of the ancestral hall.
The moment her figure vanished from the doorway, Mother He opened her mouth to speak, but was met straight-on with a resounding slap from Xie Jingyu.
With a crisp crack, Mother He was left completely dazed.
Clutching her face, she hurriedly stammered, "It wasn't me, truly it wasn't! I know my own status—how could I ever dare to delusionally dream of becoming a member of the Xie family..."
"I know it wasn't you, but if not for you, my reputation would not have been dragged through the mud." Xie Jingyu could fully imagine the kind of looks those people would cast his way during the morning court session tomorrow. He drew a deep breath. "It was you who gave the Yuan family the opportunity to plot against me, and you who stalled my official career..."
Tears pattered down Mother He's face.
She truly could not believe that she had been slapped by the man she loved most; her heart ached terribly.
Yet she knew that if this matter were not explained clearly, the very day she became a concubine would be the day her relationship with him shattered completely.
"My lord, are you certain it was truly the Yuan family?" Mother He choked out. "Why haven't you considered that the legal wife plotted all of this? She is the head matron, and the entire Xie manor is under her control. For her to orchestrate all of this would be far too easy. Otherwise, how can you explain why the wife lifted my confinement, or why she suddenly led so many people to march straight to that small courtyard?"
A cold sneer surfaced on Xie Jingyu's face. "Are you implying that Yun Chu engineered all of this simply to make you a concubine?"
No matter how indifferent a woman was toward her husband, she would never scheme to have her own husband and another woman caught intimately coupling in front of a massive crowd.
"Yun Chu magnanimously accepted you, yet you harbor so many suspicions toward her," Xie Jingyu flicked his sleeve and walked off. "If you cause trouble again in the future, the Xie family will never tolerate you."
With that, he turned on his heel and left.
Mother He collapsed limply onto the ground, burying her face in her hands as she wept softly.
Yun Chu slowly walked back to her own courtyard. The moment she stepped inside, a figure lunged forward and dropped heavily to her knees before her.
It was Xie Ping.
Panicking completely, she clutched at the hem of Yun Chu's skirt. "Mother, what should I do? My reputation is utterly ruined. What am I going to do..."
She had botched the Xie family banquet. Every time outsiders mentioned this banquet hosted by the Xie family, they would inevitably think of her, the eldest young miss of the Xie family. Which household would ever dare to ask for her hand as their head matron now?
She had once even harbored ambitions of becoming the Fourth Prince's primary consort, but now all those hopes were shattered into dust.
"Mother, please help me..."
Xie Ping was weeping so hard she was gasping for breath.
Yun Chu reached down and pulled her to her feet. "Pingjie, haven't I told you before? You are still young, and making a mistake is not a big deal so long as you properly correct it."
Xie Ping cried bitterly. "Mother, teach me—how do I correct this?"
"At the very latest, we make a gorgeous comeback during the old matriarch's birthday banquet next year. We will need to wait a full year." Yun Chu smiled as she looked down at her. "Think carefully: what upcoming banquets will our Xie family have in the near future?"
Xie Ping choked back her sobs and began to think carefully.
The old matriarch was still alive, so neither grandfather nor grandmother could host birthday banquets, and flower-viewing banquets were out of the question either. A tea gathering?
Yet with a family background as modest as the Xie family's—and compounded by such a massive scandal—absolutely no one would come to attend a tea gathering.
"Ange is taking the county-level imperial examination very soon," Yun Chu said. "If he can pass as a Licentiate, won't the Xie family have a proper pretext to host a banquet?"
Xie Ping's expression flickered with hesitation. Generally speaking, banquets were only hosted when someone passed the provincial imperial examination; wouldn't hosting a banquet for a mere Licentiate invite public mockery?
"Licentiates are indeed common, but the top-ranking scorer of the county examination is certainly not," Yun Chu smiled. "If any household's child in the capital becomes the top scorer of the county exams, who wouldn't host a grand banquet for guests far and wide?"
Xie Ping's eyes widened. "Mother, I understand now."
For the sake of the Xie family's reputation—and for the sake of her own—Xie Sessan had to become the top scorer of the county exams. There was no second choice.
Yun Chu thought back to her past life, when Xie Sessan became the top scorer and Xie Jingyu was promoted to a senior fifth-rank official at the exact same time. The father and son had raised their wine cups to toast the guests at the banquet, looking utterly full of vigor and ambition.
After a day of commotion, the sky had finally grown pitch-black.
Once things quieted down, the figure of that little child resurfaced in the depths of Yun Chu's mind.
She hurried back to her inner chamber. Resting on the desk by the window was a rather ugly wooden carving. Clutching that wooden carving tightly within her palm, her heart finally settled somewhat.
That night, Yun Chu slept exceptionally well.
When she woke up in the morning, the weather was brilliantly clear. Spring was gradually fading away, carrying with it the distinct breath of early summer.
Xie Sessan was the first to arrive to pay his morning respects. His expression was as calm and ordinary as ever; yesterday's events apparently had not caused a single ripple of impact upon him.
Once the morning greetings concluded, he headed off to study at the academy. Immediately afterward, the concubines arrived together with the slightly younger young masters and misses.
This was Mother He's very first time paying her respects after officially becoming Xie Jingyu's concubine.
"Auntie He's complexion is looking rather pleasant," Auntie Tao remarked from her seat, her tone unmistakably deliberate in picking a fight. "It seems the Feng Shui of Bige Garden is quite favorable."
Tingyu felt a churn of bitter resentment in her chest. Back then, the courtyard the legal wife had assigned to her didn't even have a proper, decent name, yet why was Mother He permitted to live in Bige Garden while she and Yun'er were relegated to the most remote corner of the entire manor?
Despite the chaotic thoughts swirling in her mind, a smile stretched across her face as she said, "It would seem my lord is quite fond of Auntie He."
Regardless of what the various concubines uttered, Mother He didn't make a single sound. Keeping her head lowered, she stood obediently off to the side.
Yun Chu spoke up, "The household is just about to make summer garments. Later, I'll have two matrons go measure Auntie He for her sizes—we'll make four complete sets for each of the four seasons."
The moment Mother He raised her head, she caught the hostile glares coming from the other three concubines. How dare she accept the offer? She hurriedly opened her mouth to refuse.
Yet Yun Chu insisted, "You are also half a master of the Xie manor. Dressing in such shabby attire would only bring disgrace to my lord. Take what is rightfully yours; pushing things back and forth is far too petty and small-minded."
Mother He had no choice but to say, "Thank you, Madam."
With everything essentially settled, Yun Chu waved her hand to dismiss them.
As they walked away, Tingyu glanced around everywhere, failing to catch any trace of a child's existence. She guessed that Yun'er must have simply seen things wrong.
Tingfang stood off to the side, looking indignant as she muttered, "Madam, that Mother He deliberately seduced my lord. Why are you still treating her so well?"
"You are forbidden from calling her Mother He from now on; she is Auntie He now," Tingshuang corrected. "Madam has her own plans. As a mere maidservant, stop prying too much into things. Go to the front courtyard and check if Uncle Chen has arrived yet."
Of course she knew why the legal wife was treating Auntie He so well—the higher the legal wife lifted Auntie He up, the more miserable Auntie He's days within the manor would become…