Chapter 227

Chapter 227: Keeping the Son Nanny Qiu was an old hand in the Jiangyuan Marquis Mansion. It was easy for her to slip past others' notice and quietly make her way to Du Cheng's room. "The Eldest Young Madam said you're special—these are things only you get to have." "Doesn't Brother Qian have any?" Du Cheng asked. "Of course he does, but yours are more precious." As Nanny Qiu spoke, she could see Cheng'er's eyes sizing her up, and knew he wouldn't drop his guard so easily. "Use them without worry—this is the Eldest Young Madam's goodwill. If the County Mistress acknowledges you, you'll be a master of the Marquis Mansion too, and the Eldest Young Madam will naturally have to respect you." A master of the Marquis Mansion? Du Cheng had never been treated with such regard even in the Du family, let alone by County Princess Rongjia. But this Cui Shi—what kind of person was she, really? Du Cheng felt he couldn't see through her, couldn't understand her. Living under others' roofs had made him quite adept at reading people, but when it came to Cui Shi, he simply couldn't manage it. Faced with Cui Shi's overtures, Du Cheng had no choice but to accept them for now—after all, you don't slap a smiling face. "It's good that you've accepted. If you need anything in the future, you can have Dongyun find the Eldest Young Madam. The County Mistress does have a temper, but she's not bad at heart. Don't be afraid of displeasing her. She can't bear children herself, so having you as a son—she'll surely be happy." Nanny Qiu said she should be going. Du Cheng moved to see her out, but Nanny Qiu stopped him. Watching Nanny Qiu's retreating figure, Du Cheng kept turning over her words about County Princess Rongjia being unable to have children. What did that mean? The County Princess couldn't bear children? It seemed so. Though the old Du couple always tried to avoid such topics in front of him, he had suspected from their fragments of conversation that County Princess Rongjia was barren. Now it was confirmed—and from a servant's mouth, no less. Clearly, County Princess Rongjia's standing in the Jiangyuan Marquis Mansion wasn't as exalted as he had imagined. While Du Cheng was still puzzling over this, over in Linglong Pavilion, Du Shinan had just returned from social engagements outside, reeking of alcohol. Mrs. He poured hot tea and, while wiping his face and hands, scolded him, "Why drink so much? If there's something you can't get done, just go to County Princess Rongjia—she wouldn't dare refuse, would she?" "Been away from Bianjing for years—those people are all snobs. And the few who are worth befriending, don't they take some effort?" Du Shinan sat back like a lord, letting Mrs. He attend to him. "Relying on County Princess Rongjia alone won't get us far. We need our own connections too. You don't think someone with County Princess Rongjia's temperament would put up with this forever, do you?" There had to be a limit. Du Shinan knew that well. Just as he finished speaking, Wang Hechun's Wife arrived, saying she'd found a proper residence for the Du family. "Ordinary residences wouldn't meet your standards, so the County Mistress specially petitioned the Prince's household. Her Highness the Princess Consort has a property—you can stay there for now." Wang Hechun's Wife had been running herself ragged these past days over the Du family's various affairs and was already fed up. "The County Mistress said tomorrow is an auspicious day—move tomorrow." In truth, County Princess Rongjia couldn't bear to wait even one more day. But Du Shinan said, "What's the hurry? Before we move, we should at least go see the place. It can't be worse than Linglong Pavilion, can it? Otherwise, what's the point of moving?" Besides, moving out was easy; moving back in would be hard. Du Shinan knew very well that County Princess Rongjia wanted to send them far away—and to Princess Consort Rong's property, no less. Wouldn't that mean being watched by Princess Consort Rong? They dared to threaten County Princess Rongjia, but they had no wish to clash head-on with Prince Rong and his wife. "Second Master Du, what the County Mistress found for you is naturally good—why make so much trouble?" Wang Hechun's Wife couldn't help adding a word. The moment she finished, Du Shinan rose and slapped her across the face. "What sort of manners are these? Since when does a servant tell a master he's making trouble? Go back and tell County Princess Rongjia—if she wants me to move, it'll be on my terms. As long as she makes me uncomfortable, I won't leave a single day!" Du Shinan had actually planned to move anyway—staying at the Jiangyuan Marquis Mansion the whole time wasn't good for socializing. But he couldn't stand County Princess Rongjia's attitude. Wang Hechun's Wife was stunned by the slap. Covering her face, she went back to County Princess Rongjia in tears. "They're too arrogant! This is the Jiangyuan Marquis Mansion, not their Du household, and they dare treat a servant like this! Slapping my face is slapping yours!" "You're the foolish one—he hit you, why didn't you hit back?" County Princess Rongjia looked at the handprint on Wang Hechun's Wife's face. She wanted nothing more than to string Du Shinan up, but she didn't dare. Wang Hechun's Wife wouldn't dare either. If she fought back, never mind whether Second Master Du would beat her to death—if word reached the Eldest Young Madam and Old Madame, they'd beat her to death themselves. At that moment, Wang Hechun's Wife couldn't help but recall Nanny Qiu's words—from her own mother-in-law, to Chen De's Wife afterward, every nanny who followed County Princess Rongjia had come to a bad end. A sudden sense of dread washed over her. Could she too be... "What are you spacing out about now?" County Princess Rongjia clicked her tongue. "Since Du Shinan wants to see the place, let him see it. I've already sent my brothers to investigate—we need to know why the Du family's second branch came to Bianjing in the first place. I've also sent word to Old Master Du. That old bastard—if he won't rein in his son, I'll make sure he never sees that bastard Du Shinan again!" Wang Hechun's Wife nodded hurriedly. "Yes, you're right. Second Master Du has gone too far." Early the next morning, Wang Hechun's Wife had no choice but to take Du Shinan and his wife to look at the residence. Du Shinan and Mrs. He were quite satisfied, but they also demanded that furniture be added. County Princess Rongjia suppressed her temper and furnished the place according to Du Shinan's requests. After going back and forth for half a month, Du Shinan finally picked a time to move. However, before leaving, Du Shinan emphasized one matter to County Princess Rongjia. "Originally, Cheng ger is a member of the Du family and should live in the Du family's residence. But since I'm only borrowing the place myself, and he has you as his mother, this Linglong Pavilion is quite nice—let him stay here. Whenever the Du family purchases a new residence in Bianjing, I'll come and take him back." "Du Shinan, don't go too far!" County Princess Rongjia slammed the table and stood up. "Why is Sister-in-law angry? You and my elder brother were married for many years. You can't be so heartless as to refuse to look after his only son, can you?" Du Shinan was unafraid. "Even if this matter were brought before The Emperor, your Rong Prince Mansion would still have to nod in agreement." County Princess Rongjia didn't want to see a single member of the Du family, yet this beast Du Shinan actually left Du Cheng behind. Even though Du Cheng attended Guozijian and only came back twice a month, County Princess Rongjia didn't want to see Du Cheng for even a quarter of an hour. Not to mention that Linglong Pavilion was so close to Wutong Courtyard—if Du Cheng stayed, wouldn't she run into him every few days? Seeing that County Princess Rongjia remained silent, Du Shinan issued a harsh ultimatum. "If County Mistress doesn't agree, then I won't leave either. The choice is yours." He patted his clothes, leisurely sipped his tea, and relished the feeling of having the upper hand—there was no greater pleasure in his heart.