Chapter 83

Chapter 83: Removing the Mother The moment Song Zhizhi arrived at the Jiangyuan Marquis Mansion, Cui Lingrong knew about it. Caiyue brought the news back. "The Second Madam has taken people to the Second Branch. I wonder what she intends to do." Nanny Qiu glanced at her mistress. She could guess the Second Madam's intentions, but whether they would succeed was another matter. Cui Lingrong didn't even lift her head. She listened to Caiyue speak while tracing embroidery patterns. After the beginning of spring, there would be much rain, and she wanted to make two extra pairs of shoes for Xuan-ge and his brother. After Song Zhizhi left the Second Branch, others came to deliver messages. Cui Lingrong managed the Jiangyuan Marquis Mansion—who came and who went, she always knew. A few more days passed. On the second day of the second month, the Dragon Raises Its Head festival, Song Zhizhi arrived with her entire family in tow. She had been suppressed by Old Madame Sun for a while, but the moment her husband returned, she immediately perked up again. Cui Lingrong went to pay her respects to Old Madame Song as per protocol and inevitably crossed paths with Song Zhizhi. When the two met again, Song Zhizhi naturally wore a sour expression. Cui Lingrong showed nothing on her face. When Sun Zhigao spoke to her, she responded as usual, revealing not the slightest hint of anything amiss. "Always so good at putting on an act." Song Zhizhi glanced over, then turned to speak with Princess Rongjia. "The headdress you gave me last time, I absolutely loved it. The one you're wearing today—is that tribute silk flower?" Princess Rongjia said it was. When she had gone to the palace for a banquet in the first month, the Empress had bestowed it upon her. Ordinarily, she couldn't bear to take it out. "Tribute goods really are different—so much prettier than what's sold outside." Song Zhizhi stared longingly at Princess Rongjia's hair bun, constantly hinting that Princess Rongjia should give it to her. "It doesn't matter whether it looks good on someone my age. Qin-jie is just at the age when she loves to dress up. If she could wear such a beautiful silk flower, she'd be absolutely delighted." Princess Rongjia understood perfectly well, but she had only received two of them. It wasn't that she was stingy—it was that Song Zhizhi's behavior was simply too ugly to behold. Since Song Zhizhi had returned to the capital, she had never once given Princess Rongjia anything. Instead, every time she came, she had to take something away. Princess Rongjia pretended not to understand, but Song Zhizhi pulled her daughter over instead, asking if she liked it, then directly demanded, "Princess, look how much Qin-jie likes it. Why not give it to her? You've already worn it for a while—surely you're tired of it by now?" Sun Qinwan looked at Princess Rongjia with hopeful eyes. Knowing it was tribute goods made her want it even more. The more Song Zhizhi pushed, the less Princess Rongjia wanted to give it. She smiled lightly and said, "Qin-jie is at the best age—she doesn't need any adornment to look beautiful enough." Hearing this, Song Zhizhi's face fell immediately. The corner of her mouth twisted, and she told her daughter, none too happily, to go play by herself. Sun Qinwan didn't get the silk flower hairpin she wanted. Not daring to vent her anger at Princess Rongjia, she went out with her maidservant in a foul mood and happened to bump into Madame Jiang, who had arrived late. "Oh dear, it's Qin-jie. No harm done, no harm done—let me take you to get tidied up." Madame Jiang pulled Sun Qinwan along and left. Song Zhizhi heard the commotion and followed after them. In the main hall, only Cui Lingrong and Princess Rongjia remained face to face, along with Madam Li, who said nothing. Old Madame Song asked, "Why haven't Huadie and Pingping come over?" Ordinarily, on such occasions, concubines were not brought out. Old Madame Song had these two come for two reasons: one was to show regard for the child in He Pingping's belly, and the other was to use Huadie to provoke Cui Lingrong. No sooner had she spoken than Huadie and He Pingping arrived at Shouan Tang one after the other. Old Madame Song hurriedly asked He Pingping if she felt unwell, then had Huadie sit beside Princess Rongjia. The Old Madame beamed at Princess Rongjia and Huadie, but the moment she looked at Cui Lingrong, her smile vanished. Huadie's pregnancy was now considered stable, and recently she had become extremely particular about her food. "The pastries here at the Old Madame's place are still the best. If only this concubine could come serve the Old Madame every day." "If you want to eat them, just tell the main kitchen." Old Madame Song said. Huadie looked troubled. "I'm afraid that won't do. The Eldest Madam said the marquis mansion's finances are tight. I've asked for extra food several times, and she won't allow it anymore." Huadie still bore a grudge against the Eldest Madam for beating Baitao, so she deliberately dripped poison into the Old Madame's ear. Old Madame Song immediately looked over. "Lady Cui, is this true?" "To answer the Old Madame, when Huadie first discovered she was pregnant, the Princess made it clear that this daughter-in-law was not to interfere with matters in Huadie's quarters. All of Huadie's provisions are first sent to Wutong Yuan and then distributed from there. As for Huadie's additional requests, it's not that this daughter-in-law refused—it's that I feared she might eat something that would upset her stomach, and then this daughter-in-law would be blamed for it." Cui Lingrong used Princess Rongjia as her shield. "After all, the Princess specifically emphasized that this daughter-in-law should not meddle in matters of Huadie's quarters." Old Madame Song had wanted to make things difficult for Cui Lingrong but was blocked again. Feeling deflated, she waved her hand and told Cui Lingrong to go about her business. Cui Lingrong had long wanted to leave. She took her daughter outside for some fresh air. As soon as Cui Lingrong left, Old Madame Song complained, "She's become quite formidable now. In her eyes, where is I, her mother-in-law?" "Sister Cui probably didn't mean anything by it." Princess Rongjia said. "Yes, Old Madame. The Eldest Madam has always been thorough. Perhaps this concubine misunderstood her." Huadie chimed in as well, but just as she finished speaking, a maidservant knocked over a cup of tea and stained her clothes. "What are you doing?" "Forgive me, Concubine. This servant will take you to change immediately." Huadie followed reluctantly, changed into clean clothes, and as she passed by a room, overheard Song Zhizhi complaining about the marquis household. She couldn't help but stop in her tracks. "I originally thought the Commandery Princess was generous, but it turns out she's stingy too. I just asked her for a velvet flower hairpin, and she wouldn't give it." Song Zhizhi huffed, still fixated on the hairpin. Madame Jiang wouldn't speak ill of anyone to Song Zhizhi, after all, with that mouth of hers, she might sell her out at any moment. "After all, it's a tribute item, so it's normal for the Princess to treasure it. Eldest Sister, don't be upset. We should be heading back soon. Old Madame likes Sister Qin, so she'll definitely have other good things for her." "Three years without seeing you, and you've become much more eloquent." Song Zhizhi was appeased and felt much better. Her gaze fell on Madame Jiang's lower abdomen. "That's right, your belly has never shown any movement, so no matter how domineering you are, you can't be arrogant. I'm telling you, you should see a proper doctor. You actually let your cousin climb into your husband's bed—people will laugh you to death if word gets out!" Madame Jiang's face turned extremely ugly. At that moment, she really wanted to slap Song Zhizhi across the face, but she could only endure it. "It's my misfortune, not having He Pingping's good luck." "Then stop being so jealous. What good does it do you to make my brother die without an heir?" Song Zhizhi said. "Eldest Sister, rest assured. He Pingping's pregnancy is protected by Old Madame, just as Huadie is looked after by Princess Rongjia. Both are perfectly secure." Madame Jiang had already noticed someone outside the room and deliberately brought up Huadie. Song Zhizhi chuckled. "Huadie is a fool. Does she really think that once she gives birth to the child, she'll soar to the heavens? If I were the Princess, I would definitely remove the mother to keep the child, and never allow the child to have divided loyalties. Since you're smart enough to know your place, even if you can't bear a child yourself, you can do the same. Does it matter whether the child came from your womb? Once the child loses its birth mother, you become the closest legitimate mother, and they'll still have to respect you!" After saying so much, Song Zhizhi's mouth was dry, and she was annoyed that the servants attending her lacked perceptiveness. Outside the room, Huadie's face turned deathly pale. She quickly leaned on Baitao to slip away. She leaned against the wall, gasping for breath. "Baitao, what the Eldest Miss said was nonsense, right?" "Of course it was. The Eldest Miss has no filter on her mouth. Don't take her words to heart. You need to take care of the child in your belly." Baitao hadn't expected the Eldest Miss to spout such nonsense. Really, it had scared her so much that her back was soaked with sweat. But Huadie couldn't calm down for a while. What did she mean by "definitely remove the mother to keep the child"? Would the Eldest Miss do that? Would the Princess too? Huadie's mind was in turmoil. That night, when Song Shulan came to see her, she couldn't help but bring it up. "Marquis, this... this concubine would like to discuss something with you?" "Go ahead." Huadie was young and pregnant, so even if Song Shulan didn't stay the night, he would still come by every few days to check on her. "Could you let this concubine raise the child herself?" Huadie placed her hand on the Marquis's. "This is this concubine's first child. This concubine can't bear to part with him." Regarding this matter, Song Shulan had heard Old Madame mention it once, saying that the Princess might raise Huadie's child, but the Princess hadn't brought it up with him yet. Now that Huadie was asking, Song Shulan learned that Princess Rongjia had already mentioned it to Huadie. He didn't think it was a big deal—after all, he already had two legitimate sons—so he agreed on the spot. "If you want to raise him yourself, I'll help you talk to the Princess. Just rest easy and take care of your pregnancy. Don't overthink it. The child is yours—he'll always be your child." Hearing the Marquis say this, Huadie felt somewhat reassured. When Song Shulan went to the Wutong Courtyard, he brought up the matter with Princess Rongjia. Princess Rongjia's expression couldn't hold, but she didn't dare lose her temper, afraid that Song Shulan would become suspicious. It wasn't until the next day, when Baitao secretly came to see Wang Hechun's Wife, that Princess Rongjia learned it was Song Zhizhi who had been running her mouth. "Song Zhizhi, that fool! I gave her so many things to win her over, and all she does is ruin my plans!" Princess Rongjia hurled the teapot to the ground in fury. "Chen De's Wife, what do you think I should do?" "Why is the Princess in such a hurry? Once the child loses its mother, someone will have to raise it. We'll proceed with the original plan—it's still the same." Chen De's Wife calmed her mistress down. "That Baitao is somewhat clever. But people like that can't be kept around." Princess Rongjia said it was easy to handle. "If something happens to Huadie, we can find any excuse to deal with Baitao. You always have a way—otherwise, I would have panicked again." Baitao, who had returned for something she'd forgotten, accidentally overheard this conversation. She had thought that by tipping off the Princess, the Princess would remember her contribution and let her leave with some money. At this moment, Baitao's scalp went numb. Hearing that the room had gone quiet, she quickly tiptoed away. Should she go back to the concubine? No. That one was stupid. The Eldest Young Madam—yes, she had to go find the Eldest Young Madam!