Chapter 280

Madam Yu watched Fu Tingjun's retreating figure, her expression complicated.

Twenty-four years old, without either a distinguished family background or noble lineage—a woman adrift like duckweed, with no family to protect her, had actually become a third-rank Madam... Looking far and wide, aside from imperial relatives and nobles, she was likely the only one!

Not only that, she had also won the favor of the Grand Empress Dowager, standing alongside the Grand Madame of Marquis Longping and the wife of Marquis Wuding, receiving the Grand Empress Dowager's personal inquiries and stealing the spotlight... How many people could claim such an honor!

With mixed emotions, she returned to Jiadao Street.

Her daughter-in-law, Lady Fan, was waiting at the hanging-flower gate with maidservants and matrons.

She was strikingly beautiful, with a gentle smile, and stepped forward respectfully to help Madam Yu down from the carriage.

But inexplicably, Madam Yu felt a surge of irritation.

What use was being pretty? There were plenty of beautiful women in the world—did that mean they could all attend the Grand Empress Dowager's seventieth birthday feast?

Suddenly, Fu Tingjun's gorgeous face flashed through Madam Yu's mind.

She had stood before the Grand Empress Dowager, her smile radiant and bright, her every gesture poised yet humble and courteous. That was true gentleness, true grace, true beauty... How could those women who, like sparrows, never knew their own lowliness, possibly understand?

At these thoughts, Madam Yu's mood sank even further.

With a grim face, she went to the main hall.

Lady Fan felt utterly bewildered but could only serve Madam Yu with redoubled care.

Seeing that Lady Fan only knew how to fawn and had no opinions of her own, Madam Yu found her increasingly displeasing. She asked, "Did Depu say when he would be back?"

Because of the Grand Empress Dowager's birthday, all the touring censors had returned to the capital. Yu Jingxiu, however, had not been of sufficient rank to attend today's celebration.

Lady Fan smiled and said, "In the evening, there will be fireworks at West Garden. My husband said he would be home a little later."

Madam Yu nodded and said, "Who did Depu go to West Garden with?"

"I don't know," Lady Fan said with a demure smile. "My husband didn't say, so I didn't ask!"

Inexplicably, Madam Yu flew into a rage.

She said sternly, "If he doesn't tell you, you don't ask. If someday your father-in-law and I both pass away, and he's out selling off land and property—if he doesn't tell you, would you simply not ask then?"

Lady Fan was stunned.

Then she felt deeply wronged.

Wasn't she following the Three Obediences and Four Virtues? Had she done something wrong?

But she dared not argue with Madam Yu, so she could only lower her head and admit fault: "Mother, please don't be angry. I was wrong. From now on, I'll ask where my husband goes."

Madam Yu hadn't meant for her to investigate her son's whereabouts—she wanted her to stop focusing solely on Depu's food and clothing, and to also care about what her husband was doing out in the world... Seeing that Lady Fan completely failed to understand what she meant, Madam Yu wearily pressed her hand to her forehead, then waved her hand with a dejected expression, signaling her to withdraw.

Lady Fan left the main hall, her face alternating between red and pale.

Just then, a young maidservant announced timidly from behind the curtain: "Madam, the young master has returned!"

Madam Yu looked up and saw Yu Jingxiu, dressed in a bamboo-green Hangzhou silk robe, striding in with vigorous energy.

She asked in surprise, "Weren't you planning to go watch the fireworks at West Garden with your friends? Why are you back so soon? Has something happened?"

Yu Jingxiu bowed to his mother, then sat down beside her with a smile, saying, "Nothing's wrong. Someone at the tavern accidentally spilled wine on my shoes, so I came back to change into a fresh pair."

Madam Yu's gaze fell to his shoes.

Dark green cloud-pattern shoes—she couldn't quite tell where they were dirty.

She nodded with slight displeasure and asked, "Who did you go to West Garden to watch the fireworks with today?" If someone had spilled wine on his shoes, it couldn't have been a respectable establishment!

"A few former colleagues from the Messenger Office," Yu Jingxiu said with a laugh. "They said they hadn't seen me in a long time and specially came to invite me out to enjoy the festivities."

Madam Yu mused, "Today is the Grand Empress Dowager's birthday—shouldn't the Messenger Office be helping out..."

Yu Jingxiu laughed. "The Messenger Office has thirty or forty people; not everyone can go. They only select a few who are familiar with protocol..."

For officials in the capital, being well-versed in protocol was very important. Such people tended to be promoted more easily.

Madam Yu's expression grew even more displeased. "Since you were going out to enjoy the festivities, you should have invited some colleagues from the Censorate as well. The touring censor post only lasts one year. By the time you return to the Censorate, some will have been promoted to directors in the Six Ministries, while others will have been sent out as county magistrates. By then, getting together won't be so easy."

Yu Jingxiu smiled dismissively. "Mother, the Censorate has always been like an iron camp with a rotating garrison. Every year some are sent out, and others are brought in. Once my term ends and I return to the capital, there will be plenty of time to socialize with those colleagues."

Seeing that her son wasn't taking her words to heart, Madam Yu felt somewhat displeased and said, "You're not young anymore—how can you afford to squander your time? You should set your ambitions early..."

Before she could finish, Yu Jingxiu's expression shifted slightly as he said, "It's too late to make plans today anyway. We'll talk another time when I'm free!" Then he stood up, "It's getting late, and they're still waiting for me at the tavern. I'll go back to my room to change my shoes."

Madam Yu was choked with anger and couldn't help saying, "Truly, 'a good wife brings half the blessings'..."

Hearing this, Yu Jingxiu frowned deeply and said with some displeasure, "Mother, what now? If you want to criticize me, then criticize me—why drag Lady Fan into it?"

"What's the matter? I merely made a sigh of lament, and before I even named your wife, you can't stand it? For her sake, you'd even defy your own mother!" Madam Yu flew into a rage. The anger she had been suppressing ever since she saw Fu Tingjun finally blazed out of control, "Your father is still alive, and I haven't lost my wits yet, but you can't even tolerate your own mother because of your wife? How filial you are! Not in vain did I carry you for ten months and suffer to give birth to you..."

As Madam Yu spoke in bitter irony, Yu Jingxiu's face turned pale, and he quickly knelt before his mother.

Seeing this, Mama Shu immediately led the servants attending the room out.

"Mother, that's not what I meant!" He tugged at his mother's sleeve pleadingly, "I just think that since Lady Fan is now your daughter-in-law, if there are things she doesn't understand, you should teach her properly. Speaking of her this way in front of the servants—how is she supposed to establish herself in this household? She's the wife I chose. If she's lacking, then I'm lacking. Even if you won't spare her face, at least spare me some dignity..."

Madam Yu spat at Yu Jingxiu and said, "So you know that criticizing her means not sparing your dignity? But who has ever spared mine? Teach her? I wouldn't dare teach her! The moment I open my mouth, you rush to shield her as if I were about to devour her, terrified she might suffer the slightest grievance. Do you know who I saw today? I saw Madam Fu! She's now a Third-Rank Lady of Virtue! Do you remember how you treated her back then? Surely you know it in your own heart! With anyone else, the grass over their grave would be as tall as a person by now. But do you know what the Grand Madame of Marquis Pinghou said to me today? She said that when the Emperor decided to promote Zhao Ling, besides the fact that he was recommended by the Marquis of Yingchuan, another important reason was Fu's chastity and integrity. The Emperor said that with such a woman as his wife, even if Zhao Ling overstepped his bounds, he would never lose his virtue or stray from proper conduct."

Yu Jingxiu's face changed dramatically.

Madam Yu gave him a cold smile and said, "Aren't you always praising how virtuous and refined Lady Fan is? Then give me some examples! Has she contributed to expanding the Yu family's lineage? Has she advised her husband to advance in his career and bring glory to our ancestors? Even her own household is in such disarray that people gossip about it... It's only you who treasures her like a jewel! Let me tell you plainly—our Yu family has never cast out a wife, but if she continues in her unrepentant ways, sending her back to our ancestral home in Nanjing to serve Eldest Aunt in your place would be perfectly reasonable, and no one would dare say a word against it!"

"Mother!" Yu Jingxiu was greatly alarmed, "I know I was wrong. I'll properly discipline Lady Fan from now on..." With that, he kowtowed several times to his mother.

Madam Yu gave a disdainful "hmm" and called out loudly to Mama Shu: "Go tell the Eldest Young Madam that starting tomorrow, she is to perform her morning and evening greetings to me—she must not break the household rules. She is the eldest grandson's wife of our Yu family. Above her, the aunts of each branch are watching; below her, she must discipline the concubines in her quarters. She cannot afford to violate the rules and become a laughingstock."

Mama Shu quickly glanced at Yu Jingxiu, who was kneeling on the ground with a somewhat dazed expression, and softly replied, "Yes."

Madam Yu leaned on Mama Shu's arm as she got down from the kang, without even looking at her son, and went to the study.

The room fell silent.

Even the rustling of the spring wind through the treetops was clearly audible.

Yet Yu Jingxiu felt as though a millstone were pressing on his chest, making it hard to breathe.

Had the Grand Madame of Marquis Pinghou really said that the Emperor's promotion of Zhao Ling was partly due to that Fu woman? Or was this merely a fabrication his mother had invented to provoke him... Though his mind entertained these thoughts, he knew deep down that his mother was not the sort of person to do such a thing... But Fu was merely a woman—how could the Emperor have thought more highly of Zhao Ling because of her?

Suddenly, he recalled the scene of his last visit to Fu Tingjun.

She held her head high, her gaze carrying an arrogance that seemed to look down upon the world... unlike any woman he had ever seen... as if nothing could ever defeat her... His mother admired women like this the most... Eldest Aunt seemed to share his mother's sentiment, also favoring such women... She had even said that men are trees, women are soil—no matter how fine the tree, without good soil, it cannot grow into a towering giant... If his father had married that woman back then, even if she clashed with his mother, she would surely have found ways to contend with her, wouldn't she? Perhaps she would have been even more formidable than his mother, even overpowering her...

The thought flashed by, and Yu Jingxiu couldn't help but shudder.

Why would he think such a thing?

This was too absurd, too absurd...

He immediately scrambled to his feet and hurried out of his mother's room as if fleeing.

...

Meanwhile, Lady Fan was brooding in frustration. Seeing Yu Jingxiu walk in looking somewhat distracted, she quickly put on a smile and greeted him: "Didn't you say you were going to the West Garden to watch the fireworks? Why are you back at this hour? Have you eaten? I had the kitchen stew an old hen, originally saving it for your late-night snack. Shall I have someone bring you a bowl?"

"No need." Yu Jingxiu forced a smile and mustered his spirits, saying, "I just came back to change my shoes and I'll be off—my colleagues from the Bureau of Ceremonies are still waiting for me at the tavern!" With that, he asked Lady Fan, "How much silver do you have on hand right now? Give me two hundred taels—I have use for it."