The daily struggles of divorced women in ancient times

Xia Mianwan chatted with Madam Pei for a while before her aunt Madam Qin came to the main courtyard with her daughter Qin Qinqing.

Madam Qin entered the main hall and saw this situation. She laughed and said, "Sister, you are such a good mother-in-law. It's only the first day of your marriage, and you've already handed over the household expenses. There aren't many daughters-in-law who can take charge of the household right after they get married."

Although Mrs. Qin said this with a smile, it sounded harsh to others.

Mrs. Pei was a little unhappy. What kind of words were these? "Stop talking and sit down!"

Seeing that her sister did not respond, Madam Qin just smiled and sat down, "I'm going to protect you now. The young lady in our mansion is really lucky. I don't know when my daughter will be able to get married."

Xia Mianwan did not respond to this question and let Mrs. Pei speak.

"Didn't I ask you to come and discuss this matter? I talked about this with Mian Wan, and Mian Wan said she wanted to ask what your conditions are." Mrs. Pei felt that Mrs. Qin was really not acting properly today, and said unhappily.

Mrs. Qin was a little surprised, "Sister, are you not going to care about Aqing's marriage?"

Xia Mianwan smiled faintly and said, "Aunt, what kind of family do you want to find for my cousin? Tell me so I can hear it."

Madam Qin didn't listen to Xia Mianwan at all, and said to Madam Pei: "Sister, how can you just leave it alone? You are my sister after all, and you know that Aqing's marriage is a concern of mine. My master died on the battlefield, but he was a meritorious official. It's really... it's really like a lamp goes out when a person dies."

Mrs. Pei's face started to turn red with anger. "What are you doing? How could I say I don't care? Didn't I tell you to let Mian Wan help you find someone? What are you doing? If you have any dissatisfaction, just say it directly. You are such a grown-up, aren't you ashamed to be so unreasonable? Just say what you want, and tell me what conditions you want!"

Mrs. Qin saw that her sister was angry, so she didn't dare to be too unreasonable. She could only mutter in a low voice: "My Ah Qing has lost her father's protection. It's not that I look down on Mian Wan, it's just... she is a second marriage after all. If she is the one to preside over the wedding, Ah Qing will lose face even more."

Upon hearing this, Madam Pei slammed the table and pointed at Madam Qin, saying, "What nonsense are you talking about? If you are still confused, take Ah Qing and move out. Our Pei family can't afford to support such a noble Buddha like you!"

Seeing that Madam Pei was angry, Qin Qinqing stood up and patted Madam Pei on the back to calm her down. "Don't be angry, Aunt. Mother is just too worried about me. It's my fault. Don't be angry. We don't want to drag down the Pei family. Mother and I will move out soon. We should be able to find an inn now, so we can stay there. Although it's a little inconvenient, Qing doesn't want Aunt to be angry! Aunt treats me very well. As long as Aunt is happy, I'm happy."

Mrs. Pei was so upset by Qin Qinqing's words that she didn't know what to say for a while.

Madam Qin hurriedly pulled Qin Qinqing and said, "What nonsense are you talking about? Why would your aunt kick us out?"

Mrs. Pei was so annoyed by the mother and daughter's behavior that she didn't know what to say for a moment. She knew in her heart that the mother and daughter were trying to bully her, but she couldn't really ignore the sisterhood.

For a moment, Mrs. Pei felt even angrier.

Xia Mianwan had been sitting aside drinking tea and watching the show, and she even ate a fruit. Mrs. Qin was a little unhappy when she saw this, "Mianwan, you are going to be the housekeeper, and you are just going to watch your mother-in-law get angry?"

Xia Mianwan thought for a moment, put down the fruit, and said seriously: "Aunt is right. In that case, I will ask someone to help you pack your things. There are quite a few inns on Hengyang Street. You can go there to find an inn to stay in."

Mrs. Qin didn't expect that Xia Mian would ask them to leave directly. She was stunned and stood up and asked, "What do you mean? My sister didn't even ask us to leave, and you want us to leave?"

Madam Pei also looked at Xia Mianwan, but she knew that Xia Mianwan had her own considerations, so she said coldly: "In this case, you can leave if you want."

Now... Qin Qinqing was also stunned. She didn't know whether to put her hand away from Mrs. Pei's shoulder or put it down.

"Sister...you are going to drive us away too?" Mrs. Qin said in disbelief.

Xia Mianwan was horrified and said to Madam Qin, "Aunt, don't talk nonsense. How could it be Mother who drove you away? Mother never said that. It was my cousin who said that she couldn't bear to see Aunt make Mother angry, so she... wanted to move out and didn't want Aunt to be upset. How come you said it was Mother who wanted to drive you away! Oh my God, there is no way to reason with this!"

Mrs. Qin's face turned pale and blue. She wanted to say something else, but was stopped by Qin Qinqing.

Qin Qinqing's eyes were red, and she looked at Xia Mianwan timidly, "Sister-in-law, it's our fault for making aunt angry, but mother is really just worried about me. My father...died on the battlefield for the sake of the country, but my family members are so cruel and bully us orphans and widows. Aunt...is willing to take us in, we are already very grateful, how could she be so cruel! Sister-in-law, don't worry, we won't make aunt angry again!"

Qin Qinqing retreated again and again, looking pitiful. Xia Mianwan glanced around and found that everyone had a sad look on their faces. What a powerful cousin!

Xia Mianwan picked up the handkerchief, wiped her mouth, and smiled: "Cousin, you are talking as if you have suffered a great injustice in our Pei Mansion. You can't just leave the mansion like this. If you leave the mansion like this, others will think that we are bullying you, an orphan and a widow."

Qin Qinqing glanced at Xia Mianwan and then lowered her eyes, saying faintly, "Ah Qing doesn't dare."

Xia Mianwan lazily stood up, walked to Madam Qin and said, "Aunt, cousin, no matter how unconvinced you are, I am now the young lady in charge of the household affairs of the Pei Mansion. If you think it is inappropriate for me to interfere in your cousin's marriage, then you can only move out and find someone for yourselves. From today on, I will be the head of the Pei Mansion, and I will also be in charge of the marriages of my husband's younger brothers and sisters. This is the case for them, and it will be the same for you if you want to stay in the Pei Mansion. If you think my identity is shameful, then move out, because I will definitely be the head of this family."

Xia Mianwan's voice was not loud, but although it was calm, it was powerful and stunned the two people.