After the replacement marriage, I was forced to fight at home

Meng Wan rubbed his forehead and got off the warm sedan chair. The servants in Qinghe Garden looked at the Second Madam in such a state and made all kinds of guesses. Most of them thought that the Second Madam had not lived there for a full month, but was afraid not to come back, and was having a headache.

"Go and divide the things you brought back. Except for the ones for the princess, you can take Cai'er to deliver the rest." Meng Wan let Chuan'er take off her cloak for her, and whispered to Mother Kong, "Make sure to explain clearly what's for my second sister and Li separately."

Mother Kong lowered her head and turned to walk out. Cai'er stood there, hesitant to speak, with an excited expression on her face.

Meng Wan smiled slightly, "Go and help Mother Kong deliver the things first. I have to go to Junyueju to pay my respects later. I know you have a lot to say. We can talk when you come back in the evening. There is no rush."

Cai Er chuckled, "Second Madam is really smart. She immediately figured out what this servant was going to say."

"You, Second Grandma dotes on you too much, and your speech is becoming more and more undisciplined." Chuan'er reached out and touched Cai'er's forehead.

Cai'er smiled and lifted the cotton curtain and went out.

"What did you say?" Meng Wan sat in front of the dressing table and let Chuan'er take off her headdress.

"When Madam Fan returned home that day, a maid came to her door with a box in her arms, and the two talked for a long time. In the afternoon, Madam Fan took the box to the Treasure Hall and then to the Huichun Pavilion."

Meng Wan frowned. Went to the pharmacy? Could it be that the box contained medicine?

"After hearing what her son said, Mrs. Song Zhu got the chance to go to these two places the next day to inquire. She spent some money and learned that the medicines that Madam Fan asked the doctor to prescribe were all medicines that would help people get pregnant."

Meng Wan took off her earrings and smiled slightly, she really thought of herself as a mother-in-law.

"Song Zhu's family also said that after Chun Tao was given a vacation by the Second Master, she was taken away by a bullock cart that night and headed south. She hasn't returned in the past few days. So, she doesn't have the ability to follow."

Meng Wan nodded. Mother Fan's meaning was very clear. She was eager for her to give birth to a child so that Zhou Yu could compete for that position. But why did Chun Tao go out instead of staying at home? She was taken away by a bullock cart. This was obviously the work of Mrs. Hu.

"Song Zhu's wife said that her son was still young and didn't recognize everyone in the mansion. So, her son didn't even know who the maid who went to look for Mama Fan was or who the driver was."

"What's her son's name?"

"His name is Song Liugen." It is easy to understand. Song Zhu's family has only one son and one daughter. Especially since he had this son when he was old, he naturally treasures him.

"However, Song Zhu's family also said that although Liu Gen is young, he has a good memory. If he sees these two people again, he will definitely recognize them."

"Okay, that's great. Ask the Song Zhu family to find more opportunities for Liugen to walk around the mansion, especially the maids in the princess's courtyard, to see if there's the maid who went to see Mama Fan that day." Meng Wan stood up, picked up the daily jacket that Dongmei had just found and put it on, "No, let's take a look at the ones in our courtyard first."

"In our courtyard, the second grandmother suspected..."

"Well, I don't believe that the princess only has Chuntao in Qinghe Garden, and she is such a stupid one. She was able to find medicine for Mother Fan and send it to her door, which shows that she is very frequent in daily life. I think Mother Fan still doesn't trust the maid of Junyueju."

"Yes, I will do it right away. Second Madam is really wise, and she has made good use of the Song Zhu family's talent." Chuan'er really admired her.

After Song Zhu's family surrendered, Meng Wan did not reply to her immediately. Who knows if it was a trap set by Hu. It was not until Cai'er "walked the streets and alleys" to observe for a period of time that Meng Wan decided to give it a try. After all, she couldn't not use any of the people in the palace. With only the few people she brought, they were unfamiliar with the place, and it was really difficult and slow to open up the situation. She didn't have time to do everything slowly.

I might as well give it a try and start with the affairs in my own yard. Even if it was really an insider arranged by Hu, what I was inquiring about was the affairs of Qinghe Garden, which had nothing to do with Hu.

Therefore, the first task of the head of the Song Zhu family was to pay attention to Mother Fan's movements during the days when Meng Wan was away from home, all her movements, especially those when she left the house and went home.

I didn't expect that Song Zhu's family was so smart. She asked her youngest son to keep an eye on Mother Fan. He was just a child, and he usually earned some snacks by running errands for the maids and women in various courtyards. No one would pay much attention to him.

This is good, and Song Zhu's family also gave her a surprise. She was surprised that they knew to keep an eye on Chuntao.

"I did ask her why she was staring at Chuntao. Mrs. Song Zhu said that everyone in the mansion knew that Chuntao was placed in Qinghe Garden by the princess to be the second master's concubine. Although no one could explain exactly what happened in Qinghe Garden the night before, there were still people who were quick to tell that Chuntao had slept with the second master. The second master was afraid that the second mistress would be angry when she came back, after all, they were newly married, so he sent Chuntao home to stay for two days. She said that she didn't believe the news, so she was more concerned about it."

"Okay, very good. You discuss with Mother Kong and assign her to do some less important tasks until you are sure that she can be used. Have you given her the money?"

"Yes, I saw that she was not living well. Her coat was not thick enough. She was waiting for me in the teahouse on such a cold day, but she was reluctant to drink even a cup of hot tea. When I gave her the silver, she did not refuse. She just said that she did not need so much and wanted to return it to me. I said that she would need money for many things in the future, so I asked her to keep it."

Meng Wan understood why the Song Zhu family was so eager to approach her. The couple were both doing rough work in the mansion. Although their daughter was paid a full-time maid, she was not valued. Their son was too young to do a job and earn a monthly salary. Maybe she would be bullied by others on weekdays. With her status, Hu and Xie Fen looked down on her.

So, she looked at her new second wife. After all, she knew nothing about the situation in the mansion and needed an old lady like her. And she was also very cautious. While doing things for herself, she asked Chuan'er to report the situation outside. Haha, she was a smart person.

Smart people are good, because they know what they want better. Whether it is feelings or interests between people, there must always be something in common in order to cooperate happily.

"Second Grandma, will you take Madam Fan's medicine?"

"Eat it. Why not? If I don't eat it, I'll be sorry for her kindness. I want to see how I can swallow her medicine. Besides, this is a good opportunity. I have thought of a way to turn the tables."

"But, Second Madam, I always feel that the person who sent her the medicine must be no ordinary person. It is impossible that he simply sent her medicine to help her conceive. What if..."

"So, I have to eat more, so that they can dispel their doubts and see what they really want. From today on, no matter it is Second Master and me, you should be careful with your food. In the yard, let Shanling keep a close eye on her and see how she delivers the medicine to me. Outside, let Liugen keep watching and see if he can find anything. Safety comes first."

Chuan Er nodded, "Yes, I understand. It would be great if we could build a small kitchen in Qinghe Garden."

Yes, having one's own kitchen would make food safer, but there was no reason to do so now. The only other palaces with small kitchens now are Junyueju, Hongge's Zhongcuiyuan, and Xiaohuan's place where she is pregnant.

In fact, there is a simple kitchen in the master's courtyard and the back room, where you can boil some water, cook a bowl of noodles, boil some medicine, etc. But that's all, frying, stir-frying, or deep-frying is impossible.

——————

Mrs. Hu was sitting there with a headband on her head and a not very good look on her face. Ever since Meng Wan came in, Zhou Yinghan had been massaging Mrs. Hu's shoulders without stopping.

Meng Wan looked at the maids standing on both sides counting the patterns on the carpet, and saw that Li was distressed about her daughter but didn't dare to speak up. He sighed in his heart, what was Hu trying to say? Was she doing it for herself?

Meng Wan just played dumb to the end. She didn't ask any questions about Hu's weakness, and she pretended not to hear Xie Fen's sighs when she said a few words.

"Originally, I should have gone to the Marquis' Mansion to visit my mother-in-law in person, but my body wasn't doing well. I collapsed the day after you left. My shoulders are still sore until now. I'm so tired that Han'er has to come and massage me every day. Thank you for your hard work."

Zhou Yinghan quickly turned around and bowed, "This is what a daughter should do. I don't dare to worry about the word hardship."

After saying that, seeing that there was no reaction from Mrs. Hu, he gently rubbed her wrist and then stood behind Mrs. Hu and continued to massage.

Meng Wan picked up the tea and said softly, "My mother also said that the weather this year is indeed different from previous years. People of your age are most likely to get sick. Princess, you must be careful. If you get sick, it will not be beautiful."

After saying this, he blew on the tea leisurely and drank it, without asking why Mrs. Hu was feeling unwell, especially on the second day after he returned to her parents' home.

Mrs. Hu was so angry that she was really sick. What did she mean by an elderly person? Did she mean that she was very old? And she was also causing the root of the disease. Was she cursing herself?

Seeing that Meng Wan didn't accept the challenge, she frowned and glanced at Xie Fen. Xie Fen stood up helplessly and forced a smile, saying, "It's all my daughter-in-law's fault. The preparations for the autumn banquet were not sufficient. Who knew there would be problems with the banquet? We almost put dishes that could easily cause the clan leader's wife to have 'rubella' on the main table. Fortunately, my third sister was thoughtful and didn't let the clan members laugh at us."

This "rash" has a similar meaning to allergy in modern times.

"That's right. He didn't even look carefully when booking the table. How could he have made such a mistake? It's really laughable." Zhou Yingning interjected.

"Oh, this is a really big deal. I hope the clan leader's wife didn't eat the wrong dish. Sister-in-law, please check who served the wrong dish. In my opinion, they should be severely punished." Meng Wan opened her beautiful big eyes with a harmless expression.

Hu looked at Meng Wan's face, and suddenly she lost the mood to find fault with her. For such a simple-minded person who couldn't even understand what she was saying, it was a waste of her to create such a scene for her. Forget it, just ignore her. Such a test is of no value at all, and it is a waste of her time.