Harem Daily Life

Madam Su and Su Xing didn't know where the Zhou family came from. Madam Su was worried, so she endured her illness and got up to accompany Su Xing to the front yard.

Zhou Chen wouldn't be considered exceptionally handsome, but his tall and slender figure, which gives him an elegant and refined appearance, certainly adds to his appeal.

Madam Su was satisfied at first glance, but after looking at it a few more times, she became somewhat angry.

"I think you must be in your mid-twenties, while my daughter is only thirteen. Isn't that a bit too much of an age gap?"

Judging from the young master Zhou's attire, he didn't seem to be from a poor family and couldn't find a wife, which made Madam Su even more suspicious.

Unlike Madam Su, Madam Zhou took a great liking to Su Xing. She could tell at a glance that Su Xing was a well-behaved girl with no temper.

She said to Madam Su, "She's a bit older and knows how to care for people."

Madam Su chimed in, "Yes, sister-in-law, the Zhou family is a wealthy merchant family in the capital. When my niece marries into the family, she will be the matriarch. It's such a good marriage, sister-in-law, so please don't be picky."

Madam Su still felt something was amiss, so she simply asked the question that had been bothering her: "Young Master Zhou is over twenty years old and still unmarried? Is it because you have too many concubines in your household and no family is willing to marry you off? Or does Young Master Zhou have some hidden illness?"

Madam Zhou's expression changed: "My son is in very good health." Seeing that Madam Su did not believe her, she had no choice but to explain: "To tell you the truth, we came to propose marriage because we want to marry your daughter to be our second wife."

Without a second thought, Madam Su refused: "No, I will not allow this marriage."

Being a second wife is never as good as being the first wife. Anyway, Su Xing is still young, so he can look at other options. There's no rush.

Madam Zhou glanced at Madam Su and gave her a meaningful look. Madam Su coughed lightly and said, "Sister-in-law, you know perfectly well what kind of situation you and your daughter are in now. It won't be easy for my niece to climb a higher branch than the Zhou family. The Zhou family is wealthy, and they're going to marry my niece to be their mistress. What more could you ask for? I heard that Young Master Zhou only has one concubine now, isn't that right? And she's the younger sister of the Princess of Jin?"

Madam Su Er had her own ulterior motives in trying to establish this marriage alliance. Prince Jin was a prince with real power and fiefdoms. The Princess Consort of Jin's younger sister was married into the Zhou family as a concubine. If the Su family could establish a connection with the Zhou family, wouldn't they also be able to establish some connection with the Prince Jin's mansion in the future?

She had taken her daughter to banquets several times and felt even more envious of the noble families she met. One day, she met Madam Zhou at a small banquet, and the two chatted and ended up talking about their children's marriages. She had a sudden idea and decided to marry Su Xing to her.

In her opinion, Su Xing was already very fortunate to have gotten this marriage; could someone with her background be worthy of her?

Madam Zhou hurriedly replied, "Yes, the concubine in the manor is the second daughter of the Hua family and the younger sister of the Princess Consort of Jin."

Madam Su was a little confused by their tangled conversation. How did they end up bringing up Princess Jin again? Upon hearing this, Su Xing immediately remembered the beautiful woman who had been by the Empress's side in the yamen on the day the shop was sold.

That is Princess Jin, the second sister-in-law of the Fifth Princess.

She fiddled with her handkerchief. How could the Fifth Princess's second sister-in-law's younger sister become a merchant's concubine? Confused and sensing that her second aunt wouldn't arrange a good marriage for her, she tugged at her mother's sleeve, trying to tell her not to agree.

Upon receiving her daughter's signal, Madam Su composed herself and said, "I don't care about the Princess Consort of Jin. I only know that my daughter is still young, and the marriage cannot be decided so hastily."

Madam Su snorted coldly: "I say, sister-in-law, you are the one who is eagerly hoping for your niece to get married, and now you are the one who is stopping the engagement. You beg me every day to take your niece to various banquets in the capital, isn't that because other families look down on your niece's background? Besides, she is going to marry into the Zhou family and become the mistress of the house! With a background like yours, it would be hard to find a good match for your niece to marry into a wealthy family!"

Madam Zhou straightened her back instantly, completely agreeing with Madam Su's words.

Madam Su still refused to budge: "I am Xing'er's birth mother. No matter how much others praise Xing'er's marriage, it may not be good. Only my approval as her mother counts."

Seeing that the negotiations were about to break down, Madam Zhou had no choice but to go back first. Before leaving, she didn't make things awkward: "Anyway, Miss Su is still young. Our Zhou family is not forcing you to make a decision today. We'll go back and wait. If you've thought it through, send someone to tell us, and we'll come to visit again. We've prepared sixty-six loads of betrothal gifts. Madam Su, please think it over carefully."

Zhou Chen stood up with his mother, glanced at the young-looking girl opposite him, smiled slightly, and said goodbye.

After the Zhou family mother and son left, Madam Su the Second said to Madam Su the First without any politeness: "I went to great lengths to arrange things today, but my sister-in-law is ungrateful. So don't come to me for your niece's marriage in the future. I'm too busy."

Madam Su choked. The Zhou family was clearly not the best choice, yet this sister-in-law insisted on pairing them up, which disheartened her.

She suppressed her anger and said, "You are the matriarch of the Su family, so Xing'er's marriage still needs your help. But could you... could you put some effort into the choice? The age difference is so great, and she's going to be a second wife. If it were your daughter, would you be willing?"

Madam Su the Second turned her face away: "My Yue'er has a fifth-rank official as her father, so naturally she should marry into a high-ranking family." Seeing Madam Su the First's pale face, she added: "Sister-in-law, your ambitions are too high, but you should also consider the reality. A young lady's age will pass in the blink of an eye!"

Su Xing helped her mother up, not wanting to see her suffer from her aunt's temper any longer: "Mom, let me help you to rest first."

We still need to persuade Mother to leave the Su family as soon as possible, otherwise her movements will be restricted, and she will even have to offer her marriage to pave the way for her cousin.

Back in her own courtyard, Madam Su began to weep: "It's my fault for being useless; I couldn't protect you."

Suppressing her bitterness, Su Xing gently comforted her, "Mother, don't blame yourself. This marriage wasn't for my own good; Auntie probably had ulterior motives. By opposing the marriage, you've already protected me, and I should thank you."

Madam Su wiped away her tears: "I was so anxious just now that I didn't think things through. But what you said has made me think about it. You mean that your aunt not only wants to disgust us, but also wants to gain some benefits from this marriage?"

Su Xing smiled and said, "Most likely, she's after that Aunt Hua. When she asked about Princess Jin, her eyes were full of calculation."

After saying that, Su Xing made a decision: "Mother, we can't live in the Su family anymore. We won't earn money and we'll just be sitting around eating our savings. You want to use Uncle's influence for the marriage, but I don't think Aunt will really marry me off properly. Mother, we can't have too many expectations of Uncle, Aunt, or even Grandmother. We still have to move out and live on our own so that we won't be held back at every turn."

Madam Su hesitated for a while before saying, "We are a widow and an orphan, how will we survive if we go out?" Just because of our status, we will be bullied by our neighbors.

There's always trouble and hardship around a widow's door; Madam Su feared that one decision would ruin her daughter's life.