Quick wear: cannon fodder is a bit strong

Compared with the peaceful life in Zhuangzi, the life in Zhao Mansion was a mess.

First, Zhao Wenxuan’s legs.

Nan Xi did some manipulation on Zhao Wenxuan's leg that day, so even though Min Rouer immediately asked a famous doctor for Zhao Wenxuan, it still took a long time for Zhao Wenxuan's leg to recover.

And this recovery is only superficial.

Whenever it was cloudy or rainy, or when he was anxious or angry, Zhao Wenxuan's injured leg would be in extreme pain. He would not dare to touch the ground and would even limp when walking.

In addition, he could not attend court during the days of mourning and had nothing to do, which led to Zhao Wenxuan often drinking in the study to drown his sorrows, and he didn't care much about the affairs of the mansion.

Then there is the wound on Min Rouer’s forehead.

Because Nan Xi added something to her powder, the more Min Rouer applied it, the less likely her wound would heal. And the less likely her wound healed, the harder Min Rouer applied powder to cover it up.

There's no way, my cousin has Dongmei by his side, competing with her for favor all day long.

This created a vicious cycle. Before long, the wound even started to ooze pus, and no amount of powder could cover it up, so Min Rouer panicked.

If her face was ruined, her cousin would sooner or later dislike her. So Min Rouer started looking for doctors and medicine all day long, determined to heal her face.

The last and most important issue is money.

After Nan Xi's plundering and Madam Zhao's funeral, the money in the mansion's accounts was completely gone. There were only a few pieces of furniture and jewelry that could be sold.

Yin and Zhang came to Min Rouer every day to ask for money and other things. In the beginning, Min Rouer tried her best to scrape together enough money in order to be able to manage the household.

After a long time, she had no choice but to ask Yin and Zhang for money, otherwise she would drive out both families and all the other messy relatives.

The two sides quarreled and argued all day long.

In the end, Min Rouer sold a large number of newly bought servants, leaving only a few basic personal servants in each courtyard, so that she had enough money to cover expenses.

Yin and Zhang were also very upset.

Ever since the house was robbed, both families have been living in poverty.

Min Rouer, the head of the household, used the excuse of mourning for the old lady, and the meals delivered to her throughout the day were all watery soups, brown rice and pickles, without even a speck of oil.

Didn’t you see that Zhao Zhaodi’s youngest son had already been taken away by his husband’s family?

If things go on like this, not only will they be unable to bear it, but even the servants will be filled with resentment, and will be unhappy all day long.

When scolded, he would say, there is nothing I can do, I can't even eat enough, how can I have the energy to serve others.

In this situation, the servants would be extremely anxious when they heard that they were going to be sold, hoping to be despised so that they could get new masters.

In fact, the families of Yin and Zhang have been doing well in recent years, so they can find an excuse to go back to their parents' home and get some money.

But when the servants' indentures were all in Min Rouer's hands, any disturbance could not be concealed.

So Yin and Zhang both thought about moving out, so that at least they could have enough food to eat and occasionally eat meat.

What a joke! They are Madam Zhao's sisters-in-law. How can they be filial to a dead old woman? Why can't they eat meat?

But where to live?

Land in this part of Beijing is very expensive.

Besides, a lean camel is bigger than a horse. Although Zhao Wenxuan was in mourning, he still held a fifth-rank official position. As long as they lived in this mansion, outsiders would see them as a family, and if they were known outside, they would be known as the wives of officials, which would sound good.

Otherwise, they would be nothing in this huge capital. Not to mention their children's marriages, even the arranged marriages would be ruined.

After weighing all the pros and cons, the two families could only grit their teeth and persevere.

But he was unwilling to give in, so he made trouble for Min Rouer every day and quarreled with her.

As for money and treatment, the more you save, the better.

Min Rouer was so annoyed that her hair fell out in clumps.

One winter day, Yin suddenly received a letter from the Yang family, to which Zhao Lan'er was engaged.

The one who came was an old woman, dressed in plain servant's clothes, with her hair combed meticulously and a somewhat mean look on her face.

Yin recognized her. She was the maid who served the mistress of the Yang family. She had seen her when they were engaged.

The old woman stood respectfully, but her eyes were filled with condescension and disdain:

"The eldest young master unfortunately passed away last month while fighting against the Liang army on the battlefield. His body was brought back to the mansion yesterday and will be buried soon."

"Our lady is too heartbroken to come in person, so she sent this servant to tell you."

"Madam is kind-hearted and cannot bear to see Miss Lan'er become a widow at such a young age. Therefore, this marriage shall be cancelled. Miss Lan'er can choose another good husband to marry."

"Of course, if Miss Lan'er insists on staying at the Yang family, the Yang family welcomes you..."

That being said, Mrs. Yang actually didn't want Zhao Lan'er to come in at all.

She had disdained this marriage from the beginning, as it was arranged by her husband on his own accord. Now that her eldest son was dead, she felt it was all the fault of Zhao Lan'er, the daughter-in-law who had never married into the family.

Yin and Zhao Lan'er fainted from crying immediately.

The mother and daughter couldn't believe that the marriage they had finally gotten by currying favor with Zhao Wenxuan was gone.

Especially Zhao Lan'er, who usually relied on her status as the young lady of a future military commander's family to be so glorious among her sisters. Even though her family had been going through such a hard time recently, she was not short of good things.

It's all over now!

Why is her life so miserable?

Zhao Yaer and other unmarried sisters did not share her sentiments and privately gloated over her misfortune.

Only Zhao Wenxuan felt the same as Zhao Lan'er, and was devastated.

He knew this better than anyone else. The eldest son of the Yang family was a chess piece planted by the emperor in the Nan family army. Now this chess piece was gone before it could even play its role. It was unknown whether it was accidental or...

Such news made him drink more frequently.