Embroidered Phoenix Chronicle

The days of wandering were too boring. When something finally happened, she was not allowed to participate. She was so anxious that she was itching for help. She was so eager to see her return that she rushed over and helped her up. "Elder sister, I made a soup with white fungus, lily bulbs and lotus seeds. I added rock sugar especially for you. Please try it."

Fengxian, however, deliberately kept her in suspense, slowly and deliberately eating. She'd stir it, scoop up a spoonful, and put it in her mouth. "Mmm, delicious!" she'd stir it again, scoop up another spoonful, admire it carefully, and nod. "Beautiful! How did you manage to cook this?" She'd put it in her mouth, stir it again, scoop up another spoonful, and then, in a fit of pique, snatch the bowl away and slurp it down. Fengxian, holding the spoon, laughed so hard she almost fell over. She called Yulan to clear the bowl, instructing her and Cuicui to make wontons and even prepare the old man's meal. Yulan knew the two sisters had something to say, so she quickly placed some melon seeds on the table, grabbed her bowl, and hurriedly left, closing the door behind her.

Fengxian had been holding it in for a while, and today had been so liberating that she desperately needed to share it with someone, so she told Liulian everything in detail. Liulian was speechless. She had already heard about Hongxing'er's affair, but she hadn't expected there to be anything even more shocking. She had always thought the second young master was a lecher, but it turned out he was also a romantic! "Did he really hang himself? Can the second young mistress still live with him? Will they get a divorce!"

"Who cares about her! That woman is too vicious! Chunyan is scared to death. Du sent soup to Hongxing this morning, and she didn't dare to mention it. That soup is most likely poisonous! If the gatekeeper hadn't gotten something out of it, how could he dare to stop her from leaving? If I take on this, all the blame will fall on us! It's Aunt Rong who's pulled chestnuts out of the fire and managed to stand firm!"

"Elder sister, why didn't you tell her about the soup? Prove it to the death!" Liu Lian was getting a little anxious—such a good opportunity had been missed!

"Silly girl, Tang Zheng won't kill her. After all, so many people have handled it, and besides, she's been sending food over frequently lately. If she turns around and bites back, she could kill Chun Yan'er! Tell me, how about I take Chun Yan in? That child is quite considerate!"

"Good, if she stays in the second wife's house, she'll probably lose her life sooner or later! That Aunt Rong is no simple woman! If your mother-in-law dies, the old lady will probably make her the official wife! When your father-in-law goes out to do business again, he'll definitely take her with him, and she'll be living the high life as a boss's wife, won't she?"

"Of course! That one in the capital has never officially married into the family and hasn't had any children. How can she possibly outdo her? Sigh! She even wants to ask you for advice on food! You should mind your own business and definitely don't invite her to stay for a meal or anything like that!"

"Elder sister, don't be afraid. She can't be more troublesome than your mother-in-law, can she? She'll probably team up with you to take down your mother-in-law first, right?"

"Silly sister, wouldn't it be better to kill two birds with one stone? If you defeat my mother-in-law, then it'll be my turn, won't it? My mother-in-law may have a bad face, but she's not really that cunning. Aunt Rong, you're quite something!"

Liu Lian thought for a moment and felt deep sympathy for Fengxian's situation. "Elder sister, wouldn't it be better if you separated the family? You wouldn't be so poor then. Why suffer such a miserable life? If you give birth to a daughter, it will be better; at most, you'll hear a few gossips. But if you have a son, I'm afraid he won't be able to raise him!" These words struck a nerve with Fengxian, and she almost burst into tears, only lowering her eyelids and remaining silent. Seeing this, Liu Lian quickly comforted her, "Now you finally see the true colors of the second branch of the family. It will be harder for her to cause trouble in the future! You can also have a much easier time. Why don't you just think of a way to separate the family? Even if you're poorer, you'll be more at ease, won't you?"

"Are you silly? Grandmother is still alive, and Father has no brothers. How can we divide things now? Are we going to be kicked out for being disobedient and unfilial?" Fengxian laughed, but her voice was trembling with tears. Liulian didn't understand, and realized the situation was difficult. "Elder sister, don't be sad. It's my fault for saying such things!"

"What's it to you? My life isn't any worse than Liang'er's! It's better than before when I was completely clueless!" Fengxian calmed down and said lightly, "In big families, it's all the same—they just make chime mallets out of cypress wood. I'm actually doing well. Go look at other families, how many women are thirty years old and still haven't had children or taken concubines? At least your brother-in-law is reliable! Yezi, listen to me, don't get the wrong idea. I've endured so many years to get to where I am today, and you don't have the patience. You can't go to big families! It's a pity about Gong Jianyun, that little hussy Xiangxiang beat him to it! Do you know? Xiangxiang seems to have given birth to a son, just three or five days ago. She suffered terribly, her health was severely damaged, and she almost didn't survive!"

"Oh, I haven't heard. I haven't left the house much these past few days. My brother-in-law has been doing the grocery shopping."

“Things haven’t been peaceful outside these past few days, there are so many people fleeing in panic. Your brother-in-law was carrying some things when someone robbed him. You’re a young lady, you should just stay home quietly!” Fengxian said with a casual laugh. “Running around every day, what kind of behavior is that? Under the guise of buying things for me, you’re just smuggling salt and camels!” He couldn’t help but chuckle as he spoke. “Your brother-in-law said that it’s one thing for others, but how can Xiaoqi stand it! Hahaha, look at your brother-in-law, how considerate he is!” Liulian chuckled helplessly a few times.

Ruihong staggered in, supporting his back. Liulian quickly made room for him and was about to leave when Fengxian rolled her eyes at her. "Look at how chaste you are! Even a silver carp isn't as clean as you! Sit down and listen to your brother-in-law!" Ruihong and Liulian were amused by her. Fengxian was usually dignified and self-possessed, and rarely acted so bold and charming.

"Sigh, that idiot really did hang himself, using Hongxing'er's old foot-binding cloth, right there in his study. He even left a note saying he wanted to be buried with Hongxing'er! That second brother, it's a miracle he didn't kill me. He looks thin, but he's not light to carry. That little monkey, the third brother, stood up and cut the foot-binding cloth, telling me to catch him from below. It wasn't that easy to catch him; he knocked me down in one go! Ouch! If the second brother hadn't written those words, who knows what would have happened! It took the third brother and me ages to wake him up. That thing..." "My son woke up and started throwing a tantrum, cursing and rolling around on the ground. I went over and slapped them both. The third son broke off a peach branch and beat them for ages. You don't know how strong the second son is; I couldn't even hold him by myself! His tantrums are exactly like his mother's! Later, Grandma came over and coaxed him for a long time, then gave him some calming soup before he calmed down. I bet he'll be throwing another tantrum!" Ruihong seemed to have more to say. He looked at Fengxian, wanting to say something but then remained silent, probably too embarrassed to speak because he was still there.

Fengxian hurriedly said, "Yezi, fry some salt for your brother-in-law, put it in a cloth bag, and apply it to his skin!"

He hurried away.

Ruihong whispered, "The second son said it's retribution, it's all retribution! This whole family of bastards!" Fengxian nodded and patted her husband's hand reassuringly, "I know, don't get agitated!" Ruihong held his wife's hand tightly, and a few tears fell unconsciously.