Favoring a concubine and destroying the wife? I'll abandon my husband and children and wipe out

When Cheng Nanzhi married into the Zhao family, her dowry stretched for miles!

Old Madam Zhao was envious, so she handed over the management of the household to Cheng Nanzhi without saying a word. She then subtly played the victim several times, successfully getting Cheng Nanzhi to use her dowry to support the Zhao family. She also helped Zhao Ye with his official career, leaving no stone unturned.

Before Cheng Nanzhi left home, the Zhao family spent almost all of her money.

Even after leaving the mansion, there were still things left by Cheng Nanzhi in the storeroom, which they had used up almost all of in the past three years.

Having grown accustomed to spending money, Madam Zhao's first instinct now is to look for Cheng Nanzhi.

This amount is certainly nothing to Cheng Nanzhi.

However, Zhao Ye's face was grim, and he remained silent.

Old Madam Zhao asked curiously, "What's wrong? Why aren't you going to find Cheng Nanzhi? What are you doing here?"

Zhao Ye was even more embarrassed. He closed his eyes and said, "This won't do!"

"Why?" Old Madam Zhao was even more puzzled.

Zhao Ye recounted his bickering and arguments with Cheng Nanzhi when they were at Guantang Courtyard.

Madam Zhao almost fainted again.

"You knew it would cost a lot of money, so why didn't you go along with her? Why did you treat her like that!"

Zhao Ye argued, "This was originally her mistake due to negligence!"

Madam Zhao said, "You can't talk to her like that! Now look what's happened! If she goes to her, where will the Zhao family's reputation be?!"

Zhao Ye's expression darkened further.

He wasn't usually a person who couldn't keep his temper in check, but he was genuinely angry at Guantang Courtyard, and he acted like that without even realizing it.

But it's all over now, so there's no point in thinking about it anymore.

Zhao Ye said with a stern face, "In short, I will absolutely not apologize to her this time! She must admit her mistake!"

Madam Zhao said, "What about the money from Xiangchun Pavilion? If you don't go to her, do you think we can just conjure it up for nothing?!"

Zhao Ye was speechless.

"If Zege can't get into Xiangchun Tower, how will he win Mr. Zhou's favor? Has all this preparation been for nothing?!" Old Madam Zhao slammed her hand on the table.

Zhao Ye's face turned pale, but he still stubbornly refused to say a word.

Old Madam Zhao said wearily, "Fine, if you won't go, I will! What does what you, as the husband, say have to do with me, the mother-in-law? I'll just pretend I don't know and think of another way to get her to bring it up herself."

Zhao Ye opened his mouth, but couldn't bring himself to ask Old Madam Zhao not to go. However, thinking of the nearly one hundred taels of gold, he kept quiet.

Madam Zhao called Zhang Mama in and asked what was happening in Guantang Courtyard.

Granny Zhang went out to inquire and said, "They say that Madam plans to have dinner with the young master and young lady tonight, and she's having people carefully prepare their favorite dishes!"

"What a great opportunity! It's like heaven is helping me!"

Madam Zhao's eyes lit up.

Even though Zhao Shize and Zhao Huaiyu were about to arrive, Cheng Nanzhi did not move and continued to lean against the soft couch to read.

As for the dishes prepared, they were simply dishes the servants remembered from the couple's tastes three years ago and prepared according to procedure. There was no other intention behind it.

“Miss, the young master and young lady are still your children in name only. Should we change the sachet on the screen?” Qingdai asked as she entered.

Cheng Nanzhi said calmly, "No need. Since this sachet is suitable for their biological father, it will naturally be suitable for them as well."

Not long after, Zhao Shize and Zhao Huaiyu arrived.

They were used to being unruly in other places, and when they came to Cheng Nanzhi's place, they followed their own whims and came in directly, but they didn't expect to be stopped.

"Madam needs to freshen up before she can see you two. Please wait a moment before you come in."

Zhao Shize protested, "That's our mother! Even if she's just washing up, why can't we come in? It's not like she was seriously ill last time!"

Zhao Huaiyu nodded repeatedly.

Qingdai simply said to wait a moment.

Lianruo and Jianlan remained silent, their eyes closed and their minds focused.

The two were annoyed and stomped their feet, saying, "Mother would never do such a thing! You must have done it on purpose! When we see Mother later, we'll give her a good talking to about you!"

Cheng Nanzhi calmly finished tidying up inside before calling them in.

"Mother, your head maid is being extremely rude to us!" the two complained.

Cheng Nanzhi said, "This is what Mother meant."

"What?!" The two stared wide-eyed.

Cheng Nanzhi's face darkened.

"The past is the past, how can it be compared to now! You are all grown up now, and it's time for you to find a proper teacher to educate you. You should be more polite than before and not act arbitrarily anymore! Otherwise, if word gets out, do you want others to criticize you for not knowing the rules?!"

The two were startled by her stern voice and gave up hesitantly, but their expressions still showed some grievance and resentment.

Cheng Nanzhi's expression softened again: "Mother is also reluctant to discipline you, but this is what your father and grandmother instructed. Not long ago, your father even threw a tantrum at Guantang Courtyard, blaming Mother for not disciplining you, so Mother had no choice but to be ruthless."

The two of them were stunned.

Seeing Lan sigh at the opportune moment, she said, "Madam, the master is indeed right in this regard, and you should listen to him. If you truly want what's best for the young master and young lady, you must be stricter in their upbringing!"

The two were incredulous. Seeing Cheng Nanzhi's face full of heartache, which did not seem to be fake, they were stunned.

Until Cheng Nanzhi had someone serve them a meal, which consisted entirely of their favorite dishes, and she also inquired about their recent food, clothing, daily life, and studies.

The room was filled with a faint fragrance of incense, which made Zhao Shize and Zhao Huaiyu feel very relaxed, as if they had returned to the past. They immediately believed it and felt some resentment towards Zhao Ye and Old Madam Zhao.

They could have lived a carefree life, and their mother treated them well, but their father and grandmother insisted that their mother treat them badly!

so bad!

Just then, someone outside announced that Old Madam Zhao had arrived.

Cheng Nanzhi paused, then raised her voice and scolded, "You all still need to go back to your studies and work hard. If you eat too much, you will inevitably feel sleepy and waste time. Eating only half full is enough."

"Don't take the same dish more than three times. If others find out your preferences, they will definitely flatter you and make you miss the point!"

She sighed silently as she spoke, seemingly troubled and helpless, which made it hard for the two children not to notice her.

When Old Madam Zhao heard that someone had come in, her face immediately fell.

"Nanzhi, raising children is good, but it doesn't have to be to this extent!"

"What if my Ze-ge'er and Yu-jie'er get sick from hunger if I don't feed them properly!"

"How could you, as a mother, do such a thing!"

The old lady Zhao couldn't tolerate the mistreatment of her beloved grandson, and her tone became somewhat harsh.

However, to everyone's surprise, before Cheng Nanzhi could say anything, Zhao Shize slammed down his chopsticks and said angrily, "Grandmother, how can you say that about Mother? She was only doing it for our own good! Besides, if it weren't for you and Father asking her to raise us, and Father blaming Mother today because she didn't do what he wanted, Mother wouldn't have had to force us like this!"

Madam Zhao stopped abruptly, wondering if she had misheard.

"What, Ze-ge'er, what did you say?!"