Chapter 458: Yielding to Slander
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Lady Su playfully tapped Wenwen’s forehead. “You, be obedient. If you cause trouble for your aunt, see if I don’t punish you.”
Mingzhu watched with a smile, feeling that this was how life should be, with family harmony and love, working together to face the challenges outside. Even if it was a bit bitter and tiring, it was still a fulfilling life.
Wenwen was lively and considerate. After seeing off Lady Su, she immediately approached Mingzhu to ask for tasks: “Auntie said you need my help. What do you need me to do? Just let me know.”
Mingzhu indeed assigned her a task: “Your uncle has just returned, and there will surely be many visitors coming to inquire about his illness in the next few days. I’m busy, so I need you to help greet the guests. It’s not difficult; just watch how I do it, and you’ll learn. The most important thing is to maintain proper etiquette and demeanor; we can’t afford to be laughed at.” With everyone praising Wenwen, who would worry about not finding a good match for her?
Wenwen readily agreed without suspicion. Shortly after Lady Su left, visitors started coming to inquire about the illness. The first to arrive were the couple from the Huayang Mansion, followed by representatives from other major mansions. Some came together as couples, while others sent their eldest sons or trusted stewards. The gifts varied greatly. Mingzhu used the excuse of Yuwen Chu’s serious illness and inability to see visitors to politely turn them away, her demeanor subdued, and tears often welling in her eyes.
She didn’t know who among these people could be trusted and who might be hidden enemies. It was impossible to individually vet them for Yuwen Chu. She figured it was better for him to rest instead of spending time identifying them. The key was not to make anyone feel neglected.
Whenever she cried, Wenwen was always there to comfort her softly, serving her tea and water with grace. Her demeanor attracted the attention of several female members of the royal family, who frequently looked over and asked about her identity.
Fu’s daughter is the best. Mingzhu was very proud, almost forgetting to pretend to be sad, instead promoting her niece.
Qi Wang and his wife did not come; instead, they sent their eldest son and grandson. As they were male guests and unfamiliar, they were mainly received by Zhou Shuyi. Mingzhu gave a distant bow with Wenwen to express gratitude.
Finally, when it got dark and no more visitors came to inquire about the illness, Mingzhu breathed a sigh of relief. She arranged for Wenwen to eat and then went to see Yuwen Chu.
Yuwen Chu was still sleeping. During these days in the palace, he had been tense. Even though he wasn’t afraid of ghosts or anything similar, he still couldn’t rest well. However, now that he was home and trusted Mingzhu to handle things, he slept deeply, knowing she could handle everything.
Mingzhu didn’t wake him up but ate first. She sorted out the list of people who came to visit and their gifts, ready to show them to Yuwen Chu later.
In the meantime, Mr. Meng and his aides sent someone to see Yuwen Chu, but Mingzhu found out it wasn’t urgent. She didn’t mince her words when she sent them back, “If it’s not urgent, can’t you wait until His Highness wakes up? What if you tire him out? I’ll hold the sky if it falls, tell them to shut up!”
Knowing that the messenger would convey the message very tactfully, she added, “Don’t change my words. Tell them exactly what I said! Whoever dares to make me a widow, I’ll make his wife a widow too! That’s what I said!”
The messenger had no choice but to relay the original words to Meng and the others. Mr. Meng was furious, thinking Mingzhu was settling personal grudges. He thought she was deliberately making things difficult for them at this time. However, Mingzhu’s words were not wrong, just a bit harsh. With Zhou Shuyi’s persuasion, the aides let it go. From then on, everyone in the mansion knew that when His Highness was sick and resting, unless it was urgent, no one was allowed to disturb him, or their wives might become widows.
It was not until the middle of the night that Mingzhu was too tired to stay awake. Yuwen Chu finally woke up. He was hungry, and Mingzhu only gave him congee and light dishes, not allowing anyone to bother him with trivial matters. When Tang Chunlai confirmed that Yuwen Chu’s condition had improved, she finally told him about a few slightly urgent matters that had happened today.
When it came to Mr. Meng and the others sending someone to find him, Mingzhu straightforwardly told Yuwen Chu her original words. Yuwen Chu was speechless. Actually, there were many piled-up matters during these few days, not just Mr. Meng and the others were in a hurry, he was also in a hurry. He had come home earlier because he really couldn’t bear it anymore. However, he didn’t object to Mr. Meng and the others waking him up, as they had always done in the past.
Seeing him look like he wanted to ask why she didn’t wake him up, Mingzhu felt it wasn’t appropriate to say anything, so she repeated her harsh words, “Whoever dares to make me a widow, I’ll make his wife a widow too! I’m not bluffing. Is the sky falling? Or are people going to die soon?”
Yuwen Chu remained silent for a moment before saying, “It’s a habit they developed from the past.”
Mingzhu waved her hand confidently and assertively, “That’s when you were in good health. Now that you’re sick, I make the decisions!” Then, adopting a more coquettish tone, she pitifully hugged his arm and whispered, “We’re so good together, I want to be with you until we’re old, even when our hair turns white and our teeth fall out. You can’t be mad at me.”
Afraid this wasn’t convincing enough, she pointed to the candle, speaking to him as if teaching a child, “Look at this candle, if you burn it all at once, it’ll be gone before dawn. But if you burn a little bit every day, it’ll last a long time.”
Yuwen Chu sighed, rubbing her head, “No need to say more, I understand. Don’t worry about me. I haven’t slept well for a few days, feeling cold, hungry, and tired, but it’s nothing serious. A few days of rest and I’ll be fine.” After looking through the list of visitors and their gifts, he smiled faintly, “My own brothers, only Old Eight and Old Nine haven’t come.”
Mingzhu felt he had a resentful air about him and took the opportunity to remind him, “These two are not good people, always aiming high and plotting.”
Yuwen Chu didn’t hide it, “The idea of scaring me with ghostly tricks to deprive me of sleep came from Old Eight.”
This kind of sinister and unethical method could only be conceived by someone as despicable as Yuwen Long. Just the thought of Yuwen Long made Mingzhu feel disgusted. Now looking back, she couldn’t even imagine what she would be like if she had really listened to the Great Empress Dowager’s arrangement and married Yuwen Long. She immediately suggested to Yuwen Chu, “Give him a lesson.”
Yuwen Chu chuckled softly, “How do you want to teach him?”
Mingzhu’s eyes sparkled, “A man so lecherous and despicable shouldn’t harm other families’ daughters. Since he likes scaring people, why not send a beauty to scare him? That should be enough to teach him a lesson!”
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