Chapter 236: Chapter 218, The Fight Begins_1
“Mother, this is the New Year’s gift list I prepared for auntie; please take a look.”
Daohua handed the gift list to Madam Li.
Madam Li took the list and glanced over it, noting the inclusion of food, clothing, and other necessities, “Has Grandmother seen this?”
Daohua nodded, “Everything on the list was decided upon after discussing it with Grandmother. Do you see anything that needs to be added or removed?”
Madam Li smiled and set the gift list down, “The items are very thoroughly prepared. However, we could add some more goods produced on our own estates. Your auntie is frail, and foods like black rice and red dates are very nourishing; give her some extra.”
Daohua readily agreed, grinning as she asked, “Mother, are you on very good terms with auntie? I notice the gifts you prepare for her every year are always particularly generous.”
Madam Li smiled faintly, “When Mother first married into the Yan Family, your auntie helped me out quite a bit. Without her, it wouldn’t have been so easy for me to fit in with the Yan Family. Mother is grateful for her kindness.” As she spoke, her expression paused momentarily.
There was another reason; she understood all too well the difficulties faced by women who marry above their station.
She, a merchant’s daughter, had married into a scholar’s family, and her sister-in-law, of humble origin, had married into an eminent family. Both were cases of marrying up, and surely their days within their in-laws’ family would not have been easy; she inevitably felt a sense of sympathy borne of shared hardship.
Daohua said with a smile, “Mother, you treat auntie so well, Grandmother is also grateful to you for that; she never stops praising you to me.”
The affections between people are mutual; if you are good to me, I will naturally reciprocate in kind.
The aspect of this family she was most pleased with was the absence of mother-in-law and daughter-in-law conflict between her grandmother and mother.
The grandmother was sensible and never interfered in household matters; her mother was filial and considerate, always thoughtful in her actions, and they got along harmoniously.
Otherwise, being caught in the middle would have been quite a headache for her.
Madam Li chuckled, “Ever since Mother married into this family, Grandmother has been very kind to me. Having such a reasonable and non-intrusive mother-in-law is truly a blessing for me.”
For that reason, with regard to the unproductive second branch of the family, she would sometimes take on more than her share to avoid causing problems for Grandmother.
Speaking of the second branch, Madam Li thought of something and looked at her daughter, “I heard you punished Yilei?”
Daohua nodded, “Master Shen asked us to choose an art to study. Because I learned one more art form, my fourth sister talked behind my back, sour grapes, and even included Master Shen in her words, so I punished her to write an essay a hundred times. Why, did second aunt go to Mother to complain?”
Madam Li shook her head with a smile, “No, she hasn’t. Your second aunt, how shall I put it, is actually very shrewd, but sometimes she’s a little too calculating, which can be off-putting.”
“But when it comes to the upbringing of your second brother and the others, she does value it deeply.”
“In the past, our family rules were somewhat lax, and in many respects, we were not very knowledgeable. Since arriving in Xingzhou, we have encountered more households and have started paying more attention to many things.”
“Your second aunt is smart; she knows what’s best for the children. Master Shen’s teaching is widely acclaimed; after hearing what had happened, she personally saw to it that Yilei practiced her writing.”
Daohua raised an eyebrow, quite surprised at this.
Madam Li patted her daughter’s head with patience, “You are the eldest sister, and you have the responsibility to guide your younger brothers and sisters.”
Having her daughter by her side for so long, she felt that if this girl disliked someone, she wouldn’t bother with them at all, and as long as they didn’t annoy her, she could simply ignore that person completely.
Such a temperament is good in some ways but not so good in others.
Good, as it meant she could live more freely; not good, because sometimes it could seem a bit indifferent.
“I mentioned this to your father last night, and he also said it was good.”
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“In this world, a single tree does not make a forest, and your father, he’s had his fair share of hardships because of this.”
“Blood relations, no matter how much one tries to avoid them, one cannot escape. It’s always been a case of shared loses, shared glories.”
“Our family’s foundation is too shallow. When you grow up, you must support and look after your brothers and sisters. The more successful they are, the more benefits you’ll receive.”
“So, if in the future Yi Huan and the others do something wrong, you must speak up and discipline as necessary. As long as you’re in the right, nobody will say a word against it.”
Daohua frowned slightly, somewhat unwilling.
Managing others, how troublesome.
Seeing Madam Li watching her intently, Daohua nodded reluctantly: “I’ll try my best.”
Madam Li smiled, not saying anything further. She knew her daughter understood propriety.
The mother and daughter resumed their talk about the New Year’s gifts. However, it was at that moment that Ping Xiao came in pouting.
Upon seeing her, Daohua immediately said with a smile: “Sister Ping Xiao, who has upset you? Tell me, and I’ll take care of it for you.”
Normally, Ping Xiao would have responded with a smile and chattered away, but this time, she shook her head and looked at Madam Li: “Madam, it seems Concubine Lin might be giving birth.”
Madam Li’s expression turned serious: “Wasn’t her due date mid-month? How has it come so much earlier?”
Ping Xiao: “Concubine Lin’s maid came and said that it was Concubine Liu who pushed Concubine Lin, leading to the premature labor.”
Hearing this, Daohua became curious and interjected: “Isn’t Concubine Liu very well-behaved? Why on earth would she push Concubine Lin?”
Is this the start of a domestic power struggle?
Ping Xiao snorted: “Who pushed whom is still uncertain, surely Concubine Lin must be jealous because father went to Concubine Liu’s room, so she…”
“Shut your mouth!”
Madam Li interjected to stop Ping Xiao and glared at her. Was this the sort of thing to discuss with her daughter? She then turned to Daohua: “Alright, this has nothing to do with you. Go do your homework.”
Daohua was reluctant to leave, but seeing Madam Li’s stern face, she had no choice but to take Wang Manman and leave.
“Manman, go find out exactly what happened,” Daohua said to Wang Manman as soon as they were out of the main courtyard.
She wasn’t particularly interested in her father’s lesser wives, but she still needed to know what was going on to prevent them from causing trouble for her mother.
Not long after returning to her own courtyard, Wang Manman came back.
“Miss, Concubine Lin is indeed going into labor, and Madam has already summoned the doctor and the midwife.”
Daohua: “I didn’t ask you that; I want to know how Concubine Liu is related to Concubine Lin’s premature labor.”
Wang Manman: “It’s because recently, relying on her pregnancy, Concubine Lin was pulling faces at father. But as soon as he left her room, he was intercepted by Concubine Liu. Since then, they have been at odds.”
Daohua nodded knowingly, then sneered: “Here I thought my father wouldn’t visit Concubine Liu’s room again, but it turns out… hmph.”
Wang Manman glanced at Daohua before hesitating: “Father has been there several times since then. We thought Concubine Liu was honest, but it turns out she’s a conspirator at heart.”
Daohua spoke indifferently: “She’s father’s concubine; using some ploys to survive in the Yan Residence isn’t surprising. As long as she doesn’t foolishly covet what isn’t hers, letting her compete with Concubine Lin is quite alright.”
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