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Chapter 29 - Tai Shan fainted twice
Chapter 29 - Tai Shan fainted twice
Chapter 29 Tai Shan fainted twice
Zhen Jing didn’t take it seriously. She only thought that He Danggui was joking with her. But she suddenly thought of a drama happened in the Taoist Temple this morning. She didn’t care about what she was eating, but immediately began to tell it to He Danggui vividly.
In the morning, on her way to fetch water, she passed the main hall and saw other nuns around the gate happily. So, Zhen Jing stood on tiptoe to see what happened. It turned out that Huai Dong and Huai Xin were quarreling in front of Tai Shan, much fiercer than last night.
—Last night, Tai Shan went back to her room and thought for a while. As long as the case of stealing lock didn’t spread out and affect the reputation of the Taoist Temple, it would be a trivial matter. But now the fire had affected the imperial guards. Therefore, no matter how they defined the fire case, she must find out a scapegoat for the imperial guards, so that the Taoist Temple would not be implicated. Tai Shan chose Huai Xin rather than Huai Dong immediately. Huai Xin used to serve Tai Chen for a long time, so Tai Shan had deep hatred toward her. Although Huai Dong was ashamed for stealing the lock, her son liked Huai Dong. Given that stealing was not a big problem, she would like to give Huai Dong a second chance.
Therefore, this morning, Tai Shan ordered someone to detain Huai Xin and asked her to explain the “fact” that she forgot to put out the fire after cooking. But Huai Xin was not easy to get rid of. She put the guilt of fire on Huai Dong immediately, and called Huai Dong to confront her. When Huai Dong came, she pulled Huai Xin aside to talk stealthily. They murmured something in front of Tai Shan’s eyes, which made Tai Shan feel suspicious. She didn’t know what they were plotting.
At last, Huai Dong and Huai Xin suddenly talked into an impasse, and they began to fight and scold each other.
Huai Dong revealed that Huai Xin was seeing the cook Liu Laojiu. Every night, she sneaked into Liu Laojiu’s room shamelessly and came back at dawn. However, what Huai Xin disclosed was more surprising. According to her, Huai Dong’s period stopped 2 months ago. She also had herbal medicine secretly for miscarriage prevention. She must have had a relationship with a man outside and got herself pregnant.
Everyone looked at Tai Shan. After all, there was a hot topic a year ago, saying that Huai Dong and Tai Shan’s nephew Ma Tai were seeing each other. Now that they had been together for so long, it was no surprise to have a child. However, Tai Shan’s face changed a lot. She came forward to spat on Huai Dong’s face and began to beat her. It was strange to all. Even if Huai Dong was unmarried and pregnant, it was also the flesh and blood of Tai Shan’s nephew. At most she could just secularize and get married. Was it necessary to be cruel like this? Or it was…
At that time, Huai Dong cried and shouted the most shocking news of today, which tickled everyone’s ears.
She said, “Everyone, Ma Tai is not Tai Shan’s nephew, but her son!” Tai Shan was so angry that she shivered all over. She pushed Huai Dong down and stepped on her face. Huai Dong scolded her for doing too much immoral things in the past, and all the retribution came to her son, who was not only a retarded person, but also not a real man.
Then everyone understood why Tai Shan was so angry when she heard that Huai Dong was pregnant. It turned out Ma Tai... was a born eunuch.
Tai Shan looked around and saw everyone in the Taoist Temple looking at her with ridicule, pointing to her and gossiping something. Tai Shan was so angry that she fainted within a second. Then Huai Dong wiped the bloody mud on her face and ran away from the side door of the main hall, while others were carrying Tai Shan away hurriedly. She ran out of the Taoist Temple with a big baggage.
On the other side, Huai Xin went to the kitchen to find Liu Laojiu quietly. She wanted him to take her away, but he was no longer in the kitchen. Then she went to his room but found that Liu Laojiu and his luggage were gone. Huai Xin cried, knowing that she could no longer stay in the Taoist Temple. So, she packed her stuffs and went down the mountain as well.
When Tai Shan woke up, she heard that Huai Dong had ran away with her own baggage. Tai Shan ran outside the warehouse hurriedly and asked Zhen Zhu to find someone to break the door lock with an axe. All the account books and bills of goods were thoroughly checked. In the middle of the inventory-checking, they found that it had lost more than 40 liang silver and 15 jin of candles and joss sticks. Learning the news, a group of elder Taoist nuns who used to envy and hate Huai Dong for her advantageous position came out. They were all cynical and their words were not as respectful as they used to be. Tai Shan fainted again after hearing this.
Zhen Zhu asked someone to bring Tai Shan back to her room and find a new lock. She locked the warehouse firstly and waited for Tai Shan to wake up before continuing the check. When she had her hands full, Huai Wen rushed in from outside and whispered to Zhen Zhu that Luo’s Family had sent someone to pick Miss He up.
Zhen Zhu wiped the sweat on her forehead. It occurred to her that He Danggui had said she would take Zhen Jing with her when she left, but Zhen Jing was an unskilled laborer who was pledged in the temple for owing the farm rent. If Tai Shan woke up and knew about this, even if she wouldn’t dare to find Zhen Jing in Luo’s Mansion, she would go down the mountain to make it hard for Zhen Jing’s parents. Thinking of this, Zhen Zhu left other nuns who were in a mess and ran back to her room alone.
Zhen Zhu remembered clearly the first time Zhen Jing came to the Taoist Temple. Her family had owed 2 years of farm rent to the Taoist Temple for 5 acres of fields, i.e., 3.2 liang silver in total. It had been 5 years now. If it was calculated by the interest of the money shop, the principal and interest would add up to 4.9 liang silver; if it was calculated by the private lending, which was higher, it would be about 8 liang silver; but if it was calculated by the interest of Tai Shan, without 30 or 40 liang silver, Zhen Jing couldn’t get out of the Taoist Temple. Even if Zhen Jing went to Luo’s Family with Miss He, Tai Shan would get her entangled in the future.
Zhen Zhu sighed. After she sued her ex-husband and his family, she got the title deed for a farm and a cheque of 1,000 liang. She stored them in a large Money Shop in Yangzhou, wishing that could be enough to support her later life. Now, there was only 40 liang silver in the Money Shop of Tu’er Town, which was at the foot of the mountain, and she spent half of it in the past 4 years. While the money in Yangzhou was too distant for her to solve the current problem. How could Zhen Jing leave here successfully? Zhen Zhu had no idea but packed the valuables in her room in a small bag. Since she didn’t like to dress up, the whole bag of valuable ornaments, like hair clasps, bracelets and copper cash were worth less than 10 liang silver.
Then Zhen Zhu thought of the assured look on He Danggui’s face when she first met her. She couldn’t help wondering if He Danggui would have any good idea. Carrying a small bag of her valuables, Zhen Zhu ran to the East Wing-room to see if there was anything she could do to help or offer some money.
Hearing that Luo’s Family came to pick her up, He Danggui’s first thought was that she couldn’t take Zhen Jing away with her right now!
He Danggui had fallen out with Tai Shan last night. Each of them had taken off the mask of hypocrisy, and each saw a clear hatred in the other’s eyes. Tai Shan hated He Danggui because she was so clever that she refused to be the scapegoat. But He Danggui had started to hate Tai Shan since her previous life. Without the abuse Tai Shan had inflicted on her in her childhood, only the thinking of the continuous blackmailing Tai Shan had done to her in Lord Ning’s Mansion was enough for He Danggui to figure out various ways for Tai Shan’s death.
Zhen Jing had been divided into He Danggui’s companion a long time ago. He Danggui could imagine what would happen to Zhen Jing if she left her alone. She decided to give up the chance to go back home when she saw Zhen Jing’s innocent face. Current lurking was for a better chance to go back.
He Danggui and Zhen Jing both ate a full bowl of mixed rice with splendid achnatherum. Then she changed into an apricot dress and decided to go to Ku Qiao Yard. Either the money she wanted or Zhen Jing was depended on Master Tai Xi.
???
Zhen Zhu went to the warehouse first. The new lock had been installed and the crowd of spectators had dispersed.
So, she walked unhurriedly towards the gate, and saw 2 old women standing in front of a small gray sedan in the distance. One of them seemed impatient for the waiting, shaking her legs and feet continuously.
Zhen Zhu was surprised when she saw the little gray sedan. It didn’t look like one from Luo’s Family, but more like one provided by a porter at the foot of the mountain, which only cost 1 string of 1,000 qian for 2 hours.
As expected, the moment she approached, she saw 3 shirtless men squatting in the doorway and smoking tobacco. Seeing a young long-haired Taoist nun with a slender figure and a pretty face, they looked her up and down immediately with undisguised audacity, and finally fixed their eyes on one spot of her.
Gao Dashan’s wife dressed as a servant. She had been frowning and picking her teeth with a toothpick. When she saw Zhen Zhu, she put on a smile instantly.
Zhen Zhu couldn’t help asking her, “Didn’t Lou’s Family send their own sedan to fetch Miss He? Are you going to send her down the mountain with this? Is that Madam Luo’s order?” At last, there was a cold reproach in her voice.
Zhen Zhu used to run a household in her rich family, so she knew all the rules of a large family.
For example, the rule about an unmarried lady who needed to ride a sedan. The sedan must be carried by some strong elderly women servants. Even when the number of servants were not enough and the sedan had to be carried by some litter carriers, they had to stay away until the lady was inside the sedan. The same rule was applied when the lady needed to get off. They were supposed to go away first, and then let the lady come out. That was to say, they could never meet the lady.
Not to mention an aristocratic family who lived an extravagant life like Luo’s Family, even the upstarts, like Zhen Zhu’s husband’s family who ran a restaurant, followed this rule strictly.
Zhen Zhu remembered clearly. There was once her “former” sister-in-law was in a hurry to get out of a sedan. As soon as the sedan stopped, she came out before the bearers left. Then she tripped and was supported by a bearer. Later, her “former” mother-in-law heard about this matter and felt very angry. Because of this, Zhen Zhu was scolded by her ex-husband.
In a wealthy and influential family, only the madam or concubine who had married and delivered children could be relatively freed to avoid constant rules of bearers and carters. But the reputation of an unmarried lady would be damaged if she was found breaking these rules. Also, she would have a stigma when it came to her future marriage.
Gao Dashan’s wife smiled awkwardly, “Master Zhen Zhu, it’s not my problem. I’m just doing my errands. Of course, anyone would sit on a sedan, only if there were one!” Then she got close to Zhen Zhu’s face and whispered, “That woman...is Second Mistress’s maid that accompanied her to Luo’s Family—Ding Rong’s wife. She said that Second Mistress Luo is busy and has a headache. Therefore, it is not necessary to bother her with this trivia and we’ll just pick Miss He up in person. The funny thing is that I am the one who paid for the sedan. I wonder if the accountant would reimburse the money...”
Zhen Zhu felt angry but funny. That was quite ridiculous!
There were more than 300 or 400 sedans in Luo’s Family, but they couldn’t find one to pick a rich lady up. Also, Luo’s Family had at least 1,000 servants, so it was impossible that they couldn’t gather 3 people to carry a sedan. Even if someone deliberately treated a lady who had another family name harshly, it was still a family issue. But now, this? Did Luo’s Family still want a decent impression to the public or not?
Zhen Zhu didn’t know there was another reason. Second Mistress Luo didn’t like her niece He Danggui for many years, which was not a secret in Luo’s Family. Besides, the next evening after He Danggui was reborn, Eighth Childe, Second Madam’s biological brother suddenly died.
Second Mistress Luo (Ms. Sun) was a concubine’s daughter in Sun’s Family. Her mother was never a favorite to her father as she was getting old. Surprisingly, her mother gave birth to a son at the age of 43. Lord Sun got a son at a very old age, so he loved this child very much and also paid more attention to Eighth Childe’s mother and sister. But now the Childe had dead. Ms. Sun’s mother wept bitterly all day, while Lord Sun closed the door of his study and refused to see anyone.
When the funeral was over, Ms. Sun returned to Luo’s Family. But the first thing she heard as she entered the mansion was that the Third Miss was reborn. Also, many courtyards were decorated with candles, and it really pissed her off.
Later, Madam Luo sent someone to order Ms. Sun to deal with home affairs. At the same time, Ms. Sun was asked to send people to pick He Danggui up from Shui Shang Temple, and then donate more money to the Temple as their appreciation to the Immortal’s bless for Luo’s Family. When that messenger left, Ms. Sun flipped over the table immediately. Her brother died all of a sudden, but that should-been-dead jinx came alive! That’s unfair?!