Chapter 347: It Has Come to This

Chapter 347: It Has Come to This

Originally, he wanted to say that if she was angry, she could slap him to vent her frustration.

But remembering the last time he said that and Zheng Jinxiu actually slapped him, leaving his face swollen and blood at the corner of his mouth, he changed his words at the last moment.

"Ha, if you want to see someone, I won't hit you. Instead, you should hit her."

Zheng Jinxiu pointed at Fang Erya.

Fang Erya's heart sank. She thought to herself, this woman must be crazy, like a madwoman.

Lu Shen was taken aback. "What are you doing? Erya is your younger sister. Don't do this; she needs to go out with us to meet people too."

"Ha, what business does a concubine have meeting people?" Zheng Jinxiu sneered. "In the Zheng family, only Lady Luo, who serves my mother and calls herself a servant, can go out to meet people. Concubine He never gets such an opportunity. Does a concubine deserve it?"

Fang Erya's expression turned grim.

"If she wants to go out and meet people, she has to serve me like Lady Luo serves my mother, calling herself a servant, attending to me, massaging my legs and shoulders, serving tea and water."

Lu Shen's lips twitched. "Is that the same thing? The Lady Luo from your family was originally a maid who accompanied your mother. Erya isn't a maid; she's your sister."

"Hmph, fine, then hit her if you don't agree."

Lu Shen was speechless.

"Are you going to hit her or not? If you're unwilling to do it, then no one will have a good life in this house."

"You..." Lu Shen was about to lose his temper but was stopped by Fang Erya.

With tears in her eyes, she said pitifully, "Hit me, it's okay."

"What? How can you bear it?"

"It's alright. Just think of it for your sake and Ning'er. Ning'er is your son and my nephew. As his aunt, enduring some hardship is nothing."

Fang Erya pulled Lu Shen's hand to slap her own face.

Lu Shen was moved to tears.

Zheng Jinxiu was almost furious. Suddenly, she seemed to understand what Zheng Jinyu meant when she used to scold her about running the tea garden.

It took her many confrontations with Zheng Jinyu to understand the meaning behind those words.

This dead girl, Fang Erya.

Lu Shen couldn't bear it, so she pushed him aside and slapped Fang Erya across the face.

Her strength was considerable, and Fang Erya's face immediately swelled up, with blood trickling from the corner of her mouth. Now she couldn't go out to meet people.

Lu Shen felt heartbroken and angrily scolded Zheng Jinxiu.

"You hag, even Erya knows to endure hardship for Ning'er's sake. Why must you cause trouble?"

Zheng Jinxiu sneered, turned around, and walked away, not noticing Fang Erya's triumphant smile.

Lu Shen was livid and helped Fang Erya back into the room.

"Does it hurt? Hold on, I'll get some medicine."

"No, it's fine, it doesn't hurt."

"How can it not hurt? Last time when I..." Cough, cough, he couldn't bring himself to mention that embarrassing incident.

He knew how strong Zheng Jinxiu's grip was—it burned fiercely, and her face would remain swollen for days.

Fang Erya said, "Country girls like me aren't as delicate as city ladies. When I was young, I often got hurt while gathering firewood and pig fodder. My father had a bad temper and would beat us frequently, much worse than this. My sister's strength is less than half of my father's."

Lu Shen was stunned. Now he understood why Zheng Jinxiu hit people; it was because she learned it from her father.

Hmph, no matter how well the Zheng family raised their children, they couldn't change someone who was fundamentally bad.

"Erya, Yao Yao, you've suffered."

"It's okay, go ahead. I won't go out today."

"Alright, I'll remember your suffering and make it up to you later."

...

Zheng Jinxiu hurried out to greet guests, accompanying Lady Lu and meeting many visitors, but still saw no sign of anyone from the Zheng family. Her anxiety grew, and a sense of foreboding began to rise within her.

They hadn't come to visit her after she gave birth.

Last time, her second brother said they didn't come to avoid disturbing her rest, but she didn't believe it.

Even when she was pregnant, her mother visited several times. Why didn't they come now?

The more Zheng Jinxiu thought about it, the more uneasy she became. Finding a moment alone, she asked Lady Lu softly, "Mother, did you really send the invitations to my parents?"

"Of course, we sent them separately, with gold-embossed invitations. Lu Shen delivered them personally. Could there be any mistake?"

"Did they receive them?"

"Of course they did."

Her words did not comfort Zheng Jinxiu.

As time passed, her anxiety grew.

At that moment, a familiar maid ran over from a distance. "Young Miss, this way."

Zheng Jinxiu's eyes flickered, and she quickly said to Lady Lu, "Mother, she is the maid by Grandmother's side. I'll go over there first."

"Mm, go ahead."

Lady Lu was rather puzzled. How did this Zheng family's maid come out of the house?

Could it be that the Zheng family had already arrived, and she just missed them?

Confused, Lady Lu didn't have much time to think about it and went to greet other guests.

Their family's old master was indeed very capable—not only was he the Emperor's teacher, but his disciples were spread throughout the court.

The old master had great influence; most of the high-ranking officials in the capital would come to show their respect.

Although the Emperor wouldn't be attending, he sent a longevity lock as a gift.

However, the Empress Dowager was coming, which was also a great honor for them.

Just as she thought this, the Empress Dowager and her family of three arrived.

Lady Lu's face lit up with a smile, and she hurried forward to flatter them.

"Your Highness, Empress Dowager, greetings. Greetings, Prince Chen. May I offer my respects to Princess County."

The Empress Dowager glanced at her indifferently. "Rise."

"Yes, thank you, Empress Dowager."

"Enough with the pleasantries. Take me to a quieter place; your house is so noisy."

Lady Lu: "..."

Whose banquet isn't noisy?

"Yes, yes, please follow me."

Knowing that the Empress Dowager was coming, the Lu family had arranged a separate resting place for her family of three.

It was on the upper floor of a pavilion next to the largest waterside pavilion in the mansion.

With the windows closed, it was very quiet; with the windows open, one could hear the gossip of people passing below.

The Empress Dowager liked this place. "This is a good spot for eavesdropping on gossip."

The Princess County smiled and served her tea.

Xie Peiyu said, "Mother, since you and Sister are here, I'll leave now."

"Where are you going? Are you going to see Fang Jinxiu's child? You were once engaged to her; how awkward."

"Cough, cough, Eldest Brother is coming. I'll go find him."

The Empress Dowager rolled her eyes at him and waved him away, urging him to leave quickly.

After he left, she complained to the Princess County, "Ever since he was six, I couldn't control him anymore. He always runs around. The only time he listened was when he couldn't walk yet, and I could take him wherever I wanted."

The Princess County smiled and said, "Mother, he has his own circle of friends. As a boy, he naturally plays with other boys. It's already good that he came up here with us. Look at other families' sons; they part ways with their mothers right after entering the gate."

"Yes, you always speak well of him."

Meanwhile, Zheng Jinxiu followed the Zheng family's maid through several turns before finally finding Lady Zheng in a secluded courtyard at the back.