To be a Virtuous Wife

Chapter Eleven "Confrontation"

Chapter 11 Confrontation

The West Hall of Chang De Gong Fu was specifically used for female gatherings so the majority of the furnishings were vibrant yet well-made. Inside, there were artwork and calligraphy of masters and it looked as this was a home with some foundation. But it was to be obvious that each generation was worse than the previous. The present Duke of Chang De was so preposterous that many laughed at him behind his back.

Qu Qing Ju was at the same table as Qu lao taitai and her spot was beside Luo lao taitai. It was obvious from the seating the attitude that the Qu Family held toward her. At the table, there were people who were willing to ingratiate themselves so the mood at the table was somewhat busy. But when Qu lao taitai seated the Qu Family's san guniang beside her, everybody's eyes changed. If this was a family banquet, nobody would say an extra word, but of the womenfolk present today, there were several females who ranked higher than Qu lao taitai. This Qu san guniang was both of a younger generation and wasn't titled. It really wasn't suitable for her to sit at the table.

The Marquess of Bao Rong smiled coldly at Qu lao taitai's actions, understanding that this was Qu lao taitai wanting everybody at the table to meet Qu san guniang but the timing just wasn't good.

"This old one has always preferred these two girls. Now that da yatou has married, we've finally managed to gather together today," Qu lao taitai couldn't not know what others were thinking. She used her handkerchief to wipe at the corner of her eye, "Now that these girls have grown up, this old lady still wants to keep them by my side all the time."

One of the furen that had good relations with the Qu family smiled and followed: "This is lao taitai's love for her granddaughters. But when the children grow up, they can't stay at home. San guniang is the epitome ... ..." When she got there, she smiled mischievously.

Qu Yue Su heard those words and quickly dropped her head in embarrassment.

Seeing her act like a little girl, Qu Qing Ju smiled at the woman that spoke. This person was on the side of Qu lao taitai Wei shi. Her husband was an assistant minister at the Ministry of Rites, a not very large yet not very insignificant position. But this person usually only treated Qu Yue Su courteously. At the beginning, both Qu Qing Ju and shu daughter Qu Hui Xue hadn't come into her eyes.

"Wei furen is very funny. At this time, san meimei is the youngest and grandmother loves her best. Why can't she spend more time with grandmother." Qu Qing Ju smiled thinly at Wei shi, and took the handkerchief Yin Liu handed over to wipe her hands, "It is er meimei who has less time to spend with grandmother."

Liang shi heard what Qu Qing Ju said and felt anger stir. Qu Qing Ju was trying to ruin her daughter's marriage. Mentioning the second daughter, she was telling others that her, the di mother, wasn't benevolent, would only think of her own daughter and neglect the shu daughter?

Wei shi paused and didn't seem to have any response. In the past, she had always ingratiated herself with her gumu[1] in this manner. Today, she was firmly pushed back by Qu Qing Ju and just realized that the person sitting across from her wasn't the Qu da guniang of the past, but the noble and elevated Duan Wang Fei.

Luo lao taitai smiled as she looked at Wei shi, her eyes full of distain. Who was Duan Wang? He was the second son of the Emperor. His mother Jing Fei[2] may not be as favoured as Shu Fei[3] but she still had some level of influence with the emperor. As to what Duan Wang was really like, nobody knew. But in the eyes of the entire court, Duan Wang might not be the most capable of the four imperial sons, but he definitely was not useless.

Jinshang[4] only has four sons. The eldest imperial son Ning Wang[5] had some power in the court. However, his birth was not high and his birth mother was only a cairen.[6] The mother of the third imperial son, Rui Wang,[7] Shu Fei was the most favoured of the Emperor which spilled over to favouring her son. It was just that while this imperial son had some ability, his schemes were cruel and many were afraid of him. The fourth imperial son was Cheng Wang. His mother was a guipin[8] but wasn't favored by the emperor. The Emperor's attitude towards the fourth imperial son was not special and as to the person Cheng Wang, he was also average.