freenovelworld Chapter 626 Testing the Waters?
Chapter 626 Testing the Waters?
That's a rather harsh statement!
He Xiangling roughly understood, nodded, and stood up, supporting her waist with one hand. "Yes, I understand. Thank you for your guidance, Your Highness."
"Alright, we usually call each other sisters, this is nothing for you to thank me for. If you really want to thank me, bring your children here more often after you have them. Don't be like Gao Chunhua, who only knows how to revolve around her husband all day long."
He Xiangling chuckled, "Yes, I've got it."
Seeing that He Xiangling was finally somewhat different from when she came, Mu Xin Nuan sighed softly, "You are the second young mistress of the Lu family, that is, the mistress of the second branch. Even if Lu Shaohua wants to take a concubine, can she enter the Lu family without your approval? You, you just worry too much and make yourself confused."
"Yes, Your Highness is right. I was too hasty. I was at a loss for what to do. Fortunately, Your Highness reminded me today, otherwise, I don't know how long I would have been worried."
"You did well this time; at least you knew to come to me when you needed something. As for the Lu family's affairs, you can figure it out yourself. As for Madam Lu, I think with your intelligence, it shouldn't be too difficult to find out some inside information."
He Xiangling nodded. “Thank you for the reminder, Your Highness. With my status, even if I returned to the main branch of the He family, I would not be well received. But if I really needed help from the mother of the second branch, she might not be able to come up with any solutions. If it weren’t for Your Highness’s favor, I’m afraid my position as the second young mistress of the Lu family would be in serious jeopardy.”
"Stop belittling yourself. I know what kind of person you are. Even if I don't help you, you will definitely fight your way out on your own, it's just that the price may be higher than it is now."
"Now that the princess has said that, I feel quite noble."
Mu Xin Nuan was taken aback, then glared at her. "Alright, you've forgotten who you are after I've praised you a couple of times. If you have nothing else to do, come with me for a walk in the back garden. Perfect timing, let my little Zong Hua pee all over you and bring you a big, fat son."
He Xiangling blushed and smiled shyly.
This is the local custom. Whenever a woman or young wife is pregnant, she will hold other people's sons more often. If the boy urinates on the pregnant woman, it is believed that she is carrying a son.
In this patriarchal society, sons naturally have an advantage over daughters.
However, for a family as prestigious and influential as the Lu family, even the birth of a daughter would be a cause for great joy. Moreover, Lu Shaohua wasn't the eldest son. Lu Shaofeng already had a son, so if Lu Shaohua had a daughter, it would actually make Old Master Lu happy.
That's what they say, but almost every pregnant woman hopes to give birth to a son.
A mother's status rises with her son's. Even if He Xiangling is the legal wife, her position will be somewhat awkward if she doesn't have a legitimate son in the future.
He Xiangling accompanied Mu Xinnuan as they strolled slowly through the garden. Mu Xinnuan held Xiao Zonghua in her arms, and the two stopped mentioning the Yang family and instead started talking about some things happening in Xingwen District of Yanzhou.
"By the way, I heard that your husband has now become a disciple of a famous Confucian scholar in Yanzhou, and is quite well-known there?"
"It's alright. He's finally settled down, and I think I married the right person. If it weren't for this whole Yang thing, I'd really think life was pretty good."
"Alright, didn't we say we wouldn't mention her? Here, have a taste. These are some nuts that Her Majesty the Empress sent over earlier, saying they were tributes from the north."
The two sat in the garden for a while longer. Xiao Zonghua stayed in He Xiangling's arms for a while and soon fell asleep.
The wet nurse took the young master away, and He Xiangling, feeling a bit tired, got up to say goodbye.
Aunt Fang helped Mu Xin Nuan back to her dormitory. "Do you think that Madam Lu really has a weakness that Yang Shi has been able to exploit?"
"Well, if that's not the case, how could a shrewd woman like Madam Lu allow such a thing to happen? If this matter is not handled properly, it will be spread that Lu Shaohua has demoted his wife to a concubine and is heartless and ungrateful, which would be extremely detrimental to his future."
“But Your Highness, if Madam Yang really had something on Madam Lu, why did she not take any action for so long? Why did she wait until now? If she really wanted to make things difficult for Madam Lu, she should have taken action before He Xiangling even entered the house.”
“That’s right! So, the leverage that Madam Yang has may not be something she knew all along. Otherwise, she should have taken action long ago. Instead, she’s now forced to compromise and become a concubine.”
Mu Xin Nuan's tone was somewhat disdainful. She had never liked this Yang woman to begin with, and now, just mentioning her made her feel annoyed.
"Your Highness, are you saying that someone else is deliberately pushing this matter behind Yang's back? What exactly does that person want to do? Why do they insist on having Yang return to the Lu residence?"
"Yes. That's exactly what I haven't figured out yet. Was that person's target the Lu family or Lu Shaohua? To be able to command the Yang family, which is quite well-known in the area, so obediently, that person must be someone of extraordinary status."
Aunt Fang's heart skipped a beat, and she thought to herself that something was wrong. Could it be someone of exceptionally high status?
If that's the case, then their purpose is probably not just as simple as the Lu family mansion.
Mu Xin Nuan was also having a headache. So far, she really couldn't figure out who was behind the Yang family.
The purpose of bringing Yang back into the Lu residence was simply to throw the Lu residence into chaos once again.
Or is there some other secret hidden in the Lu family mansion?
It seems there are some things I need to ask Duanmu Chuze about.
Originally, she thought that after having Xiao Zonghua, her life would mainly revolve around being a wife and mother. After all, she was a mother now and couldn't live the same life as before. But now it seems that even though she wants peace and quiet, there are people who won't let her have that peace.
The situation at the girls' school has basically taken shape, and now the Lu family is in trouble again. Why can't things just get peaceful?
Duanmu Chuze was slightly taken aback by Mu Xinnuan's words. "Besides the Lu family's rice and grain that the second branch has been managing, there really isn't much else in the Lu family. I've never heard of any other secrets from the first branch. Perhaps I should call Lu Shaofeng back and ask him?"
"You called him back for something so trivial? Was it really necessary?"
“That’s true. Here’s what we’ll do: I’ll send someone to briefly explain the situation here to him, and we can see his attitude. Perhaps, as the eldest son of the Lu family, he knows something about it.”
"It seems that this is the only way now."