Shrewish wife

  Yang Lan didn't mind Yueshuai's muttering, she knew what she was doing, and slowly drank the silver lotus seed porridge with her head down.

  However, she did not know that Li Qianxue had already cried all the way back to Songhe Hall. Her small face was full of sorrow and her eyes seemed to tell people that she had suffered a great grievance at the county princess's place.

  The old lady saw her rushing in like the wind, with tears all over her face, and asked in surprise and concern: "Girl, what's wrong? Didn't you go to Lan'er's place? Why didn't it work out?" In her heart, she felt a little strange, why was she crying so much, this child is just a bit shallow in the eye sockets, and it will be difficult for her to become a 'big woman' in the future!

  Li Qianxue sat on the edge of the kang, her head bowed, revealing a smooth and beautiful neck, tears falling one by one onto her yellow robe, slowly spreading and wetting the orchid flowers on her skirt, her weak and pitiful appearance was also beautifully moving.

  "Grandma, Sixth Sister she...!" Li Qianshu cried out in sobs.

  The old lady thought for a moment, wondering if Lan'er had made things difficult for her. She thought that it was understandable, after all, the other person was a princess who had been in and out of the palace since she was young, so it was normal for her to be a bit arrogant.

  "Has she been giving you a hard time? Hey! What's there to cry about? She's the county princess, even the emperor spoils her, it's inevitable that she has a bit of a temper, but this child is still very kind at heart and won't get angry for no reason." The old lady gently patted her granddaughter's back to comfort her.

  Li Qianxue lowered her head, and a beam of resentful and hateful light shot out from her eyes. Her fists were tightly clenched together, but soon relaxed again. She took out a handkerchief to wipe the corners of her eyes, her voice tinged with sorrow and grievance. "I knew it, I didn't mind at first, but when I mentioned the invitation to Princess Ping'an's mansion, the young lady...". Her words trailed off unspoken.

  The old lady was slightly angry and asked in a low voice: "What did she say? Doesn't she want to help? Didn't you mention what I said?"

  Li Qianxue's heart skipped a beat, and she immediately looked up at the old lady with a wronged expression, saying: "I did mention it, but the young mistress scolded me severely. She said she just got back and her butt hasn't even warmed up yet! How could she have time to attend the banquet? She simply dismissed me!"

  It seems like not a single bad word was said, but every sentence was directed at Yang Lan. Judging from Li Qianshuo's two years of experience in serving the old lady with humility, she basically had an 80% grasp on it.

  The old lady indeed looked a bit angry, but still understandingly said: "I was in a hurry, the child just came back! No matter what, she will come back and this post won't be missing. This time she can't go, next time it's the same, she can't stay at home forever without going out. When the time comes, I'll let her bring you along. Don't worry, there will be opportunities to go out and gain experience."

  Although it's a pity that my granddaughter suffered injustice, I also understand that some people and things can't be forced or ordered around. All I can do is carefully comfort my granddaughter.

  Li Qianxue was about to say something else, but saw Mrs. Xu coming in with a teacup and reluctantly closed her mouth again.

  "Old lady, take your medicine. Just now the young mistress had Lin's nanny bring back some local specialties from outside. And there's also a gift that the young mistress personally embroidered, saying it's to wish you good luck!" Madam Xu had long since heard that her niece was gossiping again and couldn't help but find an excuse to come in.

  The old lady's face lit up with a pleased expression, and she indeed still doted on me. After all, it wasn't in vain that I was raised by the Yang family. She repeatedly asked: "What good thing are you showing me?"

  Mrs. Xu held a red lacquered wooden box with golden inlaid peony flowers, moved closer to the old lady, slowly opened it, and imperceptibly squeezed Li Qianshu to one side. She glanced at her out of the corner of her eye, revealing a hint of disdain on her face.

  When I opened the box and took a look, inside was an exquisitely embroidered double-sided table screen, all that's left to do is mount it. The embroidery depicted pine cranes prolonging life and pine and cypress trees. This picture is extremely beautiful and unparalleled, from afar it looks just like a painting, not a single thread can be seen, it's clear that the creator put their heart into it.

  The old lady, who had lived for many years and seen many good things, was seeing such exquisite embroidery for the first time. It was truly a work of art! If she hadn't touched it gently with her hands, she would have thought it was painted on. The leaves and feathers were so lifelike that they seemed to be real, and the white crane's eyes were so lively that they almost came alive. It was truly breathtaking.

  The old lady was extremely excited and exclaimed repeatedly: "Great! Too beautiful! Absolutely stunning!"

  Xu's mother had been serving the old lady for a lifetime, so she naturally knew how to get on the old lady's good side. She smiled and chimed in: "I heard that this embroidery took more than a year to complete! It's pitiful that a child of just over ten years old has such filial piety, but unfortunately, this child is mute and has never even cried out in pain! After all, she's the old lady's own granddaughter, so it wasn't wasted on her! Look at how well this embroidery is done - it's not inferior to a professional embroiderer's work! I've lived for so many years and have seen my fair share of things, but I've never seen anything as exquisite as this before! It really has opened my eyes!" She rattled off a long string of words, leaving Li Xiangyu sitting beside her unsure whether to stand up or sit down.

  Xu's mother sneered in her heart, if she had provoked Old Lady and Third Young Miss before, it was fine, considering you didn't have an easy life and needed this pampering, so I tolerated it. But you actually dared to provoke the feelings between Old Lady and the County Princess, bringing trouble to the Yang family and Old Lady, then don't blame me for not being polite to you!

  The old lady smiled and said, "I don't care if my granddaughter's embroidery is not good enough, what I like is the thought she put into it! No one can compare to my granddaughter! Even if others' embroidery is better, I wouldn't be interested! What kind of wood do you think would be suitable for framing? Would purple sandalwood be too dark?"

  Xu's mother hastily and cheerfully made an excuse, "I think the yellow 'flower' pear wood color is brighter, what do you think? The embroidery is extremely well done, just carve some simple cloud patterns and it will be fine, if it's too complicated it will be a bit of a letdown!"

  The old lady listened with a nod of approval, full of conviction.

  To say that Mrs. Xu had been serving the old lady since she was a young girl, the two of them went through thick and thin together, sharing joys and sorrows, eating bitterness and shedding tears, their bond was unparalleled. Moreover, after being widowed in her middle age with no children, she devoted herself to taking care of the old lady, who valued and relied on her greatly.

  However, Mrs. Xu was extremely loyal and rarely interfered with the Yang family's affairs, only serving the old lady and ignoring everything outside unless someone threatened the old lady's interests.

  "Alright, you help me find some good Huanghuali wood, and make it look nice, I'll put it on my small table by the bed, how's that?" The old lady looked like a child who had just gotten a new toy, her face full of joy, eager to share with others.

  Mrs. Xu followed the old lady's words and said: "I think it's not good to put it on the table, the place is too small to spread out, you see if we put it on that small side table, move that blue porcelain 'flower' vase to one side, wouldn't that be better? That spot is eye-catching, as soon as you enter the room, you can see it."

  The old lady was indeed happy and nodded vigorously, "Alright, you go help me 'fix' it. You have to keep an eye on them 'fixing' it or they'll ruin my things."

  "Don't worry, I'll take care of it myself, and I guarantee nothing will go wrong!" Mrs. Xu assured the old lady with a smile.

  Li Qianxue saw that nothing could be done today, so she said with a difficult expression: "Grandma, I blew wind earlier. I'm feeling a bit uncomfortable. I want to go back and lie down."

  The old lady slightly frowned and nodded, "Alright then! If it's serious, go ask the doctor to come take a look!"

  "It's nothing, just a minor illness." Li Qianshu didn't say anything else and walked out with a stiff face.

  The old lady looked at Li Qianxue's back and was worried. She was also a little worried, this child is good in every way, but her eyes are too shallow, not to mention the princess being unhappy, she herself doesn't quite approve of it either! Alas! But then again, she had some thoughts in her mind, how can this be good?!

  Mrs. Xu had followed the old lady for many years and was familiar with her every move, so how could she not understand what the old lady was thinking? She stepped forward, handed over a cup of hot tea, and after some deliberation, spoke up: "Old lady, this young miss's etiquette should be learned well. You see, Third Young Miss was such a spoiled child back then, but now look at her, isn't she a bit like a noble young lady?"

  The old lady sipped a mouthful of hot tea and found that the taste was not like the Junshan Yinzhen she used to drink, so she asked: "What kind of tea is this? Why did you brew this for me?"

  She didn't respond to her words, but instead asked enthusiastically about the tea.

  Mrs. Xu didn't force her, and smiled as she said, "This! The young mistress learned to copy tea from Master Ming Hui, this is the white tea Bai Mao Yin Zhen that she personally roasted, how's the taste?"

  The old lady's face softened as she listened, and she sighed, "This child is a lucky one, dignified and elegant, with a bright and cheerful aura that makes people happy. Those eyes are especially lively and cunning, and her whole body exudes a clever energy!" After finishing speaking, she let out a deep sigh, seeming to be both proud and slightly regretful.

  Mrs. Xu smiled and said, "This child is really considerate, I don't know where she heard that I have a bit of cold legs, and specially asked someone to bring me Master Minghui's medicinal patch, just saying that after applying it today, my legs feel warm and comfortable! It's rare to see such consideration!" She seemed to be hinting at something.

  The old lady couldn't help but laugh and looked at the old man who was holding onto himself and wouldn't let go, smiling wryly and saying: "What else do you want to say, just say it!"

  Madam Xǔ thought for a moment, then spoke seriously: "Old lady, I've followed you all my life, and you understand my heart the most."

  Seeing the old lady nodding in agreement, she continued: "If Miss continues to be so spoiled, she will ruin herself. She even dares to fabricate things about the county lord's wife, what else won't she dare do? Now that you're protecting her and have a close relationship with your elder sister, the marquis won't ignore this child. However, there will come a day when even deep relationships wear out! She'll eventually get married, right? How will she treat her mother-in-law and younger sisters-in-law then?

  "Last time, Master Hou clearly told you that he didn't promise anything to the eldest young lady, only promised to take care of this child, and never mentioned anything about marriage. What's the use of being stubborn again?" She advised with a heavy heart.

  She knew better than anyone that the old lady and the eldest son, Hou Ye, didn't have a deep affection for each other. In fact, there was even some resentment and dissatisfaction towards her late mother-in-law. When the old master was alive, the old lady had a hard time! It was an unspeakable hardship! Who would have thought that our family's status was lower than others? The maternal family had always been harmonious and peaceful since childhood, never experiencing any conflicts in the inner courtyard. As a result, she suffered greatly after marriage.

  Alas! This woman was not satisfied with her husband's family, and her mother-in-law did not like her temperament. Her husband did not love her, and she was hot-tempered. It can be imagined how miserable a woman would be in the inner courtyard of a murderer who does not see blood! Moreover, even the eldest son was taken away by his mother-in-law. Fortunately, that woman was an official's concubine after being sent to the teaching department, and she did not give birth to any children. Although so, during her lifetime, she had squeezed out the old lady enough, and that woman was proficient in all aspects of music, chess, calligraphy, and painting, and had enchanted the old man into a state of infatuation.

  What's the point of saying these now! Past events have long gone with the wind, and the only thing that can't be erased is those heart-wrenching memories.