Chapter 282

The inn was opening, and Qi Wu wanted to accompany his mother and wife there.

Early in the morning, he came to bother Wen Yu with trivial matters, such as: Where are the clothes I’m wearing today?

Is everyone from the Wen family going? Have you prepared the gifts? Let me see… and so on.

Wen Yu didn’t argue with him; she did whatever he asked.

This made Qi Wu feel like he was floating in mid-air, unable to go up or down. He thought: It would be better if she scolded me harshly, and then it would truly be over.

Wen Yu ignored his pleading eyes, finished packing, and picked up Madam Qi to go directly to the inn.

Song Shang was probably entertaining some important friends and wasn’t in the room.

Old Madam Wen was chatting warmly with Madam Song.

Wen Qian wasn’t there, but Wen Feng was! He was dressed brightly and looked cheerful. He was getting married in a month. Today, he had invited Princess Hui Duan, and she was standing in front of him, gesturing and talking about something. It seemed like the two of them were getting along quite well, talking and laughing.

When Wen Yu and her group entered, everyone stood up to greet them.

Old Madam Wen said, “Magistrate Wen invited your father over to talk, you’ll see him soon.”

“What were Grandmother and Aunt Song talking about? You seemed so happy?!” Wen Yu clung to Madam Song.

Old Madam Wen said to Madam Qi, “This girl is so attached to her aunt, even I, her grandmother, have to step aside!”

Madam Song quickly said, “You can’t be jealous!” Then she turned to Wen Yu and said, “There have been a lot of things going on lately. When you have time, come and help your aunt. Take a look at the arrangements for your cousin’s wedding.”

Wen Yu agreed. Seeing Qi Wu standing by the side with no one talking to him, she went over and said, “You should go outside and find someone to talk to! I’ll stay with Mother.”

Qi Wu nodded and called to Wen Feng, “Second Uncle, let’s go outside and talk!”

Wen Feng was pleased with his closeness, “Okay! You talk to Yu’er first, I’ll be back soon…” The way he spoke to Princess Hui Duan was truly tender and affectionate!

Wen Yu felt disgusted, but when she looked at the Princess, she seemed to be enjoying it…

So, she shook her head and rolled her eyes.

The Princess glared at her, “What do you mean by that?!”

“Princess, does everyone become silly when they’re infatuated?”

“Are you talking about me?” The Princess turned to look at the backs of Wen Feng and Qi Wu.

Wen Yu looked at them too, “Sigh! I’m talking about you, but I’m also talking about others!”

“What’s wrong!?” The Princess’s eyes lit up, “Is your Qi Xiao Wu attracting bees and butterflies outside?”

“Why would you think that?” Wen Yu asked.

“Isn’t it normal?! It’s strange, before that polo match, it was like he didn’t even exist in the capital! If he had shown his face earlier… you wouldn’t have had a chance!”

“Look at what you’re saying, is he a young lady? Showing his face…” Wen Yu grumbled unhappily.

“Hehe! You must have something on your mind, come on, tell me!”

“What? Is Second Aunt suddenly concerned about her husband’s niece!?” Wen Yu gave her a sidelong glance.

The Princess fell for her tricks and blushed. Wen Yu was even more speechless: You stupid woman, there will be a time when you’ll be heartbroken!

Over there, Old Madam Wen and Madam Song invited Madam Qi to join them, and they chatted enthusiastically: Wen Feng’s wedding, Song Shang’s wedding, and the birth of the Wen family’s eldest grandson. “It’s all good news!”

Madam Qi, adapting to local customs, joined in the lively discussion.

Wen Jiao and the other two, who were originally standing to the side, now all gathered around Wen Yu.

Princess Hui Duan was truly a simple person. Wen Jiao and her sisters, feeling sorry for her loss of her mother, wanted to compensate. So they were all very good to the Wen girls.

Especially Wen Jiao and Wen Wan, who were well-behaved and obedient in front of her, even making snacks and handicrafts for her.

So, she often invited the sisters to her home to listen to music and watch dances, and even introduced her friends to them.

Old Madam Wen called out, “Princess, please come over here!” It seemed she had something else to say.

Princess Hui Duan smiled and said, “You girls chat first.”

At this moment, Wen Jiao had regained her former arrogance, no! Even more arrogant than before. Maybe she felt… that she was already the Princess’s daughter.

Wen Jiao was looking forward to her father marrying the Princess as soon as possible! Then, she could move to the Princess’s mansion. Even if she couldn’t live there permanently, she would still have her own courtyard. The Princess had already shown it to her.

Today, Wen Jiao was dressed in luxurious clothes and elaborate jewelry. Facing Wen Yu, she no longer tried to please her as before, but instead, she held a haughty smile and lifted her chin.

Wen Wan stood by her side, acting like a little sister. Because Princess Hui Duan liked to see their sisterly affection…

Only Wen Su seemed to have grown up and aged all of a sudden… She was well-behaved but looked pale and indifferent.

Wen Jiao even spoke slower, “Eldest Sister, last time Wen Shizhu was recognized as a relative, why didn’t you call us? You only invited Grandmother…”

Wen Yu thought to herself, back then, you probably wouldn’t have even looked at her. “At that time, it was just recognizing a goddaughter, and I thought you wouldn’t be interested. But I didn’t expect that they would actually be recognized as father and daughter.”

“Yeah!” Wen Jiao was extremely jealous, and the corner of her mouth twitched, “Who would have thought that the former Hong…” Just as she said this.

Wen Wan nudged her from the side, interrupting Wen Jiao. She glared at Wen Wan before continuing, “I just didn’t expect it! One day, she and I would be on equal footing and become close friends!”

“It’s still too early to say that…” Wen Yu was annoyed, but she smiled on her face while her eyes remained cold. “Once Second Uncle marries the Princess, he might even get you the title of County Princess! If that happens, even Eldest Sister will have to be polite to you!”

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She was mocking her, but Wen Jiao took it seriously, “Eldest Sister, are there any such precedents in the court? Does the Princess have to apply for it? Does it have to go through the Ministry of Rites?”

Her father’s low official rank had always been a thorn in her side. But if her father married the Princess, it would be a completely different story! She would become a noble lady of the capital!

In the future, the Wen family would rely on the Second Branch for support! Looking at Wen Yu: If my dream comes true, you better not try to pull rank on me as Eldest Sister or Madam anymore!

Wen Wan was also imagining the future with bright eyes… The only regret was that Wu Shi had been sent away too late. There wasn’t enough time to maneuver, otherwise, she could have married Song Shang and become the wealthy and influential Earl’s wife!

Wen Yu sneered in her heart, I know what you’re thinking, keep dreaming! She turned to Wen Su, “Fifth Sister, come, I have a few words…” She pulled her out of the room.

Wen Jiao watched them leave, unconcerned. She turned around, put on a smile, and moved closer to the Princess.

Wen Yu had someone find a small room, “How is your mother doing?”

Wen Su’s eyes reddened slightly, “She was seriously ill and hasn’t fully recovered yet!”

“Do you visit her often?”

“Yes, Eldest Brother also takes Little Brother to visit. Wen Jiao… hurt her the most!”

Looking at Wen Su’s dejected demeanor, Wen Yu guessed that Wu Shi wasn’t a positive influence on them either.

While Wen Jiao’s opportunistic nature of sucking up to whoever benefits her was certainly not good, their constant sadness and resentment were equally unhelpful.

“Wen Su, what I’m about to say may not sound pleasant, but I hope you can listen carefully…”

“Eldest Sister, go ahead.”

“Your mother’s miserable ending is, in fact, her own fault!”

“What are you talking about!” Wen Su was furious and about to stand up.

Wen Yu pressed her down, “Listen to me finish! Back then, she was the one who set her sights on your father and schemed to marry him. Instead of advising him against his irresponsible behavior, she indulged him and even joined him in his wrongdoing!”

“Eldest Sister, she’s already so miserable, how can you still say that?!” Wen Su’s tears flowed freely.

“How is she miserable? She has a decent house to live in, servants to attend to her. She kept her dowry and even extorted a sum from the Wen family. She doesn’t have to worry about her livelihood, and she has children who care about her… Wen Su, do you remember Fourth Aunt Liu Shi? Do you know what happened to her?”

Wen Su glared at Wen Yu, “Of course I know! She seduced my father, disgraced the family, she deserved to die!”

“That’s right, she deserved to die. But did you know that your mother ordered the men on the estate to abuse her at will, and she ended up pregnant?”

“What? What nonsense are you talking about? How can you say such disgusting things?” Wen Su was shocked and screamed.

“Then go ask your mother! See what she says?” Wen Yu remained calm and unperturbed.

“Eldest Sister, this… this is impossible?” Wen Su suddenly softened. If Eldest Sister said so, it was probably true.

“And it wasn’t the first time she did something like this! Those maids your father got involved with and then grew tired of… your mother sold several of them to brothels!”

“How did you know?”

“Fifth Sister! You’re much smarter than Wen Jiao, don’t you know what my position was in the family before? If I wasn’t careful, if I didn’t pay attention, I might not even know how I died!”

“It wasn’t as scary as you say… We were just being mischievous little sisters…”

“You can’t be that naive, can you!?”

Wen Su was helpless, “Eldest Sister, I don’t know how things turned out like this. What should I do?”

“Learn from me!” Wen Yu said coldly.

“What…”

“First, you need to be strong yourself, don’t be influenced by them. Your father and your mother, they’re not good people! No matter what has happened or what will happen in the future… you have to try your best to minimize the impact on yourself. Look at you now!

A young girl, looking old and dejected, filled with resentment. What’s the use? In the end, you’re only hurting yourself.”

Wen Su remained silent.

Wen Yu paused for a moment before continuing, “Second, I hope you can find a suitable marriage, then take your dowry and leave, without looking back!”

“No wonder I feel like you’ve changed. Eldest Sister, why didn’t you advise me to curry favor with the Princess like Wen Jiao?”

“Because I don’t know if this is a good thing or a bad thing. What will happen to your father and the Wen family! So, don’t aim too high, find a suitable person and get married!”

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With Magistrate Wen around, Hu Fei definitely couldn’t get close to Wen Shizhu.

So, he hovered around Magistrate Wen, hoping to find a chance to talk to him privately about the matter.

But Magistrate Wen didn’t give him a chance at all, calling him “Brother Hu” repeatedly! He chatted enthusiastically with a few close friends… Wen Qian was actually among them… about whether marrying into the wife’s family was a viable option…

It was originally only 2,800 words, but a dear reader said it would be better to have more, so I started to pad it…

Covering my face and running away…