A Beautiful Duchess with a Dark Heart – Chapter 31

Chapter 31: Future Mother-in-Law

This day was the wedding day of the eldest grandson of the Wen family.

At the same time, in Zanquan Mountain Estate, over a hundred miles away, Cui Shi, the wife of the eldest son of the Zhenyuan Marquis Residence in the capital, returned from the capital.

The estate was a large complex of buildings, originally the ancestral home of the Qi family. The main branch of the Qi family resided in the capital, while this place housed some of the clan members. Over the years, many people had moved here, forming a bustling and lively town.

This time, she returned to renovate the ancestral home and tombs, and to hold a memorial service for her husband’s birth mother, the original wife of the Zhenyuan Marquis Qi Hong.

Madam Qi’s family had been military officials for generations. Her father had doted on her mother all his life, and there were no other women in his life. Her two elder brothers were also exemplary men, and the family had a good reputation. Therefore, she had once been a simple and cheerful woman, unaware of what troubles were, and even able to chat and laugh in front of the deceased Empress.

It was a pity… that she did not meet a good husband after marriage…

The Cui family and the Qi family were well-matched, and this marriage had been bestowed by the former Empress.

She married the eldest son of the Qi family and gave birth to the eldest grandson of the Qi family. Her husband was handsome and capable, neither a gambler nor a womanizer.

It seemed, and sounded, like a glorious and honorable marriage.

But unfortunately, the life she had lived these years… even thinking about it was laughable. How could she have ended up with such a husband and such a mother-in-law?

Her mother-in-law… oh, actually, it was her stepmother-in-law, the second wife of the Zhenyuan Marquis and her husband’s stepmother: Old Madam Qi, Tan Shi.

Speaking of this old lady, she was truly a “marvelous person,” with an unknown origin and not particularly beautiful. But she was able to become the Zhenyuan Marquis’s second wife! And she had enjoyed decades of respect.

Not only that, she had also gained the trust of her own husband, Qi Youyi… it was as if she was not his birth mother, but even better than one!

What was even more bizarre was that even her own eldest son, Qi Xiao, respected her more than his own mother!

Qi Youyi, that dead man… forget about him.

But whenever she thought of Qi Xiao’s aloofness and criticism, Madam Qi felt immense pain and had cried countless times.

Tan Shi was extremely skilled in dealing with people. Not only was she a kind old lady at home, but she also had a good reputation among the noblewomen in the capital. Her reputation for kindness had spread thousands of miles from the capital to this place…

Heh! But… she just looked down on her!

In fact, her own family was not weak, her dowry was generous, she became pregnant as soon as she entered the household, and later gave birth to a son. Whether a stepmother-in-law looked down on her or not shouldn’t have mattered.

However, Tan Shi was like a smiling fox, cunning and resourceful, setting traps every step of the way…

And her husband and eldest son fully supported Tan Shi. No matter what happened, the two of them always blamed her.

Later, Tan Shi arranged a marriage for Qi Xiao, and the daughter-in-law, heh, firmly stood on Tan Shi’s side!

Whenever she thought of these things, Madam Qi felt so oppressed that she wanted to go crazy.

Especially after the Empress passed away a few years ago, those people became even more unscrupulous towards her.

Then… her mother also passed away. Her father was heartbroken, and she didn’t want to add to his troubles with her own messy affairs. Her two brothers had their own wives, children, businesses, and matters to attend to, and she felt embarrassed to constantly bother them.

Now middle-aged, in the entire Qi family, only her youngest son, Qi Wulang, was the only one who was truly close to her…

The current Madam Qi had long lost the smiling face of her youth. She was now a middle-aged noblewoman with exquisite clothing, indifferent eyes, thin and emotionless lips, and a generally unapproachable demeanor.

At this moment, she was waiting for her son Wulang while lost in thought.

Her right arm, resting on the armrest of the chair, wore a wide and thick mutton fat jade bracelet, and her brown satin shoes rested on the footstool. Her posture and expression conveyed both pickiness and indifference.

“Mother!” Wulang entered.

Ah! Her beautiful son was here!

Madam Qi’s world brightened, a smile rising from her heart and onto her face. She almost stood up to greet her son!

Qi Wulang, standing before her, was tall, with a slender waist, broad shoulders, a pert bottom, and long legs.

His skin was fairer than that of most women, yet his hair and eyebrows were extremely dark. A pair of well-defined phoenix eyes, with slightly lowered inner corners and slightly raised outer corners… he was simply captivating!

Pale pink lips, a sharp nose like a knife’s edge, a beautiful chin, and a handsome Adam’s apple…

Although they were together every day now, Madam Qi couldn’t help but admire him from head to toe.

She had no daughter, and her wealth was abundant, so in her idleness, she loved to dress up her son! She had once dressed him up… so beautifully that it was difficult to distinguish his gender. He was the living image of a troublemaking young master from a wealthy family.

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However, he had been studying away from home since childhood and was only occasionally by her side. Madam Qi’s enthusiasm had always had nowhere to go! Now that he had finally completed his studies and returned, she could finally show him off properly. But this son of hers refused! He was extremely principled, mysteriously busy with something all day long, and often disappeared for three to five months without a trace, refusing to tell her anything!

Otherwise, at the autumn hunt, on the polo field, at the palace banquets, the most beautiful young man in the capital would be none other than her son! With no possibility of this beautiful scene coming to fruition, Madam Qi was anxious and frustrated.

Looking at her son, she felt a mixture of joy and resentment, but her eyes and brows were filled with a smile.

But at this moment, Qi Wulang was saying something she didn’t want to hear!

“Mother, I really have a lot of things to do, and they are really important. So… about the family matters, could you, could you let Fourth Brother take on more?”

He had brought this up several times, but Madam Qi had always refused. Now, seeing him still rambling on about it, her face darkened.

She was unhappy!

This time, when she returned, she brought two “sons” with her. The other one, Qi Jian, was born to Concubine Liu.

Hadn’t she suffered enough in the Qi family? She had no interest in elevating a son born to a concubine!

“Humph, having you, this precious son, is enough for me. I have no interest in elevating others!” Madam Qi rolled her eyes.

“Mother… could you just give Fourth Brother a chance?”

“Hah! Give him a chance…” Madam Qi sneered, “His concubine mother is a fence-sitter! She secretly curries favor with that one in Minxiu Courtyard! She thinks I don’t know?! This time, if he hadn’t shamelessly insisted on coming along, and you hadn’t urged me, I wouldn’t have brought him back!”

“A concubine is a concubine, and Fourth Brother is Fourth Brother. They are not the same! Fourth Brother has been telling me that he wants you to make the decision for his marriage!”

“He dares to offend the old lady of the main courtyard?!” Madam Qi laughed coldly.

Qi Wulang felt a pang of heartache for his mother. She had married into the family properly and hadn’t done anything wrong, yet she didn’t have the dignity of the mistress of the house…

“Mother, no matter what, she is our grandmother. What can we, as grandchildren, do?”

“Grandmother? Hah! You’re all delusional! Grandmother… your grandmother is lying on the North Mountain!” She pointed outside. “That one is your Third Uncle’s mother, the grandmother of Qi San and Qi Liu! Does she have anything to do with you father and son?! Ungrateful things!” She was cursing that bastard she called her husband.

“Mother!” Qi Wulang was also a little helpless, “I know you’ve been wronged! But after so many years, aren’t you used to it yet? Just see through it and let it go. You don’t rely on them to live your life!”

“Easier said than done…” Madam Qi glanced at her son with disdain, “At such a young age, what can you see through?! Do you not know why I brought you back?”

Seeing her son remain silent, Madam Qi repeated tirelessly, “You need to interact with the clan members, supervise the spending of large sums of money, and maintain relationships with various parties! You need to take control of this estate! These are all excellent opportunities for you to gain experience. Why should we give them to him?”

Qi Wu patiently said, “Mother, I have more important things to do, and I really don’t have any time to spare. Besides, it would be better for Fourth Brother to settle his marriage here. If he takes charge of things, it will be beneficial for his marriage!”

“As for him, I’ll have to see about that! Alright, alright, you don’t have to worry about it, I know what I’m doing!”

“Mother, this is what I think… although you don’t value it, for the sake of reputation, you can’t just have me, your son, by your side!”

“Hah! If your body falls into a well, can your ears still be spared? I can’t even rely on my own eldest son! How can I rely on him?!”

Madam Qi glanced at her son and pretentiously picked up her teacup, “You, don’t pour your heart and soul into helping him, or in the end, he’ll just give you a cold shoulder! You Qi family, you just don’t know what’s good for you!”

“Hehe… Mother, don’t you trust your son? In the future… you’ll see! Even if I support Fourth Brother, if he tries anything funny, I can still deal with him!”

Madam Qi sighed, “Ai, you really have a lot going on! Fine, fine, this is what you said… you…”

Before she could finish speaking, someone came to report, “Madam, Zhang Cai and his wife have returned!”

“Ah! So fast?” Qi Wulang’s voice was filled with surprise.

Madam Qi turned to look at him. Huh! Look at how bright his eyes were, how radiant his face was… he was like the morning star that appears just after sunset!

A surge of sour and bitter anger rushed to Madam Qi’s head…

This was Wen Yu’s future mother-in-law and husband.