Chapter 62: The Wretched Daughter-in-law IV

Impossible!

Yet the daughter-in-law's expression clearly showed she knew something.

The Princess Consort did not dare to dwell on it.

On the other side, Guan Haiquan was genuinely reluctant to part with his wife. Over their many years of marriage, Yang Aicao had always been submissive and compliant, bearing him three children. She never interfered with him taking concubines, and even helped manage the concubines, maidservants, and children born of concubines. Another woman would surely never have endured such humiliation as she did.

Furthermore, people had feelings, and he did not believe Yang Aicao had committed any fault grave enough to warrant being cast aside and divorced. Seeing that his mother remained silent, he felt this opportunity must not be missed and eagerly stepped forward to persuade her, "Mother, Aicao has not done anything terribly wrong. Please calm down. At worst, once she has recovered her health, I will have her properly apologize to you."

What apology?

He might as well have bluntly stated that as soon as Yang Aicao regained her strength, she would continue picking up beans.

"I have done nothing wrong," Chu Yunli said calmly. "The only reason I didn't resist when you wanted to divorce me was because my father's status is humble, and whatever you said went. If my father were in a position to stand against you, judging by everything I've done for all these years, just try divorcing me and see what happens?"

The Princess Consort lost face and, in her anger, pointed at Chu Yunli and cursed, "Does she look like she is ready to admit her mistake?" With that, she rebuked, "Truly, a man takes a wife and forgets his mother. From now on, you can just live with her."

With those words, she flicked her sleeves and stormed off.

In the eyes of everyone present, it appeared that Guan Haiquan, the heir, had stubbornly insisted on keeping his wife, while the Princess Consort had compromised and abandoned the idea of divorcing Yang Aicao simply because she did not want to become estranged from her son.

However, Guan Haiquan and Madam Zhu had just witnessed how furious the Princess Consort had been in the main courtyard; her attitude had clearly shown a fixed determination to send Yang Aicao back to her maiden family. She had even instructed someone to summon Lord Yang as she was heading out.

Under such circumstances, to take back the words of divorce—especially right after Yang Aicao brought up a widow surnamed Zhou... no matter how one looked at it, the root of the problem lay with that widow.

Madam Zhu's eyes gleamed with curiosity. She wanted to ask, but she and Yang Aicao had never gotten along over the years, and her own status did not permit her to pry. Seeing that there was no more drama to watch, she had no choice but to return to her own quarters, turning back to look three times with every step she took.

Guan Haiquan dismissed the servants and personally bolted the door. Now left alone with his wife in the room, he leaned close to Chu Yunli and asked in a low voice, "What did you mean by those words just now? Why would Mother want to arrange a widow for me to marry?"

Even though his mother had denied it, her decision to rescind the divorce was unmistakably because of the widow with the surname Zhou mentioned by his wife.

Just what kind of person was this, that she could make the Princess Consort go to such lengths to divorce Yang Aicao to clear the way, and then become constrained by her afterward?

Chu Yunli shook her head. "Ignorance is bliss."

Guan Haiquan frowned. "Does that woman pose a threat to me?"

Chu Yunli finally finished smoothing the powder evenly across her hands. Having spoken so much, she felt a bit thirsty and raised a hand to pour some tea. "The threat is beyond imagination."

Seeing this, Guan Haiquan fawningly snatched the teapot to pour a cup for her himself, and even handed it to her with his own hands. "Drink up quickly, and tell me once you're done."

He did not believe a mere widow could pose any threat to him, but seeing his wife's resolute demeanor, he began to feel uncertain.

Chu Yunli finished the tea and said, "It is best for you that you do not know. Otherwise, from the moment you learned the truth, you would surely lose your appetite, be unable to sleep, and lose the ability to smile entirely."

Guan Haiquan looked utterly unconvinced.

Chu Yunli waved a hand. "I slept late last night and am quite exhausted. Do not stay here and disturb me."

Guan Haiquan had been born the heir apparent. The Prince's Manor had once dipped a toe into the struggles for the succession, causing everyone to live in a state of anxious trepidation for a long time. But he had been young back then, and as far back as he could remember, though he was not highly regarded within the palace walls, outside of palace personnel, everyone treated him with utmost courtesy. Aside from his parents, he rarely humbled himself before anyone.

From his perspective, Chu Yunli's behavior was merely playing hard to get. Having lowered his dignity only to receive no truth in return, he lost his patience as well. Hearing her words, he turned and walked away.

"You can take that secret with you into your coffin!"

After returning to the main courtyard, the Princess Consort paced before the window, deep in thought for a long time. She still could not figure out where things had gone wrong. She wanted to rush over and interrogate her daughter-in-law, but she was also afraid that the daughter-in-law truly knew the truth.

That matter... was simply too critical.

She massaged her temples, regretting that she had pushed her daughter-in-law too hard yesterday... Her daughter-in-law hadn't left the house in days, so that news clearly hadn't been acquired recently. If she hadn't flown into a rage, her daughter-in-law wouldn't have used these matters to threaten her.

The most urgent question right now was whether her daughter-in-law truly knew the truth.

The Princess Consort carefully recalled every detail and, concluding that the affair was well-hidden and known to no one else, gradually set her mind at ease.

After pondering for a long while, she instructed someone to send out invitations, accompanied by a lavish carriage, as she intended to fetch the guest immediately.

When Chu Yunli woke up from her nap, she was told that guests had arrived at the manor—a mother and daughter. The mother was in her early thirties and looked quite young, while the girl was seventeen and exceptionally beautiful, with autumn-water ripples in her eyes. Just a single glance was enough to make one wish to drown in them.

These words were spoken by Dong'er, the maidservant by Chu Yunli's side.

Dong'er was her dowry maid, who had planned for her in all things over the years; the mistress and servant practically depended on each other for survival.

Having slept her fill and recovered her energy, Chu Yunli immediately got up. "I'll go and meet them."

Dong'er looked nervous and advised, "The Princess Consort is already angry with you. Why bother walking right into it?"

Chu Yunli poked her on the forehead. "Silly girl, right now, she is the one who is afraid of me."

In the main courtyard, the Prince was recovering from his injuries in the innermost room. In the front courtyard, apart from the Princess Consort and the servants, there stood a mother and daughter.

Seeing Chu Yunli enter, the old matron did not stop her, but instead took the lead in walking ahead to guide the way.

Walking up close without offering any bow, Chu Yunli smiled and said, "We were just talking about this this morning, and now we get to meet the principal parties." She looked the woman up and down and remarked, "You certainly look pleasant, but judging by your attire... apart from the single hairpin on your head which is rather valuable, your family background must be quite poor. Looking like this, you are hardly fit to cross the threshold of the Prince's Manor."

The woman, Zhou Yemiao, changed expression slightly and immediately stood up. "I have no desire to enter the Prince's Manor. Madam, please do not misunderstand. I have matters to attend to, so I'll be leaving first..."

As she spoke, she reached out to pull her daughter beside her. "Let's hurry and go. We can buy some vegetables on the way."

Upon seeing this, the Princess Consort glared fiercely at Chu Yunli. "Shut your mouth if you don't know how to speak properly." She reached out to grasp Zhou Yemiao's hand. "She has a low birth; ever since she had the good fortune to marry into the manor, she loves nothing more than to throw her status around. I will lecture her later, so please don't take it to heart. I have already had meals prepared, so there is no need to buy vegetables."

Zhou Yemiao had strong self-esteem and could not stomach such remarks, insisting on leaving.

Her daughter, Qi Yaoyao, was somewhat reluctant to go, and while her mother tugged at her forcefully, she tried hard to stay behind. Seeing this, the Princess Consort persuaded, "Even if you aren't hungry, Yaoyao is. You must have a meal before leaving. Otherwise, I shall be angry."

For a moment, Zhou Yemiao was at a loss for what to do.

With a firm tug, the Princess Consort pressed her back down beside the stone table. "The two of you have some pastries first. I need to have a proper talk with her."

Facing Chu Yunli, she no longer wore the amiable expression she had shown the mother and daughter. Seizing Chu Yunli by the arm, she snapped, "Come outside with me."

Chu Yunli shook her off and strolled leisurely behind her.

It felt as though a fire was burning in the Princess Consort's heart as she walked at a brisk pace. However, her fast pace was useless, as the person behind her was walking as if on a leisurely stroll. As the waiting time dragged on, her expression grew increasingly ugly.

After a long while, Chu Yunli finally stepped out of the courtyard.

At that moment, there was no one within twenty paces of the Princess Consort. She stared coldly at Chu Yunli and asked, "How much do you know?"

Chu Yunli began massaging her hands again. The hands were too coarse, and the longer she rubbed the face powder into them, the better. Idly, she replied, "Not much! But I suppose it's all quite important."

"Since you know it's important, you should be clear that those things cannot be spoken aloud," the Princess Consort said pointedly. "At your age, your whole life is wrapped up in your children and grandchildren. You wouldn't want to see them driven out of the manor to be trampled underfoot by others, would you? Yunnan is right in the middle of crucial marriage negotiations. As a mother, are you really going to ruthlessly cut off her path to becoming a noble official's wife?"

Chu Yunli did not answer. She continued massaging her hands and retorted instead, "I don't understand your meaning."

The Princess Consort frowned. "Just what is it that you know?"

Chu Yunli replied calmly, "Everything I ought to know."

The Princess Consort: "..." Since she knew, she ought to be just as terrified as herself of the truth coming to light.

Could it be that the two of them were talking at cross-purposes?

A shred of wishful thinking could not help but rise in her heart: could it be that Yang Aicao did not actually know the truth?