Chapter 264: The County Magistrate's Wife, Mrs. He, Arrives
"I'm not afraid!"

At this moment, a sweet voice suddenly came from the door, and then Pinlan walked in from outside and knelt down in front of the Arhat chair:
"Mother, grandmother, please let my sister get a divorce. Even if I can't get married in this life, I can't watch my sister suffer in the Sun family."

She had just gone to the courtyard to find someone to talk to, but found that Minglan and Rulan were not in the room. So she went to Old Lady Sheng and Hualan, but couldn't find them either. Finally, she found her grandmother.

At the same time, he also listened to the conversation inside from outside the house.

Just as Minglan said, she was absolutely unwilling to build her uncertain future happiness on her sister's real pain.

"Mom, please leave a way for my sister to live."

Fearing that her mother, Mrs. Li, could not make up her mind, Pinlan said confidently:

"If mother is just afraid of getting me into trouble, I will bind my hair tomorrow and go up to the mountains to become a nun!"

After hearing this, Li could no longer hold back the sadness in her heart, and immediately pulled Pinlan and Shulan together and burst into tears.

"Woo woo~Daughter, it's all mother's fault!"

"..."

Old lady Shengda couldn't bear to watch this scene, her eyes immediately turned red and she turned her head away.

After the mother and her two daughters had cried for a while to vent their pent-up anger, Old Lady Sheng stood up and helped them to sit down together with Hualan.

After everyone calmed down, Old Lady Sheng spoke:

"Now that we have talked it out, and seeing that Shu-ya-tou has a bright future ahead of her, there is no need to cry anymore."

Li had stopped talking, but her expression was still a little hesitant. Hua Lan saw what Li was worried about and immediately said:
"Yes, aunt, sister Pinlan also agreed, so the divorce is done, there is no need to be sad."

Li's heart suddenly cheered up, as she understood Hualan's intention to help.

Hua Lan continued:
"But I expected that the Sun family might be a rogue..."

He paused and continued:

"It just so happens that the county magistrate's wife sent a letter to Grandma a few days ago, so I will invite her to come to the mansion for a chat tomorrow."

The stone in Li's heart finally fell to the ground.

Obviously, Hualan's words were meant to help her family.

In fact, Li had already thought about the divorce.

There are only two ways to go:
One is that Mr. Sun directly nodded in agreement, then everyone would be happy.

However, you can only think about this good thing in your mind, it is definitely impossible.

Second, if Mr. Sun disagrees, his family can only find other places to force him to agree.

There are two types of “other places”:

One is to find Mr. Sun’s faults in private, control him, and force him to agree.

In this matter, Mr. Sun's desire to welcome the mistress into the house can be considered a reason, but it cannot be considered a reason either.

After all, Shulan had been childless for so many years, and that "wonderful woman" was pregnant.

Another way is to find someone whom Sun Xiucai cannot afford to offend and force him to drink water.

At this moment, Hualan is willing to find the county magistrate's wife and ask her to pass on a message for the county magistrate...

The county magistrate is known as the parent official of the place. This is not just talk, but he really has the power to make decisions in the areas of justice, finance, and people's livelihood for the people under his jurisdiction.

If it weren't for Sheng Hong's favor, the big lamb of Youyang, the eldest wife of the Sheng family, would never be as comfortable as he is now, nor would he be able to accumulate such a huge foundation.

County Magistrate: "I may not understand how to run a business, but I do have some knowledge of how to control a merchant."

Although Mr. Sun had the title of scholar, it was only a title of scholar. He had no official status. He was still subject to the control of the county magistrate, the official in charge.

Moreover, even if Mr. Sun is stubborn, he still has the Sun family’s relatives behind him. When the time comes, after “persuading him with emotion and reasoning,” they will help persuade him.

As for whether the county magistrate would help...

According to Li's understanding over the years, the current Youyang County Magistrate Chen He is not a pedantic scholar.

At first, he was a little cold towards my family, but I don’t know since when, he became much closer to my family.

The fact that Chen He was able to attend the Changwu wedding in person was a sign of their close relationship.

Besides, one should not give face to others but to others. Even though Chen He values ​​the pride of scholars and does not flatter military merits and titles, Hualan still has the status of the eldest lady of a scholar's family.

In any case, he can help out.

……

The next day.

After receiving Hualan's reply, the county magistrate's wife, Madam He, went to the Sheng family early in the morning in new clothes and with great joy at the urging of the county magistrate Chen He.

The sedan chair just arrived at the gate of Sheng Mansion.

She was welcomed in by Li, who had been waiting at the door.

Madam He was about the same age as Li, and they were both well-known figures in the Youyang women's circle. They would meet each other during the Chinese New Year and other festivals.

It was just that Madam He was mostly surrounded by the crowd and sat in the center, while Madam Li followed among the crowd with a smile on her face.

But today is a little different.

As soon as Madam He entered the door, she showed unprecedented enthusiasm. She walked all the way to the main hall, talking to Li while smiling, as if they were close friends.

Li was flattered.

Enter the main hall.

Madam He took the initiative to greet Old Madam Sheng, whom she had met a few times, and then turned her attention to Old Madam Sheng and Hua Lan next to her.

"Old lady, seeing is believing. Today I am lucky enough to see the true appearance of the daughter of a general. She is so graceful and majestic!"

"Madam, what are you talking about? I am already old, how can I still be so majestic?"

Old Madam Sheng chuckled, and then showed Hua Lan who was sitting next to her:
"This is my eldest granddaughter, Hualan."

Today, Hualan has something to discuss with Madam He, and she doesn't want to show off her status, but she can't lower her status and take the initiative to introduce herself. Therefore, letting Madam Sheng introduce each other as an elder is the most appropriate thing to do at the moment.

Hua Lan took the opportunity to stand up and wanted to bow, but was immediately supported by the quick-witted Madam He, who said in panic:

"Madam Sheng, it is really embarrassing for me to bow to you in your status!"

Among ladies, titles are far more important than official positions.

Because official positions cannot be inherited from father to son, but titles can be inherited!

Hualan only expressed her gratitude briefly.

When Madam He touched her hand, she straightened her waist which had not yet been bent, her eyebrows curved, and she smiled faintly:
"Madam, you are too kind. There is no Lady of Pingyang here. There is only a married daughter of the Sheng family."

Hua Lan said it lightly and simply, but Madam He didn't dare to really think so, not to mention that her family still wanted to get close to the Pingyang Marquis Mansion. At the same time, she secretly thought about what her husband had told her last night:

"I heard that the Sun family seems to have welcomed back a concubine from outside, who is a singer and pregnant. Today, the girl from the Sheng family was angry and sent back to her parents' home. Now the wife of the Marquis of Pingyang asked you to come to her house tomorrow. It must be because she needs my family for this matter.

The future of your children is just around the corner, so you must pay close attention!"

Thinking of Hualan's "a married daughter of the Sheng family", Madam He thought to herself:
"It seems that it is just as you said. Today I am here to ask for help regarding Shulan's matter."

Good news!

We can take this opportunity to establish a relationship with the Pingyang Marquis Mansion!

Madam He glanced sideways at the frail woman standing behind old lady Shengda. Her eyes were red and swollen, and her body was thin. It was obvious that she had been wronged in her husband's family and ran back to her parents' home to cry.

"Yes, yes, yes!" Mrs. He nodded in response.

Then he praised Rulan and Minglan.

An eldest sister is like a mother. If you praise others, you may hit the horse's leg, but if you praise your own children and sisters, there will be no mistake (if they can travel from Bian Jing to Youyang together, their relationship must be close).

As expected, Hualan and Old Lady Sheng's expressions suddenly became much friendlier.

Mrs. He recognized the face and sat down at the left hand side of Old Lady Shengda.

So the old lady Shengda started talking and began to say some polite words.

After some more pleasantries.

Madam He pretended to glance at Shulan casually, then said with a strange look on her face:

"This girl from your family looks pale, could it be that she has been in poor health since childhood?"

Old Madam Shengda immediately understood what she meant, and said with a sad face:

"I'm sorry to make you laugh. My daughter is not in poor health. She just...she was wronged outside and is hiding at home for a while."

"Oh? There is such a thing!"

Madam He's face turned serious, and she asked hurriedly:

"What exactly is it about? Our two families have a close relationship, and as an aunt, I can help give some advice."

Old Madam Shengda glanced at Madam He and immediately told her the whole story.

"We are a reasonable family. We know that Shu has not given birth to a child in the past few years, so we didn't want to pursue the matter of him finding a singing girl. We were willing to discuss it, but who knew..."

Old Madam Shengda, with tears in her eyes, lifted up Shulan's sleeve and sobbed:
"Who knew that Sun Zhigao and her mother were not even willing to discuss the matter, and only beat and scolded my Shu'er. Poor Shu'er had been raised in luxury since she was a child, how could she withstand such a beating? She had no choice but to run back home covered in wounds."

Li also took the opportunity to speak up, saying with tears in her eyes:
"My daughter was afraid that we would worry, so she was reluctant to talk about the Sun family's affairs at first. But after we found the whip marks, she had no choice but to tell us the truth."

"Woo woo~ Poor my Shu'er!"

After Li finished speaking, she stood up, hugged Shulan and started crying bitterly.

After hearing this, Madam He slammed the table, stood up, and angrily said:
"This is simply outrageous! Not only did he squander the girl's dowry and go back and forth between brothels, but he also didn't even want to discuss it with the other party and favored his concubine over his wife!"

As an official's wife, Madam He was also good at observing people's expressions and making accusations. When she heard the Sheng family's dissatisfaction with the mother and son of the Sun family, she immediately accused them of "favoring the concubine and ignoring the wife."

Hua Lan also looked worried and said:
"Yes, I feel nervous when I think about my sisters having to go back to the Sun family, this den of tigers and wolves."

Mrs. He immediately understood what Hualan meant. It turned out that she wanted Shulan and Sun Zhigao to break up their relationship.

Judging from the importance that the nobles attached to their reputation, they probably did not want to be divorced, but wanted a divorce in the name of a peaceful marriage.

"That's right, otherwise I would never find myself."

After analyzing the situation in her mind, Mrs. He felt that this was something that could be done.

After all, Sun Zhigao is just an old scholar who is nearly thirty years old and has not yet passed the imperial examination.

Even if smoke rises from his ancestral grave in the future, and he passes the provincial and metropolitan examinations, in the end, he will only become a county magistrate like his own husband.

I can afford to offend my own family.

And how can this compare to the still prosperous Pingyang Marquis Mansion and the increasingly powerful second branch of the Sheng family?
I heard that the father of the wife of Marquis Pingyang has just been promoted to Langzhong of the Ministry of Works.

His younger brother, the eldest son of the second branch of the Sheng family, was also selected as a Shujishi in the academy.

After comparing the two, Li felt that if he hesitated for a moment, it would be disrespectful to the Zhou Dynasty.

At that moment, the divorce instructed by the wife of Marquis Pingyang seemed safe and secure.

As for whether the cause and effect told by the Sheng family were true, Madam He did not want to delve into it.

There are really advantages and no disadvantages!

"Mrs. Sheng is right!"

Madam He nodded involuntarily, and said with a worried look on her face:
"Such a heartless and pleasure-seeking man is not a good husband to entrust your life to. You should end it as soon as possible."

"Yes!"

At this time, Mrs. Shengda said:

"My family had this idea in mind. We wanted to rescue Shu'er from the Sun family. But the Sun family is usually rude and overbearing. So we are a little worried that they will not agree to divorce and will divorce my wife, which will bring a bad reputation to my family."

"How does this work?"

Madam He suddenly walked quickly to Shulan's side, gently grasped Shulan's wrist, lifted her sleeve, and carefully looked at the scars on her hand for a while, then turned to look at Madam Shengda and said angrily:
"Could it be that all the benefits in the world belong to the Sun family?!"

Mrs. He: My family wants it too!
"The Sun family doesn't value this kind of wealth, so it's not his turn to throw dirty water on them!"

Madam He: Now is the time for me to perform well!
"I can't bear to see it anymore."

Madam He's acting skills were superb. After taking a deep breath for a while, she said:
"I will go home and tell my master what a 'character' has emerged under his rule!"

As she spoke, Madam He was about to go out, but Hua Lan, who had been observing her, stood up and stopped her.

"There's no rush for this matter."

Hualan gently pulled Madam He towards her seat, and Li followed and helped Madam He sit down:
"You just arrived as a guest at my house and you haven't even had a meal yet, but you're leaving now. It seems that our two families are not close enough. This is not the way to be a host."

"Yes, I didn't think about it."

Although Madam He said sorry, she was very happy in her heart. She pretended to be anxious to go home, naturally waiting for Hualan to ask her to stay.

Otherwise, after we finish talking, I won’t be able to find a better reason to stay for dinner and chat more.

You can't just take the initiative to ask if you want to stay for dinner, right?

That's so rude!

Although his family wanted to get closer to the Marquis of Pingyang's Mansion to find a way out for their descendants, they still had to save their face.

But you must not belittle yourself.

(End of this chapter)