Chapter 265: Investigating Old Books

noon.

Madam He was having dinner at the Sheng Mansion.

After dinner, Hualan took her to play in the backyard and taught her how to play mahjong.

I had fun teaching and playing together the whole day.

At the same time, he also informed Madam He of his plan, which was to invite Chen He to come to his house as a witness on the day when Sheng's family discussed with Sun Zhigao.

After hearing this, Mrs. He agreed without hesitation.

In this way, all the guests enjoyed themselves.

Near sunset.

At the gate of Sheng Mansion, Hua Lan also followed to see someone off, which made Madam He keep refusing, saying "No, I can't do this!" But after getting on the carriage, although she knew that these words were mostly polite remarks, Madam He's eyebrows still raised, and she did not feel embarrassed at all until she returned home.

"Now I am someone who can be escorted out by the Marquise!"

This will be a source of bragging rights among sisters-in-law and their wives in the future!
Chen Mansion.

Chen He saw his wife come in with a happy face, and his heart was also jumping with joy - "It seems that the deal is indeed done!"

So Chen He immediately ordered the maid to bring tea and snacks, and he led Madam He to sit down.

"Madam, you have been working hard all day. Have some tea to moisten your throat first."

After Madam He sat down, Chen He politely served her a cup of tea. While Madam He was drinking the tea, he asked:
"Did Madam have a good time chatting in Sheng Mansion today? Did you meet Madam Sheng?"

"Happy, must be happy!"

When Mrs. He heard Chen He's question, her heart was filled with joy all day, and she immediately became delighted and began to tell Chen He about her experiences in the Sheng Mansion.

Mrs. He spoke eloquently and at great length, while Chen He listened silently and added some tea from time to time.

Finally, Madam He finally had enough fun, smacked her lips, and said in a boastful tone:

"As expected of a lady from a family of nobles, her appearance and bearing are far beyond the reach of the likes of us. What's more, she is peaceful and approachable, unlike the lady from the prefectural family, who always likes to look up, look down on others, and is extremely overbearing.

Whether there is any foundation or not can be seen from this.”

Madam He was the eldest wife of the Youyang County Magistrate's family. Youyang was not far from Nanjing, so she occasionally went to Nanjing to attend gatherings of officials' wives, hoping to practice some diplomacy as a lady.

However, as a "country person" with no family connections, Mrs. He was naturally not very popular among the officials and their wives in Nanjing, and felt quite aggrieved.

Seeing Madam He's appearance, Chen He smiled bitterly in his heart.

Of course he understood why his wife had to go to Nanjing to apologize and endure humiliation. It was because he could not show his face among men and had no hope for a career in the government. So he could only rely on his wife to show her face among the wives of officials, hoping to gain some fame through this.

but……

'The wife of Marquis Pingyang was born into the Sheng family, isn't she also from a family like ours...' Chen He thought to himself.

But at the moment, Mrs. He wanted to use this opportunity to relieve her pent-up love for the whole family, so Chen He did not dare to speak rashly, and only said:

"I think it's also because of the power and position that supports people."

Madam He glanced at Chen He:
"Then why do I feel that I am better than the wife of the prefect?"

Chen He didn't know how to answer this question.

A man can't admit that he is not good enough in front of his wife!

You can't say that even if you kill me!

So Chen He immediately changed the subject and said:
"Mrs. Sheng invites you to come today, but do you have anything to ask for?"

Madam He had already spoken frankly about what had just been said, so she didn't say anything more and directly told Hua Lan what she wanted.

Chen He nodded continuously as he listened.

"You are right. Just agree to this matter directly. Since Madam Sheng can let us do something, we just need to agree to it. After all, it is just Sun Zhigao, a scholar who has failed in the imperial examinations many times. There are only benefits and no harm."

"And it's just a testimony. Whether her family does a good job or not, there are favors to be made."

At this time, Madam He said again:

"Of course not. Madam Sheng told me before I got on the carriage that if I had time in the future, I could go to the Bianjing Mansion to have fun."

Chen He looked helpless:

"Ma'am, this is just a polite remark..."

"Of course I know it's just a compliment."

But immediately, Madam He rolled her eyes at her husband, secretly angry in her heart: "Although my husband has the intention of clinging to the Pingyang Marquis's Mansion, he can't change his temper. No wonder he has been sitting in the position of county magistrate for so many years."

"But it's good to be able to change now."

Madam He said angrily:

"But if you can handle this matter well, put in more effort, and make it go smoothly without any setbacks, then considering this friendship, can you still be polite?"

"Yes, Madam, you are right in thinking."

Chen He only smiled calmly at Madam He's anger, not caring at all, and even flattered her a few times, which immediately made Madam He happy, so she continued:
"Mrs. Sheng allowed you to go play mahjong with her, which means her house will be open to my family in the future. If you help with this matter, we can come to her house to discuss other matters later."

Then, Chen He paced around the room, muttering something.

Finally, he decided to take Mrs. He's suggestion a step further:
"If I go alone, it won't show how much favor and effort I have put in. So, when the Sheng family confirms the date of the divorce, I will send a letter to Jinling and invite the magistrate to come and observe."

Thinking of this, Chen He came up with a new idea.

He called the bailiffs from the yamen that night and asked them to find fault with Sun Zhigao, especially the mistress who suddenly appeared.

Using power to pressure others directly is a very bad strategy.

The best option would be to find out Sun Zhigao's faults and then use the power of the official to take a two-pronged approach.

Chen He just couldn't believe that Sun Zhigao had been a playboy for so many years and they couldn't find any fault with him.

As long as there are some clues, he can always find them in Youyang.

as predicted.

the next day.

Chen He received a lot of evidence brought up by his subordinates.

Chen He took the thick "charges" and counted them in his hand, while exclaiming in amazement:
"I never expected that Sun Zhigao's life is much happier than that of a county magistrate like me."

Chen He waved a piece of thin paper in his hand towards Madam Chen:
"It's only been half a year since the eldest lady got married, and she already has three concubines. After that, she has had new beauties in her room every year. All in all, there are more than ten people in the room now."

For a moment, Chen He couldn't stop feeling envious.

You know, as the magistrate of Youyang County, he only has a concubine in his room. Although a large part of the reason is that he has a deep relationship with his wife Madam He, but seeing others so proud, Chen He felt a little upset.

Ignorance is not a crime, but if I know it, then you, Sun Zhigao, will be guilty.

What level of status do you have, Sun Zhigao? You live better than me, a county magistrate!

And that’s not enough!
Originally, Chen He wanted to target Sun Zhigao because of the relationship with the Yang family of Pingyang Marquis Mansion, but this time, Chen He was more sincere.

"What? You also want to learn how to take in concubines? Do you want me to help you arrange it?" Madam He turned her head and looked at Chen He, saying with a forced smile.

"No, no, madam, what are you saying?" Chen He quickly suppressed his envious gaze, straightened his face, and showed some dignity:

"I am criticizing Sun Zhigao. No wonder he has failed in all these years. It turns out that he has put all his energy into this. He is so unrestrained and unworthy of being called a saint's disciple!"

"Humph!"

Madam He glanced at Chen He, but didn't pursue the matter further.

But at this moment, she suddenly had some thoughts that were difficult to express, so she looked outside the house carefully, and seeing that there was no one, she tiptoed to the side of Chen He and raised her head to Chen He's face.

"No, no, no!"

Chen He felt his wife's warm breath close to his ear, and he felt a chill in his heart. He quickly took two steps back and said hurriedly:
"Ma'am, it's broad daylight!"

In broad daylight, Chen He felt a little excited, but as a conservative person, he still couldn't let go.

Mrs. He was stunned.

But he immediately realized what Chen He meant, his face flushed, and he angrily slapped Chen He's shoulder, saying:

"You old pervert, I want to talk to you in private, what are you thinking!"

"what?"

At that moment, Chen He felt that the pain in his arms was no match for the embarrassment in his heart, and the soles of his feet were almost pierced.

But he still has some determination.

Chen He continued to take a few steps back and soon retreated to the door.

He turned around and looked out a few times to make sure no one was there, then he turned around and closed the half-open door, walked leisurely to the table, and said seriously:

"I didn't mean anything, but walls have ears, so it's better to be careful."

After finishing his words, Chen He asked:
"What else do you think it is, ma'am?"

The face is not red and the heart is not beating.

"Um……"

Although Madam He was suspicious, she just glanced at Chen He uncertainly. Seeing that she could not find any flaws, she did not intend to investigate further.

Or was it the speculation in her mind that made her more excited.

So he continued to lean forward and whispered:
"You said, Sun Zhigao has been childless for so many years, and now he suddenly gets married to..."

Madam He frowned, and Chen He immediately added:
"The singing girl in Qianjin Pavilion is a prostitute, not from a respectable family. If you ask me, Sun Zhigao is really bold and doesn't care about his reputation at all. It would be fine if he bought her home to be a musician, but he actually wants to marry her into the family. He is really out of his mind."

Officials who passed the imperial examinations were all concerned about their reputations and did not dare to act rashly. However, Sun Zhigao, who was only a scholar, dared to act so recklessly. He really did not care about his future official career.

Even if Sun Zhigao passed the imperial examination in the future, it would be difficult for him to make any progress in the officialdom with so much negative information on him.

Regardless of the future, this matter alone can make him feel uncomfortable now.

If one day Sun Zhigao were to meet a high-ranking official who was in a bad mood and knew about this incident, the mere words "morally corrupt" would be enough to ruin his reputation and make him be despised by the literati.

"Hey, that's not what I want to talk about."

Madam He suddenly lowered her voice, with a hint of doubt in her tone:

"You see, Sun Zhigao has been around for so many years, and his family has so many concubines serving him, but none of them is pregnant. But now, a singing girl who has been in the spotlight is suddenly pregnant..."

"you say……"

Madam He winked at Chen He:

"Maybe it's not his."

"Uh……"

After listening to this, Chen He was silent for a while.

When he got these "evidences" of Sun Zhigao's guilt, he was only thinking about how to make Sun Zhigao obey his advice, but he didn't expect this. But now that Madam He reminded him, he finally reacted.

Is it really such a coincidence?
There are so many concubines and the main wife at home, but none of them are pregnant, but a singing girl from Qianjin Pavilion outside got pregnant first?

Chen He had some idea of ​​what Qianjin Pavilion was.

What good girls can be born in such a filthy place? They are all just filthy girls with a glamorous appearance but rotten inside.

Thinking of this, Chen He felt a little sad for Sun Zhigao.

If at the end of the day you find out that it was all in vain, then...

But this is none of my business.

"Why bother with him? After all, it's just speculation between you and me."

As he spoke, Chen He picked up the old book that his servant had brought from Qianjin Pavilion. This was the old book of the singing girl called "Hua Niang". He stared at it and said:

"Just treat it as his for now, so as to avoid any complications."

Madam He nodded, she naturally understood the reason.

Thinking of Sun Zhigao's possible final fate, Madam He gloated:

"Even if it's not his in the end, it can only be regarded as retribution for him. Who made him only know how to abuse women and not appreciate the wealth in front of him?"

"correct."

Chen He suddenly remembered something and said to Madam He:

"Madam, you will have to go to the Sheng Mansion later."

As he spoke, Chen He handed the old book to Madam He.

"how?"

"When the yamen runners came to report just now, they said that a group of people had come ahead of them. They looked like the steward and his servants. They were also going to inquire about Hua Niang's news, but they were blocked by the people from Qianjin Pavilion. I guess they were sent by the Sheng family.

Now that this thing has fallen into our hands, we will let you deliver it to the Sheng family to show our dedication and hard work."

Mrs. He readily agreed.

This was exactly what she wanted.

Yesterday at the Sheng Mansion she had played a new game called Mahjong, and she was in the mood, so she took the opportunity to join in a round.

In fact, mahjong had been introduced to Jinling a long time ago, but it was only the wives of the prefects and the magistrates who played it together. Madam He could not join in, so naturally she had only heard of the game but had never seen it.

After this contact, Madam He finally understood why the officials' families in Nanjing had been gathering so frequently in recent days.

Shengfu.

Li had just learned that she had been turned down by Qianjin Pavilion and was thinking of finding a way to send someone there again, but immediately, Madam He came to her door with Hua Niang's old registration book in her hand.

This sudden surprise naturally made Li overjoyed.

He immediately invited Li to take a seat and called over everyone who was having fun in the backyard.

Madam He was moved when she heard this, and immediately said calmly:
"No need. I have nothing to do right now. Why don't we go and join in the fun?"

(End of this chapter)