Chapter 11: The Illegitimate Father Faces Suppression

Xia Yu ran up the steps and hammered forcefully on the main door. The sound probably carried for a mile around. But the door didn’t open immediately; only after another round of pounding did a servant finally open the side door.

“Ah, Second Madam, I beg your pardon. I had to step away urgently just now. This morning, the First Madam returned early, and everyone thought you wouldn’t be coming back, so…” The rest was left unsaid but understood by all. They assumed she had married a living corpse and was too heartbroken to return.

Yu Yuanzheng didn’t bother arguing with a mere servant and simply led her companions inside.

Along the way, she encountered the old steward, Uncle He.

Uncle He was the longtime steward of the Bo Residence, known for his fairness and impartiality. He never targeted anyone deliberately and had become quite shrewd.

“Second Madam has returned,” Uncle He said with a broad smile.

“Mm, Uncle He, where are my parents?” Yu Yuanzheng asked.

“They are in the Old Madam’s Yongkang Courtyard, receiving the First Madam and her husband together.”

“Mm, please arrange for someone to settle the carriage, then help me move the things from the carriage to the Second Branch,” she instructed.

With the memories of the original mistress, Yu Yuanzheng was familiar with the place. Accompanied by two maids and carrying a few simple gifts for the Old Madam and the First Branch, she made her way to the Old Madam’s courtyard.

“Ah, Second Madam has returned,” an elderly woman outside the door exclaimed upon seeing the three of them.

“Mm, Nurse Wu, please go inside and inform them that I am here to pay respects to the Old Madam,” Yu Yuanzheng said.

At her words, a senior maid appeared from the hall.

“Second Madam, the Old Madam invites you in,” she said.

Yu Yuanzheng glanced at Nurse Wu. Such a loud announcement—was this a reminder?

Stepping into the hall, she quickly surveyed the room.

Hmph, they’re all here.

Yet, no one spoke.

“Zheng’er pays respects to the Old Madam, to Uncle, Aunt, Father, and Mother,” Yu Yuanzheng said politely, bowing slightly to each elder she deemed necessary.

But only a slight bow.

The Old Madam sitting at the head of the room frowned deeply—earlier, Yang’er had performed a full kowtow.

“Second sister, why have you returned? I thought you would stay with the heir and not come back. I already told Second Uncle you wouldn’t return. I never expected you’d abandon the heir and still come back.”

“A woman returns to her natal home three days after marriage as a matter of etiquette. Besides, I am the heir’s wife of the Prince’s Mansion; I should come back to inform my parents, not the Second Madam,” Yu Yuanzheng replied calmly.

“Zheng’er, before you came back, we were discussing this matter. This is just an accident. The situation has already happened, and Yang’er and the Second Young Master are already wed; it can’t be changed. Later, your Aunt will give you some fine things as compensation,” the First Madam, Lady Wang, smiled and stepped forward to take Yu Yuanzheng’s hand in a show of closeness.

Yu Yuanzheng was well aware of Lady Wang’s honeyed words and treacherous nature—she often killed without a trace.

“All right, Aunt, you must keep your word. I want the jade Guanyin statue from your room. I heard a high monk from the National Protection Temple consecrated it. It was brought to the Prince’s Mansion, and I offer three incense sticks to it daily. Perhaps the heir will awaken under Guanyin’s protection someday,” Yu Yuanzheng climbed onto the topic and made a bold demand.

That jade Guanyin statue was so precious that Lady Wang had not even given it as part of her own daughter’s dowry, valued at no less than eight thousand taels of silver.

Lady Wang clenched her teeth, tempted to slap herself, but since she had already spoken, she had to swallow that bitter pill.

“All right, you can have it. I hope the heir awakens soon,” she said, emphasizing the words “awakens” heavily.

“Thank you, Aunt,” Yu Yuanzheng said, accepting the gifts prepared for her by the Princess from her maid and distributing them to each person.

“That’s enough, you’ve paid your respects. Return to your Second Branch,” the Old Madam impatiently dismissed them.

Having just received the kowtow from her granddaughter and her husband and heard about the past three days, she was still excited and chose to ignore the couple from the Second Branch.

Now, seeing Yu Yuanzheng, that joy vanished instantly.

“Father, Mother,” Yu Yuanzheng said, just what she wanted to hear, gently helping her mother Zhao Yuejiao up and taking her father Yu Yunzhi’s hand as they left the hall.

The three of them didn’t speak on the way back.

Once inside the Second Branch’s Minghe Courtyard and the gate was closed, the family finally sat down to talk properly.

Yu Yuanzheng was the eldest in the Second Branch, sixteen years old.

Below her were a younger brother, Yu Qingsheng, fourteen, and a younger sister, Yu Yueyin, ten—all children of Lady Zhao.

“My son, how will you live from now on?” Lady Zhao hugged her daughter tightly.

The next day, news reached the Bo Residence. She wanted to visit the Prince’s Mansion but the Old Madam forbade her from leaving. Seeing how affectionate Chaoyang and the Second Young Master were, her heart was torn like a knife.

She had long suspected this was a scheme by the First Branch.

“Mother, don’t be sad. Zheng’er is doing well. The Prince and Princess care for her deeply. The heir is the Princess’s son; even if he is in a coma, he is still the legitimate son of the Prince’s Mansion. I am still the heir’s wife now. Even the First Uncle must pay respects when he sees me,” Yu Yuanzheng reassured her.

The prestige of the Prince’s Mansion surpassed even the emperor’s own brothers: a first-rank prince with an iron-cap title.

“Really?”

“Really.”

Only then did Lady Zhao wipe away her tears.

“Big sister,” the two younger siblings finally stepped forward.

They had not been allowed into the Old Madam’s courtyard.

“It’s just the three of us now. There are things I won’t hide from you,” Yu Yuanzheng said.

She proceeded to reveal the matter of the First Branch’s arranged marriage.

“Damn them, damn them! Her daughter is a daughter; why isn’t mine?” Lady Zhao wailed again.

“Madam, the situation is as it is. We can only accept it. It’s my fault for being born of a concubine,” Yu Yunzhi also shed sorrowful tears.

The two children were no less defiant.

“All right. The reason I’m telling you this is because I want to discuss something with you.”

Yu Yuanzheng saw how beaten down the family was—accustomed to being bullied.

“What is it?” Yu Yunzhi controlled his emotions.

“Father, you’re only thirty-five, still young. Do you want to continue taking the imperial examinations?”

Yu Yuanzheng struck at her father’s sore spot.

“Alas, I’ve had no chance to sit the exams while stuck in this Bo Residence. Unless the Old Madam dies and we split the family.”

“Father, I have a way to split the family. Would you be willing?”

“Oh? What way?”

“Just say whether you’re willing.”

“Zheng’er, the Old Madam is not dead. If we propose splitting the family, your First Uncle won’t share a single bit of the estate. Without property, how could we live?”

“Don’t worry, I won’t give up on what should be ours. You don’t have a noble title anyway. If we leave the Bo Residence, we’ll just treat ourselves as humble origins and rely on ourselves. I’m already married into the Prince’s Mansion. The Prince will look after our family to some extent out of respect for me. Life will go on, as long as you work hard and continue the examinations. If you pass the Jinshi, you’ll get an official post, even if it’s as a county magistrate.”

“Master, haven’t you suffered enough under the First Branch’s oppression? You’re good at studying but have been denied the chance. Now that your father-in-law is gone, the little shelter you had is gone too. I’ve had enough these years. With my dowry, I can support the family. At worst, we live without servants. Just the four of us renting a small courtyard is enough,” Lady Zhao said.

Every day, she faced bullying from the Old Madam and the First Madam; her husband’s absence made it less acute.

“Let me think about it,” Yu Yunzhi said, conflicted.

As the man of the house, such a decision required careful thought; his family’s livelihood rested on his shoulders.