Chapter 20

Su Jia also found out later by chance that Mr. Song’s mother’s birthday was also the wedding day of Shen Yue, the son of Wenyuan Marquis’s mansion. She said to Tao Sheng with a bit of apology, “I thought that you and the young lady of the Song family would get along well, so I wanted to take you to celebrate his birthday. I didn’t know that your brother was going to get married that day. Going to the Song family to celebrate his birthday is not a big deal. If you can’t leave, just go to the Marquis’ mansion to watch the ceremony. Don’t embarrass yourself.”

Tao Sheng smiled and said, “I have already told Madam Hou, it’s okay, don’t worry.”

As Shen Yue’s biological sister, she can only attend the wedding in the name of a relative, which is embarrassing.

The reason why she still had contact with the Marquis’ Mansion was that she was afraid Luo Xin would be sad and couldn’t bear to cut off contact with her. As for Shen Yu and the three brothers of the Shen family, who were difficult to deal with, it was better to stay away from them anyway.

She really didn’t want to get involved in the Shen family’s affairs. If something went wrong at the wedding, she might accidentally offend Shen Ruojin, which would arouse the protective desire of several flower-guarding messengers and disrupt the wedding of the Marquis’s son. Old Madam Shen would hate her for the rest of her life.

What’s wrong with celebrating Mr. Song’s mother’s birthday peacefully? She heard that the Song family has a kind of sweet and soft Jiangnan snack, which Ji Yanming specifically mentioned as delicious. It must taste good, so she also wants to try it.

_

Shen Yue’s marriage process went very smoothly. The young lady Tang Yizi came from a family of poetry and etiquette. She was respectful to her elders and kind to her servants. The couple were childhood sweethearts who had known each other since childhood and had a good relationship when they were newlyweds.

After Shen Yue got married, everything was back on track, and the entire Shen family welcomed the long-lost peace and quiet.

It was not until Princess Hui’an fell ill in the summer that Shen Ruojin and several other companions were sent back from the Eastern Palace.

After all, although these companions often do the work of female historians, they are nominally required to accompany the princess in her studies and are not required to attend to her illness or serve others.

Even if Princess Hui’an wanted to do this, the Crown Princess could not give anyone a chance to criticize her.

So Ruojin also had a rare vacation, and during the two months she was back home, she almost had a big quarrel with her aunt and sister-in-law Tang Yizi.

Originally, it was just some friction between the female members of the family, a trivial matter, but Shen Yue was confused. No matter big or small, he always sided with Shen Ruojin and let his newlywed wife suffer injustice every time.

Tang Yizi’s family background was not bad to begin with, and she was the eldest daughter of the Tang family who had been pampered since childhood. She had never suffered such humiliation at home, so she was naturally even more unreasonable. She got angry when she saw Shen Ruojin and couldn’t help but compete with her.

And it wasn’t just Ruojin that made Tang Yizi unhappy.

Tang Yizi accidentally discovered that Shen Yue would take people by car to a house in Tongguang Lane from time to time to deliver things to the young lady of that house. According to the coachman who followed Shen Yue, the prince made as many as seven or eight trips there to deliver things after the New Year.

Tang Yizi had also inquired indirectly and found out that the bright and charming girl living in the Su residence in Tongguang Lane was Shen Yue’s distant cousin. But such a distant cousin was willing to trouble a prince to visit her two or three times a month, and she did not return the gifts or show up. Isn’t it a little too strange?

Shen Yue knew that Tang Yizi disliked Ruojin and was afraid that if she knew Tao Sheng’s identity, it would harm Ruojin. Even though he faced his wife’s suspicion, he did not reveal a single word about their life stories.

Tang Yizi had just gotten married, and she couldn’t stand her husband’s indecision. The matter was eventually brought to Luo Xin’s attention. It was only after Tang Yizi listened to her mother’s explanation that she realized that Tao Sheng was not a distant cousin but the only real daughter of Marquis Wenyuan’s mansion and Shen Yue’s only biological sister.

Tang Yizi had just eaten a big piece of melon^[1]refers to the act of sharing information or juicy details about others. and wanted to share it with others, but it was obviously unrealistic to find someone in this mansion. She couldn’t help but gossip with others, so she went back to the Tang family that night and told her mother what had happened at home in the past few days.

Talking about Tao Sheng inevitably involves the matter of Shen Ruojin and Shen Yue. Tang Yizi sighed to her mother. She originally thought that the Shen family was a good family with simple population and upright family tradition, but she didn’t expect that there would be so many troubles after she married into the family.

Mrs. Tang had also experienced many ups and downs in her life, so after hearing this, she felt that these were no big deal.

“Your mother-in-law has a great temper, and your father-in-law doesn’t interfere in the household matters. Although the old lady in the family has many rules and is very considerate, she will take into account the reputation of your father and uncles in the family and will not make things difficult for you. Your sister-in-law, who was taken away by mistake, will soon enter the palace. When she comes back in the future, it will be time for her to get married. How long can she stay at home? Just keep a distance and show respect when you see her normally.”

“As for your sister-in-law, you don’t need to worry about her. What kind of family is the Luo family? When your mother-in-law got married, she wore a phoenix crown and a red dress, which was as magnificent as that of a princess in the imperial court. As long as you give her a little dowry, she will have no worries about food and clothing for the rest of her life and won’t have to depend on the Shen family’s father and brothers.”

“But one thing: since the family is unhappy because of the two girls, and they haven’t announced Miss Luo’s identity to the public, I think the family has their own plans. Apart from telling me about this, don’t make it public. Otherwise, if the Shen family resents you, I’m afraid you will have a hard time in their family in the future.”

Tang Yizi nodded. “In fact, it was only after the incident was reported to my mother-in-law that I found out the girl was actually my third sister. I feel a little embarrassed for misunderstanding her. I thought of going to Tongguang Lane and talking to my third sister. What do you think, mother?”

Mrs. Tang agreed, “Your mother-in-law treats you well, and the girl is her own daughter. Now that she can’t take her home, she must be very upset. If you have nothing to do, go and see her quietly. If your mother-in-law knows, she will remember your kindness. Besides, since you mentioned that your adopted sister-in-law is too naive, if you have a good relationship with the third girl, it can also discourage her from causing trouble. It’s a good thing to have the best of both worlds.”

After hearing her mother’s analysis, Tang Yizi’s eyes lit up immediately. “Yes, your daughter will go tomorrow.”

_

The next morning, Tang Yizi took gifts and went to Tongguang Lane by car.

This was the first time the two sisters-in-law had truly met. Tang Yizi presented Tao Sheng with a generous gift. “My husband has never told me about my sister. I only learned about it from my mother a few days ago. We have been married for more than two months, but I have never been able to visit you. Please don’t blame me, third sister.”

Seeing Tang Yizi’s expression, Tao Sheng knew things weren’t as simple as she said, but she didn’t ask any more questions. Instead, she thanked her eldest sister-in-law for her visit and gift.

Tang Yizi sat down and chatted with Tao Sheng. “I have heard a lot about you from my mother. Our family has a big house; the eldest sister is married, and the second sister is about to enter the palace. When does your younger sister plan to come back? We can drink tea and talk together in the future, so that we can have company.”

“I’m not going back.” Tao Sheng considered that her sister-in-law was very traditional and feared she wouldn’t accept her explanation. So, she added, “At least I have no plans to go back now.”

“Why is this happening?” Tang Yizi asked, puzzled. “Is it really just because of a fit of anger?”

Tao Sheng felt this matter was complicated to explain. It wasn’t good to say she was just a female character who traveled through the book and didn’t want to step into the territory of the heroine.

She thought about it and explained tactfully, “My family only cares about Ruojin. I am living well outside. If I go back, it will only cause more trouble for my family. It’s better not to go.”

As soon as Tao Sheng said this, Tang Yizi’s eyes turned red.

She and Shen Yue had been engaged since childhood and had known each other for many years. She noticed some signs from her interactions with Shen Yue over the past few years and realized he valued his sister Ruojin more than any other relative. She had several unpleasant experiences with Shen Ruojin during their marriage, but Shen Yue still favored his sister.

It is rare to find someone who is so steadfastly supportive of his sister regardless of right or wrong or the cause of the conflict. She had considered running away initially, but on one hand, she thought the cost of breaking off the engagement was too high, and on the other hand, she still had a sliver of hope, thinking that once married, Shen Yue would put her first. So, the thought was fleeting and did not turn into reality.

Tao Sheng, living in such a civilian family, faced with the temptation of being the daughter of a marquis, remained unmoved, refused a life of luxury, and did not want to get involved. This really requires great courage.

Thinking of this, Tang Yizi felt even more respect for her sister-in-law. Recognizing that they were both wanderers in the world, she shared her complaints about Shen Yue and Ruojin.

Tao Sheng just listened with a smile and occasionally poured her a new cup of tea. She didn’t say much, but when Tang Yizi was about to finish her words, she asked, “How is Princess Hui’an’s illness now?”

“I heard she’s fine now.” Tang Yizi replied, “Why do you suddenly care about this, sister?”

Tao Sheng said, “I think if her illness is cured, the second young lady of the Shen family can enter the palace earlier, and you and the prince will also be better.”

Tang Yizi said mysteriously, “The princess’s illness was indeed unexpected. I heard from Ruojin that the princess had a headache and couldn’t sleep well some time ago, so she secretly asked the doctor for some sleeping incense to help her sleep. But the doctor was careless and mixed up the spices, giving her the incense used by medicine men. This incense is very strong and can make someone dizzy for several days if burned overnight. The princess felt dizzy all the time during that period and couldn’t find the cause. Later, she discovered the reason and replaced all the incense burners in the hall inside and out. Now she is finally well again.”

“That’s good.” Tao Sheng said, “So, the second young lady will be entering the palace soon, and my sister-in-law can have more peace and quiet at home.”

“That’s exactly what I said.”

Tang Yizi also started laughing.

This sister-in-law is quick-witted and logical, which really suits her personality.

Ever since she married into the Shen family, her mother-in-law, Luo Xin, had treated her the best. She never had to follow strict rules, and her mother-in-law never made things difficult for her.

Tang Yizi also knew that her mother loved this younger sister very much and was most worried about Tao Sheng’s situation outside. She secretly decided to visit her third sister frequently in the future, to maintain a good relationship with her, help her mother-in-law share her worries, and take good care of her younger sister to the best of her ability.

***

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