novelhk Chapter 32 Kneeling for 3 Days
Chapter 32 Kneeling for 3 Days
Xiao Chengyan fiddled with the ring in his hand, indifferent to the matter.
"It doesn't matter who I marry, Qiao Qingshu has the gentlest nature, I really like her gentleness and obedience, and... she's become even more beautiful in the last two years."
Thinking of Qiao Qingshu in her plain white dress and mourning clothes during the day, Xiao Chengyan revealed a wicked smile, thinking to himself that it was a rather strange feeling.
Madam Xing frowned, clearly displeased.
"You're such a loser. So many noble ladies in the capital admire you, and now you only marry her. It's such a pity. Princess Yongxian has been coming to our residence often lately, and she always asks if you're here..."
Xiao Chengyan impatiently urged his mother to go back.
"If you like that pockmarked princess, you can marry her yourself. Your son is going to rest now."
Madam Xing, having been kicked out, stormed back home. Passing the second wife's room, she saw Xiao Zhijie still practicing his sword in the courtyard and muttered something under her breath.
"I'm not the only one who's up late at night. This kid probably has something on his mind too, practicing his swordplay in the middle of the night."
Xiao Zhijie practiced swordplay silently in the darkness until dawn, when he finally returned to his room to rest, exhausted.
乔府
As soon as Bai's funeral ended, Xu Biyun immediately began to stir with desire.
She still heard the words that Aunt Chen had said to her before. Aunt Chen had said that she was not even as good as a concubine and was now just an outsider!
It may be hard to hear, but it's true; she needs to get official recognition as soon as possible.
Now that she is pregnant, she cannot stay in the Marquis's mansion in such an ambiguous state. Since she can no longer be the principal wife, she should be taken as a concubine as soon as possible.
After washing, dressing, and applying makeup, she quickly changed into a peach-colored begonia-patterned jacket and sneaked into Qiao Jizhou's study under the cover of dusk.
Unexpectedly, just as I reached the door, I saw Qiao Qingshu coming out of Qiao Jizhou's study.
Xu Biyun's brightly colored clothes were so eye-catching that there was no time to hide.
But she was still inexplicably afraid and hid herself further into the bushes.
But this didn't escape Qiao Qingshu's eyes. Qiao Qingshu went down the steps and walked towards Xu Biyun.
"What is my aunt doing hiding here so suspiciously?"
Seeing that she couldn't avoid it, Xu Biyun tugged at her clothes and swayed as she walked out.
"I... just happened to be passing by... so I came to visit the Second Master."
She sounded inexplicably guilty as she spoke, and she didn't know why.
In the twilight, Qiao Qingshu immediately noticed Xu Biyun's vibrant colors and felt a stinging pain in her eyes.
With no one else present, Qiao Qingshu dropped her dignified facade as a legitimate daughter and began to ridicule him mercilessly.
"What? My aunt is here to have an affair with my father again? Didn't she have enough at the funeral hall?"
Xu Biyun was furious upon hearing this. She never expected Qiao Qingshu to disregard her dignity and say such a thing to her.
"Young lady, what did you say!"
Qiao Qingshu glanced at Xu Biyun from head to toe, shook her head with utter contempt, and continued,
"No, no, no, now your shameful deeds have spread throughout the Qiao family clan, so it can no longer be considered stealing. Yesterday, at Mother's funeral, all the noble families were talking about Father and Aunt, and even the teahouses and theaters in the capital were discussing this strange event in our Qiao family. Aunt, you've become famous because of this!"
The words were full of ridicule and mockery, and Xu Biyun's cheeks immediately burned upon hearing them.
She wasn't one to tolerate things easily, and with Liu Wan'er not around to offer any guidance, she immediately put her hands on her hips and snapped.
"Shu girl, you should watch your words. I'm your elder, after all!"
Qiao Qingshu slapped Xu Biyun hard across the face immediately, the slap was swift and ruthless, and Xu Biyun covered her face and looked at Qiao Qingshu in disbelief.
Qiao Qingshu said fiercely,
“If it were before, I would have to respect you as my aunt and I would never have hit you. But now that you have willingly degraded yourself to become a concubine, so what if you have climbed to the position of a mistress and had children? You are still a lowly servant. Xu Biyun, you better stay away from me from now on. If I ever see you like this again, I will beat you every time I see you.”
At this moment, Qiao Qingshu made no attempt to hide her hatred for Xu Biyun; her eyes were filled with a deep-seated murderous intent.
Even a loving and kind mother like mine was schemed against and killed by this vile woman. Today, I will make Xu Biyun taste the bitterness of a life worse than death.
What's a slap in the face? The real crackdown is yet to come!
Looking into Qiao Qingshu's eyes, Xu Biyun was so frightened that she took two steps back.
The moment she saw the study door open, she almost without hesitation threw herself into Qiao Jizhou's arms for protection.
Qiao Jizhou looked at Qiao Qingshu, frowned, and asked,
"What's wrong, Shu'er?"
Xu Biyun immediately nestled in Qiao Jizhou's arms and sobbed.
"Second Master, I don't know how I offended the eldest young lady. She slapped me as soon as she saw me."
After saying that, he raised his head and showed Qiao Jizhou his swollen face.
Qiao Jizhou looked at Qiao Qingshu with some displeasure and said,
"Shu'er, why did you hit someone for no reason?"
Qiao Qingshu turned around with a relaxed expression, completely unconcerned about her father's expression or answering his question. She simply said slowly,
“Father, this slut is begging you to give her a title. But she wants to climb over Mother’s still-warm corpse to get to her position. She won’t get in so easily.”
Qiao Jizhou frowned and said,
"Shu'er, what do you mean by that?"
Qiao Qingshu pointed at Xu Biyun and said coldly,
"If you want her to come into the family as a concubine, this wretched woman must kneel before my mother's memorial tablet for three consecutive days, and thereafter pay her respects to the current tablet morning and evening every day, without missing a single meal!"
Although Qiao Qingshu was sensible, anyone would be angry if they encountered a funeral hall incident, and Qiao Jizhou knew that Qiao Qingshu's request was not excessive.
He already felt somewhat indebted to his daughter, and knew that it was already difficult enough for Shu'er to tolerate Xu Biyun. Kneeling for three days and paying respects every day was not a big deal.
After a moment of silence, he sighed and nodded.
"I'll do as you say."
Upon hearing this, Xu Biyun felt as if the sky had fallen.
She thought that with Bai Shi dead, her life would be a thousand times better than before, but what's going on now? Why is she living even worse than before?
Now, in order to enter the house, she has to kneel for three days first, and afterwards she has to pay her respects to a dead person's memorial tablet every morning and evening. Just thinking about it makes her head explode.
Her alluring eyebrows furrowed in disbelief as she cried out, almost distorted.
"Second Master, you can't do this! You can't spoil her like this!"
Because Qiao Jizhou had no hope of promotion and his family's treasury was empty, he had been disliking Xu Biyun lately. He didn't even bother to coax her, and instead scolded her harshly.
"If I don't spoil my own daughter, am I supposed to spoil you? I've been too lenient with you all these years, which is why you've caused such a huge disaster. If you weren't carrying my child, do you think you'd still be safe and sound in the Qiao family?"
This was the first time Qiao Jizhou had ever lost his temper with Xu Biyun.
These words, spoken without uttering a sound, struck Xu Biyun like icy blades, leaving her heart a bloody mess and a scene of utter desolation.
Xu Biyun covered her face and ran away crying, leaving Qiao Jizhou with an angry expression.
Qiao Qingshu looked at her father in the twilight. There were already some gray hairs at his temples. A man of this age should be making waves in the officialdom, but her father only knew how to stay in the inner quarters.