Jiapingguan Chronicle

Chapter 2768 Madam Shi 8.0
"She wasn't that old, so is it considered an untimely death?" Shen Cha frowned slightly. "When she passed away, she hadn't been in charge of the Shi family for very long."

"That was quite a long time ago. She became the head of the Shi family at the age of fifteen and got married in the same year."

"Married?" Jin Miaomiao was taken aback. "Who is this person marrying into the family?"

"He didn't have any particular name; he was just a young man studying at the Shi Family Academy. I don't know why, but the two of them were attracted to each other and got married."

"The Shi family also has an academy?"

"Of course. Academies are the most basic component of aristocratic families. Without an academy, it would be difficult to stay or gain a foothold in a place like Jiangnan where scholars hold sway. Moreover, the Shi Family Academy is quite famous, and several great scholars came from there."

"They even have an academy?" Jin Miaomiao pouted. "I thought they were just in business."

"I told you long ago that they have both business and academy."

“Every family is the same. They have academies and businesses. Of course, like the Shi family, some of their businesses are clean, and some are not.” Chu Han chuckled and said, “Their academies are similar to those of other families. In addition to their own children and the children of relatives and friends, there are also students from poor families. In any case, their reputation in business is not very good, but they are quite good to their students.”

"Is there a very powerful gentleman?"

"Yes!" Chu Han nodded. "Not only that, their family also has a library, most of which contains rare books, some of which are even rarer than those held by the Wang and Xie families. So, many people come here specifically for these rare books."

"I see." Jin Miaomiao nodded, picked up the soup bowl, slurped down a couple of mouthfuls, and said, "The man that Madam Shi married was an unknown scholar from a poor family. Were her elders happy about that?"

"Whether they like it or not doesn't really matter. The main thing is that they are in love with each other. When Madam Shi is with her husband, she is obviously happy, so we just go along with her. Moreover, that scholar is very promising. In the second year after their marriage, he participated in the provincial examination and the palace examination, and finally ranked eighteenth in the second class. However, because his mother passed away, he had to observe a three-year mourning period, so he did not enter the court to take up an official post. During these three years, he worked as a teacher at the Shi family's academy and trained many students. After the mourning period ended, there was another year of imperial examinations. He discussed it with Madam Shi and decided that since his students had already passed the exams, he didn't need to show his face in public anymore, so he could simply continue teaching at the academy."

"That's just a nice way of putting it," Shen Cha sneered. "According to the laws of the Great Xia Dynasty, a son-in-law who marries into a family can take the imperial examinations, but he cannot enter officialdom."

“That’s right!” Chu Han nodded. “So, even if it weren’t for the issue of mourning period, he would still have no connection with the imperial court.”

"So, they don't have children?"

"According to our investigation, there is none." Chu Han shrugged. "Like I said before, doing too many bad things can easily backfire."

“That’s what my great-uncle said before,” Shen Cha chuckled. “But Madam Shi’s health isn’t good, is it because she’s ill?” “Yes, because of years of hard work, her health isn’t good. In addition, the two or three miscarriages and the early death of her husband have dealt her a huge blow. We suspect that the reason why Huayuji is doing those kinds of business behind the scenes is related to her.”

"Can't stand seeing others laughing and having fun?"

"Probably!" Seeing Shen Cha open her mouth, Chu Han finished the soup in his bowl and continued, "What do you want to ask?"

"Her husband died young?"

"To be precise, she disposed of it herself." Seeing everyone, including the Third Grandfather, looking at him in surprise, Chu Han spread his hands. "Madam Shi's business dealings must be related to this. That son-in-law of the Shi family, who seemed to be wholeheartedly educating students at the academy, secretly kept a mistress at the academy while Madam Shi was pregnant. Not only that, this mistress also became pregnant, and they were together for about half a year."

"A mistress?" Jin Miaomiao sneered. "You've got some nerve, placing her in the academy. Aren't you worried that Madam Shi has spies there?"

“It’s not something that can be discovered in a short time if a woman is disguised as a man,” Chu Han sighed. “However, this is a family scandal, and outsiders don’t know exactly how it was discovered or how the commotion started. When Madam Shi dealt with her husband and mistress, she also dealt with all the people who knew about it. However, she also fell seriously ill as a result, and her health collapsed immediately.”

"So, her early death was related to this?"

"Yes!" Chu Han nodded. "She was hit too hard, and she has a deep-seated emotional burden. Although we have dealt with those two people, we cannot reveal the truth to the public. We can only say that she passed away from illness, and we still need to hold a funeral for her, and it cannot be small."

"It makes me so angry just thinking about it. I was the one who was wronged, but I had to pretend that nothing happened."

“So, getting sick is inevitable.” Chu Han spread his hands. “Although Madam Shi’s illness looks like an acute illness, it was actually accumulated over time. In particular, her health deteriorated due to several miscarriages, which ruined her completely. Although she consulted many famous doctors for several years and persisted for several years, they still couldn’t save her.”

"For her, it might be a relief!" Shen Cha finished her soup and waved to Xue Mu, who was about to pour her another bowl. "I know about Madam Shi because my master and grandmaster both said there was such a person in Jiangnan, very talented, but her methods and style weren't very upright, not quite like a true gentleman. They also said that about forty or fifty years ago, the Shi family and several families centered around it experienced great turmoil. The Shi family sold many shops, both profitable and unprofitable, and many business families profited handsomely from it. However, the Huayuji shop, which they coveted the most, wasn't sold. The Qin family had been eyeing Huayuji, but unfortunately, it wasn't until the Shi family was completely destroyed that they took the opportunity to take over the shops related to their own business." She looked at Chu Han, "Was the period of selling the shops during the internal strife within the Shi family?"

“Yes!” Chu Han nodded slightly. “The infighting among these aristocratic families is just as exciting as the struggle for the throne or the crown. It’s incredibly chaotic and ruthless.” He looked at Xiao Fengqi and smiled. “You feel the same way, don’t you?”

“Yes!” Xiao Fengqi nodded. “They are all essentially the same. They are all fighting for that little bit of power. Whoever wins it can dominate everything he can control.”

"At that time, there were several factions in the Shi family vying for the position of family head. There were the prospective heirs cultivated by Madam Shi, as well as forces that were not convinced by Madam Shi, and there were also the heir candidates who had been eliminated. Because Madam Shi passed away very suddenly, even though she left a will, due to negligence, she did not affix her personal seal. Therefore, the other factions that wanted to seize the position of family head did not recognize it."

"I heard my master and grandmaster tell me about this. The internal strife lasted for a very long time, about two years. In the end, the heir personally cultivated by Madam Shi was slightly better and did not disappoint Madam Shi's expectations, firmly grasping the power to control the Shi family. But even so, such a large family was severely damaged by the years of internal strife. Not to mention that they could not catch up with the top Wang and Xie families, they soon found themselves at the bottom of the second-tier families. When they held various banquets, hardly anyone came to attend."