lady, please calm down

In the fifteenth year of the founding of the country, Cai Yuan, the seventy-five-year-old head of all officials and prime minister, retired.

In the autumn of the same year, Cai Yuan celebrated his birthday. Chen Chu brought Mao'er, Cai Huan and the prince to congratulate him in person.

Almost all the well-known ministers in the court, whether they were from the Huaibei faction, Liu Qi's old ministers, or Jiangnan officials, came to offer congratulations.

Cai Yuan has always been a low-key person. The reason why his birthday celebration was so grand this time was because he would be leaving Beijing next month to return to his hometown for retirement.

By now, Cai Yuan has no more titles to offer, and the arrival of Chen Chu with his entire family is a clear attitude, representing recognition of Cai Xiangconglong's achievements over the past 26 years.

Among all the officials, no matter whether they have the same stance or have had disputes with Prime Minister Cai, it is natural for such a big shot to retire and come here in the name of birthday celebration to consolidate or ease the relationship.

Although the Cai family does not have as many officials as the Chen family of Yingchuan, the eldest son Cai Yun is in charge of the southwest, and the second son, after serving as a second official in the newly established Ministry of Commerce for several years, was promoted to the Minister of Commerce when his father retired.

Cai Si, a representative figure of the middle generation of the Cai family, also served in local government for many years before entering the Sansi Yamen as a salt and iron official.
In short, compared with the clerk family in Tongshan back then, the Cai family has now become a huge political force in the empire.

It can also be said that the head of the Cai family, Cai Yuan, spent more than 20 years bringing the Cai family to a height that his predecessors could not have imagined.

Therefore, Cai Yuan's retirement not only did not show the Cai family's decline, but his voluntary retirement created more room for the family's growth.

With the help of this birthday celebration, the Cai family is prosperous and flourishing.

In September, Cai Yuan and his wife Wang returned to their hometown.

The person who was most excited about their departure was undoubtedly You, the wife of the Minister of Commerce Cai Kun. Her parents-in-law had returned to their hometown, and her eldest brother was an official in Yunnan, which had recently annexed the country, and his family had accompanied him. In the future, wouldn't she become the mistress of this huge prime minister's mansion?

At this time, she was not only the wife of a Shangshu, but also the representative of the Cai family's female relatives who remained in the capital. For a time, You became the most distinguished lady in the capital, second only to her elder, the wife of the Duke of Ying.

Without the pressure of a mother-in-law, Yu Shi, who was surrounded by flattery all day long, couldn't help feeling a little proud.

In early October, just a dozen days after Cai Yuan and his wife left, You Shi took her niece You Yunwei to the Prime Minister's Mansion in Yulin Lane.

You Yunwei lost her father at an early age. As her uncle's family prospered in recent years, she would stay at the prime minister's residence every year. In the past, Lady Wang, the wife of Duke of Korea, was in charge of the rear house, so You and her niece were quite cautious. But now You feels that she has become the mistress of the prime minister's residence, and some of her intentions are no longer hidden.

On the night of the ninth day of the tenth month, You Yunwei stayed in her cousin Cai Wei's study until the middle of the night under the pretext of asking for advice. If the Shu princess Chen Rao had not gone to the study to persuade her husband to go back to his room to rest, this "untactful" cousin would have refused to leave.

That night, Rao'er was a little angry and had an argument with her husband Cai Wei.

Cai Wei has a personality similar to his father, relatively honest and henpecked. He repeatedly promised to avoid being alone with his cousin in the future.

But Rao'er was not reassured. Her cousin was nearly twenty years old and not a child who knew nothing. Yet, she had no idea of ​​being shy and her thoughts were written all over her face.

Rao'er was not a jealous person. She had been married for three years and had no children. Her mother-in-law, Youshi, used this as an excuse to send two maids from her own room to the young couple's courtyard as concubines.

Although she was not happy about it, the crime of "having no offspring" was too serious and Rao'er had no choice but to accept it.

However, Rao'er also has her bottom line. After several years of contact with her cousin You Yunwei, she has long realized that the other party is not an easy person to deal with.

What's more, the other party is the niece of the mother-in-law. If You Yunwei entered their small family, and with the mother-in-law's partiality and support, how aggrieved Rao'er, the principal wife, would be.

I can't go back to my father and cry to him every time I feel wronged in the future.

After tossing and turning all night, Rao'er decided to confront her mother-in-law and went to find Youshi early in the morning.

On the other side, Youshi, who had impatiently moved into the main house since her parents-in-law returned home, did not seem surprised by the arrival of her daughter-in-law. After the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law greeted each other with a smile, they sat separately, drinking tea and chatting, seeming to be having a great time.

After dealing with a few words, Rao'er mentioned casually: "Mother, Yun Wei is also nineteen this year, right?"

Yu Shi knew what her daughter-in-law wanted to say, but she sighed with melancholy and said, "That's right. My little brother died young, which made Wei'er suffer. He lost his father when he was ten years old. If not for this, how could he still be single today?"

Hearing her mother-in-law talking about her cousin's marriage, Rao'er continued: "Cousin Yunwei is very pretty, how could she not find a husband? If mother is interested, I can look for a husband for Yunwei."

"Oh?" Yu Shi pretended to be surprised and said, "That's great. Let me tell you, which prince in the mansion is of the right age and has not yet been married?"

"."

The first thing he said was 'the young master of the duke's mansion', and Rao'er was speechless for a moment.

In the whole of Great Chu, there are only a handful of dukes and marquises, and most of their sons and daughters are married. Even if they are not married, they either have their own partners early on, or have arranged marriages with people of equal status through their parents' matchmaking.
Although my mother-in-law is now the wife of a minister, all her glory comes from the Cai family!

Although her You family had an uncle who was an official in the local area, there was still some gap between them and the sons of dukes and marquises. Her mother-in-law set the threshold so high right from the start, and Rao'er didn't know how to accept it.

Seeing that Rao'er was silent, Youshi sighed again and said, "Mother, you know that my You family has never had any dealings with the dukes and marquises. I'm afraid they would not look down on my daughter."

"Since the mother-in-law knew this, she still dared to designate a duke for her niece."

Rao'er secretly complained, but heard Youshi continue: "If Yunwei is allowed to marry an ordinary minor official or a wealthy merchant, mother will be worried and will not be able to let my brother who died young. In this case, it is better to let Yunwei stay in my house, and you and I can always take care of her to prevent her from being wronged."

"!"

Rao'er frowned and looked over immediately.

Cai Kun had two sons. The eldest son worked in the Lin'an Maritime Customs, and the second son, Cai Wei, lived in Tokyo with Cai Kun and his wife. Yu Shi first said "Keep Yun Wei by your side", and then said "You and I will take care of her", almost saying that she wanted to put her niece in the second son's room.

Seeing her mother-in-law reveal her cards, Rao'er couldn't help but get angry and said firmly: "No way!"

Upon hearing this, You looked at Rao'er carefully and said unhappily, "Why not?"

Anyway, the conversation had already been opened, Rao'er no longer hesitated, and immediately replied: "Mother, Wei Ge'er and I have been married for three years, and mother has sent Qinxue and Canchun from your room to Wei Ge'er's room one after another."

Before Rao'er could finish her words, Youshi interrupted and asked, "If the two of them can do it, why can't Yunwei do it?"

"."

Of course Rao'er couldn't say, "I'm worried that you two, aunt and nephew, will join forces and I won't be your wife or concubine." After taking a few deep breaths, she still insisted, "It won't work anyway! I'm Wei Ge'er's wife, and anyone entering the house needs my approval!"

“That makes sense.”

You Shi took a sip of tea slowly and said, "My daughter-in-law is my Erlang's legal wife, and she is also the princess of our Great Chu and Shu Kingdom. But we have been childless for three years. As a mother, how can I not take a concubine for my son? Could it be that the princess wants my Erlang to have no descendants?"

Having no offspring is the first of the seven faults. To be blamed for this is a sin that no woman in the world can bear.

Rao'er was also full of grievances. Over the past few years, she had sought medical advice countless times and taken countless doses of decoctions. Now that her mother-in-law had criticized her for this, she was so angry that she blurted out, "Mother! Qinxue and Canchun have been in Erlang's courtyard for more than a year, and they are also not pregnant! Why do you blame your daughter-in-law? Maybe Erlang's body needs conditioning!"

This is a bit harsh.

Regardless of whether it was Cai Wei’s problem or not, in today’s era, it would be a humiliation for Rao’er to speak it out.

You's face darkened, but before she could speak, a figure flashed out from behind the screen and said, "Sister-in-law, how rude! How can you humiliate Brother Wei like this! My Cai family has worked hard for the country and is the backbone of Your Majesty. Sister-in-law, you cannot rely on your royal bloodline to bully my family."

"."

The one who kept saying "my Cai family" was You's niece You Yunwei.

At this moment, You Yunwei rushed out from behind the screen, feeling full of grievances, but too timid to step forward. After rebuking Rao'er in a low voice, tears welled up in her eyes.

Seeing this, Youshi, who was originally sitting on a chair and about to get angry, sat down firmly in the chair, as if she was not aware of the scene in front of her.

It was as if he was waiting for Rao'er and Yun Wei to have a one-on-one argument.

Rao'er couldn't help but get furious. She was angry that You Yunwei, an outsider, spoke with the tone of the host. She was angry that You Yunwei had obviously arrived earlier than her, but hid behind the screen and eavesdropped on the conversation between her and her mother-in-law. She was angry that her mother-in-law knew all this, but let You Yunwei do this.

Rao'er suppressed her anger and glanced at Youshi. Seeing that the latter did not react, she sneered and scolded You Yunwei: "Prime Minister Cai has made great contributions, but when did the Cai family become your family? Who do you think you are!"

"aunt!"

You Yunwei cried out in extreme grievance and burst into tears.

Youshi's expression finally changed, and she said quietly, "My last name is You too. Princess, do you think this house is not my home anymore?"

Although the relationship had been broken, Rao'er did not confront her mother-in-law in person to avoid giving her a chance to talk nonsense. She just bowed coldly to Youshi and turned to walk out.

She forced herself to return to her own yard, but after entering the house, she couldn't hold back her tears and shed tears of grievance.

Qiushi, who was in charge of her room, was originally a maid beside Yunong. When she saw the princess in this state, she hurriedly asked what happened. But before Rao'er could tell her the whole story, Qinxue and Canchun, the concubines of Rao'er who had got the news from somewhere, came to visit together.

These two people came from Youshi's room, and needless to say, they came to gather information.

Rao'er, who was already in a bad mood, had no time to play along with the two of them. She felt that the prime minister's mansion was full of her mother-in-law's spies and ears, and there was no sense of family warmth at all.

Rao'er couldn't help but recall the many happy scenes when she was still a girl at home, the many brothers and sisters, the mother who never had any airs, and the father who treated her like a treasure. After a mental struggle, Rao'er suddenly wiped away her tears, stood up and said to Qiushi: "Grandma Qiu, call someone to prepare the car, I want to go back to the palace!"

Although no princess mansion was built outside the palace when the princesses of Da Chu got married, their bedrooms in the palace from their early years were always preserved so that they would have a place to live when they returned home to visit their families.

Rao'er's residence is naturally in her mother's Baoyi Palace.

Yu Nong was delighted that her daughter suddenly returned to the palace, but mother and daughter are connected by heart. Even though Rao'er pretended to be relaxed and didn't say anything, Yu Nong still noticed that something was wrong with Rao'er.

So, that afternoon, Yunong sent someone to call Ran'er and Ying'er over, and left under the pretext of taking a lunch break, giving the three sisters space to talk in private.

Ran'er is twenty years old this year and Ying'er is eighteen. Although they are different in age, they grew up together and shared countless secrets.

Just after Ran'er said, "My eldest sister has returned home, what is there to hide?", Rao'er could no longer hold back and told her in detail about the various behaviors of her mother-in-law, Youshi, after Prime Minister Cai left the capital.

Ran Er got angry when she heard this, and dragged Rao Er to ask her father to make a decision for her. However, Rao Er did not listen to Ran Er's advice, and only said: "Father is very tired from working on official duties every day. If he knew about it, he would be worried about my affairs again."

"Eldest sister! This is intolerable. If you endure it this time, you will have to endure it for the rest of your life!"

Seeing her second sister insisting so much, Rao'er had to speak out her true feelings, "This matter is mostly due to my troublesome mother-in-law. If the emperor comes forward, he can only issue an edict to reprimand my father-in-law and husband, which will not solve the problem. It will also easily cause the outside world to speculate that the relationship between the emperor and the Cai family is not harmonious."

After all, she is the daughter of the royal family, and it is impossible for her to consider issues without taking into account the possibility of causing a political chain reaction.

After hearing this, Ran'er realized that what her elder sister said made sense, and even her mother would face similar speculations if she came forward.

For a moment, Ran'er, who felt that she couldn't support her elder sister, couldn't help but vent some of her dissatisfaction to Ying'er, "Wu Guo! What's wrong with your cousin? It was him who took the initiative to ask for my elder sister's hand in marriage, and now it's her who allows your aunt to bully my elder sister! If it weren't for the imperial concubine's face, I would have brought Nian'er, Hong'er, and Jun'er to find your second uncle now."

Now that the prince has gone to the army for training, Nian'er in Ayu Palace, Hong'er in Tiedan Palace, and Jun'er, Rao'er's younger brother, are relatively older men in the palace.

Looking at Ran'er's posture, it seems like he is going to bring his younger brothers to ask for an explanation.

Ying'er was of a cold disposition, and only said, "Second sister, there is no need to worry about this matter. I will report this to mother later."

Ran'er had just said it casually, but after hearing Ying'er's words, she suddenly felt as if the clouds had been cleared and the sky was blue. "Yes! Let's go find the Imperial Concubine! It would be most appropriate for the Imperial Concubine to come forward!"

That night, the three sisters, who had not talked together for a long time, stayed together in Baoyi Palace.

"At the beginning of the evening, cousin Wei came to the palace to pick up my eldest sister. I asked Nian and Hong to go see cousin Wei, but I didn't let Jun go, in case Jun got angry and had a conflict with cousin Wei. However, I heard that Nian and Hong didn't treat cousin Wei well either."

According to her childhood habit, the youngest Ying'er slept in the innermost bed. From her calm narration, it was obvious that she preferred her brothers and sisters, and seemed to be somewhat dissatisfied with her cousin.

Ran Er heard this and said, "That's it! Sister, don't be soft-hearted. If you follow the prince consort back to the prime minister's residence, your evil mother-in-law will definitely ignore your objections and push that young lady You into your yard. There will be no end to it in the future."

"Um"

Rao'er responded softly, but her mood was a little complicated.

On the one hand, after returning to the palace, her brothers and sisters were united in their hatred of the enemy, and her mother carefully tried to make her happy but did not dare to ask too many questions, which made her feel warm and full of a sense of security.

But on the other hand, she and Cai Wei have always had a good relationship. According to Ying'er, the Imperial Concubine will go back to the Prime Minister's Residence to visit relatives tomorrow. According to the Imperial Concubine's personality, if she doesn't show up, it's fine. But once she shows up, it will be a small move, which makes Rao'er feel uneasy.

Seeing that her elder sister was not in a good mood, Ran Er suddenly sighed and muttered, "What's so good about getting married? When we sisters were at home, we were happy every day. When my elder sister got married, it was like inviting a wicked mother-in-law to bully her. It's better for her to live alone."

Now, Ran'er is about to become another "difficult case" among the royal daughters. She has not found a man she likes at the age of 20. The same is true for Ying'er, who has also reached the age of marriage.

In order to correct her two sisters' wrong ideas, Rao'er quickly said, "It's not always like that. Marriage has its troubles, but it also has its joys. Your brother-in-law is actually quite good to me."

"What's the use? You've only been married for three years, and there are already two more women in the house." As soon as Ran'er finished speaking, Ying'er also said, "That's right! Why do men have to have three wives and four concubines? Is it difficult to live with just two people for a lifetime?"

This one sentence stumped Rao'er.

Yunong was not submissive, but she was not strong either. In short, since ancient times, men had three wives and four concubines, and Yunong thought it was natural.

It's impossible for Rao'er to be completely unaffected by her mother.

But Ran'er and Ying'er were taught since childhood to be independent and self-reliant.

"Anyway, if I want to get married in this life, I will only allow him to marry me. Otherwise, it's better not to get married."

Ran'er's words revealed for the first time the real reason why the marriage of the eldest daughter of the Great Chu had been delayed until now.

"But even if it's our father, he can't issue an edict asking others to promise not to take concubines, right?" Rao'er hesitated.

"It's impossible to rely on the emperor's will! Didn't the teacher in the school say that productivity determines the level of social development? Madam Ding has already done statistics in Huaibei. Now in Huaibei, women who work outside and can earn wages have accounted for 15% of the labor force. Only when they are economically independent can they be qualified to talk about personal independence.

In the past, monogamy was unrealistic, but now at least in Huaibei, there is a preliminary social foundation. A few days ago, I wrote to my aunt to discuss this matter. My aunt encouraged me in the letter to do more field research and do whatever I want to do after accumulating enough first-hand information.

Hearing Ran'er mention her aunt, Ying'er, who usually had a calm expression, also showed a little excitement. She immediately turned over and asked, "Has Miss Zhao returned from Southeast Asia? When will my second sister take me to see her again?"

Miss Zhao, who has devoted herself to promoting compulsory education for more than ten years, is an idol to almost all the girls in the school, even the cold and elegant Ying'er is no exception.

Speaking of her aunt, Ran'er couldn't hide her pride at all, and said with a smile: "Great! My aunt will come to Beijing at the end of the year, and I want to work with her."

"Don't forget to take me with you!"

As the two sisters were talking, they strayed from the topic of discussion tonight.

Rao'er, who was standing aside, had always believed that a woman's life was to get married and have children, but now she discovered that there seemed to be another way of living among her younger sisters.

On the same night, at the Prime Minister’s Mansion in Yulin Lane.

In the evening, Youshi was very angry because of an unpleasant conversation with her son.

After her husband Cai Kun learned the whole story, he spoke a fair word, "Since your son has no interest in Yun Wei, and Rao'er doesn't like Yun Wei, why do you have to push her into Erlang's yard?"

"Oh? That's my niece. Can't she be your concubine? Your Excellency the Minister has high standards. He doesn't even like my niece."

Yu Shi said something sarcastically, raised her hand and chased away the maid who was untying her hair, and then continued: "Chen Rao has been in my house for three years without any children, so what's wrong with me taking a concubine for Erlang? If this lawsuit is brought to the emperor, my family will be in the right!"

In her early years, Youshi married into the Cai family because she had a second uncle who was an official in Tangzhou.

Because of the difference in status, Youshi was very strict in disciplining Cai Kun. Not only did she not allow him to have concubines as side rooms, but even the maids who served in the second room were all rough and unskilled.

Over the years, Cai Kun has gotten used to it, but today's matter concerns the royal family, so he gave her one more word of advice, "Rao'er is your Majesty's eldest daughter after all. You have been loved by your Majesty since childhood. Although it is understandable to take a concubine, according to ethics, you still need Rao'er to nod. You are forcing her to bow her head like this."

Before Cai Kun finished speaking, Youshi said, "It is true that she is the eldest daughter of His Majesty, but don't you think about how she got this status as a princess! If it wasn't for Huan'er, then Yunong..."

"Quiet!"

"Ahem, if it weren't for my Cai family, Concubine Yi would have never had the chance to meet His Majesty! She used to be a servant and my family was the master, but now it's the other way around. Could it be that I am offering up my own daughter-in-law as a sacrifice?"

"Okay, okay."

Although they were in a deep house in the mansion, where there were no eavesdroppers, Cai Kun was still frightened by his wife's words.

What's the master and servant thing? Even if Yu Nong was humble in her early years, she is now one of the four concubines.

If this word gets out, I don't know how much trouble it will cause.

In fact, we can also hear from Youshi's words that she looked down on Yunong from the bottom of her heart. It was not because Yunong was once a prostitute, but because of Yunong's relationship with the Cai family.

It's probably similar to the fact that the servants who could once be beaten and scolded at will are now much more noble than her, which leads to psychological deformity.

Cai Kun was helpless and finally had to persuade her kindly: "Madam, why bother with the juniors? Yun Wei's matter can be dealt with slowly, but you can't let Rao'er live in the palace forever. Tomorrow, you should prepare gifts and go to Baoyi Palace to visit Concubine Yi, and take the opportunity to take Rao'er home."

It would have been fine if she hadn't mentioned this. As soon as she was asked to visit Yunong, Youshi said, "If you want to go, you two should go! I won't go! If this happens, she, the daughter-in-law, will have to ride on my head as the mother-in-law in the future!"

"."

Seeing his wife so stubborn, Cai Kun was very angry and simply moved to the study to sleep.

Although he disagreed with his wife, Cai Kun was not opposed to letting his son take a concubine. After all, the issue of offspring was more important than anything else. Erlang had never had children, so it made sense to take a concubine.

What he objected to was that his wife failed to appease Rao'er and forced her daughter-in-law to bow her head.
Logically speaking, Rao'er had returned to the palace for most of the day, so the Queen and Concubine Yi must have known about this.

But when the son went to the palace to pick up his daughter-in-law in the evening, he did not see the queen, Concubine Yi and other elders. Instead, a group of princes came out to receive his son.
There was no movement at all from His Majesty's side.

Having served the emperor for many years, Cai Kun knows too well the emperor's protective temperament.
The palace was so quiet right now that he couldn't help but feel a little uneasy. (End of this chapter)