nucmednet Chapter 208 Giving birth
Chapter 208 Giving birth
Li was stunned, staring at Marquis Zhongxin in disbelief: "Marquis, how could you treat me like this?"
Marquis Zhongxin turned around and kicked Li's wet nurse: "How dare you call yourself 'me' in front of me? Who gave you the audacity?!"
With tears in her eyes, Li accused, "You're the one who gave me the courage to refer to myself as 'I' in front of you for the past ten years. Why didn't you correct me? Now, for the sake of such a despicable girl, you're going to vilify me like this?! What am I to you? Did you ever truly love me?!"
With things having come to this point, Aunt Li was determined to go all out!
Upon hearing this, Marquis Zhongxin flew into a rage: "What?! You lowly girl who has been defiled?! Li, how dare you! Qiong'er's mother is the Marquis's wife, and Qiong'er is my own daughter! How dare you insult them like this in front of me?! Do you even have a shred of respect for me?! Guards, take her away and give her thirty lashes!"
What? She only uttered one curse word, and they want to beat her thirty times? Was all that past affection and love just a lie?!
Li shouted frantically, "Was all your love for me in the past just a lie?!"
Marquis Zhongxin said sorrowfully, "In the past, I was blind to love you! No matter how bad Qiong'er's mother was, I still carried her into the family in a grand sedan chair, and she even bore me a pair of intelligent and sensible children! In these past twenty years, what have you done for me? All you've done is force the mistress, harm my legitimate son and daughter, and raise a pair of children who are utterly unworthy of respect!"
The children you raised are both vicious and useless; they are a scourge to the Marquis's mansion! I originally didn't want to hold these things against you, because I do bear some responsibility for how the children turned out. However, you shouldn't have dared to insult the Marquis's wife as a slut and Qiong'er as a lowly maid in front of me!
You said I gave you the courage, and I admit it. I was blind, I was wrong, I shouldn't have loved you, I shouldn't have been so good to you, which led you to have inappropriate thoughts! So, today, in addition to thirty strokes of the cane, I can no longer keep you as my concubine! If you stay any longer, the Marquis of Zhongxin's mansion will be doomed! After you're beaten, you'll get out of the mansion immediately. For the sake of our past relationship, I'll give you one hundred taels of silver.
"Apart from a few sets of clothes, you're not allowed to take a single thread of cloth out of the house! I'll have someone pack your clothes, and you're not to step into the bedroom again! Don't glare at me; I'm being very lenient with you! If it were any other matriarch, she might have beaten you to death on the spot!"
What? They're going to divorce her?
Upon hearing his words, Li collapsed to the ground.
What's going on? Didn't he like her very much? For her sake, he even neglected his legal wife for many, many years; for her sake, he was even indifferent to his legitimate son and daughter; for her sake, no matter what she did to Fang Qiong and her two children, he pretended not to know.
Now, he actually wants to divorce her, kick her out of the Marquis's mansion, and not allow her to take anything with her, only giving her one hundred taels of silver! How cruel must he be, how much must he hate her, to do such a thing!
"My lord, I was wrong, I will never do it again, please forgive me this once!" Li suddenly prostrated herself on the ground, kowtowing and begging for forgiveness.
Marquis Zhongxin glanced at her with disgust. How could Lady Li have such a shameless face? A wave of nausea washed over him. He lamented how blind he had been in the past, how could he have let such a woman lead him to betray his wife and concubine? Sigh, although Lady Ying wasn't much better, she was still better than this Lady Li, wasn't she? How could he have been so bewitched in the past, allowing the concubines in his mansion to trample his wife and legitimate children underfoot for the sake of such a woman?!
This shouldn't be happening, it really shouldn't be happening!
While crying, Madam Li rushed over and tightly hugged Marquis Zhongxin's right leg: "My lord, please forgive me this once, for the sake of the two children I have borne for you! I will never dare to do it again, please forgive me this once!"
Marquis Zhongxin sneered, "Now, do you know you're a lowly concubine? You want me to forgive you this once? How many chances have I given you in the past twenty years? Probably not a thousand, but at least eight hundred times?"
He raised his foot and kicked Li away in disgust: "Don't mention your children. They're both more vicious and arrogant than the other. I'm separating the family today and making them all move out of the mansion, so that Heng'er and Rufeng and Yunduo won't even dare to go home!"
This Marquis's mansion needs a proper mistress, and it's time for Madam Ying to return. Although Madam Ying isn't entirely reliable either, she's at least ten times better than Madam Li. At the very least, Madam Ying comes from a proper noble family, and her understanding of interpersonal relationships and household management is far superior to that of a concubine. Moreover, her position is legitimate and won't make the Marquis's mansion a laughingstock.
The kick landed squarely on Li's chest, causing her to vomit blood on the spot. She tried to say something, but was too weak to speak, and quickly fainted.
Upon hearing the news, Li's son and daughter rushed over, wanting to help their birth mother, but were glared at fiercely by Marquis Zhongxin.
"Father, how could you treat my mother like this? For more than twenty years, my mother has worked hard for this family. Even if she hasn't done anything great, she has certainly put in a lot of effort!" Li's son said boldly and indignantly.
Marquis Zhongxin trembled with rage, roaring, "Your mother? You can call her 'mother,' she's Qiong'er's birth mother! You can only call Li Shi 'aunt'! For so many years, Li Shi has indeed gone to great lengths, trying every means to harm and frame the head mistress and the legitimate son and daughter! Don't think I don't know, I've only been giving Li Shi some face and haven't bothered to expose her. Who knew she'd become so bold, daring to call Qiong'er's mother a slut and Qiong'er a lowly girl right in front of me."
Behind my back, she has done countless things to harm and oppress Qiong'er, her mother, and her elder brother. Otherwise, why would Qiong'er's mother hide away, not even daring to return to the Marquis's residence? It's pitiful! The mistress of the dignified Marquis of Zhongxin's mansion, the legitimate son, and the eldest grandson, have been forced by a concubine to the point of being unable to return home. This is truly a colossal joke, a disgrace to the Fang family!
Young Master Fang was so choked up that he couldn't say a word.
Because his father was telling the truth, he couldn't find any words to refute him. He was afraid that if he talked back, his father would kick him a few times, or even kick his whole family out.
At that moment, he was unaware that his father was indeed going to kick his entire family out. If he had known, he wouldn't have remained so calm.
Marquis Zhongxin angrily shouted at an old woman, "Why aren't you getting a needle to wake Li Shi up? What kind of behavior is this, lying on the ground and acting like a liar?!"
These words were unusually sharp, startling even the young master Li. He dared not utter a single word that was on the tip of his tongue, let alone help his birth mother up. Having grown up by Li's side since childhood, he had absorbed her cold-hearted, vicious, and selfish nature, and was determined to protect himself from being wronged.
This time, Marquis Zhongxin was determined and adopted swift and decisive measures, quickly confiscating the residences of his concubines. As a result, they discovered a large amount of gold and silver jewelry, as well as much of Ying's original dowry.
The Marquis of Zhongxin was furious. He immediately punished each of his concubines with ten strokes of the cane, and then that very night, he banished his illegitimate sons and daughters, along with their wives, children, and their birth mothers, from the Marquis's residence. As for their trusted subordinates, each of them received thirty strokes of the cane and was sold off far away.
If he didn't do this, Marquis Zhongxin worried that the servants these concubines used would resort to some despicable means to help their masters harm and oppress Ying Shi and her two children, as well as Yun Duo and Ru Feng.
Each of the illegitimate sons was given a three-courtyard house, fifty mu of medium-sized farmland, fifty mu of superior farmland, a shop, and three thousand taels of silver. Each concubine was allowed to take her own clothes, shoes, socks, and a few pieces of not-so-expensive jewelry, and each was also given two hundred taels of silver.
As for the unmarried concubine daughters, each was given one hundred taels of silver and allowed to take their own clothes and jewelry. In addition, when they get married, the Marquis's mansion will give each of them a decent dowry.
Fang Qiong was shocked when she found out.
This time, Father was surprisingly decisive and willing to give up those concubines. Those concubines, especially Consort Li, used to have everything they wanted!
But then, Mother should come back, right? If Mother is willing to come back, my older brother will be much more relaxed; he won't have to worry about Mother accepting bribes anymore. Not only will my older brother be relieved, but she will be relieved too, no longer having to worry about him every day.
Sigh, having such a troublesome mother is such a burden on my elder brother! Now, she can only hope that her mother's past acceptance of bribes won't be exposed. Otherwise, her elder brother's future will inevitably be affected. He might even lose his official position for life, and it could even jeopardize Ru Feng's future.
Taking this opportunity, Fang Qiong once again cleaned out the servants in the mansion. All the servants who had been close to Li Shi and the other concubines, as well as those who had bullied her, her elder brother, and her mother, were all sold off and sent far away.
Those who remained were the thirty-odd men from Marquis Zhongxin's side, the people from Haitang Garden, and ten relatively honest and dutiful guards. Originally, Marquis Zhongxin had more than forty men around him, but he had sent away those who had been bribed by the Li family. Most of those who remained were capable people and could be trusted.
Early on the third day, Fang Qiong went to Yulin County.
Ying asked in surprise, "Why are you here again?"
Fang Qiong: "Mother, Aunt Li and all the concubines, as well as the illegitimate sons and daughters, have all been driven out of the Marquis's mansion by Father. Now, all the servants in the mansion have been cleared out again. Now, you can go back, and eldest brother, Yunduo, and Rufeng can also go back without worry!"
Madam Ying was shocked again, and said in disbelief, "What? They've all been driven away? I don't believe it. How could your father be without women?"
Fang Qiong's face flushed slightly, and she frowned, saying, "Mother, they were all driven away, leaving only two sixteen or seventeen-year-old maids! You are my mother, would I lie to you? Now, I am in charge of the Marquis's mansion, how could I not know who is in the mansion?"
Fang Heng: "Mother, since that's the case, why don't you go back to the Marquis's mansion with your sister? Your sister is only fourteen years old this year. It's too tiring for her to manage such a large mansion all by herself. Take this opportunity to go back and get along well with Father. Even if you can't be very close, at least don't let things get too awkward. At least try to get along harmoniously."
After you return, slowly reintegrate into the circle of noble ladies in the capital. Also, help your sister find a suitable match for Wang Yong; see if he's someone she can entrust her life to! The Marquis's mansion has so many properties; you must keep a close eye on them for your son, and make sure they don't fall into the hands of those concubines! You are the Marquis's wife, the rightful mistress of the household! Three years from now, I will find a way to be transferred back to the capital. On Rufeng and Yunduo's days off, I will bring them back to the Marquis's mansion!
Hearing this, Madam Ying felt a little better. With the encouragement of her two children, she finally nodded and said, "Okay, I'll go back with Qiong'er tomorrow!"
Finally, Madam Ying returned to the long-lost Marquis's mansion, truly taking charge once more, and Fang Qiong breathed a sigh of relief. With the mistress of the house back, Wang Yong quickly arranged the betrothal, and Fang Qiong's marriage was finally settled. From that day on, she frequently stayed at the Marquis's mansion, embroidering her dowry.
Wang Yong was extremely satisfied with his fiancée. In particular, the Marquis's mansion was no longer in chaos, and Fang Qiong was no longer in mortal danger. This fiancée could definitely stay safely in the Marquis's mansion until her marriage. The slight hesitation in Wang Yong's heart vanished instantly.