The joyful news spread within the yard, everyone was happy for Wan Caiyue, extending their congratulations to Bai Yihong and his wife, as well as Bai Zehao. However, they found out that Wan Caiyue was exhausted and couldn’t leave the bed, which made them displeased with the old Mrs. Bai.
Just yesterday, the old woman was still demanding that Wan Caiyue serve her. She wasn’t so old that she couldn’t move, was she that unkind to people?
Old Mrs. Bai stayed in the main house refusing to move, even going to the bathroom behind a screen onto a spittoon. That item was prepared for the night, who uses it in broad daylight in the house? It was simply distasteful.
She quickly climbed back into bed as soon as she got up, as if afraid that if she moved slower, Lin Ping’er might take the bed, and she would lose claim to the most spacious main house.
Once in bed, she soon heard the news in the yard that Wan Caiyue was pregnant and needed to rest because of exhaustion. She immediately sneered, "Hmph, who knows if it’s true or false? Maybe she just doesn’t want to serve me, this old woman, and found an excuse. The doctor hasn’t even come yet, so how do they know she’s pregnant?"
Her voice was very loud, and people in the yard heard it all at once. They exchanged looks, each expressing their disgust with the old lady.
Bai Ruozhu ignored the old lady, also advising her parents not to bother about the old lady’s antics anymore. Any quick decisions wouldn’t be wise.
She went to check on Zhou Chuang’s pulse and discovered that his condition was quite good, his hormonal issues had improved significantly. She wrote a new prescription for Zhou Chuang to continue with his treatment.
Zhou Deshun’s wife held Bai Ruozhu’s hand, saying delightedly, "It’s a good thing we confided in you that day, otherwise Zhou Chuang’s condition would’ve been delayed. He really has improved a lot now, and we all feel that his memory has improved significantly."
"A little more conditioning and he will be completely fine. Uncle and Aunt Zhou, don’t worry too much," Bai Ruozhu replied with a smile. "There will be a Lantern Festival in town in a couple of days. Let my mother accompany you around then. It’s not often you come here, make sure you fully enjoy your visit."
Upon hearing this, Zhou Deshun’s wife hurriedly said, "We can’t continue to impose on you. We plan to leave first thing the day after tomorrow."
Zhou Deshun and his wife were rather considerate people, always reluctant to trouble others.
"Well, don’t rush. I have something to ask of you," Bai Ruozhu said, winking at Zhou Deshun’s wife.
Zhou Deshun’s wife immediately understood her implication. She glanced towards the main hall and lowered her voice, "Please think carefully about how to persuade her. If she refuses adamantly, there’s no way we can drag her out."
Bai Ruozhu nodded, "Don’t worry, she has to agree to return willingly, or else the villagers wouldn’t know how to put a spin on us."
"Ah, they’re already making up stories. Your grandmother is really unreasonable. It’s as if she takes delight in ruining the Bai family’s reputation. Plus, regarding the affair between Widow Zhou and Sanlang, Sanlang can forget about marrying a decent girl," Zhou Deshun’s wife sighed.
Bai Ruozhu sneered, "It’s better for people like Sanlang not to harm decent girls. He’s quite a good match for Widow Zhou."
Thinking of this, she hastily asked, "Widow Zhou must have quite a big belly by now, right? How many months pregnant is she?"
"She looks about five months along to me. For shame, still engaging in such disgraceful acts, it’s a sin." Zhou Deshun’s wife couldn’t help but spit.
Bai Ruozhu thought, there are actually people who enjoy it, but was Sanlang into that, or was he bedridden and seduced by Widow Zhou?
No matter what, that has nothing to do with her. But it’s time for Widow Zhou to leave the old mansion of the Bai Family.
For the next two days, the old grandma still lived in the main room, constantly nitpicking. Everyone avoided her, and the main room in the yard became a no-go zone.
On the third day, when Bai Ruozhu was planning to visit Jiang Yichun and bring Xiaosi back, she passed by the main room and suddenly smelled a foul stench. Her sharp sense of smell immediately made her frown. It was a smell of feces and urine.
Having ascertained the source, Bai Ruozhu almost vomited from nausea. She then remembered that in order to claim the main room, the old lady hadn’t left the room in two days, and had called Lin Ping’er to bring her meals.
She really wanted to rush in and severely scold the old lady. She could walk perfectly fine, why couldn’t she go to the bathroom properly? Luckily it was wintertime, in the summer it would be unbearable. You wouldn’t be able to get a whiff of fresh air in the yard.
Considering her health condition, Bai Ruozhu had to call her father, and told him, "Dad, go talk to Grandma. This yard belongs to the lord of the city. Even if we have rented it, we can’t damage their property. The house manager will occasionally come for inspection, does old grandma want to cause trouble with this foul smell?"
Bai Yihong’s face flushed with embarrassment as he heard his daughter’s words. He felt that what Grandma Bai did was too disgraceful and responded, "All right, I’ll go talk to your grandmother."
"Tell her she doesn’t need to guard it like a thief. We will not fight her for that room, she can live in it if she wants," replied Bai Ruozhu, irritated.
Once Bai Ruozhu and her mother left for the Wu Residence, Bai Yihong went to talk to old Mrs. Bai about the matter. The old woman was so embarrassed, but for the sake of saving face, she got angry again.
"You’re the one I raised from infancy, cleaning you up after you soiled yourself. I’ve been feeling discomfort these past few days. Is it that difficult for you to empty the chamber pot for me? Have I become so decrepit that you find me an embarrassment?"
Bai Yihong was inwardly fuming but replied out loud, "Mother, if you are bedridden due to sickness, I guarantee I will take care of you. But you are perfectly fine and healthy, yet you dirty the room with your lavatory habits. Even a child would be ashamed to do so, right?"
"And now you’re blaming me? If it wasn’t for your constant harassing, making me weak and dispirited, why would I not go out?" Old Mrs. Bai turned her eyes around and started making things up. "I can’t even catch my breath now, I have a terrible pain in my back. Go get me a doctor!"
Bai Yihong thought to himself, ’She’s yelling so loudly without a hitch in her breath, where does she get off claiming breathlessness?’ He sighed. Essentially, it wasn’t that Old Mrs. Bai didn’t want to use the chamber pot, she was just too ashamed and preferred to force him to empty it for her.
Normally you shouldn’t feel embarrassed about caring for your own mother, but the matter with Old Mrs. Bai was genuinely disgraceful. With no other choice, he shook his head in resignation, picked up the pot and emptied it out in the bathroom in the backyard, then washed it thoroughly.
The conversations between him and old Mrs. Bai in the house were heard by many. When everyone saw him carrying the chamber pot out, they all felt that Bai Yihong was really pitiful.
Bai Yihong felt like being quite pathetic doing this, but he couldn’t stand how filthy it was. If Old Mrs. Bai kept fussing about the doctor, who would refuse to enter the room, once they smelled the stench?
Of course, the main reason was that he didn’t want to foul the house lent to them by the Meng Family. Although airing out the room would definitely eliminate the odor eventually, it was still unkind to disregard the residence given its significance as the preferred study of the young master.
Meanwhile, Bai Ruozhu arrived at the Wu Residence, only to learn from the guard’s mouth that Jiang Yichun was not there. He had been sent for treatment elsewhere by Wu Yunfeng the day before.
Her beautiful eyebrows creased at the news. They had a deal, why would he go somewhere else?