Chapter 973 - 975: Guizhi’s Mother Comes to Make Trouble_1
"If Sanlang says anything, throw him out too!" Bai Ruozhu added.
"Yes, my lady, I’ve got it all down." Muyu’s face was alight with excitement, and then she stared eagerly at the two of them as if someone would take away her chance to throw them out if she didn’t keep her eyes on them.
Sanlang was somewhat afraid of Muyu and couldn’t help but take two steps back, but Zhou Qiuying, seeing that Muyu was quite good-looking and ogling her, immediately responded with a flirtatious smile and batted her eyelids.
Muyu immediately looked towards Bai Ruozhu and asked loudly, "My lady, does her eye problem need throwing out too? Don’t let it infect us."
Bai Ruozhu almost burst out laughing; she had definitely underestimated Muyu before, she was definitely a talent.
"Throw her out, be careful she isn’t diseased all over, don’t touch her," Bai Ruozhu said with a suppressed laugh.
Muyu turned around, picked up a stick of firewood from the yard, and in a swift movement stood beside Zhou Qiuying, poking her in the back of the neck with the firewood, and hoisted her up straight away.
"Let go of me! What are you doing hitting people for no reason? Is there no law anymore?" Zhou Qiuying remembered to toss her head and reach behind her neck, and finally got hold of the stick of firewood, but just as she did, Muyu pushed hard, and she was sent flying out like a kite with its string cut.
"You dare speak of the law? Flirting with every strange man you see— you’re lucky not to be dunked in a pig cage!" Muyu shouted, and the nearby onlookers, whether they’d been watching or not, all heard her clearly and burst into laughter; Zhou Qiuying’s bad reputation was well established, and no one in the village liked her, especially since she had seduced several of the village men, the women despised her intensely.
Having witnessed all this, Bai Ruozhu returned to her room with a smile to revive the Old Master, who woke up wanting to scream, and Bai Ruozhu immediately said, "Grandma, please don’t make a fuss, don’t scare Ruolan anymore. What’s there for an elder like you to argue about with a sick younger generation? If word got out, people would think our Bai Family doesn’t know manners."
Liu Shi wanted to go to the Capital City and visit the Bo Residence, shouldn’t she first learn some manners?
Sure enough, Liu Shi remained silent, unsure if she was scared by Bai Ruolan’s fright enough not to stir her further, or if she was worried it would affect her grand plan to travel to the Capital City, or maybe it was a bit of both.
Bai Ruozhu applied some medicine on her and then left the room, Bai Yihong went in to talk with her for a while.
Afterward, Bai Ruozhu and the others returned to their own yard, which was currently being used temporarily by Bai Yizhong’s family. Bai Yihong came over with a troubled face and hesitated a long time before saying, "Ruozhu, your grandma just begged me for a long time to speak to Manager Bo and take her with us to the Capital City to take a look."
"You didn’t agree, did you?" Bai Ruozhu asked, raising an eyebrow.
Bai Yihong said hurriedly, "No, no, I wouldn’t dare agree rashly, and besides, Manager Bo might not even listen to me. It’s just that when I left, your grandma was crying softly, which made me feel quite heavy-hearted."
The Old Master had gotten used to making a scene with loud crying, so the sudden soft weeping made one feel rather sorry for her, no wonder Bai Yihong’s heart softened.
Bai Ruozhu thought about the Old Master’s affair with old Zhou and wondered if the Old Master had no lingering feelings at all?
However, the Old Master was always selfish, never giving up anything for her own husband, let alone for a lover, right?
"Dad, later on tell Grandma that we can’t manage the Bo Family’s affairs, but we can take her with us to the Capital City," Bai Ruozhu said.
"Ah?" Bai Yihong was startled but then nodded thoughtfully, "Your grandpa went to the Capital City to see Old Master Bo, and it wouldn’t be good for your grandma to be left alone. If your second brother were to gain a reputation for being unfilial, that would be troublesome."
Nothing was more feared in official circles than such matters being seized upon and criticized, and what Bai Ruozhu was even more concerned about was if something were to happen to the old master or the old mistress. If her second brother had to observe mourning for three years, didn’t Mr. Xie just waste nine years because of the death of an elder in his family? Although he is now eligible for the Imperial Examination, much of his vigor has been worn away.
Bai Zehao and Bai Zepei happened to enter the room and overheard their conversation. Bai Zepei looked at Bai Ruozhu with some suspicion, feeling that, judging by Ruozhu’s reaction, there must be something else going on.
Zhou Deshun’s wife had just not followed them in when they entered, and even if she had, she wouldn’t have told Bai Zepei the conversation they just had.
Bai Ruozhu sorted out the gifts she had brought back to distribute to the familiar families in the village, naturally starting with her sister-in-law’s family.
Once they had packed up, they took the gifts to the Wan Family. Wan Caiyue’s mother had already been looking out for them for quite a while. She was especially pleased to see Bai Zehao; it was said that a mother-in-law grows fonder of her son-in-law with each passing look. It was just a pity that Wan Caiyue couldn’t come back; Madam Wan planned to return to Beiyu City with them this time to stay with Caiyue for a few days.
The two families were especially happy upon meeting. Wan Qilao welcomed Bai Yihong and the others into the room to talk, while Bai Ruozhu went to chat and liven up the place with Madam Wan and the others in the next room.
Little Dengdeng wasn’t shy at all; everyone who saw him liked him and wanted to hold him. But even though he smiled at everyone, he wouldn’t let people hold him just like that, clinging tightly to his mother’s neck and refusing to let go, which left those who wanted to hold him feeling both exasperated and affectionate.
"I’ve heard all about it, your grandmother went too far and scared that child Ruolan again," sighed Madam Wan.
Bai Ruozhu immediately knew that Zhou Deshun’s wife had told everyone about it, and she felt very grateful in her heart. Aunt Zhou was afraid that the old mansion would spread rumors and tarnish their reputation, so she hurriedly told the villagers the truth.
She briefly told Madam Wan about the Bo Family’s situation and then mentioned that her own family planned to go to the Capital City. Since Wan Caiyue had not fully recovered, they intended for her oldest brother to stay with her in Beiyu City for a while longer, until she was well enough to join them in the Capital City.
Upon hearing this, Madam Wan immediately nodded her head, "Then I’ll stay in Beiyu City for a while longer to look after Caiyue and the child. You all can go without worry."
Bai Ruozhu took her hand and said with a smile, "That would trouble you, auntie."
"Bai Ruozhu, come out here and explain yourself clearly!" A loud woman’s voice rang out from the entrance of the Wan Family yard. Bai Ruozhu frowned slightly; it was Guizhi’s mother’s voice.
"Why are you afraid to see me? You deceived me, stole away my Guizhi, and ruined her good marriage prospect. Come out here, you wretch, don’t think that with the protection of the Wan Family, I can’t do anything to you!" Guizhi’s mother continued to yell, straining her voice.
Bai Ruozhu handed Dengdeng to Madam Wan, asking her to hold him, "Auntie, please look after the child for me. I don’t want him to see us adults fighting."
Madam Wan nodded urgently, "It would be bad if the child gets scared. Go and see what’s going on, and don’t argue too much with that kind of person. If necessary, I’ll have someone from home drive her away."
Bai Ruozhu shook her head; she didn’t want the Wan Family to fall out with the Fang Family because of her.
Seeing Bai Ruozhu step out, Guizhi’s mother shouted even louder, "Finally decided to come out, did you? You stole my Guizhi and now won’t let her see me, saying she’s gone to be a maid in a grand household. Was it easy for me to raise my daughter until now? Do you not have a shred of decency in deceiving her away from us, huh?"