Four Seasons Brocade – CH 150

Chapter 150 ☆、

Ah Wu had not been sitting for long when Gu Xihui, heavily pregnant, walked in.

Ah Wu smiled at her, and Gu Xihui nodded slightly and curtsied to Ah Wu.

Ah Wu did not know what she had done to offend Gu Xihui. She wondered if Gu Xihui had found out about her affair with Tang Xiujin before their marriage. To be honest, Ah Wu felt completely innocent about it; there was nothing between her and Tang Xiujin. But Gu Xihui was, after all, Tang Xiujin’s wife, so it would not be surprising if she guessed something.

It was not that Ah Wu was narcissistic. She understood the principle of unrequited love and longing. Besides, when they suddenly met at Xu Bai Studio, Tang Xiujin’s expression had already betrayed his lingering feelings.

“How many months along are you?” Ah Wu’s smile remained unchanged.

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“A little over six months,” Gu Xihui said, puffing out her belly with the pride of impending motherhood.

Ah Wu, a new bride who should have been overwhelmed with shock and not yet pregnant, remained remarkably calm, much to the dismay of the onlookers. The conversation had begun, but Ah Wu found herself at a loss for words. She knew absolutely nothing about childbirth, only that morning sickness was common in the first three months. But Gu Xihui was already six months along, and Ah Wu did not know what to ask. She simply smiled and said, “They say a pointed belly means it’s a boy, and your belly looks quite pointed.”

These words naturally struck a chord with Gu Xihui. She desperately hoped for a son so she could have a foothold, even if Tang Xiujin still had feelings for someone else; at least she would have a son to rely on.

“Thank you for your kind words, Your Highness.” Gu Xihui touched her belly and smiled.

As more people arrived, Gu Xihui helped Princess Fuhui and Lady Guo greet the guests. Lady Guo was an acquaintance of Ah Wu from her previous life, the wife of her elder brother, Gu Tingrong. The couple remained the same in this life, which brought Ah Wu a little comfort.

Lady Guo noticed the Princess’s somewhat cold treatment of Ah Wu, the Fourth Prince’s consort, but did not hold it against her. Instead, she took extra care of Ah Wu, sitting beside her during the play and chatting with her occasionally.

Ah Wu was extremely grateful to Lady Guo, not because of her enthusiasm, but because she made up for the Princess’s shortcomings. To be honest, the Princess did not particularly like this eldest daughter-in-law, because Lady Guo often acted against her wishes, such as her current enthusiasm towards Ah Wu.

In Ah Wu’s eyes, although Princess Fuhui was her mother, she had to admit that the Princess was incredibly arrogant. She did not care much about others’ feelings, and her eventual downfall was partly due to her own actions. Of course, Ah Wu only understood this after years of wandering and rebirth, or rather, only became willing to understand it.

Lady Guo was undoubtedly helping the Princess make up for her lack of social skills.

To be honest, Ah Wu was very curious about this sister-in-law whom she had not known much in her previous life. Ah Wu was not the only one who had been treated coldly by the Princess; Lady Guo treated her differently. Ah Wu did not think it was her own personal charm that attracted Lady Guo, but she was very interested in finding out the reason behind Lady Guo’s behavior.

“Your Highness, do you not enjoy watching opera?” Lady Guo noticed that Ah Wu’s attention was not on the stage, nor was she as engrossed as the others. Although the opera troupe invited to the mansion today was not the Kunyu Troupe, it was the Hechun Troupe, which had risen to fame in recent years. The leading lady of the Hechun Troupe, She Tianxiu, delivered a breathtaking rendition of “Yang Guifei’s Drunkenness,” leaving the audience mesmerized and forgetting the taste of meat for three months.

Ah Wu nodded. “It’s too lively; I cannot stand it.” Ah Wu probably developed this habit from her past life, preferring only tranquility.

Lady Guo smiled, revealing a hint of empathy, which instantly increased Ah Wu’s fondness for her. “My father-in-law loves listening to music. He had some young girls bought from the Jiangnan region before the New Year. They have sweet, clear voices, and their music is excellent. Sometimes it’s quite pleasant to listen to them quietly.”

Ah Wu could not help but think of her father from her previous life, Duke Gu Shiyan of Wei. Ah Wu also loved listening to Jiangnan folk songs, and her father’s influence on her was considerable.

“I like them too,” Ah Wu readily agreed. They exchanged many opinions on this matter, both understanding each other’s goodwill. It would not be an exaggeration to say they had a very pleasant conversation and felt like they had known each other for a long time.

“If Your Highness likes them, next time our household sends someone to Jiangnan to buy young maids, I will have someone pick out a couple for you,” Lady Guo said with a smile. If she were to send them over now, people would say the Duke of Wei was currying favor with the Fourth Prince, and Lady Guo would be reprimanded by the Imperial Princess. But buying singing maids for the Prince Qi’s mansion next time would be just a small favor, making the currying-for-favor tactic much lighter, yet still a gesture of goodwill towards the Fourth Prince.

“Alright, just have someone come to my residence and let me know then. But you are not allowed to pay for it,” Ah Wu replied, exchanging a knowing smile.

Ah Wu was overjoyed. She had initially forgotten that although Old Master Gu was not as powerful as the Imperial Princess in managing affairs, their opinions were always at odds. The Imperial Princess favored the Fifth Prince, while Old Master Gu might not.

As a daughter grows up, she should avoid her father. Ah Wu was not close to Old Master Gu, and in her previous life, she had not been involved in politics. Now, thinking back, being able to help the Duke of Wei’s mansion was essentially helping the Imperial Princess. How foolish of her not to have thought of this earlier!

Lady Guo had solved Ah Wu’s problem, for which she was deeply grateful. “Sister Guo, when you have time, please come to our mansion often. We can chat together.”

Lady Guo nodded.

When Ah Wu returned to Prince Qi’s mansion, she was extremely happy. Befriending Lady Guo meant she had infiltrated the inner circle of the Duke of Wei’s mansion. Moreover, her path, which had clearly led to a dead end, had suddenly opened up a new vista. How could she not be happy?

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These past few days, Ah Wu had been visiting various mansions without end, but the one that gave her the biggest “surprise” was naturally the Duke of Anguo’s mansion.

While within the household, Ah Wu had questioned the Old Madam’s wisdom, but not too seriously. After all, at that time, the Old Madam was Ah Wu’s superior, and looking up to someone above her inevitably made her feel that the Old Madam’s thoughts were a bit unpredictable.

But now that Ah Wu had stepped outside the Duke of Anguo’s mansion, she truly understood that the decline of the Duke of Anguo’s mansion was not without reason; the root of the problem lay with the Old Madam. As for the Duke of Anguo, Ah Wu could only categorize him as a physically strong warrior; he seemed completely oblivious to the importance of the inner quarters to a family. He thought that as long as the man was hardworking outside, the family could stand firm. He did not understand that perhaps that could establish a family temporarily, but without a stable foundation, it would become a dilapidated house.

“Sixth girl, do not say I am being biased. I’ve prepared two servants for your fifth sister’s room, and I’ve prepared two for you, too. Take them with you when you go back later,” the Old Madam said this discreetly, not in front of the guests, but only calling Fourth Lady Rong, Fifth Lady Rong, and Ah Wu aside to speak.

Ah Wu glanced at Fifth Lady Rong’s expression; she was clearly not happy. Fifth Lady Rong was pregnant, and the Old Madam had given her two beautiful, delicate maids, which she suspected were not meant to serve her. However, on second thought, perhaps the Old Madam was doing it for her own good. After all, she could not serve the Sixth Prince at the moment, and it was best not to let the good stuff go to outsiders. The maids’ indentures were still with the Old Madam, who was Fifth Lady Rong’s grandmother.

As for the two maids the Old Madam gave to Ah Wu, their small, white hands were clearly not from a servant’s background, and their figures were too alluring, their faces too stunning—they posed no threat to Ah Wu whatsoever. Ah Wu sighed inwardly. Even if she were to send a beautiful concubine, she should at least cater to his tastes. Prince Qi clearly did not favor this type of alluring woman. Ah Wu herself had made that mistake before, but she quickly corrected herself. She had already selected two young, clean-looking women, as delicate as onions, from respectable backgrounds; she just had not had the chance to present them yet.

Although Ah Wu and the Old Madam shared the same plan, she was not about to let the Old Madam humiliate her again. That old hag—if you give her a chance, she’d take advantage of you.

What Ah Wu did not understand was why the Old Madam was still so stubborn, still seeing herself as a superior figure, even though she had clearly humiliated her in front of so many people last time.

Ah Wu, projecting her own feelings onto the Old Madam, naturally could not understand her thoughts. After Ah Wu publicly contradicted her last time, the Old Madam could hardly believe that her granddaughter, born of a concubine’s son, dared to say such things. She thought long and hard, concluding that Ah Wu must have been embarrassed in front of so many people and had spoken without thinking.

Therefore, the Old Madam, used to being domineering, decided to believe that if she spoke to Ah Wu in private, she would surely agree. Back then, when she ordered Ah Wu to kowtow and apologize to Fourth Sister, that girl did not dare utter a sound.

It was understandable that the Old Madam thought this way. She was used to her high position in the mansion, and outside, people generally did not bother with her. Besides, the First and Second Madams in the mansion depended on her for a living, so naturally, they would do whatever pleased her. When the Old Madam returned home furious with Ah Wu, the First and Second Madams first berated Ah Wu mercilessly, then recounted the Old Madam’s past courage and Ah Wu’s weakness. Then she advised, “Now that Ah Wu is a Prince’s consort, she naturally needs to consider her reputation. If she were thinking privately, she would not act this way.”

These words resonated with what the Old Madam wanted to believe, hence today’s scene. But no one expected the Old Madam to bring Fifth Lady Rong into the conversation.

Now the First Madam was displeased and somewhat embarrassed. However, these maids were all arranged by the Old Madam privately through her eldest son, Rong Jisheng. Firstly, she felt that men’s tastes might be more aligned, and secondly, the Fifth Lady was, after all, the First Madam’s own daughter, and her mother might not be willing.

But the Old Madam had her own reasons. She believed that once Fifth Lady Rong was married, she was like water spilled from a cup—a daughter belonging to another family, and Fifth Lady Rong might not necessarily prioritize her own family. The Old Madam preferred to control everything herself, and sending beautiful maids was a trick she was used to.

Ah Wu thought that it was worrying that the Old Madam had not learned her lesson in sending Concubine Wang to her father. But Ah Wu did not know that the Old Madam might have successfully used these beautiful maids at some point in her life, but Ah Wu was unaware of it. Therefore, the Old Madam simply considered Concubine Wang a troublemaker who had made a mistake in the past.

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Of course, the Old Madam’s sending maids to the Fourth and Sixth Princes was not simply to annoy her granddaughters. She believed she was planning for the future of the Duke of Anguo’s mansion, and no other dukedom in the world had a more promising future, nor was anyone more capable than her to openly send two spies to each Prince’s Mansion. The Old Madam certainly did not include the Seventh Prince, that fool, in her calculations.

First, let’s talk about the Fifth Prince. He was Empress Tian’s son, and Empress Tian was the Old Madam’s sister-in-law’s niece. Therefore, the Fifth Prince’s ascension would be very beneficial to the Duke of Anguo’s mansion. Next, the Sixth Prince. Rong Wan was the Sixth Prince’s concubine, so the Sixth Prince’s ascension would also be good for the Duke of Anguo’s mansion. If things ultimately went badly and the Fourth Prince ascended the throne, Ah Wu, as her granddaughter, even if she did not support the Duke of Anguo’s mansion, would certainly not dare to undermine it, unless she wanted to abandon her reputation for filial piety.

So, the Old Madam decided to play the role of Jiang Taigong fishing, but lacking any reliable “reassurance,” she thought it would be good to keep track of the Prince’s movements. Thus, she acquired these six beautiful maids.

Unfortunately, the notoriously lecherous Fifth Prince did not come today. In fact, he had never even visited the Duke of Anguo’s residence before; only the Old Madam, assuming her granddaughters were well-married, felt obligated to give him face. Although the Old Madam was somewhat eccentric, she knew that directly offering beauties to the Fifth Prince’s wife would be futile, so she thought of Fourth Lady Rong.

She decided that having Fourth Lady Rong’s husband present two beauties to the Fifth Prince would be a good idea. This way, Fourth Lady Rong’s husband would win the Fifth Prince’s favor, and everyone would be happy.

Fourth Lady Rong, of course, readily agreed; after all, it was not like she was giving beauties to her husband.

Fifth Lady Rong neither agreed nor disagreed, but it was clear she would not embarrass the Old Madam in person. As for what would happen to the two maids after they returned home, that remained to be seen.

Ah Wu hated the Old Madam intensely but had no intention of giving her any face. She smiled faintly, already thinking of ways to deal with the Old Madam in the future, only hoping that the Old Madam would live to be a hundred.