Chapter 276: People Strive for Pride, Only for Face

The Du family had little roots in Beijing, and Du Zhen was merely a civil official who had recently started his career. Naturally, the house granted to them paled in comparison to the grand and magnificent residences of dukes and marquises—it consisted of a three-section courtyard with a smaller side courtyard, along with a neatly maintained garden. Since most of the servants were lifelong retainers brought from their hometown in eastern Zhejiang, even now that Du Zhen was in prison, the household remained orderly, with everyone busy with their own tasks and rarely discussing matters privately.

Beijing’s midsummer was notoriously hot and dry. The Du family, unlike the extremely wealthy, did not have ice cellars, so they could not place ice basins around the house to cool off. Fortunately, there were many bamboo plants planted around Qiu Shi’s main residence, providing some shade. Du Wan personally managed the accounts, calculating daily expenses and asking Sister Lin, who was in charge of grocery shopping, to bring some fruits and vegetables. This was something Qiu Shi did on her own; as for the others, they tried to cut costs wherever possible. Even so, Qiu Shi gradually realized this and called Du Wan over that afternoon.

“Wan, although there’s been no news of your father since he was imprisoned, even if he were here, we can’t rely on his salary. In such heat, don’t be too frugal and harm yourself—our family isn’t that desperate yet.”

Du Wan sat close to Qiu Shi before smiling and saying, “Mother, they say to increase income while cutting expenses. Isn’t this exactly what I’m doing by cutting expenses first? It’s easy to go from frugality to luxury, but hard to go back. Our family can’t compare to those extremely wealthy ones; we must carefully plan our monthly expenses. Regarding my father, I visited two officials from the Shen family. Though they said he’s safe, we still need to save money just in case. The servants here aren’t complaining, so if I did, it would only bring ridicule.”

“Your father was away for ten years, causing you a lot of hardship. Now this has put you through more fear and worry,” Qiu Shi said, unable to resist hugging Du Wan. Her nose stung, and she almost cried. “Previously, you helped the Meng family’s daughter get through the toughest times. Who would have thought it would be our turn so soon? And then, during the Yuan Festival, he was suddenly sent by the emperor to kill people in Qingzhou. Such a young boy having to bear such a heavy burden… Ah, what a tragedy!”

Du Wan let her mother hold her, unwilling to move away, and for a moment didn’t hear Qiu Shi’s sighs. At that time, only Shuangping, the maid serving Qiu Shi, was nearby. Seeing this, she also turned away to wipe her tears. As sorrow filled the room, Xiao Wu burst in noisily.

“Madam, miss, someone from the Zhang family has come to deliver peaches… Um, I’ll go ask them to wait a moment…” Seeing Xiao Wu trying to slip out craftily, Du Wan finally sat up straight and called out at her irritably, “They’ve come specially to deliver something—there’s no reason to make them wait. Go and invite them in quickly! Shuangping, go to the inner room and get a comb, a hairpin, and a bronze mirror!”

Qiu Shi was surprised to hear that it was the Zhang family who sent someone with gifts. After Shuangping brought the items, she hurriedly combed Du Wan’s messy hair and inserted a gold hairpin inlaid with jade into her daughter’s hair. Before Du Wan could object, she said with a smile, “Now that the old lady of the Zhang family is in charge, the people sent must be quite respectable. It’s fine for you to go around without jewelry at home, but it might seem shabby to others. Alright, let’s get ready to receive guests.”

As Qiu Shi had said, the ones who brought the peaches were two maids personally chosen by Lady Gu, both long-serving members of the Zhang family. Since it was the old lady’s order, they were cautious in every move once they entered Du Wan’s household and quietly observed the surroundings. Seeing that the servants were well-organized and handled matters efficiently, they were amazed—given that the head of the household’s fate was uncertain, it was remarkable that the household remained so orderly.

When they entered the main hall, the two maids saw a dignified woman sitting in the center and quickly stepped forward to bow. After standing up, the older of them, Lady Lin, noticed a young girl standing nearby. Though she was dressed in plain-colored silk clothes and a matching skirt, with only a gold hairpin faintly visible on her head and no other jewelry on her hands or neck, she exuded an air of elegance. Realizing this must be the young lady of the Du family, Lady Lin took a closer look before regaining her composure.

“These are the delicate and sweet Jiangnan peaches recently bestowed by the palace. The old lady ordered that a basket be sent over for Madam Du and Miss Du to try. She also said that since the third young master is not in Beijing, the family should take better care of things here. If there are any oversights, please forgive us, Madam Du and Miss Du.”

Hearing that it was a palace gift, Qiu Shi was slightly stunned but gradually understood the old lady of the Zhang family’s intentions and felt extremely pleased. After all, with her husband in prison, it was as if half of her world had collapsed. Though she tried to hide her concern, she was still uneasy. After all, the Zhang family was related to the Duke of Ying. Such a gesture was like a reassurance to her.

Du Zhen should be safe for now. Knowing this was enough.

She bowed slightly. Seeing that both daughters-in-law stepped aside, too shy to accept the bow, she ordered someone to bring over small stools for them to sit on, and they talked for quite a while. Noticing that the two often asked Du Wan questions, she grew lost in thought. When they got up to take their leave, she spoke again:
“Thank you so much, Madam, for caring so much. Logically, Wan and I are the younger ones; we should have been the ones to visit after returning to the capital. But we’ve been afraid of causing trouble by showing up unannounced, so we never made the trip. Today, you’ve even gone to the trouble of having them bring things over first—we truly feel guilty. The weather is too hot these days, often making one feel dizzy. A few days ago, I asked Wan to make some mint scents, which can refresh one in summer. Please take them back and give them to Madam.”
Lady Lin had just spoken a few words with Du Wan and found this young lady clever and generous, truly extraordinary. Seeing that Lady Qiu was also eloquent and kind, she felt even more certain that Lady Gu must have sent her here regarding Zhang Yue’s marriage, and she quickly agreed. Outside the room, a maid brought a box of mint scents, while another brought a finely embroidered pouch. Once back in the carriage, she and the other daughter-in-law opened the pouch and found two small silver tokens meant as gifts—they exchanged smiles at this sight.
Meanwhile, as the two daughters-in-law from the Zhang family returned home from the Du family, Lady Lu and her daughter-in-law Zhang Qing faced Meng Xian, who appeared lifeless like a clay or wooden statue. No matter what they said, Meng Xian showed no reaction. Thirsty and exhausted, Zhang Qing had no choice but to leave him to take care of Meng Min, who had just regained consciousness. Seeing her once bright and graceful daughter now emaciated and pitiful, she felt both heartache and sorrow, and immediately pulled her into her arms.
“Sister-in-law…”
Just as she saw Lady Wu bidding farewell with a smile, Meng Min’s vision went black and she fainted. Now that she had regained consciousness, she felt a sharp pain in her heart. Instinctively, she clung to Zhang Qing’s clothes, crying silently, refusing to let out a sound. It was only when Zhang Qing patted her shoulders firmly, signaling that it was okay to cry, that she gradually stopped holding back her tears.
At that moment, she didn’t even know whether she was crying for her mother or for herself!
As she cried uncontrollably, suddenly a quarrel was heard from outside. Though heartbroken, out of years of habit, she managed to sit up shakily, wiped her tears with a handkerchief, and forced herself to get up and go outside. Zhang Qing couldn’t persuade her otherwise and could only support her from the side. When they entered the main hall, they saw Meng Xian glaring angrily at Lady Lu.

“I, Meng Xian, thought I was so triumphant, but this mistake has brought me back to my true place! I thought I’d finally see the light of day, only to witness my wife taking her last breath right before my eyes! Sister, you’ve arrived just in time, but where were you all those times when we needed the help of the Baoding Marquis’s household? During my imprisonment, our family was first driven out of the Shandong military office, then my wife fell seriously ill, and countless people turned against us… Even those colleagues who used to be close to us became cowards. My own brother, the Baoding Marquis, only interceded once before disappearing—Is this what brotherhood means?”
Hearing her father speak so mercilessly, Meng Min was shocked. She stepped forward quickly and said, “Father, after Mother and I returned to the capital, Second Aunt often asked Eldest Sister to visit us. She helped our family a great deal over time…”
“Shut up!” Having endured so many setbacks, Meng Xian could no longer hide his emotions. He yelled at his daughter, “Your mother is dead, yet you still think about their kindness. Do you regret not being born into your Second Aunt’s womb so you could be her daughter, the Baoding Marquis’s heir? Your mother always treated you as her own daughter. It seems she wasted all those years caring for you for nothing!”
Facing such harsh criticism from her father, Meng Min was filled with shame, anger, and shock. If not for Zhang Qing supporting her arm, she wouldn’t have been able to stand. Although Lady Lu was angry, considering Meng Xian had just suffered the loss of his wife, she didn’t want to argue with him and took a deep breath.
“If Brother wants to blame me or Father for not doing enough, I don’t want to explain further. But if you want to blame Fourth Girl, that’s truly heartless! Over these months, she’s taken care of Eldest Sister while also managing the household alone. She’s shouldered all the burdens here. Because of your problems and Eldest Sister’s illness, she even worked sewing to earn money in Qingzhou and took her mother out at midnight to seek medical treatment. How many noble ladies could do such things? Now that Eldest Sister is dead, the one who’s most heartbroken isn’t you—it’s her! She waited for you to return when she passed away, yet she didn’t even get to see you get married in glory!”
Meng Xian had no legitimate daughter and had always placed great hopes on Meng Min, his eldest illegitimate daughter. He had just vented his anger on her in a fit of frustration. However, Lady Lu’s words left him in an awkward position, especially the last part about her marrying in glory, which touched a deep pain in his heart.

Just because he was born out of wedlock, he was denied hereditary titles; because the emperor protected her, his painstaking plans went up in smoke, and he lost all his previous gains as well; due to the indifference of his colleagues, friends, and relatives, upon his return he found his wife had passed away… and even his daughter’s marriage had to be postponed for three years because of the mourning period! Glaring fiercely at Lady Lü, he said word by word, “Thank you for your concern, sister-in-law. Even if my wife is in the afterlife, I will surely make her see Minmin get married splendidly—I’ll ensure she marries better than anyone else!”