Wei Changying asked, “Does the Liu Family get angry about it?”

“Can’t they be furious?” said Song Zaishui, ironically smiling. “Liu Ruowo, as an only son of Liu Hai, is 15 years old this year, but he is famous for his talent, intelligence and resolution in the family. Also, he is likely to threat the position of Liu Xixun. Perhaps it had something to do with Liu Hai that Liu Xixun had only become a Standby Guard, the last rank of Three Capital Guards, after he grew up. After all, child as Liu Ruoye then was, Liu Hai had high hopes for him. Unexpectedly, the Zhong Family was scolded by Liu Hai with terrifying words that this common woman with poor background was even not qualified to be a concubine of Liu Ruowo, and how dare she want to be his first wife? What’s more, it was a servant who had proposed the marriage on behalf of his master. It must be the first shame of Liu Hai like this.”

Wei Changying asked, “What happened later?”

“Liu Hai neither took Zhong Jie seriously nor feared Lady Zhong,” said Song Zaishui faintly. “However, Lady Zhong was promoted by the Empress Gu. To save the face of the Empress, Liu Hai revealed that first daughter and second daughter were still unmarried, so he didn’t consider youngest son’s marriage, despite later he expelled the servant. Later, he told this to the Empress, so she would ask Lady Zhong to teach Zhong Jie. This matter would have been solved, because the Zhong Family is not great enough. Everyone took it for fun, and it was unnecessary to seriously argue with a common person.”

Referring to this, Song Zaishui coldly said, “However, after a few days of that, Zhong Li committed suicide by hanging herself from a beam.”

Wei Changying asked with a frown, “Is it because of Liu Ruoye? How did she do it? Zhong Li didn’t walk out of her house as this shameful thing had happened to her. If a normal lady from a great family encountered this, she could send a letter full of insult. It was a pity that Zhong Jie and Zhong Li were almost illiterate.”

“Liu Ruoye gets along well with Princess Qingxin. At the end of last year, enticed by Liu Ruoye, Princess Qingxin invited Zhong Li to come to her birthday party,” said Song Zaishui. “Zhong Jie was a peasant in Qingzhou and Zhong Li from a poor family, so could they be sophisticated? Laughed at by Liu Ruoye with a few words, Zhong Li ran away before the end of the party, blushing. At that night, her sister-in-law found that she had been in the room. However, after she opened the door, Zhong Li had been dead.”

Wei Changying disliked the Zhong Family supporting the Empress Gu, but she was shocked to hear that Zhong Li had committed suicide because of Liu Ruoye’s deliberate insult. So, she said, “Zhong Li was still young because she merely started picking up a husband. Normally, a young girl likes a cool boy. Liu Ruowo is so handsome and intelligent that it is natural that Zhong Li is attracted by him. The Zhong Family suddenly became rich from a poor family, so they failed to understand the rules of great families. Also, Zhong Jie was too naive so that the result would be ridiculous. The Empress asked Lady Zhong to teach Zhong Jie, so Zhong Jie was to blame for his reckless action. However, Liu Ruoye was rather malicious because her insulted words had caused Zhong Li’s death.”

Waving her round silk fan, Song Zaishui said, “Zhong Li has been made fun of by people after that. So, it was hard for her to choose a husband. However, Liu Ruoye still humiliated her. She is two years older than Zhong Li. Last year, it was said that Liu Ruoye had coveted your husband. She didn’t care about what others had suffered.”

“That’s to say,” Wei Changying thoughtfully said, “Lady Zhong is on the side of the Empress. Now, Luo Ruoyu, Liu Ruoye’s sister, is going to be the Crown Princess. Generally, the Liu Family should save the Empress’s face, and Liu Hai did it. Liu Ruoyu treated badly Lady Zhong’s younger sister, so did she want to bring troubles to Liu Ruoyu?”

Song Zaishui was stunned, but said immediately, “Fortunately, the marriage between the Crown Prince and I is canceled. I don’t care about whom he would marry. Now, has the Crown Princess been selected again?”

“When I came to the Shen Family, my first sister-in-law...” Wei Changying told Song Zaishui how Mrs. Liu had sought the doctor for Liu Ruoyu. After hearing this, Song Zaishui frowned and said, “How poor the tenth miss of the Liu Family was! Although my birth mother passed away early, I was beloved by my grandmother, father and brothers. On the contrary, she is being bullied by her stepmother. How malicious Mrs. Zhang is! It is no wonder that Liu Ruoye is as unkind as her mother.”

“If you are right, Mrs. Zhang and her daughter will torture Liu Ruoyu to death as quickly as possible and should be blamed for Zhong Li’s death. Perhaps Liu Ruoyu would be hated before she gets married to the Crown Prince.”

Wei Changying said, “I don’t think that Mrs. Zhang and her daughter would torture Liu Ruoyu to death so quickly. Liu Ruoyu is weak and her mother passed away at an earlier age. When Mrs. Zhang came to the Liu Family, Liu Ruoyu couldn’t speak clearly yet. If Mrs. Zhang were to kill her, it would be many means. Liu Hai is ruthless, so he loves Mrs. Zhang and her daughter, but doesn’t care about his first wife’s daughter. Therefore, in my view, Mrs. Zhang and her daughter plan to make full use of Liu Ruoyu.”

“In a great family, who can explain these matters clearly?” said Song Zaishui in a thoughtful way. “According to you, how long could Liu Ruoyu survive in the Eastern Palace after her marriage? She had better not have the same experience as her cousin.”

Wei Changying was astounded, so Song Zaishui explained, “The first Crown Princess in this dynasty was also a daughter from the Liu Family, the one who had been a widow later.”

“The Liu Family had suffered from the position of the Crown Princess, so it is not surprised that Liu Ruoyu has been chosen this time. As a lineal daughter of the first wife, she lost her birth mother earlier. Not all stepmothers are so unkind and not afraid of being discussed by people,” said Wei Changying. “However, Empress Gu is so sophisticated that the Liu Family might be delighted about it in vain.”

Song Zaishui said with a sneer, “There are so many daughters from the Liu Family that Liu Hai doesn’t care about them. What’s more, other branches are willing to gain from it without any effort. Even if the Liu Family suffered, would it be possible that all members of the Liu Family in the eastern Hu were to blame?”

“Let’s stop talking about the Liu Family. On the birthday of Princess Linchuan, if Honored Consort asks me about my uncles, how should I answer her?” Wei Changying asked. “What you said might not be right absolutely. I have never met Honored Consort before, and she and I are not familiar, either. As for the marriage, she should talk it with my mother-in-law. How could I decide to whom my uncles should get married?”

Song Zaishui said, “Perhaps cousins from the Wei Family are also candidates. Changfeng is impossible to be selected. What about Gao Chuan and Gao Ya?”

“Cousin, you are not outsider. Honestly, Gao Chuan and Gao Ya are not bad, but they are not sophisticated enough,” said Wei Changying with a little hesitation.

Song Zaishui said, “If I were the Consort Deng, it would be nice that they were not clever but kind. Wanwan, as an orphan, lives with her brother. Honored Consort is in the palace, so she cannot deal with everything. Moreover, she is hampered by the Empress. Deng Zongqi is only a Standby Guard, and he will not be quickly promoted without any help of his family if he quits Three Capital Guards and doesn’t get along with his family. In other words, without any powerful support, Wanwan has to bear her husband if her husband is too sophisticated. So, a kind and honest man is proper. Although their life might not be rich, a decent one is enough. Is it not a good thing that this couple has a harmonious life?”

“You are right,” said Wei Changying. “Honored Consort still competes with the Empress. If she really considers for her niece, Gao Chuan is the best candidate for her husband. Because she is in Fengzhou, far from the Capital City, Honored Consort couldn’t dispatch people to kill the married woman if she were defeated in the future. It is a good result for Wanwan.”

Song Zaishui said, “Exactly. Honored Consort doesn’t have a son. Sixteenth prince and seventh prince are still young, less than ten years old. If she defeated the Empress and the Crown Princess now, everything would still be unexpected in the future.”

Wei Changying inquired, “If the Honored Consort had this plan, how could I reply to her?”

“Are you serious?” said Song Zaishui, beaming and covering her mouth with one hand. “You cannot decide your uncles’ marriage, and can you decide your cousin’s marriage? Even if Grandaunt loves you, can you come to Fengzhou to persuade her on purpose after marriage? If Honored Consort has a selected candidate, she will only ask you to deliver the message.”

Wei Changying felt blushed and snorted, “Now, you are bored, so I ask you about it. Why did you laugh at me?”

Song Zaishui said with a smile, “You came here to laugh at me. I have to do so.” She added, “Did you say that your mother-in-sister had allowed you to visit your relatives and friends recently?”

“Yes,” said Wei Changying. “It is just a few days. Today, I have to return home after dinner. It seems that I couldn’t come here again tomorrow. Perhaps let’s meet at another place, I....”

“Hang on for a while,” interrupted Song Zaishui. “Do you know that your first aunt bought a house in the Capital City recently? Now she has lived there with her two daughters.”

Wei Changying was astonished to say, “Last time I heard that the first uncle works in the capital, but how do they reside in the Capital City? I didn’t get the news, so I thought that they all stayed in the capital. Moreover, without the permission of my mother-in-law, I’m supposed not to leave this city.”

“In spite of one-year age gap, your two cousins have already planned to get married. Your first aunt and her husband don’t have a son, so members of the Family plotted to persuade them to adopt their own son in order to inherit the fortune.” Wei Shengxian married the son of the Song Family, so she had been a member of Song Family. However, Song Zaishui directly discussed those greedy relatives with a sneer, “Last time, after receiving your letter, I told my father about it and then he warned those relatives. Therefore, they stopped their unkind behavior. Unexpectedly, a few days later, they resumed to urge your first aunt to have her daughters marry. Your first aunt was not only disturbed by them but also worried that she didn’t know the men introduced by the match because her husband was not in the Capital City. Hence, she finally moved back to the Capital City with her daughters in order to inquire about the men.”

Wei Changying never saw Wei Shengxian since growing up. Old Madam Song was neither concerned about this common daughter nor talked about her with her granddaughter. Therefore, Wei Changying was stranger to Wei Shengxian than Wei Zhengyin. However, she felt a little angry about the behavior that members of the family had bullied her aunt. “They are so unkind, so why should she adopt their grandchildren?”

In the view of Song Zaishui, if Old Madam Song didn’t put all her attention to her lineal grandchildren but cared more about her common daughter, Wei Shengxian, as a daughter of Wei Huan, how would she marry the son from the collateral branch of Song Family and even would be looked down upon by her relatives? Old Madam Song loved Wei Changying so much that Song Zaishui would not say something bad about her, so she only said, “Even if they are sensible enough to adapt others’ sons, they would not do so because of these unreasonable relatives.”

“First Aunt has moved to the Capital City, so I should visit her. Do you know where does she live in?” Wei Changying thoughtfully asked.

Song Zaishui said, “I merely got it from my sister-in-law. They seemed to live nearby her mother. So, is it the reason why she knows it? You had better wait for a while after returning home. They will perhaps tell it to you with a letter. After all, you are relatives, so it is not reasonable that they would not tell you after moving to a new house. Even if your first aunt didn’t tell it to you, your second uncle would do it.”

“You are right,” said Wei Changying, nodding her head. After two cousins chatted with each other for a while, Song Zaishui invited Wei Changying to have dinner with her in Jianjia Court. Meanwhile, Mrs. Huo didn’t get up because of miscarriage, but she still asked Mrs. Qiao, her wet nurse, to offer several meals to them as an apology.

In the afternoon, after coming back, Song Zaijiang greeted his cousin, Wei Changying. She thought that this second cousin looked exactly like her first cousin, which proved that they were brothers. However, the difference between them was that Song Zaijiang was gentler and kinder than Song Zaitian.

After a few words of greeting with Song Zaijiang, Wei Changying was asked by Song Zaishui to have a talk in Jianjia Court. In the evening, ordered by Song Zaishui, servants prepared the dinner earlier than before. After dinner, she saw off Wei Changying to the second gate to get on the carriage.

Before departing, two parrots and an aquarium of fish were also brought to the carriage.