Farm Girl's Manor
Chapter 1152 - 366: Resolution, Outbreak of Contradiction_3

Chapter 1152: Chapter 366: Resolution, Outbreak of Contradiction_3

Today’s incident, quite evidently, was Zhu Zhu’s fault, yet they sided with their pitiable niece, causing their daughter-in-law to feel wronged. They had even previously suggested Zhu Zhu should slap their son’s wife in the face—now, the very thought made them feel utterly embarrassed.

Mo Yan was very satisfied with the impact her words had on the Elderly Couple of the Shen Family. She picked up the teapot, poured herself a cup of tea, and gave them time to reflect properly.

After deep introspection, Elder Mr. Shen sincerely said to Mo Yan, "County Lord, today we allowed our daughter-in-law to be wronged, which was a failing of our Shen family. Rest assured, such a thing will not happen a second time."

Upon hearing this, the smile on Mo Yan’s face became much more genuine, but she gently shook her head and said, "Sister Lan is now a member of your Shen family. If she behaves well, it is merely her duty as a wife; if not, she should not be indulged. How you treat her is your family’s business, but I trust that the Elderly Couple have their own understanding."

This sounded pleasing to the ear, but in reality, it was an implied criticism of the Elderly Couple’s unfairness. They treated their niece as part of the Shen family, providing her with a dowry, but when their niece erred, they chose to protect and wrong their daughter-in-law. This clearly showed they did not see their daughter-in-law as truly one of their own.

Indeed, as soon as these words were spoken, the faces of the Elderly Couple burned even hotter, yet they found themselves unable to utter a single word in rebuttal.

Compared to Elder Mr. Shen, who was concerned for his deceased sister and shared a close blood connection with Lu Zhu, Madame Shen also dearly loved Lu Zhu, but it was far from the love she had for her own son.

Now, having heard Mo Yan’s words, it dawned on her: no matter how close her niece might be, she could not be dearer than her own son and daughter-in-law, who were wholeheartedly planning for their son’s future. Unconsciously, her inner scale slowly tipped in favor of her daughter-in-law.

After careful consideration, Madame Shen silently made a decision. She stood up, bowed deeply to Mo Yan, and said earnestly, "County Lord, if Jiji can catch the eye of the Grand Scholar, he will surely have to stay in Jing City for the next two years. He cannot be without someone to care for him, and now that he is married to Lanlan, it would be most appropriate for her to accompany him. In the future, as they both reside in Jing City, I hope the County Lord can watch over them from time to time."

"Are these truly words from the heart, Lady?" Mo Yan looked at Madame Shen in surprise. She hadn’t expected her to be so agreeable, especially as Madame Shen had taken the initiative to speak up before she could even suggest it.

You should know that in Great Chu, filial piety is revered. Sons unable to attend to their parents at home typically leave their wives behind to serve their in-laws in their place. If the daughter-in-law also went with him, it would be seen as unfilial, and these charges of impiety would often be borne by the daughter-in-law.

Madame Shen smiled warmly, speaking from the bottom of her heart, "The young couple has just married; they should not be separated. I also hope to hold a grandchild soon, so they cannot be living apart for extended periods."

Mo Yan, listening, silently applauded Madame Shen in her heart. Whether these words were sincere or not, the excuse she had found for the young couple was perfectly justifiable. The saying goes, ’Of all unfilial acts, having no children is the greatest.’ Using the prospect of offspring to silence others was the best way to preserve Sister Lan’s reputation.

Thinking this, Mo Yan’s previous dissatisfaction with Madame Shen slowly dissipated. She set aside her County Lord’s demeanor and said, "Countess Mother Shen can rest assured. Since Sister Lan is my sister, Brother Shen is my brother-in-law. With me here, they will not suffer any grievances in Jing City. The Elderly Couple can be at ease."

"I am greatly obliged to you, County Lord!" Madame Shen couldn’t contain her joy, secretly rejoicing that she had made the right choice.

Only Elder Mr. Shen was a bit confused, about to say something when he was suddenly pinched hard by Madame Shen at his waist, causing him to swallow all his words in pain.

Mo Yan lifted her teacup to hide the smile playing on her lips, pretending not to notice Elder Mr. Shen’s grimacing state. She had gone to such lengths, not to force the Shen family to severely punish that distasteful ’little white flower.’ If they really did that, Sister Lan would gain nothing, and that ’little white flower’ could again garner sympathy and recapture the care of the Elderly Couple by playing the victim.

Rather, it was better to let them remember Sister Lan’s virtues and feel a sense of guilt towards her. And now, Madame Shen had taken the initiative to suggest that Sister Lan accompany him, so the couple wouldn’t have to be apart for long, and they wouldn’t have to deal with that ’little white flower.’

Two years later, that ’little white flower’ would likely be married off, and Brother Shen might well become a Jin Shi. Whether he stayed in Jing City or was appointed elsewhere, he would no longer have any contact with that ’little white flower.’ It could not be better.

With everything satisfactorily resolved, Mo Yan immediately proposed to take her leave from the Elderly Couple of the Shen Family. Before leaving, she went to see Liu Tinglan and told her every word of Madame Shen’s decision without omission.

Liu Tinglan knew before her marriage that her husband would stay in Jing City to pursue his studies and had long been prepared to serve her in-laws at the Shen family home. She never expected such a big surprise to be waiting for her. After pressing for details of what had happened, she hugged Mo Yan and cried bitterly, claiming that she must have saved the Galaxy in her past life to have accumulated such tremendous merit and meet a dear friend like Mo Yan in this one.

The joke about saving the Galaxy was something that Mo Yan blurted out during a moment of excitement amidst their bantering, convincing Liu Tinglan that it was a phrase of her own creation.

After a reluctant farewell, Mo Yan set off for Jing City with the wedding gifts from the Shen family in tow. Unlike the slower pace on the journey here, there was no such concern on the return trip, and the party made it back to the Liu Family home in just four hours.

When facing Father Liu and Mother Liu, Mo Yan did not breathe a word of the incidents that had occurred at the Shen family, only mentioning that in a month’s time, their daughter would go to Jing City with her husband and reside there indefinitely.

Learning that it was Madame Shen who had suggested this idea, Father Liu and Mother Liu did not think too much of it, exulting in the good fortune of their daughter finding such a good mother-in-law.

The Liu family also had gifts prepared for the bridesmaids; their gifts, combined with those from the Shen family, filled half a carriage and consisted mostly of fabrics, sweets, and strips of meat. Mo Yan, urging Little Black on, made a trip to the Scholar Mansion and left all the edible gifts behind, then pulled out two baskets of vegetables from Space before heading towards Liu Yang Village by the North gate.

Having not been home for two days, Mo Yan was greeted by the enthusiastic welcomes of the Six Beasts before she even disembarked from the carriage. Mao Tuan instantly transformed into a life-sized, moving fur doll, persistently pouncing onto Mo Yan.

Mo Yan, who could hardly withstand its near thousand pounds of weight, narrowly escaped being suffocated by it.

"Alright, get up," Mo Yan said with a mix of laughter and tears, pushing away Mao Tuan as it stretched its neck to lick her face. Its tongue was covered with barbs, and to be licked by it would most likely lead to bleeding and disfigurement.

Watching Mao Tuan, sticky and reluctant to get up, Lixiu chuckled and said, "Your absence these past two days has decreased its appetite; it has only eaten two chickens up to now."

As if to confirm Lixiu’s words, Mao Tuan turned around to show Mo Yan its flattened belly, crying out pitifully.

Mo Yan felt extremely sorry for it, petting Mao Tuan’s head and coaxing, "What do you want to eat later, I’ll make it for you, be good!"

Upon hearing this, Mao Tuan immediately returned to full vigor and, in its excitement, let out a thunderous roar that terrified all the chickens and domestic animals in the nearby village, making their legs go weak and collapse to the ground.

The villagers, accustomed to such odd scenes, didn’t find them strange anymore.

Playing around in the yard for a while without seeing Xin Er, Mo Yan asked in bewilderment, "Where is Xin Er? Why haven’t I seen her?"

Usually, around this time, Xin Er would be under the grapevines in the courtyard doing her embroidery.

Lixiu and the others exchanged glances, unsure of how to answer, until Tang Xin finally stepped forward and said, "Last night I saw Xin Er secretly crying for a long time. She wouldn’t say why when I asked. At dinner, when the Count tried to serve her some food, she threw it onto the table. She seemed to be having a spat with the Count, and she hasn’t eaten all day today."

A spat?

Mo Yan frowned, reflecting on the fact that their peaceful family life of over a decade had never encountered such an issue. Had something happened yesterday that she was unaware of?