“All in all, it was Sheng Weirao"s fault!!! Jiuniang is the most sensible and educated girl. If it had not been for that little b.i.t.c.h"s rudeness, Jiuniang would not have had conflicts with her! Weide would not have sent her back midway! How would those gangsters have the opportunities to harm her?” Sheng Lanxin stared at Madam Bai resentfully from the moment she was called over by Old Madam Ming.

Shortly after everyone agreed to accept the hush money offered by Mrs. Feng, she got angry all of a sudden, “Now that little b*tch came back, but Jiuniang disappeared! I would say isn"t she ashamed of herself?! Why didn"t she get killed on the sea???”

The sudden emotional outbreak stunned Old Madam Ming. Madam Bai, shocked for a while, struck back immediately!

“You call my daughter b*tch? Yours is a b*tch! If she had obeyed rules instead of using her father"s birthday as an excuse to fawn on the rich, Weirao would not have quarreled with her!”

What she said hit the score spot for Sheng Lanxin. Madam Bai sneered, “The reason why those two kids had such sufferings was that you failed to educate your daughter! My daughter returned, but yours went missing. The divine did justice!!!”

She continued disdainfully, “You have stayed here for quite a few days and uttered no such words. Now you are giving everyone a hard time. Isn"t it obvious you are doing this for money?! I"ll tell you what, no way! Your daughter was responsible for all this, and she is probably dead by now. What"s the use of money for you? As her aunt, I am willing to burn joss paper for her during the New Year Festival and other holidays! My daughter came back in bad shape. When she is not given enough money for her dowry, then how is she supposed to lead a decent life in the future?!”

Madam Bai turned to Old Madam Ming and said the last sentence while sobbing!

Sheng Lanxin had a good relationship with her Eldest Brother"s wife, Madam Feng, and her original sister-in-law, Mrs. Ao, but she always looked down upon Madam Bai. Scolded by Madam Bai like that, she was so mad that her eyes turned red!

She threw herself at Madam Bai and said hysterically, “You hussy! You hussy! You brazenly fawned on Sheng family, drove Mrs. Ao away, and stole the t.i.tle of the Second Madam of Sheng Family from her. As the old saying goes, a crooked stick will have a crooked shadow. Your daughter is the same as you! How dare you smear Jiuniang! Everything you said is about money. Do you think I would ignore morality at the sight of money like you?! If Jiuniang were to come back, I would rather take none!!!”

Not revealing any sign of weakness, Madam Bai berated, “If not for your capable Eldest Brother, who do you think you are? Anyways, I am your sister-in-law. Judging by the way you treat me, who would believe that you raised a daughter with good manners?!”

The thought of splitting money prompted her to say this, “Besides, your daughter is still young. She hasn"t returned for now, but we might hear from her in a year or two or in a decade. If you truly love her instead of the money, then don"t take a tael from the 100 thousand taels. If you took any, it would mean you want your daughter dead and missing so that you can make a fortune out of this!”

“No wonder your daughter didn"t kill herself after going through such sufferings at a young age!” Madam Bai found a strong argument from Sheng Lanxin"s momentary lapse of judgment. She was so mad that she could literally tear Madam Bai apart!

Amid the fighting, she screamed at her, “Perhaps you taught her that she could make a fortune with her ravaged body and lost chast.i.ty?! Just as I expected, people from poor families like you are shameless!!!”

The two were bickering fiercely and getting more and more violent. For a moment, hairpins, pearls, and jade were thrown everywhere. People got hurt and bled!

Because they didn"t invite outsiders to join the meeting, Old Madam Ming"s close servant Zhang was not on the spot. She was anxiously and kept screaming, “Stop fighting!” “We are a family!” “Why don"t you sit down and talk it through?” “It"s not like Sheng Family is poor. How can you sever family ties for just 100 thousand taels?” She went on and on, but both her daughter and daughter-in-law ignored her. Under the urgent circ.u.mstance, she went up and tried to separate them. Madam Bai and Sheng Lanxin were fighting furiously. Seeing Old Madam Ming try to stop them, both instinctively pushed her at the same time!

Old Madam Ming was getting up in years. Lately tormented by concerns and guilt, she was already in bad shape. Such a push from people at the prime of their lives came as a ma.s.sive blow to her!

After being pushed, she staggered back and tripped over a tea table. She vainly waved her arms in the air and toppled over with the sound of “bang”. Old Madam Ming was motionless on the ground!

The two heard the sound and took a look subconsciously. They saw Old Madam Ming lying on her back under the soft bed. Her face was pale, and her blood permeated through the mazarine carpet with patterns of twined begonia branches in golden outlines.

They were shocked and stopped the fight, running out and crying for help!

… When Senior Master Sheng came to the scene, he slapped both Sheng Lanxin and Madam Bai in the face in public! For the first time in his life, he hit the female family members.

Earlier, they were bickering and fighting nonstop in front of Old Madam Ming. Their cheeks swelled up after they were beaten by Senior Master, but they did not dare to utter a word. Instead, both knelt down and asked for forgiveness.

Nevertheless, Senior Master Sheng looked at them repulsively, which made them feel even more guilty and scared. Then, he said, “If anything were to happen to your mother, you two would be banished from Sheng family forever! I mean it!!!”

He flicked his sleeves and left. Madam Bai and Sheng Lanxin could not help but tremble. For Madam Bai, Sheng Lansi longed to divorce her. However, Old Madam Ming took pity on her, ordering servant Zhang to ask Sheng Weiqiao to plead with Sheng Lanci. That was why she was not divorced. Now she had upset Senior Master Sheng, the most prestigious person in Sheng Family. If Senior Master were to banish her, she would have to leave!

However, she did not have a birth family like Mrs. Ao"s. Her family always curried favor with Sheng Family. If she were to be divorced, Bai Family would not accept her!

If that were to happen, where would she go?!

As for Sheng Lanxin, she was Shen Ji"s first wife. Shen Family had many family members, and each branch was trying to elbow the other out. The reason why she could be the first wife despite so many branches was that she had Senior Master Sheng as her father and Sheng Lanci as her Eldest Brother!

If she were to have the reputation of accidentally hurting her birth mother and being banished by her birth father, one could only imagine how this would degrade her status in Shen Family!

In that case, her other two children, Shen Silang and Shen Shisanlang, would be implicated in trouble as well!

Both Madam Bai and Sheng Lanxin were terrified, and they no longer had the energy to curse each other. Instead, they prayed nonstop, hoping that Old Madam Ming could wake up soon and that she would be safe and sound!

Fortunately, Old Madam Ming was in good health. Although this fall stunned her, it did not harm her. After the doctor came, he gave her acupuncture treatment and prescribed some medicine. She woke up late in the afternoon.

Madam Xiao, who was taking care of her at her bedside, was surprised to see her wake up. She gave her sugar water to moisten her throat and said to her, “Mother, how do you feel now? Do you have a headache? Are you feeling dizzy?”

“How are Lanxin and Bai doing?” Old Madam Ming had a bad headache. She felt dizzy from time to time, but she was in no mood to share her grievances and pains with Madam Xiao. She asked huskily, “Are you the only person here? Where are the others?”

“Father hurried over as soon as he heard the news. He slapped elder sister and sister-in-law in the face.” Madam Xiao noticed a deep frown on her mother-in-law"s face and knew that she was not feeling well. She stuffed her handkerchief into her bracelet and knelt down near the bed, rubbing the acupuncture points on her mother-in-law"s forehead. She said softly, “They knelt outside the door for two hours. Later, Eldest Brother sent them away since it was dark already.”

She was afraid that Old Madam Ming might misunderstand Sheng Lanci. So, she explained, “Eldest Brother was mad at them for treating you that way. It"s just that he was worried if people were to know this, nieces and nephews would be implicated. Thus, he sent everyone away. The children didn"t come here because they haven"t heard of this yet. Eldest Brother said they were too young to understand this and worried they would spill it to outsiders.”

Sheng Lanxin was the daughter of Old Madam Ming, and Madam Bai was the wife of Old Madam Ming"s son. No matter how rude they acted, if their reputation were to be notoriously unfilial, it would, in the end, hurt the reputation of Old Madam Ming and this family.

Sheng Lanci, as the stepson of Old Madam, decided to reconcile and avoid trouble instead of making a big scene to show his filial piety to his stepmother. He was clearly doing this for the sake of Old Madam Ming and her daughter, as well as her daughter-in-law.

Madam Xiao understood his motives, so did Old Madam Ming. Old Madam did not resent Sheng Lanci, but she fell into melancholy and said sorrowfully, “Do you think I am stupid? Is that the reason why all of my children combined are not as smart as the son of Sister Ai?”

Madam Xiao replied instantly, “Why would you think so? We are the ones acting unfilial, and how could it be your fault?”

Madam Xiao sympathized with her mother-in-law. People kept saying that Old Madam Ming was blessed despite her husband"s grumpy temper and his favoritism shown to his eldest branch. He was against whoring, gambling, and concubinage. He still remained healthy at an old age and maintained a close brotherly relationship with Old Marquis. Although Sheng Lanci was the stepson of Old Madam Ming and the birth child of the eldest branch, he always showed his kindness and respect to his stepmother. He was shrewd, capable, thoughtful, and filial.

Old Madam Ming was born in a squire family. Her marriage helped her get into a family of higher social position.

However, for people living in this world, who would not expect a little more in their lives?

Old Madam Ming watched how her own son and daughter failed to match Sheng Lanci, and they were heavily reliant on their Eldest Brother"s help now as well as in the future. How could she not feel upset?

Not only Old Madam Ming but Madam Xiao herself would occasionally get envious of her eldest sister-in-law, Madam Feng.

But that was the reality, besides accepting it, what else could they possibly expect?

Besides, Sheng Lanci was kind and generous to them. They led a wealthy and comfortable life. If they were to sabotage it, it would only inflict humiliation on them and help the eldest branch rise to fame as the filial and generous wife.

“How is Weirao doing?” Old Madam Ming sensed that her daughter-in-law was careful about her wording. It dampened her spirits, and she changed the subject, “Did today"s drama with Madam Bai affect the girl?”

“Rest a.s.sured, eldest sister-in-law went to the second branch, instructing them not to say a word about today"s event to Weirao.” Madam Xiao added, “Second Brother was also called on by Eldest Brother in private. After he came back to the second branch, he ordered the kitchen to cook a few dishes for Weirao!”

After she said that, both of them went silent for a while: the eldest branch again!

“I feel a bit hungry. Please go to the kitchen and fetch me some pulpy food!” Old Madam Ming let out a sign and decided to end the conversation, “One more cup of sugar water!”

This family chaos finally died away under the tacit agreement among the elders. Sheng Weiqiao"s generation was kept from it. A few days later, Old Madam Ming recovered. She called on Sheng Lanxin and Madam Bai behind Senior Master Sheng"s back, giving them the 100 thousand taels offered by Xuanyu Family.

Old Madam Ming loved them equally, and therefore she thought the money should be divided equally, 50 thousand taels for each.

Both of them were dissatisfied with the decision, but they dared not to fight since Senior Master Sheng reprimanded them earlier. They accepted the money reluctantly.

The family of Xuanyu E and the pirate Han were executed, and Sheng Lanxin got the hush money. Although she did not know the whereabouts of Shen Jiuniang, there was nothing she could find about her. She did not want to stay in Sheng Family anymore and packed her stuff to go back to Shen Family. Before she left, she went to the eldest branch to visit Sheng Lanci and his wife. Sheng Lanxin pleaded with them to find out the whereabouts of Shen Jiuniang, “I know we don"t have many clues about her, but I believe there is always a way out. Perhaps she is out there somewhere.”

The couple responded with a solemn promise.

A few days after Sheng Lanxin left, Old Madam Zhan sent someone to Sheng Family and called Madam Feng back to Feng Family.

Madam Feng did not know the purpose of the trip until she arrived at Feng Family. It was that Mrs. Feng wanted to arrange her only son Xuanyu She"s marriage.

Old Madam Zhan intended to arrange a marriage for her grandson and granddaughter, intermarriage!