Chapter 788: 329 Mingzhu’s Married Life_2
Mingzhu’s face bore a cold smile. If Maternal Aunt Liu was merely preparing a gift for her, she might have given Maternal Aunt Liu some face, but the gift from Maternal Aunt Liu clearly outshone that of Lady Niu. A concubine actually trying to outshine the Lady of the house in front of the new bride was simply preposterous.
Mingzhu smiled faintly, "Thank you, Maternal Aunt." After saying this, she signaled Zhi Qin with a look, and Zhi Qin immediately stepped forward to take the Red Gold Flat Hairpin from Maternal Aunt Liu’s hands.
Seeing this, the smile could no longer be maintained on Maternal Aunt Liu’s face. Maternal Aunt Liu had been in the Inner Courtyard for more than ten years, yet she had never lost face like she did today.
Niu Yanghui stood in front of the young man and said, "Mingzhu, this is Yangye."
Mingzhu, observing Niu Yanghui’s indifferent demeanor, knew that the relationship between the two brothers was not good. She smiled and took out a Multicolored Purse, a gift prepared for Yangye.
Yangye did not accept Mingzhu’s gift himself but had a young servant by his side take the purse from Mingzhu’s hands.
Mingzhu was not foolish; Yangye’s actions were clearly in defense of Maternal Aunt Liu. Although Mingzhu knew this, she still looked at Niu Yanghui with surprise, feigning ignorance of the situation.
Niu Yanghui did not explain but instead took Mingzhu by the hand and led her to one side.
Lord Niu was somewhat annoyed by his younger son’s behavior, but this was not the occasion to reprimand his son. He coughed and declared, "Let’s have the meal!"
As the new bride, it was Mingzhu’s role to arrange the serving of the food on her first day entering the door. It was the tradition, and naturally, Mingzhu had no objections. However, when she saw Maternal Aunt Liu also sitting at the table to dine, her expression soured. Was this a mistake? They were actually expecting her to serve a Maternal Aunt.
Niu Yanghui, seeing the displeasure on Mingzhu’s face, knew she was uncomfortable but it was not the time to lash out. He said, "Our family does not have so many rules, just sit down and eat."
Before Lord Niu could say anything, Lady Niu, with a smile, said, "Yes, our house doesn’t have so many rules. Let the maid serve the food."
Mingzhu sat down, but she did not reach for her chopsticks.
Lady Niu asked softly, "Mingzhu, what’s wrong? Don’t these dishes suit your taste?"
Mingzhu did not speak. It wasn’t that the dishes did not suit her taste, but with Maternal Aunt Liu present, she simply couldn’t bring herself to eat.
Yangye sneered, "Dad, your sister-in-law really puts on airs."
Lord Niu’s expression grew darker.
Mingzhu was not one to tolerate disrespect, having just endured Yangye’s slight; she was not prepared to hold back any longer: "In the Marquis’ household for eighteen years, I have never dined at the same table as a Maternal Aunt." It wasn’t that a Maternal Aunt couldn’t sit at the table, but this needed the approval of the Lady of the house, and Maternal Aunt Liu’s actions had completely disregarded Lady Niu.
Upon hearing this, Maternal Aunt Liu immediately stood up and said, "This lowly concubine has overstepped." As she spoke, her eyes turned red.
Yangye’s face turned livid, "Maternal Aunt gave birth to me, just for this reason alone, she has the right to sit down and dine." Looking at this woman, she surely wasn’t nice, daring to disrespect his Maternal Aunt to her face.
Mingzhu had no interest in arguing with Yangye; she just looked towards Elder Niu. If Elder Niu dared say this was the Niu family’s rule, Mingzhu wouldn’t be polite to him either.
Lord Niu’s heart burned with annoyance, he had always known that Madam Luo was trouble, causing so much commotion as soon as she entered the door. Instantly, Lord Niu’s face darkened, "You are the new bride, why so many words?"
When Old Master Niu’s expression grew cold, his presence was overwhelming, and usually, no ordinary person could withstand it. Unfortunately, Mingzhu was an exception. As soon as she heard what Old Master Niu said, she straightened her back and responded, "Father-in-law, I certainly don’t want to go out and socialize only to be ridiculed for sitting on the same level as Maternal Auntie." If her husband stood by her side, Mingzhu was not afraid of offending her father-in-law.
Old Master Niu glared at Niu Yanghui and said coldly, "Aren’t you going to control your wife?"
Niu Yanghui put down his chopsticks and said indifferently," I don’t think Mingzhu is wrong!" Madam Liu had dominated the backyard for over a decade, and it was time to put an end to it.
Old Master Niu’s face turned red with anger, glaring at Lady Niu, "What a son you have borne."
Lady Niu kept her head down, remaining silent.
Old Master Niu instantly threw down his chopsticks. He was so angry he lost his appetite. After throwing his chopsticks, he walked out.
Mingzhu didn’t care about Old Master Niu’s attitude. Seeing Lady Niu somewhat uneasy, Niu Yanghui said, "Mother, you don’t like this dish either. I’ll have the kitchen make a new one and send it to your courtyard." Niu Yanghui was already accustomed to Old Master Niu’s temper, which only showed at home. If this were to spread outside, it would be Old Master Niu who would lose face first.
Maternal Aunt Liu watched Mingzhu’s retreating back, her nails digging into her flesh. She knew Madam Luo was tough, but she hadn’t expected her to strike her first blow as soon as she entered the household.
The kitchen was efficient in its work, quickly delivering a new breakfast.
Mingzhu accompanied Niu Yanghui to attend to Lady Niu during breakfast, then returned to her own courtyard. Once in her room, Mingzhu finally asked, "Husband, will what I did today cause Old Master to vent his anger on you?" Mingzhu was not afraid of Old Master Niu; her only fear was that it would negatively affect Niu Yanghui.
Niu Yanghui smiled and said, "No, I didn’t marry you just so you could be mistreated. But you need to be prepared. After returning home for the third day following the wedding, you’ll need to take over the Internal Affairs of Niu Mansion. Men aren’t supposed to interfere with the affairs of the Inner Courtyard, and so for these years, I’ve basically stayed away from the Niu Mansion. But now it’s different; my wife is the Eldest Young Madam of the Niu Family, and she can legitimately manage the household."
Mingzhu had managed everything within the Marquis’ household efficiently, so taking over the Inner Courtyard of Niu Mansion would surely not be difficult for her. But she still worried, "Will Maternal Aunt Liu willingly hand over her authority?"
Niu Yanghui chuckled lightly, "I’ll make her hand it over." Previously, his mother being in the prayer hall and no one in charge of the backyard affairs, it was unavoidable to let Maternal Aunt Liu manage it all. But now with his wife entering the family, how could a concubine possibly be in charge of the house? Unless his father was not afraid of an Imperial Censor’s censure, he definitely wouldn’t object outright.
Niu Yanghui looked at the "Picture of Guanyin for Blessing with Children" hanging over the bed and asked with a smile, "Did you hang this up last night?"
Mingzhu’s face flushed, hanging a Picture of Guanyin for Blessing with Children right after getting married seemed a bit too eager.
Niu Yanghui burst into laughter, "Who painted this? It’s really well done." Getting married naturally meant spreading branches and leaves. However, Niu Yanghui hadn’t expected to hang the Picture of Guanyin for Blessing with Children on their wedding night.
Mingzhu said somewhat embarrassingly, "Yueyao painted this. For this, Yueyao even fasted for a month and chanted the ’Fertility Sutra’ a thousand times in front of this painting. She instructed me to hang it on the wedding night as it would be more effective, so I hung it up last night." Although it was somewhat embarrassing, Yueyao’s intention still deeply moved her.
Niu Yanghui embraced Mingzhu, whispering into her ear, "Then let’s work hard to try for a healthy baby boy soon."
Mingzhu buried herself in Niu Yanghui’s arms, too embarrassed to show her face.