Volume 1 Chapter 119: Protecting the Girl

  Also knowing that the old lady was telling the truth, Zhen Shining nodded, “……I'll listen to you, Mother.” She took the old lady's pulse again, “……Mother has recovered better than I imagined.” Although she had left after the surgery and had imperial physicians taking care of her, the old lady had made a surprisingly good recovery, which delighted Zhen Shining greatly.

  She unexpectedly succeeded in her first major surgery in ancient times!

  "...all because of Ah You's superb medical skills." Recalling the past year, where she had been tormented to death, Old Lady chuckled, "Even Wen Taiyi praised Ah You's medicinal recipes, and begged Ruo'er to help recommend her, just so she could meet you in person and discuss medical skills..." Remembering that she had once asked Xiao Ruo to set her up with Wen Taiyi, Old Lady's voice abruptly stopped.

  "...When I was young and ill, I would ask him to take a look, and even teased him half to death. Now, I'm too afraid to see him." Zhen Shi Niang smiled and jokingly revealed the reason she didn't want to see Wen Tai Yi.

  "So that's how it is." The old lady suddenly realized, "I was wondering, you dare to take a man's pulse, but why are you so shy and hesitant in front of the imperial physician?"

  Just then, the little maid came in and replied, "The master has returned."

  Zhen Shiniang was about to get up and withdraw when Old Lady Xiao grasped her arm. "You sit right here!"

  Xiao Lao's wife was resolute, and Zhen Shi'niang had no choice but to straighten her back.

  Look, Zhen Shiniang was sitting intimately beside her mother, with the Xiao family's heirloom golden green cat-eye bracelet still on her wrist. Xiao Ye was shocked and stood in the middle of the room, even forgetting to pay his respects.

  "I've just recognized my daughter." Very satisfied with her son's shock, the old lady smiled and pulled Zhen Shiniang to introduce, "From now on, she is Yu'er's own sister."

  Zhen Shiniang paid her respects to Xiao Yu, "Elder Brother."

  "Brother..." wanted to call out to her siblings, but was afraid that their mother still didn't know her identity. Xiao Yu's voice hesitated for a moment, "...Miss Jian has arrived." Her tone was stiff.

  "What else can we call her but Xiao Gu Niang?" Old Lady Xiao said with a smile, "From now on, just call her Little Sister!"

  Xiao Yu looked embarrassed, and Zhen Shi Niang quickly came to his rescue. "Big brother, just call me little sister," she said, subtly informing him that Old Lady Xiao already knew her true identity.

  Xiao Yu let out a sigh of relief and sat down after greeting the old lady, "When did you arrive, brother and sister? Did General know?"

  "Th...". Zhen Shi'niang hesitated for a moment.

  "It was driven out!" The old lady said indignantly, telling the story of how she and her servant had sought lodging on the night of the Lantern Festival, "......Autumn Chrysanthemum knocked on the door for nearly an hour. In the middle of the night, people were frozen outside the door and not allowed to enter." The more she spoke, the angrier she became, pointing at Zhen Shiniang, "......Look, a good child was almost killed by exhaustion, as soon as she entered the house, she fainted. Dr. Wen diagnosed her pulse twice before she woke up."

  It's not that exaggerated.

  Zhen Shining's face suddenly flushed red, she called out in a low voice, "Mother..."

  The old lady finally shut up.

  "It's too much!" Xiao Yu slammed his fist on the table, and the veins on the back of his hand jumped up and down.

  Xiao Yu was usually elegant, but for the first time he lost his temper in front of a servant. Xi Chun and Hua Xi were so frightened that they held their breaths. Qiu Ju swiftly ran to the side of the bed and shielded Zhen Shi Niang, her beautiful eyes staring fiercely at Xiao Yu.

  Xun heard that Xie's daughter said she had to kowtow, and he reluctantly agreed to let Shen Zhongbo take Jian Wujianwen into the General's mansion two years later. In Qiuju's small heart, her impression of this Xiao Daren suddenly turned upside down.

  He also found himself losing his composure, and Xiao Yu's voice slowed down as he looked up at Zhen Shi Niang. "This is absolutely not General Shen's intention, sister-in-law mustn't misunderstand him." He explained on behalf of Shen Zhongjie, "After you left that night, we stayed in the palace all along, General Shen just returned to the general's mansion with me a moment ago." Suddenly standing up, "I'll go find him right now and have him come over personally to take sister-in-law back home."

  How can this be?

  She was immediately chased out, and even if eight sedan chairs came to carry her back, she wouldn't go!

  There is a simple text, she originally didn't plan to return to Jiangjun Fu, now it's just right, after this lesson, in the future if there's anything going on in the palace, she can properly and reasonably ask Shen Zhongjie not to stay at Jiangjun Fu!

  Seeing Xiao Yu's appearance of being stabbed in the back by his own brother, with a red face he was about to go find Shen Zhongge, but didn't dare to speak out and stop him, so Zhen Shiniang pulled on Mrs. Xiao's sleeve.

  "...Don't bother asking him!" The old lady shouted sternly.

  Xiao Yu stopped in his tracks as he heard his mother's tone change, "Mother..."

  "My daughter, she's a Shen family member, just because they say so, they can drive her away, and just because they want to receive her, they can take her back!" The old lady's voice was loud and clear. "Today I'm in charge, Ah You will live in Wutong Town from now on, even if the Shen family comes with eight sedan chairs, she won't return to General Manor!"

  General Jin's mansion is a hundred times more harmful than beneficial to Zhen Shiniang, and now that she has acknowledged her as her daughter, Old Lady Xiao is standing on Zhen Shiniang's side one hundred percent.

  This is other people's private affairs, how can mother intervene casually!

  "Mother..." Xiao Yu called out softly, his tone carrying a hint of reproach.

  "Besides..." The old lady ignored him, "I heard you're going to take back the contracts of both Ah Ou and Tai Hospital?"

  Xiao Yu's face turned red, "Younger sister is always General's wife, noble identity, no..."

  Before she could finish, Old Lady Xiao slammed her hand on the table. "I still have twenty or so shops under my name, I can open them, but she can't?" Her gaze was stern as she looked at Xiao Yu. "Yu'er is saying that my status is lowly!"

  How can this be the same thing?!

  In her heart, she argued that seeing the old lady had really moved her liver fire. Xiao Yu patted and knelt down, "The son didn't mean it."

  Seeing the situation was unfavorable, Xi Chun quietly retreated with her maid.

  Zhen Shining also felt somewhat unnatural.

  Having a different status, she was just talking about her, but she didn't want to leave with the little maid.

  About to make an excuse, Zhen Shiniang thought for a moment, all living beings are equal, everyone has dignity, she also knelt down to him that day, why can't he kneel in front of her today.

  A man like him with such a chauvinistic attitude, looking down on women from the bottom of his heart, deserves to be taught a lesson.

  Thinking of this, Zhen Shiniang straightened her body.

  "...Then are you planning on taking back Ayou's contract?" asked Old Lady Xiao, her voice softening.

  "My son doesn't dare."

  Mrs. Xiao nodded in satisfaction, "......You can get up now."

  Xiao Yu's eyes fell on Zhen Shining, and his face turned red to the roots of his ears.

  Zhen Shiniang just pretended not to see his awkward state and personally served him and Old Lady a cup of tea.

  Madam Xiao took a sip and looked up at Xiao Ye, "Today Ah You is also here, so I'll make it clear to you. I've acknowledged her as my daughter. From now on, she's your own sister. Whether I'm around or not, you mustn't bully her."

  "Don't worry, mom, I won't."

  "You'd better not just talk!" Old Lady Xiao snorted, "If I see you helping that good-for-nothing bully Ah You, don't say I won't recognize you as my son!"

  Xiao Yu secretly felt distressed in his heart.

  As the elder brother, I clearly know that I shouldn't let Zhen Shiniang, a woman, privately practice medicine and buy medicine on her own. Now not only did I fail to advise against it, but also helped her with practicing medicine and buying medicine, which is aiding evil. Who knows how Shen Zhongjie will react if he finds out?

  He secretly glanced at Zhen Shiniang, puzzled in his heart, wondering what method she had used. He hadn't been home for just two days, how did she manage to turn his own mother into hers?

  From mother's tone, it seems that even speaking loudly to her in the future is not allowed.

  Feeling uneasy in his heart, seeing his mother staring at him, he hastily replied, "I don't dare, Mother."

  Xiao Lao's wife finally smiled and nodded in relief, "...... Ah You's body is not good. She has a quiet temperament and doesn't like to argue with others, if you, her elder brother, don't help support her, she will be bullied to death by that stubborn girl."

  Xiao Lao's wife called Shen Zhongjie with a mouthful of "Second Master", and Zhen Shiniang couldn't help but secretly laugh.

  Xiao Yu cried out in pain one after another.

  Shen Zhongge found out that he had actually followed his mother's orders to abandon his brotherly righteousness and secretly helped Zhen Shiniang practice medicine and buy medicine, helping her conceal the fact that she was a son. He must be flayed alive.

  Shen Zhong's bell is a real jinx!

  How could he have met such a clever and cunning sister, who turned the tables on him in an instant and left him completely defeated.

  A single misstep can lead to eternal regret.

  Zhen Shi Niang had acknowledged her as a godmother and also secured the contract for the medicine factory, so she was in an extremely good mood.

  Went to the kitchen personally to make tomato beef balls and crucian carp radish soup for Old Lady Xiao, all of which are dishes that seniors love to eat. After eating, Old Lady Xiao was so impressed that she couldn't help but exclaim, "General Shen is really blind...such a good daughter-in-law isn't wanted, yet he dotes on that little concubine instead."

  His eyes were originally on top of his head.

  Zhen Shiniang echoed silently in her heart, but dared not say it out loud, only smiling as she served dishes to the old lady.

  After dinner, the old lady dismissed everyone in the house and left only Zhen Shiniang and Xiao Ye to talk.

  In one night, three senior officials died, and he didn't return for two days and two nights. Xiao Yu also knew that his mother would have a lot of questions, but surprisingly, she didn't drive away Zhen Shi Niang, which made him feel both resentful and astonished.

  Mother is not a person who doesn't know what's important or not, yet she left Zhen Shiniang here to listen to these secrets, it means she treats her as her own daughter from the bottom of her heart.

  Zhen Shining is still too young after all, and some things she knows may not be grasped well in terms of degree!

  Xiao Yu was thinking of a way to get rid of Zhen Shining, when the old lady asked about the situation in the palace. Seeing that his mother's mind was already made up, Xiao Yu didn't say anything more and began to answer her questions one by one.

  Zhen Shining quietly listened on one side.

  At first, Xiao Yu didn't mind, but Xie Yun's frown deepened.

  From the old men in the government to the historians and attendants, as long as he mentioned someone, the old lady would ask about that person's family situation until he almost recited their genealogy.

  Before her mother got sick, she often socialized within the family and was more familiar with these complex relationships than anyone else. Even if someone in the family had a new grandson or took on a concubine, they might not know about it, but her mother would. And yet, what's the point of asking about all this?

  In her mind, Xie Yun was surprised at how her mother was acting today. She raised her head to see that Zhen Shi Niang was holding a cup of rose tea and listening intently. Suddenly, she realized, "General Shen is cold and taciturn, and he doesn't like her, so it's impossible for him to say these things to her. It's Mother who fears that she won't understand the intricacies of these relationships, and in the future, if she's summoned again and accidentally offends someone in the palace, she'll die without even knowing how."

  Thinking of Cao Xiang's last words, Zhen Shiniang had more and more opportunities to appear at the palace banquet, and she indeed needed to understand these things. Xiao Ye simply followed his mother's intention and told Zhen Shiniang in detail.

  Xiao Yu understood her intention and stopped asking one question after another. Old Lady Xiao nodded in relief.