Now that Lian Shouxin’s grape wine has been sold, it’s time for Lian Shouyi and Lady He to make their move. 𝙛𝓻𝒆𝓮𝒘𝙚𝙗𝒏𝙤𝙫𝓮𝒍.𝓬𝒐𝙢

Lian Shouyi and Lady He were both excited and anxious, inevitably blaming and accusing each other. One accused the other of having wheels on their feet, and the other retorted that the first had nails on their backside. They both wished they hadn’t stepped out; they could have been counting the silver from the wine sale by then.

After asking Lady Zhou, they learned that Lian Shouxin was treating the buyer to a meal in town, so Lian Shouyi and Lady He hurried to catch up, leaving He Laoliu at home to await news.

Just as they stepped out, they ran into Old Master Lian and Lian Shouxin returning from town.

Lian Shouyi inwardly slapped his thigh, realizing that the wine buyer had likely already left. He intended to pin the responsibility for the wine sale on Lian Shouxin and wasn’t going to let him off the hook so easily.

"Fourth brother, your second brother has something to say to you. Don’t play dumb with me; I know all about your drinking capacity," said Lian Shouyi as he approached and reached out to grasp Lian Shouxin.

"Fourth brother, fourth brother," He Laoliu also followed, his face wearing a flattering smile.

Lian Manman watched from the side, thinking, with the way these two were behaving, were they planning to forcefully abduct a common man?

"Mother!" Lian Manman shouted toward the West Wing Room, "Father is drunk, come help him."

Before Lian Manman’s words had even settled, Lady Zhang appeared.

"My dear wife, I have drunk too much," Lian Shouxin also hastily chimed in.

Lady Zhang, seeing the situation, understood a bit of what was going on. When it comes to being virtuous, Lady Zhang had it in spades. But no moral code for women would demand that a wife watch her husband get carried off against his will by other men. Lady Zhang quickly stepped forward and took hold of one of Lian Shouxin’s arms.

"How could you drink so much after I told you to drink less?" Lady Zhang feigned a complaint, then looked up and smiled at Lian Shouyi and He Laoliu, "Fourth brother, Laoliu, this is far enough. Let me help my husband into the house."

Lian Shouyi had no choice but to let go sheepishly, resentfully watching as Lady Zhang helped Lian Shouxin into the West Wing Room. He Laoliu, in a flurry, stomped his foot and complained under his breath that Lian Shouyi shouldn’t have let go.

Lian Shouyi snorted. Had he not let go, he would have had to confront Lady Zhang. Lady Zhou could bully Lady Zhang, and Lian Xiuxiu, being the eldest daughter of Old Master Lian and Lady Zhou, pampered by Lady Zhang and nearly having caused her death with no repercussions, was a different matter. Since he was a man, Lady Zhang’s second uncle, he knew that if he dared to touch Lady Zhang, not only Lian Shouxin and the children of the Fourth Household, but even the men of the Li Family would not go easy on him.

...

Once the family entered the house, Lian Manman immediately shut the door behind them, and inside the room, Lian Shouxin no longer needed to feign drunkenness.

"He Laoliu’s wines haven’t found a buyer yet; second brother probably wants us to help him make a connection and sell the wine to the Shen Family," Lian Shouxin said, sitting on the kang and letting out a sigh of relief.

"That would be unwise," said Lady Zhang without hesitation. "Even if we don’t mind him secretly learning our winemaking method, we have no idea of the quality of his wine. Not to mention, his household is too unsanitary, and if his wine ends up making people sick, what then?"

"Xiao Qi, check and see if second uncle is still at our door, will you?" Lian Manman asked Xiao Qi.

Xiao Qi ran out, peeked through the crack of the door, and then hurried back in.

"No one’s outside," Xiao Qi reported.

Lian Manman wondered whether Lian Shouyi and He Laoliu had returned to the East Wing Room or had gone to the Upper Room.

"Manman, where did this food container come from?" Lady Zhang asked.

Lian Manman suddenly remembered that they had brought back two food boxes.

"Mother, we borrowed the food boxes from the restaurant," Lian Manman explained, "we ordered the finest banquet, and so many dishes were untouched. It seemed such a waste, so I had them packed up to bring home. Mother, you and my sister haven’t had dinner yet, have you?"

Manman is always so thoughtful," Lady Zhang said happily as she opened the two food boxes.

"I cooked dinner with mother, but we didn’t eat, waiting for you to come back. You’ve been away for so long, only just returning now," Lian Zhizhi said, wrapping her arms around Lian Manman’s shoulder.

"Sister, you should pick a couple of dishes to heat up quickly, so you and mother can eat," Lian Manman replied with a smile.

Lian Zhizhi did just that, swiftly reheating the food and setting up a dining area on the heated brick bed where she and Lady Zhang ate together.

"We can’t just let Second Uncle get away with this, he’ll probably come looking for us later," Wu Lang commented.

"Let him come, we’ve made up our mind, what can he do?" Lian Manman responded.

"The only thing I’m worried about is if they go to your grandfather. If he talks to us and we refuse to give him face..." Lady Zhang started to say but did not finish, glancing at Lian Shouxin instead.

If Lian Shouyi went to Old Master Lian, then they would have to clear up the matter of the He Family stealing the grape wine recipe first. Lian Shouyi probably didn’t want to do that, but if there were no other options, he might still go to Old Master Lian.

Lian Shouxin was also somewhat troubled.

"Well then, we need to talk things over with my father first," Lian Manman hastily suggested, "They’ve acted unscrupulously. We’re not refusing to help them, but we can’t guarantee their grape wine business. Losing a bit of silver is a minor issue, but a good reputation is of great importance."

"That’s the way it should be," Lian Shouxin and Lady Zhang both nodded in agreement. Old Master Lian valued reputation highly, and realizing this, he was unlikely to support Lian Shouyi.

Lady Zhang then put down her rice bowl, intending to go talk to Lian Shouxin in the Upper Room.

"Mother, let Father handle this. There’s no need for you to go," Lian Manman said. The same words, when spoken by a son and daughter-in-law carried different weight. It would be more effective if only Lian Shouxin went, as this would be seen as a son considering the reputation of the Lian Family. If the daughter-in-law were to go, it might be misconstrued as her being petty or there being discord among the sisters-in-law.

"Mother, there’s another important matter that requires your attention," Lian Manman added with a smile.

...*********......

Ruoyan plunged into her writing, striving for a second update, asking for pink encouragement.

...********......

Ruoyan’s completed book recommendation: "The Brocade Screen Chronicles" a light house fight farmland tale, set within the intrigues of a large clan’s household.

Book number: 1771214

Below is a direct link, click to access quickly.

...(To be continued. If you like this work, please feel welcome to vote, recommend tickets or monthly tickets at Qidian.com. Your support is my biggest motivation.)