Chapter 37

Chapter 37

Miss Chen arrived early one morning. Three carriages pulled up outside the Cui Mansion, each horse draped in red silk. People set off firecrackers along the way, as if terrified that anyone might miss her arrival.

It was a far more ostentatious display than the one I had when I first came to the Cui Family.

When she knocked on the gates, I was still asleep. The space beside me in bed was empty; Cui Shao had already left for the morning court. Since the New Emperor had ascended the throne, there were many remnants of the old factions to be purged, and he was kept busy day and night.

By the time I woke up, the steward was already waiting in the main hall. He was trembling all over. When I asked what was wrong, he kowtowed, his head hitting the floor with a thud.

“There is a Miss Chen outside. She has a marriage certificate and claims she is the Master’s true wife-the matriarch of this household!”

I nodded and signaled for them to invite Miss Chen inside.

She had come a bit slower than I had expected. After I married Cui Shao, Master Chen had sought out another marriage for Miss Chen.

Her husband had been from the Zhang Family of the Capital, another prominent name among the Noble Families. They were once part of the Crown Prince’s faction, but during the power struggle, the Crown Prince had used them as a scapegoat. Now, Miss Chen was a widow. Carrying the Zhang Clan’s only son, she had come to Cui Shao’s door.

“Where is my husband?”

Miss Chen held the child, acting with an air of immense self-importance. She sat herself down directly in the seat of honor. The steward started to speak, but I held up a hand to stop him.

“Husband? Miss Chen, your husband is already dead.”

“You!”

Miss Chen slammed her hand on the table, frightening the child in her arms into tears.

She had to rock him to soothe him, though she clearly lacked patience.

“Just wait until my husband returns. I’ll show you then!”

The Chen Family was no longer what it used to be. Under the New Emperor’s reckoning, the Chen Family was far from innocent. Miss Chen was desperate to find a new pillar of support, and this was Master Chen’s intention as well-after all, who would dare touch the Chen Family if he were the father-in-law of a powerful minister?

As if already imagining her future glory as the matriarch of the Cui Mansion, Miss Chen spent the time complaining. Either the tea was too hot or it was too cold; she grumbled that the maids and servants were undisciplined. She declared that once she took charge, she would teach them a lesson so they would know how to be proper servants.

“Madam, we should just throw this Miss Chen out.”

The steward wiped away a cold sweat. He had been dealing with her all morning and was at his wit’s end, coming to the garden every so often to update me on Miss Chen’s latest antics.

I tossed a handful of fish food into the pond. “No. The marriage certificate in her hand is real. We must wait for my husband to return before making a decision.”

To the steward’s great relief, Cui Shao finally returned at noon.

Miss Chen was overjoyed. She shoved the child into a maid’s arms and rushed forward to meet him. “Husband, you’re back!”