Chapter 217: Joyous Events at the Meng Mansion
Early morning.
Dawn light enshrouded everything.
The Meng Family woke up very early.
Meng Qingshe began exercising early in the morning.
He loved his Green Dragon broadsword the most; it was long and had copper rings on it, which jingled and clattered when he swung it.
It was very imposing.
He practiced with meticulous precision.
After finishing the whole set of martial arts, his entire upper garment was soaked through.
Yet, he was full of vigor.
After resting for a while, he went to change his clothes.
Madam Meng was actually exercising as well; her family was a long-standing lineage of Ministry of Justice officials.
She held an iron ball, spread her legs, and swung it between them.
The movement was a bit unrefined—requiring a half-squat while swinging the iron ball with both hands—but she persisted, feeling as though her waist had become stronger, her leg muscles better defined, and their marital life more harmonious ( ✿ ◡ ‿ ◡ ).
Perhaps it was because they had given up on having children, so she was fully enjoying herself.
Over the past few years, although she hadn’t seen her daughter-in-law, she had been in constant correspondence with her.
At first, upon seeing the letters, Madam Meng had felt a bit nervous.
Although her maiden family was also a family of officials, not all such families were the same, and she couldn’t stand that overly literary, pretentious feeling.
All that flowery language and archaic particles—it was enough to drive her crazy.
However, when she opened the letters, she found plain, conversational language, no obscure characters, and even accompanying illustrations; although the drawings were a bit indescribable, they were very much to Madam Meng’s liking.
Even before meeting her in person, she already liked this daughter-in-law based on the style of her letters; no wonder her son had fallen for her.
Her life must be very vibrant.
During holidays and various other times, gifts would be sent over from Jingzhou.
They weren’t particularly expensive—though occasionally there were valuable items—but most were practical.
She had even complained in a reply letter about feeling her age, with a sore waist and uncomfortable legs.
Her daughter-in-law had specifically sent her an iron ball with a handle, along with a strange-looking sketch, instructing her to follow the steps to exercise.
Surprisingly, it was actually effective.
Of course, Madam Meng kept it hidden and didn’t show it to others.
However, when she attended a gathering last time, someone asked why her waist had become so slender, looking at her with envy, jealousy, and resentment.
Ever since she got this daughter-in-law, she had frequently become the focus of gatherings.
Whether it was better-looking hair accessories, more unique clothing, winter hand warmers, or summer fans, everything was ingenious and helped her stand out.
Every time, she would smugly say, “It was a gift from my daughter-in-law.”
She heard rumors spreading outside that her daughter-in-law was even more bewitching than Daji.
She just laughed heartily upon hearing this and didn’t bother to explain; she had heard from her son that she was a round-faced young girl with a straightforward heart, so she had nothing to do with Daji anyway.
But hearing people outside say that the Meng Family just loved beauties and couldn’t take their eyes off a pretty face—
that was practically insulting her too, which made her quite happy.
Ha ha ha, she loved it when others scolded her, “Aren’t you just good-looking? Aren’t you just married well!”
Old Madam Meng was also in excellent health.
She had a hearty appetite.
Her lifestyle was a bit more rustic; she liked growing vegetables.
In summer, the season when gourds grew, the Meng Family’s diet suffered a bit.
They ate gourds every single meal.
Fortunately, they could still have some pickled vegetables to go with them, which were quite refreshing.
At breakfast, seeing gourds on the table again, Meng Qingshe’s face turned as green as the gourds.
Old Madam Meng looked at her son’s face and scolded, “You little brat, if you don’t want to eat, then don’t.”
Meng Qingshe:…
He missed the times when his son was around; at least with the younger generation present, he wouldn’t be the one being called a “little brat.”
As the family was eating, the letter deliverer arrived.
Nowadays, letters from Jingzhou were delivered immediately.
Meng Qingshe quickly wiped his mouth, put down his chopsticks, and went to read the letters.
He discovered that there were several letters from his son alone, all delivered together.
There were also letters specifically for the mother of his child.
Meng Qingshe felt a bit jealous; why was it just the mother of the child, didn’t the child’s grandmother get a special letter?
But since it was written by his daughter-in-law, he, as the father-in-law, felt too embarrassed to peek.
Seeing several letters, he quickly tore them open.
Meng Qingshe finished reading them quickly.
He laughed heartily.
The Meng Family had an heir.
His daughter-in-law was pregnant.
Madam Meng and Old Madam Meng were also reading the letter from their daughter-in-law, who said she felt nauseous whenever she ate anything.
Madam Meng was both excited and anxious.
Some people suffered a lot during pregnancy.
She wished she could go to Jingzhou right now to take care of her.
Then she thought about it and felt happy; she wouldn’t have to see her son for three years, and when she saw him again, perhaps she would already have a grandson or granddaughter.
The efficiency was truly high.
On this day, the Meng Family was full of joy; even the clattering and banging sounds seemed much more pleasant.
Madam Meng and Old Madam Meng went to rummage through the storeroom together, rushing to send things over, sending whatever could be used.
“My son has another child, how wonderful. We deserve to flourish.”
In the palace.
The Emperor was having breakfast.
There were few days when the Emperor personally held court; for the sake of his health, he began to prioritize sleep.
Servants were attending to him.
Eunuch Yan was actually eating with him as well.
The two had a close relationship—not the physical kind, but rather, they chatted and spoke very casually.
At the Emperor’s age, he relied on pills to indulge in women. At first, he was interested, but after taking them a few times and hearing from a master that it was bad for his health and depleted his vital essence, he gradually lost interest in women.
There were many fun things in the world, and he was someone who loved to play and knew how to have fun; if he didn’t play with the concubines in the harem, he could have other hobbies.
Eunuch Yan was his new dining companion and playmate.
Wen Xin was very pure; he never meddled in the complicated affairs of the court officials and was devoted to art, simply loving singing and dancing, which really suited the Emperor’s taste.
As the two were eating and chatting about yesterday’s tune, the Emperor felt that the last line was a bit stiff and that it should either be removed or changed.
Eunuch Yan thought about it seriously and said, “If Your Majesty feels it is stiff, then perhaps we should remove it. I also feel that adding an extra line was a bit like drawing a snake and adding feet; I didn’t think much when writing it, but it sounds a bit discordant when sung. Your Majesty is truly brilliant.”
The Emperor laughed heartily, accepting this routine flattery.
Just as they were eating, a young eunuch walked in with a pale face.
The Emperor hated this kind of situation the most.
He couldn’t even eat in peace.
But he also knew that if someone came to disturb him while he was eating, it must be something unsettling.
After all, many people who had casually disturbed his meals had been dragged out and executed.
He frowned slightly.
The little eunuch knelt trembling, and although he didn’t want to, he braced himself and said, “Your Majesty, The Former Crown Prince is gone.”
The Emperor actually had no reaction.
He let the little eunuch kneel there, trembling all over.
He continued to eat and drink his soup.
When he finished the last spoonful of soup, the spoon suddenly slipped from his hand and fell to the ground.
Tears welled up in the Emperor’s eyes.
“Ten-odd years ago, as I heard news of officials passing away one after another, I began to seek immortals and ask for the Tao, wanting to seek eternal life.
I refused to accept it; I wanted to live as long as the heavens. I am the ten-thousand-year ruler, the ten-thousand-thousand-year ruler.
Today, my son has also passed away.
The son I gave birth to is gone.”
Thank you for reading + listening 🙂 I hope you all liked my translations. If you enjoyed my work, please consider buying me a Ko-Fi 😉
