Chapter 152: There's good news

then nodded. This wasn't impossible. On her wedding day, the groom had run away, and she'd been ridiculed by the entire city. To experience such humiliation was unbearable. Luckily, they'd found anot...This time, Mrs. Chen didn't confront Mrs. Zhang. Instead, she offered comfort and said, "Sister-in-law, don't worry too much. Xiu Yuan's daughter-in-law has always been in good health, so there shouldn't be any problems. I heard that Madam Jiang fell ill, and Xiu Yuan's daughter-in-law went back to visit Madam Jiang. Perhaps she was too busy taking care of Madam Jiang these days and overexerted herself, which led to her fainting."

Zhang only felt that Chen was being insincere, her steps faltered, she glanced at Chen, then continued on her way. In the end, she held back and didn't continue arguing with her, after all, her daughter-in-law was important.

Chen stared back at Zhang's eyes, knowing exactly what she meant. Anger flared within her, and she inwardly cursed: "To think of such petty things!"

The three sisters-in-law arrived at the courtyard of Jiang and Gu Xiuyuan.

At this time, the imperial physician also hurried over with his medicine chest, and upon seeing the three of them, he was about to pay his respects.

Zhang shook her head. "Enough with the formalities, go and see Madam,"

The physician heard Zhang's words and hurriedly responded, rushing in with his medicine box to treat Jiang.

The three sisters-in-law also followed in and saw Madam Chiang's eyes closed, lying peacefully on the bed. Though there was fatigue on her face, this was probably due to taking care of her sick mother; otherwise, there didn't seem to be anything else amiss.

The imperial physician reached out his hand, pressing his index finger, middle finger, and ring finger against Jiang's pulse point to feel his pulse.

When Zhang saw the doctor, she held her breath and concentrated, thinking that her daughter-in-law's condition wasn't good. Worry clouded her face. Her son and daughter-in-law got along well, and her daughter-in-law was young. If anything happened to her, her son would become a widower at only eighteen. Besides, she thought, it would be a pity if such a young woman passed away before her time.

Meng Jinyao glanced at Zhang Shi. Although this woman wasn't anything special, it was heard that she was strict with her daughter-in-law on a daily basis. This time, her daughter-in-law had gotten into trouble, and she was genuinely worried. A person like this couldn't be completely bad. She just lacked discernment, valued profit over everything, and was vain. But everyone has flaws, as long as their nature isn't evil.

During her time in the Gu family, she had also paid close attention to the people in the first and second houses. Her mother hadn't noticed anyone with a wicked nature. Among the younger generation, Gu Xiuyuan didn't seem to have any problems at the moment, nor did Gu Xiuhong. Gu Xuailing was timid, Gu Xiwen was simple and warm-hearted, and only Gu Xuyi was arrogant, domineering, and loved to bully Gu Xuailing. However, none of this compared to the wickedness of their third house's Gu Xuming.

After a moment, the imperial physician withdrew his hand and looked at Zhang Shi, a smile on his face. He stood up and bowed, saying: “Congratulations, Madam Da, Madam Shao is pregnant.”

As soon as these words were spoken, Zhang immediately looked at his daughter-in-law lying in bed and was overjoyed, a smile spreading across his face: “You’re saying that Xiu Yuan’s wife is pregnant”

The imperial physician nodded: “Yes, Madam Grand, the young mistress has been pregnant for over a month.”

Zhang's smile deepened, but looking at her still-unconscious daughter-in-law, she couldn't help but feel a twinge of worry. She asked again, "That good girl, how could she suddenly faint"

The physician replied, “Madam is unconscious due to exhaustion. She should take two doses of sedative pills and rest well for a few days.”

"Now Zhang feels relieved: 'Thank you, Doctor.'"

Then the imperial physician went to write a prescription.

Meng Jinyao said softly, "Congratulations, sister-in-law. Next year our family will have four generations living together."

Chen also said, "Sister-in-law, congratulations!"

As Zhang became a grandmother-to-be, she was in high spirits. She put aside her worries about the failed attempt to matchmake her daughter with the son of Marquis Wu'an and looked at Chen with a radiant smile and gentle tone: "Sister-in-law, Xiu Hong is seventeen this year, it's time for him to get married and have children. Give me a fat grandson as soon as possible! Otherwise, when Xiuyi and Xiuling both get married, Xiu Hong will still be single."

Looking at Zhang's smug expression, Chen felt a surge of resentment in her heart. If she had known this would happen, she wouldn't have come. Now, she had to endure listening to Zhang boast incessantly.

She hasn't tried to find suitable girls for Xiu Hong recently, but the girls' mothers refused. Perhaps they were influenced by Gu Xiu Ming's bad behavior – he never married but first took a concubine, even letting her live in the main room and spoiling her in every way, clearly a sign of favoring concubines over wives.

As the older brother, Xiu Hong's reputation was also affected. Girls' families were afraid that Xiu Hong was the same kind of person, which was an undeserved disaster. He could only wait for things to cool down before telling Xiu Hong about a marriage proposal.

Seeing that she wasn't responding, Zhang finally managed to turn the tide and said, "Don't blame your sister-in-law for being too talkative. Your sister-in-law just thinks that Xiu Hong is getting older, and marriage should be on the agenda. After all, getting married means settling down and having responsibilities. He would definitely study much harder after getting married."

Chen said softly, "This is no trouble for my sister-in-law. Xiuming has always been diligent in his studies and never makes me or your second brother worry. There's no need to rush his marriage. We can wait until he obtains his official position. It is Xuanling who needs more attention as she is a young lady, so we should focus on her marriage first."

Zhang's face fell, and she could barely smile anymore. Her expression softened: "You're right. A young lady's marriage can't be delayed. As women get older, it becomes harder to find a husband, unlike men who can marry a sixteen-year-old girl even at sixty."

Meng Jinyao looked at them about to fight again. Now that it was almost noon, she wanted to go back for lunch and didn't want to watch the show anymore. She said softly: "Sister-in-law, Xiu Yuan's wife needs to recuperate, so let's go back first.

When Zhang heard this, she glanced at her daughter-in-law who was still asleep, and nodded. "Well, you guys go back first. I'll stay here and take a look. This is Xiu Yuan's wife's first pregnancy. When she wakes up later, I have something important to tell her."

Meng Jin Yao nodded lightly: "Sister-in-law, then my second sister-in-law and I will go first."

Zhang smiled and nodded.

Once out of the courtyard, Chen invited, "Third younger sister, it's almost noon. Why don't you come to my place for lunch Xuailing said last night that she wanted to make a few of her signature dishes for me. Come and try them."

"Will Xuan Ling still cook"

Meng Jin Yao was very surprised. Even though she was a neglected daughter, she didn't need to cook by herself, so she couldn't cook or make sweets.

Chen smiled and nodded: "Yes, I'll also make some snacks."

Seeing Meng Jingyao's confusion, Chen shi explained further: "This child has time to go to the kitchen and tinker around. I see that she is interested in this, so I simply added a small kitchen in her courtyard and had the cook teach her. This way, she won't be messing around and making some strange dishes. Learning these things will also be beneficial for her in the future. They say that to capture a man's heart, you must capture his stomach. Occasionally cooking soup for her husband can also enhance their relationship."

She made a valid point, Meng Jin Yao agreed inwardly, saying: "Second sister-in-law is skilled in teaching her daughters. Xuanling is capable both in the public and private spheres."

Upon hearing this, Mrs. Chen felt a warmth in her heart and humbly replied, "Third younger sister, you flatter me. I am unworthy of such praise. In truth, I haven't done much to teach her. She has always been well-behaved since she was young and never caused any trouble."

The two sisters-in-law chatted and laughed, and soon arrived at Mrs. Chen's courtyard.osing the whole basket."Upon hearing this, Meng Jin Yao's expression faltered for a moment before she subtly shook her head. "I hope so," she said, "but looking at Princess Jingning, she doesn't seem...