NCCnovel Chapter 458 Yun Shang Becomes a Hot Commodity
Chapter 458 Yun Shang Becomes a Hot Commodity
Madam Shen could hardly believe that these words came from the mouth of a mother.
She sized up this Mrs. Liu.
This person is the wife of Liu Nie, the principal officer of the Ministry of Personnel. Her name is Li Qiumei. Although they share the same surname, she has no connection with the famous Li families of Chenjun and Yingxi. Perhaps if we trace back three generations, we can barely find a slight connection.
Li Qiumei's family was just an insignificant official family in the capital, but compared to Liu Nie, who came from a poor family, their social status was still slightly higher.
After passing the imperial examination, Liu Nie married Li Qiumei, the only daughter of the Li family. Since the Li family had no sons, Li Qiumei and her family devoted themselves to Liu Nie's career, scheming and plotting in various ways.
Now, it seems they've set their sights on her son, Yunshang.
Shen scoffed inwardly, but smiled faintly on the surface.
Seemingly genuinely curious, she asked, "Since she is the youngest daughter of Madam Liu's family, she must have been pampered since childhood. But to marry into another family as a concubine is no different from being a servant, isn't it? Madam Liu, are you really willing to do that?"
Li Qiumei's smile faltered for a moment, then she forced a smile again, gently dabbed at the corner of her eye with a handkerchief, and sighed, "Madam Shen, you're exaggerating."
"I'm not afraid of making you laugh, Madam Shen, but actually, my girl has been admiring Lord Yun ever since she met him by chance some time ago. She even said that even if she were just a concubine, being able to stay by Lord Yun's side would be her blessing."
"As a mother, although my heart aches for my child, how could I bear to go against her wishes?"
Madam Shen picked up the teacup beside her, took a small sip, and looked at Li Qiumei with a half-smile through the steam: "Madam Liu certainly has the heart of a loving mother."
Li Qiumei was completely oblivious to the sarcasm in Shen's words. She was convinced that the matter was a sure thing and was overjoyed, her face beaming with delight.
The tone became increasingly intimate:
"It seems that Sister Shen is a very insightful person."
"Think about it, as men's careers grow, it's perfectly normal for them to have more people to serve them. Lord Yun is increasingly busy with official duties these days, so having more caring people around him will allow him to be better looked after, won't it?"
"My daughter is well-educated and reasonable, and she will definitely become a capable and virtuous wife to Lord Yun in the future."
Li Qiumei was speaking enthusiastically, completely unaware that Shen's face had turned cold.
The other ladies sat silently to the side; they were not as oblivious as Li Qiumei.
Shen's expression makes her look happy, doesn't it?
The ladies felt a pang of regret. They shouldn't have brought Li Qiumei, that clueless fellow, along today. If she ended up getting kicked out of the Yun family mansion because of it, it would be such a shame.
The ladies looked at each other and quickly tried to smooth things over.
"Oh dear, we've been so busy chatting, Mrs. Yun, let's get back to playing cards!"
"Sister Qin, it's your turn to play your card. You can't cheat this time."
"Alright, alright, if you beat me up with Madam Yun, I wouldn't dare to cheat anymore."
The group of women spoke one after another, drowning out Li Qiumei's voice. Madam Shen also understood the thoughts of the other ladies.
These ladies did not want to get into trouble because of Li Qiumei's recklessness.
Now that Yun Shang has close ties with many officials in the court, Madam Shen did not want to cause him trouble over such a trivial matter, so she had no choice but to suppress her displeasure.
Hopefully, Li Qiumei will be sensible.
At the entrance of the flower hall, Yu Wan listened to the play and clicked her tongue twice in her heart.
Yun Shang is now a highly sought-after celebrity, and there are probably quite a few people in Shengjing who are eyeing him.
Even if Wang Wanshu is gone, there are still Li Wanshu and Xie Wanshu. This shows that it's not good for a man to be too handsome; he'll be restless and unable to stay at home.
Yu Wan sighed a few times before entering the flower hall.
"Mother-in-law, your daughter-in-law is late."
Yu Wan spoke softly, with a gentle smile on her face. She first curtsied to Madam Shen, and then gave a slight bow to the ladies present.
Li Qiumei immediately turned her gaze to Yu Wan. Seeing her elegant and poised demeanor, the faint smile on her lips instantly faded away.
He muttered to himself.
She is indeed beautiful, no wonder she can attract men.
However, she has complete confidence in her daughter.
Men have always been fond of new things. Although Yu Wan's gentle and generous nature is not flawed, it will inevitably bore men over time, and she will not be able to keep their hearts.
As soon as Shen saw Yu Wan enter, her initial displeasure vanished instantly, and all her attention was focused on her.
She quickly put down her cards and greeted her warmly, "Yu Niang, come here quickly and help me play cards."
"My mother is bad at mahjong; she's almost lost everything on her dowry list."
This was obviously an exaggerated joke.
These ladies came to curry favor with Madam Shen. Even if Madam Shen's card skills were poor, they would deliberately let her win and would never let her lose too badly.
“Sister Qin, you didn’t cheat today, but Sister Shen has started to cheat.” One of the ladies shook her head with a smile. “Well, well, we’re satisfied with winning so many good things from Madam Yun.”
"I also want to see how good Sister Shen's daughter-in-law is at cards."
Seeing that these ladies had no ill intentions, Yu Wan smiled sincerely and sat down next to Madam Shen. "My card skills are certainly not as good as yours, aunts."
She blinked, adopting a flattering look, "Please, ladies, be lenient with me later."
Her lively and endearing appearance made the ladies burst into laughter.
Only Li Qiumei, who harbored ulterior motives, found her increasingly irritating.
After several rounds of cards, apart from Li Qiumei, the other ladies all took a great liking to Yu Wan. When they took their leave, they all sincerely invited Yu Wan to visit their homes more often in the future.
Yu Wan smiled and agreed to each of their requests. Then, together with Madam Shen, she saw the ladies to the door.
Watching everyone leave, Madam Shen breathed a sigh of relief and turned to Yu Wan to complain about Li Qiumei.
The more she thought about it, the angrier she became, and she couldn't help but blurt out, "I've lived most of my life, and this is the first time I've ever seen a mother who actually wants to give her own daughter to a married man as a concubine. Has Li Qiumei lost her mind? Is she eager to push her daughter into a fire pit to become someone's servant!"
Shen was outspoken and never held back her words.
She looked up and met Shang Yuwan's gaze, giving her a reassuring look, and said confidently:
"Don't worry, Yu Niang. As long as I'm here, no matter what kind of woman she is, she won't be able to cause trouble for you and Yun Shang. Even if she's just a daughter of the Liu family, or even a princess, I will never allow her to become Yun Shang's concubine!"