The Senior Master Sheng thumped on the table and roared, "He's supposed to take the consequences. If he can't handle it, his whole branch will be thrown out!!!"

After that, he was about to leave with a livid face. When pa.s.sing by Sheng Lansi, he couldn't help kicking him to the ground, and he cursed, "Because your first sister-in-law helped you out, I'll spare you today! If you do that one more time, I won't say anything to you and will drive your branch out of the family directly. We'll see without your brother's support to your branch, what else can you take to fend for a mistress!"

Then he left in anger.

At the place of honor, Old Madam Ming stayed still with a pale face. How could she ignore that she was the real target of Senior Master Sheng's words?

"Mother, I just came back and there are still things left in the yard waiting to be arranged. If you don't mind, may I?" Having witnessed the scene, Madam Feng didn't intend to stay, either. She rose and said, "Besides, I haven't checked my sweetheart's dress and ornaments for tomorrow."

Old Madam Ming, knowing very well that she had badly annoyed the eldest branch, forced a smile, "Yinlu, I was being muddled because of my age. Please don't hold a grudge against me! I wouldn't fail the ones who've been gracious to me. I just... just feared that your father beat him too violently and I wanted him to show some mercy. I had no other intentions!"

"What are you talking about?" Madam Feng smiled and said, "Help yourself to anything you need. I have to go now!"

After that, ignoring Old Madam Ming's hesitant expression, she dragged Sheng Weiqiao to leave. Not until they went out of Jinxue House did Sheng Weiqiao asked in bewilderment, "Why didn't I see my second aunt?"

"Didn't you see how badly your grandfather beat your second uncle?" Madam Feng sneered, "If your second aunt had been there, based on her temperament, she would have surely added fuel to the fire! Your grandfather would get madder while listening to her, so wouldn't he beat even harder? Your grandmother felt heartache for her son, so I see no reason that she would keep her there!"

Sheng Weiqiao felt speechless, and continued, "Now we've gone, and the grandfather is also absent. What's going to happen next?"

"Your grandfather left because he aimed to let your grandmother deal with this thing. See? Your second aunt, except for the big scene caused at Jinxue House, she wasn't even allowed to be present during the whole incident, let alone fulfilling her personal wis.h.!.+" Madam Feng glanced at her and said, "Since you're not able to figure out such simple logic, do you insist that a brother's support is unnecessary for you?"

"Whatever. I dislike Sheng Shuihe!" Sheng Weiqiao was intended to argue, but she couldn't think of a logical argument, so she stamped her feet in anger, "Besides, now we only have him in the house. We don't even know if his birth mother is hiding somewhere and keeping an eye on us! If you did nothing now and waited for him to solidify his position and also get the mistress back, the mother and son would collaborate to take our place and take us down. You'll see how regretful you'll be!"

Hearing that, Madam Feng frowned, "Don't always listen to your aunt's gossips. She's meddlesome. I've told her that I don't need her to mind my business. Why did she call you over to tell you all the trifles?!"

Sheng Weiqiao couldn't believe her mother would ever say that and stared her eyes, "Mother, are you silly?! When uncle was alive, you were distressed for aunt every single day. Now it's our turn, but you don't take it seriously?! What has father done to you?!"

"What are you talking about? How can you talk about your own father like that!" Madam Feng murmured, caressing her daughter's head, didn't mind her turning away with resentment but just smiled, "Just believe what I said. Oh, if nothing happens, you'll have another cousin!"

Her words came true one hour later. Having confirmed that the child brought here by the mistress was indeed Sheng Lansi's daughter by a blood test, Old Madam Ming decided to get her into the family and let her be a mistress's daughter of the second branch.

However, the mistress was less lucky. Old Madam held hatred against her because she had made her displease the first branch indirectly and also made Sheng Lanci almost be beaten to death, so she couldn't even wait until receiving her into the family to kill her. Instead, she would poison her directly and sell her to somewhere remote!

The mistress was the most popular courtesan bought by Sheng Lansi from Tianxiang Lou anyway. With the contract in hand, was there anything she couldn't do to her?

Of course, if she really had been sent remotely or not, only Old Madam Ming would know that.

In a word, people in Sheng Family would definitely never see her again.

Hearing the news, Sheng Weiqiao felt a sense of unfairness beyond words and asked Xiquan who had come to send her the news, "Does my second aunt support that?"

"Second Miss, you must be kidding." Xiquan smiled, "Maybe it's mean, but the Second Madam isn't the Second Master's original wife, either. At that time, the Second Wife made all the turbulence, and now the mistress did the same to her, so isn't this her karma? Or how could our Senior Master, who values the principles so much, just beat Second Master and then let the mistress's daughter in?"

Sheng Lansi's original wife, whose surname was Ao, was the biological mother of Sheng Weiqiao's cousin, Sheng Weide.

Mrs. Ao was the daughter of Senior Master Sheng's original subordinate. She was straightforward, open-minded, attentive in serving her parents-in-law, and on good terms with Madam Feng. One year after she married Sheng Lansi, she'd already given birth to a son for the second branch and won the affection of both Senior Master Sheng and Old Madam Ming. Her position was so solid in any case. But Sheng Lanci happened to encounter Madam Bai whose family was running a grain store when he went out, and since then he was deeply attracted!

In the end, to give Madam Bai wife the status, Sheng Lansi tortured Madam Ao with all the methods he could think of. It wasn't exposed until Madam Ao couldn't put up with him and suggested Senior Master Sheng that she wanted a divorce.

Actually, Senior Master Sheng would never allow Madam Bai to take place of Mrs. Ao, but Mrs. Ao was also pampered a lot in her own family. Having learned of her suffering, Ao Family insisted that she should get a divorce and they would find her another proper husband. Sheng Family was in the wrong, so they had to accept.

Senior Master always felt that he owed the virtuous daughter-in-law who gave birth to a son for the family. When Mrs. Ao left, according to the convention, aside from returning the maritage, her husband's family should also give her money for three-year expenses as compensation. So, Senior Master Sheng let Sheng Lanci give her the amount for ten years. Wasn't the extra money for seven years beyond the convention? Take the record and deduct it from the account of the second branch when splitting the family possession!

It had been Senior Master who had made the decision. Anyone who held the opposition and went to talk with him would surely be beaten to death!

So, though Madam Bai finally had entered the family with the insistency of Sheng Lansi and had given birth to children for the second branch, both Senior Master Sheng and Old Madam Ming didn't like her very much. The previous years were easier for her because Sheng Lansi loved her and she lived a carefree life in the second branch. But in recent years, Sheng Lanci began to marry new concubines and she faced the possibility of losing his affection, so life became harder for her.

"It occurred to me that Second Madam claimed that she's going back to her parent's house!" Xiquan, remembering Sheng Lanci and his wife's order to let Sheng Weiqiao recognize the reality in case that she kept being so naive, added, "After Second Master was carried back to the room, he heard her crying and being noisy, so he shouted at her that if she wanted to go, waste no time! And Second Madam fell silent instantly! Right, if the brothers of her own family really cared about her, since Bai Family could be considered as a rich one at the time and they were able to make a living, why would they've encouraged her to lure Second Master who was already married? Nowadays, if the Second Madam lived a happy life, surely her family would keep close to her. But if she went back, Bai Family would not only send her back but also apologize to Second Master!"

So, when Mrs. Ao had wanted a divorce, even Senior Master Sheng had come out to detain her. But when Madam Bai said the same, among the whole family, only Sheng Weiqiao thought it was true!

The importance of a wife's own family was so evident.

Sheng Weiqiao dragged the quilt to her, covered her head with a black face and yelled vaguely in the quilt, "I'm tired!!!"

"Take good care of Second Miss." Seeing her get mad, Xiquan smiled and turned to Lvjin and Lvqi, "Tomorrow is Senior Master's birthday. Don't let the lady stay up too late, or she'll be listless tomorrow!"

That day, without the prompt of the two maids, Sheng Weiqiao went to bed early. But even in that way, she stilled looked tired the next day.

Lvjin and Lvqi, knowing that she wasn't in a good mood, didn't dare to make fun and dressed for her in silence.

When they just finished dressing the resplendent robe with a complicated pattern and were doing her makeup in front of the mirror, from the outside room rose a flurry of footsteps, and then Sheng Weiwu from the third branch came in, lifting her train, with a loose chignon, and said in excitement, "Second Sister! Second Sister! I've got a good idea to penalize Sheng Shuihe for you!"