Madam Chen glanced at him, raised her teacup, and sipped her tea leisurely. "Her appearance is worth fifty taels of silver, easily. If we're lucky, we might get a hundred. That money would be perfect to smooth things over for Cheng. Anyway, she has no family left. Who could possibly object?"
Chen Xuan pondered for a moment, then smiled and advised, "Aunt, please don't act rashly. Cousin's wife is still quite useful."
"What use could she possibly be?"
Chen Xuan stepped forward to refill Madam Chen's tea, and said, "Aunt, think about it. The affair between Xu Hongchuan and Cousin's wife is undeniable. If it's exposed, it will damage Xu Hongchuan's reputation. They, the officials, care most about their public image. Even if he was drugged, the fact that a brother-in-law slept with his sister-in-law would be a stain on him. So, Cousin's wife must be kept. She's the witness."
Madam Chen's movements paused, and her eyes lit up. "Xuan'er is right. Then… Cheng's matter… is there still hope?"
Chen Xuan said, "If Xu Hongchuan truly wanted to punish Aunt, how could Aunt and Uncle have returned unscathed? In my opinion, this matter can't be rushed, we need to plan long-term. That Xu Hongchuan doesn't seem to respond to force. If force doesn't work, we use gentleness. Xu Hongchuan is not a fool; he naturally understands the stakes. Regarding Cousin's matter, he might still intervene."
Madam Chen's eyes shone. She repeatedly said, "Xuan'er is right, much better than your uncle!"
At that moment, Mama Zhao came in to report that the county magistrate's wife had come to visit. Madam Chen and Chen Xuan exchanged glances, both surprised.
Madam Chen immediately said, "Quickly, bring her in."
Chen Xuan then chuckled playfully, "Aunt, the county magistrate's news is quick. They're already here to curry favor."
Madam Chen gave a smug hum, tidied her hair in the bronze mirror, and then, head held high, walked towards the front hall.
Rong Yue returned to her East Wing, utterly despondent. She tightly closed the bedroom door, bolted it, and then took off her outer garment, revealing the torn undergarment beneath.
It was fortunate that the outer garment wasn't torn last night, otherwise I wouldn't know how to face anyone today.
Rong Yue took out another undergarment from the wardrobe and took off the torn one.
When she inadvertently turned her head, she saw herself in the bronze mirror—
Her snow-white shoulders and chest were covered with the marks of a man's kisses, and a red handprint was clearly visible on her waist.
Rong Yue's face flushed, and she quickly turned away, unable to look at the woman in the mirror who had been ruthlessly taken by a man…
When she got married, her mother was already gone. It was a neighbor's aunt who showed her a picture about avoiding fire and explained what happened on their wedding night.
A year after her marriage, her husband hadn't touched her once. She never knew that intimacy with a man would be like this…
Pain… fear… yet, a faint, inexplicable palpitation…
The recklessness of the previous night flashed through Rong Yue's mind. Her uncle's body was heavy, like a mountain pressing down on her, making her unable to move…
That thing, like a fire stick, poked so painfully at her legs, as if it wanted to split her body…
But his lips and tongue were wet and hot, his passionate kisses almost falling all over her body, even the most private parts of a woman were held in his mouth…
Rong Yue quickly shook her head hard, chiding herself for being possessed. How could she still be thinking about that absurd thing from last night?
She changed into a new undergarment and put on another outer garment, quietly thinking about her mother-in-law's words.
She was now in a difficult position. Her mother-in-law wouldn't allow her to divorce, and besides, she had nowhere to go after a divorce. She was a lonely woman, her family had passed away, and the Jiang Family was still a place to shelter her.
As long as her husband could return safely and they could live a good life, she would be content.
However, the fact that she had been intimate with her uncle was still a reality. Her mother-in-law had done such a thing to her. She didn't know how she could face her mother-in-law in the future, or how she could face her husband?
Rong Yue picked up a needle and thread, and while stitching the torn undergarment, she thought about her father's teachings from the past.
Her father had read extensively of the teachings of the sages, and she was influenced by him, knowing the virtues of a woman, and was originally a virtuous woman.
But she was deflowered by a man other than her husband, and that man was her husband's own elder brother. This was neither chaste nor proper. How could she face her deceased father?
The needle and thread skillfully moved back and forth on the snow-white undergarment. Rong Yue, recalling her father's earnest teachings, couldn't help but shed tears.
She missed her father so much. She still remembered her father's appearance when he sent her off to her wedding.
At that time, her father's health was already failing, and his clothes hung loosely on him.
But her father's warm, yet withered, hands held hers, and he softly said to her, "My Rong'er is getting married. Your mother is watching over you in the heavens. My Rong'er is gentle and virtuous. After you get married, you must be a good daughter-in-law and take care of your parents-in-law and serve your husband."
Tears had long since filled her eyes, blurring her vision, and her stitching stopped.
In the year since her marriage, whenever she had been wronged by her mother-in-law, she would think of her father's words before her wedding, and only then could she calm down.
Her father was the most loving father in the world. This was her father's expectation for her, and it was also the last words her father had spoken to her.
After she got married, her father didn't know why he went on a trip for a few days. She didn't get to return to her family. Two months after her marriage, her mother-in-law finally allowed her to visit her father, but by then, her father was extremely weak and couldn't even speak.
She wanted to stay and take care of her father, but her father refused no matter what.
Then, a little over three months later, she received the news of her father's death.
Father… Mother…
Rong Yue, tears streaming down her face, softly called out to her parents who were no longer in this world, her beautiful face filled with sorrow.
What should Rong'er do? How should she go on with the road ahead?