dognovel Chapter 170 A mistress visits
Chapter 170 A mistress visits
Yunyi raised an eyebrow as she watched Jing Han stride in. What a coincidence.
Jing Han glanced at Yun Yi, then offered incense to Du Renyi and placed ten taels of silver as a funeral gift: "Brother Du, may you rest in peace. Don't spend so much money in the future."
The sound wasn't loud, but everyone present could hear it.
Yunyi's lips twitched; this person was definitely doing it on purpose.
Besides Nie Nian'an, the eldest son of a concubine, Du Ziling, and his wife are also here today.
Du Ziling was of mediocre talent and ability. Although he had received his early education, he made no further progress after finally obtaining the title of Xiucai (a scholar who passed the lowest level of the imperial examinations). Later, he simply became a clerk in the government office and lived a comfortable life thanks to his father.
He is quite content with himself, now that he is married and has children, and his daughter Du Jiaojiao is already five years old.
Although the silver given by the commander was somewhat insulting, his stepmother didn't say anything, so he dared not say anything either. He had no choice but to get up, bow, and thank him. Then he was asked to go to the side pavilion to have tea and rest.
However, Jing Han directly refused: "It's only because we've served in the same court for so many years. Otherwise, this commander would disdain to have any contact with Du Renyi. Today, we've been polite enough; let's skip the tea." After saying that, he looked at Yun Yi, "Miss Yun, you mentioned last time that you wanted to provide some medicinal herbs for the army. Do you have time to discuss the details now?"
Yun Yi frowned. When did she say she would provide medicinal herbs? But she couldn't turn her back on her now, so she could only nod and say, "Okay."
As soon as the two arrived at the Du family's gate, they found a group of people gathered there making a fuss.
After asking around, I learned that someone had come to our door with their son.
The moment Yunyi saw the boy, she knew that the child was indeed Du Renyi's, after all, the child looked exactly like the person lying in the coffin.
All things considered, Du Renyi's three children now resemble him by three or four points, and most of their appearances resemble their mothers, while this child is almost 100% like his father.
However, she didn't know if she was overthinking it, but she always felt that the child looked awkward.
Although Du Renyi wasn't a very good person, he was quite handsome, especially his expressive eyes, which even looked at dogs with deep affection; otherwise, his own sister wouldn't have been so infatuated with him.
"Is that really Lord Du's son?" Jing Han asked Yun Yi, but his tone was very certain.
"Didn't you already confirm it?" Yunyi asked with great interest, never expecting the Du family to have so many scandals.
"Do you know who this woman is?"
"You know her?" Yun Yi frowned slightly, then looked the woman over. She was slightly different from the women of the Great Zhou Dynasty; her skin was a bit dark, but her features were quite attractive. "A person from Northern Liang?"
“To be precise, they should be a mix of Northern Liang and Great Zhou.” Jing Han’s eyes narrowed slightly.
Yunyi nodded. It's not unusual to be mixed-race, after all, this is the border.
"Do you know that the laws of the Great Zhou Dynasty stipulate that court officials cannot marry or take concubines of foreign ethnicity unless they report to the government for record-keeping, otherwise it is considered as treason."
"I really don't know." Yun Yi shook her head. She hadn't had a chance to look through the legal codes of the Great Zhou Dynasty yet. She would try to buy a copy when she got back.
"Moreover, it's normal for court officials to have multiple wives and concubines. If they keep mistresses, they'll be impeached by the censors and considered to have questionable character." Jing Han scoffed. "But this Lord Du not only kept a mistress, he kept a woman from a different ethnic group."
Yunyi fell silent for a long time before sighing, "He died too young."
Jing Han paused for a moment, then laughed. His gang leader's thinking was truly unique.
At this moment, Nie Nian'an, supported by his son and daughter, came out and glanced at the woman: "The master has passed away, and no one can prove who you really are, so..." He gestured as he spoke.
The steward then handed over twenty taels of silver.
"Here's twenty taels of silver. Go wherever you need to go."
"Madam." The woman hurriedly knelt down when she saw Nie Nian'an was about to leave. "A'nan is indeed the master's son." As she spoke, she pulled the jade pendant that her son was wearing from his clothes. "Look, this is what the master left for A'nan."
Nie Nian'an's eyes narrowed slightly. The jade pendant did indeed belong to Du Renyi, because she had personally prepared it for him, and she had personally chosen the design. It was said to have been lost before, but she never expected that it had been given to his mistress.
“Back then, Anu almost died. It was Master who saved Anu. Anu doesn’t ask for any title or wealth. As long as Anan can have food to eat and be able to study, Anu is willing to die immediately.” The woman named Anu kept kowtowing.
Although everyone around thought Du Renyi had done a terrible thing, the man was dead, and the debts were settled with him. You can't be too harsh on a dead man, can you?
Moreover, many people talk without understanding the situation, thinking that the Du family is so wealthy and powerful that even if Lord Du were to pass away, they could still support a child.
Nie Nian'an clenched her fists tightly. She knew that if she forcefully drove them away now, the Du family's reputation would be ruined. She didn't care about herself, but what about her son and daughter? Especially her son, who was going to pursue a career in government in the future. However, before she could speak, Du Ziming spoke first.
“The Du family can support one or two people without any problem, but you can’t claim to be a member of my family just because of a jade pendant, can you?”
Anu was clearly taken aback.
“My father said the jade pendant was lost, but now it’s on you. If we accept it, does that mean we have to accept anything from the Du family that comes to us in the future?”
“This…” Anu was at a loss.
“Mother, the Du family won’t take care of us, and I’m not going to study anymore.” The boy named Anan reached out and pulled her up. “Let’s go, we won’t starve to death.”
“But…” Anu was very conflicted, “But Anan and Master look almost exactly alike.”
"so what?"
Anu's tears fell.
"The Nie family." Just then, several people helped an old man walk over.
"Third Uncle." Nie Nian'an and his children bowed to the old man.
“This child is clearly kind and righteous, why are you so intolerant?” Uncle Du frowned as he looked at Nie Nian’an. “It’s just a few more bites of food.”
"But……"
"No buts. Benevolence and righteousness are gone. We can't let the Du family bloodline continue to wander outside." Third Uncle waved his hand. "I'll make the decision today. We'll open the ancestral hall later and record this child in the family genealogy."
"Third Uncle, isn't this a bit too hasty?" Nie Nian'an frowned. "Someone of unknown origin..."
“Mrs. Nie.” The third uncle paused, holding his cane. “That child looks almost exactly like Renyi when he was young. How can he be of unknown origin? You are a member of the Du family, so you can’t be so unvirtuous. This matter is settled.”