Chapter 206: Marriage
Translator: Dragon Boat Translation Editor: Dragon Boat Translation
When Han Qiao heard this question…
Her expression was still gentle and she had a smile on her face, “They’re still young. Their father and I want to live for a few more years. We’re not in a hurry to decide on their marriage.”
As Han Qiao spoke, she picked up a handkerchief and wiped her eyes. She said with a hint of sadness, “In the early years, my daughters followed me and suffered a lot in my former husband’s family. Now that they’re finally living a good life, I want them to stay by my side and dote on them for a few more years.”
“If they get married early, they’ll have to move to their husband’s house. I’m very reluctant.”
Han Qiao did not hide the fact that she remarried.
This matter could not be hidden. After all, none of the madams present were stupid.
They had already inquired about her past clearly.
She couldn’t hide it.
She might as well tear open the wound and squeeze out the pus.
When Han Qiao said this, it was very hard for the others to respond.
Bastard son? Bastard daughter? Such topics were easy to evade. Marriage, on the other hand, was not an easy topic to traverse. Instead, she managed the question her by saying that she had married well and that Heng Yi’s future was limitless.
“Fortunately, the heavens have been kind to me, allowing me to marry Heng Yi.”
Not only was she strong, but she was also Heaven’s favorite daughter.
She remarried and brought along her three daughters.
What was even more outstanding, she married a good and capable husband. Moreover, her life now has become more and more nourishing and dignified. Heng Yi would take care of his family and they would have a bright future.
The county magistrate’s wife couldn’t say anything.
She had a nephew who was 14 years old. She originally wanted to secure a connection with Han Qiao first.
She had also taken a closer look at Han Qiao’s daughters before. They were born well. When they grew up, they would blossom into mature beauty. It would create a good story if delicate beauty were to match with a talented man.
Han Qiao glanced at the county magistrate’s wife who had started this topic and smiled as she changed the topic.
A servant came over to report that lunch was ready.
The county magistrate’s wife warmly invited everyone to take a seat.
Although there were quite a few tables, the only people sitting at the main table were the wealthy families; Grand Master’s wife, Dian Bo’s wife, Han Qiao, Constable Qin’s wife, and Constable Wang’s wife.
Therefore, the seats were intentionally arranged that way.
It was the same for the children. The girls sat together. While Sun Xiu, Sun Yi, and Sun Ke were pulled to sit together, the servant girls the families brought were all eating at another small table in the side room. There were four dishes, meat, and vegetables. Zeng Qin’er silently ate her meal quickly.
The others were still chewing slowly as if they were eating delicacies.
She had already put down her bowl and chopsticks and stood up to guard her young miss.
The other maids were all stunned.
She finished eating already?
Why didn’t she eat more of these good food?
They naturally didn’t think that Zeng Qin’er had already eaten these things in Heng Manor, and had eaten even better than the ones served here.
Madam had said that one could be greedy at home, but when they went out, no matter how exotic or delicious the food was, they could only taste it.
Seeing this, the other servant girls did not dare to dawdle. They quickly ate and went to serve their masters. Otherwise, they would be punished when they returned.
Back at the banquet, the county magistrate’s wife continued to explain, “These dishes today were cooked by a chef we hired from Chenzhou. Madam Heng, try it and see if it’s up to your taste.”
“The chef from Chenzhou must have extraordinary culinary skills. I’m lucky today,” She said as she picked up a meatbail and chewed it slowly.
After swallowing it, she slowly praised the county magistrate’s wife.
She praised her for having good taste and being able to hire such a good chef. She also praised the chef’s cooking skills.
The madams and wives were surprised to see Han Qiao praising someone without repeating herself.
Was this really a peasant girl who had never seen the world before?
She was much more knowledgeable than they were.
She was a smooth talker.
The guests enjoyed the meal.
After the meal, they sat down and drank tea. The county magistrate’s wife suggested playing leaf cards.
The other wives said they didn’t know how to play or couldn’t play well.
Han Qiao was pushed to her seat.
She didn’t know how to play either, but she later realized that playing leaf cards was no different from playing poker or mahjong.
In the first round, she didn’t know how to play and lost a few hundred coppers.
By the time she played the second round, she became familiar with the rules.
The game had been going on for almost an hour, and Han Qiao got up to relieve her sore waist.
Because she was pregnant, the madams did not dare to let her sit for too long.
Not only that, they could tell that she had lost two taels of silver, while the county magistrate’s wife had won quite a sum.
Who could have missed it? The county magistrate’s wife had been smiling through the entire game, and the more the match continued, the more energetic she became.
Han Qiao sat at the side and drank tea while a few wealthy wives chatted with her.
Some of them also invited her to visit their homes.
These women knew that she was pregnant. It wouldn’t be possible for her to visit any time soon. Everyone was just casually throwing their invites and was not too sincere.
If something happened to her or the baby, no one could bear the responsibility.
“Why don’t I hold a banquet in early March and invite all the Madams and wives to the residence for a short while?” Han Qiao said.
“If that’s the case, you must send me an invitation.”
Han Qiao smiled and nodded.
Inviting the madams and wives of each family was mainly to return their greeting gifts.
No one would invite her again if she pretended not to know about this.
This was how human relations worked.
Han Qiao also had to find time to find out how many children each family had and prepare things when the time came.
There was no need to differentiate between the bastard and the biological children for the time being, but boys and girls still had to be distinguished.
After sitting for a while, Sun Ke came to look for her with a yawn.
It was Han Qiao’s cue to go, so they bid their farewells.
The county magistrate’s wife did not ask Han Qiao to stay and eagerly sent her out.
“Madam Heng, come to our manor again next time.”
“As long as Madam doesn’t find it troublesome, I’ll come often.”
“It’s not trouble at all,” The county magistrate’s wife said as she looked at Sun Xiu and Sun Yi who were standing beside Han Qiao.
Han Qiao pretended not to see the eagerness in her eyes.
On the way back, Sun Ke stopped yawning and happily told them about what she had seen today.
Sun Xiu and Sun Yi remained silent.
Han Chi waited for Sun Ke to finish before talking about the boys.
They were very lively.
When they got home, Han Qiao asked the children to wash up and change their clothes. They would come to the main courtyard to chat later.
“Bring me your greeting gifts.”
“Alright.”
The children answered in unison.
Han Qiao took a shower and ate a bowl of white fungus soup before the children came over with a bunch of gifts.
The girls’ greeting gifts were all silver bracelets of different sizes, but they looked very uniform.
Han Chi’s greeting gift was a white jade carving, but it could be made into different objects.
Jade was the same as the silver bracelets. There were no black spots or other flaws that could be seen with the naked eye. It was not the best, but it was still considered a good gift.
“Keep these things for yourselves,” Han Qiao said.
“Aren’t we going to give it to you, Mother?” Han Chi asked.
“You don’t have to give it to me. Since it’s for you, you can do whatever you want with it. You can wear it yourself or give it to your friends.”
“I asked you to bring it over mainly because I wanted to confirm what the ladies gave so that I could return the gesture.”
“You can’t give them too much in return. It has to be slightly better than what they gave us, but it can’t be too expensive.”
“Alright, let’s put the matter of the gifts behind us. Tell me what you saw and heard today.”
The children answered one by one.
“Mother, why are there so many girls who never joined the conversation?” Sun Xiu asked softly.
“When we eat, they sit at the side table. They don’t look like servants.”
Han Qiao looked at Sun Xiu, “Because they are not legitimate daughters. Illegitimate daughters are the children of concubines.”
“Therefore, you must remember that it is better to be a poor wife than a concubine of a high family. Concubines are good for business, but it is almost impossible for their children to marry into a high family unless the man married her to give his children a mother or be his second wife after the death of his first. Don’t be blinded by a man’s so-called love.. He can’t even make you his legal wife, so how can he talk about love?”