Because when it came to the issues between his wives and concubines, he truly had nothing to say.
The eldest son, Jie, watched his father with a strained face, and only after quite a while did he let out a stifled grunt, bowed with hands clasped together, and said, "Your son dares not."
Magistrate Jie huffed angrily, "You even dare to spout words such as ’lead the charge and die before the soldiers’; what else is there that you wouldn’t dare to do? You are clearly resentful towards me. You can resent me, but you must not joke with your lineage and your life. Just look at the state our house is in now, with no woman in charge, the inner courtyard is almost in chaos."
The eldest son, Jie, snorted coldly in his heart, thinking: Wasn’t it a mess even when a woman was in charge?
He glanced at Jie’s second son and, seeing his elder brother’s extremely unfriendly gaze coming towards him, he hurriedly turned away.
Magistrate Jie followed the gaze of his eldest son to the second son and said, "You too, now that you’re without a wife or concubine, there’s no need to lead the charge and die before the soldiers. When will you marry a wife and bring her home?"
"Dad!" Jie’s second son sighed, "Don’t you know what I think? I will go to Jinxiu City tomorrow to see Xintong."
Magistrate Jie felt his head throb as he said, "Does she even want to be with you anymore? If she doesn’t want to, you shouldn’t bother her. Haven’t you caused her enough misery?"
Jie’s second son’s face turned pale, those few years were the memories he least wanted to reminisce.
So he only kept his head down, incessantly scooping rice from his bowl.
The eldest son, Jie, with a glass of wine in hand, patted the second son on the shoulder, and sighed, "Zhonglin, what’s in the past is past, you shouldn’t feel too guilty; after all, Xintong is doing alright now."
"Yes, big brother," he said softly.
The eldest son, Jie, swallowed a cup of wine, turned to his father, suddenly pursed his lips, and said, "Dad, why not remarry and bring us a stepmother? You are only forty-eight this year, not yet fifty, still young. Who knows, you might still be able to give us a little brother or sister."
Magistrate Jie sprayed a mouthful of soup across the table, furious enough to flip it.
"You unfilial son, dare to jest with your old man when you’re still a bachelor?"
Indeed, on the first day of the lunar new year, Jie’s second son did come to Jinxiu City, standing outside the closed doors of Manxiu Building.
It was the new year, and Manxiu Building was on a seven-day holiday, following the rules set by Gu Youyou.
He stood under the eaves, removed the cloak hat from his head, then brushed the snow off his clothes and lightly knocked on the door.
After a few gentle taps, the door was opened from the inside, and a young woman poked her head out.
Upon seeing Jie’s second son, the woman’s brow furrowed and she said, "Second Young Master, why have you come again? Today is the first day of the new year; can’t you let people have a peaceful holiday?"
Jie’s second son, with a smile on his face, said, "Cuiya, your tongue has become even sharper. Please go and inform Xintong that I’m here to see her."
Cuiya didn’t have a good expression towards Jie’s second son, after being put in charge of managing the embroiderers purchased by Miss Du, her temperament had grown, striking a figure much like that of a housekeeper.
"Oh, you’ve really chosen a perfect time to come. In just a while, my young mistress will be returning to Beijing to visit our late master and Madam’s grave for the new year. Are you going to wait here? Or follow along?"
Jie’s second son suddenly froze, feeling somewhat bewildered.
In five years of marriage to Miss Du, he had never once visited the graves of Magistrate Du and Madam Du; instead, every year he accompanied the concubine to pay respects to his own mother and the concubine’s mother.