After lingering in Chunhui Hall for a while, Madam noticed that Song Ci looked tired, so she let Song Zi go rest first, since there would be plenty of opportunities to talk later.
"Sister-in-law, although I am just a guest coming home this time, in my heart, this is still my family. Fourth Brother’s wedding with the Commandery Princess means the guests will surely be numerous, and the mansion will be bustling. If there’s any place you need my help, please feel free to say so, even if it’s just to serve dishes," Song Zi said with a smile.
Madam chuckled, "We have plenty of servants in the mansion, no need for you to serve dishes. But when the guests do arrive, I’ll need you to help entertain them; after all, you’re the only lady of our generation in the family."
"That’s alright, Qian’er will be coming back too, right? Is she due soon?"
When Madam mentioned her eldest daughter, she was filled with joy and said, "Her uncle’s wedding is a good occasion for her to join in the fun, but she’s not in a position to help much. She’s due next month."
"Oh my, I must prepare a gift for the baby," Song Zi laughed. "Happiness comes in waves at our mansion, truly a result of good fortune accumulated in our past lives. Even the second sister-in-law has good news."
Madam’s smile stiffened a bit, and subconsciously she touched her abdomen, realizing she had yet to receive good news.
Song Zi, being observant, noticed she touched upon a sensitive topic, so she laughed and said, "With all these happy events unfolding, Sister-in-law, I’m sure you’ll soon give Su’er a little brother too."
This was a comforting thought, and Madam smiled, considered it, and then said, "Do you know about your third brother?"
Song Zi’s heart skipped a beat, sensing something ominous, "What happened to Third Brother?"
Now that she was home, it was expected that her second sister-in-law and second brother weren’t around due to a trip, but it was strange that her third sister-in-law hadn’t visited Chunhui Hall.
"You don’t know?" Madam said, "It’s not a big deal; your third brother just took a Noble Concubine, I heard they even have a child now."
Song Zi paused, her face clouded, her smile vanished, and she quickly asked, "When did this happen?"
It’s not surprising that Song Zi didn’t know. Though she and Song Zhiqing are twins, they’ve each married and live apart, mainly communicating through letters.
Song Zhiqing taking a concubine was a recent event, just these past months while he was still in Shanxi, so news hadn’t spread much, and the Prime Minister’s Mansion wouldn’t broadcast such matters, thus Song Zi was left unaware.
For a man to take a concubine was quite common, but Song Zi, being of the lower lineage, paid closer attention to distinctions between legitimate-born and concubine-born.
In the Prime Minister’s Mansion, her two elder brothers had no concubines, and Song Zhiqing had maintained himself for eight or nine years, encouraging her husband Lin Guangxiong to refrain from taking concubines, only having an old servant girl from earlier years, which resulted in four legitimate children.
But did Song Zhiqing suddenly ’betray’ this? Follow current novᴇls on n0velfire.net
Song Zi felt a bit of shame; if a legitimate-born brother doesn’t take concubines, how could a lower lineage one take them, wouldn’t that bring contempt?
She herself was of lower lineage, how could she be so muddleheaded?
"It only happened recently, and it was kept from your third sister-in-law until it could no longer be hidden. Your third sister-in-law got so upset she fell ill. If the mansion weren’t really busy and I didn’t ask her to help manage affairs, she might not have pulled through. But when one’s heart is hurt, simply saying it will get better doesn’t make it so," Madam said with a sigh. "As women, we can’t bear to see such things. Although Third Brother is your own brother, your third sister-in-law devoted herself to him, giving him a pair of legitimate children, her heartbreak is inevitable. You, as her sister-in-law, should advise her to take things lightly."