Chapter 152: Wen Furen

Chapter 152

Wen Furen

Eventually, Chen Furen and her daughter couldn’t bear to watch the opera any longer. When the plot reached the point where the families of the male and female protagonists agreed to marry the woman to the younger brother, Chen Furen led her daughter out of the opera house in shame. If Chen Yuelan had married Song Ren, that would have been one thing, but now, she was still unattached. If word spread that she had been rejected by the elder brother and then considered for the younger brother, how could she ever hope to be engaged to anyone else? People would only laugh at her. Chen Furen hesitated for a long while before swallowing her pride, sending a servant to invite the daughter-in-law of the Elder Wen Furen, who was the current matriarch of the household and was responsible for this banquet, to speak with her.

Wen Furen had been busy all day and had only just found a moment to relax and enjoy the opera when she was interrupted. When she found out that Chen Furen had an urgent matter to discuss, she felt annoyed, but out of courtesy, she concealed her displeasure. She asked politely, in the manner of a good hostess.

"Chen Furen, aren’t you enjoying the opera? What urgent matter could have brought you to call me out here?"

Chen Furen forced a strained smile. She could hear the sarcasm in Wen Furen’s words, but at this point, she had no choice but to move forward for the sake of her daughter.

"The opera troupe today, I’d like to know where Wen Furen hired them from? I fear the birthday celebration for the Elder Wen Furen may become a means to tarnish my daughter’s reputation."

Though polite, Wen Furen was not one to be easily trifled with. She raised her eyebrows and replied coolly.

"I’m not sure what you’re suggesting, Chen Furen."

"The content of the opera seems deliberately designed to slander my daughter. If it’s not too much trouble, could you have them stop the performance or at least have them perform another popular story?"

Wen Furen’s smile started vanishing.

"Chen Furen, I’ve spent months preparing for the Elder Wen Furen’s birthday celebration. Do you expect me to stop the opera just because your daughter doesn’t like the content? What do you take my mother-in-law and our esteemed guests for?"

"Please, Wen Furen, understand. You have a daughter of your own, do you not? When your daughter is being wronged, how can you, as a mother, just stand by and watch?"

Wen Furen let out a laugh upon hearing this, though there was nothing humorous about the situation.

"Chen Furen, have you noticed why no one is sitting with the Young Furen of the Yong An Hou Manor?"

Chen Furen looked confused. Aside from her concerns over Chen Yuelan’s marital prospects, she hadn’t been keeping up with other news. Seeing her confusion, Wen Furen pitied her and decided to explain.

"Someone had spread a rumor that she became pregnant with another man’s child while General Song was away at war. I don’t know what grudge your daughter holds against her, but the person who started these rumors is none other than your own daughter."

Chen Furen’s face was a mixture of shock and disbelief. She had always kept a close eye on Chen Yuelan, so how could she have done something so terrible?

"Th...that’s impossible...How could she do something like that?"

"At the banquet held by the Han family, your daughter told her friends that an official’s daughter-in-law had been spotted in another city while her husband was off fighting at the border. When she returned, she was pregnant. My own daughter was in that group, and the story has been spreading everywhere since."

"This must be some misunderstanding. My daughter hasn’t left the capital. How could she know anything about that?"

"How she knows isn’t the issue. What matters is that those words came from her mouth. Chen Furen, your daughter tried to harm someone, so she must be prepared for retaliation. It’s a simple principle that I’m sure I don’t need to explain to you."

"But...even so, she shouldn’t destroy my daughter’s life like this. Please, Wen Furen, have some sympathy for me and order the opera troupe to stop."

Wen Furen could only scoff at this. It was fine for her daughter to ruin others, but when someone retaliated, that was unacceptable? It was no surprise at all that her daughter behaved this way.

"You misunderstand. This opera has nothing to do with the Young Furen of the Hou Manor. She is merely a guest at this event. As far as I know, no one else in the Yong An Hou Manor has heard about these rumors yet, except for her. Otherwise, both the Hou and his wife wouldn’t be so calm. This opera troupe was a gift from Princess An Le. I wouldn’t dare defy the princess’s wishes."

Upon hearing this, Chen Furen nearly fainted. It seemed that the matter had escalated to the point where Princess An Le herself was involved. Seeing Chen Furen still standing there in shock, Wen Furen excused herself and hurried back inside.

Chen Furen slowly reflected on everything that had happened. As she walked back to find Chen Yuelan, who sat waiting alone in the garden, the truth became clear to her.

Everything that had transpired was the result of Chen Yuelan’s own actions. She had attacked Nie Shuang, who hadn’t even retaliated—such restraint was an immense mercy. Chen Yuelan sat at the stone table, frowning deeply. When she saw her mother, she anxiously jumped to her feet.

"Mother! How did it go?"

Chen Furen looked at her daughter. Chen Yuelan was good at stirring up trouble, but when it came to dealing with the aftermath, she always hid behind her parents, expecting them to clean up the mess. This time was no different. She had spread malicious rumors about the Hou Manor without regard for the long-standing relationship between the two families. Worse yet, as a woman, she had fabricated such disgraceful rumors to harm another. Chen Furen was deeply disappointed in her daughter.

"We’re leaving!"

Chen Furen snapped, feeling so disappointed and ashamed that she didn’t dare to face people.

"Mother! What about that opera!? You can’t just let people misunderstand me like this!"

Chen Yuelan raised her voice when she realized her mother had failed to resolve the situation. She refused to be ridiculed any longer.

"If that’s the case, go speak to Wen Furen yourself. This opera was gifted by Princess An Le. Do you think you can just order her around? And what about the rumors about the Hou’s daughter-in-law? You’re the one who started the rumor that her unborn child isn’t General Song’s. Are you out of your mind? What do you think will happen if this reaches the ears of the Hou? How will the Chen family fare against the Song family? Even if you were to crawl on your knees, begging for forgiveness, do you think the Hou would ever forgive you?"

Chen Yuelan was shocked to realize her mother knew everything. She grabbed her mother’s arm, crying.

"Mother, you can’t just leave things like this. You must do something. I can’t stand being laughed at any longer."

Chen Furen brushed her daughter’s hand away and walked out of the event. Seeing her mother’s indifferent attitude, Chen Yuelan became furious.

"Fine! If you won’t help, I’ll handle this in my own way."

Chen Yuelan stomped back into the opera house, with Chen Furen trying to grab hold of her but failing to catch up. All she could do was rush after her daughter. On stage, the story had reached the point where the female protagonist was about to marry into the family of the man she loved, even though she would wed his younger brother instead. Yet, she couldn’t let go of her feelings for the elder brother and plotted to frame her rival by accusing her of adultery. However, the younger brother discovered the plan and called off the wedding. The audience whispered loudly amongst themselves—everyone knew of Chen Yuelan’s desire to marry Song Qilin. But it was unexpected that she would try to marry Song Ren with such hidden motives. Even if, in reality, Chen Yuelan didn’t harbor such sinister intentions, the play was now leading the audience to think otherwise. No amount of explanation could easily clear her name.

As Chen Yuelan returned, everyone eyed her covertly. When she and her mother had previously left, they had already caught people’s attention. No one expected her to have the audacity to return. Everyone felt that today’s opera was so gripping it seemed indistinguishable from real life. She stood in front of the stage, aware that all eyes were on her. In her anger, she feared nothing. Even though the audience was filled with noblewomen from prominent families, they did not intimidate her.

In her mind, she had done nothing wrong. The marriage with Song Ren had been arranged by her parents. The remarks she made at the Hou’s birthday celebration were truths that the Hou Manor simply refused to acknowledge. Even the scandalous rumors about Nie Shuang had originated from her own stepmother’s words. Why was she being blamed for everything now? Even her mother refused to defend her.

"Nie Shuang! Today, I’ll drag you into the mud with me."

She muttered through gritted teeth before shouting,

"The story in this opera is all lies. Someone with ill intentions is trying to destroy my reputation. Please, everyone, see the truth and grant me justice."

The performers, stunned by the interruption, stopped the play. Even the music came to an abrupt halt, and silence fell over the opera house. Wen Furen, realizing what was happening, quickly stood up to defuse the situation.

"Young Miss Chen, let’s talk about this calmly. The opera is meant to entertain—don’t take it too seriously. No one thinks it’s about you."

Though she spoke these words, internally Wen Furen was cursing Chen Yuelan.Heavens...why did these two mother and daughter come to ruin her banquet?!