Rebirth of a Farming Wife

Mrs. Wang Sun’s actions not only failed to have any effect, but the guard at the gate even scolded her, “This is the Su Mansion, we cannot allow such clamor here. Leave quickly, or don’t blame us for being rude!”

“You have some nerve, do you know who we are, to speak to me like that!” Mrs. Wang Sun retorted, assuming they had not heard clearly.

“Who might you be then? Speak up,” the guard said, already instructed by the An Family. Otherwise, according to the Su Mansion’s rules, even if a common person arrived at the gate, they wouldn’t be treated so rudely.

“Listen well, this lady is the wife of Magistrate Sun of Yiyang Prefecture, hurry up and have your master come out to greet her. If you neglect the Magistrate’s wife, it’s not a sin you can afford to bear!” Mrs. Wang Sun declared with pride, standing beside her mother.

The Magistrate’s wife, Mrs. Zhang, without speaking, wore a face of arrogance, thinking how the Su Mansion dared to be so ignorant of the rules as to slight her. She was determined not to give the Su family a good face and had originally come looking for trouble.

Both the Magistrate’s wife and Mrs. Wang Sun awaited the guard’s change of expression after hearing their status, yet to their surprise, the guard showed disdain upon hearing it.

“Tsk tsk, I thought it was someone significant, spouting off at the Su Mansion’s doorstep. It’s only a sixth-rank magistrate’s wife, with such a grand display. If one didn’t know better, they might think it was a royal princess. How dare you even suggest that our mansion’s master come out to greet you, you’re not afraid of your tongue lashing out in the wind!”

“What did you say!”

Mrs. Wang Sun was aware of the rumors about the Su Mansion, but she had dismissed them as mere gossip and paid them no mind. The guard’s comment made her feel uneasy; could it be that the Su Mansion indeed harbored a figure they couldn’t provoke, otherwise they wouldn’t behave in such a manner.

However, Mrs. Zhang had never heard these rumors, or she would be better at discerning their veracity than her daughter and might not even have come to the Su Mansion today. Hearing the guard’s brazen words left her somewhat in disbelief. In the region of Yiyang, the magistrate held a very high position—this was the first time she’d felt so belittled and disregarded, even by a servant.

The guard, having received orders, naturally was not polite. Seeing that Mrs. Zhang had asked, he said, “If you didn’t hear clearly what was said, given the noise, it seems odd. Perhaps you, old lady, are hard of hearing. I told you to roll back where you came from; the Su Mansion is not a place for you to run wild. Did you hear that clearly this time?”

She heard it clearly, indeed too clearly. It wasn’t that she hadn’t caught the words, she just couldn’t believe that a servant of the Su Mansion would treat her with such contempt. Mrs. Zhang, feeling still quite youthful and well-preserved, was irked by the term “old lady”—a clear implication of her age—reddening in anger.

Mrs. Zhang wasn’t about to leave just following the guard’s word—her lifetime of face would be lost. She pointed to one of her bodyguards and commanded, “Go to Xinye County and call the county magistrate over. I want to ask him how he’s managing Xinye, letting such unruly people run wild. Have him come here promptly, or he can forget about his position!”

Mrs. Zhang had lost her temper; otherwise, she wouldn’t have spoken so rashly. Even if the county magistrate was ranked below the general magistrate, his dismissal required Imperial Court approval, not something within a general magistrate’s power, let alone Mrs. Zhang, a woman from the inner house, who should not meddle in Court affairs—a crime if seized upon by those with ulterior motives.

Mrs. Wang Sun grew increasingly uneasy, fearing those rumors could be true. Yet, the disrespect shown by the Su Mansion kindled her indignation. She wanted to harshly chastise the people of the Su Mansion and wasn’t prepared to let Mrs. Su get off easily. Thus, despite her unease and after some hesitation, she still didn’t share the rumors with Mrs. Zhang, suspecting the Su Mansion might be bluffing to scare them off—she couldn’t fall for Su Wenyue’s ploy.

Seeing Mrs. Zhang’s reaction and her intention to involve the county magistrate, the guard just looked at her with a hint of mockery.

“The Old Madam sent me to inquire, who dares to create a disturbance in front of the Su Mansion? Who came to make trouble at our doorstep?” The head maid Bai Lu, who was esteemed by the Old Madam, approached and assessed the people at the mansion’s gate.

“To the Old Madam,” she reported, “this old woman claims to be the wife of Yiyang Prefecture’s Magistrate, but this servant doubts her identity, fearing someone is using the name of the Magistrate’s wife to create a scene. Not to mention, the Magistrate’s wife should be in Yiyang at this hour, not in this countryside place. And would the Magistrate’s wife really lack such manners as to make an unwarranted scene at someone’s home and threaten to use the county magistrate? Clearly, only an ignorant village woman would behave so. Please, Old Madam, instruct us how to deal with these people.”

“What’s this? Daring to impersonate the Magistrate’s wife to cause trouble at our door? Truly outrageous. With such a matter, there’s no need for questions. Just seize them and take them to the county government for the county magistrate to decide,” suggested Bai Lu confidently. The Old Madam trusted her greatly, and in such a minor matter, she didn’t need to seek permission and could make decisions on the spot.

Acting upon Bai Lu’s word, the guard motioned to other bodyguards in the mansion, and a group flowed out, surrounding them and preparing to seize the Magistrate’s wife and her party.

“What do you think you’re doing? I really am the Magistrate’s wife; if you dare to mess around, I won’t forgive you,” Mrs. Zhang said, both irritated and panicked at the crowd converging upon her. She was truly the Magistrate’s wife, and to hear the guard accuse her of being an imposter was outrageous. Mrs. Wang Sun also grew fearful seeing the Mansion so full of people.

“Don’t mess around, my mother truly is the Magistrate’s wife, and if you dare lay a hand on her, you’ll be cursed. Besides, isn’t Mrs. Su back? She knows me, if you let her out, she’ll confirm we’re not impostors. Yes, have Mrs. Su come out. She must have eaten the courage of a leopard if she dares to conspire with her mother’s family to lay hands on me and my mother. When this is investigated, it won’t just be her who can’t afford the punishment—the very Mr. Han who shares her surname could lose his official position,” Mrs. Wang Sun demanded, clinging to the idea of Su Wenyue returning to her mother’s family as a lifeline, her attitude arrogant.

However, the Mansion guards paid no heed to Mrs. Sun’s intentions, “Our Miss is a person of importance, not someone you can simply summon. Looking for so many excuses and reasons, you must be plotting to deceive our Miss for some nefarious purpose—we won’t fall for your tricks!”

The Old Madam cherished her granddaughter Su Wenyue and sought to protect her. As the favorite maid by the Old Madam’s side, Bai Lu shared the same sentiment. Hearing Mrs. Sun’s demeaning remarks about Su Wenyue, Bai Lu was very displeased. Even though the Second House was independent and Wenyue no longer a daughter of the Marquis Mansion, she still held high esteem—it was disgraceful for her to be looked down on by an ignorant woman.

“No need to waste words with them, take them directly to the county government immediately, handing them over to the county magistrate for judgment. Such impudent offenders must be severely punished!”