Chapter 819: Chapter 819: Requesting to Leave the Family
Song Ci truly felt that her eyes had been opened. Two individuals whose combined ages exceeded fifty, both educated and officials, with the woman being an Imperial Decree, yet behaving like a common market shrew, fighting and pulling her husbandâs hair?
Oh dear, it felt suffocating in her chest.
What a mess. She knew that having a concubine in a small family was the root of chaos. It seemed the Song Familyâs ancestral rules needed another stern addition.
To specifically address these men who couldnât control their lower halves.
Song Zhiqing and Mrs. Lu, kneeling on the ground, didnât dare lift their heads. In this hot summer, it felt as if they were knee-deep in ice, with countless ants burrowing into their knees, densely packed, itchy and painful.
"You both really are something," Song Ci said with a calm face. "Old Third, I fear the Saintly Books you read have ended up in a dogâs stomach, havenât they? A dignified man actually laying hands on his wife? Arenât you afraid that if word gets out, the Imperial Censor will present this to the court, making your scandal known throughout the capital?"
Indeed, a Fifth Rank official beating his wife, the Imperial Censorate sure owed him a trending topic.
Song Zhiqingâs body stiffened, and he raised his head to say, "Mother, I didnât hit her. She went into a frenzy and tried to kill me with a hairpin. I only accidentally bumped into her while trying to seize the hairpin."
It was indeed Mrs. Lu, a small individual from somewhere found the strength, his waist probably bruised, and his neck even more so scratched by the hairpin.
Luckily it was the neck; if it had scratched his face a little higher, wouldnât he have been unable to appear in court?
Song Zhiqing broke into a cold sweat, turned his head, and shot a resentful glance at Mrs. Lu.
This shrew!
Song Ci saw this and let out a cold laugh: "There can be no effect without a cause. Mrs. Lu usually doesnât even speak loudly. How could she suddenly fight you? Clearly, you did something wrong that angered a normally quiet rabbit."
Either explode in silence or perish in silence, this was probably about Mrs. Lu.
Mrs. Lu, on a regular basis, was very attentive to etiquette and rules. One reason was her fear of being looked down upon, so she intentionally learned the mannerisms of etiquette over the years, even teaching Song Ruwei to be mature and composed from a young age. Otherwise, when they first returned, Song Ci remarked that the little girl had lost some innocence and gained some worldly sophistication.
This is why Song Ci wasnât wrong about Mrs. Lu. She usually spoke very gently, partly intentionally, and partly because of her humble status as a concubineâs wife, with her family background not being prominent, causing a sense of inferiority.
Song Zhiqing was momentarily stunned by Song Ciâs reprimand, pressing his lips together.
The couple had been married for years and had always been affectionate. Indeed, he had never seen Mrs. Lu throwing a tantrum. When did she start changing?
Probably from the time he brought Bai into the house.
Song Zhiqing felt somewhat guilty, increasingly feeling the soreness, numbing, and swelling pain in his kneeling knees.
At this moment, Mrs. Lu lifted her head, her eyes brimming with tears, looking at Song Ci, and said, "Mother, this household cannot tolerate me anymore. You might as well take charge and let the daughter-in-law leave."
The words left everyone in shock.
Song Zhiqing, unable to care in front of Song Ci, grabbed Mrs. Luâs arm: "Are you crazy? We just had an argument, why would you go this far?"
Requesting to leave the house herself, if this news spread, it would be Song Zhiqing who lost face. After all, Mrs. Lu was not childless, returned to the capital to serve her in-laws, managed household affairs, did all that a legitimate first wife should do, yet wanted to leave by herself, what would others think?
Right, if a decent person asks to leave the house on their own, wouldnât it be because a favored concubine oppressed the wife to the point of extinction?