The Foolish General's Mute Spouse - Chapter 33

33: Is Sister-in-Law Pregnant?

Fu Yu’an was still lost in melancholy in the courtyard when Qi Ren called out to him. Quickly composing himself, he walked over.

There weren’t any particularly nice baskets in the courtyard, but since they were all family, Qi Ren simply carried the cloth pouch to deliver it to the Second Madam.

As soon as they entered her courtyard, they heard a sharp, familiar voice. Fu Yu’an’s eyelids twitched, and he hurriedly quickened his pace.

Just as they stepped inside, before he could even call out “Mother,” Qi Ren was splashed with a splash of hot tea.

A few tea leaves slid down his instep, lying scattered on the damp ground.

Qi Ren was instantly furious. Handing the pouch to Fu Yu’an, he moved to confront the First Madam.

Fu Yu’an hastily pulled him back, shaking his head to signal him not to act impulsively.

Qi Ren’s fingers cracked audibly as he clenched his fists. Suppressing his anger, he followed Fu Yu’an into the room and greeted coldly, “Mother.”

Xiao Zhu hadn’t come along either, leaving Fu Yu’an unable to speak. He could only stand by the Second Madam’s side, offering silent comfort.

“What are you doing here?” Qi Ren’s tone was blunt and hostile, his chin raised in challenge.

The First Madam shot him a sidelong glance, subtly taking half a step back, and snorted. “Do I need your permission to come here? But look at our Second Madam—now that she has a royal daughter-in-law like His Highness, she must look down on our General’s Manor, on me, the head matron!”

The Second Madam hurriedly explained, “Sister, how could you say such a thing? I… I would never think that way!”

“Never? I think you absolutely do! This tea is moldy! Look at it—even your servants treat me with such disrespect. It must be your doing as their mistress!”

This was nothing but baseless blame. The Second Madam had always been cautious and meticulous—how could she possibly serve moldy tea?

The First Madam’s domineering attitude made it clear she was deliberately picking a fight.

Qi Ren was livid, pointing at her nose and yelling, “Stop talking nonsense! Who in their right mind would serve you moldy tea?! You’re just looking for trouble! Get out, or don’t blame me for hitting you!”

He raised his fist, his eyes fierce and menacing.

The First Madam believed he would truly throw a punch if provoked, and couldn’t help feeling a twinge of fear.

She cursed her luck for not checking the almanac before leaving the house today. She had only meant to humiliate that little wretch, but who knew this lunatic would suddenly show up out of nowhere!

“Hmph! And you claim you don’t look down on us? What, now that you have His Highness backing you, you think you can ignore the law and family rules?! Let me tell you, as long as I’m alive and in this household, don’t you dare dream of overthrowing the natural order!”

“Then why aren’t you dead yet?” Qi Ren retorted without mercy.

People in their twilight years couldn’t stand hearing words like “death” and his blunt question struck right at the First Madam’s greatest taboo.

But Qi Ren was truly terrifying—a madman through and through. Who knew if he might repeat something like cutting off a person’s hand again?

“You wish I were dead?” She sneered. “Even if I die, my son’s son will carry on the line! You two can’t have children, but my grandson will be the sole heir! When the time comes, the entire General’s Manor will have to answer to us!”

Fu Yu’an’s heart skipped a beat. Her grandson? Did Tan Zhiqi get pregnant?

Qi Ren continued to curse and threaten to beat her, but the First Madam knew she couldn’t win against him, neither in words nor in a fight. Seeing no point in continuing, she excused herself under the pretext of needing to tend to her pregnant daughter-in-law and stormed off in a huff.

Once she was gone, the Second Madam finally let out a long sigh of relief. She patted Fu Yu’an’s hand, then took Qi Ren’s and clasped them together, saying, “Ah, you—why argue with her? Now that her daughter-in-law is with child, the entire household is walking on eggshells around her! We should avoid provoking them to spare ourselves the gossip.”

Qi Ren rolled his eyes. “I just can’t stand her! And she dared to say Yu’an can’t have children—even if he couldn’t, he’d still be a hundred, a thousand, no, ten thousand times better than that daughter-in-law of hers!”

Fu Yu’an: “…”

How could I possibly compare to the famously talented and beautiful Tan Zhiqi, the pride of the capital’s noble families?

…Well, I suppose I’m better at drawing those kinds of pictures.

“Alright, alright!” The Second Madam laughed, the wrinkles at the corners of her eyes deepening as she patted Qi Ren’s hand. “You really do protect Yu’an—it’s no wonder he treats you so well! Your father passed early, and you were away from home for so many years. They say where there are many women, there’s bound to be drama, and with her temperament, I’ve always tried to endure it… You should too…”

Qi Ren scoffed. “It’s not like I can’t beat her!”

“…No fighting! Yu’an, keep an eye on him for me.”

Fu Yu’an nodded.

“But she—”

“Ah, are these fruits from your garden? Ren’er, go wash a couple for your mother!”

The Second Madam cut him off, pointing to the bag of fruits with a smile.

Qi Ren pouted, pulled out a few, and reluctantly went to wash them.

The two stayed a while longer at the First Madam’s place, eating some fruit, before Qi Ren eagerly dragged Fu Yu’an back home.

“Why not spend more time talking with your mother? It’s rare for you to visit.” Fu Yu’an couldn’t help but ask on the way back.

Unlike me, who doesn’t even know what my own mother looked like.

Seeing his melancholy expression, Qi Ren inwardly scolded himself for being careless—he should’ve brought Xiao Zhu along to cheer him up.

“She doesn’t like me half as much as she likes you! Honestly, you should just quietly tell her you can speak—I bet she’d talk with you for hours!”

Fu Yu’an burst into laughter. “She’s your mother, not mine. Why would she prefer me? Never mind, next time we visit, I’ll tell her, alright? When you… when your condition improves a little.”

Qi Ren glared at him, scowling. “I’m not sick!”

Fu Yu’an smiled. “Of course, of course. My mistake, sorry.”

He did some mental calculations—the last two times Qi Ren had regained clarity, there had been a gap of over a month. Old Shu had adjusted the medicine, so perhaps the next episode would come sooner.

He’ll get better slowly, he thought. But sometimes, he wondered if it might not be better if Qi Ren didn’t recover. After all, that cold, unfamiliar man who emerged during his lucid moments was someone Fu Yu’an simply couldn’t handle.

Too terrifying.

In the afternoon, Qi Ren went to Xiao He’s house to find Yu Liao, discussing matters with him in the study.

“The Crown Prince has been constantly overshadowed by your dear nephew lately—scolded by His Majesty so often his face is perpetually stormy.” Yu Liao said.

“He’s useless on his own. The Empress Dowager and the Empress always cleaned up his messes before, but now that the Dowager’s gone, how can the Empress possibly outmaneuver him alone?” Qi Ren fiddled with the paperweight on the desk, speaking slowly.

“By the way, I heard your sister-in-law is pregnant?”

“Mm. The First Madam has moved into their courtyard to keep a close watch.”

“Ah! The first child must be handled with care! When my wife was pregnant with Xiao He, she suffered so much! By the end, her feet were swollen this big… Sigh… Does she still not know about her father’s situation?”

Qi Ren nodded. “What else can we do? This is the firstborn heir—if anything goes wrong, my father would claw his way out of the coffin to haunt us!”

“Fair enough. Well, her father brought this upon himself. With so many officials jointly impeaching him, His Majesty is bound to lose his temper.”

“Isn’t he taking those ‘immortality pills’? What’s the worst that could happen—he’ll die of anger?”

“Who knows? You’re aware of how it is.”

“……”