Chapter 244 - 243: In a Hurry
Mrs. Wang, seeing a resemblance between Chen Yulan and Chen Shiying during his youth, both in appearances and demeanor, had tears welling in her eyes. She said, "Good boy, please rise."
She felt that it was time to give him a welcome gift, but she didn’t expect Chen Shiying to have his son visit, let alone observing such formalities, so she wasn’t prepared with a gift and blushed in embarrassment. Suddenly, she recalled spending recent days sewing money pouches because her mind was filled with thoughts of her daughter. One of those pouches, which was intricately sewn, was intended for Dabao. She went inside the room to fetch the money pouch and handed it to Chen Yulan with a smile, "Good boy, this was hand-sewn by your aunt, please don’t find it lacking."
Accepting the money pouch, Chen Yulan replied with a smile, "It’s beautiful. My father told me about how skilled my Aunt is, and he was right after all." He then happily hung it on his waist belt.
Thereafter, he presented Chen Shi a gift list. Mrs. Jiang had sent some gifts to the households of Chen Shi and Chen Ming, namely fabrics, food, and school supplies.
Chen Shi was ecstatic, not because the gifts were extravagant, but because they were tokens from the house of the Governor.
Chen Afu genuinely felt that the child was well-taught and the behavior of Mrs. Jiang was remarkable. As such, Chen Shiying would appreciate her open-mindedness and wisdom even more. She managed to pacify the strained relationships between her husband, Mrs. Wang, and Chen Afu. At the same time, she somewhat made up for the negative impression caused by Mrs. Chen.
Busy with his governmental duties, Chen Shiying left the family matters to Mrs. Jiang, including the upbringing of their children. Chen Yuqing and Chen Yulan were raised in Mrs. Jiang’s courtyard since their early childhood, and both moved out when they were ten years old. Chen Yulan especially, who lived in the outer courtyard, still regularly returned to the main court to eat his meals. Chen Yuhui and Chen Yuxia were raised by their respective stepmothers; Chen Yuhui, especially, was favored as the oldest granddaughter by Mrs. Chen and spent much time in Hengshou Pavilion. By growing up under two ruthless people, she was instilled with malicious actions at such a young age. Chen Yuxia, on the other hand, grew up under the care of Mrs. Lu. As Mrs. Lu used to serve in Mrs. Jiang’s court, they had a close relationship. Hence, Mrs. Jiang also oversaw Chen Yuxia’s upbringing, resulting in the child turning out fine.
Afu was confused as to why Mrs. Jiang, a virtuous, generous, and intelligent woman, hadn’t taken the time to educate Chen Yuhui. After all, she was still a daughter of Chen Shiying. Perhaps, there were more complexities within the Chen family than she knew about.