Chapter XI. Stepmother

　　Dou Zhao had mixed feelings. 　　If this woman who suddenly appeared was her stepmother, and her mother wanted to make something out of her identity, I'm afraid she would be greatly disappointed. 　　Her stepmother's surname was Wang, her maiden name was Yingxue, and she was the daughter of Wang Xingyi. 　　Wang Xingyi, the word and province, Lingshou County, North Zhili Lingshou County, Nanwa Township people. Zhide thirty-six years jichou section of the bachelor's degree. At first, he was the head of the Ministry of Appointments, and then he was promoted to the Ministry of War, and then he was promoted to the Department of the Carriage Department. During the period of Mongolia I-Ta Khan several times with troops invaded the northern border, the military officer Changxing Hou Shi Duanlan, who was defending Datong at that time, requested to open the horse market to make peace with it. Wang Xingyi wrote a letter, "Request to Strike the Horse Market", stating that Shi Duanlan's "ten cannot be five falsehoods". Chen Dong, the eunuch in charge of the Secretarial Supervision, sheltered Shi Duanlan, and Wang Xingyi impeached Chen Dong for "five adulterers and fifteen sins". In the fourth year of Yongming's reign, Wang Xingyi was sentenced to 100 strokes of the cane and put on death row. Wang Xingyi was famous for his refusal to write a letter of repentance and was tortured in prison. Chen Dong died of illness, and after the rescue of Zeng Yifen, a scholar in the Cabinet and Minister of the Ministry of Revenue, Wang Xingyi was re-sentenced to exile in Xiningwei in the sixth year of the Yongming reign. 　　In the following years, the Mongols still disturbed the border, and the horse market was destroyed. 　　Chengping four years, that is, the stepmother married over the third year, in Zeng Yifen's recommendation, Wang Xingzu was employed. 　　First transferred to shandong xintai county magistrate, and then changed to the Ministry of criminal affairs, the Ministry of rites, the Ministry of military affairs, the Ministry of military affairs, four positions within half a year. 　　At this time from his exile has passed ten years, through two dynasties. 　　After that, Wang Xingyi all the way up, Douzhao sick, he has accumulated officials to the East Cabinet, Secretary of the Ministry of Rites, the position is very important. 　　Wang's family is a small family name in the South Puddle, generations of farming and studying. Wang Xingyi after the incident, Wang's wife Xu's to rescue her husband, the family property sold out. After Wang Xingyi re-sentenced to exile, Wang's eldest son Wang Zhishang served his father who was too sick to walk to Xiningwei, Wang's wife took her eldest daughter-in-law, Gao, who had just been married for less than a month, and her second son, Wang Zhi Piao, and daughter, Ying Xue, to live their lives. Because the family has no constant property, Gao took the initiative to sell the dowry, silver 300 taels, of which 30 taels used to buy four acres of good land used to live, the rest is used to relief in the far West Ning Wei Wang Xingyi and Wang Zhihuang food and clothing, the days are very difficult. 　　There are like the Gao family, such a deep sense of justice, there are also like Wang Yingxue's husband's family Lei's like profit-oriented. 　　Yongming eight years, Lei saw Zeng Yifen was forced to resign, Wang Xingyi did not have the possibility of recovery, fourteen-year-old Wang Yingxue was withdrawn from the marriage. 　　Wang Yingxue gritted her teeth, so she sold the Lei family's bride price, and one of Gao's accompanying rooms stepped forward to start the purchase of cotton, which can support the bottomless pit of the Xiningwei, Wang Xingyi can live to be restored. 　　So when the third aunt told her mother that her father had sent people to receive that woman to Zhending, she and her great aunt discussed and decided to meet that woman in the great aunt's dowry manor, Dou Zhao cried out and grabbed her mother's skirt and wouldn't let go. 　　Mother forced her anger to coax her. 　　Third Auntie, however, was struck by an idea and laughed, ''This is good. If others ask, just say that you brought Shougou to your sister-in-law's estate to play." 　　Mother then gave up, absentmindedly along with the third aunt went to the eldest aunt's manor. 　　The eldest aunt was already waiting at the second gate. 　　She took her mother's hand and looked her up and down, nodding her head in praise, "I was afraid that you wouldn't be able to handle it, but now it seems that I was overly concerned." 　　Her mother was wearing a large red vase persimmon pattern through the sleeve jacket representing the main family, black silk combed a fallen horse bun, only in the bun next to the hairpin by the size of the lotus rice pearl inlaid peony bead flower, turquoise jadeite bracelet in the mother's frosty snow wrists and red cuffs such as a spring water as bright and clear, dignified and elegant, without losing the grace and elegance. 　　Third aunt also praised: "Seventh sister has always been able to primp, today is especially beautiful." 　　The corners of her mother's mouth were covered with a bitter smile that quickly disappeared. 　　She curtsied towards her first and third aunts, "Please help me with today's matter." 　　"This is natural." Great Aunt and Third Aunt coincidentally pushed their mother, looking at her with eyes as loving as a mother's, "We won't let the seventh uncle do whatever he wants." 　　Mother's complexion was slightly fixed. 　　Great Aunt smiled and hugged Dou Zhao, "Shou Aunt, the camellias behind Great Aunt's house are in bloom, you'll lead the maids to help Great Aunt cut a few branches to insert into the bottle, okay?" But her gaze fell directly on Touniang and Vanilla, who were following her. 　　Dou Zhao tightly wrapped her arms around her great aunt's neck, "I want, mother, want, great aunt, want, third aunt ......" cried with a deafening sound, startling her great aunt. 　　Mother busy took Dou Zhao, and shy and annoyed red face said: "This child also do not know what's wrong, these days always inch by inch follow me, I walk away, will cry so that people can not live in peace ......" 　　Great Aunt sighed as she listened and stroked Dou Zhao's hair, "People of the older generation often say that mothers and daughters are connected. This child is a smart one, knowing that you are suffering in your heart, she is afraid!" 　　The words made the mother tear up, but the hand holding Dou Zhao tightened a lot. 　　"Let her follow you!" Third aunt lamented, "She's still young anyway." 　　Mother gave a "hmm". 　　The group turned around the hall and went to the flower hall in the backyard. 　　The plum blossoms on the branches were in full bloom in the snowy weather. 　　A woman with a beautiful figure wearing a rose-red jacket stood straight by the window, mirroring the cold plums outside. 　　Dou Zhao's heart tightened. 　　It was her stepmother! 　　This figure, she would never forget! 　　When her grandfather and grandmother passed away one after another, and her third uncle sent herself to Kyoto to be reunited with her father, she had stood by the window like this, sizing herself up sharply; on the night that the Marquis of Jining formally offered the Dou family a job, she had stood by the window like this, staring at herself with her face as heavy as water; after she had let Wei Tingyu take in the maidservant that she had sent to her and then let Wei Tingyu send the maidservant off to someone else, and then went back to her mother's house in the Spring Festival to pay respects to her, she had stood by the window like this, clenching the window tightly, staring at herself like this. Standing by the window, clenching her hands and looking at herself in silence; when she wanted to ask for her brother Dou Xiao to marry Zeng Yifen's granddaughter and was rejected, she called herself back to her mother's house and used to stand by the window with a scowl on her face like this ...... 　　Dou Zhao stared at the figure with unblinking eyes. 　　From being terrified to laughing openly, she was like walking barefoot in purgatory. 　　Who has ever pitied his own hurt and wail. 　　The mother's steps slowed down. 　　The rain was like a poplar flower. 　　The figure turned around. 　　Bright forehead, high bridge of the nose, clear gaze, landscape like a bell. 　　The mother jumped up like a cat that had its tail stepped on: "How is it you? Wang Ying Xue, how is it you!" 　　She faltered, holding Dou Zhao's arm as she fell helplessly, and Dou Zhao held onto his mother's waist to keep from being thrown down. 　　First and third aunts looked at each other in dismay, and the third aunty cleverly caught Dou Zhao in her arms. 　　Wang Yingxue walked out with a calm demeanor. 　　She stood under the hipped porch and bent her knees to bow to her mother, softly calling out "Sister". 　　"I'm the only daughter in our Zhao family, I don't know when I got another sister?" Mother laughed coldly, although she tried her best to maintain the calm elegance from earlier, it was hard to hide the wolfishness between her brows, "Did you recognize the wrong person!" 　　Wang Ying Xue lowered her eyelids and knelt on the cold green stone bricks under the hipped porch, her expression was respectful and humble, just like the respect she showed in front of the Dou family elders, "Sister, our two families live next door to each other, I don't have a sister, and my sister only has one older brother, growing up together like brothers and sisters, my temperament my sister is the most clear of all. Although my family is down and out, I am not that shameless. The Gao family knew that my family was in trouble, but they still married their daughter. My sister-in-law and my brother were married less than a month ago, but she offered to let my brother serve my father at Xiningwei. Now my nephew Nan is seriously ill, and even if we sell the four acres of good land we depend on for our livelihood, we won't be able to come up with the money to pay for medical treatment. I originally thought that as long as someone was willing, I would accept being a slave or a servant girl, but I never thought that I would run into my brother-in-law." She said, heavily kowtowed three times to her mother, "A big mistake has been made, I have nothing to say. I can only beg the eunuch, if my sister agrees to me entering the door, I will forget about my previous relationship and serve my sister with all my heart. Sister ......" Her eyes flashed in the corner of her eyes, "If I want to blame it, I will only blame the creation," she kowtowed again, "I will definitely serve sister well in the future! " 　　"Ha!" Mother snorted, gazing at Wang Ying Xue, raising an eyebrow, "What if I don't agree?" 　　Wang Ying Xue froze slightly, then smiled mockingly and said, "Then I will beg sister to reward me with a white silk." 　　Without a word, mother drew down the big red sweatband around her waist and threw it on the ground, smilingly asking Wang Ying Xue, "Is it long enough!" 　　Wang Ying Xue looked at her mother with certainty, slowly stood up and walked to her mother with a smile on the corner of her mouth, bent her knees and picked up the red scarf, faintly said, "Thank you, sister," and turned toward the flower hall. 　　The snow fell between her lacquered hair and quickly disappeared. 　　This is the great aunt's dowry manor, if there is a fatal case, her reputation is all over. 　　The eldest aunt was scared, busy saying, "Seventh sister, who is the woman? How do you know her?" 　　Mother looked at the "snap" the door closed flower hall, lost in thought na na said: "She is the daughter of Wang and province, living in the South Puddle ...... and my father was a fellow student, our two families have dealings from time to time. ...... She is two years younger than me ...... When I got married, she also sent me two parties of hand embroidered parallel lotus flowers of the pads ...... I did not expect... ...I didn't dream of it ...... No wonder how Yuan refused to say who it was ...... They made a trap to trick me ...... " 　　First and third aunts, however, were startled: "Wang Yusheng, is it that Wang Yixing who was exiled because he offended Chen Dong?" 　　Mother gently nodded her head and shed two lines of tears. 　　"Why is seventh uncle so confused? Her father was a jinshi in the year of jichou, the same subject as your fifth uncle." The first aunt was anxious, "No, I have to go and talk to the younger uncle ......" and instructed the third aunt, "You quickly stop Miss Wang, I will go and call someone!" 　　Because a young man's concubinage is not something honorable, the servants serving inside and outside the flower hall have long been dismissed by the eldest aunt. 　　Third Aunt also realized the seriousness of the situation. 　　The Dou family wasn't afraid of offending the powerful and noble, but was afraid of carrying the charge of forcing a downtrodden daughter of the same year to death. 　　She lost her voice in response and ran towards the flower hall with her skirt in hand. 　　Mother stood quietly on the green stone bridge, letting the snowflakes drift and pile up on her body, turning into a snowman. 　　Accompanying her, only the small Dou Zhao.