Chapter 83: Under the Wife’s Rule

"Just a hundred days after her passing, he elevated his concubine to the position of wife?" Shen Chang'an's face was grim. "Tan Yun, I swear I will kill him to avenge Qingqing!"

Beside him, Madam Shen had already been weeping bitterly. As she sobbed, she muttered, "Back then, when Tan Yun treated us that way, we thought him ungrateful and ruthless, obsessed with power and status, not someone to entrust one's life to. We should have been firmer and taken Qingqing away ourselves at the time."

"Why didn't we take Qingqing away? My precious daughter..."

"When I first arrived in Qizhou, I kept thinking—Qizhou is wild and remote. Fortunately, Qingqing didn't follow us there, or she would have suffered. I thought, even though we were separated, if Tan Yun treated her well, it would be fine."

"I always believed that Qingqing was living well, enjoying life in the capital. When I heard that Lady Tan's daughter married the heir to Prince Ding, I thought our Qingqing was truly fortunate. After her daughter married the prince's heir, Tan Yun, who values power above all else, should have treated her even better. How could I have known..."

"How could I have known our Qingqing departed so early, and we were kept in the dark?"

Tan Qingjiu listened to Madam Shen's voice, nearly hoarse with grief, and watched Shen Chang'an, who remained silent, veins bulging on his forehead, tears glistening in his eyes.

In her heart, Tan Qingjiu thought, her grandfather and grandmother truly loved her mother.

Otherwise, they would not be like this.

Tan Qingjiu lowered her head, biting her lip. "My mother and I never had a good life in the Tan household."

"Tan Yun favored his concubine and neglected his wife. After my mother died, everyone in the household bullied me. Over six years ago, I was schemed against by Lady Tan's daughter—she arranged for someone to violate me, and I became pregnant as a result."

Tan Qingjiu gave a bitter laugh. "My mother and I—like mother, like daughter—our fates are nearly identical. Six years ago, after Tan Yunge trapped me, Tan Yun wanted to drown me in the pond. Luckily, I survived."

"But six years ago, I finally learned that my mother's death had been a conspiracy."

Shen Chang'an and Madam Shen immediately looked at Tan Qingjiu. "What conspiracy?"

Tan Qingjiu explained everything to Shen Chang'an and Madam Shen, and they erupted in anger.

"Was it that concubine of Tan Yun's doing?"

---

Tan Qingjiu pressed her lips together. "It was orchestrated by Tan Yun's concubine, but Tan Yun must have known and tacitly allowed it."

Shen Chang'an suddenly seized his sword. "I will go to the Tan household and slay him and that venomous woman!"

Madam Shen quickly grabbed Shen Chang'an. "Sit down!"

Though Shen Chang'an was old, he was still vigorous. But at Madam Shen's sharp command, he froze and turned to her. "They killed my Qingqing!"

Madam Shen wiped her tears. "I know! How could I not know they killed Qingqing? How could I not want to kill them?"

"But if you act so rashly, not only will you fail to avenge Qingqing, you will lose yourself as well."

Madam Shen gritted her teeth, her eyes filled with dark hatred. "Vengeance must be taken, but we cannot rush in blindly. We have no evidence. If you charge in now, we will only disgrace Qingqing's name."

Shen Chang'an took a deep breath, his expression agitated. "Then, Madam, what do you suggest?"

Madam Shen turned her gaze to Tan Qingjiu, her eyes searching. "Qingjiu, earlier you said you survived the drowning six years ago. Yet when you introduced yourself, you called yourself the second young lady of the Tan household. Tan Qingjiu, what is your situation now?"

Tan Qingjiu was a little surprised. She had been observing her grandfather and grandmother, and had gained a fair understanding.

Her grandfather must have been a martial artist, though he was somewhat reckless and, perhaps, strictly managed by his wife.

Her grandmother, however, was shrewd and thoughtful.

Tan Qingjiu lowered her eyes. "That is a long story... After I was drowned six years ago, it was Tan Yunge who saved me."

Madam Shen pressed further. "But didn't you say Tan Yunge schemed against you, caused you to be drowned? How could she then save you?"

Tan Qingjiu bit her lip and revealed the whole story.

"At the time, I was with two newborn infants. It was only through the help of others that we survived."

---

"Not a day has passed in these six years without my longing for revenge—revenge for myself, and for my mother."

"For six years, I slept only two hours a night. Each day, as soon as I woke, I studied medicine, practiced my skills, and learned self-defense from my master, all for the purpose of returning to avenge us. Six years passed, and when I felt ready, I returned to the capital, bringing people with me."

"I knew Tan Yun cared only for fame and power, so I didn't go directly to the Tan household. Instead, I established myself as a renowned healer, opening a clinic for a month. During that time, I met many prominent figures in the capital. I treated their illnesses, and my reputation grew, little by little."

"After that, I sought out the Tan household and revealed my identity, prompting Tan Yun himself to invite me back."

Shen Chang'an sneered. "He has the nerve?"

"He naturally does. As I predicted, if it benefits the Tan household or himself, he won't let it slip by."

Madam Shen listened to Tan Qingjiu, her doubts gradually fading, her eyes full of pity.

"But even though Tan Yun invited you back, your stepmother and sister must have made your life difficult, didn't they?"

Tan Qingjiu paused, surprised that Madam Shen was not concerned with her progress in avenging her mother, but instead cared about how she was faring in the Tan household.

Tan Qingjiu pressed her lips together, feeling something indescribable in her heart. "It's alright. Tan Yunge and Chen Yue Ru have tried time and again to trouble me, but I can handle it. It's nothing serious."

Madam Shen fixed her gaze on the face so like her daughter's, tears glimmering in her eyes. "You and your mother are nothing alike. Your mother was spoiled by us, so her temperament was gentle. It's my fault—I shouldn't have doted on her so much."

After speaking, Madam Shen clutched Tan Qingjiu's hand. "It doesn't matter. Now your grandfather and I are back, and you have four uncles. From now on, we will never let you be bullied again."