The Mute Wife Who Brings Prosperity

Chapter 353 - 321: Song Duobao (Second Update)

Indeed, compared to the little antics of Su Yu and her group, this is a real setup, a real scheme, meticulously crafted so that you have no defense against it.

If not for the ability to foresee danger, Wen Wan could hardly imagine what her fate would be at that moment.

"So, did I unknowingly offend a Noble?" Wen Wan asked Song Wei with a smile.

Such methods, such scheming, were certainly not the work of ordinary people.

And those who could easily set up such a plot within the palace can be counted on one hand.

Wen Wan, a mere housewife, had never interacted with the nobles in the palace, how could she possibly offend them?

It was simply that Song Wei’s rise was so prominent that it blocked others’ paths, and someone took the opportunity to direct this trouble onto her.

If this incident were to truly occur, it wouldn’t only be Wen Wan and Song Wei who would suffer; even Song Yuanbao, who acted as the Eldest Prince’s companion at Yutang Palace, would be implicated.

A multi-tiered, multi-target scheme.

The more Wen Wan thought about it, the more frightened she became.

Seeing the lingering fear in her eyes, Song Wei picked up the teapot from the table, poured her a cup of warm tea, saying nothing, yet providing her with great comfort without words.

Wen Wan took the cup without savoring it, gulped down more than half.

Perhaps because it was tea poured by him personally, amidst its sweet aftertaste, her emotions indeed calmed.

All along, Song Wei had this ability in Wen Wan’s eyes; no matter what trouble she faced, as long as he was there, even without speaking, just standing there, he could make her feel a strong sense of belonging and reliance.

After she set down the teacup, Song Wei finally asked, "Are you still afraid?"

Wen Wan pursed her lips with a smile and gently shook her head.

She believed that the man already had a way to dismantle this setup.

In the past, every time they sensed danger, they cooperated in this way; she would articulate the opponent’s scheme, and Song Wei would think of a way to resolve it.

...

Recently, Jinbao had developed an interest in painting. Earlier, when Wen Wan and Song Wei were discussing matters in the room, he was tinkering in his brother’s study in the outer courtyard with Song Jiao. At this moment, he was being led by Song Jiao with one hand, while the other hand held a paper swaying in the wind as he took small steps over the threshold.

At the sight of her son, the last trace of anxiety in Wen Wan’s heart faded, her expression softening, her eyes peaceful and her lips curling upward as she asked, "Jinbao, what did you draw today?"

After steadying himself, the little one pulled his chubby hand from Song Jiao’s palm, methodically tidied the paper, and then spread it out in front of Wen Wan with both hands, saying, "Parrot."

Indeed, the parrot belonging to grandpa was perched under the eaves of the outer courtyard.

Hearing her little one say this, Wen Wan looked down and saw a dark mass on the paper. If not for some areas left white showing a vague outline of a bird, Wen Wan would never have guessed that this thing was called a parrot.

She thought it looked more like a crow.

As his mother, Wen Wan very considerately examined the drawing carefully, then asked, "Did Jinbao draw this all by himself?"

Song Jiao beside him explained, "Originally, the two of us painted one together, and it even looked quite presentable, but Jinbao threw it away, saying he wanted to do it himself, and this is the result..."

Though it wasn’t great, and even hard to look at, for a little one of just two and a half years old, being able to steadily hold a brush and know not to get ink on himself while dipping the brush is already quite commendable in Wen Wan’s eyes.

Like his father, a genius who could recognize words at three and read at five, not one in a hundred could come close to matching that standard, and it wasn’t right to hold him to such expectations.

The little one stood on the spot, head tilted back, blinking his large, dark, and bright eyes at his parents, clearly waiting for praise.

After secretly laughing, Wen Wan rewarded him with a big kiss, "Jinbao is terrific; with more practice in the future, you’ll surely become a great artist like Mr. Liu."

The little one had no idea who Mr. Liu was and sat on his mother’s lap, using his tiny foot to nudge his father, indicating that even though his mother praised him, his father has yet to.

Song Wei leaned forward, placing his hands under Jinbao’s armpits to lift the little one over, and asked, "Is painting fun?"

Jinbao nodded vigorously, as he loved painting. Grandpa told him that his parrot drawing was very good.

Song Wei smiled slightly, "I’ll personally teach you how to draw when I find some free time."

——

On the day of attending the palace banquet, they got up very early.

To be safe, Wen Wan did not wear the clothes she bought from the ready-made clothes shop earlier, instead choosing an outfit she had rarely worn before. The material wasn’t as good as the one she bought, but at least the craftsmanship was fine.

Song Jiao, served by a little maid and dressed up, came to Qingteng Residence and saw Wen Wan dressed differently, she asked in confusion, "Aunt Wen, haven’t you changed?"

Wen Wan was having breakfast with her son. Upon hearing this, she looked up and smiled, saying that due to her carelessness, the outfit got snagged and couldn’t be worn out again, so she had to change last minute.

Song Jiao didn’t doubt her explanation, glanced around, and asked, "Where is Uncle Third?"

Wen Wan said, "In the outer courtyard, should be coming soon."

Just as she finished speaking, Granny Song’s voice came in first.

Wen Wan turned her head and saw her mother-in-law and husband coming in one after the other, and she quickly greeted them with a smile.

Jinbao was drinking porridge with his head down. Hearing the voices, he looked up with his little face and grinned at everyone, with some soup on the corners of his lips.

Wen Wan took out a handkerchief to wipe his mouth while talking to her mother-in-law, "It’s getting late, we should get going, Mom, please take Jinbao away now, or else he’ll cry once he sees us leave."

The little guy, cleaned by his mother, suddenly looked up and said sulkily, "No carry, I walk myself."

Wen Wan was taken aback.

Jinbao snorted and freed himself from his mother, walking with his little legs toward his grandmother, with an air of "Dad and Mom are bad, don’t want them, only want Grandma," making Wen Wan laugh despite herself.

Song Jiao watched the little guy’s proud back and merrily commented, "He can understand already? When our Sanyang was two and a half, she wasn’t as clever."

Granny Song, already stepping out with her grandson, retreated a step upon hearing this, turned her head to look at Song Jiao standing inside, "You haven’t looked at who gave birth to Sanyang, who gave birth to this little golden grandson, how could they be the same?"

"Oh Grandma, how can you talk like that about your own granddaughter?" Song Jiao, already used to Granny Song’s cantankerous nature, wasn’t angry, but instead found it amusing.

Granny Song spared no feelings, "Not just my granddaughter, I can talk like that about my own sons too, what about it?"

Song Jiao was at a loss for words, "Whatever makes you happy."

Wen Wan was about to say something when she overheard her mother-in-law grumbling, "Waited for years and finally got a son, now he’s really treated like a treasure. If they keep spoiling him like that, sooner or later the Song family will end up with a good-for-nothing. Neither your dad nor your mom were meant to raise treasures."

A few months earlier, the Second Lang’s wife had just given birth to their fourth child, a son, which delighted the couple, and as soon as she was out of confinement, they were busy writing letters to the Capital.

In the letter, Song Erlang initially planned to name his son after the two from Third Lang’s family, and simply called him Sanbao. Later, his wife suggested that Sanbao was not enough, and to directly name him Duobao. They have Yuanbao and Jinbao, their family should have Duobao, how splendid.

When Granny Song heard Wen Wan reading the letter, her lips twitched but she said nothing, thinking Duobao would be fine, after all, he’s still a grandson of the Song family. They couldn’t just favor Third Lang’s family and neglect Second Lang’s.

The reply was dictated by Granny Song and penned by Wen Wan. Wei Qian was tasked to find someone to deliver it to Ningzhou. When the messenger returned, he told Wen Wan that Song Erlang’s two young daughters seemed pitiful.

Hidden Guard generally doesn’t exaggerate or embellish, and just with that one sentence, Wen Wan gleaned a lot of information.

After Granny Song found out, she was so angry that her nostrils flared, cursing the couple for being heartless, having a son and using their daughters like beasts of burden.

After scolding, Granny Song asked Wen Wan whether Second Lang’s wife might pull the same trick, trying to mistreat Er Ya and Sanyang in order to force them to bring the two girls to the Capital.

Wen Wan found it hard to make a definite judgment on this matter and told her not to overthink it at the time.

Despite this, Granny Song’s anger toward her second son and daughter-in-law could not be dissipated, staying stuffed in her chest, and a few mutterings now counted as restrained. If the culprits were present, they would certainly be scolded fiercely.

Wen Wan felt sorry for Er Ya and Sanyang, but she couldn’t save everyone.

Er Ya and Sanyang were still young and not as well-behaved as Da Ya. If brought over, Wen Wan herself had no time to take care of them or to teach them. Then they would have to be left to her mother-in-law, who was already exhausted taking care of just Jinbao. Adding two more girls, how could she manage?

Moreover, if the girls came, the attention Grandma put on Jinbao would inevitably be partly diverted.

Second Lang’s wife wanted to use their third branch as a stepping stone for her three daughters to climb higher, Wen Wan might overlook her in consideration of the kids, but as for helping the second branch raise children, she would rather choose to be a bit selfish.