Chapter 463: Chapter 463: Solution

"If I had to deal with something like this?" Mrs. Qian, who had a rather hot temper, felt awful just thinking about it.

She slammed her hand on the table and declared, "I would never let anyone walk all over me. If she really dared to scheme against me, I’d bring my people and have her dismantled piece by piece."

Her words were full of a bandit’s ferocity. Mrs. Jiang clapped her hands together and asked, "But what if your husband stands on her side?

"We are already past our prime, and those men have long had their souls charmed away. What would you do then?"

Mrs. Qian fell silent. She had spoken boldly at first, but calming down to really think about it, if she were in Mrs. Lin’s position, she would probably be just as conflicted.

"Why are the lives of us women so bitter?" Madam Li empathized deeply. "We spend our whole lives bearing children and managing the inner courtyard for them, yet we still aren’t treated well. What exactly is all this for?"

All three ladies knew that if they truly encountered someone like Widow Li, and their husband was of one mind with the other woman, it really was an unsolvable dilemma.

Bai Suihe sighed. Some mindsets were simply too deeply ingrained.

"If you run into a situation like this, have you never considered a mutual divorce?"

Three pairs of eyes stared at Bai Suihe in astonishment. "Divorce? How could that be possible? Throwing away our reputations and demanding a divorce just over this little matter? And where could we even go?"

Being branded as a jealous wife wouldn’t just implicate their children; even their maiden families would be dragged down. They didn’t even dare to think about the word ’divorce.’

"Couldn’t you establish an independent female household?" Bai Suihe asked.

In order to completely cut ties with the Gu Family in the future, she had established a female household herself.

"Easy for you to say." Mrs. Qian and the others were not nearly as optimistic. They even wondered what they would realistically have to face if they actually got divorced.

"A divorce has a massive impact on the children. At the very least, their path to the imperial exams would be ruined.

"If there are daughters in the family, it would affect their future marriages too. This is absolutely out of the question."

"So Mrs. Lin can only swallow this bitter pill and accept the arrangement?" Bai Suihe felt deeply frustrated. Since ancient times, women had been subjected to all sorts of oppression just to satisfy men’s twisted sense of superiority. She truly hoped those damned pedantic scholars would all reincarnate as women of Song Mingqing, so they could suffer the very sins they had created.

"I’m afraid that in the end, with no other options, she can only accept it." Speaking of this, the three ladies lost the relaxed mood they had while gossiping earlier. Who knew if they might be the next ones to encounter such a situation?

"Does this Mrs. Lin not have a maiden family to back her up?" Bai Suihe asked.

Mrs. Jiang shook her head. "So what if she does? A maiden family has absolutely no grounds to stop a man from taking a concubine."

"This isn’t exactly taking a concubine. Technically, it’s keeping an outside mistress." Bai Suihe couldn’t help but recall how, in modern times, some women dealt with outside mistresses by hanging banners and publicly "taking a concubine on behalf of their husband." That was a tactic worth borrowing. "Since that’s what the other party is planning, Mrs. Lin should take a tough stance.

"I refuse to believe a widow doesn’t care about her reputation. As long as Mrs. Lin blows this matter up, that widow will have no choice but to obediently sign a deed of servitude to become a concubine."

As soon as Bai Suihe said this, the three ladies’ eyes lit up. They asked in unison, "Do you have a good idea?"

If there was a chance to teach these outside seductresses a lesson, they would naturally be more than happy to do so, lest others follow their example and one day bring disaster upon them as well.

"Aren’t we women always required to be gentle, kind, and reasonable? How could Mrs. Lin throw a tantrum at Mr. Lin?" Bai Suihe said.

The three ladies looked shocked, but they didn’t voice any objections. They knew Bai Suihe well enough to understand there was definitely more to come.

Bai Suihe continued, "Therefore, Mrs. Lin must be magnanimous. Since things have already come to this, and her husband insists it must be that widow, as the official wife, she must love him and everything associated with him, treating the women by his side with kindness.

"Letting a widow follow Mr. Lin around without any proper title or status is practically bullying the poor woman."

Hearing her say this, and seemingly taking the widow’s side, Mrs. Jiang couldn’t help but ask, "Are you feeling unwell?"

Mrs. Qian hurriedly grabbed her. "Don’t be anxious, let her finish."

Bai Suihe explained, "That widow is merely aiming for equal status, wanting to be the official wife out in the countryside. That’s because she knows that no matter how much Mr. Lin is bewitched by her, he could never elevate her above his legal wife and legitimate children. Her calculation is simply to slowly draw Mr. Lin to her side in the future.

"Actually, this scheme is very easy to break. Isn’t it just Mr. Lin having a new flame? Mrs. Lin should be magnanimous and head over to that widow’s house with great fanfare, joyfully welcoming this newcomer into the mansion."

"But wouldn’t that just be letting that widow off too easy?" Mrs. Jiang still hadn’t quite wrapped her head around it.

Mrs. Qian and Madam Li were already clapping their hands in applause, praising the brilliance of the idea. The law stipulated that any concubine taken into a household must sign a deed of servitude and formally perform the concubine’s bowing ceremony before the official wife. Once these two steps were completed, she would never be able to become an official wife for the rest of her life.

This was a favorable legal provision that protected the survival of legitimate wives in the inner courtyard; otherwise, they would be schemed to death.

After being lectured by the other two ladies, Mrs. Jiang finally came to her senses.

Indeed, as long as the deed of servitude was in hand, no matter how incredibly capable that pretty widow was, wouldn’t she still be completely at Mrs. Lin’s mercy?

"Mrs. Lin has three sons, and the eldest is already on the verge of making a name for himself. No matter how much of a scoundrel Mr. Lin is, or how much he lusts after women, it’s impossible for him not to consider his sons."

Bai Suihe was genuinely curious about what that pretty widow actually looked like to make a man temporarily lose his reason and disregard his legal wife and legitimate children.

"I’m going to the Lin Mansion right now," Mrs. Jiang said, unable to sit still. "By the way, what exactly do you mean by ’great fanfare’?"

"Naturally, it means calling upon both her maiden family and her husband’s family, bringing the children along, and personally welcoming the newcomer through the door on Mr. Lin’s behalf.

"Since Mrs. Lin is being so generous, if the other party still refuses to appreciate the favor, there’ll be no justifying her actions," Bai Suihe replied.

Mrs. Qian eagerly interjected, "When the time comes, we’ll go show our support too. I’ll invite a few other ladies to come along and properly learn from Mrs. Lin’s magnanimity."

"Would that be inappropriate?" Mrs. Jiang still had some reservations. "No matter how you look at it, this is a family scandal for the Lin Family."

"Oh, you! How is this a scandal? This is a great, joyous occasion!" Madam Li was already rubbing her hands together in anticipation. "This matter must be turned into a massive public spectacle. If they want to climb the social ladder for wealth and status, then they need to learn their proper place. They shouldn’t covet things that aren’t meant for them to covet."

They had all married into their families through formal, honorable matches. Just because their youth and beauty had faded, these outsiders thought they could swoop in and pluck the fruits of their labor. Such a trend could not be allowed to grow.

Bai Suihe hadn’t expected these ladies to be so proactive. With this plan in motion, even if Mr. Lin adored that pretty widow, he would have to rein himself in.

"It’s just that I’m afraid any affection between husband and wife will cease to exist after this." Mrs. Jiang still felt it was somewhat of a pity. Mr. Lin had never taken a concubine before; this sudden late-in-life romance was a massive blow.

Mrs. Qian rolled her eyes at her. "The moment he agreed to that pretty widow’s conditions, their marital affection ceased to exist."

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