The Story of Ming Lan (知否知否应是绿肥红瘦)

The Story of Ming Lan

Episode 25

Mother! Mother! No, what are you doing?! Don't be rash!

Calm down! Don't touch me! You...

I'm a xiucai! I'm a xiucai !

Stop! Stop!

You dare push me?! You...dare push me?!

You dare to act in such uncultured manner?!

- Stop it already! - If you're done causing a ruckus! Unruly! Get out!

You're acting in such an uncultured manner!

You're so unrefined!

Sit. Sti.

At present,

as the eldest house, we were not able to handle our family matter well,

and had to trouble you all to come here.

Sister Pinlan!

Give that to me.

Sit. Sit.

It's a registration deed.

Not allowing any prostitute to enter our family

is an ancestral teaching of our clan.

It's not as being unreasonable and overbearing.

Your Sun Clan has to consider having descendants,

while our daughter Shulan must practice filial piety.

My son said it right.

Xiucai Sun,

despite having some prestige, you frequented places of pleasure,

wanted to took in a prostitute as a concubine, tainting your cultured reputation.

You did so well.

Fellow prominent and worthy elders,

Please look at this registration deed.

Everyone, please look.

This...

Isn't that a census registration deed in the possession of the madam-in-charge of Qianjin Brothel?

Correct.

Sun Zhigao, you beast.

You used my daughter's dowry to fund your brothel visits

and to buy a prostitute's freedom.

You didn't even know to spend more to end her prostitute registration deed.

Sun Zhigao,

your lowly status prostitute is forcing the divorce of a woman from a decent family.

Just adding a complaint letter on this census registration deed,

and then submitting it to the Academician in Bianjing,

you think he will preserve your scholarly status?

Gao, you were able to achieve merit at a young age.

At age 12, you passed the xiucai examination.

That was originally an honor, a person who was able to give the Sun clan prestige.

Never thought that you've become like this.

I urge you to amicably discuss this matter with the House of Sheng first.

Clan Elder, your surname is Sun!

I understand the hardship of your House of Sun.

It wasn't easy to finally have a descendant.

How could you easily let go?

Moreover,

Zhigao has feelings for that woman.

But, the children of our House of Sheng

will never lower down to be sisters with prostitutes.

Let's just do this.

We'll give half of her dowry to your family.

The two family will amicably separate. That's already a good closure

for this three years of marriage.

It's still old madam who is highly principled.

That would be for the best.

We shouldn't destroy the good relationship of the two families.

Our family has already yielded to this level.

If your family still refuses,

I'll then sue you to the Academician with this prostitute registration deed.

Let the whole county see the dignity of your xiucai !

Half is already more than a thousand liang.

For these past days, I've been cooking and washing clothes.

My back will be breaking soon.

That person at home also kept asking for bird's nest.

Buying a slave will also require money.

Okay already, mother. I know.

We need money for everything.

An amicable separation then.

We've already prepared the document.

May I ask Mr. Secretary

to be our witness.

Wait! Where's the dowry? The list of dowry?

The list of dowry is here.

So uncultured.

Agreement to separate

May the side of the wife come in front to sign the document.

- I'll do it. - Mother,

I'll do it myself.

Shulan!

You are not talented nor beautiful,

dull and uninteresting. You originally shouldn't have been paired with me.

When you're paired with a butcher or a farmer in the future,

remember to be more virtuous.

Spit!

You're a womanizer, unfaithful,

and immoral scum.

I feel disgusted just by giving you one more look!

You... Tell me...

So uncultured.

So unrefined. Don't get mad.

Now, you've become daring to talk.

More daring to take responsibility.

Those brothers of yours are not as bold as you.

I indeed was a bit too presumptuous.

But we're finally able to get that amicable separation document.

Sister Shulan was able to escape that hell.

Moreover,

I was wearing a long veiled hat, that my whole body was covered.

I didn't see anything.

The other party also might not be able to recognize you.

You wish. That deed was being held by the Sheng Family.

Of course, they'll be able to guess that it was done by daughters of the Sheng family.

Brother He promised to give treatment to that madam-in-charge.

If she wants her headache to abate and be able to sleep soundly at night,

she surely won't say a word.

That Brother He is quite obedient with you.

He's a good man.

In coming back this time,

you encountered this matter of Shu'er.

You can say that you've experienced the ways of the world.

Eldest Grandmother calculated and planned everything so thoroughly.

Eldest Uncle, Eldest Auntie, and Brother Changwu

also followed the plan step by step.

Some people are quite ferocious.

Some are pretentiously gently.

Be flexible and sacrificing some wealth can avoid disaster.

Plus that fact that I'm quick-witted, hence, this matter ended perfectly.

It's also thanks to the fact that the House of Sun is stupid.

They didn't even know to get the registration deed.

Hence, our family was able to handle this matter.

We jut need to remove a layer of skin and was still able to turn back.

If your Sister Shulan

married into a noble and prestigious family, and encountered such a matter,

turning back

is an impossibility even if you pray to the gods of the heaven and earth.

She can only be tormented alive.

I understand what you mean.

Brother He is very submissive to you.

Living the rest of your days with him

will surely be relaxing.

Grandmother, I still feel that Sister Shulan was aggrieved.

Sister Shulan married into a lower status family. It should have been a smooth sailing life.

The lives of those Sun family all depended on her dowry.

They should have treated her in a courteous manner.

But that Sun family instead felt that the more they order Sister Shulan around,

the more it shows how they are not affected by wealth.

Trying to be lofty. This is called 'eating soft rice with conviction' (eating off a woman with conviction).

Eating soft rice with conviction?

You could even come up with phrases like that?

You said it right. Your Sister Shulan was too soft and weak.

She totally didn't know to argue with them.

She was afraid to hurt that shaky pride of her husband.

Just to earn his good side, she lowered herself and kept enduring.

Your eldest uncle and eldest auntie love their daughter dearly and was afraid that she'll suffer,

so they would send over a lot of money every time the two of them fight.

They wanted to use money to buy peace.

But encountering a mother and son like those from the Sun family,

who are good in taking advantage of people's weakness, they totally didn't give any importance to your Sister Shulan.

I told you about these internal family matters so as to prepare you for the inevitable.

In my heart,

I still want to choose a family with simple member relationship,

a benevolent mother-in-law, and a sincere husband.

Hope that your days won't be so tumultuous.

That you'll be able to see the end at one glance. (smooth-sailing)

But grandmother, not everything in this world can go the way you want it to.

For example, the House of Sun.

A widow who washes clothes for a living with a son who passed the county civil examination.

In the heart of Eldest Auntie, they were a good household.

Who knew that Sister Shulan would ended up this way?

It shows that whether it's a noble and prestigious family,

or a small household,

all must be managed dutifully

in a very careful manner.

Only then can it be harmonious in the end.

You said it well. I'm thinking—

Eldest Madam, Miss,

Eldest Old Madam isn't doing well.

Let's go and have a look.

Mother.

Mother. Who is mother looking for?

We're all here.

Shu'er...

- My Shu'er... - Grandmother.

My Shu'er...

Who is grandmother looking for?

It's that auntie of yours who died at a very young age. Her name was Sheng Shu.

I just hugged you like that.

I saw how you swallowed your last breath.

Sheng...Sheng Huaizhong...

You...

You favored your concubine and ignored your main wife.

Getting confused by beauty.

Mistreating the lives of others.

I'll go to the God of Hell and sue you!

Mother.

- Shu'er... - Grandmother.

I'll...seek...

...seek vengeance.

Mother. Mother.

Grandmother! Grandmother!

Grandmother!

Mother!