Chapter 713 The Embroiderer's Money for Selling Herself [Second Update, Extra Chapter, Requesting Monthly Tickets! Thanks to my friend "Light Spring Echoes" for the generous donation!]

The residence in Huaiye Lane.

In the main hall where they used to dine, two figures sat facing each other, with a bowl of chilled mung bean soup and a bright red shawl in front of them, the latter draped limply over the edge of the table.

The other end of the shawl was gripped in Zhen Shuyuan's hand; she had stopped fiddling with it, and her fist was gradually clenching...

The atmosphere in the main hall fell into a deathly silence.

Ouyang Rong acted as if he hadn't seen anything, reached out and pulled the bowl of chilled mung bean soup closer, scooped out another spoonful, and lowered his head to put it in his mouth.

Zhen Shuyuan, standing nearby, noticed that her beloved nephew smacked his lips after tasting the soup, and a look of confusion crossed his face as he muttered to himself:

"Strange, why isn't it sweet? Did the embroiderer not add sugar? That's a bit too stingy. But she didn't add any spice. She cooked it exactly as I told her to, and it's already very good... Wait a minute."

Ouyang Rong stirred the bottom of the bowl, then scooped out the cold soup and put it in his mouth.

A satisfied look appeared on his face:

"Oh, yes, I put it in, but I didn't stir it. The sugar all sank to the bottom... Hmm, it seems a bit sweet. Why did I put in so much sugar? The embroiderer is really something. She's usually so skilled, but how come she can't get the balance right when making soup? She's so flustered. Is she afraid that her aunt won't be satisfied?"

Ouyang Rong chuckled and shook his head, then turned to ask Zhen Shuyuan:

"It's so sweet, Auntie should be able to eat it. I'll have Wei Lai heat it up later. If she can't eat it cold, she can eat it hot."

As if she hadn't heard her beloved nephew's concerned words, Zhen Shuyuan stared at the empty space in front of her, seemingly muttering two words repeatedly.

Ouyang Rong listened intently.

"Embroiderer...embroiderer..."

Zhen Shuyuan suddenly asked, "How did you meet her, this woman named Xiu Niang? You said she was originally hers, did you know that? Where is she now?"

One question after another came pouring out of her mouth like beans spilling from a bamboo tube.

After listening, Ouyang Rong simply replied, "She is currently in Xingzifang, living by Xingzi Lake."

Zhen Shuyuan stood up, paced back and forth in front of Ouyang Rong twice, stopped, and hurriedly said:

"Take me with you..."

"Alright."

Just as Ouyang Rong was about to get up, he felt someone pull him back. He turned around and saw his aunt, Zhen Shuyuan.

She stopped in her tracks and gripped his sleeve tightly.

"Wait a minute."

Zhen Shuyuan said that she had an expression on her face that Ouyang Rong could hardly describe, and asked in a way that left people puzzled:

"She promised to come to my birthday celebration? Is she afraid of me? Will going there now scare her away?"

Ouyang Rong nodded, then shook his head:

"It shouldn't be that bad..."

Zhen Shuyuan looked towards the door, her expression blank, and asked:

"Did she tell you about what happened back then? Oh, I forgot she's mute and can't speak. She should be able to write, or use sign language. Did she tell you about it?"

"He can write." Ouyang Rong asked curiously, "What happened back then?"

Zhen Shuyuan remained silent, her expression blank.

Ouyang Rong pursed his lips and tentatively asked, "Auntie, are you referring to the matter of accidentally framing her and selling her?"

Stunned, Zhen Shuyuan slowly turned her head and stared straight at his face.

Ouyang Rong said very seriously, "That matter was actually a misunderstanding. She said she didn't prick me with the embroidery needle, much less dare to hurt me, but was protecting me..."

Zhen Shuyuan abruptly interrupted, "Alright, Tanlang, please go out for a bit." She waved her hand weakly and repeated, "Go out."

Ouyang Rong looked at her for a while, then stood up and walked out the door.

The chilled mung bean soup and other items on the table were left behind.

Zhen Shuyuan walked over and closed the door.

He returned to his original position and sat there listlessly, as if limp.

They didn't even turn on the lights.

She glanced at the empty main hall in front of her...

Ouyang Rong turned around and saw that the main hall door had been closed again.

He sighed softly.

The conversation ended, and it was almost night outside.

When Ouyang Rong returned to Yinbingzhai, Ye Weilai was making the bed and folding the quilts.

Today, taking advantage of the sunshine, he aired out Ouyang Rong's bedding again. He noticed some needlework and embroidery tools on the embroidery stool by the window, which must have been used by Ye Weilai.

Ouyang Rong remained silent.

Ye Weilai asked curiously, "Tanlang returned early today, but he talked with Madam Zhen for a long time, until it was already night."

"Um."

"Is Tanlang in a bad mood?"

Ouyang Rong shook his head: "No, that's not true. On the contrary, I feel a little relieved after saying some things today."

Ye Weilai looked him over carefully and said, "But Tanlang seems a little distracted. Is he really not preoccupied?"

Ouyang Rong paused for a moment and said, "I gave some of the soup that the embroiderer made to my aunt, and I also mentioned the embroiderer's situation."

Ye Weilai tilted her head slightly and looked at him.

Ouyang Rong noticed that her expression seemed completely unsurprised.

"I guessed it. After all, the date is approaching, so I had to tell you in advance." Ye Weilai lowered her head again: "Tanlang is the head of the family, and Madam Zhen will respect Tanlang's wishes."

Ouyang Rong pondered, "But my aunt's reaction..."

He didn't continue, but exchanged a glance with Ye Weilai.

Both of them fell silent.

Ye Weilai thought for a moment and said:

"I heard before that when that misunderstanding happened and the decision was made about whether the embroiderer should stay or leave, Tanlang's mother was actually quite hesitant. But Madam Zhen's attitude... was quite resolute. Madam Zhen loves you so much. When that incident happened, her first reaction was extreme anger. It seems she even went so far as to slap the embroiderer and call her an ingrate. It was truly a misunderstanding..."

"It was also Madam Zhen's idea to sell the embroiderer. I think the price was one string of cash. On the day she was dragged away, the embroiderer seemed to have bitten Madam Zhen's hand... So it seems that the embroiderer was most afraid of her, a kind of past trauma..."

The silver-haired girl spoke softer and softer.

She glanced at Ouyang Rong, who had closed his eyes and remained quiet for some time.

"Go to sleep first."

After an unknown amount of time, Ouyang Rong spoke.

"Alright, my love."

...

The next morning.

After washing up, Ouyang Rong went to the main hall.

The main hall doors were tightly closed.

Halfway through, a maidservant came over and whispered something in Ouyang Rong's ear. Only then did he learn that the main hall's door had not been opened all night, and no one had left since he came out last night.

At this moment.

With a creak, the sound of the door opening came.

Ouyang Rong and Banxi and the others turned their heads.

Zhen Shuyuan, who had been sitting alone all night, came out.

The weather is nice today; the sun came out this morning.

In the morning light along the corridor, the beautiful woman in her silk dress subconsciously raised the back of her hand to shield herself from the gentle yet dazzling sunlight.

She said to Ouyang Rong:

"Tanlang, you're here. Come in for a moment."

Zhen Shuyuan left those words behind and turned back to the main hall.

Ouyang Rong followed him inside.

Upon arriving at the main hall, he saw that all the windows were tightly closed, and the bright red shawl on the table was still there, but the bowl containing chilled mung bean soup was now empty, having been drunk.

Ouyang Rong didn't bring it up, but asked:

"What is it, Aunt?"

Zhen Shuyuan closed her eyes for a while, and said without opening them:

"Go and bring her back on her birthday."

"Did your aunt take her in?"

Zhen Shuyuan did not answer, seemingly speaking to herself:

"Since this mute child still recognizes that hairpin and your mother, and she even came looking for you, my love... no matter how you met, it means that a connection still exists. I understand what Wanwan meant by nodding..."

She waved her hand dismissively, somewhat melancholy, and said:

"Bring her over. On my birthday, Tanlang, bring her over first so she won't run away. Let me see her first. I won't let her come for nothing. If she comes, I'll give her something, an old item..."

Ouyang Rong asked curiously, "What is Auntie sending? There's no need to be so polite."

Zhen Shuyuan had already stood up, and it was unclear whether she had heard Ouyang Rong's words. She walked out of the main hall with a blank expression.

Ouyang Rong saw that she seemed to be murmuring something, but he couldn't hear it clearly.

Soon, he watched Zhen Shuyuan's figure disappear down the corridor...

...

Zhen Shuyuan returned to her boudoir, but instead of going back to her room, she turned and walked towards a room on the west side of the courtyard.

There are several Buddha statues in the room.

It is an internal Buddhist shrine.

The memorial tablets are dedicated to Buddha and some deceased relatives.

The memorial tablet of Ouyang Rong's deceased mother, Zhao's mother, is also among them.

Zhen Shuyuan arrived in front of Zhao's mother's memorial tablet and turned to look at the lacquered wooden tablet.

The flickering white candles in front of the fruit plaque cast a long shadow of Zhao's mother's memorial tablet, which fell on the back wall, seemingly standing alongside the bronze Buddha statue in the center of the hall.

Zhen Shuyuan stood silently for a long time before speaking:

“I know you’re unwilling, but I also feel guilty. If we don’t send her away, she has no way to survive.”

"Afterwards, you became a vegetarian and chanted Buddhist prayers, and I, too, started burning incense for many years. Gradually, I almost forgot why I followed you in worshipping Buddha in the first place..."

She spoke to the empty Buddhist hall and memorial tablets, paused for a moment, and then continued speaking as if from afar:

"You never dared to spend this money, keeping it as an offering before the Buddha. Before you died, you even stuffed this string of coins into my hands. Could it be that you foresaw that this mute child would return one day? Is it because our fate with him is not yet over..."

The woman in the silk skirt's voice gradually lowered until it was barely audible.

The Buddhist hall returned to silence.

All that remained was the hissing sound of the white candle burning and flickering in the wind.

After an unknown amount of time, Zhen Shuyuan finally moved and slowly walked towards the Buddha statue and memorial tablet in front of her.

She bypassed them and went straight to the back of Zhao's mother's memorial tablet. In a hidden compartment under the table, she took out a small gray cloth bag.

The gray cloth bag is old and looks like it's covered in dust that can't be washed off; it appears to have been stored away for quite some time.

The gray cloth bag was slowly opened by her slightly cool fingers.

Inside, a string of copper coins that looked both new and old was revealed.

It's new because the copper plate still has some shine.

It was old because most of the hemp rope connecting the copper plates had rotted away and seemed unable to support the weight of the copper plates.

Zhen Shuyuan looked down at the copper coins in the cloth bag.

She counted them carefully.

The number is consistent.

...

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(End of this chapter)