Chapter 82 After Years Apart, He Wins Back His Wife

Shen Yan can no longer clearly remember what her mother looks like.

Three years ago, during the great fire, I heard from the servants that when my mother brought him out of the fire, he had already been crushed by the burning wood and had stopped breathing.

No doctor in Yujing dared to take on this task. After all, no one would dare to make such a bold claim as snatching someone from the clutches of the King of Hell, especially since the other party was a prestigious and wealthy family like the Duke's Mansion. Naturally, they would never dare to agree to it so easily.

Fortunately, a letter arrived from Shen Yunjiang's maternal grandparents' home in Jiangnan, saying that they had found a reclusive medical expert who might be able to save Shen Yan's life.

From then on, Shen Yan was sent to Jiangnan to recuperate.

Only recently have I finally returned to the Duke's Mansion.

In the three years since, Shen Yan has grown much taller than before. The baby fat on her cheeks has faded, and she keeps her lips pursed and silent. Her brows and eyes are filled with a faint frost that is exactly the same as Shen Yun's, giving her an unapproachable aloofness and pressure.

The servants of the Duke's mansion both respected and feared this young master, and dared not disobey his orders. After all, everyone knew how much the heir cared for this young grandson, and how much the old lady doted on him.

Therefore, when they realized that the young grandson was missing, the Duke's mansion was in complete chaos, and they seemed to want to turn the entire capital city upside down.

Wave after wave of people were sent out, searching from day to night, but no one had seen a trace of the young prince.

Then news came from the city gate that a carriage from the Duke's mansion had left the city gate around 7:00 a.m. that day.

The driver was likely a servant from the Duke's mansion. He presented his token, and they dared not question him further, so they naturally had no idea where the carriage ultimately went.

Upon hearing this, Yingxiao immediately understood that it must be Afu, the personal servant who usually served Shenyan.

"I told him to take good care of the young grandson. How could he take the grandson out of the city so casually?" Yingxiao shouted angrily, his face filled with anxiety.

Although they were slightly relieved to know that the young prince was safe, he was still young, and with so many people watching him, there were many uncertainties outside the city, which might be detrimental to the young prince.

Yingxiao knew the implications and the urgency of the situation. If they were any later, once they left the capital region, they would be scattered all over the country, and it would be difficult to find the young prince again.

He hurriedly said, "Your Highness, I will immediately send a message to all the prefectures and counties in the capital region and send them to intercept them."

"Going now might be too late."

Shen Yun glanced indifferently at the stack of letters piled high on the table, her slightly lowered eyes revealing a vacant expression.

"Then..." Yingxiao stopped in his tracks, somewhat at a loss, not understanding what the young master meant.

"Prepare the horses, we're going to Liangzhou." Shen Yun looked up at him and gave the order.

Yingxiao was taken aback. His eyes quickly swept across the desk, and he realized what was going on in an instant. He hurriedly agreed and left.

The young master is not one to act recklessly, and everyone in the Duke's mansion indulges him, so it's impossible that he's planning to run away from home.

There's only one reason: the young master probably saw the letter in the prince's study, learned that the lady was currently in Liangzhou, and went there personally to find her.

Over the years, the Crown Prince never bothered the Lady, but he had to tell her everything about her.

Where has the lady settled down? What is she doing to make a living? Has she been bullied by others? Has anyone been around her...?

Year after year, the letters that arrived piled up like mountains. The Crown Prince didn't know how many times he had opened and read them; the handwriting on the letters at the very bottom had even become blurred.

However, the prince only listened to the reports from his subordinates about the lady, but never actually went to see her once.

At first, the lady returned to Xi County in Qingzhou. After staying there for a while, she went to Yizhou.

The lady stayed in Yizhou for the longest time, a full eleven months. Now she has rented a small courtyard at the foot of a mountain in a village in Liangzhou. She usually goes to the town to pawn her carved woodenware for some money.

Now that the Crown Prince is going to Liangzhou, Yingxiao is vaguely worried that this might be the last dam before the floodgates are opened. If the Crown Prince takes back the Lady again as recklessly as before, will the Lady be as resolute as before?

Will the two of them reach a point where there's no going back...?

-

As Yingxiao had suspected, Shen Yan had indeed seen the letter in Shen Yun's study and learned that her mother was currently settled in a village in Liangzhou.

The letters were filled with detailed records about the same person, almost like a daily log.

Even though the letter only mentioned the word "Madam" repeatedly, Shen Yan could guess that this person must be referring to her mother.

Shen Yan sat in the swaying carriage, while his personal servant Afu drove the carriage day and night without rest. From outside came his voice, "Young master, do we really have to go any further? If the young master finds out, he will surely punish us."

"You don't need to worry about it, just drive."

Shen Yan unfolded the portrait she had stolen from Shen Yun's study, her voice steady and convincing, and the servant outside indeed fell silent.

With his dark eyes, he carefully examined the woman's face in the portrait, trying to match it with the blurry figure of his mother in his memory. After a moment, he carefully rolled up the painting again and put it into the box.

Yes, it is undoubtedly her mother.

-

Lin Shutang went to town today and heard from the owner of the woodworking shop that the last batch of goods sold very well, and the shopkeeper gave her a special share of the money, hoping that she could cooperate with their shop again next time.

Their boss originally wanted to hire Lin Shutang as a craftsman in the woodworking shop, but Lin Shutang did not agree.

For her, settling in one place is only temporary; she doesn't know when she will leave again.

Compared to this stable life, she still wants to go out and see the world again.

She was content with making a little money to live on by selling small gadgets.

Lin Shutang took the money and bought an extra pound of pork from the stall, along with a jug of good wine, intending to deliver it to Aunt Wang next door later.

These days, thanks to her help—renting a house, getting familiar with the route from the village to the town, and learning about the woodworking industry—Lin Shutang has been able to adapt to Yun County so quickly.

After finishing all the shopping, Lin Shutang boarded a donkey cart that traveled between the village and the town, and together with the people of Fengshu Village, they hurried back while it was still early. Lin Shutang's house was at the very end of the mountain. Knowing that the driver was busy with the next trip to town, Lin Shutang simply got off the cart at the village entrance with the others.

As the last rays of sunlight faded on the horizon, Lin Shutang took a shortcut and hurried back. Just as she parted the shadows of the maple trees, she saw Aunt Wang standing on the slope, beckoning to her from afar.

Lin Shutang waved back excitedly, but Aunt Wang became even more excited and immediately ran down the slope, arriving in front of Lin Shutang in a flash.

"Shutang, you're finally back!" Aunt Wang grabbed Lin Shutang's wrist, somewhat worried for her. "You don't know, not long after you went to town today, a child fainted at the gate of your yard, his face was ashen, it scared me to death."

"I asked him whose child he was, but he wouldn't answer when I spoke to him. That brat is so fierce; even a glance from him makes me a little scared." Aunt Wang's brows furrowed deeply. "Shutang, have you gotten yourself into some trouble? Is that kid sure he's going to extort you?"

Lin Shutang was completely confused, still walking towards the courtyard, "What child?"

"I don't know where you're from, you look completely unfamiliar. I'm telling you beforehand, out of all these houses, you didn't get confused, but you did at your doorstep. Did you know you live alone?"

She tugged at Lin Shutang, somewhat wary, "Why don't you go to town to avoid the early hour?"

Lin Shutang smiled wryly, "Auntie, what are you saying?"

She's perfectly fine, what is there to avoid?

Aunt Wang disagreed. They lived in a remote, mountainous area, far from the reach of the emperor. Lin Shutang might not know this, but Aunt Wang did. She knew that some unscrupulous people would target pretty children to lure people into their kindness, then break into their homes and ransack them.

Especially that child, so quiet and reserved, yet so fair-skinned, he couldn't escape.

Lin Shutang flipped her wrist and took Wang's hand in return, reassuring her. She handed her the things she was carrying, saying, "Auntie, please take these things. Thank you for taking care of me these past few days. I'll go see what's going on."

After she finished speaking, she walked up the slope in a few steps without even panting.

Aunt Wang was getting on in years, and her legs were not very strong. Lin Shutang took long strides, and soon she was left behind.

Lin Shutang walked to the front of the courtyard and, as expected, saw a child.

However, unlike what Aunt Wang said, he was not dizzy. Right now, he was sitting properly on the stone steps in front of the door.

His shoulders and back were very straight, his head was down, and his gaze was unfocused. He remained silent, giving Lin Shutang a strangely familiar feeling.

Hearing the sound, the child raised his head, his dark eyes falling on Lin Shutang, and slowly stood up.

Lin Shutang was somewhat taken aback.

"I've run away from home, can you take me in?" He asked bluntly, without any hesitation.

But his tone was so natural that it was as if he wasn't asking for a favor at all, but rather calmly narrating something that would benefit both of them.

Lin Shutang walked towards him, saying, "It's very dangerous to take in people without knowing their background."

"But sleeping on the streets is also a very dangerous thing."

Shen Yan pursed her lips, pondered for a moment, and then looked up at Lin Shutang. At this moment, a hint of pity appeared in her bright black eyes.

It was as if Lin Shutang hadn't taken him in; he would have been forced to sleep in the wilderness tonight, facing a miserable end.

Looking at him like this, Lin Shutang didn't know if he really didn't understand or if he was doing it on purpose.

She clearly meant that, for her, taking in someone whose background was unknown was a very dangerous thing.

But Shen Yan insists on distorting the truth and is good at sophistry; I don't know where he learned that from.

Lin Shutang finally bent down to look at him, placing her hands on her knees. "I'll take you to the village head's house. They will take you to the government office, and you will return home safely."

"But I'm feeling very unwell right now." He lowered his eyes, his voice listless.

Lin Shutang followed his gaze and saw that his luxurious clothes were torn in several places, and his exposed calves had been scratched by something.

Lin Shutang hurriedly squatted down to check and asked him what happened.

Aunt Wang finally caught up from behind, panting. Her little granddaughter also came out from the neighboring yard and timidly hid behind Aunt Wang.

"Oh dear, I've spoiled this child rotten." Aunt Wang looked a little embarrassed, pulled the little girl out from behind her, and pretended to tap her on the head. "Before we even got to the bottom of things, she was already thinking of standing up for this old woman and pushed the child. Maybe she pushed too hard, because the child lost her balance and her knees slammed onto the steps."

"I didn't use much force at all..."

"I was thinking of applying some medicine to him! But this child is so stubborn! He just wouldn't move." Aunt Wang raised her voice, interrupting Yulan, and glared at her fiercely, telling her to shut up.

Yulan fell silent, her eyes fixed on Shen Yan with murderous intent.

"So this child is..." Aunt Wang's eyes lingered between the two of them.

"I will take him to the government office tomorrow and send him back." Lin Shutang's words were concise and to the point.

Having said that, Aunt Wang couldn't say anything more. "Okay, then call me if you need anything."

She glanced one last time at the child beside Lin Shutang, and said meaningfully.

Lin Shutang nodded and watched them leave. After they walked around the corner, she looked down and happened to see Shen Yan looking up at her, his dark, grape-like eyes hiding a cautious attempt to befriend her.

She's strangely endearing.

Lin Shutang sighed, took his hand, pushed open the courtyard gate, and led him inside.

Aunt Wang also returned to the next room. Her daughter-in-law had already cooked the meal and put it on the table, but she saw Yulan still angrily breaking off tree branches and hitting the stone wall in the yard.

"Yulan, what's wrong with you?" she said gently, pulling her to sit at the table. "You pushed someone, and now you're sulking?"

Yulan remained silent, recalling what had just happened. The boy had stood beside Lin Niangniang, and neither of them had noticed how well he had put on an act; his gaze towards her was clearly unfriendly and contemptuous.

When Consort Lin looked down at him, he looked like he had suffered a great injustice, which was truly hateful!