The Su family left in a grand procession, with princesses, princes, and even the crown prince coming to see them off.
The princess held Liu Huan's hand tightly, reluctant to let go. "You must come back soon, I'm still waiting to win your money."
Liu Huan said, "Alright, get your money ready, I'll win it all from you."
The two bickered for a while, and when the time came, they mounted their horses.
Because Su Yi and Su Cheng were generals, the Crown Prince also assigned them officers and soldiers, which could be considered as returning home in glory.
The journey back was not as depressing as the journey there. Liu Huan was found, Su Yi became the top scholar, Su Cheng also achieved some success in the army, and Su Wan and Guan Chang went home with them to visit their relatives and attend their wedding.
They chatted and laughed along the way, eager to get home, and dared not linger on the road, spending all their time on the road except for resting at night.
Even adults find it hard to stand, let alone children.
After about ten days, the two little ones became listless and said they didn't want to sit anymore. Before the day was up, they started crying and clamoring to leave.
Su Cheng took one of the younger ones horseback riding each day to distract them, which finally calmed the two younger ones down.
The villagers who had returned from the border town had already arrived in Qingyang County. The county magistrate personally went to meet all those who had returned alive. Su's mother was already waiting at the entrance of the yamen.
Because of Liu Huan's disappearance and Su Cheng's trip to the border, Su's mother was so heartbroken that she lost her spirit and looked much older, with many more gray hairs on her head.
She, along with Su's father and the Da Shi couple, looked left and right, but couldn't find Su Cheng.
After looking for a while, I finally spotted a kid from Thatched Village, who kept saying, "Big Mountain, Big Mountain."
The man named Dashan saw them and happily came over, "Auntie, what are you doing here?"
Su's mother asked anxiously, "Have you seen my Xiaoshi?"
Da Shan came to his senses. "Little Shi? We haven't seen each other since we left. The military camp is divided into several places, and we were separated from Little Shi."
Su's mother panicked and grabbed him, asking, "Then...do you know who else was with him?"
Dashan thought for a moment, "I don't know, I didn't see any of them."
After saying that, he looked to the side and said, "Auntie, I'm not talking to you anymore. I need to catch my train back."
Mother Su nodded in agreement, her hands trembling uncontrollably. Fang Yi, who was standing beside her, took her hand and comforted her, "Mother, not everyone has arrived yet. Maybe my little brother is at the very back."
But after everyone had left, Xiao Shi was nowhere to be seen.
Da Shi found the officer in charge of the matter and asked, "Sir, I'd like to ask if all these people have returned from the border, or if there might be some who haven't arrived yet?"
After saying this, he stuffed a silver ingot into the officer's hand, and the officer smiled and said, "It's all here. There's nothing else. If you need to find someone, I can ask them for you."
"His name is Su Cheng, and he is seventeen years old."
The officer looked through the booklet one by one. "This person isn't listed. Could he be on the list of the deceased?"
When Su's mother heard the two men fall silent, the soldier who had taken the money was also capable of getting things done. He called over another person and asked, "Tiger, do you have a man named Su Cheng over there?"
Tiger, a soldier, was looking through a thick booklet. There were several people with the surname Su, but he didn't see anyone named Su Cheng.
"No"
Su's father was puzzled, "How come there aren't any on either side?"
The officers and soldiers thought for a moment and said, "If someone dies in battle at the border and their body is never found, they may never have a name."
He was just guessing, but he didn't know that his statement would cause Su's mother to faint immediately.
Da Shi picked up Su's mother and ran towards the clinic; the family didn't even have time to grieve. They followed.
The doctor saw that it was a case of anger and distress affecting the heart. "This kind of mental illness requires a mental cure. Madam Su is so depressed and unhappy every day. I'm afraid it will affect her lifespan."
These words frightened everyone. Father Su hurriedly asked what to do: "I wonder what happened. Tell me and I will give you some advice."
After Daishi recounted the incident, the doctor immediately offered a solution.
"In that case, you should say that your younger brother has gone to the capital with the army and is serving as an official there. Forge a letter and read it to her to keep her calm for now, and then make further plans later."
Su's father and Da Shi discussed it and felt that there was no better way. So they went to the yamen and wrote a letter of appointment for the family. The officers and soldiers, after hearing the reason, wrote it to him without hesitation.
Da Shi didn't let them write for nothing; he gave them money to treat everyone to drinks.
After he left, the soldiers divided the silver and sighed, "The Su family is both pitiful and not pitiful."
Someone nearby asked, "What do you mean?"
"Back then, the second son of the Su family went to the capital with his fiancée to take the imperial examination, but he lost her. He was depressed for three years after returning home before he finally became the top scholar."
"The old lady of the Su family was in poor health back then, and now that her youngest son has gotten into trouble, she's bound to go crazy."
A hungry man nearby said, "It's one thing for her to be sad that her son died, but she's also sad that she lost her fiancée?"
“You don’t understand because you’re not in Qingyang County. The Su family’s current success is all thanks to her daughter-in-law, who found her and raised her from a young age. Their relationship is naturally different.”
"well……"
After they finished speaking, they took the silver and said, "Shall we go to Chunhui Tower for a drink today?"
Another person said, "Hey, we just took the money and now we have to give it back."
Upon receiving this news, Su's mother firmly believed that her two sons had become officials, and she asked them every day when they would return, becoming increasingly disoriented.
"Mother, didn't I say that he was going back to the capital to see the Emperor, and he would come back immediately after seeing the Emperor?"
Su's mother nodded and then asked, "What about Huanhuan? Is Huanhuan coming back with us?"
There was no news from the capital, and they were unaware that Huanhuan had been found. This topic was taboo in the Su family, but Su's mother was in a daze, so she brought it up herself.
Fang Yi took her hand and said, "They said they found it, but Shi Tou couldn't leave his work, otherwise he would have come back long ago."
Su's mother took her hand out of hers and walked inside expressionlessly. "It's good that you found it, it's good that you found it."
Fang Yi turned around; she simply couldn't bear to see this scene.
Just a few days later, Su's mother started repeating the same topic again: Has Huanhuan been found? Has Xiaoshi returned?
The doctor said she had hysteria and that she wouldn't get better unless someone appeared in front of her.
"Where am I supposed to find her?" Su's father squatted on the ground, holding his head in his hands. He looked much older because of his previous injuries.
One morning, a maid who often served Su's mother went to the room and found that she was gone.
He rushed out and shouted in a panic, "Something terrible has happened! The old lady has disappeared!"
Fang Yi and Da Shi came out of the room. "What's wrong?"
The maid said fearfully, "Madam, Madam is not in her room. We've searched everywhere but can't find her. We don't know where she went."
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