Chapter 97
The rain and fog gradually dissipated, but the stone steps in front of the stage were still wet. When Xie Yunyou was socializing, the servant beside him told him that Madam Ming was ill. He then turned down the invitation from his classmates and hurried back home.
There was a wet spot on his shoulder, which looked like frost and snow under the cold light.
As soon as I entered the mansion, I saw the housekeeper hurriedly ordering the guards to call the imperial physician.
Xie Yunyou immediately grabbed the housekeeper's collar and asked, "What happened? Is the madam seriously ill?"
The housekeeper shook his head with tears in his eyes. "Master, something happened to the second young lady. She went to the palace today under the pretext of visiting the eldest young lady, and was found to be carrying poison. It turned out that she wanted to kill our eldest young lady and replace her. She was taken away by the son-in-law and dealt with. When the master heard the news, he vomited blood and fainted..."
Upon hearing this, the clarity in Xie Yunyou's eyes turned into violence, his eyeballs almost popped out, he threw the housekeeper away in rage and ran to the study. When he stepped onto the corridor, he glanced into the open doorway. Madam Ming was supported by Xie Yunshuang and sat in an armchair, coughing heavily, while the old man and servant who usually served his father were coming in and out, and it looked like the situation was very bad.
"Mother!"
Xie Yunyou's face was as sharp as a knife, and he strode forward.
Madam Ming had not recovered from her cold, and Xie Hui had fainted again. The room was in chaos. Seeing Xie Yunyou coming back, she waved to him.
"Go in and see your father..." Madam Ming pushed him and said,
Madam Ming was worried that her illness would make Xie Hui worse, so she didn't dare to get close to him.
Xie Yunyou grinned and sneered, then turned inside.
In the bedroom, the doctor who usually treated Xie Hui had already given him acupuncture, but seeing that Xie Hui was in a critical condition, he asked someone to call for the imperial physician.
Xie Yunyou stood aside and watched, only to see Xie Hui lying straight on the couch, his forehead blue and pale. The doctor had given him several injections, but he still had no reaction. For a moment, he was angry at Xie Hui for being foolish and neglecting to discipline Xie Yunxiu, which had caused such a mess in the house, but for a moment, he was annoyed to see him in such a half-dead state.
Just at this moment, there was a cry outside the gate.
"Father…"
It was Xie Yunzhou's voice.
Xie Yunyou had no place to vent his anger, so he rushed out from the inner room like a leopard, jumped over the threshold, and kicked Xie Yunzhou, who was kneeling on the ground and crying, to the ground.
"How dare you cry here? Your aunt committed adultery and deceived father, and your sister is even more vicious and wants to murder my sister. I tell you, Xie Yunzhou, if you have any dignity, you should be hanging under the old locust tree in the alley to prove your innocence. Otherwise, as long as you stay in Xie Mansion for one day, I will kill you."
Xie Yunyou kicked Xie Yunzhou in the chest. Xie Yunzhou was caught off guard and fell backwards like an object. A trace of blood flowed from the corner of his lips. He muttered absentmindedly, his eyes were empty, and he shook his head with tears in his eyes.
Xie Yunyou was furious when he saw him like this. "Come here, take him to his yard and keep him under guard. Who knows if his aunt's and concubine's sister's affairs are related to him? I will come back and interrogate him again."
Now that Xie Yunyou has passed the imperial examination, he is no longer the reckless young man he used to be. The servants under him dare not ignore his words seriously. Immediately, a servant came forward and dragged Xie Yunzhou away.
Xie Yunyou stood outside the gate for a while to calm down his anger, then turned around and came in. Seeing Madam Ming still gasping for breath, he came up to her and bowed.
"Mother, I'll take you to the backyard to rest. Leave this to me."
Madam Ming looked at him with a complicated expression, "Son, your father is seriously ill, how can I not be there?"
Xie Yunyou looked away with a cold look, "I will have something to say to him when he wakes up. Anyway... mother, don't worry about it."
Then he bent down and raised his arm to support Mrs. Ming.
Xie Yunxiu's attempt to murder Xie Yunchu was a thorn in Xie Yunyou's heart. Now that Xie Yunxiu was punished by Wang Shuhuai, Xie Yunyou was so angry that he had no place to vent his anger. Naturally, he wanted to find trouble with his father, and there might be another bloody storm.
The father and son have been harboring grudges for a long time, and Mrs. Ming can't do anything about it.
She let out a long sigh, took Xie Yunyou's arm, stood up, slowly stepped out of the door, and walked along the corridor to the backyard.
In the two or three years since Madam Ming came into the family, she has treated Xie Yunyou as her own son, urging him to study in the morning and adding clothes for him at night. Xie Yunyou has never worn the clothes his mother sewed for him. Now, everything about him is taken care of by Madam Ming. He is not used to having maids serving him closely, and Madam Ming is also in charge of all the matters around him.
No matter how stubborn a person is, he or she cannot help but be moved by such a stepmother who is so kind and gentle.
Although Xie Yunyou was stubborn, he was also very persevering. After making up his mind, he studied hard by candlelight under the careful guidance of Madam Ming, with Wang Shuhuai's occasional instruction and Xie Hui's correction and admonition. Later, he surpassed others and became a Jinshi.
In Xie Yunyou's opinion, Madam Ming played a great role in his success in the imperial examination, and he respected his stepmother even more.
"Please take care of your health first and leave all the affairs of the mansion to me. My son is old enough and can take care of things."
Xie Yunyou helped Madam Ming into the main courtyard and sat down. He wanted to leave, but Madam Ming grabbed his arm and said earnestly,
"Child, I know you are angry, and I feel sad for you and your brother. I often blame your father for being too stubborn and not being very compassionate to you and your brothers. But he is your father after all, and you can't do anything rash, understand?"
Xie Yunyou did not reply to her, but said in a gentle voice,
"Has mother taken medicine?"
Xie Yunshuang on the side whispered, "Not yet..."
Xie Yunyou scolded her, "Go and tell the maid to make medicine quickly and help mother to rest."
Xie Yunshuang said, "I'll go right away."
Xie Yunyou called her again, "Leave Daddy's affairs to me, you take care of Mother first, understand?"
Xie Yunshuang nodded repeatedly and went out holding up her skirt.
Xie Yunyou looked back and saw Madam Ming leaning against her back and unable to open her eyes. He advised, "You need to take care of yourself before you can take care of others."
Hearing Xie Yunyou's thoughtfulness, Madam Ming felt a pang in her heart. She opened her eyes again and said, "I understand. Go see your father as soon as possible."
Xie Yunyou returned to the study. By then, Xie Hui had woken up slightly, but his face was still ugly. The old servant who was serving him gave him a sip of ginseng soup. Xie Hui was hanging on to his last breath, gasping for breath against the pillow.
Xie Yunyou stood behind the screen, neither advancing nor retreating, his hands lowered as he stared at him with a sneer.
Xie Hui looked at his son weakly, then thought of Xie Yunchu. He was overwhelmed with grief. A sudden pain surged in his lungs. He covered his mouth and coughed violently, coughing up blood again.
Xie Yunyou was furious when he saw him like this. He grabbed a brocade stool and sat down in front of Xie Hui.
"How is it, Daddy? Is your good daughter going to kill someone? As the chief priest, she indulged her concubines and illegitimate daughters, causing chaos in the family and almost bringing disaster to her eldest sister who married out. You always say that scholars and officials manage their families and govern the country, but what has Dad done?"
Xie Hui's old face turned red again and he coughed violently a few times.
In the past, he would have made a few arguments, saying that he was just deceived and didn't know people well. But today, he had to accept Xie Yunyou's words, staring at the beams with his withered eyes, and didn't say a word for a long time.
There was a vast sound of wind passing by my ears, as if I saw Qiao's determination to leave her two children behind without hesitation, as if I saw Aunt Lu's reluctance to scold him for not fulfilling his responsibilities as the head of the family when she was sent away, and finally it stopped at Madam Ming's sigh when she blamed him for being strict and ignoring the feelings of his children.
So what if he has many students and friends all over the world?
His wife divorced him, his eldest daughter was almost killed, his concubine acted like a demon, his illegitimate daughter had evil intentions, his home was in a mess, every one of these was evidence of his guilt, if he was not the chief culprit, he was almost the chief culprit.
If you can't manage your own family, how can you manage the world?
Faced with his son's questioning, Xie Hui made no excuses and just smiled bitterly without saying a word.
"Do you still have the nerve to be the chief priest?" Xie Yunyou's words were like knives piercing his heart. Xie Hui's chest suddenly felt itchy and he kept coughing.
The young man stood up suddenly. "Xie Hui, let me tell you, I, Xie Yunyou, am determined to be a censor who keeps his heart and mind, and the first person I will impeach is you. I will impeach you for allowing your concubine to commit crimes as the chief priest of the Imperial College, and bring you disgrace."
After saying this, Xie Yunyou turned around and was about to leave.
Seeing this, Xie Hui's face was brimming with veins. He used all his strength to reach over the bed and grab his sleeve.
"You'er..." His eyes were filled with pain, and his skinny body was shaking like a sieve. He grabbed him tightly, and blood and phlegm slid out from the corners of his lips. Xie Hui still ignored him and slowly pulled him back bit by bit.
"My father has committed a grave sin, and there is no way to defend himself. If you want to kill me now, I will not blink an eye. But You'er, my Great Jin governs the world with filial piety, and a son should not speak of his father's faults. If you impeach me, it will also ruin your reputation. Tomorrow I will submit a letter of resignation and return home. Are you satisfied?"
Xie Yunyou stood there like a sharp peak, silent for a long time. He suddenly pulled away his sleeves, threw Xie Hui onto the bed, and said coldly,
"From now on, I will be in charge of the Xie Mansion and I will also be in charge of Xie Yunzhou. Do you have any objections?"
Xie Hui lay on the couch with his arms and legs spread out. Thinking of the sudden prick of a needle in Xie Yunzhou's heart, he nodded with a weak breath.
"Also, you are not allowed to interfere in my marriage."
Xie Hui closed his eyes and said nothing.
He and Qiao were forced to marry by their elders.
After marriage, the couple had different personalities and habits. They had a small quarrel every three days and a big quarrel every five days. Qiao Zhiyun followed her temper in everything, but he was serious and stern. Qiao Zhiyun often pointed at his nose and scolded him for being sanctimonious and not knowing how to be gentle with women. He also blamed Qiao for being arrogant, selfish and unreasonable.
Half a year after their marriage, Mrs. Qiao threatened to divorce him and refused to sleep with him. He left the capital in anger and met Aunt Lu when he went south to inspect the county school.
After several years of marriage, Qiao proposed divorce many times, but the Qiao family refused her daughter's request on the grounds that the Qiao family had never divorced a daughter. Later, Qiao suffered from postpartum depression and had a temper tantrum. She abandoned her child and dowry and resolutely returned to Jinling. It was heard that because of this incident, Qiao cut off contact with her mother's family.
Such a resolute character shocked and devastated Xie Hui, and he was depressed for several years. He was still afraid of getting married. When Qiao was alive, Aunt Lu was obedient and docile. After Qiao left, he gradually fell into Aunt Lu's trap and encouraged the arrogance of Aunt Lu and her daughter. Even the first encounter in Jiangnan was probably Aunt Lu's plan.
The source of all the trouble was that he did not manage this initial marriage well and let down his two children.
Having experienced the pain of marriage, how could she force Xie Yunyou to marry?
Xie Hui's eyelids drooped, and he weakly squeezed out three words, "It's all up to you..."
After a while, the guards of Xie's mansion brought in Doctor Fan, who went inside to give Xie Hui acupuncture. After a round of acupuncture, Xie Hui's face finally showed some color.
Doctor Fan took away the needles and went to the outer room to write a prescription, while instructing Xie Yunyou,
"Thank you, Master. This is an old illness of the Master. You must not get angry or anxious. Each attack is getting more serious. You must be careful, otherwise it will be difficult for you to live out your life in peace."
Xie Yunyou looked dazed for a moment, then slowly nodded.
After seeing off Doctor Fan, Xie Yunyou stood with his hands behind his back in front of the gate of Xie Mansion. Vast layers of clouds overlapped and covered the sky. Fallen petals wrapped in dust were blown away by the wind. The young boy, who was just about to grow up, put a room full of lights behind him, facing the autumn wind, and felt the responsibility on his shoulders for the first time.
The long wind brought away the haze above Xie’s mansion and also blew down the early osmanthus flowers in Chunjing Hall.
Wang Shuhuai changed into a dry straight robe and stepped onto the corridor in the backyard in the hazy night.
Through the blurry screen window, I caught a glimpse of Xie Yunchu and Ke Jie'er playing on the Luohan bed. Ke Jie'er imitated the doctor and put her little hand on Xie Yunchu's wrist, then asked in a delicate voice,
"Open your mouth and let me see your tongue."
Xie Yunchu heard her open her mouth. Sister Ke looked around randomly and then smiled and tried to lift her mother's eyelids. Xie Yunchu was afraid of being poked, so she straightened up and avoided her. "Silly girl, mother is not unconscious, there is no need to look at her pupils... just take her pulse."
Sister Ke looked at it for a moment and said seriously, "Mother, your pulse is weak and you need acupuncture."
As he said this, he took out the small wooden pestles that were used as chess pieces from the pile behind him and stuffed them into Xie Yunchu's chest and abdomen.
Xie Yunchu didn't know whether to laugh or cry.
Wang Shuhuai glanced out the window for a moment, then walked around the antique display case and went in.
When Ke Jie'er saw her father reaching out to hug her, Wang Shuhuai clamped her little arm and did not hug her. Instead, he turned around and handed her to the wet nurse, and then winked at Nanny Lin. Nanny Lin took Er Ge'er, who was sitting on the kang and playing chess, out. Only the couple were left in the east room.
Wang Shuhuai and Xie Yunchu squeezed together on a small bed.
He looked at his wife with deep eyes, as if covered by a layer of hazy fog.
Xie Yunchu felt that Wang Shuhuai's eyes were a little strange. "I heard from Nanny Lin that there was some commotion outside. What happened?"
Wang Shuhuai took off his shoes and sat in front of her. He was tall and the bed was too small for him, so he simply picked up Xie Yunchu. Xie Yunchu was confused by his action.
"What's wrong with you..."
Wang Shuhuai bent his knees slightly and held Xie Yunchu in his arms. Xie Yunchu sat on him with her heels on the bed. Wang Shuhuai lowered his eyes and rubbed his forehead against the ends of her hair, pondering in silence.
I could hear that his breathing was heavy and he was hesitant to speak.
"If you don't want to say it, then don't say it."
Xie Yunchu was about to get off, but Wang Shuhuai hugged her waist and held her tighter, rubbing her with his fingertips through the clothes. Xie Yunchu felt itchy around her waist, twisted in his arms, coughed slightly, and asked, "What's wrong with you?"
"Your sister is visiting today..."
Xie Yunchu looked up in astonishment and stared at him, "And then?"
Wang Shuhuai said, "She bribed my mother, intending to use her connections to enter the palace and stay by your side to look after you."
Xie Yunchu's eyebrows jumped suddenly, and the anger hidden deep in his heart surged in his throat. His tone became tense, "So?"
"I once said that you two elders are not allowed to interfere in Chunjingtang's affairs. Mother did not dare to make the decision on her own. Aunt Ming also felt that your sister's behavior was not right and tried to test her. Unexpectedly, she showed her hand. My mother and Aunt Ming acted decisively and detained her in the wing room."
"In order to show her favor to me, she studied ancient books and took great pains to collect the books I needed. It was obvious how ambitious she was. I thought she was a spy sent by someone else, so I searched her body and found some poisonous powder of thunder vine and saffron. Once a woman takes this poison, her body will be weak and she will have continuous vaginal discharge..."
Xie Yunchu's body suddenly froze, as if a wind from the depths of hell was pouring into her chest, and her heart was as cold as a leaky sieve.
In her previous life, she had complete faith in Aunt Lu and her daughter. Xie Yunxiu often came to the mansion. When she was not feeling well, Xie Yunxiu made cakes for her to honor her mother-in-law. When she was busy with housework, Xie Yunxiu helped her teach the children to read. The two sisters had a very close relationship, and outsiders could not notice any clues.
In this life, she dealt with Aunt Lu and sent Qiu Sui away. Xie Yunxiu's plans were repeatedly thwarted, and in the end he took a risk and tried to take advantage of Jiang's loophole to get close to her. Xie Yunchu had seen through Xie Yunxiu's true colors in this life, so it was naturally impossible for her to fall for it. But what really shocked her was that Xie Yunxiu actually intended to poison her.
After her rebirth, she thought about it several times. Since Aunt Lu and her daughter had set their sights on Wang Shuhuai, they would not just sit there and wait for her to die. She had long suspected that in her previous life, it was Xie Yunxiu and her daughter who had harmed her through Qiu Sui. Now the truth was revealed.
Her heart was in turmoil for a moment, and tears flowed from her red eyes. She wanted to cry out of grievance, and her slender hands involuntarily grabbed the collar of his shoulders, and crystal tears fell one by one.
Wang Shuhuai looked at him with great pain, "Look, I didn't want to tell you because I was afraid you would get angry, but I couldn't hide it from you..."
Xie Yunchu choked up, "Thank you and your wife for today. What about Xie Yunxiu's people? How should we deal with them?"
Wang Shuhuai said coldly, "We should give her a taste of her own medicine. We will fill her stomach with poison powder and send her to the water prison outside the city. We will slowly torture her to death."
When Xie Yunchu heard this, his wet eyelashes sparkled with tears, and the snow-white light broke through the gloomy mist of tears, leaving a bright glow. The pent-up anger in his heart slowly dissipated, and his lungs were no longer stuffy, and he became more energetic.
"Is that true?"
That would be very satisfying.
Thinking of how her life in her previous life was destroyed by such a person, Xie Yunchu gritted her teeth. Before she died, she pretended to be strangled to death by Xie Yunxiu. With Wang Shuhuai's ability, he would definitely find out the whole story. She stared at her husband in a daze, with a complicated expression like dark waves surging.
"Wang Shuhuai, don't let me down."
Wang Shuhuai didn't know why she suddenly said that. He smiled and wiped away the tears from her eyes, "I won't let you down."
The more he wiped, the more her tears fell, one after another. When had Wang Shuhuai seen her so moved? There is nothing more painful than betrayal by one's family, and it is hard to guard against.
"I plan to check all the people around you, okay?"
Xie Yunchu still had some objections and just nodded lightly.
Wang Shuhuai looked at his wife, who was softer than ever before, and suddenly spoke,
"Chu'er, in the past I always hoped that my wife would be gentle and generous, and that you would diligently manage the harem for me, so that I could go to the court with peace of mind. Now I realize that I was wrong. Scholars should first manage their families and then govern the country. How can you manage the world if you can't clean up your own house? An uneasy home is the beginning of all evil. If I leave you alone, even if I win a place outside, what's the point if you don't live well and the children don't live peacefully?"
Wang Shuhuai paused, "From now on, you can live as you please and live your life freely. I will never let you suffer any loss."
From time to time, the autumn wind blew in and poured in through the tiny holes above the lampshade. The light flickered and flickered for a moment, but the light in his eyes never faded, and even that touch of tenderness was within reach.
Xie Yunchu stared at her husband with his handsome features, smiled with mixed feelings, and hugged him in her arms.
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