Chapter 574 I Won't Cry
The Taoist priest put his arm around his shoulder. "That's all in the past. Let's go."
As he spoke, he looked at Song Chunxue.
"Junior brother, you should go back to Sanwa's place. We're going up the mountain first." Looking at his senior brother's expression, he knew that she regretted not being kinder to Sanwa back then.
But time has passed, and the past cannot be retrieved. No matter how sad you are, it's useless. People have to look forward.
Now, Sanwa has become an official, and she has raised him very well.
Master Zhang thought that, given his junior brother's tendency to feel guilty, regretful, and sad, he would definitely go home to see Sanwa and spend more time with him.
“I’m not going back. Let’s go up the mountain first, settle Tudan’er’s place in, and then I can watch you perform the apprenticeship ceremony before I go back.”
Unexpectedly, Song Chunxue quickly suppressed her sadness and got into the carriage.
"Let's go, and on the way, let's kill a chicken for Third Uncle. He's probably craving it." She had no expression, and like a sparrow, she lightly slipped into the carriage, showing no trace of an ordinary mother.
Wangchen looked at the Daoist priest and lowered his voice, "Did I say something wrong?"
"No, she thinks differently than ordinary people now, but she's not usually so petty. After all, she's practically a nun now, so don't overthink it." The Taoist priest pulled Wangchen to sit on either side of him outside the carriage. "Let's go, let's go up the mountain."
...
As the flowers of May fade, the fruit on the trees grows ever more tempting.
After leaving the yamen, Sanwa encountered a radish seller on his way home. Thinking that dumplings and buns made with fresh radishes would be delicious, he bought a few.
I bought a jar of apricot blossom wine on my way to a tavern, thinking that my mother could drink it when she came back.
I bought some maltose for the child, and I couldn't resist eating two pieces myself. It was indeed delicious.
He wondered to himself how much his monthly allowance was, and whether it would be enough for him to spend like this every day.
Even though his monthly salary wasn't much, his whole family was still well-fed and clothed.
However, even the money from his mother wasn't good. He knew that his mother's money would always be useful, and that people like them who didn't have to worry about food and clothing shouldn't be so extravagant.
His hands were busy; he looked up at the magnificent sunset on the horizon, which dispelled the day's fatigue.
He hummed a tune as he walked into the alley, and as he turned a corner, he saw his mother coming towards him.
"Mother? You're back?"
With a delighted expression, he said, "I thought you wouldn't be back for several days. I was just about to write to you. Are you injured?"
He carefully looked his mother up and down, then went around behind her and only felt relieved when he saw that she was safe and sound.
"When did Mother return? Was she waiting for me?" Sanwa smiled and handed over the wine. "You've been to the battlefield before. No matter how the battle went, it's worth celebrating."
Song Chunxue accepted the wine and looked at him, dressed lightly and comfortably, wearing an official hat that made his lips red and teeth white, and looking very dashing. She felt much more at ease.
That's right, her third son is a Jinshi (a successful candidate in the highest imperial examinations), a sixth-rank official, and is no longer the silent shepherd boy who always suffered injustice.
"Why did you come back alone? Didn't you bring any attendants?" Recalling what Mulan had said, Song Chunxue looked worried. "You should bring one with you in the future, at least so you can have someone to look after you when you go in and out of the government office. I heard someone stopped you a couple of days ago?"
Sanwa nodded and walked side by side with Song Chunxue.
"Hmm, I found two, but I didn't choose either. I'll come back for another one tomorrow."
He looked at his mother's Taoist robe, a strange feeling stirring within him.
Knowing that her mother was devoted to Taoism, she didn't want her hopes to always fall on her children, leaving them with endless worries and eventually becoming tiresome.
In the past, he could tolerate his mother, older brother, and second brother making a few jokes that he thought were a bit too impolite.
But not now. My mother is like those strict, scholarly families; she'll turn cold if she hears anything unpleasant.
Not to mention, although Mother appears to have no demands on them, she actually has no expectations of them and does not want to rely on any of them in the future. She would rather buy a maid to take care of her than suffer the temper of her sons.
Even towards Mulan, he showed more tolerance and care, without asking for anything in return.
Jiang Yexun initially thought that her mother liked Mulan so much because she valued Mulan's filial piety and kindness.
But in the past two years, he has gradually realized that his mother's treatment of Mulan is more like paying off a debt.
She was shrouded in mystery, but he didn't want to ask any further questions.
All he wanted was for his mother to be safe and healthy, and for him to be able to see her often.
However, she wore her Taoist robe more and more often, and it seemed that she was becoming more and more distant from them.
Jiang Yexun could guess that her mother wanted to gradually distance herself from them and stop missing them.
"I made buckwheat noodles with pickled vegetables. You haven't had this in a long time, have you?" Song Chunxue looked at Sanwa with a smile. "I drew some talismans for you to ward off villains. They're on your desk. I also gave you two sets of clothes. Dress presentably so no one will look down on you."
"How could that be? Ever since Mother went to the Zhao family with the Taoist priest, several officials in the yamen who are higher in rank than me have been quite polite to me. No one looks down on me. I am flattered because of Mother's influence."
As they entered the courtyard, Jiang Yexun casually asked, "Does Mother have something to tell me?"
He was the one who told his mother she could go wherever she wanted, but after she actually left without a word, he was constantly worried and had recurring dreams that she would never return, leaving him with no worries.
Song Chunxue scratched her head, "No, it's been a long time since I cooked for you, I'm not used to it anymore?"
Whether he cooked or not didn't matter, but his mother's expression was different from usual, as if she was hiding something from him.
Upon arriving at the main house, the food was already laid out on the table. Mulan stood up, her belly noticeably larger than before.
"Mom, hurry up and eat, or it'll get soggy."
"Don't worry about me, you guys eat," Song Chunxue said, sitting in the main seat and beckoning her granddaughter to sit on her lap. "I'll feed the baby, I'll eat when it's a little cooler."
Jiang Yexun looked at the thinly sliced buckwheat noodles. He knew that pickled vegetables were usually made in early winter and couldn't be stored after the beginning of spring. He wondered where his mother had found them.
He has always loved eating this, but he never expected his mother to remember it so clearly.
"Mother, you came back alone. Where is the Taoist priest?" Her mother had avoided answering her question earlier, so something must have happened.
“He went up the mountain, and your brother-in-law came back with us, but he has already returned to the county.” Song Chunxue lowered her head to wipe Chunyan’s mouth. “I plan to live on the mountain permanently from now on, and come down occasionally to see you all and let you know.”
The tranquility and freedom of the mountains are beneficial for spiritual practice.
But Sanwa was worried that his mother could come and go freely with the Taoist priest on the mountain without their knowledge.
"It's nice up in the mountains, but Mother hasn't quite mastered sword flight yet, so she still travels by carriage. I'll go to the mountains to see you during my days off..."
A wave of sadness washed over him, as if his mother were about to become a nun, severing all ties to the mortal world and no longer caring for her children.
Song Chunxue sensed that Sanwa was about to cry, and felt a pang of sadness mixed with warmth in her heart.
"I'm not like a nun, cutting off all feelings and relationships and severing all ties with you. You're not going to cry, are you?"
The third child stared at the noodles in the bowl and stubbornly said, "I won't cry, it's the fourth child who cries."
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