Chapter 48: Past Events 5 His existence brings shame to everyone
There are many people in the Xie family who know about this scandal, but no one has ever dared to speak out about it openly.
There were also many people in the Xie family who were kept in the dark. When they first heard about this, it was like a bolt from the blue.
For a moment, all the onlookers were stunned and looked shocked.
Su He also found it incredible.
She thought that Xie Erlang was Xie Wuhen's younger brother, but she didn't expect that he was the child born from the affair between Xu Nanzhi and Xie Jin.
Thinking about it more carefully, it is indeed true. When Xie Lei died on the battlefield, Xie Wuhen was only ten years old. It has been eleven years since then, and his younger brother is only eight years old.
After thinking about it more deeply, she also understood why Xie Wuhen and Xu Nanzhi were not on good terms, and why the first and second branches of the Xie family were not in harmony.
The Xie family is in deep trouble indeed!
She even understood why Xie Wuhen, despite his distinguished family background and handsome appearance, wanted to remain single and childless for the rest of his life. Perhaps he doubted marriage? Or perhaps he feared emotional betrayal?
Could it be that his repeated suspicions about her all stemmed from this?
Many thoughts flashed through Su He's mind one by one, and each thought gave her a deeper understanding of Xie Wuhen.
She couldn't help but turn her head to look at him, and he was staring at Wang Yue'e at that time.
The midday sun fell on his face, making it look even more tense and cold, like a piece of ice emitting chill.
He said calmly, "Today is not the time for Second Aunt to bring up the past."
Wang Yue'e, still madly looking, asked, "Then when do you think this past matter should be resolved?"
Xie Shuang, who was standing by, grabbed her arm in panic: "Mother, are you crazy? Why are you talking nonsense like this in front of others?"
Xie Wujiang was also quite surprised: "That's right, Mother, you...how could you ruin the reputation of Father and Auntie? We...we are all members of the Xie family, we are all of the same blood."
The brother and sister obviously didn't know the reason.
Wang Yue'e, with a touch of desperate excitement, violently shook off Xie Shuang's hand. "You said I ruined their reputation? You actually said I ruined their reputation!"
She glanced at Xie Jin beside her, then pointed at Xie Erlang in the courtyard: "Second Master, tell me yourself, is that your son?"
Xie Erlang, standing in the Anxin Courtyard, saw someone pointing at him and shrank back in fear. He hid behind Madam Zhou again, muttering quietly, "Madam, there are so many people. I'm so scared."
Normally it was just him and the nanny playing together, but today a lot of people came. It was the first time he had seen so many people.
Nanny Zhou was also afraid, not knowing what would happen today.
But he said comfortingly: "Don't be afraid, Erlang, they are here to play hide-and-seek and will leave soon."
Xie Erlang looked at this one, then at that one: "Are they really here to play hide-and-seek?"
Nanny Zhou patted the back of his hand and said, "Really? I'm here to play hide-and-seek."
At this time, Xie Jin was also looking at Xie Erlang with complicated eyes.
There was regret, guilt, unspeakable remorse and shame in that look.
After that, he said nothing and pulled Wang Yue'e back with a cold face.
Wang Yue'e staggered as he pulled her, then fiercely pushed him away: "Why, you feel ashamed and embarrassed too, and want to avoid me?"
Xie Jin suppressed his anger and asked, "What do you want today?"
Wang Yue'e said firmly, "I want you to admit in front of the children and everyone in the Xie family that Xie Erlang is your son with Xu Nanzhi."
Xie Wujiang and his sister also looked at their father, anxiously waiting for the result.
Xie Jin refused to respond directly. He gritted his teeth and asked, "Have you had enough of this?"
Without waiting for Wang Yue'e to respond, Zhang Qian'er suddenly continued: "I think second uncle is mistaken. The one causing trouble today is not second aunt, but the young lady of the Xie family's main house." After saying that, she looked at Su He with a provocative look on her face.
After all, she planned today's action just to deal with this young lady.
Su He said calmly, "Miss Qian'er is really quick to slander people. It would be best if people don't find out that it was Miss Qian'er who started it today."
Xie Wuhen also agreed in a cold voice: "My lady is right. I will investigate today's incident thoroughly. No one who stirs up trouble behind the scenes will get away."
Mei Zi, who was in the corner, broke out in a cold sweat when she heard this.
Zhang Qian'er, however, forced herself to hold her breath and taunted, "Master Xie is so magnanimous! The young mistress has caused such a big mess, and Master Xie is still here calling her 'madam'."
Zhang Biyu couldn't bear to listen any longer and stepped forward to persuade Zhang Qian'er: "Today is Ziyu's birthday, so please stop talking."
Zhang Qianer glanced at her sideways and said, "Now I am a member of the Li family, it is not my aunt's turn to teach me."
She still resented the fact that she had married into the Li family.
Zhang Biyu choked and fell silent helplessly.
There was a moment of silence in the corridor.
Then Xie Wuhen shouted, "Someone come here."
Wu Sheng stepped forward and said, "Boss, I'm here."
He ordered in a deep voice: "Lock up the Anxin Courtyard and drive away all the outsiders."
He also ordered: "Anyone who dares to talk behind my back about what happened today will be sold out immediately."
Wu Sheng answered loudly "Yes", then walked forward, closed the gate, and locked it tightly.
The mottled wooden door once again blocked the eight-year-old Xie Erlang from everyone's sight.
Then Xie Wuhen raised his eyes and gave Zhang Qianer a fierce look.
This look wasn't a warning, but a grudge! It was a way of letting her wait for the consequences!
This sight frightened Zhang Qian'er so much that she suddenly felt guilty and hunched her shoulders.
After a moment, Xie Wuhen took Su He's hand and turned to leave.
Wu Sheng also politely advised everyone to leave.
Everyone had their own thoughts and finally dispersed in groups of three or two.
The corridor, which was once bustling, returned to its former silence.
Nanny Zhou leaned against the crack in the door and peeked out. Only after she saw that there was no one outside the yard did she breathe a sigh of relief.
On the way back to Chunhuayuan, Xie Wuhen took quick and wide steps.
Su He pulled him and slowed him down a little.
She asked, "Are you angry with me, my poor concubine?"
He denied: "No."
He always insisted on his words, so she refused to believe that he didn't have it.
So she explained as she walked, "Today I was just going to the East Gate to pick up the crabs that Miss Mei Zi ordered, and I accidentally walked into Anxin Courtyard. I didn't know there was a courtyard there before."
Seeing that he remained silent, she confessed, "Actually... it wasn't 'accidental'. I was just too curious at the time and didn't know who lived there, so I pushed open the gate."
He suddenly stopped and asked, "The gate was locked, how did you get in?"
Su He was startled and shook his head: "The gate was ajar at the time, but not locked."
Xie Wuhen frowned and said, "As expected."
"As expected what?"
"Sure enough, someone lured you there."
Su He knew that it was Mei Zi who lured her there, and even guessed that the person behind it might be Zhang Qianer, but after all, it was her feet that were on her body, and she pushed open the gate by herself.
She didn't want to cause any quarrel with him over this matter, so she tried to explain: "Today is my husband's birthday. I wanted him to spend this day happily, but I didn't expect that it would cause such a big disaster..."
"It wasn't my wife who caused this trouble." His expression softened considerably, and he took her by the hand and walked towards the other corridor. "Accompany me to a place."
He brought her to Wangxiang Pavilion and climbed to the eighth floor.
The last time I came was the night of the fireworks.
Today is daytime, and the scene is completely different.
The bustling streets are in full view, the winding Qingshui River is sparkling, a breeze blows, carrying fragrant water vapor, and a large flock of birds flies across the sky, leaving behind a faint silhouette.
The capital city during the day is more real and more down-to-earth than the capital city at night.
His brows relaxed a lot, and his tone was not as sharp as before.
He said: "I used to come here often to look out over the view alone, sometimes I could stand here for half a day."
He pointed to a certain spot below the city: "See that street? That long, narrow street."
Su He looked in the direction he pointed: "Yes, I saw it."
He breathed a sigh of relief, a look of pride on his face. "Every time my father returned from the battlefield, he would ride his Ferghana horse through that long street. Even from here in the attic, I could hear the clatter of horse hooves, like firecrackers."
His tone sounded particularly desolate.
But his eyes were full of longing for the past!
For a moment, Su He seemed to remember his father along with him.
Daddy said to her, "Hehe, women must learn how to make tea."
He added, "When He He grows up a little bit, she can start learning the art of tea."
But Daddy didn't have time to wait for her to grow up.
Tears wet the corners of Su He's eyes, and a gentle breeze blew away the moisture from the corners of her eyes.
She looked at the long, distant street and murmured, "My husband must be missing the general, right?"
Then she said, "Today, I, a poor concubine, wanted to give my husband a birthday gift."
He asked, "What gift?"
She replied, "I have invited a troupe of opera singers to sing 'Return to Liangguan' for my husband."
He was silent for a moment.
He then put his arms around her and said, "Thank you, my lady."
He said, "What happened today is my responsibility. I shouldn't have hidden the past of our family from my wife, but sometimes it really is..."
It is indeed "difficult to say", but the four words "difficult to say" also make it difficult for him to say it.
He was such a proud man!
Su He smelled the pine cone fragrance on his body and felt at ease for no reason.
She responded gently: "Since it is an old matter, my husband can talk about it if he wants to. It doesn't matter if he doesn't want to talk about it."
He kissed her forehead and continued to tell the story.
The affair between Xu Nanzhi and Xie Jin was exposed in the autumn nine years ago.
By then, Xie Lei had already died on the battlefield. Emperor Zhao Chengye, mindful of his merits, would invite his wife, children, and younger brother along for the autumn hunt.
Xie Jin was not good at riding and shooting, and every time he went there he was just to join in the fun and make friends with the powerful and influential.
But that day, after returning from the hunting ground, he did not go into his own tent, but went to the tent of his sister-in-law Xu Nanzhi.
It would have been fine if the two of them had acted secretly to avoid being seen, but unfortunately, that day, Empress Zhou Minghui received an imperial decree to personally reward some venison and cloth to each official's family member who participated in the hunt.
The person guarding outside Xu Nanzhi's tent at that time was Nanny Han.
She was shocked when she saw the queen and turned around to report.
The empress, who was completely unaware of the situation, stopped her. "Madam Xie is a widow, and she usually comes in and out alone. I came here specifically to speak to her today, so you don't need to pass on the message."
She is the Empress who is the mother of the country. How dare Han Ma disobey her words?
So they could only watch as the queen lifted the curtain and walked in.
So, everything was exposed!
Fortunately, the royal family valued decency and the queen felt that she had brought bad luck, so the matter was eventually covered up.
But ten months later, Xu Nanzhi gave birth to a son, Xie Erlang from Anxinyuan.
Xie Erlang was also covered up.
From then on, the Xie family had a corner that was dark and a scandal that was difficult to talk about.
Xie Wuhen was extremely hateful and angry!
His father, whom he respected so much and had made great military achievements, became a joke.
His existence itself has become a joke.
He didn't even know when the two people had an affair, was it when his father was alive or after his father died?
For a while, he wanted to kill Xu Nanzhi, kill Xie Jin, and kill the crying child.
Xu Nanzhi pleaded bitterly, "Mother has been immoral and sorry for you. Mother didn't want this child either, but I tried so many ways and nothing worked. Now that he's born, I can't... Can you forgive mother..."
He didn't want to forgive, but he had to accept it.
Year after year, he grew up, his mother grew old, and things have come to this point today.
Xie Erlang might have been harmed by the abortion drug. Even though he could walk and talk like a normal person, his brain was not working well.
His existence brings shame to everyone.
Xie Wuhen whispered solemnly: "Perhaps this is the retribution of the Xie family!"
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