Chapter 644: Marriage (Part 2)
For the sake of his deceased wife, Mr. Xi wanted to help Liu Qiuyu and her son.
But people in that era were very conservative. If word got out that he, a widower, was helping someone else's wife and children, the reputations of Liu Qiuyu and Ruan Fengmian would be ruined.
So Mr. Xi could only intervene secretly and occasionally help out a little. He absolutely could not interfere in matters like the marriage between Cheng Qi and Liu Qiuyu.
At that time, Mr. Xi thought that although Cheng Qi was a disgusting person, Liu Qiuyu still had the Liu family behind her, and Ruan Fengmian was Cheng Qi's first son. No matter how vicious Cheng Qi was, he would not be too harsh on Liu Qiuyu and her son.
But he didn't expect that his idea was still too naive.
Cheng Qi is not just vicious, he is simply a devil.
The mistress Xu Qingya is another devil.
The two devils teamed up to kill Liu Qiuyu, and a few days later they killed Ruan Fengmian and Yang Liu.
By the time Mr. Xi learned of the deaths of Liu Qiuyu and Ruan Fengmian, it was too late. Liu Qiuyu had been cremated, and Ruan Fengmian and Yang Liu's bodies had been secretly "buried." Even their child, Ruan Munan, was nowhere to be found.
Mr. Xi was filled with regret. He felt he had failed his deceased wife, not protecting the friend she cared about. So, for the next year, he repeatedly sent people to search for Ruan Munan's whereabouts, while simultaneously pressing the Cheng family to reveal the whereabouts of Ruan Fengmian and Yang Liu's bodies.
Cheng Qi naturally wouldn't tell him.
Old Master Xi began to take action against the Cheng family, and the relationship between the two families became increasingly hostile.
It was not until a year later that Xi Xiaoran, who had already become obsessed, became seriously ill and his condition worsened. Old Master Xi no longer had the energy to care about anything else and slowly stopped attacking the Cheng family.
"If only I hadn't worried so much back then." Old Master Xi sighed. "I was worried that if I rashly intervened to help, I would ruin your grandmother and your father's reputation. Little did I know that the Cheng family was a den of cannibals, and it directly took their lives! If I had known this would happen, why would I have worried so much?"
"I'm sorry to Madam Liu, sorry to your parents, and even more sorry to the instructions of Lao Jiu's grandmother."
Old Master Xi raised his wine cup and drank it all in one gulp, his eyes slightly red.
Ruan Qi didn't want to upset the old man too much, so she quickly shook her head and said to him, "Grandpa Xi, this isn't your fault, don't blame yourself. On the contrary, my parents have always been very grateful to you. They say that if you hadn't helped them from time to time, their lives in the Cheng family would have been much more difficult."
"Besides, even if you put aside all your concerns and intervened in the Cheng family's affairs, you wouldn't be able to protect them. Xu Qingya and Cheng Qi are very cunning. If they wanted Mom and Dad dead, they would come up with ten thousand ways. You can't prevent them."
Old Master Xi knew Ruan Qi was telling the truth. Cheng Qi and Xu Qingya, those two bastards, had a myriad of ways to kill people. As long as Ruan Fengmian and the others stayed in the Cheng family, there would always be a knife at their necks.
Mr. Xi sighed for who knows how many times. He used his serving chopsticks to pick up a chicken drumstick for Ruan Qi and asked her, "How are your parents now? Have they been doing well these past few years?"
"Mom and Dad are fine."
Ruan Qi smiled and briefly recounted Ruan Fengmian and Yang Liu's experiences over the years. "The villagers of Qingyun Village are very simple and honest. Although we didn't have much money back then, Mom and Dad lived a very easy life. Grandpa and Grandma loved them like their own children, and Master also helped to clear their tracks. The Cheng family and that mysterious organization have never been able to find us all these years, and our family has lived a good life."
Mr. Xi listened patiently, his solemn expression gradually turning into a smile.
After Ruan Qi finished speaking, he nodded in relief: "As long as you live well, that's good. Wealth and power are external things. The most important thing is that your family is safe and sound."
Ruan Qi nodded in agreement, picked up the glazed wine pot, and filled the old man's cup.
Old Master Xi looked at her with satisfaction: "It's all fate. Back then, Lao Jiu's grandmother and your grandmother were close friends, and now you and Lao Jiu are lovers. If Lao Jiu's grandmother knew about this, she would definitely be very happy. If only she were still alive..."
When talking about his deceased wife, Mr. Xi's emotions got a little out of control again.
Ruan Qi didn't want to make the old man too sad, so she simply stood up and switched seats with Xi Xiaoyun, sitting next to Old Man Xi.
She took his arm and said with a smile, "Grandpa Xi, Grandma Xi must be watching us from heaven with my grandma now. They were best friends when they were alive, and they still accompany each other in death. Grandma Xi is not lonely, and my grandma is not lonely either. So you should also be happy, so that Grandma Xi won't worry about you."
The little girl's voice is soft, and her words are a little naive, but they can magically soothe the sadness in people's hearts.
When Mr. Xi thought about his wife and best friend accompanying each other in heaven and being able to talk to each other whenever they had time, his sad mood immediately improved a lot.
He patted Ruan Qi's shoulder and said with emotion: "You are a good child. It is a blessing for Lao Jiu to meet you."
Ruan Qi glanced at Xi Jiu and curled her lips with a smile: "It's a blessing for me to meet Jiujiu!"
Seeing her being so protective of her, Old Master Xi shook his head in amusement and said, "Girl, since your parents have already returned to the imperial capital, why don't you arrange a time for the two families to meet?"
"?" Ruan Qi opened her eyes wide, "Meet?"
"That's right." Old Master Xi looked at her with a smile. "You two have been dating for so long, it's time for both sets of parents to meet. Secondly, I also want to meet Bai Nian... What's your father's name now? Is he still Bai Nian?"
Ruan Qi shook her head: "My father's name is Ruan Fengmian now, my mother's name is Yang Liu, and my brother's name is Ruan Munan."
"Ruan Fengmian Yangliu..." Old Master Xi repeated it several times in his mind and nodded. "Your father's name is better than Cheng Boyan. Cheng Qi's crappy name is better left alone. But your mother... Yangliu? Which Liu? The Liu in Liu Qiuyu?"
Ruan Qi: "Yes. My grandmother's last name was Yang, and my mother took her last name after she changed her name. She was named Liu to commemorate my grandmother."
Upon hearing this, Mr. Xi couldn't help but sigh again.
"The entire Cheng family is rotten to the core. Only your father's side is loyal and righteous, and their character is inherited from your grandmother Liu Qiuyu. It's just a pity that your grandmother's family didn't have the generosity of scholars. Girl, have your parents visited the Liu family since they returned to the imperial capital?"
"No." Ruan Qi shook her head. "Not only that, they didn't even ask. Dad said the Liu family had nothing to do with him."
Mr. Xi couldn't help but feel complicated.
Back when Ruan Fengmian was still the eldest son of the Cheng family, the Liu family treated him like a treasure. But when Liu Qiuyu got into trouble, her brother Liu Qiusheng offered only token resistance before succumbing to the Cheng family's power.
Later, when Liu Qiuyu died, the Liu family members didn't even show up, showing their ruthlessness and spinelessness to the extreme.
"It's better not to go. After your grandmother passed away, Cheng Qi turned his back on you. Not only was he ungrateful for the Liu family's support back then, he also suppressed them."
"The Liu family has not been peaceful these past few years, and their descendants haven't lived up to their expectations. I heard that the elders of the Liu family have been clamoring for their younger generations to marry into aristocratic families."
－－－－－－Digression－－－－－－
My dears, the grey stripe in the middle of the physical book is an anti-counterfeiting mark, not a misprint.
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Update completed, ok
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