Nothing happened that night. When he woke up the next day, he saw that the sky was gloomy, the north wind was biting, and the sky was covered with dark clouds. Zhang Zhaoci was a little worried that it might snow. If it snowed, the road would be more difficult to travel.
Zhang Zhaocheng has already sent someone ahead to check, and it is estimated that they will arrive at the post station in about half a day. Granny Lu has arranged for someone to boil water and simmer hot soup in a pot, so that they can have a hot meal and a hot soup as soon as they arrive.
Zhang Zhaoci was restless, and the children were also affected by her mood. Unlike yesterday afternoon, they did not run around the yard playing wildly. However, the housekeeper of the Feng family, who lived next door, brought over an exquisite wooden box, saying that it contained some cured wild game from the mountains, which was specially given to the third mistress of the Xu family by Madam Feng.
After thanking the Feng family, Zhang Zhaoci accepted the gifts they sent. After breakfast, the Feng family set off for the capital. Zhang Zhaoci had not yet met the mysterious old lady of the Feng family. Instead, it was either the Feng family's steward or Granny Chen who appeared. This only made Zhang Zhaoci more and more interested in this old lady of the Feng family.
Inside the Feng family carriage, an elderly lady with a full head of white hair, well past seventy, was holding the young master of the Feng family and talking to Granny Chen sitting next to her.
Granny Chen said, "You went to bed early last night. I took our young master to eat and play to his heart's content at the Xu family's house before we went back. The third mistress of the Xu family has a very straightforward personality, quite like the young lady from the Marquis of Yongyi's mansion back then."
Upon hearing this, Madam Feng was slightly taken aback and said, "The Marquis of Yongyi's mansion? That was decades ago. Of those people back then, only the two of us are still alive, right? Those people who were fighting over this and that are all long gone. What was the point of fighting for them?"
Granny Chen smiled and said, "That's really true. I think it's because you and that Miss Shen were so insightful back then that you have such good fortune today."
Upon hearing this, Madam Feng smiled slightly and said, "When people get old, they tend to think about things from the past. Back then, we were both just young girls. We actually only met a few times. I was confined at home all day studying and learning to read, while I heard that she was traveling around with her father. Such courage and boldness for a young girl."
Granny Chen smiled and said, "Yes, the old lady of the Xu family and the late Empress Dowager were actually sisters who had not yet left the mourning period. She often went to the Empress Dowager's palace, but later, for some reason, she stopped coming to the palace often. Even the Xu family closed their doors to guests and didn't even interact with many other families anymore."
After listening, Madam Feng frowned and thought for a moment, then said, "This must have happened more than thirty years ago, right?"
Granny Chen said, "Yes, I remember when the late emperor passed away, the old lady of the Xu family was originally going to come to the coffin to mourn. I don't know why, but the late empress dowager exempted her from it. When the late empress dowager passed away, she left an edict for the emperor that the old lady of the Xu family should only come to the coffin to pay her respects and nothing else."
Madam Feng sighed and said, "I am never as good as her, whether in terms of temperament or methods. If I were as capable as Madam Xu, I might not be the way I am now."
Knowing that the old lady couldn't let go of her worries, Granny Chen sighed and said, "Old lady, look at you. You are now the most envied person among the old ladies in the capital. You are surrounded by your children and grandchildren, and Lord Feng is very filial to you."
Madam Feng shook her head without saying a word, but gently stroked her drowsy great-grandson's head. Who could understand that this was not the life she had been looking for?
Madam Feng felt that she had probably only ever fallen in love once in her life. That young man was tall, handsome, and talented. After a few simple conversations, Madam Feng felt that she had found a kind of spiritual connection with him. Madam Feng felt that this was the person she wanted to marry and the person she wanted to spend the rest of her life with.
Unfortunately, in places unseen, a cannibalistic undercurrent was surging. In such an environment, a sixteen or seventeen-year-old girl probably had no other way out but to get married.
After marrying the young hunter, Madam Feng waited a long time, until her eldest son was old enough to start school, but she still couldn't find that feeling that moved her heart. Madam Feng felt that her heart must have died.
To provide a better life for his wife and children, especially when his eldest son was preparing to take the imperial examination, the hunter went deep into the mountains to raise travel expenses and never came out again. Fortunately, his eldest son passed the examination and brought the whole family out of the mountains. Madam Feng made a living by copying books for others and teaching her daughter embroidery, and managed to make both of her children successful.
All those hardships vanished after her eldest son passed the imperial examination in Beijing with top honors. All Madam Feng wanted was to see the man who had once captivated her heart in her youth one last time.
Madam Feng later learned that after she disappeared, her father arranged for her aunt's daughter to marry the young man. Unfortunately, the two never got along well, and it was said that not long after their marriage, the young man who had always been etched in her heart passed away without leaving any children.
Madam Feng had always wanted to see that person again, but unfortunately, he had passed away. Madam Feng was even more heartbroken, but she didn't know who to seek justice from. After going through so much, when she looked back at those things that made her feel uneasy, she suddenly felt that they were actually quite meaningless.
For the past few years, Madam Feng has spent a long time each year at the villa on the mountain where she met the young hunter. Her descendants all say that Madam Feng can't forget the man who died many years ago. In fact, Madam Feng just feels that the mountain is quiet and allows her to get away from the hustle and bustle of the capital. The cool mountain breeze makes her feel as if she is still the young girl who made her heart flutter.
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