029 Visiting My Mother's Home 2
Li Yang froze in mid-air, unable to believe her eyes, and asked Bei Hai incredulously, "Did Brother Jing go out to look for me yesterday?"
Bei Hai nodded affirmatively: "Yes, I went with him. Even when it rained heavily, he refused to give up, and that's when his clothes got soaked. Later, the divine doctor suddenly came back and said he saw you on the mountain, so the second young master changed his clothes and went out with him."
Upon hearing this, Li Yang felt a pang of sadness, a bitter feeling welling up in her nostrils.
"Is he alright?" Li Yang asked, then added worriedly, "Where's Brother Jing? In the kitchen? I'll go find him."
Bei Hai was secretly annoyed, and went to stop her again: "No, no, the second young master is not in the kitchen."
Seeing the struggle and difficulty on his face, Li Yang immediately understood: "He went to see Xu Biyun?"
Bei Hai explained, "No, it's because Young Master Luo vomited again, and Madam Luo couldn't find a doctor, so the Second Young Master went to check on him. He didn't go on his own initiative, yes, he didn't go on his own initiative."
Li Yang chuckled self-deprecatingly, her grip on the doorframe tightening slightly until her knuckles turned white. She regained her composure and said, "In that case, I'll return to the Li residence first. The rest is up to you, Beihai."
Beihai opened his mouth, but this time he couldn't think of any reason to keep her.
Li Yang suppressed the churning in her stomach and walked calmly along the bustling main road. She was fine on the outer streets, but as she entered the alleys near the Li residence, the people gathered by the roadside all recognized her. Seeing her return alone, some greeted her with smiles, but then immediately turned and began gossiping with those nearby about why she had come back.
The names of Yuan Chongjing and the Duke of Luo's mansion could still be faintly heard.
At this moment, Li Yang was quite grateful to Song Xi for telling her about this in advance, which gave her the mental preparation and a way to deal with her family's concern.
Her mother, Madam Li, had a volatile temper. When she saw her return, pale-faced and trembling, her anger flared up immediately: "Are those people outside telling the truth? Is Chongjing really having an affair with the eldest daughter-in-law of the Duke of Luo's mansion? Did he send you back? Yang'er, don't be afraid, Mother will stand up for you!"
As she spoke, she rolled up her sleeves, picked up a wooden stick standing against the wall, and walked outside.
Li Yang gave her father a look, and while he was blocking her mother, she explained, "No, it was just a coincidence. Those are just rumors, don't believe them."
Unable to break free from her father's grasp, Li's mother angrily said, "Everyone saw it yesterday! That brat Yuan Chongjing kicked down the door of the Duke's mansion and even carried their young master out. If your father hadn't persuaded me, I would have gone to the Yuan family to find you yesterday!"
"There's been some misunderstanding. Never mind, I'll explain it to you later. Mother, is there anything left to eat at home? I only had some porridge today, I'm starving," Li Yang said listlessly.
Seeing this, Li's mother immediately put down the stick: "Yes, yes, yes, her father, hurry up and go to the kitchen to make Yang'er a bowl of noodles. Yang'er, there are some pastries in the room, go and eat some to fill your stomach first."
Li Yang nodded, hooked her arm around her mother's, tilted her head and rested it on her mother's shoulder, and shuffled towards her room.
On the way, Li's mother saw the bandaged wound on her neck and felt another pang of heartache.
Inside the room, Madam Li chased away the maids who had surrounded her, leaving only the mother and daughter. Madam Li asked worriedly, "Yang'er, what exactly happened between you and Chongjing? How did he get involved with the Duke's mansion?"
"Oh, Mother, can't you just let me have some peace and quiet?" Li Yang leaned weakly against the round pillow under the couch, her whole body limp, and said coquettishly, "I'm so tired, can't you let me rest for a while?"
Li's mother coaxed her, "Take a rest, I won't say anymore. Wait until your father makes the noodles, eat them, and then go to sleep."
Li Yang responded and leaned against the wall without moving. When her mother brought a piece of cake to her mouth, she opened her mouth, bit into it, chewed a couple of times, swallowed, and then stopped moving. Helpless, her mother brought her another piece of mung bean cake, repeating this three times before finally putting down her chopsticks.
After waiting for a long time without being fed, Li Yang asked, "Mother?"
"This is enough for you, otherwise you won't have time to eat the noodles your father made later," said Li's mother.
Li Yang pouted and lay quietly, waiting for her father to come over. Fortunately, they didn't have to wait long before her father came in carrying a large bowl of noodles: "My good daughter, I'm sorry to have kept you waiting. Come on, try your father's cooking and see if it has improved."
Li's mother pulled Li Yang to sit down, and together with Li's father, they carried the small tea table in front of her: "Eat quickly."
Li Yang looked down and saw that it was her favorite stir-fried shredded pork noodles.
Her eyes welled up slightly, and she picked up her chopsticks and began to eat heartily.
No words were needed; her actions spoke volumes. Mr. Li sat down opposite her with satisfaction, and said proudly to Mrs. Li, "See? I told you, this is what our daughter loves most."
Li's mother glared at him: "What are you so smug about? She ate my pastries first."
"That's just an after-dinner pasta for you, my noodles are forever!"
Seeing that the two were about to start arguing again, Li Yang looked at them helplessly and said, "Father, Mother, can't you just let me eat a bowl of noodles in peace?"
Mr. Li immediately shut his mouth and looked at her with a smile: "You eat, you eat."
Li Yang got off the bed and pulled them towards the door: "I'll eat and then sleep for a while. You all get out."
Seeing that she was weak, Li's father and mother did not dare to exert any force and were pushed out of the room by her.
As they left, the room fell silent. Li Yang stared at the bowl of noodles, suddenly losing her appetite. She waited a while, and when she felt a little emptier, she ate the noodles and soup completely, then went back to bed, pulled the blanket over herself, and fell into a deep sleep.
***
After seeing Li Yang off, Bei Hai took the newly arrived doctor to examine Luo Song.
Afterwards, while the doctor was performing acupuncture on Yuan Chongjing, he helped prepare the medicine. By the time the acupuncture was finished, Luo Song's medicine was also ready. He put the medicine pot in the kitchen and told Xu Biyun to pour it herself and feed it to her son, while he pulled Yuan Chongjing outside.
"Where's Li Yang?" Not finding her anywhere, Yuan Chongjing asked, "Is she still asleep?"
Bei Hai said irritably, "The young mistress left a long time ago. She went back to her parents' home."
Hearing that she had left without saying goodbye, Yuan Chongjing felt somewhat disappointed. Upon arriving at the gate of the mansion, he stepped into the carriage and said to Beihai, "Then let's go to the Li residence as well."
Bei Hai shook his head: "The master has already sent word that we should return immediately after the acupuncture treatment. He sounded very anxious, so something must have happened."
He and Li Yang left yesterday morning, and almost two days and one night have passed since then. It's understandable that Yuan's parents are worried. Yuan Chongjing said, "Then let's go back first."
Bei Hai had a bad feeling.
After the carriage came to a stop, Bei Hai handed the reins to the stable boy and followed Yuan Chongjing into the mansion. The courtyard was eerily quiet; even the servants passing by tiptoed, afraid to make a sound. The two exchanged a glance, and Yuan Chongjing immediately walked into the hall.
Only after seeing that his father and mother were both sitting safely in their seats did Yuan Chongjing breathe a sigh of relief: "Father, Mother, your son is unfilial and has made you worry."
Mother Yuan gasped for breath, finally unable to hold back any longer, and stood up to walk towards Yuan Chongjing: "Now everyone outside is saying that you want to divorce Yang'er and marry that widow from the Luo family?"
Yuan Chongjing immediately frowned and retorted, "Mother, Biyun is not a widow!"
Seeing that he dared to contradict her, Madam Yuan slapped Yuan Chongjing across the face, drawing blood from the corner of his mouth. She cursed angrily, "You good-for-nothing! Instead of learning good things, you've learned these lowlife tricks, even kicking down people's doors in public! Do you want to die and drag the whole Yuan family down with you?"
This was the first time Yuan Chongjing had ever seen Madam Yuan so furious in his memory. Yuan Heng, however, remained seated in the main seat, quietly watching them, seemingly uninterested in getting involved.
Ignoring the blood at the corner of his mouth, Yuan Chongjing looked up stubbornly at Madam Yuan and said indignantly, "It was the Duke of Luo's mansion that bullied us first! Song'er is still so young, why don't they treat Song'er and prevent Biyun from finding a doctor!"
"You're so righteous!" Madam Yuan sneered, her beautiful eyes wide with anger as she stared at him. "You've gone mad from trying to be a hero, haven't you? Do you know what people are saying outside? They're saying you, the second young master of the Yuan family, have an affair with the eldest daughter-in-law of the Duke's mansion! They're saying you two are pregnant and your old flame has rekindled! Did you think about the Yuan family when you did all this? Did you think about how Yang'er will face people after this? Did you think about how Xiao Taozi will be talked about for the rest of her life and never be able to hold her head up high again? You selfish bastard who only cares about your own pleasure, I think I should just kill you now, so you don't come back to anger me!"
Her fists landed repeatedly on Yuan Chongjing's shoulders and back, tears streaming down her face as she cursed him incessantly.
No one dared to offer any advice.
It wasn't until Yuan Heng saw that she was starting to feel the strain that he got up and pulled her aside, saying, "Alright, Madam, take a rest."
Madam Yuan leaned weakly against him, finally bursting into tears: "I feel so sorry for Xiao Taozi and Yang'er. Our son has ruined their lives, sob sob, my granddaughters..."
"Alright, alright," Yuan Heng patted her back gently to comfort her, "No, we should listen to Jing'er's explanation. Maybe we've misunderstood."
"What misunderstanding could there be? So many people saw it with their own eyes, he's just an ungrateful scoundrel! If he hadn't crawled out of my belly, I would have beaten him to death today!"
"Alright, alright." Yuan Heng coaxed her softly, then looked up, his expression regaining its composure, and coldly ordered Yuan Chongjing, "Go kneel in the ancestral hall."
Yuan Chongyue, who had been standing to the side, finally dared to speak up: "Father, Second Brother's injury isn't..."
Before he could finish speaking, he was met with Yuan Heng's cold and stern gaze.
Yuan Chongyue knew he couldn't say anything more at this point: "Then I'll take my second brother there."
Yuan Heng ignored him and took Madam Yuan back to their room.
Yuan Chongyue dispersed the crowd and said to Yuan Chongjing, "Mother is angry right now, but she should calm down by tonight. You go to the ancestral hall and wait there; you don't need to kneel."
Yuan Chongjing didn't explain anything about Xu Biyun anymore, but asked, "What's wrong with Mother?" Although she had said she liked Li Yang and Xiao Taozi before, she hadn't gone so far as to lose control and hit him for their sake.
Yuan Chongyue sighed: "These are all old stories. I only found out three years ago that our maternal grandfather wasn't our biological grandfather. He was my maternal grandmother's second husband after she divorced her biological grandfather. My maternal grandmother divorced him because he was having an affair. She later married into my current maternal grandfather's family. Although the family is doing well and my mother is treated very well, it has also fostered my mother's sensitive and insecure personality. She was reminded of my maternal grandmother and herself when she was desperate because of this incident with you."
The two arrived at the ancestral hall. Yuan Chongjing looked at the memorial tablet on the platform and asked uncertainly, "Brother, did I really do something wrong? Biyun was truly desperate at the time."
“There’s no absolute right or wrong in this matter. To our mother and sister-in-law Xiaotaozi, what you did was wrong. But to Xu Biyun, you are the only person she can turn to. It’s alright with our mother; you are still mother and son, and there’s no grudge that can’t be resolved. It’s just that with our sister-in-law, oh right, why didn’t she come back with you?”
Yuan Chongjing lowered his eyes: "She has returned to the Li residence."
Returning to one's maternal home is not a big deal in itself, but for the Yuan family to do so at such a critical juncture is a bad sign.
Just as Madam Yuan had calmed down after being persuaded by Yuan Heng, she heard about this incident and was so angry that she wanted to go and beat Yuan Chongjing up again.
Yuan Heng pointed out the key point: "Madam, don't worry. The best course of action now is to bring Yang'er back. Once they appear in front of everyone as a loving couple, the rumors will be dispelled."
“That’s right.” Madam Yuan thought for a moment and said, “Go to the ancestral hall and call him out for me. I will personally take him to the Li family to pick up Yang’er.”
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