Naked and free
Yulan followed Liu San and Aunt Chuanfang down the mountain. As soon as they entered the Liu family's door, they heard a servant shouting:
"Murder! The young lady is going to kill someone!"
Following the sound, he saw Liu Ruren, a numb man standing blankly in the main hall, a shiny dagger in hand. Seeing that it was Liu San who had returned home, his expression began to ease a little, a touch of flesh and warmth forming.
The sword was the old man's collection. It had never been sharpened and the blade was still clean without any blood stains.
Liu San was glad that his sister did not hurt anyone. He stepped forward, held Liu Ruren's hand, and gently persuaded her to slowly put down the sword.
With a clang, the sword fell to the ground. Liu Ruren's entire body collapsed in an instant, and he collapsed limply on Liu San, his lips trembling as he muttered, "Brother Shuyan, Daddy wants to kill Mommy... wants to kill Mommy..."
Liu San entered the Pomegranate Residence. The lock on the door was working; it was unlocked with a key. He didn't linger long, rushing straight to the small Buddhist temple, only to find the doors and windows sealed shut with bricks and stones. He called out to his mother a few times, but when no one responded, he let out a blow and began smashing things.
At this time, Master Liu also rushed to the small Buddhist temple and shouted, "Rebellious son! What do you want to do?"
“Human lives are at stake.”
"What's the point of killing someone? I'm just fulfilling your mother's kindness!"
Liu San ignored him and started smashing bricks and stones along with Mo Bao.
However, they were outnumbered and several servants pinned Liu San and Mo Bao to the ground.
"Take the third brother into the ancestral hall. That servant spread rumors and sowed discord between father and son; give him seventy strokes of the cane." After saying this, Master Liu left with his hands behind his back.
After walking a few steps, the yamen officials arrived.
As soon as Yulan returned home, she realized that something was wrong, and took advantage of the time when they were arguing to report to the authorities.
The man sitting in the yamen hall was the county magistrate, an old acquaintance of Yulan's. Her mother had once laid before him. She wondered why, after all these years, the old man, with his beard now white, hadn't received any promotions. Served him right! He deserved to remain unpromoted. Even better, someone would report him for something else, and he'd lose his official position!
As expected, the county magistrate wanted to smooth things over and muddle the matter over when he heard that it was a family affair of the Liu family and the couple was quarreling.
Yulan knelt in the hall and immediately changed the subject, crying, "Miss Liu might have been instigated by someone. She's so anxious to protect her mother that she's holding a knife and is about to kill the master. Please send someone to check it out."
Upon hearing about the situation of children killing their father, the county magistrate immediately panicked and sent several officers to the scene in a hurry.
When Liu Ruren saw that someone had come from the government office, he immediately begged them to save his mother in the Buddhist temple.
Mr. Liu still used the excuse of family affairs to fool people, but this time a stubborn officer came and insisted on going in to take a look, otherwise he would not leave.
Master Liu was helpless, this farce was finally coming to an end.
The moment the Buddhist hall was opened, the wind blowing through the hall blew up papers covered with densely written scriptures, and they fell one by one at the feet of Liu San and Liu Ruren like flying snow and falling leaves.
It seems like he is mumbling about something, nagging about something, and giving instructions about something. There is always endless concern and longing that he keeps repeating in his mouth without any meaning, sentence by sentence, paragraph by paragraph, continuously.
Amidst the piles of scriptures, a suicide note fell at their feet.
When all the flying papers settled, Mrs. Qin, who had hanged herself, was seen in the flying dust.
The flame in the niche is still green and the incense in the censer has not yet burned out.
Amidst the vast expanse of white and tears, the descendants of the Liu family have to observe mourning for three years.
The Yang and Lu families both politely called off the engagement, and Master Liu, no matter how angry he was, could do nothing about it. In the end, he took out his anger on Concubine Xiang, who was pregnant, so he had no choice but to take her out on him.
Lian Qiao sobbed and complained to Pei Lan, both of them had whip marks of varying depths on their arms. As they talked, they hugged each other and cried, lamenting their miserable fate, having been married to such a family.
Fortunately, Aunt Xiang still had some human touch, and would give some medicine, and she was usually generous with her money.
The two of them comforted themselves and felt that life was still bearable. Being content with what they had gave them a reason to live on in a muddle.
Aunt Xiang tucked in her sleeping daughter and kissed her forehead. Ruyan was still young and still needed to rely on her indifferent father. This was not an option. She had to find some new way to retain this favor.
Yulan returned to the North Courtyard.
Liu San asked her before returning to Fengqing Temple, but Yulan lowered her head and hesitated for a long time.
"That day, my second brother entrusted you to me. This time, he didn't ask me for help. I will help you that time. I won't try to persuade you. You can choose for yourself."
In the end, Liu San returned to Fengqing Temple with only Mo Bao. As he climbed the mountain, he stood on a rock and looked back at the Liu family. Suddenly, snow began to fall, and Mo Bao held an umbrella for him.
"Do you have anywhere to go?" Liu San asked.
Mo Bao shook his head.
"Then follow me, and don't call me master anymore."
Ru Ren looked at the note left by Liu San, which only had a few words written on it:
"Naked, I come and go without any worries."
The signature is not Liu Shuyan, but Fengqingguanruoque.
Ru Ren put the note away, took out a handkerchief and wiped his tears, then said to Ku Lian in grievance, "Each one is more cruel than the other, leaving me alone in the Liu family. What can I do?"
What can I do?
Since the Yang family broke off the engagement, Liu Er's illness gradually healed, and the window in front of the desk was reopened, but Yulan still did not appear in front of the moon cave door.
"Second Young Master is so ridiculous! Why are spring flowers blooming in winter?" Yulan muttered to herself, "Since Second Young Master never consults me on anything, why bother sitting here looking out the window? If I get sick, Master will blame me for not serving him well."
"You keep calling me 'Second Young Master'. Are you angry with me?" Liu Er deliberately blocked Yulan's way just to ask some confusing questions to get things clear.
"I am just a servant of the Liu family. Why should I be angry? What is there to be angry about? I should be ordered around by my brothers and sisters. I am tossed around like a useful object. Today, the Second Young Master has given me a good job, and tomorrow, the Third Young Master will give me another good job. This is my great fortune."
Yulan paced back and forth with the tea tray in hand, then, realizing Liu Er wouldn't let her, turned away, no longer looking at him. It was fate that they met on such a narrow road. It must be that she hadn't checked the almanac before leaving, and had been tainted by bad luck.
"I saw Bao Fu and Hai Tang both had Fengqing Temple amulets hanging around their waists. You asked for them, didn't you?" Liu Er said this with a wronged tone, his heart aching. How could he not hold a greater importance than those two in Yu Lan's heart?
It can't be that the scale is based on weight and strength.
"The Second Young Master has been blessed by the gods since he was young. He has been able to recover from life-threatening illnesses without treatment and has escaped death. Why would he need me to interfere?"
"Yulan, can you please speak properly?"
"Second Young Master, what you said is strange. What did I say that I didn't like? I will correct it immediately and make sure to make Second Young Master happy." She smiled, just like when she first entered the North Courtyard.
Liu Er wasted his time and energy, so he left. He turned around a few times unwillingly, but when he turned back, Yulan was nowhere to be seen.
At night, he sat at his desk again, unable to calm down, his mind full of Yulan's sarcastic remarks.
When did she become so sarcastic?
The next day, Liu Er fell ill again. Bao Fu told Yulan the news.
Yulan just chuckled after hearing this, threw away the melon seed shells and said, "Second Young Master, good fortune is always with you. How can it not be that misfortune and fortune go hand in hand?"
Bao Fu had no choice but to go back and report with the determination to be scolded, but as expected, Liu Er did not give him a good look.
It has been snowing these past few days, but not heavily. There is rain mixed in with the snow, and it feels very cold when it falls on the body.
There was a fool in the north yard who insisted on standing in the snow in thin clothes to enjoy the scenery on that day, and he refused to be persuaded to go back.
"Second Young Master! It's raining and snowing heavily outside. It would be terrible if you caught a cold!"
Bao Fu shouted very loudly. He held an umbrella to avoid the wind and snow and shouted very loudly. Once was not enough, so he shouted several times.
Seeing that there was no one around, he asked softly, "Master, how about we go back?"
Liu Er ignored him and continued to stand there, signaling Bao Fu to continue shouting.
"Second Young Master! It's raining and snowing heavily outside! What should I do if I catch a cold?"
"What should I do? I think this is good enough!" The door of the ear room was finally opened. Yulan threw out a fur-collared cloak and closed it again immediately.
Liu Er refused to wear it and knocked on the door of the ear room again.
The magnolia still hasn't bloomed.
Liu Er didn't get angry, and just stood at the door and started talking:
"I know you're mad at me for acting on my own without consulting you. I was wrong about this, and there won't be a next time." His throat tightened and he paused, then added, "If you're still angry, just beat me up. If I'm really injured or sick, and you're relieved, then it's all worth it."
Suddenly, the door to the side room opened, and Yulan pulled Liu Er inside. They closed the door behind them. The window remained closed despite the heavy snow outside, and the gust of wind from the door extinguished the candlelight. Now, Yulan and Liu Er were the only two people in the dim side room.
"You said that?" Yulan asked.
"Yes, that's what I said."
Liu Er was delighted to see Yulan willing to see him. Even if Yulan wanted the stars and the moon right now, he would still find a way to get her. Even if it cost him his life, he would still be willing to do it. It had been so long since he had looked at Yulan carefully. He wondered if she was suffering at Fengqing Temple. How did Liu San treat her?
Ever since Yulan went to Fengqing Temple, he would dream of Yulan's graceful figure every time he woke up at midnight. Even though she had never been so charming in front of Liu Er, the figure in his dreams was so captivating that he was obsessed with her.
Those little portraits he had drawn by hand were torn to pieces by him.
Didn't he also want Yulan to be by his side?
But she was afraid that his resistance would implicate Yulan. He still had a chance to survive, but Yulan was just a little maid. If something happened to her, how would he survive?
But he was even more afraid that after knowing the truth, Yulan would be so "sensible" as to not want him and abandon him.
Given Yulan's personality, she would have most likely persuaded him to marry Miss Yang San. But she was too proud to be a concubine. Liu Er didn't want to see her suffer, and even less wanted to spend the rest of his life with someone so unrelated to him.
No one expected that in the blink of an eye, Yulan would stab Liu Er's shoulder with a hairpin.
Liu Er gasped in pain. He didn't expect Yulan to do this, but he didn't dodge. He just looked at Yulan's hand with heartache.
There were some patterns on the plain silver hairpin, and it was rough and would scratch your hand if you used too much force.
"Does it hurt?"
"It hurt even more when we were at Fengqing Temple. I just want you to remember: I am not an object, I will feel the same pain as you." As Yulan said this, tears rolled down her face one by one.
She watched the blood spread out on the white cloth, and couldn't help but feel a dull pain in her heart.
It’s better this way, and it’s better if it leaves a scar, so that he can learn a lesson and not do such stupid things again.
Liu Er said nothing, but just reached out to wipe away her tears and asked her to let go of the hairpin, then he pushed the hairpin deeper.
The hairpin was sharp and when it pierced his muscles, a sharp pain spread throughout his body, causing him to frown and tremble all over.
"It's cold, wear thick clothes. Don't hurt your hands, I can do it myself."
After saying that, Liu Er pulled the crying Yulan into his arms and comforted her softly.
The North Courtyard returned to its former state.
There was a pair of Hetian jade bracelets on Yulan's wrists. The bracelets were inlaid with gold edges and had a few spring flowers winding around them.
She showed it to Haitang inadvertently while chatting and laughing.
Although Haitang was usually dazed, she understood what was going on. She sarcastically said, "What are you trying to achieve by giving up the leisurely life at Fengqing Temple? You want to be the grandmother of the North Courtyard?"
"Look at you, you are so narrow-minded." Yulan said as she took one off and put it on Haitang's hand.
After taking a closer look, I found that one was inlaid with magnolia and the other was inlaid with crabapple.
"I saved this up and bought it especially for you."
"No reward without merit, I can't afford this." Haitang said this, but her eyes were all on the bracelet, which she rubbed repeatedly.
"You didn't tell Madam about the affair between me and the Second Young Master back then, how can it be said that you have done nothing?" Yulan smiled and let Haitang accept it.
Haitang no longer refused and was as happy as a child.
She was tall and masculine, so few people gave her gold or silver jewelry or anything like that, thinking it was out of place. Yulan was the first one to give her anything.
When Bao Fu entered the house, Liu Er inadvertently revealed the amulet around his waist and shook it.
Bao Fu pretended not to see it.
Liu Er didn't give up and tried to shake it again.
Bao Fu then grinned and praised, "Second Young Master, your talisman is different from ours. In terms of size, it's twice as big as ours, and the embroidery is more exquisite. It's obviously top-grade."
Liu Er felt pleased to hear this, so he gave him some useful gifts and let him go, allowing him to admire the "top-quality" amulet alone.
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