Chapter 76 Turning Point He was a household slave, and he knew many things better than anyone else…
Looking at the lively scene of people dressed in red and green, Yan Sheng thought it over and decided to go find her mother.
"Has Mother ever thought about what she would think if one day her brother regained his senses and found out that he had unknowingly married Sister Cui, and that his sister-in-law had only been gone for half a year?"
Madam Cui twirled the Buddhist prayer beads in her hand and said, "What's done is done. We'll accept it, and things will get better gradually."
"What if I don't know how?"
Yan Sheng said excitedly, "You know your brother's temperament, you know his feelings for your sister-in-law. He won't do that. If he were sober, he might cause a scene, he might go crazy again!"
Cui remained silent.
Seeing her mother's reaction, Yan Sheng understood somewhat. This was probably not what her mother wanted, but she had reservations. So she said, "Mother, there's still room to salvage the situation. Why don't we try again? For my brother's sake, I'll go talk to Sister Cui. You go and speak to Father..."
She really meant to leave.
He's still just a child; he acts on a whim.
Helpless, Cui called out to her, "This matter is settled, so don't make a fuss anymore. If you really care about your brother, why don't you take advantage of these few days to talk to him more, cook some medicine, and coax him to drink it?"
The Cui family's wedding procession had already entered Jiankang. To bring up the matter of announcing the engagement at this point, especially since it was the Yan family who initiated it, would be utterly ridiculous and would damage the Yan family's reputation. Her husband would never agree to it!
As for Cui Wan, the same applies.
Yan Sheng's visit was nothing more than a waste of breath.
If things get even worse, she might lose favor with her husband, and then the Yan family would fall into the hands of those two illegitimate sons.
Those two are cunning; who knows how they'll treat them later?
She wouldn't allow that to happen!
Despite being rejected by the Cui family, she secretly went to find Cui Wan on her own. With the wedding date approaching, to avoid suspicion, she did not stay at the Yan family's residence, but instead rented a three-courtyard house in an alley in the city center, where she was served by servants from the Cui family, and peacefully awaited her marriage.
Upon seeing Yan Sheng appear, the person warmly pulled her into the house, "Little sister, what brings you here?"
Cui Wan's beaming smile contrasted sharply with her gloomy complexion.
"I……"
Actually, she didn't dislike Cui Wan. Well, they just had different personalities and rarely interacted, but they had no grudges. If it weren't for Li Yunru, she would happily call her "sister-in-law".
"What's wrong?" Cui Wan handed Yan Sheng a freshly picked spring tea and asked with concern, "Have you run into some trouble? Why don't you tell your sister-in-law, and I'll see if I can help you."
She covered her face and laughed somewhat embarrassedly, saying, "Ah Sheng, don't laugh at your sister. You know, my third cousin and I have known each other since we were little and have a very close relationship. For so many years, I have been looking forward to this day, and now it has finally come. I am happy, but I am also a little anxious. If you don't want to call me that, you can call me that like before and tell me what happened."
"Sister Cui." Yan Sheng hesitated for a long time before finally speaking.
She gripped the teacup tightly, and said in a low but clear voice, "Have you ever thought about breaking off this engagement?"
Cui Wan's smile froze on her face after hearing those words.
"What did you say?"
Yan Sheng mustered her courage, raised her head, and said firmly, "My brother only has eyes for my sister-in-law. I have seen their loving relationship with my own eyes. No one can interfere. You also know who my brother is doing this for today. He only has brotherly affection for you, not romantic feelings. Forcing it will not lead to anything. Sister, you are beautiful, virtuous, and talented. You are a model of a noble lady. Why hang yourself on my brother? You deserve a better man!"
She finished speaking in one breath without even taking a breath. As soon as she finished speaking, the room suddenly fell silent, with only the sound of her own heart pounding.
The man nervously glanced at Cui Wan out of the corner of his eye.
Cui Wan sat in front of her, her expression indifferent, her smile gone, her eyes lowered, lost in thought.
The atmosphere was freezing cold.
About the time it takes to drink a cup of tea passed before Cui Wan finally spoke, but her words immediately stunned Yan Sheng.
She said, "Does Ah Sheng think that I'm getting in the way of my cousin's relationship with the Li family?"
Isn't that so?
Of course, Yan Sheng didn't dare say these words. She was more confused than anything else. She didn't expect someone to ask such a question. It seemed as if she was taking advantage of Yan Ning's status as her younger sister to bully her.
Perhaps she was mistaken.
But I just don't feel quite at ease.
She stammered as she explained, "No, I... I didn't think that way. I just thought that my sister is such a good person, and I shouldn't waste my feelings on someone who doesn't care about me."
Cui Wan smiled and said, "Ah Sheng, how old are you? Do you already have someone you like?"
Yan Sheng: "..."
"If you don't have it, you naturally wouldn't understand."
Cui Wan said, "When my third cousin married Li, they had no feelings for each other. But later, they became a loving couple. The best thing about my cousin is that no matter who he marries or whether he has feelings for her, he will always give her absolute respect and care. Besides, I have a childhood friendship with him. Over time, my relationship with Li will definitely be no worse than his relationship with her."
Yan Sheng felt that something was off about what he said, but she couldn't quite put her finger on it.
"Okay, don't overthink it."
Cui Wan rubbed her head and said, "My aunt and uncle and I have our own plans for this. You just need to stay home and wait for the wedding banquet."
Yan Sheng remained silent again, not responding to the question.
Cui Wan feigned displeasure, put on a stern face, and said seriously, "Unless you don't want to acknowledge me as your sister-in-law?"
"Of course not!"
Between the two, Yan Sheng knew that she preferred Li Yunru, but if Cui Wan were to become her sister-in-law, she wouldn't necessarily be unable to accept it, it just wouldn't be in this situation.
Cui Wan was very satisfied with this answer, which came without hesitation. She smiled and said, "Since that's not the case, let's not talk about these things anymore. Let's go back."
Since people said that, Yan Sheng had no choice but to leave.
...
Time flies like an arrow, and the wedding date is getting closer and closer. Guests are gathering in Jiankang, but the groom still doesn't seem to be doing well. He is still the same, silent and often staring out the window in a daze.
The Li siblings originally came to demand an explanation, saying that he had promised them he would take good care of their sister, but instead he turned around and caused her death. And now he was going to marry someone else while her body was still warm, which was truly hateful!
However, all the words he wanted to say stuck in his throat when he saw this, and he swallowed them back down.
“My master said that he suffered from a soul-separation syndrome due to excessive stimulation,” Yan Sheng explained to the Li siblings.
"Is there a solution?" Li Jinghe asked.
Yan Sheng shook his head. "Master said it's a mental illness. My brother himself doesn't want to wake up, and there's nothing anyone can do about it."
Upon hearing this, the siblings lowered their eyes.
There are many devoted women and unfaithful men in this world, but few like this. Back when my sister married Yan San, as his older brother and sister, we both secretly investigated him to make sure he was of good character and not a hypocrite. That's why we didn't object.
When a woman marries, status and power are certainly important, but the most important thing is the character of her husband. If he is not good, even if you are rich and powerful, you will still have many troubles, and you might even lose your life. If he is good, even if the relationship is not harmonious in the future, you can protect yourself. Those who are more particular will not mistreat their wives.
They had planned everything, but they never expected things to turn out this way.
well.
It's pitiful that fate is playing tricks on lovers!
Since Yan Ning was like this, the two of them couldn't do anything more. After visiting her for a while, they left. Before leaving, Yan Sheng secretly handed them a small package.
“These are my sister-in-law’s things. They’re not allowed to stay in the house, but I think… she should have some things to prove she existed. Since you are her brothers and sisters, I’ll give them to you.”
There weren't many items inside; besides the jade shoe and the peony armlet, there were only a few other decorations.
She didn't live in the Yan family home often; the house was mostly furnished by the Yan family, and she had very few personal belongings. Things like clothes and cosmetics had long been burned away, and these were the ones she secretly took.
Looking at the small cloth bag, Li Jing was overwhelmed with emotion, her eyes instantly reddening and tears streaming down her face.
Qin Zhan held his wife in his arms, comforting her, and took the things from her, thanking Yan Sheng: "Thank you for your kindness."
Looking at the two of them, Yan Sheng couldn't help but think of Li Yunru and Yan Ning, who were in the same situation when they went to the capital.
Cui Wan asked her if she had someone she liked.
She didn't have that, but she knew that the kind of marriage she wanted was like theirs, not like the kind with her parents, a marriage for profit where they never truly connected.
But it seems that being born into a prestigious family means they have no choice in the matter.
After seeing the Li siblings off, the people returned to Wutongyuan.
Madam Cui, along with her servants and embroiderers, were helping Yan Ning try on clothes. Everyone praised Yan Ning's handsome appearance and good figure, saying that most people's shirts were not good enough for him.
Lady Cui was pleased to hear this and bestowed many rewards upon the recipient.
In short, everyone's face was beaming with joy, their smiles almost reaching their ears. Only the person in question remained expressionless, devoid of joy or sorrow, as if being manipulated like a fine piece of merchandise.
It was particularly ridiculous and laughable.
Cui called her over to take a look and offer some advice, but she found it pointless and said, "I have other things to do, you all go about your business." Then she moved away.
They ignored her and left, but the sounds of joy continued until dusk finally subsided.
Yan Ning was tired after being handled like a commodity all day, but she didn't go to sleep. She ate dinner, took her medicine, and sat listlessly by the window. More than half a year had passed since the accident, and the weather had remained unchanged. She didn't know what people were looking at.
"Brother, please get well soon. If you don't get better, things will really get out of control."
She cried as she spoke, tears falling one by one onto the pearwood wooden table. This finally prompted a reaction from the man who had been in a daze for more than half a year. He turned around and reached out to wipe away Yan Sheng's tears.
"Don't cry, don't cry."
This situation only made people cry even harder.
What a wonderful brother she had!
The person let out a howl and threw herself into his arms, bursting into tears. Just as they were feeling tender, someone outside came to report that Chen Jingsheng had returned.
Previously in Beijing, his elder brother said that there were some things he needed to investigate, so Chen Jingsheng did not go to Qinghe with them. Later, he did not know what happened and never returned.
The matter he was investigating was a private one, but it was also of great importance to his elder brother. Otherwise, he wouldn't have asked someone close to him to investigate secretly. Perhaps this could be a turning point.
Thinking this, Yan Sheng immediately composed herself, got up from Yan Ning's arms, stroked his face, and said, "Brother, I will find a way to wake you up."
After saying this, he instructed the people inside to take good care of Yan Ning, wiped away his tears, and went out.
As soon as Chen Jingsheng entered the room, he was led away by someone from Cui's side.
Yan Sheng came out, but did not see him.
This made her feel that Chen Jingsheng was an important person even more, otherwise her mother wouldn't care so much about a servant.
That makes sense when you think about it.
Chen Jingsheng was a servant born into the family and had served Yan Ning since he was a child. He knew more about things that his parents and sisters didn't know than anyone else.
Therefore, she dared not delay any longer and hurried to her mother's Buddhist hall.
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