Chapter 71 If the father fails, what’s wrong with the son taking his place?
Xu Yu lay on his side with his eyes closed, pretending to be asleep, and she didn't notice anything wrong.
The basket that was carried out contained not only Xu Yu's own clothes, but also her padded jacket that she had not had time to put on.
Due to price restrictions, the cotton and fabrics she had bought from the cloth shop before were of average quality, and were not as warming as the ones her mother had sent from Kyoto.
So she simply took apart part of her own coat and twisted out better material to make the lining. Under the guidance of Aunt Xu, Xu Wenxiu and others, she worked hard and finally made a thick cotton coat that fit Xu Yu's body shape tonight.
If we have this thing, it shouldn’t be so cold, right?
Sang Zhixia folded the coat she had hurriedly made onto the packed cloth bag with uncertainty, and climbed up the edge of the bed as quietly as possible.
Xu Yu, who was leaning against the wall, seemed to be sleeping soundly. He unconsciously turned to the inside. The neatly spread quilt was warm, and Sang Zhixia, who was wrapped in it, couldn't help but yawn.
After staying up all night, she was really sleepy.
The breathing he heard beside his ears became longer and longer. Xu Yu waited patiently for a long time, and only turned over after making sure that Sang Zhixia was asleep.
He glanced at the extra things in the room, and then his gaze fell on Sang Zhixia's hand resting on the edge of the quilt.
Sang Zhixia was born with a fair complexion. Even after being exposed to the wind, sun, and the busy cooking these days, her complexion has not darkened at all. Her scallion-like fingers are several shades whiter than Xu Yu's face, and so tender that it seems as if water can be squeezed out of them.
But now there are more than ten red needle holes on her white and tender fingertips.
It was like blood-red cinnabar sprinkled on the bright moonlight, so red that it was dazzling.
It was obviously not an inconspicuous thing, but it silently made Xu Yu's heart feel hot and hungry.
He suppressed the heat rising in his throat and lowered his eyes, hooking his hands around Sang Zhixia's. In the darkness so thick that it was difficult to turn into night, he lowered his head and placed secret intimacy on the tiny eye of a needle, which no one could know about.
In the darkness, Sang Zhixia curled her fingertips as if aware of something. In her daze, she could hear Xu Yu's soft and sweet coaxing voice: "It's okay, go to sleep."
"I'm here, sleep peacefully..."
I woke up without any dreams, and in the blink of an eye, the sky gradually brightened.
Before going to bed, Sang Zhixia remembered to get up and remind Xu Yu not to miss anything, but when she got up, the person beside the bed was gone.
The outer coat draped over the cloth bag was nowhere to be seen.
She rubbed her eyes and walked out of the west shed, and what she smelled was the mellow aroma of the heated soy milk.
She soaked the beans yesterday, so it goes without saying who got up early to grind them.
She looked around but didn't see anyone. She asked curiously, "Mother-in-law, where is Xu Yu?"
"Before daybreak, I followed the hunters from the village up the mountain."
Xu Wenxiu said helplessly, "You must have been exhausted from staying up all night making his coat, so I didn't bother you when you left. It's still early, why don't you go back and get some sleep?"
Now she can cook simple meals and doesn't need Sang Zhixia's help to make breakfast.
Sang Zhixia paused, waved her hand and smiled: "No, I'll wash my face and come over to cook."
Xu Wenxiu thought this was a good idea, so she put down the things in her hands and immediately grabbed the needle and thread in the basket.
The wages for work in the embroidery shop are calculated by the number of pieces. The more pieces you do, the more wages you get. The money you earn cannot be let go just like that.
Second Aunt Xu and Third Aunt Xu also shared the same idea.
The two of them got busy early in the morning, and their hands never stopped moving throughout the whole process.
Sang Zhixia laughed silently at their burgeoning passion. She set aside some of the boiled soy milk for breakfast, and used the remaining portion in the pot to make the tender and smooth tofu pudding.
After a simple meal of steamed sweet potatoes and tender tofu, accompanied by a bowl of warm sweet bean juice, the man, who was still a little sleepy, woke up. It was almost time for Uncle Xu and Xu Minghui to go out.
Uncle Xu had locked himself in his room for many days and had not shown up. When he was seen today, he seemed to look even more haggard than the sick Aunt Xu.
As soon as he stepped out of the house, he glared at Aunt Xu fiercely. The malice bursting out of his red eyes could almost drown someone.
Xu Minghui calmly stepped into the middle and said slowly, "Father, we should go say goodbye to Grandpa and Grandma."
He used a blunt knife to grind the meat, and finally softened Uncle Xu's rebellious nature.
If Uncle Xu had not gritted his teeth and refused to give in, his illness would never have been cured.
In just a few days, Second Uncle Xu had the evil thought of killing his son countless times, but under Xu Minghui's hidden cold gaze, he had to suppress his anger.
The old man was deeply dissatisfied with him, and the old lady could not protect him.
Now the family seems to be in harmony, and no one's heart is biased towards him at all.
If he made public the fact that Xu Minghui had imprisoned and tortured him, not only would no one believe it, he would even be put in greater embarrassment.
He has to endure it.
Xu Minghui ignored his ferocious expression, which seemed to want to peel off his skin and tear out his bones, and said gently and politely, "Father, if you don't go now, you will be late for departure."
"Let's go."
Uncle Xu's face turned pale as he shook off the hand that was pretending to support him and rushed open the door of the main house quite rudely.
Xu Minghui followed closely behind, and soon the old lady's distressed voice rang out from the room: "Didn't they say he was always being taken care of? How could he have such a bad complexion?"
"You look so sick, how can you go to work now? What if you ruin yourself?"
The old lady who said she was not feeling well because of anger became full of energy again when she felt sorry for her son, but what she said was blocked by Xu Minghui calmly.
"Grandma, I asked my eldest brother and third uncle to help me find this job. We agreed to go on the date with the employer. If I don't go today, I'll be breaking my promise."
"But your father is still sick, how can you..."
"Father is just in a bad mood and looks a little worse, he's not ill yet."
"Speaking of symptoms, my mother's injuries were more serious, but she's recovered now. Father, as a man, only had minor ailments and pains, not even a third of what my mother has suffered. He's been carefully caring for her for such a long time, how could he not be healed yet?"
The contrast he brought out was so stark that all the old lady's angry rebukes on the tip of her tongue turned into useless arguments.
"Whether he's sick or well, is that something you can decide?!"
The old lady couldn't understand why her grandson was going against her words. She said angrily, "How can your mother's situation be compared with your father's? If it were me, I would just..."
"The weak and timid one, but a strong and resolute one, and the strong and powerful one, but weak as mud, the two of them are incomparable."
The old man, who had been out early in the morning, walked in with a sullen expression and said in a cold tone, "Minghui's mother has been busy with the embroidery shop for days. How can he have the nerve to lie there peacefully?"
The old lady clutched her sleeves and gritted her teeth: "Grandpa, what if..."
"With Minghui following us, how can there be any chance of that happening?"
The old man glanced gravely at Uncle Xu, whose features were becoming even more sinister, and said with unquestionable firmness, "Since you've found the right one, then go as soon as possible."
"Minghui, go ask your aunt for some money for emergencies while you're away. As for your father..."
"You're a heavy gambler and a heavy drinker, so I'm afraid you can't carry much money in your pocket. Since you're going with your father, you should keep this money carefully and don't let him have it."
Uncle Xu, who remained silent, was so angry that his face twitched: "Are you going to use your son as godfather?"
"If the father can't do it, why can't the son do it for him?"
The old man ignored his and the old lady's dissatisfaction and made the final decision: "Minghui, take your father out."
Xu Minghui lowered his head with no discernible emotion: "Yes, grandson will remember it."
Without waiting for him to turn sideways, Uncle Xu, feeling humiliated, walked out.
The cold wind from the door panel made the old lady feel cold in her heart, but in return she received the old man's cold indifference.
"Aren't you complaining about not feeling well? If you're not feeling well, then just stay home and take care of yourself. You don't need to get involved in what's going on outside."
"Also, I have my own opinions on Mingyang and Mingxu's upbringing. Yanran and Jinxi have been well raised by their mother, so there's no need for them to be raised by you."
The old lady was dissatisfied with the fact that her housekeeper power had been taken away, but she couldn't find an opportunity to make a comeback for the time being. So she found an excuse to talk to Xu Wenxiu and Aunt Xu yesterday, and wanted to keep Xu Yanran and Xu Jinxi by her side.
She wanted to control her two granddaughters and use them to control her daughter-in-law who was no longer docile.
But she clearly said this behind the old man's back, and she also warned these two people to let them take the initiative to talk to the old man about it. Who knew that these two people actually said the opposite!
The old lady's face was blue and purple, and she was covered in black. She couldn't stand it any longer and shrilled, "I'm their grandmother, why can't I educate them?!"
"Even if the old man is dissatisfied with me, he shouldn't humiliate me like this in front of my children and grandchildren! I..."
"Even if you are the ancestor enshrined on the incense altar, you have no right to act recklessly!"
The old man suppressed the old lady's resentment with a cold rebuke, and a suffocating silence echoed in the room.
Even though he is no longer the old marquis of the Marquisate, the deterrent left by the old man after his life of fighting on the battlefield is still enough to intimidate the old lady who looks strong but is actually weak.
The old lady gasped for breath with a deathly pale face and dared not say a word. The old man glanced at her and walked out expressionlessly.
In the west room, Xu Wenxiu and others gathered together to do embroidery, and Sang Zhixia was also helping.
Xu Wenxiu's heart trembled when he heard the roar coming from the main room. He pinched the needle tip anxiously and said, "It sounds like they're arguing. Will it work?"
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