Chapter 194 Reluctantly Agreed
She dedicated her whole life to this family, but in the end, she felt like an outsider.
Just then, Fu Lian'an's anxious voice came from afar: "Mom! Mom—where are you?"
The voice pierced the night, carrying panic and regret, echoing through the empty streets.
His footsteps grew louder as he approached, accompanied by rapid breathing, indicating that he had been running for a long time.
His voice contained fear, self-blame, and an urgent search.
Fang Wanyu immediately let go of his hand and lowered her voice: "Auntie, Brother Maidong is here to see you. Why don't you leave for a while? Let him get anxious and let him know that you are not someone to be trifled with."
Her eyes flickered, and her tone, seemingly considerate, actually concealed a provocation.
She knew that the more anxious Fu Lian was at this moment, the more Song Yazhi would be able to take the initiative.
The rift between mother and son needs to be deepened further before he can completely sever his dependence on Qiao Wanyin.
Song Yazhi hesitated for a few seconds before finally nodding.
Her fingers trembled slightly, and her eyes gradually changed from confusion to determination.
Without further hesitation, she turned and followed Fang Wanyu, her steps slow but no longer flustered.
The two quickly slipped into a side alley.
The narrow alleyway was sandwiched between high walls and was dark, with only a dilapidated neon light flickering in the distance.
They stood close to the wall, held their breath, and listened quietly to the sounds outside.
The footsteps grew closer and then slowly faded away.
Fu Lian'an's voice grew increasingly urgent, "Mom! Please don't go far! It was my fault, please come back!"
He lingered in place for a while, then slowly walked away, feeling lost and exhausted.
The figure looked particularly lonely under the streetlights.
In the shadows, Song Yazhi's eyes gradually turned cold, revealing a ruthless edge.
Her lips stopped trembling, and her eyes were no longer unfocused.
Instead, there is an almost cold-blooded clarity.
She gazed in the direction Fu Lian had left, the last vestige of tenderness in her heart blown away by the cold wind.
She finally understood that tears cannot buy filial piety, and tolerance cannot buy respect.
"Wanyu".
She suddenly spoke, her voice low and resolute, "Do me a favor."
Her fingers slowly tightened, her nails digging into her palms, the pain making her even more alert.
Her voice was soft, yet it was like a knife, piercing the silence of the night.
She was no longer just a mother who could only shed tears, but a warrior determined to fight back.
The alleyway smelled damp, the wet flagstones gleamed with a dim light, and the corners of the walls were covered with dense, dark green mold, like scars that hadn't seen the sun for years.
Song Yazhi stood in the shadows, tightly clutching the cloth in her hand, her knuckles turning white from the force. Her eyes gleamed coldly in the dim light, like a mother beast that had been lurking for a long time, watching the tracks of her prey.
"Auntie, please tell me."
Fang Wanyu slowly approached, her steps as light as a cat's, her voice extremely low, almost inaudible, as if afraid of disturbing something. "As long as it's within my power, I will never refuse. Please just ask, and I will definitely help you."
Song Yazhi gritted her teeth, her lips twitching slightly, and a fierce glint flashed in her eyes. "If that girl really has a child, I will never let her live in peace! She's an outsider, what right does she have to enter our Fu family? What right does she have to carry on the Fu family line? Do you have any way to make her back down?"
Fang Wanyu's lips curled into a sinister smile, her eyes filled with calculation and coldness. "A direct approach won't work; we have to take a softer approach. We can't make a move openly, but we'll make her life harder every day until she can't take it anymore and begs for her own life."
She slowly leaned close to Song Yazhi's ear, her breath almost brushing against the other's earlobe, and said, word by word, each word like a knife: "If she is really pregnant, you will use the excuse of doing what's best for your grandson to stew tonics for her every day... saying it's to nourish her body, protect the fetus, and calm her nerves. Anyone who hears that will think you are a kind grandmother."
"tonic?"
Song Yazhi frowned, her eyes full of doubt. "Wouldn't that make her even more smug? Now that she's recovered, she'll be bolder and won't take us seriously anymore?"
"Please let me finish."
Fang Wanyu's eyes gleamed, and her tone was firm. "I know an old doctor, known in the martial arts world as 'The Medicine Granny.' The medicine she concocts has a particularly strong taste, a bitter, fishy smell mixed with the stench of medicinal dregs. You'll vomit after just one sip. But this medicine looks famous and expensive on the surface, with ingredients like angelica, astragalus, and deer antler all added. She claims it's a secret formula for preventing miscarriage passed down from our ancestors."
She paused, then lowered her voice, "You just say this is a family recipe passed down through generations of the Fu family. Every pregnant woman in the family has drunk it, not even for a single day. If she doesn't drink it, she's being unfilial; if she does drink it, she vomits every day, can't eat, and her body becomes as weak as a paper doll."
Song Yazhi's eyes lit up, her brows relaxed, and a sinister smile appeared on her face. "Go on, is there anything else?"
“And another thing,” Fang Wanyu said, getting more and more excited, her voice tinged with pride, “pregnant women can’t touch scissors, can’t go to weddings or funerals, can’t eat rabbit meat for fear of developing a cleft lip, can’t climb high for fear of miscarriage. You brought out all these old customs for her. One after another, you kept nagging her about them every day, restricting everything.”
She sneered, "It would be best to make her quit her job, saying it's for the sake of your unborn grandson. People outside are complicated and it's easy to offend the spirit of the unborn child. Make her stay at home every day, not allowed to go anywhere, not allowed to see friends, not allowed to speak, like a bird in a cage."
"Great idea! That's brilliant!"
Song Yazhi couldn't help but clap her hands, her eyes full of approval. "If she's really pregnant, her body will be weak, and her emotions will collapse. In less than three months, she won't be able to take it! She'll be crying out to heaven and earth in vain!"
Fang Wanyu's lips curled up, her smile deepening. "Maybe she'll make a fuss about breaking up with him herself, unable to bear your 'concern.' In that case, Brother Maidong won't be able to blame you. After all, you're doing this for your grandson's sake, with all your heart, and no one can find fault with you."
As the two were engrossed in their conversation, Fu Lian'an's anxious voice rang out from afar, piercing the night with a hint of hoarseness and urgency: "Mom! Mom, where have you gone?!"
Fang Wanyu glanced down at her watch, her fingertips lightly tracing the dial, and said with feigned concern, "Auntie, we've been out for over two hours. Brother Maidong must be worried sick. If we don't go back soon, he might call the police. How about I take you home?"
Song Yazhi straightened her clothes, tidied her hair, and adopted the dignity and authority befitting an elder. She said coldly, "I told you... it was you who persuaded me to come back. I didn't want to leave, but you begged me repeatedly, saying you were worried about Maidong, so I reluctantly agreed."
"I understand."
Fang Wanyu obediently took her arm and said softly, "Auntie, don't worry, I know what I'm doing. I'll say what I should say and not say anything I shouldn't say, I won't miss a single word."
In the Fu family's courtyard, the light was dim, the bamboo chair was askew, and Fu Li'an was pacing back and forth anxiously, his forehead beaded with sweat, his steps disordered as he circled the courtyard again and again.
Upon seeing Fang Wanyu helping her mother in, he immediately rushed over, taking three steps at a time, his face full of anxiety and self-reproach.
"Mom, where have you been? I've searched the entire residential area! I've asked the security guard and the neighbors, but nobody has seen you!"
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