Logically, Madam Cheng should have first visited Grand Tutor Cheng's residence to pay respects to her second uncle, but she did not.
Therefore, when Fu Qiyuan said that he wanted Jiang Shan to take Jiang Huai to see him, his tone was not so confident.
He also felt it was inappropriate, but he definitely couldn't leave tomorrow. What if his son missed him? His son would only feel at ease if he saw him every day.
Jiang Shan glanced at Fu Qiyuan and said, "You know I'm second to none when it comes to causing trouble. You should go back now; you'll see Jiang Huai tomorrow!"
Fu Qiyuan walked away, turning back every few steps.
When Cheng was initially confined by Fu Ting, it was less a compromise than an escape.
She won Fu Ting back then because of the aloofness of Grand Tutor Cheng and his daughter Cheng Mei—they neither competed nor argued.
But only she knew that her narrow victory was like an insect egg in the shadows, destined for destruction in an instant.
Now that they're back, she only dares to hide in the shadows, not even having the courage to meet them.
As she listened to the news Fu Zhi brought in from outside day by day, her heart grew increasingly cold and lifeless.
Until Fu Qiyuan returned to Beijing.
Her son returned to Beijing, but didn't come to visit her, his mother, right away, which was something she couldn't accept!
Her son has already recognized another woman as his mother. If she doesn't fight for her right to be his biological mother, she will truly never see the light of day again!
She cried! She made a scene! She used every despicable and vile means a woman could muster, finally getting Fu Ting to agree to bring his son to see her.
Fu Qiyuan returned to the Fu residence under the heavy cover of night. Before he even entered the main courtyard, he heard his mother's cries and curses.
When Fu Ting reached the main courtyard, he was about to turn around when he saw his son standing there without moving. He turned around and said, "She has no debt of gratitude to you for raising you, but she has the debt of giving you life, nothing more. She abandoned you before, and now she is trying every means to hold onto you. How you end up is up to you."
Fu Qiyuan turned to look at his father and said, "What about you? There's no possibility between you and my mother anymore, but you still have so much life ahead of you!"
Fu Ting glanced at the full moon overhead with his hands behind his back and smiled, "I've only just started to have hope now. I'm really looking forward to the days when I can enjoy being with my grandchildren. If you can also make me proud by marrying a wife, then I'll be completely fulfilled!"
Fu Qiyuan clenched his fist, "Your son will certainly live up to your expectations, Father!"
Upon entering the Cheng family's courtyard, the maidservant guarding the gate greeted them with delight.
Upon seeing Fu Qiyuan, Madam Cheng sat up abruptly from the bed, covering her face and weeping bitterly, "My son, you're finally back! Your mother almost didn't get to see you again!"
Fu Qiyuan lifted his robe, knelt on the ground, kowtowed, and said, "Your son is back. From now on, I will stay in the capital and will not go anywhere else!"
Madam Cheng gestured for the maid to help her son up, wiped away the tears from the corners of her eyes, and said plaintively, "Are you still blaming your mother?"
“My son has never complained about his mother,” Fu Qiyuan said without hesitation.
Cheng was secretly pleased and tentatively asked, "Then why didn't you return to the manor first after you went back to the capital? Do you know how much your mother misses you?"
Fu Qiyuan sat down on the small table by the bed and said slowly, "Mother, I brought Shan'er and Huai'er back with me. We must take good care of them."
Madam Cheng stiffened, clenched the handkerchief in her hand, and said again, "Huai'er is the eldest grandson of our Fu family. He can't live outside. Otherwise, people will laugh at us!"
“Mother, what you said is inappropriate. Shan’er and I are not yet married, and we have no official status. It is only natural for Huai’er to be with his own mother. With Grand Tutor Cheng protecting her and the child, no one dares to object.”
Madam Cheng pursed her lips and said, "But she is an unmarried woman, and it's not appropriate for her to bring a child with her. We should bring Huai'er to the manor!"
Fu Qiyuan smiled and said calmly, "Mother, do you think my mother would let me bring Huai'er back to the Fu residence? What reason do you expect me to give to persuade Grand Tutor Cheng and my mother to agree to let me bring Huai'er back? Or is there any law in Qing Kingdom that stipulates that a child must live with his father? Aren't you worried that if you anger Shan'er, she might abandon me as well?"
Madam Cheng's face turned pale and then flushed, before she said angrily, "I am your biological mother, Cheng Mei is just your aunt!"
"She raised me and gave my son his life!"
Fu Qiyuan's words brought tears to Cheng's eyes again. She said bitterly, "She stole you away, which caused us to be separated for so many years. If it weren't for her..."
"If it weren't for her, I would either have been taken in by someone else at Lingyin Temple, or I would have frozen or starved to death. After all, even my own mother disliked my frail health, so who would be willing to raise a sickly child!"
Cheng's face turned deathly pale. She looked at Fu Qiyuan with a mixture of shock and anger, her lips trembling as she said, "She's talking nonsense! You are my son, how could I possibly abandon you!"
Fu Qiyuan stood up and said wearily, "Mother, that's enough! You know better than anyone who is right and wrong. Right and wrong can't be determined by words alone. I've taken the blame for you for twenty years. How can you bear to do this to me!"
Cheng shouted angrily, "Yuan'er, I am your biological mother! You would rather believe others than your own mother!"
Fu Qiyuan looked at Madam Cheng with pity and sorrow, slowly shook his head, and said, "Mother, if one day we really have to go to court, when the truth comes out, have you thought about how you will face your child?"
Cheng was shocked, her face gradually turned ashen, and she slumped onto the bed, covering her face and crying.
"Mother, please rest. I'll take my leave now!"
The next day, Madam Cheng did not cause any more trouble; she had genuinely fallen ill.
Fu Qiyuan invited a doctor to his residence early in the morning and prescribed a series of medicines for Madam Cheng.
In modern terms, high blood pressure, coupled with mental illness, truly made him unable to recover.
Fu Qiyuan busied himself serving the mother medicine and tea, and the relationship between mother and son seemed quite harmonious.
Hearing that Jiang Huai would be coming today, Fu Ting panicked and asked for leave to skip court.
When Jiang Huai woke up in the morning, he didn't see Fu Qiyuan. He asked around and found out that his father had gone back to his home.
This puzzled him. Weren't they a family? How come his father had another family and other relatives?
Jiang Shan patiently explained for a long time, but Jiang Huai only vaguely understood.
Fortunately, his mother told him that he could visit his father anytime, which saved him from unnecessary trouble.
"Mother, let's go find Father!" Although Jiang Huai was relieved of his burden, he still returned to this topic.
Jiang Shan calmly instructed An Yi and Fu Li to take him to the Fu residence.
"Mother, aren't you coming with Huai'er?" Jiang Huai asked in surprise.
Jiang Shan shook his head. "Mom has a lot of things to do. I need to visit your godmother, check on the shops, and go to the cake shop to make some new products. I'm so busy! You're a little man now, you can do a lot of things without Mom by your side, right?"
Jiang Huai puffed out his chubby cheeks in great distress, struggling internally for a while before reluctantly saying, "Well, alright then, Huai'er will go find Daddy herself, and then we'll go find Mommy together!"
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