drunken words
The man, feeling guilty, said, "Yes, yes, please return my daughter to us, madam." He gestured to the woman beside him with a slightly darkened look in his eyes.
Adi's mother cried out in anguish, "Adi is also my own flesh and blood! Madam, I know I was wrong! I beg you!" She pleaded desperately, her knees twitching forward as she knelt, her rough fingers gripping the hem of her clothes tightly. "Madam! Please, please give my daughter back to me!"
Pang Linqiu couldn't bear it and didn't know how to make a decision. "Get up!" The couple stood up shakily. After hesitating for a long time, she said, "If Adi is willing to go back with you, I will let her leave. If she is not willing, I will give you some compensation." She wanted to respect Adi's choice.
Upon hearing this, the couple's faces lit up with joy, and they quickly expressed their gratitude, saying, "Thank you, Madam! Thank you, Madam!"
Pang Linqiu stood up, straightened her posture, and called Xi Shuang over, "Xi Shuang, call Adi over."
"Yes, sir." Xi Shuang quickly called Adi over.
The couple looked at Adi and realized she was completely different from the Adi they had seen four months ago. Four months ago, she was so thin and small, but now she had gained a lot of weight, her complexion was rosy, she seemed to be doing very well, and she even looked taller.
The couple looked at their daughter with somber expressions, as if they were jealous.
As Adi entered the house, she saw two familiar figures—her parents! Her father and mother! Her blood-related, familiar parents. She completely forgot the pain of the past, filled only with the joy of finally seeing the people she had longed for day and night.
Adi suddenly hugged her mother tightly, her eyes filled with tears of longing. She felt the familiar scent and the familiar presence of her mother...
Seeing how happy she was, Pang Linqiu sighed softly, "Adi, would you like to go back with your parents?"
Adi's mother hugged her tightly, burying her face in her arms, tears streaming down her face as they reunited. "My Adi! My dear daughter! I've missed you so much!"
Suddenly, the image of herself abandoned alone in a snowdrift during the dead of winter flashed through Adi's mind, and a wave of fear washed over her. She pushed her mother away and glanced at her father with lingering fear, "Dad..."
Adi's father looked at her with loving eyes full of wrinkles, then raised his hand to pat her head, looking like a good father: "Adi, your little brother Yaoxing misses you so much, he keeps crying and begging to see his sister."
"Adi, do you want to go back?" she asked again.
Adi hesitated noticeably. These two people seemed to be wearing her parents' skin, both strange and familiar. Clearly… clearly at home, they weren't this gentle. Her father would often lose his temper and beat her and her mother. Why were they acting like a loving old father now? Her mother… probably thought of her because there was no one to help with chores at home… or perhaps she was using her as a outlet for her emotions?
Adi's eyes revealed obvious fear. She wanted to escape from here. Her memories of the past were gradually replaced by images of the past, all for her younger brother! Why?
She cried, cried very sadly, "Father...Mother...you, did you come here because of my brother?"
Her mother frowned upon hearing this and quickly denied it: "No! I really miss you so much, so I wanted to take you home!"
"Yes, Adi! It was Dad's fault before. Why don't you come home with Dad?"
The couple began to blame themselves for what they had done, saying that they would definitely not treat her the same way after she returned home.
"Adi, come back with your father. I promise I'll treat you well. I won't be like I was before, okay?"
"Yes, Adi, home is only where your parents are! It's been so long, don't you miss home? Don't you miss your father, mother, and brother?"
The two of them tried to persuade her earnestly, their tone extremely soft, pleading and begging her to give in...
After much pleading and cajoling, Adi finally agreed to go home. Pang Linqiu sat watching the show and respected her choice. She let them leave, giving them fifty taels of silver before they departed.
This fifty taels of silver would be enough for their family's expenses for two years. She thought that this way, Zhao Adi wouldn't have to suffer so much.
After Peng Xuan'an left the court, he heard about this matter but did not say much.
Time passed quickly, and a month went by in the blink of an eye. Pang Linqiu felt uneasy. She put down her brush and looked out the window. Spring had returned; the branches were sprouting new buds, vibrant and full of life, and swallows were heralding the arrival of spring.
Xi Shuang entered the room and stood respectfully in front of her, saying, "Madam, the young master wants you to go to the living room."
"Okay." She closed the document, got up and left.
In the blink of an eye, she arrived at the reception hall. As soon as she entered, she saw two people kneeling on the floor. They looked familiar, yet she couldn't quite place them. Her gaze then shifted to Peng Xuan'an's face. His expression was dark and displeased as he looked at the two people before him as if interrogating criminals, exuding a strong sense of oppression.
Pang Linqiu asked, puzzled, "What's wrong?"
Peng Xuan'an invited her to sit down, his expression softening considerably. After she sat down, he didn't know how to start the conversation.
"Madam! Save me! Save me!" The man on the ground seemed to see hope and kept pleading with her.
Peng Xuan'an's eyes sharpened as he snapped, "Shut up!"
Pang Linqiu recognized the voice as Adi's father's. Her expression turned serious, sensing something was wrong. She looked at Peng Xuan'an and asked, "What do you mean by this?"
Peng Xuan'an sighed, rubbing his forehead, "Madam..." he said sorrowfully, "They sold Adi..."
Pang Linqiu was startled, her heart suddenly stopping. "When...did this happen?" she asked cautiously in a low voice.
"The day after they took Adi away, they heard that she had been sold to a landlord's family as a child bride."
"How is she now?" she asked anxiously.
Peng Xuan'an looked sorrowful and shook his head. "Half a month ago, he jumped into a well...and died."
"Dead." What a devastating piece of news! Pang Linqiu's heart pounded, and she could hardly breathe. Suddenly, everything went dark, and her head throbbed with pain. She leaned against the table beside her, overwhelmed with anger and frustration. She couldn't understand why.
She glared angrily at the two people on the ground, "Didn't I give you fifty taels of silver?! You...!..." She rubbed her temples, the past scenes feeling like needles piercing her flesh. Why? Only a month?! Why are the two of them now separated by death?
Her gaze fell on the teacup on the table. She was furious and didn't know what to say to them. She grabbed the teacup and threw it in front of the two of them!
"Bang—" The crisp sound of porcelain shattered in front of the couple. They knew she was angry, and the breath of death drew ever closer.
"Get out! All of you get out!" she shouted desperately. It was too painful for her to bear, so she decided to avoid seeing it altogether.
Peng Xuan'an was taken aback. Seeing how angry she was, he quickly told them to get out of there. "Get out of here now!" He poured a glass of water, patted her back to calm her down, and said, "Madam, have some water." He then served her the water.
Pang Linqiu took a small sip, her heart still filled with a chaotic unease that lingered. She blamed herself for agreeing to let her leave. She was so young, not even ten years old yet, and she had to leave so early... Why?
"I want to be alone..." she said softly, covering her eyes with her hand on her forehead.
“Okay.” Peng Xuan’an was worried that she might do something foolish, but he also knew that having him by her side would only make her more annoyed and disgusted by his presence.
They've been married for six months, and she still doesn't really like his presence, just like always...
He left, leaving the living room empty and quiet, but her heart was in turmoil.
Guilt and remorse weighed heavily on her heart. She knew... it wasn't her fault; she respected Adi's choice. But why did this wave of regret surge within her? Had she done something wrong? If she hadn't respected Adi's choice, perhaps Adi would be living a happy life now, holding her and laughing, accompanying her on official business.
She seemed to see her former self in Adi, who had always begged her mother to spend more time playing with her. The agonizing feeling of loss surged back, and now her mother was gone... and Adi was gone too...
Pang Linqiu's sorrowful tears finally fell...
After calming down, she casually left the hall, but her reddened eyes betrayed her. Peng Xuan'an didn't know how to make her happy, how to help her forget the pain of the past.
But before he could even speak, Pang Linqiu told him to go sleep in the side room, saying that only time could heal his wounds.
Since marrying him, she has never drunk alcohol, because she is afraid—afraid that she will speak the truth when drunk, afraid that he will overhear her, afraid that she will reveal the bitterness that has been weighing on her heart. Since marrying him, she has not had a single happy day. Every day she is buried in official duties, always busy surveying the terrain, reporting on construction projects to the palace, and managing business. So tired...so tired.
The same routine repeats itself day after day, tirelessly like a machine.
But she is human; she knows how to get tired and can feel weary.
That day, she drank several jugs of wine and lay drunkenly on the table, her eyes barely open and her cheeks flushed. Peng Xuan'an, worried about her, carefully entered the room. Seeing that she was drunk, he undressed her and carried her to the bed.
Her lips were still murmuring something, and tears of grievance streamed down her face. "Why?...Why are you all...forcing me?...I clearly...don't like him..."
Peng Xuan'an listened to the fragmented words, completely bewildered and not understanding what she was saying.
“…Farewell…Mother, they…are all bullying…your little…Spring….” She sobbed like a child, clutching the sheets, lying on her side with tears streaming down her face.
Peng Xuan'an felt a pang of inexplicable heartache. Seeing her like this, he felt a deep sadness as well. He raised his hand and gently stroked her head, his voice soft and low: "Madam..."
"You...you want...me to die before you're satisfied?"
He gently wiped away the tears from the corner of her eyes, sensing that she had suffered a tremendous injustice, that no one could understand, no one to confide in, no one to confide in, and no one to trust. Why wouldn't she trust him just this once? They were husband and wife; he could help her overcome all difficulties, but she refused.
"Madam, what's wrong?" He wanted to know what had wronged her and wanted to use the alcohol to get to the bottom of it, and also wanted to understand her better.
Pang Linqiu was in a daze, seemingly asleep but not quite, and did not respond.
Peng Xuan'an was unwilling to give up. He took her hand, intertwined their fingers, and asked softly, "Zhichun, what's wrong?"
"I'm so... tired..." Her voice was soft and drowsy, so Peng Xuan'an had to lean closer to listen.
Her lips moved again, "Mother, I hate him... I... don't want to... marry..." Her voice grew softer and softer until it was silent. Peng Xuan'an couldn't hear her clearly, so he had to give up and settled her on the bed.
I left the main house with many questions in my mind.
He didn't understand that phrase, "I hate him." Did she hate him? Or the person who forced her? Or someone else? Was it her or him?
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