Min Yueqing was not interested in A Mo's inner thoughts at all, nor was she afraid of ruining her persona.
Amo's contact with the original owner was limited to exchanging messages and carrying out orders, and they hadn't seen each other for over a year. Under these circumstances, even if Amo noticed a change in her personality or behavior, she would only assume it was due to her lying.
Min Yueqing looked directly into Amo's eyes and asked again, "How is Grandpa's health over there?"
Amo was already feeling scared. Besides, he didn't really want to lie. He had lied before only because Pei Han had repeatedly told him to, but now that he saw he couldn't hide it any longer, he honestly answered.
"The old man was perfectly fine on the way, but he fell ill not long after entering the mountains. There were no doctors to be found in the deep forests, so we all advised him to turn back and go to the nearest town to see a doctor. But he refused and only took some medicine he had brought from the government office. After that, he started coughing from time to time. When we got to Sanping County, we finally found a local doctor, but he couldn't figure out what was wrong, so we just had to let it drag on."
Ah Mei and her husband were heartbroken to hear this; when had their son-in-law ever suffered like this?
Min Yueqing remained relatively calm, which was better than the complete silence before. The unknown was truly the most terrifying thing; if the original owner had known such concrete information, she wouldn't have fallen ill from worry and depression.
She then asked, "What's the situation like locally?"
Pei Han hadn't specifically instructed or concealed this, but A Mo had been holding back her dissatisfaction for a long time, and now she blurted it all out like beans spilling from a bamboo tube.
"I've never seen such a poor and dilapidated place. It's called a county town, but it doesn't even have a county government office. I heard that there used to be one, but after the county magistrate sent by the imperial court either died or fled, no one took care of it. Later, the imperial court didn't send anyone again. Now the government office is dilapidated, and even the roof tiles have been stolen."
Amo vented his frustrations in one breath, then continued, "Fortunately, the old man's current official rank is a military officer, and there are still a dozen or so officers and soldiers left in the patrol station over there, all of them locals. When we first arrived, the patrol station was also empty, without a single person. Those dozen or so local officers and soldiers heard from their homes that someone had entered the patrol station, so they ran back to check it out."
"According to them later, after their former superior died in the line of duty, no one from the court paid them their salaries. The other dozens of officers and soldiers from other places all ran away, so they simply went home as well. They were quite happy to see their old man gone, because when their former superior was appointed, they had never even met him before they heard that he had been transferred away through some connections."
Amei and her companion were dumbfounded. It was like listening to a story, or even more absurd, because these things had actually happened. What kind of place was that?
Min Yueqing was both amused and exasperated. The more remote the place, the more interesting things there were. People in the capital probably couldn't even imagine what Amo had just described.
Even Jia Ren, the instigator, might not have known at the beginning what kind of spot his vicious attack had hit.
However, Min Yueqing finally gained some understanding of the true nature of this place. Seeing A Mo's disheveled appearance, she said, "You must have had a hard journey. Go and clean up, fill your stomach, and get some rest. We can talk about the rest after you wake up."
He then turned to Amei and the other woman and said, "Amei, take him to wash up and have some hot food. Azhu, go and prepare a room so that Amo can get a good night's sleep. Don't wake him after dawn."
Seeing that his wife had made such meticulous arrangements for him, Amo quickly thanked her and then went with Amei and the other woman.
As Amo walked, he thought to himself that the lady was indeed still the same considerate lady who cared for her servants. It was all his fault for not telling the truth before, which made even such a good-tempered lady angry.
Min Yueqing returned to her bedroom and, by the dim moonlight, looked at the little one's sleeping face. She gently smoothed the strands of hair that had brushed against the little one's face and thought to herself, "This time I can finally take you to see your beloved father."
The next morning, Pei Ji stretched out her little hand from the warm bed and yawned. Her little face was rosy from sleep. She habitually turned her head to look outside and immediately met her mother's smiling eyes.
Seeing that his mother woke up before him, Pei Ji greeted her in a soft, sweet voice, "Good morning, Mother." He also instinctively hugged Min Yueqing with his little hands.
Min Yueqing's smile deepened. Seeing her adorable little one acting cute first thing in the morning was one of life's greatest joys. Thinking that sharing joy was better than keeping it to herself, Min Yueqing teased, "I have some good news. Do you want to hear it?"
Seeing Min Yueqing's serious expression, which didn't seem like she was joking, Pei Ji leaned closer and said in a clear voice, "I want to hear it!"
Min Yueqing, however, deliberately kept him in suspense, only looking at Pei Ji without saying a word.
Pei Ji couldn't hold back any longer. He grabbed Min Yueqing's arm with both hands and shook it, pleading, "Mother, please tell me."
Min Yueqing pretended not to remember, "What was the news again? I can't quite recall?"
Pei Ji was still too naive, and having just woken up, she was inevitably a little confused. Hearing her say this, she immediately said nervously, "Mother, think about it carefully. If you think about it, you'll remember, right?"
Min Yueqing glanced at the little one's nervous expression out of the corner of her eye and almost burst out laughing. She rested her chin on her hand as if she was thinking seriously, but said, "If someone could kiss me, I might remember right away."
Pei Ji fell for it as expected, and without thinking, he leaned in and gave Min Yueqing a quick kiss on the right cheek.
Min Yueqing finally decided to stop while she was ahead, and took Pei Han's letter from the bed, waving it in front of the little one, "Guess who wrote this letter."
Pei Ji was initially a little confused, but then he seemed to realize what was going on. His eyes lit up and he straightened up, cheering, "Father, it's Father who sent a letter, isn't it?"
Min Yueqing didn't tease him this time, because when Pei Ji said "right or wrong," his voice trembled noticeably, and his eyes shrank back, as if he was extremely afraid of his hopes being dashed.
Min Yueqing felt a pang of heartache and replied earnestly, "That's right, it was Father who wrote. Lele is so clever; she guessed it right away."
He then handed the letter to the little one. Given the little one's literacy level, understanding the letter should be no problem for him.
When Pei Ji saw the familiar handwriting on the envelope, his big eyes welled up with tears, and his rosy lips unconsciously pursed. Min Yueqing silently reached out and pulled him into her arms.
The little boy is actually quite strong. His father, who always doted on him, suddenly left the manor and went to such a faraway place, and there has been no news of him for over a year. Before that, his mother was also worried and ill, and couldn't take care of him. It's hard on this little boy, who still has to think of ways to make his mother happy.
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