The Husband I Snatched Is Not Right!-Chapter 326 - 323: He Said Yaoyao’s Tears Are Precious
Gu Fuju continued speaking, yet Yu Tingwan did not interrupt. Her peripheral vision inadvertently fell on the distant screen, where light and shadow seemed to flicker.
Her gaze was calm and serene, even if it had briefly shown signs of color, it quickly returned to tranquility.
She did not respond to Gu Fuju’s words.
She merely turned her head to look at the tall trees outside the window, where a flock of birds played among the branches.
"I brought back a woman from Ze County, whose identity I am unsure of. I hope the Grand Tutor can help clarify."
Just as she began, Gu Fuju responded.
"She served in your mother’s courtyard and was called Bi Shui."
"Originally, she was sold by her family to a brothel, but she refused and attempted suicide on the journey. It was your mother who encountered her, took pity on her. Your maternal grandfather, seeing she was of a similar age to your mother, and knowing the He Family wouldn’t mind an extra servant, simply purchased her into the mansion."
"But she wasn’t from a family of servants and needed to be trained according to the strict rules of a prestigious household before she could serve in your mother’s courtyard."
In the mansions of Shangjing’s officials, the maids who served beside the masters were all literate.
What kind of place is a brothel?
A den of physical degradation and self-abandonment.
Bi Shui was in utter despair at the time, and to her, Jiasan saving her life was akin to being her second parents. She served with utmost dedication.
"The master-servant relationship was deep. When your mother gave birth prematurely, terrified by refugee riots, Bi Shui helped her seek refuge. In the rush, she accidentally tripped her, causing a fall on her belly."
Bi Shui was terrified, especially as she saw the Miss call out in pain, blood flowing down.
She was deserving of death.
Fortunately, the young master was born.
And the Miss was fine.
"But she was deceived by sweet words and engaged in an illicit affair with a Hidden Guard." 𝗳𝗿𝐞𝕖𝘄𝗲𝕓𝗻𝚘𝚟𝕖𝐥.𝚌𝕠𝕞
Gu Fuju: "Her loyalty to your mother was genuine; she would never have acted against her. During the chaos, she handed you to the Hidden Guard to protect you."
"When the Hidden Guard abandoned you, she realized something was amiss. Desperate and ashamed, she dared not face your mother, nor divulge a word about the Hidden Guard. Once, while accompanying household servants to search for you, she never returned."
Yu Tingwan was silent for a moment.
She asked again.
"Why does Duke Zhou persistently pursue me?"
Yu Tingwan’s eyes were clear and untainted, akin to her person.
"Whether from when I was just born or later in the Yu Family, it seems I pose no threat to him."
Is it just because Gu Fuju implicated them once? Yet the Duke Zhou Mansion didn’t seem to pay a significant price for it.
Could it be that a duke is particularly small-minded, unable to tolerate anyone?
Or is it that those in power always have a sense of superiority, disregarding human life, easily ordering subordinates to act on a whim, treating life and death as trivial as squashing an ant?
Do they derive pleasure from it?
Perhaps all are true, yet Yu Tingwan still felt it didn’t quite add up.
Gu Fuju’s tone remained gentle.
"For aristocratic families, face is paramount. Duke Zhou’s younger brother was mildly punished in the Imperial Palace, a light penalty yet a blow to the Zhou Family’s honor."
A beating can leave someone bloodied. Yet it can also, like a feather, cause no harm at all.
It depends on whether strings are pulled.
The Zhou Family had long smoothed such matters, and not a hair was harmed on the Zhou’s offspring.
"Have you heard of Five Stone Powder?"
Yu Tingwan: "It’s a medicinal substance."
Very expensive!
Gu Fuju nodded: "And addictive."
"That man indulged in all vice. After his punishment, he concealed his recklessness, resented losing face because of me, and secretly consumed Five Stone Powder, becoming delusional. Finding heat-derived pleasure, he slipped and drowned."
Is the Duke Zhou Mansion a reasonable family?
They executed a negligent servant and then turned...
"They blamed it on me once more."
Yu Tingwan felt there was still something missing.
Indeed.
"There was also an imperial tacit approval."
Yu Tingwan’s heart tightened.
"The He Family supported the Yan Family,"
"After the late Emperor ascended, Shangjing City was once in turmoil. Old Master Lu pleaded for the Yan Family, resulting in a death by flogging, yet the He Family remained unaffected due to ties with the Empress Dowager."
Even if not truly mother and son, gestures of filial piety must be shown to others.
Would an emperor truly not care?
The Zhou Family lacked any real skills.
Duke Zhou ascended to dukehood because his own sister became the Empress.
His power, his influence, all were granted by the emperor.
How could the emperor be unaware of his every move?
"The Holy Emperor permitted, yet did not intervene, so when scandals erupted, the emperor remained uninvolved but could use Duke Zhou to warn the He Family and warn me, not to harbor ambitions we cannot afford."
"Duke Zhou inherently despised me; however, I adhered to regulations, leaving him unable to find fault, ultimately unable to remove me."
The second time actions were taken, Gu Fuju had already returned to Shangjing for his post, no longer a mere lowly official in a minor place like Capital.
Yet Duke Zhou remained audacious.
At this point, his back slightly hunched, no longer as straight as before.
Yu Tingwan closed her eyes briefly.
"So."
"You may not know my temper."
Yu Tingwan: "I am not accustomed to others being kind to me, nor am I adept at handling such relationships."
"You have likely met the Wei Family."
"My mother-in-law initially showed kindness, making me cotton-padded shoes, yet my instinct told me she had ulterior motives."
"I didn’t then believe anyone in this world was destined to treat another well."
The young woman’s voice was soft, but the study was spacious.
"But the Wei Family, my parents, were utterly selfless toward me."
Yu Tingwan gestured on her face.
"My father has a scar here, exceptionally long. It was from an accident while delivering goods."
"I once asked him if it hurt, he said he wasn’t afraid of pain, only feared his family’s tears."
"Therefore, during the fire, my mother didn’t cry. She dared not. She just kept saying in my ear, Yaoyao, don’t sleep, your father will come."
Yu Jingcheng really came.
He dashed into the blaze without hesitation.
And the moment Hu Yuniang saw him, she smiled.
She was already exceptionally beautiful, and after marrying Yu Jingcheng, she was well cared for by him.
Yu Tingwan still remembers the raging fire all around, yet Hu Yuniang’s smile was even more searing.
Yu Tingwan heard her breathe a sigh of relief.
Saying.
"Jingcheng, quickly take Yaoyao out."
"When my father took me from my mother’s arms and dashed out, he was struck by a collapsing beam engulfed in flames. I even smelled the scent of burning flesh, yet he kept reassuring me not to be afraid."
"He said he didn’t hurt, but Yaoyao’s tears were precious."
Yu Tingwan still dares not recall how Yu Jingcheng looked back then.
"But..."
"You might not believe it, but I was unharmed."
"After learning of the changes in my identity and discovering the Gu Family’s daughter was adored, it was impossible to claim indifference."
But that wasn’t jealousy.
Rather, a faint reluctance.
To say particularly concerned, not really.
At the time, she was merely puzzled.
Why did she have nothing at all, while some never suffered a bit of hardship?
Why did she live so humbly and cautiously in Xilin Village, while some could live brazenly and ostentatiously?
