Four Harmonies and Good Fortune

Chapter 698 Bond
Xie Yuyan's expression changed slightly. Seeing this, Mama Yu quickly reached out to help him up. After a moment, Xie Yuyan returned to normal.

Everything happened in the blink of an eye, and the master and servant worked together so naturally that no one else noticed anything amiss.

Madam Yu didn't know what was wrong with the eldest daughter-in-law, but she noticed that the eldest daughter-in-law's gaze was fixed on the baby. She guessed that the eldest daughter-in-law's strange behavior might be related to the child. So she looked at the baby's mother and said with a smile, "There are too many people here. Why don't you come inside and rest for a while, and also take a closer look to see if the child was squeezed."

The woman was hesitant to enter other people's homes casually, but she was also worried about whether her child was hurt, so she hesitated.

Seeing that the woman was struggling to support herself, Mama Yu reached out to help: "The baby's head is covered in sweat. She must have been held too tightly. It would be good for her to come inside and rest for a while."

The woman was worried about her child, but after being persuaded by Mama Yu, she stopped insisting and hurriedly thanked Xie Yuyan, saying, "Then I'll have to trouble you, madam."

Xie Yuyan shook his head and said, "We're all traveling, so it's only right that we help each other out."

Without further hesitation, the woman followed Xie Yuyan and the others into the house. She dared to do this because the courtyard was very close to the government office, and she figured there wouldn't be any problems.

Upon entering, Madam Yu asked someone to fetch water and smiled as she helped the woman tidy up her child. The woman saw that Madam Yu was skilled and didn't mind that the child had wet his clothes. She quickly changed the child's clothes and couldn't help but feel grateful, thankful that she had met such a kind person.

Xie Yuyan asked the woman to sit down and rest. Yu Mama had someone move a small couch from the inner room so the woman could place the doll on it.

"It's hot, and it's not good to keep holding me like this. I'll just put it right under your nose, so you don't have to worry."

The woman blushed slightly, feeling that she had caused Xie Yuyan trouble, and thanked him again, saying, "It's all thanks to meeting you, madam, otherwise... I don't know what I would have done."

Xie Yuyan looked at the baby. The child had big eyes, fair skin, pink lips, and a round, chubby face that was exceptionally cute. Although it was impossible to tell what the baby would look like yet, she felt that the child would surely be remarkable in the future.

When the mother was changing the baby's trousers, Xie Yuyan had already seen that it was a girl.

So why did she suddenly feel palpitations upon seeing this girl?

Xie Yuyan knew this was not a coincidence, but rather a clear feeling that there was an inexplicable bond between herself and the infant.

This feeling of being pulled comes from within herself, not from her body.

Why is a baby girl who is only a few months old involved?

Decades later, did they meet again, or... was there a karmic connection in their lives or fates?

Judging by the girl's age, she's roughly the same age as her parents. Could it be...?

Xie Yuyan thought of her parents, whom she had never met.

And... Xie Chengrang's words before he died in his previous life.

The baby looked around curiously. Just as Xie Yuyan was pondering, her gaze fell on Xie Yuyan, and then she actually smiled at him.

The woman was surprised to see her daughter like this: "My daughter rarely smiles at strangers, so it's clear she likes you very much, Madam."

Looking at that smiling face, Xie Yuyan's heart softened. She subconsciously reached out, intending to touch the girl's face, but then felt it was inappropriate. Just as she was about to withdraw her hand, the girl's hand suddenly moved and tightly grasped her fingers.

Soft yet powerful, Xie Yuyan had never felt anything like it before, and he froze in place.

The woman's voice came again: "The little girl must see that Madam is kind, that's why she is so close to Madam."

Once they became a little more familiar with each other, the woman became less reserved and more talkative.

Xie Yuyan finally withdrew his hand after a while. The little girl probably thought Xie Yuyan was playing with her, and she swung her small arm, trying to grab Xie Yuyan again, while laughing. Xie Yuyan had no choice but to put his hand back in. This went on several times before the little girl was finally satisfied.

The atmosphere in the room became much more cheerful, and Xie Yuyan then looked at the woman again: "You came to the yamen to sue the officials in Fujian, or the Manichaeism?"

The woman hesitated, not responding to Xie Yuyan, but instead asked, "Madam speaks Mandarin very well, are you from the north?"

Xie Yuyan nodded: "We are merchants from Daming Prefecture."

Goods arriving by sea would be sold to various prefectures and cities of Daliang, so there were frequent merchants coming and going. The woman said, "I see. Then... why does Madam live behind the government office..."

At this point, realizing his words were abrupt, he quickly waved his hand, saying, "I was just asking casually. If it's inconvenient, my lady, you don't need to take it to heart."

Xie Yuyan glanced at the girl beside him and said, "The Demon Sect once intercepted my caravan. We followed them to Fujian for this very reason."

The woman said, "No wonder."

Xie Yuyan answered all her questions, so she stopped being so wary. Thinking of this, the woman sighed and said, "It's hard to say who to sue. People who come here probably haven't thought about it carefully."

The woman felt that the woman before her didn't understand what she was saying, but that was all she could say. Just as she was about to take her leave, she heard the woman say, "In many parts of Fujian, arable land is scarce, and to survive, one can only make a living at sea. But the maritime trade is mostly controlled by Fujian officials and cults..."

"Coming to the government office to accuse the sorcerer sect is not only to seek justice, but also because people are afraid that the imperial court will find out about these things and they will be convicted along with the sorcerer sect."

The woman looked surprised. She didn't say anything. How did this lady know everything?
Xie Yuyan looked at the woman's shoes: "They're covered in dust. Did you walk a long way?"

"You're from Quanzhou?"

Just as the woman was trying to calm herself down, these words made her nervous again.

“You came to the courtyard with me because you wanted to find out some information,” Xie Yuyan said. “Since that’s the case, why not just say it directly? If I can tell you, I will.”

As he spoke, Xie Yuyan picked up the teacup and drank it.

After a long pause, the woman sighed, "You guessed it all, madam. We've come to inquire about these things with the government."

“In recent years, Quanzhou has experienced storm surges every year, flooding the fields with seawater and making it impossible to grow anything. As a result, we suffer from famine every year, and in order to survive, we have no choice but to seek a living at sea.”

“Working as a boatman on a ship is a last resort. We know those ships are smuggling goods, but the authorities don’t care. What can we do?”

"Some people have tried to build ships and sail out to bring back some goods... It's good if they can reach the shore smoothly, but if they encounter storms or pirates at sea, it's a dead end."

"So... it's all out of necessity. If there were other options, no one would do something that could cost them their head."

Xie Yuyan said, "Are you now planning to try to get away with this by deception, or do you want to openly and honestly ask the court for a pardon?"

The woman naturally couldn't give a conclusion; she truly hadn't expected that she would be seen through so quickly.

After pondering for a long time, the woman finally said, "I only exchanged a few words with you, and you guessed most of it. How can this deceive the court?"

Xie Yuyan nodded, then took another sip of tea: "How about I give you an idea, my wife?"

Upon hearing this, the woman raised her head and met Xie Yuyan's clear gaze.

(End of this chapter)