Wanjin Lady

Chapter 190 Returning
After a while, the man's clear and cold voice rang out, "If mother understood Third Sister, even... a little bit... she would know that Third Sister is not a dodder. She has a strong temper and would rather cling to the branches and die with fragrance than be blown away by the north wind. She has been imprisoned for me. Don't bother her with these things of mine... from now on. Let her live her life in peace and quiet—"

The elder lady paused for a moment, a nameless rage rising within her. "You want to act so noble, but look at the environment you're in! Your father is a criminal, your mother is a merchant, and you'll never be able to wash away the stench of money in your lifetime! Wait until you actually pass the imperial examination, and then you can come and accuse me!"

"Besides, your third sister has become like this now—"

The elder lady suddenly pursed her lips and choked back the rest of her words.

The eyes of the man opposite were blurred by the night, dark and gloomy. Outside, the lights were bright, firecrackers were blasting, and children were chasing each other and laughing.

After a while, the man smiled faintly, the curve of his lips only showing self-mockery.

"I know that Third Sister became like this...it's all because of me."

But who has ever asked him whether he would rather be implicated in a cheating case and lose his life, or would he rather his third sister be taken to the prefect's mansion in a sedan chair to be his concubine?

Did anyone give him a choice?

No, no one asked him.

The cheating case may not implicate him. He is innocent and only spoke a few words to the person involved. Even if the court wants to beat or kill him, it will not implicate him.

But the women in the family were in a panic and hurriedly sent the third sister to the prefect to show their goodwill.

When he came back, his third sister's yard was empty.

It was he who harmed my third sister.

He didn't need his mother to remind him over and over again; he could remember this shame.

The mother and son rarely met, but they parted on bad terms.

After Cheng Yunzhang had left, Madam Yuan's servant, Yan Ma, slowly approached. Madam Yuan had accompanied Madam Yuan on her conquests and had always managed the Yuan family's backyard affairs. Seeing the mother and son, her face flushed again, and she shook her head and sighed, "Boss... you really shouldn't have said that last sentence."

It is obvious that the person that the Fourth Master cannot let anyone mention the most is the Third Miss.

These words undoubtedly hurt the Fourth Master's heart.

What's more, before the Fourth Master left, he said that he would find a teacher on his own, so please don't disturb the Third Miss, Madam.

The elder lady agreed in front of the Fourth Master, but turned around and went to ask the Third Young Lady for help.

The Fourth Master is proud and arrogant, how could he not be angry?
But over the years, Yan's mother has gotten used to it.

The mother and son obviously care about each other, but as soon as they meet, they become like enemies with just a few words.

The elder lady stood blankly under the tree. She looked up at the holly tree, and the moonlight fell sadly on her face and on the bumpy wrinkles.

The elder lady's expression was gloomy and unclear.

Snowflakes floated in the sky and landed in her hair, which felt like dry branches, making her feel cool.

Mother Yan came forward and put a cloak on her. "Don't get wet in the rain. If you get wet, you'll have a headache and won't be able to sleep."

The corners of the elder lady's eyes reddened slightly as she patted Yan Ma's shoulder. "When I was young, I fought with men. How could I have gotten food without getting hurt? And then I ended up fighting with my own children... In my life... I've always been someone who refuses to admit defeat. I can't change."

"Oh no!" Yan Ma wrapped her cloak tightly for her, her tone distressed. Others might think that the elder lady was hard-mouthed and cold-hearted, and spoke without mercy.

Only Yan Ma knew that the elder lady herself knew better than to argue with her relatives about who was right and who was wrong. However, after being the head of the household for many years, she knew that she should correct her mistakes when she knew them, but she could never admit them.

Once you admit your mistake, you lose your dignity.

Majesty is a powerful weapon to scare people.

Otherwise, the matriarch, a frail woman with only a young son, would have died countless times over. "You, you'll end up arguing with Fourth Master and he won't be on your side anymore, then you'll have nowhere to cry!"

The elder lady laughed heartily, her wrinkled face stretching out into a girl's cheerfulness. "Then I'll go to your house and cry!"

Cheng Yunzhang didn't go far.

He walked alone on the bustling streets on New Year's Eve.

There was a light snow outside, snowflakes were falling, pedestrians were walking in groups of three or four with umbrellas, children were watching the "bang bang bang" of firecrackers, and there were vendors who took advantage of the fact that there were more adults out to do some small business.

Cheng Yunzhang wrapped his cloak tightly around him as he walked in the snow, his footprints sometimes deep and sometimes shallow. Snowflakes drifted by and landed on his head, making his features look clear and cold.

When he came to a stall selling lanterns, Cheng Yunzhang suddenly stopped.

The vendors were skilled in crafting lanterns depicting the twelve Chinese zodiac animals, especially the fox lantern, which had pointed, upright ears, slender limbs, and a short, small mouth. It was very adorable. When the lantern was lit, its eyes sparkled.

This reminded Cheng Yunzhang of an old friend.

"Looking up, I see the vast universe, the sun, moon, and stars are at my fingertips."

"I don't want to seek work in this world, so a little laziness is fine."

The woman's voice suddenly entered my ears.

It was conveyed across the surging crowd, across the distant time and space, only to Cheng Yunzhang.

Why would you think of Junior Sister Fox at this time?

Maybe I really envy her free and easy attitude.

People in the world pursue fame and fortune, and everyone wants him to stand out. The word "lazy" has never appeared in Cheng Yunzhang's dictionary, but Junior Sister Fox is not like that.

She is as vicious as a man when fighting for power, but in her spare time she likes fishing, playing chess and cards, and she never seems to think that "laziness" is an unforgivable slackness.

It turns out that it is not a sin to stop in life occasionally.

Cheng Yunzhang pointed at the fox lantern in the pile of lanterns and said with a smile, "Boss, give me that fox lantern."

He frowned again, feeling something was wrong. "Give me the silk paper lantern with the auspicious cloud pattern next to it."

At this moment, the lights in the Bingzhou Governor's Mansion, which had been dark and quiet for several months, suddenly came on, and the entire backyard was as bright as day.

There were twenty or thirty servants and fifty or sixty attendants in the governor's office. At this moment, all of them had unusually happy expressions on their faces.

The kitchen was constantly burning with firewood, with waste water flowing and oil sizzling.

The cook, wearing a triangular scarf, moved swiftly and methodically, giving instructions to the kitchen staff. "The Governor has finally returned safely, and today is New Year's Eve, so we must bring out our best tactics! Juanzi, the Governor cannot eat seafood. Return all the fish and crabs that the adults ordered!"

"Send some more vegetables! The Governor doesn't like meat and prefers vegetarian food. Bring out all the wild delicacies that the wealthy families sent us recently!"

And this afternoon, Wei Zheng finally returned to the Governor's Office from Cangshan Mountain.

Now he had changed into clean clothes, held a cup of hot tea in his hand, sat high on the desk, and flipped through the piles of official documents in front of him with his bare hands.

He was away for four or five months, and the paperwork piled up into a small mountain.

In front of him stood four or five tall and thin men, all dressed in military uniforms, holding armor and sharp weapons, with sharp eyes. It was obvious that they were soldiers.

Wei Zheng was looking through the documents while listening to his subordinates' reports.

(End of this chapter)