Chapter 156: It Was His Own Lack of Ability; He Failed to Protect You [Many Thanks for Everyone's Support

Sheng Hong turned and left this side courtyard.

The gaze with which Minglan followed Sheng Hong's figure was seen clearly by Wei Wei Yuyi.

Wei Wei Shuyi looked at Mama Cui in the room, bowed, and said, "Mama, thank you for your trouble."

Seeing Wei Wei Shuyi's state, Mama Cui squatted slightly and said, "Wei Xiaoniang, I must take my leave. The Old Lady also asked me to convey a message: she very much likes the embroidered painting you sent, and in the future, she would still like Miss Ming to visit Shou'an Hall often."

"Thank you, Mama."

Mama Cui bowed slightly again, blocked Wei Wei Shuyi from leaving the room, and only allowed Sister Sister Xiaodie to see her out.

At this time, the sky had already begun to darken.

Inside the room, Minglan watched her own mother with great concern; it was rare to see her with eyes full of tears!

Wei Wei Yuyi's eyes were also brimming with hot tears; the last time she had seen her eldest sister was when the Sheng family had just arrived in Yang Zhou.

Wei Wei Shuyi hurriedly wiped the tears from the corners of her eyes; just as she wanted to walk over, Wei Wei Yuyi had already taken several quick steps to reach her, supported her, and then examined Wei Wei Shuyi carefully.

"Elder Sister, do not overthink it; everything at home is well. It is Mother who misses you and sent me to Yang Zhou to check on you." Hearing her younger sister's words, the worry in Wei Wei Shuyi's heart settled into her stomach; she tightly grasped her younger sister's hand and uttered a single "Mm."

"Mother, Auntie, please do not cry!" Minglan said sensibly.

Wei Wei Yuyi stroked Minglan's face and nodded.

At this moment, Sister Sister Xiaodie returned to the room after seeing the guest out and said, "Xiao Xiao Xiaotao, why didn't you fetch a chair for the Miss's auntie?"

Hearing Sister Sister Xiaodie's words, Xiao Xiao Xiaotao nodded, hurriedly ran inside, hugged an embroidered stool, and brought it out, saying, "Auntie, please sit."

Wei Wei Yuyi smiled and nodded at this child, who was even younger than Minglan.

"Minglan, you go with Sister Sister Xiaodie and Xiao Xiao Xiaotao to the main kitchen; take some copper coins with you, say that relatives have come to our courtyard, and ask them to prepare two extra dishes," Wei Wei Shuyi said.

"Yes, Mother!" Saying this, Minglan took Sister Sister Xiaodie's hand and left the room.

"Elder Sister, why did you send them away the moment I arrived?"

Hearing her own sister's words, Wei Wei Shuyi held her hand, looked at her with eyes full of concern, and asked, "During these days, Yang Zhou Prefecture has been in chaos with soldiers and refugees; how did you manage to come from our hometown? Where is your husband?"

"He is in the outer courtyard. It was purely by chance; previously, there happened to be an empty boat from the Bai family's salt depot coming to Yang Zhou. My husband is acquainted with the steward of the salt depot, so they gave us a ride. Sister, why are you always standing? Sit down and talk!" As Wei Wei Yuyi spoke, she tried to get her sister to sit.

Wei Wei Shuyi shook her head and said, "It is better to stand! Outside, what is the situation like now? During these days, our household has kept the main gates closed."

Hearing her sister's question, Wei Wei Yuyi's eyes lit up as she said, "Sister, you might not believe it if I told you; a few days ago on the Bai family's boat, my husband, with his great strength, saw they had much work on the ship and earned five taels of silver. For a family like ours, we never take even a fraction of a penny that we shouldn't. I can read, so I helped this Steward Wu calculate accounts and write documents. When we arrived at the Yang Zhou dock and saw it full of soldiers, making it difficult for ordinary people to enter the city, we stayed to help the Bai family for a while longer. They said they wanted to hire us long-term at the salt depot, with a monthly wage..."

Wei Wei Yuyi lowered her voice and told her sister a number, causing Wei Wei Shuyi to widen her eyes in surprise and say, "How can it be so high?"

Seeing her sister's expression, Wei Wei Yuyi whispered again, "I heard that at the Bai family's salt depot, the foremost in our Yang Zhou, some members of the Bai family bent the law for personal gain; many stewards were taken away by soldiers, and for a time, there was no one, which is why..."

"Good, good, good; I never expected you two would have such a fortunate opportunity. Then what about Mother..." Before Wei Wei Shuyi could finish, Wei Wei Yuyi hurriedly said, "Elder Sister, rest assured; back in our hometown, Mother often mended clothes for neighbors without charge. For the Xiao Gou'er family, my husband and I sent money and grain. Once we have settled down in Yang Zhou, we will bring her over."

Seeing her eldest sister saying "good" with her mouth but frowning, with some worry still in her eyes, Wei Wei Yuyi pondered for a moment before saying, "Elder Sister, actually, it was because Mother, while at home previously, kindly gave a passerby a drink of hot water. That person talked a lot and said... so Mother sent us two to Yang Zhou to be closer to you, so that at least some family from your maiden home could look after you. Sister, tell me the truth; are you truly well in this large mansion?"

Hearing the story within those words, Wei Wei Shuyi's gaze condensed; wasn't that referring to her? Hearing her sister's question, she smiled and said, "Look at me; the charcoal fire in my room is burning so fiercely; how could anything be wrong?"

"Elder Sister, the young maid beside that noble Young Master who brought me into the Sheng residence today did not say so. Moreover, since I entered the room, you have not sat down once!" Wei Wei Yuyi looked at her sister solemnly as she spoke.

Hearing her own sister's words, a hint of hesitation appeared in Wei Wei Shuyi's expression; she glanced at her sister, who was full of concern, then shook her head and said, "I have already said nothing is wrong; why are you still suspicious?"

It was she, Wei Wei Shuyi, who had brought disaster to her family in the past, causing the Wei family's fortunes to decline; nowadays, it was still better for her family members to avoid wading into these muddy waters here.

Wei Wei Yuyi looked at Wei Wei Shuyi and said softly, "Elder Sister, you do not know; actually, back when you went to the tooth-row agency, you were exactly like this, saying exactly this."

Hearing her sister's words, Wei Wei Shuyi looked at her in disbelief.

"Elder Sister, I am married now; I am no longer that child who understood nothing back then! Will you let others help you? If Father knew you were like this beneath the Nine Springs, he..."

At this moment, voices speaking came from outside the room; Wei Wei Yuyi did not continue, and the two sisters hurriedly adjusted their expressions.

When Minglan and the other two entered the room, what they saw were two people with slightly red eyes, smiling.

The whole room happily ate dinner; Wei Wei Yuyi saw that her sister ate very little but did not say much about it.

After the meal,

in the somewhat cold courtyard, the two people from before had now become three, walking silently.

It had just passed the hour of Xu (after nine o'clock at night).

Earlier, Minglan had lain on her mother's bed at night, listening to her auntie and mother talk about people and events from their hometown, and somehow fell asleep without realizing it.

In her dream, she kept chasing the sleeve of her own father, but her father walked farther and farther away...

"Father!" Minglan woke up.

Only then did Minglan realize she was sleeping on Sister Sister Xiaodie's bed; at the very inside was Xiao Xiao Xiaotao, while on the outer side of the bed was Sister Sister Xiaodie.

Having been tired all day, both of them were already fast asleep; Sister Sister Xiaodie was even snoring.

Minglan carefully got up, tiptoed to put on her cotton-padded jacket; the partition where Sister Sister Xiaodie lived was separated from the room where Wei Wei Shuyi lived by only a cloth curtain. Just as Minglan, having gotten off the bed, was about to lift the curtain, she heard voices speaking from inside: "Elder Sister, Sister Sister Xiaodie is already snoring; at this time, Minglan and the others must surely be fast asleep. During these days, what exactly has happened? Can you tell me?"

The early-maturing Minglan stopped her movement.

Hearing Wei Wei Yuyi's words, Wei Wei Shuyi paused, then said, "During these days, I have also often thought of Father; when he passed, I was not by his side. You... tell me about him."

"Elder Sister, the last time I saw you, I only mentioned Father, and you cried uncontrollably, so I did not dare to speak more about Father's affairs; I..." Wei Wei Yuyi felt her sister's hand tighten and did not continue.

Wei Wei Shuyi lay on her side on the inner part of the bed, facing Wei Wei Yuyi; the candle on the corner of the table flickered a few times, its sparks reflecting in Wei Wei Shuyi's eyes as she said in a steady tone, "Go ahead and speak! The most painful time was when I arrived in Yang Zhou; now that has passed, and I must know."

Wei Wei Yuyi said softly, "Elder Sister, before Father passed away, he had recovered. That day, he suddenly wanted to play pitch-pot, so Mother and I set it up for him. At the time, Father played very happily, but he kept looking at an empty space beside him. After shooting the arrow in his hand, he suddenly said to Mother, 'It is my own lack of ability; I failed to protect you.' He passed away in his dream during his afternoon nap after lunch; he suffered no pain."

"I once asked Mother about that day's events; Mother said the empty space Father was looking at was the spot where you liked to stand when he taught you, Elder Sister, to play pitch-pot when you were small."

Hearing her sister's words, Wei Wei Shuyi found herself smiling, but tears flowed like a floodgate breaking; it turned out her father had never blamed her.

Hearing the sobbing sounds from Wei Wei Yuyi beside her, Wei Wei Shuyi, just as she had in childhood, stroked her hair and said, "Father, in the end, still loved us."

"So, Elder Sister, do not burden yourself with such self-blame and sorrow; Father would not wish to see you living like this. How exactly are you faring? Just tell me."

Stroking her own belly, Wei Wei Shuyi took a deep breath, then exhaled the depression in her chest; her heart held only warmth.

"Mm... my affairs, this... where should I begin?"

"Elder Sister, just start from when that Xu family maid was splashed."

Wei Wei Shuyi pondered for a moment before saying, "Very well. That day, after Guan Guan Pozi was beaten to death, afterwards, the eldest daughter of the Xu family from Shou'an Hall kindly had the medical mother take my pulse... I sent Minglan and Xiao Xiao Xiaotao outside, and Sister Sister Xiaodie and I made a plan... we nearly fell into someone's scheme and would have been unable to seek justice."

Outside the room, hearing Wei Wei Shuyi's words and the danger within, Minglan did not know whether she was shivering from the cold or from fear.

"Truly, what formidable scheming! Had the plot succeeded, Sister Xiaodie would have faced a grim fate, while you, Sister, would at worst have suffered a miscarriage, and at best lost a trusted hand! That is why you turned their scheme to your advantage, walking outside for so long each night?"

"In the end, power overwhelms the individual! Furthermore, previously, when the Old Lady fell ill... my status is ultimately that of a concubine; when Minglan grows up and achieves something, she must still be raised under the Old Lady's care! Look at the children raised under the Old Lady's watch, whether it was the eldest Miss Sheng Hualan before, or Brother Bai; all turned out well! Thus, the Master most desires that the Fourth Miss... Had you not arrived today, the Master would likely have forbidden Minglan from going to Shou'an Hall any longer."

"This tiny Assistant Prefect's residence actually harbors so many conspiracies and schemes!" Wei Wei Yuyi held her sister's hand, sighing at her sister's hardships.

"Yet regarding ruler and subject, father and son, in the Sheng family, the Assistant Prefect ultimately holds the final say. Previously, hearing your instructions to Minglan, you taught her to view our father just as we do—to regard a father as heaven, as a mountain. But, we two ultimately came from the same womb; in this home, our father loves us both equally, without the neglect and bias between legitimate and concubine-born children found in these deep mansions and great courtyards."

"What you say is true. Yet respecting and loving one's elders is never wrong; moreover, the Old Lady has not relented in recent days to allow the Fourth Miss to move over, and Wu Da Da Niangzi, cherishing Hearing Rulan, cannot bring herself to be harsh—this is Minglan's opportunity. The Master came here today because the Old Lady made things explicit with him; you also heard what Nurse Cui said."

"But what if the Assistant Prefect comes to your quarters again and forbids Minglan from going to Shou'an Hall?"

"Sixth Miss, why are you standing here?" From outside the room came Sister Sister Xiaodie's somewhat surprised voice.

The two sisters, Wei Wei Shuyi and her sibling, exchanged a startled glance in the candlelight.

Wei Wei Shuyi's transformation.





(End of Chapter)