The next day, the weather turned fine.
Han Jianye looked at the sun rising in the sky and commented with a smile, "It has been a long time since the sun came out. Today, it even comes out when you're going to return home. It shows that you have good luck, and it is not just any ordinary luck."
Yuxi knew that Han Jianye was comforting her. Thus, she smilingly suggested, "Er Ge, it's cold outside. Don't ride your horse. Ride with me in the carriage!"
Han Jianye was unwilling to take the carriage. What would it look like to others if an adult man like him, sitting in a carriage? "It's alright, as long as you don't freeze."
The carriage Yuxi used to return to the residence was specially brought over by Han Jianye. The carriage was very spacious, with two thick quilts laid inside the carriage and a pot of coals on top. Sitting inside, it was so warm that Yuxi couldn't even feel a bit of cold at all.
Not long after climbing into the carriage, Yuxi felt a little sleepy. Without feeling awkward, she just lay down to sleep. Since they were on a public road that was relatively flat and not bumpy, Yuxi soon fell asleep.
By the time Yuxi woke up, it was already noon. Hearing that it had passed wushi, she asked, "How come it's this late?"
Zisu replied with a smile, "Second Master knew you were asleep and said that we didn't have to be in a hurry, so he had the carriage driver slow down the speed. We'll be at the city gate soon, and in another half a shichen, we'll be at the residence."
Yuxi's heart warmed up, and she told Han Jianye, "Er Ge, let's move faster, or Eldest Aunt will be waiting for us." There was one more thing she didn't say, which was that she was starving. If she returned to the residence early, she would be able to eat earlier.
Three-quarters of an hour later, the group finally arrived at the State Residence. Yuxi lifted the curtain, looked at the Duke Han of the State Residence plaque and softly said, "I'm back." When she returned, she would no longer have to worry about being kicked out or abandoned by her family.
The carriage sped straight into the second gate, where Yuxi was going to disembark. She got out of the carriage by just wearing a mink hat and a short mink coat, without a pelt overcoat covering her.
When Mama Li saw Yuxi, she smiled and said, "Miss, my Lady has been waiting for Miss for a long time now."
It took more than a quarter of an hour to get from the second gate to the Master Courtyard. Yuxi had the foresight that she would walk that far. If she had been wearing an overcoat, her whole body would have sweated. Even now, her forehead had started to sweat.
When Yuxi reached the Master Courtyard and saw Qiu Shi, she smiled and called out, "Mother."
This shout stunned everyone except for Mama Li. Had they misheard? Yes, they must have misheard. How could the Fourth Miss call the First Lady her Mother!
When Qiu Shi caught sight of Yuxi, she pulled her to her side in distress while asking, "Why have you lost weight again? Your Er Ge said you were doing well at the hamlet. I have long said that his words cannot be trusted."
Yuxi was embarrassed. If she had to say, she gained a lot of weight this month. Not only did she gain a lot of meat on her face, but her clothes had also become smaller. Her Eldest Aunt, ah, no, her mother. She couldn't believe that her mother would say she had lost so much weight. Her mother had very strange eyesight.
Qiu Shi pulled Yuxi into her room. Ye Shi deliberately slowed her pace and asked the maid beside her, "What did the Fourth Miss call the Lady just now?" She must have heard it wrong and had to be sure. [+]
Ah Ling lowered her voice and said, "The Fourth Miss called the Lady as her mother, Da Nainai. Maybe there's something we don't know about this matter."
Ye Shi's heart immediately sank. Since Yuxi would call her mother-in-law her mother, then there was only one possibility. If she wasn't wrong, Yuxi had been adopted by her mother-in-law. She hadn't heard a word about such a big event. Did her mother-in-law still consider her as the daughter-in-law of the Han family? She felt annoyed. However, when she looked up and saw Lu Xiu also had a questioning look on her face, her mood suddenly improved. It seemed that not only was this matter hidden from her. Even Lu Xiu didn't know about it either.
While in the room, Qiu Shi said, "The countryside is fine in summer, but it's cold as hell in winter, and there's no floor dragon there, so you've suffered a lot!"
Yuxi responded with a smile, "Fortunately, there was kang in the house which had been burning all day long, so I didn't feel cold." It was true that it was not that cold, but she was very unaccustomed to reading while sitting on the kang.
Seeing Qiu Shi had a belly full of words to let out, Mama Li smilingly reminded, "My Lady, Miss must be hungry after a long day's journey. Since the food has been served, why don't we let Miss have her meal first?"
Qiu Shi exclaimed, "Look at me. I'm so old and confused that I forgot you hadn't eaten. Let's go and eat first." Qiu Shi's attitude was so warm that Yuxi became a little overwhelmed.
After lunch, Qiu Shi asked Yuxi some more questions before letting Yuxi return to the Taoran House afterwards. "You've been away from your home for half a year, so go back to your courtyard and put your things away first. In the evening, we'll have a good chat."
Yuxi had always thought that her adoption under Qiu Shi's name was merely a change of title. But now, it turned out that she was wrong in this thought. Qiu Shi's attitude towards her now was very different from what it had been before. The way Qiu Shi treated her made her feel that she should adjust her attitude and stop holding on to the same views and perspectives as before.
Returning after six months, Yuxi felt as if a generation had passed. She thought it would take her at least two years to come back, but she never thought that she would be back after only six months. And she was back with a different status.
Zisu pulled Yuxi back from her thoughts. "Miss, should these books be returned to the study?" When they went to the hamlet, they brought a lot of things. However, when they came back, they brought back only a few. It was because they had no shortage of things in the state residence. Yuxi even left behind some books and valuable items in the hamlet. According to Yuxi's idea, staying in the hamlet for a few days in summer would be pretty good.
Yuxi nodded as she instructed, "Just put everything as they were before!" After thinking about it for a while, she decided to classify these books by herself. If she let Zisu and the other girls do it, she would get a headache finding her books later on.
Zisu said, "Miss, you've been in a hurry for most of the day. You'd better have a rest!"
Yuxi laughed a little. When did she have to hurry most of the day? She had been sleeping most of that time. "You don't have to worry about these books. Go and take stock of the jewellery."
Three boxes of books were put back on the shelves one by one by Yuxi. After putting them away, she wiped her sweat. "It's hot enough in here." The floor dragon in the study had been burned up, making Yuxi a little unaccustomed to the temperature.
On the Master Courtyard side, after Yuxi had left, Ye Qing and Lu Xiu looked at Qiu Shi. They wanted to hear Qiu Shi's explanation regarding what had just happened.
Qiu Shi didn't whet their appetite either. She explained with a smile, "Yuxi was adopted to my name in the early seventh lunar month. After we got the consent of the elders, we opened the Ancestral Hall and performed the ceremony. It was only at that time Wu Shi was seriously ill. Therefore, it was not appropriate for us to publicise this matter. That's why I did not mention it to both of you."
Qiu Shi estimated that Ye Qing and Lu Xiu had all known about this. Ye Qing reacted quickly and said, "Mother didn't tell us much earlier. Now, look at us. We didn't even prepare gifts for Si Mei." With Yuxi's adoption under her mother-in-law's name, the current situation was not the same as before. Yuxi used to be her tangmei, but now Yuxi was her real xiaoguzi.
Lu Xiu also said, "Yes, Mother, this is such a big deal. You did not even tell us. So Dasao and I were not even prepared." When she married, Lu Xiu was very wary of Ye Shi. Even when she was pregnant, she was cautious with her food and other things for fear that something terrible might happen. As a result, nothing happened even after she gave birth to her son. Ye Shi had treated her well for over a year. Although she could not say that Ye Shi was as affectionate with her, just like a sister should, she could not say she was treating her any worse either. During this time, Lu Xiu even thought that perhaps she and her mother had been mistaken and what happened before was just their misunderstanding.
Qiu Shi said with a smile, "There is nothing to prepare for since Yuxi is not your formal meimei yet. Alright, both of you should return to your home! After coming out for so long, it is estimated that your children will cry if they can't find you."
Both Ye Shi and Lu Xiu had a lot to say, but as Qiu Shi rushed them out, they couldn't stay much longer and went out one after another.
It didn't take an afternoon to put everything away. The main thing was that there was so little stuff that it didn't take Yuxi and the others much effort.
After properly putting everything away, Yuxi took a bath and changed her clothes before going to the Main Courtyard with Caidie. When she saw the Old Lady, she sincerely greeted, "Grandmother." Without the Old Lady making the final decision in her adoption, Han Jingyan could not have let her be adopted to the Main House.
The Old Lady looked at Yuxi and pointed out, "You look refreshed." Yuxi was in much better spirits than before. Moreover, she finally let her whole person go and did not feel reserved, just like back then.
Yuxi didn't know how to respond to this statement.
The Old Lady said, "Fourth Girl, Grandmother has already done what Grandmother can do for you. In the future, no matter where you go, you must remember that you are a young miss of the Han family." Whether Yuxi was in the Main House or the Third House, she could not change one thing: the blood that flowed through her was that of the Han family. [+]
Yuxi nodded. "Grandmother, I am a descendant of the Han family. That will never change, nor is it likely to."
The Old Lady nodded slightly and said, "That's good." She allowed Yuxi to be adopted by the Main House, not because she loved Yuxi dearly, but because Han Jianming valued her greatly.
The Old Lady raised Han Jianming. So she knew Han Jianming very well. Since Jianming said that Yuxi was a capable person who could bring benefits to the family in the future, he would not watch Yuxi be ruined. If she didn't intervene, uncle and nephew would definitely turn against each other over Yuxi. She could not let her son turn against her grandson, nor could she let him ruin the Yuxi she had so carefully cultivated. Hence, she had to use this method. In fact, the Old Lady knew that her son had a complaint against her in this matter.
When Old Woman Luo looked at the Old Lady's expression, she probably knew what was in her mind. "Old Lady, since things are already like this, it's useless for you to think about it anymore." The Old Lady had gotten old. Thus her heart had softened a bit. If it had been in the past, she would have dealt with the Fourth Miss with thunder-like violence and wind-like swiftness. She would not have pressured the Third Lord to let The Main House adopt Fourth Miss.
The Old Lady somehow spoke about wind, horse and ox, "Now that Jianming and Jianye have tempered themselves, it's already enough having those two brothers support the family. Even if I have to go to the ground, later on, I will still be able to stand up to the ancestors of the Han family."
Old Woman Luo's heart thumped. "What is the Old Lady talking about? Wasn't the Old Lady still muttering two days ago that Master Shizi hadn't given you a grandson yet!"
When the Old Lady heard this, it raised her settled heart again. Her grandson was already well-trained, but her daughter-in-law and granddaughter-in-law were too much for her to handle. Qiu Shi was too straightforward, Ye Shi was too selfish, and Lu Xiu was still too young to manage things. If she were to leave, the house would be in chaos without someone to keep it in check. That was why she couldn't let go of her old bones so soon!
Tags:
The Rebirth of Han Yuxi