Болезненный юноша, путешествующий во времена династии Сун

Глава 66

“Once upon a time, well, many years ago,” the lady said slowly, “there was a family that had a daughter. Like all families, they wished for a son, because they were well-off. The man held a minor official position in the court, but they never had a male heir. His wife had been infertile for many years. When she finally became pregnant, she gave birth to a girl, and it was a difficult birth. The doctor said she could never have another child.”

"The man longed for a son to inherit the family business. At that time, an official of higher rank took a liking to him and intended to promote him. His only condition was that the man marry his daughter as his principal wife. The man considered it for a few days and finally agreed. In his eyes, although he and his wife had a deep bond, his wife could no longer bear him a son and was of no help to his career. As long as he gave her more money every year and did not divorce her so that she could support herself in the future, even if she lost her status, he would not feel he had done anything wrong."

"As a result, his usually gentle and compliant wife was unexpectedly stubborn. She didn't say anything at the time, but only asked for a letter of divorce. Then she silently picked up their daughter, who was not yet one year old, and left home on that snowy night. She was also a young lady from a wealthy family. Being divorced by her husband, she naturally had no face to go home. The world outside was vast and she didn't know where to go. Later, she thought of death. But the soft body of her daughter nestled against her in her arms, making it impossible for her to harden her heart."

"She just kept walking. Later, she got lost in the mountains and encountered wolves. To protect her child, her hand was bitten so badly by the wolf that her bones were broken and tendons were torn. Nobody knew. How could such a frail woman, who after being divorced, think of nothing but death and nothing else, fight a big gray wolf for so long, until the noise alerted a hermit living nearby, and she was rescued?"

"Although the woman survived, her entire right arm was rendered useless. She felt increasingly ashamed, and only her daughter's smiling face sustained her. The hermit who took her in later took her daughter as his apprentice, and her daughter gradually grew up into a very beautiful young girl."

"Actually, before taking this female disciple, the reclusive master had also taken a boy as his disciple. The two children learned martial arts together and grew up together. The boy always admired the girl, and their master wanted to give them his blessing, but the girl never expressed her feelings. It turned out that she admired the powerful and wealthy more." Mo Xibei, half-closing his eyes in the rocking chair, suddenly continued, "This girl was very beautiful, so she attracted the attention of a prince and later married into the prince's mansion."

"Jia'er, did your master tell you about what happened back then?" The lady was taken aback, and only sighed softly. "That's right, what I'm talking about is my own story. However, Jia'er, what you know is only one side of this story."

“I can guess the ending of this story without even hearing it,” Mo Xibei said, his eyes still closed. “The girl grew up, but seeing her mother crying every day and her mother’s crippled right arm, she felt that it was all her unfaithful father’s fault. Her father favored boys and looked down on girls, so she was determined to prove to him that girls were not inferior to boys, and could even bring more honor to the family. So, even though she liked her senior brother, she pretended not to know his feelings. Once she had mastered her martial arts, she left the mountain without hesitation. As a result, she was very lucky and met the then-Prince Xing, later becoming his consort. And later still, her son inherited the title of Prince Xing.”

“Or, I should address you as Empress Dowager,” Mo Xibei said, sitting up straight and opening his eyes. “Empress Dowager, you have successfully proven that daughters are better than sons. I’m curious, how do you treat your father?”

"Jia'er, you really are my Jia'er, my child..." Empress Dowager Jiang's eyes welled with tears, and it took her a long time to stop sobbing as she continued her story, "You think that all these years, your mother has really lived such a lucky and simple life as you say? Silly child, I have come to where I am today by stepping on the blood of countless people. Your father was a good man, and meeting him was the greatest fortune of my life, but he left too early, leaving me and your brother behind. Under the watchful eyes of countless spies in the capital, I had to be subservient and struggle to survive. In the life of a prince, a wrong word or a wrong step could cost you your life. Even though your brother was chosen to inherit the throne, how many people in the capital would take us orphans and widows seriously? Jia'er, how many people have shed blood in these years of open and hidden attacks? Fortunately, your brother is determined and has finally controlled the situation in the court and finally grasped this world."

"Jia'er, do you know? Only after I finally became Empress Dowager, above all others, did I realize that I no longer hated my father as much as I had imagined. He, however, was filled with regret. Your maternal grandmother had passed away a few years ago, and he had nowhere to atone for his sins, which led to a serious illness." Empress Dowager Jiang's voice became very weary. "Jia'er, it was then that I realized that my hatred for him stemmed from my love for him, or perhaps, my constant hope that he would love me, like other fathers love their children. Once I understood this, I felt at peace. I didn't make things difficult for his family; instead, I had your brother appoint them to official positions, even higher ones."

Mo Xibei remained silent. She had never known that the one-armed old woman who had held her in her arms and steamed osmanthus cakes for her when she was learning her craft in the mountains was actually... was actually connected to her in this way. Thinking of the old woman's cloudy eyes staring intently at the door as she passed away, a wave of sorrow washed over her. Her master had been there at the time, and he later told her that her grandmother was waiting for someone, someone she had waited for for many years. When she pressed him about who her grandmother was waiting for, her master said he didn't know. So, there was such a story behind it all.

"Jia'er, I know I haven't taken good care of you all these years, and I'm sorry. I hope you can give me a chance to make it up to you, okay?" Empress Dowager Jiang asked earnestly. For a moment, Mo Xibei impulsively wanted to say: Your Jia'er is dead. What you owe her, you can never make up for. However, the words caught in his throat as he saw the tears in Empress Dowager Jiang's eyes and the few gray hairs sprouting at her temples, and he ultimately kept silent. A person's glory is visible to others, but who can truly understand the bitterness behind that glory? Everyone has their own goals, and everyone pays a price to achieve them. The person before him had attained supreme status but lost her mother, husband, and daughter. Her surviving father and brothers both respected and feared her; she was truly "Aijia" (a term of endearment for a woman in distress). Why should he add another knife to her heart?

Volume Two: The Wind Leaves Its Mark, Chapter Eighteen: The Road Ahead (Part One)

By the time spring arrived in the fourth year of the Jiajing reign, Mo Xibei had completely resolved the affairs of the capital. Empress Dowager Jiang had arranged several more meetings with her since then, each time carefully curtly offering a smile. Although Mo Xibei remained unmoved, she didn't outright refuse either, maintaining a somewhat ambiguous stance, waiting for the opportune moment to depart for a distant place.

For Empress Dowager Jiang, bringing a deceased princess back into the palace while minimizing the negative impact was no small undertaking. Generally, the best way to cover it up would be to announce the adoption of Mo Xibei as her goddaughter and bestow upon her the title of princess. However, when she subtly mentioned it, she noticed Mo Xibei's disdainful look. Her senior brother had told her about the child's temperament, and Empress Dowager Jiang knew that Mo Xibei would never accept such an injustice. If things went wrong, Mo Xibei would disappear from her sight. After all, she was no longer a child; she was free to come and go as she pleased, and nothing could stop her.

If adoption is not an option, then we must start with the Emperor. Empress Dowager Jiang was thinking about how to explain this to her son when she discovered another earth-shattering event.

After spring arrived, Mo Xibei changed out of the thick cotton-padded clothes he had worn all winter and the first thing he did was to make spring clothes for everyone in the mansion. Honglu invited a tailor back, and a large area of colorful fabrics and brocades was piled up in the main hall of the mansion.

Young girls all love these bright colors, and Mo Xibei is no exception. She doesn't have many women's clothes, and she feels she's wasting her money, so she plans to buy a lot more.

"Young Master Mo, I just took some people to take measurements for Miss Murong to make new clothes. Tell me, why do I feel like she's gained a lot of weight?" After selecting the fabric, Mo Xibei acted as a color consultant with great interest, teaching everyone how to choose the most suitable colors for themselves. Suddenly, Hong Lü walked over and pulled her aside.

“People tend to eat more during winter, so it’s not strange to feel a little chubby in the spring. You’ll lose weight in a few days,” Mo Xibei answered readily. But as soon as he finished speaking, he suddenly realized something was off. “You mean…”

"Yes!" Honglu nodded, her expression unusually solemn.

“You can’t just say things like that. Are you sure?” Mo Xibei frowned, biting his lip involuntarily. “I know, I’m sure. Even if you haven’t eaten pork, you’ve seen pigs run. She hasn’t been going out much lately. I noticed just now that she’s not only gained weight, but even the way she walks is different.” Honglu leaned closer to Mo Xibei and whispered, “I also asked the maid who serves her, and I heard that she’s been gagging a lot when she eats breakfast lately.”

Mo Xibei met Murong Lianyun two days later. She heard Honglu's words but did not immediately verify them. She did not refrain from taking a chance. For Mo Xibei, having a child out of wedlock was not an unacceptable situation. However, the times were different, with a generation gap of hundreds of years. If Murong Lianyun really had a child out of wedlock, what reputation would she have in the future?

When Mo Xibei finally met Murong Lianyun, he knew that such good fortune was rare in this world. Murong Lianyun's belly was already slightly protruding, and his waist had become wider. The two sat facing each other, and before they could exchange more than three sentences, a small snack of smoked meat jerky brought over by Honglu made Murong Lianyun cover his face and run to the side, vomiting violently.

"How long have you been like this?" Mo Xibei asked only after Murong Lianyun sat down dejectedly in the chair with red eyes.

"I knew it. Why did Honglu bring people to tailor new clothes for me? This is your home. What can you possibly hide from me?" Murong Lianyun raised her head high, her eyes full of mocking laughter. "Why bother coming to test me with things? Just ask me directly, and I will answer that I am pregnant."

"What do you plan to do?" Mo Xibei closed her eyes slightly, her temples throbbing. At this moment, she felt that Murong Lianyun's smile was so dazzling and heartbreaking.

"What do I intend to do?" Murong Lianyun suddenly burst into laughter, laughing until tears streamed down her face, before saying flippantly, "If you're worried I'll ruin your good reputation, I can leave immediately. As for who the child's father is, I don't think I need to tell you." In truth, she wanted to say more than that. What she really wanted to say was: If it weren't for you, how could I have ended up like this? It's all your fault. But she swallowed the latter part of her sentence. She was no longer the Murong Lianyun of the past. The first step to revenge was forbearance. Now she had to be patient, patient.

Volume Two: The Wind Leaves Its Mark, Chapter Eighteen: The Road Ahead (Part Two)

“Lianyun, you know that’s not what I meant. Given your current situation, where do you think you can go?” Mo Xibei frowned and pressed down on Murong Lianyun’s hand. “I asked you what your plans are just to know if there’s anything I can do to help you.”

“Sister Mo, I know, I just…” Murong Lianyun’s attitude changed almost 180 degrees, and she suddenly burst into tears. “I just can’t control myself. I don’t know what’s wrong with me. Ever since I got pregnant, I’ve been very irritable. It’s like I can’t stand anyone or anything.”

“Oh…that’s probably what pregnancy is like,” Mo Xibei nodded. “Then I won’t bother you any longer. If you have any requests or want to eat anything, just tell the kitchen to prepare it for you.” After saying that, Mo Xibei got up and left. Murong Lianyun’s room had a good orientation, and in the morning, the room was filled with sunlight. Outside, it was springtime and the temperature was quite high. But for some reason, as soon as Mo Xibei stepped out of her room, she shivered several times.

"I heard that troublesome beauty you've been keeping is pregnant?" Mo Xibei walked back to his courtyard with a heavy heart. Before his hand even touched the door, the two doors opened by themselves, and Mu Feinan leaned against the doorway with a half-smile. "What are your plans?"

"Her pregnancy isn't my pregnancy, so it's not my place to make decisions." Mo Xibei took two steps forward and leaned against the door on the other side, tilting his head and smiling. "I didn't expect you to be so well-informed. I only just found out about it myself, and you already know."

“How big can this house be? What little thing can be kept secret? Not only me, but I'm afraid everyone in the Chunfeng Ruyi Tower up front knows about this now.” Mu Feinan shook his head. “You’re the head of the family here. You can’t escape this situation.”

"I didn't intend to avoid it, but the problem is... she won't say who the child's father is, and I can only watch helplessly, can I?" Mo Xibei sighed. He thought he had finished dealing with his own affairs and could leave at any time, but then Murong Lianyun caused another scene, and he didn't know how to handle it.

“Didn’t you see her go to Chu Junfeng with your own eyes? I think I’ll go with you to find him. A real man should admit what he did. Then you can contribute some dowry. Hurry up and send Murong Lianyun over. Didn’t you want to go out and have fun and eat good food? Let’s set off right away.” Mu Feinan spoke quickly, reached out and pulled Mo Xibei to walk out.

"Wait. We saw Murong Lianyun enter Brother Chu's inn, but to catch a thief red-handed, you need to get the evidence, and to catch an adulterer in the act, you need to catch them in the act. We didn't even catch them in bed together, so going there now would be too reckless." Mo Xibei grabbed the door frame with one hand. He only managed to stop himself with a strong pull from Mu Feinan.

"Why don't you go ask and you'll find out?" Mu Feinan suddenly became very insistent, pulling Mo Xibei to the courtyard gate.

"How can you ask such a question without solid evidence?" Mo Xibei quickly grabbed the hospital door, refusing to take another step.

“I think it’s not that you can’t ask, but that you’re unwilling to accept the fact, right?” Mu Feinan suddenly turned around and stared at Mo Xibei. “Xibei, tell me honestly, do you still like Chu Junfeng? If you do, go find him. I won’t stop you.”

"What's wrong with you? What nonsense are you spouting here?" Mo Xibei was taken aback. Murong Lianyun had given her a huge headache today, and she never expected that Mu Feinan would be jealous of her for no reason.

"What's wrong with me? I'm perfectly fine. I just feel stupid." Mu Feinan muttered to himself, suddenly shook off Mo Xibei's hand, took two steps outside, and then said, "I have some things to take care of. I won't be back for the next few days. Take care of yourself."

"Stop right there!" Seeing Mu Feinan pull out a mask from his pocket, put it on his face, and prepare to leave, Mo Xibei came to his senses and raised his voice a few decibels, "Explain yourself before you leave."

"My business is urgent, let's talk when I get back." Mu Feinan didn't turn around, and took two more steps. His lightness skill was naturally extremely high, and in these few steps he had already reached the front of the garden, actually preparing to climb over the wall. Mu Feinan! You go, if you dare to leave like that, I guarantee..." Mo Xibei gritted his teeth and stomped his feet, his anger rising. What was this all about? What had Mu Feinan eaten today to be so infuriating? It was simply outrageous.

"What do you promise?" Upon hearing Mo Xibei's words, Mu Feinan abruptly stopped. After waiting for a long time without hearing Mo Xibei's threatening words, he finally couldn't help but turn around. When he turned around, he was shocked to see Mo Xibei pressing his hand to his chest, his body limp against the courtyard gate, and sliding down.

"Northwest!" Mu Feinan leaped back to Mo Northwest's side, stretched out his arm, and caught her as she was about to fall.

At this moment, Mo Xibei's eyes were closed, beads of sweat were faintly appearing on his forehead, and his body was trembling slightly. Without thinking, he pressed Mo Xibei's Earth Vein Gate.

"I promise, I'll break your legs." Before Mu Feinan's fingers even touched Mo Xibei's hand, he felt a blur before his eyes, and Mo Xibei's body slid out of his arms like a fish. He was actually hit on acupoints, and he was forced to remain in a half-squatting position with his arms outstretched, unable to move.