Chapter 61: Carefree Entanglement

  Thanks to everyone for the pink and rewards, this afternoon... previously had pink added more, Xiao Xian codes words not quickly, speaking counts as promise, pink over 20 pieces must add more, continue to ask for powder, ask for reward, ask for all kinds of support.

  The old master didn't ask about the affairs of the mansion, but he wouldn't just watch the old lady make a scene. The old lady came from the Beile Mansion and helped the old master inherit the title, so the old master had always been very humble and loving towards her. Although the old master was prone to infidelity, he would not let his concubine be impolite in front of his wife, and he gave the old lady enough face in public and private. The only time they had a falling out was because of Zhiyuan's birth mother. The old lady had always been suspicious of Zhiyuan's origins, and no matter how she looked at it, it didn't seem like the old master had won the lottery. The people the old lady sent to investigate were chased away by the old master, and not a single piece of information was obtained. Was that why the old lady could tolerate Zhiyuan?

  The old man felt guilty towards his wife and the mother of Zhiyuan, so he restrained himself for a while. However, as time passed, perhaps because he missed her, the old man's nature couldn't be changed, and he handed over the power of the mansion to the old lady. He didn't ask about anything, and when the old lady treated Zhiyuan poorly, the old man felt heartbroken but couldn't say much. He just let people secretly take care of Zhiyuan. Since Zhiyuan got married and left Beijing, the old man listened to his wife's words and agreed with everything the old lady said.

  Today, the old master's face was gloomy, with a dark cloud of anger, his hands clasped behind his back. The maids and servants in the house held their breath, while the four daughters-in-law, no, three daughters-in-law, hung their heads in silence like cicadas in winter. Guwalgiya, however, tended to her daughter Shu Yao as if no one else was present, touching Shu Yao's forehead and wondering if she should call a doctor to take a look at her.

  The old lady got up, "How did you come?" As for her husband, the old lady was also quite afraid. The old man seemed to have a good temper, but if he got angry, the old lady couldn't bear it. She softened her voice, "Sit down and talk."

  When she turned around, she saw Shu Yao lying steadily on the kang, and Guwalgiya didn't seem to want to let go. The old lady thought again and again, not wanting to be on the same level as the unreasonable Guwalgiya. Obviously, Zhiyuan had drowned in the water, but she refused to admit it. If Guwalgiya were to fly into a rage, the old lady wouldn't be able to withstand her. Considering that Guwalgiya was a widow, the old lady thought herself kind and found many excuses for Guwalgiya. In the end, one sentence summed it up: the old lady was afraid of Guwalgiya. This could be seen from the fact that she usually didn't suffer losses, but let others beware.

  The old lady pointed at the armchair and said, "Who provoked you? You have such a bad temper?"

  The old man's waist was slightly arched, and he didn't intend to sit down. The old lady gave a hint with her eyes, but the usually quick-witted Third Lady Tong Jia hesitated and lowered her head. She wasn't unable to understand the old lady's meaning, but she didn't dare to step forward and support the old man. Since the old man entered the house, Tong Jia had been feeling short of breath. The old man must have heard the conversation inside the house while standing outside, so Tong Jia naturally kept a distance, fearing that the old man would scold her. It was also the old man's nature to dislike his second son, Zhiyuan.

  The old lady never expected much from her eldest daughter-in-law, Nala, who was weak and useless. Her third daughter-in-law was ignored as if she didn't exist, and her fourth daughter-in-law wasn't even worth mentioning, being a two-faced person who only knew how to curry favor with both sides. The old lady ordered her second daughter: "Help your mother sit down, and have someone serve tea."

  Second Auntie couldn't disobey Old Lady's orders, she was extremely unwilling to go forward. As for Master, Second Auntie had been afraid of him since childhood and would hide whenever she saw him. Master always said that she didn't have the elegance of a Manchu lady. In the past, Old Lady had defended her, but after she lost her husband and relied on the Duke's household to survive, Old Lady only treated her with superficial courtesy. After all, Second Auntie had insisted on marrying a poor scholar, which made Old Lady lose face. If it weren't for her daughter Li Qiqing, Second Auntie would have been in an even more difficult situation.

  Second Aunt released Li Ziqing, hesitated and stepped forward, her voice as weak as a mosquito humming. "Ah Ma looked at her with one eye, Second Aunt was already tearful because of her daughter's inexplicable headache, her eyes had been red all along. Ah Ma glared, and Second Aunt's tears fell down. "Ah Ma, Er Ge...Er Ge wailed..."

  Second Aunt cried, and Third Aunt followed suit, wiping away tears. Her eyes were filled with sympathy. "Shu Xuan, Shu Yi, from now on, if you have anything to say, tell Third Aunt, she cares about you."

  Shu Xuan spoke up, "You're being unreasonable. My nephew has his mother and father, as well as his maternal grandmother and maternal aunt. There are indeed things that none of them can resolve, so he will definitely come to Third Aunt for guidance."

  Tong Jia's family was about to bite their tongue, the news of Shu Xuan's love for the Duke's mansion had spread everywhere. In contrast to Shu Xuan, Tong Jia's own son, Shu Jie, who was raised by his grandmother, did not like reading books and spent his days socializing with maidservants. Shu Jie was raised by his grandmother, so even if Tong Jia wanted to teach him, she couldn't reach him. Tong Jia had once despised Shu Xuan, thinking he was just a bookworm who got lucky and passed the imperial exams. She felt embarrassed now, as she had only pretended to be dignified and wise in front of others, but didn't expect Shu Xuan to actually succeed. Tong Jia swallowed hard and dared not speak again.

  It's no wonder they're a family, the old man's mouth curled up slightly. The three siblings are all unwilling to suffer losses or grievances. Zhiyuan has such spoiled sons and daughters, and also has a virtuous wife to assist him, which is a blessing. Shuyi said: "Mafa, sit down and talk, you're always standing, my grandson is worried about your body."

  Shu Yi, with a smile, persuaded the old man, "When Ama comes back, she'll know that her grandson is disobedient to you and will spank him." Shu Yi supported the old man to sit down, served tea, and then retreated to one side. The people in the house also saw it clearly - not only did Guwalgiya not believe that Zhiyuan was dead, but none of Zhiyuan's three children believed that their Ama had met with an accident either. They were a family of stubborn people who couldn't recognize reality.

  The old man poured the tea leaves, and the sound of the teacup and lid colliding was crisp. The old lady's mouth opened and closed, finally squeezing out a sentence: "I'm worried about Zhiyuan."

  Since Zhiyuan's wife and children do not think that Zhiyuan is dead, the old lady should not be disappointed. After waiting for ten days or half a month, if there is still no news of Zhiyuan, they will cry then. The old lady said: "Zhiyuan fell into the water for the emperor, and the emperor will reward him."

  The old man continued to pour tea leaves, not responding, the old lady felt a bit annoyed, "You came to Rongshou Hall to drink tea? The house is in a mess, can't you say something?"

  Li Ziqing covered her head and shouted in pain, remembering her seriously ill great-grandfather who almost died last year. Looking at him now, Li Ziqing couldn't help but feel regretful. The two divine ginseng that came with the space, if she had kept one of them, wouldn't her head be less painful?

  Shu Yao slowly opened her eyes, "Huh? Doesn't hurt anymore?" Although her powers had regressed to a primary level, Shu Yao felt that even if she was downgraded, it was still very useful. At least she could scan Li Zhi Qing's thoughts. Shu Yao breathed a sigh of relief that she hadn't continued to give Li Zhi Qing another dose, and also figured out that the mysterious ginseng in Li Zhi Qing's space wasn't much, the rest were all grown by herself. "Huh? There are still some life fruits?" Shu Yao was no longer calm, and in her heart, she gave the heavens a middle finger, "You're just discriminating against science students!" A bolt of lightning flashed down outside, and Shu Yao shrank back, not daring to scold anymore. Instead, she begged the heavens, "Mysterious space, powers or not, I don't care. Just please bless Ama with peace, and don't let her be taken away by the Dragon King as a daughter-in-law." Shu Yao firmly believed that Ama would never betray her mother.

  "Yao'er?" Guajia Shi called out, drawing the attention of Old Master. "Mother, I'm fine." Shu Yao fainted unexpectedly and woke up just as unexpectedly, sitting up straight from the bed and taking two steps forward, indicating that she was perfectly fine. Guajia Shi looked at Shu Yao's rosy and smooth face and believed her, grasping her daughter's hand to reassure herself. Compared to Shu Yao's robust health, Li Zhiying clutched her head and cried out in pain, "It hurts so much! It hurts so much!"

  The old lady said: "Zhiqing, you go rest in the green room first."

  Hu Qin helped Li Zhiqing up, and Li Zhiqing pushed her away in pain: "Grandmother, I'm worried about Second Uncle. Listening to the details, the Yellow River breaking through the embankment will certainly make the Emperor angry. Second Uncle is the imperial envoy inspecting the river embankments. I'm afraid...afraid that the Emperor will blame him."

  "Niece, you're thinking too much. Even if it's related, it won't be related to the Duke's house, let alone affect your future."

  Gua Erjia gave Li Ziqing a cold glance, seeing through her thoughts, fearing being implicated by Zhīyuǎn, and deserved to have a headache. Shū Yáo sensed Gua Erjia's annoyance and thought of giving Li Ziqing another blow, but the special ability didn't react. Shū Yáo speculated that it was because the accumulated energy wasn't enough. For the first time, Shū Yáo firmly decided to work hard to upgrade, thinking that the special ability was a killer move.

  The old man snorted, Li Ziqing's face turned red with shame, "I'm not afraid of this... I'm worried about Second Uncle..."

  The old man was too lazy to bother with Li Ziqing, on the one hand worrying about Zhiyuan's situation, and on the other hand, without Li Ziqing's ginseng, the old man would not be able to hold on either. The old man said: "Where is the person who delivered the message?"

  "Old master, I'm here."

  "What's going on? Speak clearly."

  The messenger was another long-time follower of Zhiyuan, called Tiezhu. He wiped away tears and said, "Master is dissatisfied with Lord Cheng's method of building the dam, so Lord Cheng avoided him. Master forcibly entered Lord Cheng's government office, pulling Lord Cheng to inspect the dam. They argued as they walked, with Lord Cheng unable to reason with Master. They quarreled for a long time on the dam, and then it started raining. Originally, Master was going to return, but at that moment, the dam began to leak water, and Lord Cheng fell into the water while standing at the edge...

  "Why bother saving Yu Chenglong?" The old man's face was clearly filled with anger, this stubborn Zhiyuan, if Yu Chenglong drowned then let him drown, what's the point of going to save him?

  Shu Yao looked at Gual Jia and still thought that although Ama was loyal, she didn't seem like the kind of person who would risk her own life to save others. She remembered how often her mother had advised Ama that a noble's child should not lower themselves, that in official circles there were many deceitful people, and it was unwise to show sympathy towards colleagues, even if you couldn't stand them, you had to endure, and act according to your abilities. In fact, Ama listened to her mother's words quite well. Gual Jia clenched her fists, if Zhiyuan dared to jump in to save Yu Chenglong, she would definitely not let him off easily. Who was more important, Yu Chenglong or their mothers?

  "No, no."

  Iron Pillar said with a hint of shame that was hard to detect, "Master is going to leave, but...but was caught by Lord Yu's official robes and couldn't break free, and they both fell into the water together. The old master, slave, and Bao Zhuang didn't rescue them in time, and watched as the two of them drifted away. Bao Zhuang searched for Master along the river and asked me to send a message back to the mansion. I think...I suppose...Master should be fine..."

  Shu Yao didn't know what expression to put on, but she understood that when Zhiyuan and the others fell into the water, the dam hadn't burst, which meant the current wouldn't be too rapid. Ama Zhiyuan knew how to swim, so he should be safe.