Han Jingyan's residence was also a sprawling mansion with five entrances. The third household consisted of a relatively small number of people, so their accommodation was exceedingly spacious in such a grand dwelling.
As soon as she entered the room, Yuchen smelled a faint fragrance. Looking up, she saw two pots of daffodils on a stand made of yellow pear wood. Without asking, she knew that they were something she had sent someone to deliver.
Seeing the pale Han Jingyan, Yu Chen's tears fell, and she choked out, "Father, what's wrong with you?"
Han Jingyan's pale face smiled, and he said, "Why are you crying? I'm fine, don't worry." Of all his children, Yuchen was the one he loved the most and had achieved the most.
Yuchen took a handkerchief embroidered with magnolia flowers and gently wiped away her tears. She spoke softly, "Father, I have already heard about this matter from Wu Mei1. Father, if Grandmother knew that you are not taking care of your health, she would not be able to rest in peace even in the afterlife." She couldn't understand his thinking. Even if he didn't consume rich and greasy food, he could still have nourishing supplements like a bird's nest.
Han Jingyan smiled wryly. "I never thought my body would become so frail." He had not expected his body to be so bad either.
*Momo Gui walked in and whispered to Yuchen, "Wangfei2, the Imperial Physician has arrived." Before going out, Yuchen had taken a pair of tokens to invite the Imperial Physician from the Imperial Medical Bureau to examine Han Jingyan.
After the Imperial Physician came in, he took Han Jingyan's pulse and reported after a while, "The Old Lord's body is too weak. He must be properly nourished to recover. Otherwise, a minor illness will turn into a serious one." The Imperial Physician did not think that Yuchen was neglecting her maiden family. Yuchen was known in the capital for her generosity, sending gifts in large quantities rather than just one or two items.
After hearing this, Yuchen knew Han Jingyan was okay and immediately said, "Imperial Physician, please prescribe some extra nourishing tonic for my father!"
It was just his body that was weak, and there were no other problems, so it was easy to treat. After the Imperial Physician finished writing the prescription, he said, "I will return in three days to check on the Old Lord again."
Yuchen was afraid that Han Jingyan would not listen to any advice and would still not take the tonics, so she persuaded him, "Father, you must take good care of your health. If something happens to you, no one suitable can support the Third Branch!" Jianjun was a shu3 son, so there was no need to talk about him. Jiancheng, the eldest di4 son of the Third Branch, was already fifteen years old this year and had barely earned the title of xiucai5. His rank was still low. It was even unthinkable that he would make it to the Second List6 of Jinshi7. In the future, he would definitely take the path of donating money to become an official. It would be impossible for Jiancheng to become the head of the family for at least ten or eight years.
After hearing these words, Han Jingyan was a little heartbroken. The most outstanding child had already passed away, and none of the remaining children were exceptionally gifted.
Word quickly spread throughout the capital that Han Jingyan, in an act of filial piety towards his late mother, had reduced himself to eating only two meagre meals a day, each consisting solely of plain steamed buns. This austere regimen had led to his physical decline and eventual fainting. Upon learning of this, the scholars unanimously hailed him as a paragon of filial devotion. Even Grand Chancellor Yu, upon hearing of this, declared Han Jingyan to be a man of the utmost sincerity and filial piety.🦊
When Han Jianming heard this news, the corners of his mouth twitched. He could believe that Han Jingyan did not eat meat, but he could not believe that his San Shu9 ate only two meals of plain steamed buns daily. If they were genuinely plain steamed buns, how could he have lasted more than a year? He would have collapsed long ago!
Mr Zhao wondered, "My Lord, how could Grand Chancellor Yu make such a statement?" Grand Chancellor Yu was so busy with important matters that he could hardly keep up. The mere fact that he was aware of Han Jingyan's fainting spell due to his observance of filial piety could only lead to one conclusion: the Yu family had been closely monitoring the Han family, including Han Jingyan.
Han Jianming asked, "Do you think Grand Chancellor Yu has an ulterior motive for saying that?" However, there was nothing valuable to gain by plotting against Han Jingyan.
Mr Zhao shook his head. "The Third Old Lord is, after all, the Si Gunainai10's biological father. I am worried that Grand Chancellor Yu will use this fact to make an issue of it."
Han Jianming said with a smile, "If Grand Chancellor Yu is counting on this, then he will be disappointed." What his San Shu9 had done back then had long since made Yuxi stop seeing him as a father. As for reputation, if Yuxi cared about reputation, she wouldn't be here today; she would have died long ago.
Mr Zhao felt that it would be better to take some precautions.
Han Jianming shook his head and said, "This matter cannot be prevented, and we are only speculating." There was something else he didn't say: Han Jianming felt that with Grand Chancellor Yu's status, even if he wanted to deal with Yuxi, he wouldn't use such a low-level method. Moreover, at Grand Chancellor Yu's level, if he wanted to deal with someone, he would either make no move or his move would be fatal.
However, Han Jianming didn't want his mother to know about this. He estimated that if his mother found out, she would be furious again, and it wouldn't be good for her health if that happened. Han Jianming called the steward and instructed him, "Don't let the Old Lady know about the Third Old Lord's matter."
This time, Han Jianming was wrong. Qiu Shi wasn't furious when she found out about it. She just said disdainfully, "It's a pity that the old woman gave her heart and soul to him when she was alive and even gave him her dowry before she died. After her death, he even used a handful to earn a name for himself. I just wonder if the Old Lady will be able to close her eyes11 down in the Nine Springs12 after knowing this." Ever since Qiu Shi had ripped off Han Jingyan's face13, she had never hidden her contempt for him. This pretended benevolence and righteousness hurt her eyes the more she looked at him.
Lu Xiu entered the courtyard with her two sons and heard Qiu Shi cursing someone. Lu Xiu looked at her two sons with a touch of helplessness. Her mother-in-law was a very good person; she never made things difficult for her daughters-in-law, but her bad habit of cursing people when she was angry was not good. The children were still young. What if they learned this bad habit?
Qiu Shi loved Lu Xiu's two children the most, especially the eldest grandson, Lil Boy Shun. He was the apple of Qiu Shi's eye! When she saw her grandson, everything else, including Han Jingyan, was forgotten.
Seeing Qiu Shi playing with her grandson, Lu Xiu hesitated for a long time before finally saying, "Mother, I want to take Lil Boy Shun to Yu City next yea..."
Before Lu Xiu could finish her sentence, Qiu Shi immediately asked, "What's wrong? Did someone in the mansion give you a hard time?" The first person she thought of was naturally Ye Shi, but she quickly ruled her out. Ye Shi had been a bit stubborn in the past few years but had behaved quite well in the past two years. Moreover, Lu Xiu was not a competitive person, and the two sisters-in-law got along quite well, at least on the surface.
Lu Xiu explained: "A few years ago when my Dage14 came back, my nephew didn't even recognise his father. I was heartbroken. Mother, I don't want Lil Boy Shun and Lil Boy An to grow up not knowing what their father looks like."
Lu Xiu's dage14 had been away for many years, and his child had not seen him since he was old enough to remember. It was normal for the child not to recognise him now that he had returned to the capital. However, this incident affected Lu Xiu deeply; she did not want her sons to go through the same thing. Yu City might not have the same conditions as the capital, but she wanted her family to be together. She did not want her sons to be like her nephew, who did not even recognise his own father.
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Naturally, Qiu Shi disagreed. "Yu City is a harsh and cold place. I cannot let Lil Boy Shun and his brother suffer there. Besides, the road is not peaceful, and horse thieves even dare to kill Imperial Envoys. It is too dangerous for you to go to Yu City." Qiu Shi's attitude was clear: she would not let Lu Xiu go to Yu City.
Lu Xiu was still disappointed, even though she had expected this outcome.
Qiu Shi added, "Yu City has always been unstable, with yearly wars. Yuxi has no choice but to stay there. Otherwise, I would have wanted them, husband and wife, to return to the capital." It was so much better in the capital; no worries or fears, and life was comfortable.
Qiu Shi disagreed, and the matter was dropped. After Lu Xiu left with the children, Qiu Shi sighed and said, "Yu City is so dangerous. I don't know why she would even consider taking the children there."
Mama Li felt that something else was going on, but she didn't want to add to Qiu Shi's worries, so she just said: "It's sad to hear that the children don't even know their own father."
Qiu Shi shook her head. "Who hasn't experienced this? Having Yuxi and Jianye in Yu City is enough for me to worry about. If Lil Boy Shun and Lil Boy An are added to the mix, won't it cost me my life?" As she grew older, she became even less willing to be separated and just wanted the family to be together and lively.
Mama Li smiled, "The Second Lady is also young and doesn't think as comprehensively as you, Old Lady." It was not that Lu Xiu was wrong; it was just that they were thinking in different directions.
"Achoo......" As Yuxi drank her juice, she suddenly sneezed.
Mama Qu smiled, "Madam, the Old Lady must be thinking of you!" As the old saying goes, sneezing usually means someone is missing you!🦊
Yuxi responded with a smile, "How accurate can that be? If my mother thought of me every day, wouldn't I be sneezing all the time?" Yuxi felt that some old sayings were too unfounded.
Zijin walked in quickly and cheerfully said, "Madam, Master, and Yu Zhi are back." The two of them had been gone for almost a month and had finally returned, so she could finally put her worries to rest.
Yuxi pointed out with a smile, "They're just visiting their friends; I don't know what you're so worried about." Zijin had been indifferent before, but now, she had been thinking about them all day, having only been apart for a while.
Zijin explained, "There are only ten days left before the wedding, and if he doesn't come back in time, the wedding will have to be postponed." The couple's wedding date had been set for the end of this month.
In fact, what Zijin said was only superficial. In fact, she was restless. Although Zijin was a somewhat rough branches and leaves16 type of person, she felt that Master Yang and Yu Zhi's trip this time was not just a simple visit to friends. The reason was very simple: the two of them were getting married soon, and Yu Zhi would not leave at this time unless there was something important.
Yuxi smiled, "All the things for your wedding are ready, so you can just relax and prepare for your marriage!" In the capital, new brides would eat soups and broth before getting married, hoping to make the bride look her best. Unfortunately, Zijin refused to eat these things, insisting she was healthy, leaving Yuxi helpless.
Zijin responded without thinking: "No way, I don't want to sit in the house all day! I will be bored to death." She couldn't do what Madam did, stay in the house all day without going out all day.
How could Yuxi not know Zi Jin's temperament? She said, "I won't restrict you, but you must stay in the house obediently the day before the wedding."
Zijin responded cheerfully.
Yuxi said amusedly, "The wedding dress is already made, so try it on. If it doesn't fit, it's better to change it as soon as possible." Zijin was bad at embroidery, so the wedding dress was made by someone else. Yuxi was good at embroidery, but she didn't have the time.
When Zijin put on the wedding dress and looked at herself in the mirror, she said delightfully, "Madam, this wedding dress is gorgeous. When the time comes for Mama Qu to dress me up again, I'm sure Yu Zhi won't even recognise me."
Yuxi responded with a 'hmm' and said, "People rely on clothes, and Buddha rely on golden statues17. You should dress up more in the future." Sometimes, Yuxi felt Zijin was born in the wrong body and should have been a man. She didn't like to dress up or wear skirts, and she liked to wear men's clothes. If one didn't know her, one might think she was a man!
Zijin countered, "It takes half a shichen18 to wash and dress; I can't stand it." At home, Madam usually took Madam a quarter to half an hour to wash and dress, and even longer if she wanted to go out. It was already unbearable for Zijin to watch, let alone experience it herself.
Footnotes Full List
- wu=five, fifth, mei=younger sister, short form for Meimei
- wang=king, fei=consort
- born of a concubine; illegitimate
- born of a formal wife; legitimate
- a person who has passed the county-level imperial exam (historical)
- In the specific process of the Imperial Examinations, the results of the "Provincial Examination" held in a province would be publicised after the results were released. Those who passed the examination would be placed on a list and given the title of "Juren" ("举人"). This list was called the "B List" or the "First List". Once a person had become a "Juren" and had the qualifications to be an official, he was also qualified to attend the "Metropolitan Examination" held in the capital. If one could successfully pass the "Metropolitan Examination" and then the "Palace Examination", one would be promoted to the "Jinshi List". This list was called the "A list", also known as the "Second List". - Netease
- successful candidate in the highest imperial civil service examination
- san=three/third, shu=uncle/father's younger brother
- si=four/fourth, gunainai=(a respectful form of address for a married woman used by members of her parents' family) married daughter
- (fig.) to be contented at the time of one's death (Dying without closing one's eyes would signify having unresolved grievances.)
- Chinese idiom: after death
- (col) to have an acrimonious falling-out
- eldest brother
- Hmm... My hometown has the same old belief. But for me, if you sneeze 3 times or more, you've got the flu *or you're allergic to something.
- Chinese idiom: a bit careless or inattentive
- Chinese proverb: People's appearance and presentation are important for making a good impression, just as golden statues and ornaments enhance the image of the Buddha. It suggests that appearance plays a significant role in how people are perceived and valued.
- 2 hours
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The Rebirth of Han Yuxi