Aristocratic Family - Chapter 4

Chapter 4 : Tears

The room was quiet, so quiet that it made people feel uneasy. Everyone looked at Lian Yueyao, who was filled with grief and hatred as she gazed at Gu Mama.
No one knew what was happening.

Gu Mama saw Lian Yueyao’s expression and didn’t think much of it. She assumed Lian Yueyao was having a nightmare and loudly asked, “Young lady, young lady, what’s wrong with you? Did you have a bad dream?”

Lian Yueyao was snapped back to reality by Gu Mama’s words. When she met Gu Mama’s concerned gaze, her eyes were filled with disgust and hatred. She couldn’t believe she had trusted Gu Mama so much back then, only to be betrayed and sold out completely.

Gu Mama saw the intense gaze from Lian Yueyao and was frightened, her heart racing. “Young lady, what nightmare did you have?”

When Gu Mama reached out to touch her, Lian Yueyao felt a surge of disgust. She turned her head away and coldly said, “Don’t touch me.”

Gu Mama’s hand fell empty, and she felt embarrassed. Hearing Lian Yueyao’s cold words, she asked fearfully, “Young lady, are you possessed by a demon?”

Lian Yueyao realized her behavior was not suitable. She had heard too many stories in the temple about people being accused of being possessed by demons due to their behavior and being burned alive. If she didn’t compose herself, she might suffer the same fate.

Lian Yueyao knew she needed to calm down and think clearly. She couldn’t afford to be impulsive, or the consequences would be dire. She suppressed her disgust and anger, and with a calm expression, said, “I’m fine. Mu Qiu is taking care of me, you can leave now.”

Mu Qiu was surprised. The young lady was usually kind and gentle towards Gu Mama, but this time she not only yelled at Gu Mama but also spoke coldly and didn’t even call her “mother(Mama)” like she usually did. The young lady must have really been possessed by a demon.
Gu Mama was taken aback: “Young lady…”

Lian Yueyao’s eyes flashed with impatience, and her voice was laced with annoyance: “I told you to leave, didn’t you hear me?” She had been trying to be patient, but seeing this person made her feel sick to her stomach.

Gu Mama’s heart sank when she heard the words, and she stood up with a forced smile. The young lady had never disrespected her like this before. Gu Mama knew Lian Yueyao’s temperament and realized that if she continued to push her, it would only make things worse. She decided to retreat temporarily to avoid offending the young lady. Before leaving, she reminded Mu Qiu to take care of Lian Yueyao and then left under Lian Yueyao’s cold gaze.

Mu Qiu tucked the quilt around Lian Yueyao: “Young lady, Mama is just concerned about you, maybe…”

Lian Yueyao knew Mu Qiu was well-intentioned and didn’t want to talk about it.
She interrupted Mu Qiu: “Where’s Hua Lei?” She had two senior maids, Mu Qiu and Hua Lei.

Both of them were carefully trained by her mother and were her trusted companions. However, Mu Qiu was steady but not clever, while Hua Lei was not only steady but also intelligent and perceptive. Hua Lei had warned her about Madam Mo’s ill intentions, but she hadn’t listened. Both maids were loyal to her, but they were different. Mu Qiu was a purchased servant, while Hua Lei was a servant born in the Lian household.
Hua Lei’s parents worked in the mansion.

Mu Qiu didn’t take offense at being interrupted and replied softly: “Young lady, don’t you remember? Hua Lei’s mother was ill, and you gave her permission to go home and take care of her mother. Hua Lei sent word that her mother’s illness has improved, and she’ll be back tomorrow.”Hua Lei’s parents worked on the Manor, and it would take half a day for her to travel back and forth. So Lian Yueyao gave her a leave of absence. Normally, as a first-class maid, Hua Lei wouldn’t be able to leave her mistress’s side when her parents were ill, but Lian Yueyao granted her this favor.

At the time, Lian Yueyao thought that since her own parents were not around, she shouldn’t prevent Hua Lei from visiting her sick mother.

Lian Yueyao sighed softly. After twenty years, she barely remembered such trivial matters. What she remembered most were the happy times she spent with her parents in Jiangnan. Those memories were etched in her mind, and she didn’t want to forget them. As for the matters of the Lian household, she had deliberately tried to forget, and they were now vague in her memory.

Lian Yueyao looked around the familiar room, the familiar scene, and the youthful Mu Qiu. Finally, she smiled in relief. In her previous life, heaven had been cruel to her, but now it seemed to have taken pity on her, giving her a chance to relive her life and start anew.

With this thought, Lian Yueyao’s heart calmed down. She closed her eyes and recited a Buddhist scripture. After finishing the scripture, she fell asleep quickly.

Mu Qiu looked at the sleeping Lian Yueyao with some confusion but didn’t think much of it. She wasn’t one to overthink things. Seeing Lian Yueyao asleep, Mu Qiu got up, blew out the lamp, and lay back down on her own pallet.

When Lian Yueyao woke up, she looked out the window and saw that it was gray outside, making it hard to tell the time. She turned to Mu Qiu and asked, “What time is it?”

Mu Qiu smiled and replied, “Young lady, it’s already the second mark of the Si hour (around 10:00 AM).” If it were any other young lady sleeping in this late, her maids would be worried.

However, Lian Yueyao’s situation was special, and Mu Qiu was not only unworried but also relieved. Since the old master and mistress passed away, Lian Yueyao had trouble sleeping, and even when she did, it was only for short periods. As a result, her health had become increasingly weak. Now, seeing her sleep so soundly, Mu Qiu couldn’t help but feel happy.
At this moment, a maid wearing a light green dress walked in. She had a round face that looked festive. Lian Yue Yao looked at the maid and couldn’t react for a moment. She called out softly, “Hua Lei?” It’s not surprising that Lian Yue Yao was taken aback. She felt guilty about Hua Lei.

Hua Lei often advised her, but she didn’t listen, and in the end, Hua Lei lost her life because of it. Even Hua Lei’s family was implicated.

As soon as Hua Lei returned, she heard that Lian Yueyao was still sleeping. She felt relieved. When she saw Lian Yueyao looking more energetic and spirited than when she left, she felt even happier. When she heard Lian Yueyao call her name, her eyes sparkled with joy: “Young lady, it’s me. I’m back. Your complexion looks much better today. If you could keep looking like this every day, that would be great.”

Because of Lian Yueyao’s kindness, she was able to spend five days at home, which was the longest time she had ever been allowed to be with her family. She was very grateful. Her mother was already recovering, and she wanted to return to serve Lian Yueyao as soon as possible. Lian Yueyao’s permission to let her go home was already a great kindness. Now that her mother was better, she naturally needed to return. She didn’t expect that in just a few days, Lian Yueyao’s complexion would start to improve. Could it be that Young lady had finally let go of her grief?

Lian Yueyao smiled bitterly to herself when she heard this. After her parents passed away one after another, she was hit hard, and she spent most of her time copying scriptures to alleviate her pain. But now, more than twenty years had passed, and although she still felt sad, it wasn’t as deep as it used to be.

Lian Yueyao suddenly remembered that there were portraits of her parents in the study. She couldn’t quite remember what they looked like anymore. With this thought, Lian Yueyao immediately went to the study. Hua Lei and Mu Qiu tried to stop her, but they couldn’t.

In everyone’s eyes, Lian Yueyao was a bit stubborn and hard to get along with. You couldn’t disobey her; you had to go along with her. Otherwise, she would get angry.
When the old master and mistress were still alive, things were better because the mistress could mediate. Now, without anyone to guide her, Lian Yue Yao’s temper had become even more stubborn.

As soon as she stepped out of the room, she saw Gu Mama waiting to come in. Gu Mama saw that Lian Yue Yao was wearing thin clothes and scolded her: “Young lady, you’re not taking care of yourself…”

But Lian Yue Yao dodged Gu Ma’s hand, as if Gu Mama was something dirty. Then she didn’t even look at Gu Mama and went straight to the study.

Gu Mama’s expression turned cold. Since last midnight, the young lady hadn’t been treating her well. This morning was no exception.

Gu Mama sensed that the young lady had become more distant towards her. What was wrong with the young lady?
Gu Mama glared at Mu Qiu, thinking that this dead maid must have said something bad about her to the young lady. She seemed obedient, but she was just like Hua Lei, not well-intentioned.

Mu Qiu lowered her head. Hua Lei, who was standing next to her, showed a hint of sarcasm on her face. It seemed that the young lady had finally realized that the wet nurse was not trustworthy. Hua Lei couldn’t help but sigh. When the mistress was alive, Gu Mama was very dedicated to the young lady’s affairs. However, the mistress didn’t like Gu Mama to have too much contact with the young lady, so Gu Mama didn’t dare to overstep. The young lady had always been kind to Gu Mama.

But who would have thought that Gu Mama would team up with the people from the first branch as soon as she came back? Hua Lei knew what the first lady was thinking. If the mistress were still alive, Gu Mama wouldn’t have dared to have any ulterior motives. In the end, it was because the young lady was an orphan who had to rely on the first branch, and that’s why Gu Mama dared to betray her.

Lian Yueyao searched the study for a long time and finally found a painting. The painting was drawn by Lian Yueyao herself, depicting a happy family of three. Lian Yueyao looked at the portrait of her parents and thought about her experiences in her previous life.

She knelt in front of the painting and cried heartbreakingly: “Dad, Mom, I miss you so much. I wish you were still here…”. If her parents hadn’t passed away so early, she wouldn’t have had to suffer so much.
Mu Qiu and Hua Lei, who followed her into the room, also covered their faces and cried. The room was filled with the sound of wailing. Gu Mama heard the crying from outside and walked in to see Lian Yueyao holding the portrait of her parents and crying heartbreakingly. Gu Mama tried to comfort her, but Lian Yueyao ignored her.

Hua Lei was the first to wipe away her tears. She walked over and helped Lian Yueyao up: “Young lady, please don’t cry anymore. If you harm your health, the old master and mistress won’t be able to rest in peace. You must take care of yourself.”

After everyone finally managed to calm Lian Yueyao down and stop her crying, the maid outside immediately brought in water. Lian Yueyao wiped away her tears and cleaned her face. Her clothes were dusty from kneeling on the ground.

Mu Qiu brought out a new, plain blue dress for Lian Yueyao to change into. Hua Lei helped Lian Yueyao sit in front of the dressing table and began to comb her hair. She tied half of her hair into a bun and braided the rest into three strands. At the end of the braid, she inserted a plain blue hairpin that matched the color of the dress. Since Lian Yue Yao was still in mourning, she couldn’t wear colorful clothes or accessories.

Lian Yueyao looked at Hua Lei’s skilled hands and felt a pang of nostalgia. Hua Lei was her most trusted person, but she had died in an accident three years after Lian Yueyao’s return. Now, thinking about it, it seemed ridiculous. It wasn’t an accident at all. Madam Mo was probably worried that Lian Yueyao would be influenced by Hua Lei, since Madam Mo must have known about Hua Lei’s words of caution. Madam Mo was worried that Lian Yueyao would become cautious, so she got rid of Hua Lei to eliminate any potential trouble. After that, Madam Mo even sold Hua Lei’s entire family away. Hua Lei’s family had been loyal to Lian Yueyao, but in the end, they met with such a fate. Lian Yueyao felt guilty about it.

Hua Lei saw Lian Yueyao’s dazed expression and asked anxiously: “Young lady, do you not like this hairstyle? If you don’t like it, I’ll change it for you.”

Lian Yueyao shook her head: “No, this is fine.” She was still in mourning, so simplicity was enough. She didn’t need anything too flashy.