Old Man Ye returned home with a heavy heart, yet the scene within these walls made him unbelievably rub his eyes.
"Xiaojiu..." Old Man Ye called out with a questioning tone, afraid that he might be dreaming.
The old woman had spoken so harshly last night, and even when he tried to persuade her this morning, she was still unrepentant.
However, having been gone for a day without returning, he found that not only had his daughter come back, she was also sitting on the kang with the old woman, chatting and laughing together.
This scene was somewhat beyond belief, yet it was so real.
"Dad, you're back..." When Ye Jiu saw Old Man Ye, she happily waved her little hand, but as she looked up, she saw several prominent blisters at the corner of his mouth.
Ye Jiu hurriedly got up from the kang and walked towards Old Man Ye, "Dad, what happened to the corner of your mouth?"
Old Man Ye touched the corner of his mouth and laughed, "It's nothing, nothing, I'm just a bit overheated, it'll go away in a couple of days."
This scene was not a dream; his daughter stood right before him, so vividly real.
Madame He was laughing too, for the first time without a mocking tone towards Old Man Ye but rather explaining on his behalf, "Your father was so worried about you that he got several blisters on his mouth first thing in the morning from the anxiety, and he has been out wandering all day, not daring to come back."
Old Man Ye's face turned beet red, "You, old woman, why bring this up to the child!" Read full story at 𝘯𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘭•𝘧𝘪𝘳𝘦•𝘯𝘦𝘵
Madame He chuckled and continued sewing the clothes that were a few stitches away from completion.
She needed to finish the clothes sooner so her daughter could wear them tomorrow.
In the blink of an eye, it was already the month of March.
It was the sowing season, when the whole village was engulfed in a busy atmosphere, and the world around was bursting with life.
Since Prince Jing had left, a month or so had already passed.
Considering the time, he should have reached the capital city by now, right?
Perhaps, if he had hurried along the way, he might've already obtained the imperial decree and be on his way back here.
March sixteenth was the day when the second room's newly born son turned one month old and also the day when the first and second rooms moved houses.
A few days ago, they had already moved all their belongings over, and now, they were just waiting for Madame Zhao's full month celebration to move her over as well.
Madame Zhao had finally completed the confinement period, and wrapping herself tightly, she sat in the spacious new house surrounded by a group of women, with a look of pride between her brows and eyes.
The banquet was set up on the side of the main house, because when Madame He and Old Man Ye had moved over, neither Ye Jiu nor Gaosheng were present, and no housemoving feast was held.
Today, it was the full month celebration of the second room's son, coinciding with both the first and second rooms moving houses, so having the banquet in the main house seemed fair and reasonable.
Otherwise, with the first and second rooms holding banquets simultaneously, it would surely pose a dilemma for the clan members on which home to attend.
In the main hall, seated were a few influential individuals from the clan. In the past, even though Old Man Ye was of senior generation, his timid and unremarkable nature had left him without the standing to invite these people.
But now, Old Man Ye was in high spirits; with wealth came better attire and an air of confidence. He spoke with an implicit leadership, not inferior to the Clan Leader.
When the men gathered together, especially during this season, it was natural for them not to engage in mundane chitchat like women, but to discuss matters related to sowing the fields.
Within a year's time, the Old Man Ye's family had dramatically risen in stature, as if their business had caught on fire. Although everyone knew this was Ye Jiu's doing, centuries of tradition prevented anyone from taking a young girl seriously.