Chapter 271: Letting Go

Yan Yu was nearly scrubbed bald again.

A freshly washed, pink-cheeked little girl was presented before Madam Cui.

“Oh my, whose darling little one is this? Come, let Auntie dote on you a bit.” Madam Cui’s expression softened, and she picked up a long towel draped nearby. Pulling the little girl into her arms, she gently began drying her hair.

After a few affectionate strokes, she handed the big baby back to her mother.

“Sister-in-law, better let you do it. My hands are too rough. I might end up hurting Er Ya again.”

Yan Yu was passed back into her mother’s arms.

Li Xuemei had her sit on the kang, then took the towel and began carefully combing through her hair from top to bottom, over and over again with patient care.

Yan Yu sat cross-legged at the edge of the kang, clearly used to it.

The warmth beneath her seeped up through her body, making her feel like she was being steamed from the bottom up. She couldn’t help but wonder if there was smoke coming out of her head.

“Our little Er Ya is growing more and more beautiful!” Madam Cui praised.

Li Xuemei smiled and said, “It’s hard to tell at this age. Children change so quickly.”

“Girls blossom as they grow, and the prettier they get,” Madam Cui said with a knowing nod. “All the Yan family children are good-looking, but Daya and Er Ya especially. They’ve inherited the best features from both parents. Just stunning!”

In her heart, Madam Cui thought that Scholar Yan and his two brothers were all handsome men. How could their children turn out anything but attractive?

But some things were better left unsaid. No matter how close the families were, there were still differences between men and women.

“Daya is indeed very pretty,” Li Xuemei agreed.

“She’s about the right age for suitors now. Has Scholar Yan said what kind of match he’s looking for?” Madam Cui asked curiously.

Li Xuemei shook her head. “He hasn’t brought it up. We’ve only just found some peace, and there’s still so much to deal with. He probably hasn’t had the time. Besides, she’s still young. We can keep her with us a few more years.”

“Don’t mind me being blunt, but your Daya is wonderful in every way—except her temperament is a bit too gentle. You should mention it to Scholar Yan. She can’t marry into a family that’s too overbearing, or she’ll suffer for it,” Madam Cui said sincerely.

Living in the same village, everyone knew each other well. With Daya’s personality, if she ended up with a domineering mother-in-law, she’d be completely under their thumb.

Li Xuemei smiled. “You’re only speaking out of concern for her. We appreciate it more than you know. How could we possibly take offense?”

Madam Cui’s eyes crinkled with her smile. “Exactly. Even though we’re from different families, I’ve always liked you and your second brother-in-law. I thickened my skin and treated you like my own kin.”

“Since we’re family, I’ll be direct. Er Ya, when you and your father went out, did you find anyone from Da’an Village in Gufeng? Any of your aunt’s people?”

Yan Yu, drowsy from the warmth, perked up at the question.

“Auntie, we did. Grandpa Jiang even sent a message for you.”

Yan Yu recited Old Jiang’s words word-for-word, then described each of the Jiang family members one by one.

Madam Cui listened intently. At one point, she said, “Yes, those are my brother and sister-in-law.”

Then, “Those two aren’t my nephews, they’re my younger brothers. There’s quite an age gap between them and me and my eldest brother.”

“And the little one must be my niece. I guess they dressed her like a boy to make travel easier…”

When she heard that they’d suffered a lot on the road, with tattered clothes and worn-down appearances, Madam Cui’s tears began to fall in large drops.

“I never should’ve told them to come to Guanzhou. Wouldn’t the prefectural city have been just as good? Who knows how much they’ve endured along the way. That Gufeng… that Gufeng…” She shook her head, clearly distraught. “No, I have to go. I won’t be at ease until I see them with my own eyes.”

Madam Cui was clearly unsettled and couldn’t sit still.

“I’m going to talk to Gouzi’s father.”

With that, she stood up and left.

“Sister-in-law, I’m heading home first!” Her voice trailed off as she dashed out of the courtyard.

She was nothing if not decisive.

Yan Yu blinked. “Looks like Grandpa Jiang’s message didn’t help much. With Auntie like this, no one’s going to stop her from going.”

Li Xuemei took out a jar of face cream, dabbed a bit with her finger, and gently applied it to Yan Yu’s cheeks.

“It’s only natural. But Madam Cui won’t do anything reckless. She’ll take care of herself. Even seeing them from a distance will ease her heart.” She turned her daughter around and took her little hands in hers, inspecting them carefully.

“You knew to travel by night, but not to come back by night too? Would’ve been better if Sanbao had pulled you all the way back. Look at these marks on your hands.” Li Xuemei blew on them with a pained expression, then went out to gather some dandelions, crushed them, and applied the paste to Yan Yu’s hands.

Yan Yu lifted her hand to her nose and sniffed. A fresh, grassy scent. She grinned. “Mom, you can treat illnesses now?”

Li Xuemei tapped her forehead. “This isn’t medicine. It’s just common sense.”

“But speaking of illness, your father barely said a few words before heading out. You tell me properly—what exactly happened in Gufeng? And what’s this Divine Water all about?”

“That’s a long story. I’d better start from the beginning.”

Like father, like daughter—Yan Lao’er and Yan Yu were truly cut from the same cloth.

Once they started talking, they went into every detail.

Fortunately, Li Xuemei was used to it and had plenty of time, so she let her daughter go on at her own pace.

Yan Yu talked until her throat was dry, then gulped down water to rehydrate.

Li Xuemei sighed softly. “It really is pitiful. If we hadn’t seen it for ourselves, maybe we could’ve ignored it. But once you’ve seen it, how can you turn a blind eye?”

“But you only gave them that one dose of medicine, and even diluted it into a pot of rice water. How many people can that really save…” Li Xuemei shook her head.

“I counted. More than forty people drank that rice water,” Yan Yu said seriously. “Even if only half, a third, or a quarter of them survive this epidemic because of the medicine, then all the trouble me and Dad went through—all the lies we told, all the plays we acted—will have been worth it.”

“Mom, what are you planning to do about Great-Uncle?” Yan Yu asked.

Li Xuemei wiped her hands clean, climbed back onto the kang bed, and began combing her daughter’s hair.

“I’ve heard about the things they’ve done, and none of it sounds good. After what you and your father saw with your own eyes this time, I think… it’s best to keep our distance from now on.”

Yan Yu: …

“That’s it?”

“What else do you expect?” Li Xuemei said calmly. “That’s how it is with relatives. If you can get along, then fine. If not, just stay away.”

Li Xuemei had a very clear-headed view of things.

Every family has a few troublesome relatives.

Once you see their true character and realize they’re not worth dealing with, it’s best to cut ties early.

“They’re getting off too easy,” Yan Yu sniffed. “They took over the house and land, treated people like dirt, made them work like slaves. If it weren’t for that aunt we’ve never even met, you wouldn’t have been able to marry into the Yan family. They probably would’ve sold you off.

And they’ve taken plenty from us over the years.”

Yan Yu felt it was a raw deal. She’d heard all of this from the village aunties.

“If we were still in Qishan Prefecture, and there hadn’t been that drought, then maybe, if we really couldn’t let it go, we could’ve tried to get the house and land back.”

Li Xuemei’s tone was light, almost indifferent. “But now we’ve fled all the way to Guanzhou. The land, the house—everything’s gone. There’s no point bringing it up again. What, do you think they’re going to compensate us or something?”

“No ties is the best outcome. Going after them isn’t just making trouble for them—it’s making trouble for ourselves.”

Author Note:

Who doesn’t have a few infuriating relatives?

Keep your distance and treat them with polite indifference. What else can you do, beat them up?

This is something I’ve learned after going through a lot.

Anger, frustration, irritation, and all the time and energy wasted—it all boils down to one thing: not worth it!

They’re absolutely not worth it. Not even a sliver of my emotions.

With that time, wouldn’t it be better to do something productive? Like writing more chapters for my lovely readers?

Hehe~ (*▽*)~

If it’s not your cup of tea, no need to throw shade~

(End of this chapter)