“Is this really true?” Upon hearing this, the Old Madam excitedly stood up, grabbed Qin Yining’s hand, and asked, “Has your father sent a letter?”
Without waiting for Qin Yining to answer, the Old Madam continued anxiously, “He’s truly heartless—how could he not write me a single letter? He doesn’t even let me know he’s safe. Does he no longer care about me, his mother?”
Tears welled up in the Old Madam’s eyes again, and Nanny Qin hurriedly brought over a handkerchief to wipe away her tears.
Qin Yining looked helplessly toward the Second Master, then turned her gaze away.
The Second Master knew that if he didn’t speak up now, it would only make things worse, so he said, “Mother, what are you saying? You know eldest brother’s temperament best. If he had truly sent a letter, wouldn’t he greet you first?”
“No letter?” The Old Madam was stunned, forgetting to cry, and asked in surprise, “Then did Yining find out from somewhere else? How is your father doing now? Where is he?”
“I don’t know where my father is, but I believe that with father’s wisdom, he must be doing well.”
“What do you mean? What exactly is going on?”
Seeing the Old Madam growing anxious and showing signs of wailing again, Qin Yining quickly explained about the imperial evaluation. When she saw that the women still didn’t understand, she looked to the Second Master for help.
With Qin Huaiyuan not at home, the Second Master was now the backbone of the family, and his words carried more weight.
After the Second Master’s analysis, everyone’s faces showed joy.
“Really? What you’re saying is true?” The Old Madam’s eyes brightened as she pointed at the Second Master with a smile on her face.
The Second Master smiled wryly, “Of course it’s true. Would your son deceive you?”
“Good, good! Finally, there’s something joyful about this New Year!” The Old Madam’s tears turned to laughter, and she finally let out a long breath of relief with genuine happiness.
The atmosphere immediately relaxed. The Old Madam truly loved Qin Huaiyuan to her very bones. The others felt that with Qin Huaiyuan at home, the family would have a true backbone.
The Second Master felt a bit sour in his heart. By all rights, he had been busy running around for the family during this time, and whenever there were major or minor matters, everyone was used to coming to him for decisions. He had done his utmost. He hadn’t expected that just the news of Qin Huaiyuan’s imminent return would be more uplifting than his presence and guidance.
But on second thought, he himself felt bright and comfortable knowing that Qin Huaiyuan was coming back, so he felt at peace. His eldest brother was upright in character, virtuous and capable, never favoring anyone in the family or suppressing anyone. When anyone had difficulties, he would help them out. Having such a good elder brother by his side also made the Second Master feel secure.
While the Qin family was in harmonious joy, their neighbor Yuchi Yan was standing in an empty courtyard, wearing a cloak with a black sable collar, looking up at the brilliant fireworks in the night sky.
Crystalline light snow was falling gently, settling a layer of faint sparkle on his shoulders.
The dots of white snow on the black collar were like the frost that had touched his temples.
The young man, not yet twenty-five, already had graying hair at his temples, and the vertical lines between his brows had deepened considerably, like an insoluble knot.
A paper umbrella appeared overhead, shielding him from the light snow but also blocking his view.
Turning around, he saw Li Yanyan in white fox fur smiling at him, and beside her, Gu Chang in a light pink satin jacket.
“Your Highness, it’s cold in the courtyard. Please go back inside. Catching a chill is no joke.” Li Yanyan’s voice was gentle and measured, very much like that other person who also liked to wear white fox fur.
Gu Chang also said, “You barely touched your dinner. At least eat a little more?”
Yuchi Yan shook his head, pushed away Li Yanyan’s paper umbrella, and continued looking up at the sky.
The fireworks were already gone.
In the pitch-black sky, only a few wisps of faint smoke could be seen.
He had wanted to watch the fireworks but hadn’t enjoyed them to his heart’s content.
Just like his fate—always at the wrong time, for various reasons making him untimely…
But what could he do about it? He was now just a prince of the second rank, and would never have real power or freedom for the rest of his life. To survive, he had to be obedient under Li Qitian’s watchful eye, unable to overstep in any way or arouse any suspicion from Li Qitian. The rest of his life would be that of a caged bird, and when his master grew tired of him, what awaited him would certainly not be freedom.
Seeing Yuchi Yan looking up at the sky in a daze, the silver strands mixed in his black hair particularly obvious under the lantern’s glow.
Li Yanyan’s heart ached, her nose tingling as she nearly shed tears.
No matter what her father had done wrong to the imperial family in the past, Great Yan had already fallen, and everything had become like passing clouds.
For the remainder of her life, she was determined to stay by Yuchi Yan’s side. They would just be an ordinary couple; she could serve him like a regular wife, bear him children, and manage the inner quarters—that would be enough. As for the other former consorts, they had all perished on the journey, except for Gu Chang, who had changed from a consort to a mere concubine. Even if she bore children, they would only be illegitimate sons.
What did it matter if she wasn’t an empress? She could be satisfied with such peaceful days.
After experiencing so much life and death, Li Yanyan felt she could see things clearly. As long as her husband was safe and her family’s Anguo Duke Mansion was safe, what more could she ask for?
“Your Highness, don’t be sad. When everything settles down, we’ll live our lives well, have children, and spend a lifetime peacefully together. Wouldn’t that be good?” Li Yanyan smiled as she consoled him.
Gu Chang also said, “Yes, I heard that Fourth Miss Qin’s reputation has been ruined by Prince Zhongshun. Prince Zhongshun forcibly took her and humiliated her terribly. Miss Qin is truly pitiful. When Your Highness settles down, you could certainly speak to her family about bringing her over as a noble concubine. If you don’t despise her and give her a way to live, the Qin family probably wouldn’t object. In the future, we sisters would also have another companion.”
Gu Chang was strikingly beautiful, particularly charming when she smiled, and her words were reasonable and well-founded. Listening to them, a few rays of light seemed to penetrate Yuchi Yan’s originally dark heart.
Li Yanyan frowned, glaring at Gu Chang through gritted teeth, but didn’t dare show her emotions outwardly. Whether as an empress or an ordinary wife, she could only nod when her husband wanted to take concubines—otherwise she would be considered jealous.
Gu Chang smugly raised her eyebrows. She had already fallen from consort to concubine—what more did she have to lose? Yuchi Yan had always been indifferent toward her anyway. Rather than letting Li Yanyan be smug, it would be better to bring in Qin Yining so that no one would have a good time.
Yuchi Yan said coolly, “Let’s go back,” then turned and headed back to his room first.
Li Yanyan and Gu Chang exchanged glances, each giving the other a contemptuous smile before following him inside.
New Year’s Eve passed without incident for all families.
On New Year’s Day, Huzi quietly came to give Qin Yining three large red envelopes, saying they were from the Old Madam, Old Master, and Grand Madam. When Qin Yining asked about Pang Xiao’s birth mother, Madam Pang, Huzi just smiled and said there was nothing seriously wrong.
On the fifth day of the new year, government offices reopened, and the imperial evaluation began in full swing.
On the fifteenth day of the first month, the weather was fine. Qin Yining was teaching Lian Xiaozhou to read when suddenly a loud shout came from the courtyard.
“He’s back! The Marquis is back! The Marquis is back!”
Qin Yining immediately stood up, nearly knocking the azure porcelain brush washer off the table, and ran outside.
Just as she reached the courtyard, she saw Qin Huaiyuan wearing a cloak with a gray squirrel collar, striding quickly through the courtyard gate.
“Father!”