Although Hong Guo’er had ruined the mood for their outing, Yun Ye still managed to steal a full day of leisure. If Xinyue hadn’t schemed against others and nagged in Yun Ye’s ear, it would have been a perfect day.
However, the good times ended there. As soon as they returned home, he saw someone bringing large and small trunks and boxes into the Yun household. Grandmother was beaming with joy as she held a plump child and couldn’t stop kissing him.
“Two hair whorls on his head—he’s definitely our family’s seed.” Before Yun Ye could even ask, Grandmother gleefully pushed the plump child in front of him. He picked up the child and kissed Li Rong’s little face. The child was quite sturdy, just not very talkative. It seemed he had already vaguely sensed something.
“Rong’er, where is your mother?” Yun Ye asked Li Rong quietly.
“Are you my father?” The small child hesitated twice before mustering the courage to ask Yun Ye.
“Of course I am. I’m your father. When Father was in Lingnan, you were too young to remember, but now that you’ve come to Chang’an, you can be with Father for a long time. Come, look at your little brother.” Yun Ye took Yun Baobao from the stunned Xinyue’s hands and placed him before Li Rong.
Children always become friends in the shortest time. Watching Grandmother run through the main gate with the two children, shouting and calling out, Yun Ye stood up and jerked his chin toward the house, saying: “There’s no way around it—Li Anlan has arrived. I feel somewhat guilty toward you about this matter. If you want to pinch me, now is the best time. Once we’re home, don’t show a sour face in front of the children.”
“Of course not. Li Rong is also the Yun family’s seed—he’s my child too. But I don’t need to show a pleasant face to the child’s mother, do I?” Xinyue’s smile was brilliant, but the cold gleam in her eyes could almost freeze a person.
“That’s right, there’s no need for that. Apart from the child who’s done nothing wrong, neither Li Anlan nor I are any good. If the mistress needs a knife, just say the word and I’ll definitely hand it over.”
“She’s not staying at the princess’s manor—why must she come live at our home? Is she trying to embarrass me? Even if she’s a princess, in this household she’s the third wife, a mere concubine. Is it necessary for her to put on such airs?”
Watching Xinyue storm into the house furiously, Yun Ye patted his forehead before following. He saw Grandmother thrust both children into his hands while smiling and saying: “You take the children to the garden. Grandmother will handle things here. Women’s affairs—don’t interfere. Taking good care of the children is the proper business.”
Watching Grandmother march imposingly into the battlefield surrounded by aunts and sisters-in-law, Yun Ye shivered. He took his two plump sons and prepared to flee. Dan Ying’s small house was still empty. He’d go to the marketplace to buy some things—tonight the three of them would sleep there. The household wouldn’t be peaceful for two or three days, he estimated.
As he left with Liu Jinbao and three guards, he still heard Steward Qian lecturing the servants behind the spirit screen: “During this period, keep your eyes open and your hands and feet nimble. The household won’t be pleasant these next few days. Keep your mouths shut tight—don’t gossip about family matters. If I hear any words that shouldn’t be said, don’t blame this old man for not warning you in advance.”
Liu Jinbao shuddered. He had originally wanted to ask Yun Ye why they were going to stay in the small courtyard, but hearing Old Qian’s words, he hastily swallowed the question back down.
Yun Ye’s mind was in chaos. The sins he’d committed he naturally had to bear himself—he couldn’t blame others. Xinyue’s anger was justified, Li Anlan’s desire to enter the household was justified, Grandmother’s jubilation was also justified. Only he himself was neither justified nor dignified, so he could only flee.
The small house was still clean and tidy. Daya always sent maids over to clean. The pots, bowls, ladles, and basins were all complete, and firewood, rice, oil, and salt were all present. Many times, Yun Ye had seen Daya happily purchasing things for the small house. Even the paper cutouts on the windows were new. The two-section small courtyard was managed in perfect order, with brand-new bedding that still carried the scent of sunshine.
The two little ones chased each other around Yun Ye’s legs. This was true happiness. Seeing his two plump sons, Yun Ye glanced in the direction of his home and suddenly realized that with these two little ones, no matter how much more suffering he endured, it counted as nothing.
His sons were, without question, carnivores. A huge pot of braised spare ribs—the bones chopped as large as could be, marinated thoroughly. Liu Jinbao steamed a large basin of rice in the big stove outside. He could see clearly now—His Lordship had no plans to return home for these next several days.
He instructed Liu Jinbao to bolt the door. Five adults plus two children, one giant basin of rice, and one pig’s worth of spare ribs—this was their dinner. Yun Baobao became hyperactive when there were people around. Seeing that today he didn’t have to observe proper dining etiquette with Mother, he was overjoyed. When Father gave him a meat bone that had cooled almost completely, he tore at it vigorously, his little face covered in oil.
Li Rong was a bit restrained, but with Yun Ye’s encouragement beforehand and Yun Baobao’s example behind, he also concluded that meat bones needed to be held in one’s hands and gnawed—that was the correct way to eat.
Wangcai kept scraping at the door with his hooves. It seemed the household was engulfed in warfare and he couldn’t stay there either. When the door was opened to let him in, he seemed to breathe a sigh of relief. After snorting loudly, he went to the haystack, preparing to rest. But how could Yun Baobao and Li Rong let him be idle? They climbed up and down on him. Wangcai simply collapsed on the grass mat and played dead, letting them manipulate him without moving.
Fire basins were lit in the courtyard. White naphthalene smoke rose, driving mosquitoes far away. The two children had never slept on haystacks before. One rode on Father’s belly, one lay against Father’s chest, listening to Father tell terrifying stories from the past.
The moon climbed to mid-sky. Both children had fallen deeply asleep. Carrying the children into the house one by one, watching the two brothers sleeping soundly completely naked, Yun Ye felt extremely comfortable inside. These were truly his lifeblood.
Li Rong showed no stranger-anxiety toward him whatsoever. They say there’s always some inexplicable connection between father and son—he didn’t know if this was true. He pulled out Li Rong’s left arm to examine it—no scar. The vaccine he’d sent to Li Anlan, that woman hadn’t followed through with it. She truly deserved death. Lingnan was already a severe disaster area for smallpox. Why wouldn’t she inoculate the child early—what was she waiting for?
Holding up an oil lamp, he hunted down mosquitoes that had slipped through the net inside the bed curtains. Only after completely exterminating them all did he lie down. He’d barely lain down when he seemed to hear a buzzing sound again. He climbed up once more, lit the lamp, widened his eyes, and continued searching. There couldn’t be any mosquitoes—children’s skin was delicate and couldn’t bear such torment.
It wasn’t until the latter half of the night that Yun Ye fell asleep. He dreamed he was swimming in a great flood with towering waves crashing over him from behind. Frightened, his whole body gave a violent shudder and he sat up—only to find himself truly in the midst of a flood. Both stinking brats had wet themselves…
At the crack of dawn, the three of them squeezed into the large wooden tub Dan Ying used for slaughtering pigs to bathe. One Transmission Marquis, one little commandery prince, one little lord—frolicking merrily in the large tub used for scalding pig hair. Today he needed to take Li Rong and Yun Baobao to flee, and incidentally pay respects to those elders. This was originally something Li Anlan had demanded Yun Ye must do. Going to elders’ homes reeking of urine wasn’t a polite presentation.
Everyone in the Yun household who knew about this house was basically here. Even if Old Qian were beaten to death, he wouldn’t betray His Lordship. This was Daya’s secret—she wouldn’t tell either. Therefore, for a short time, no one would come to disturb the peace of the three of them.
Rising early in the morning, Li Rong displayed a very indifferent attitude about not seeing his mother. Damn imperial education—it was turning his boy into one of those wooden figures from the palace.
After eating fresh meat buns and poached eggs, Liu Jinbao, with Old Qian’s help, stole out the light carriage. He also conveniently stole four horses. The group made a dash for the Niu family estate.
Old Niu and his wife’s twin grandsons weren’t there. Having finished with the summer harvest these past days, they were bored with nothing to do. Seeing two plump babies who looked like painted jade, they smiled so widely their mouths couldn’t close. When the children tugged his beard, he was delighted. When they threw fruit out the window, he was delighted. When they put a half-eaten meat bone into his bowl, he was also delighted. Biting the meat bone covered in saliva, he smiled so hard the wrinkles on his face bloomed like flowers.
“I basically can’t go home. Uncle Niu, I plan to hide out at your residence for a while and return after the storm passes.”
“Good, good! Leave the children too. Let them make a fuss at home—it’s not like they’ll set the house on fire. Women’s tempers only last a few days. The children are already this big—what more can happen? The Yun family’s bloodline has always been thin. Having another child is another root—what’s wrong with that? Not one person understands. Just stay at our home. With such wonderful children, they still don’t know to be satisfied.”
“Master, look how alike these two children are! Both so handsome, more lovable than the clay dolls at the child-seeking temple. I just don’t know how our two boys are doing. I told you not to let Jianhu leave, but you insisted on sending them far away. Now I can’t even see my grandsons.”
Seeing the two plump children, Auntie Niu kept wiping away tears and continuously complained about Old Master’s hard-heartedness.
“Jianhu really does need to bring the children back once. The cowpox from Mister Sun must be given to the children. This way they won’t fear smallpox. It gives the children an extra layer of protection—no amount of caution is excessive.”
Yun Ye’s suggestion gained strong support from Auntie Niu. Niu Jinda examined the scar on Yun Baobao’s shoulder and cheerfully took up his brush to write a letter to Niu Jianhu thousands of miles away. The children were still better kept in Chang’an.
Auntie Niu immediately dispatched over twenty of the household’s most formidable guards, along with her personal maids and wet nurses, ordering them to bring back her grandsons quickly.
Yun Ye stayed at the Niu household. Every day he simply frolicked with the children. Niu Jinda and Auntie Niu were also smiling and cheerful every day.
“My lord, something’s not right at home. The mistress and the princess are all smiles every day, getting along like real sisters. The mistress even opened the household treasury and invited the princess to go in and select jewelry. The old matriarch is also happy—according to the steward, the old matriarch’s appetite has greatly increased these past days. She can eat an extra bowl of rice now. It seems that with us not at home, the household is even more comfortable.” Liu Jinbao returned from investigating at the Yun household and quietly reported to Yun Ye.