“You’re not wrong.”

The old steward: “Concubine Fu was extremely good to the master. The master’s calligraphy was taught stroke by stroke by Concubine Fu. When the master had a headache or fever as a child, Concubine Fu could worry herself to death.”

“But all this goodness had to come after Fifth Uncle, even after the other three legitimate sons.”

Yan Sanhe gave the most direct example.

“If Zhu Xuanjiu and Fifth Uncle simultaneously reached out their hands for Concubine Fu to hold them, even if Concubine Fu desperately wanted to hold her own son in her heart, she would only pick up Fifth Uncle. Right?”

“Right.”

The old steward nodded firmly. “Concubine Fu was that kind of person—she’d rather wrong herself than do things imperfectly.”

“This isn’t wronging oneself. This is the way of survival.”

Yan Sanhe: “The legitimate wife has the legitimate wife’s way of survival; the concubine has the concubine’s way of survival. Third Master Zhu.”

She shifted her focus. “If you were Zhu Xuanjiu and had to come after everyone else in everything, would you be jealous? Would you resent it?”

“I…”

Zhu Yuanhao’s expression was wooden as he thought. “I would.”

Yan Sanhe: “Why would you?”

Zhu Yuanhao stuck out his neck. “Because that’s my own mother!”

“I would too.”

Yan Sanhe lowered her lashes. “I would also be jealous and resentful.”

Her downcast appearance always gave people a feeling of exceptional tranquility and coldness.

Others watching felt nothing, but one person felt heartache.

Back then at Haitang Court, Mother had also been hot and cold toward her.

When in a good mood, she’d ask a few questions. When in a bad mood, she’d toss her aside and ignore her, sometimes even deliberately pretending she didn’t exist.

“Yan Sanhe.”

Xie Zhifei called her name softly. “Don’t stop—continue.”

Yan Sanhe looked up and took a deep breath.

She didn’t know why, but when she’d just said “I would too,” her chest felt stuffy and her emotions inexplicably sank.

“In this world, children’s possessiveness is strongest. They cry when their food is taken, they make a fuss when something in their hands is grabbed. When they see good food or toys in others’ hands, they reach out to grab them.

If Zhu Xuanjiu had never experienced maternal love, that would be one thing. But he’d experienced it—he just could only get it occasionally. How unwilling must he have been?”

“Not only are children unwilling.”

Young Master Pei rarely sighed. “Actually adults are unwilling too. They just endure it without saying.”

Yan Sanhe: “So from the time he became aware, Zhu Xuanjiu grew up in this unwillingness, in constant anxiety about gains and losses.”

Everyone nodded.

“Second Miss was neglected by her parents and hated Zhu Weixi. Zhu Xuanjiu was no exception—he hated everyone who stole his maternal love.”

Yan Sanhe: “If Second Miss’s degree of hatred toward Zhu Weixi is one point, then Zhu Xuanjiu has five points. But that’s still not enough.”

Young Master Pei: “What’s not enough?”

“The degree needed for Zhu Xuanjiu to conceive thoughts of harming people—that’s not enough yet.”

Yan Sanhe was silent for a moment. “So then… where do the remaining five points come from?”

“From Concubine Fu.”

The person who answered was Zhu Weixi.

Zhu Weixi met Yan Sanhe’s gaze. “May I speak?”

Yan Sanhe encouraged her with her eyes. “Go ahead.”

“I’ve been away for half a month. The person I feel most guilty toward isn’t the master but Huaizhou. I worry whether he’s eating well, sleeping well, whether the servants are caring for him attentively.”

Zhu Weixi: “I only have this one son, no other children to worry about, yet even so, I still feel I’ve wronged him. Putting myself in her shoes, Concubine Fu must have also felt she’d wronged her child.”

Yan Sanhe: “Continue.”

“Once a person feels they’ve wronged someone, they compensate doubly. Their speech becomes ten times gentler than usual, their actions ten times more meticulous than usual.”

Zhu Weixi looked at Yan Sanhe. “And they find reasons for themselves.

Son, it’s only because of the Old Madam’s pity that Mother has today.

Son, if not for the Old Madam’s approval, how could Mother have given birth to you? One must know gratitude.

Son, you must be obedient and sensible. Just endure a little.

Son, you mustn’t compete with them. You’re concubine-born, they’re legitimate-born. You can’t compete with them.

Son, Mother also wants to dote on you, but Mother has no choice.

Son, you just need to understand one thing—in Mother’s heart, the person she loves most is only you.”

Zhu Weixi bit her lip. “Mother and son are connected at heart. When such words are said often enough, those remaining five points gradually accumulate.”

Not only do women understand women best, but mothers also understand mothers best.

“There’s still one more thing.”

Yan Sanhe’s eyes held blazing flames. “Concubine Fu’s health was already poor. She couldn’t endure hard work.”

“I understand now.”

Li Buyan suddenly realized. “Her body couldn’t handle caring for one child, but to please the Old Madam, she could only grit her teeth and force herself.”

Young Master Pei also realized: “Others couldn’t see this, but Zhu Xuanjiu was her son, living in the same courtyard. He saw it most clearly.”

“Buyan.”

Yan Sanhe: “When I’m exhausted, you fight with others on my behalf. What about Zhu Xuanjiu?”

Li Buyan’s breathing hitched.

Yan Sanhe: “Zhu Xuanjiu was still young and couldn’t fight with others, but his hatred grew more intense day by day.

In his view, his own mother was being bullied every day by the Old Madam, bullied by the main household. Especially Fifth Uncle—he hated him most.

All of Concubine Fu’s love was plundered by this person. Concubine Fu’s health also grew worse and worse from caring for Fifth Uncle. So…”

Yan Sanhe smiled coldly. “He also wanted to plunder others’ things. He also wanted Fifth Uncle’s health to grow worse and worse!”

In the room, suffocating dead silence.

Everyone had the same thought—

This was why Zhu Xuanjiu, at such a young age, could create such vicious things as peach blossom wells and life-stealing nails.

“If all the above still isn’t enough to be convincing…”

Yan Sanhe’s chest rose and fell several times.

“I remember on the first day I entered the Zhu residence to resolve thoughts and dispel demons, the old steward told me something—

Every year on their birthdays, Concubine Fu would personally make a set of clothes for the four children as birthday gifts. Even the year she was seriously ill, even when the Old Madam wouldn’t allow her to touch needle and thread, she still secretly made them.”

“Miss Yan.”

The old steward quickly said: “Actually I said less than I should have. When Concubine Fu’s health was good, she also often made socks, sachets and such for the brothers.”

“What does this indicate?”

Yan Sanhe: “It indicates that from beginning to end, Concubine Fu was trying to please the Old Madam and please the legitimate sons of the main household, even when her body was failing.”

Li Buyan: “These pleasing actions, falling into Zhu Xuanjiu’s eyes, only made him hate more.”

Yan Sanhe looked at Li Buyan and nodded.

“Zhu Xuanjiu and Lady Mao’s first meeting was at Jietai Temple. We went there last night.

At that time, Zhu Xuanjiu was worshipping Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva. When Young Master Pei was introducing Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva to me, he said this sentence.”

By this point, if Pei Xiao still couldn’t figure out which sentence it was, he’d be hopelessly stupid.

“I said that in his past several lives, Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva had repeatedly rescued his mother who was suffering in hell.”

Having said this, his eyes widened as he looked at Yan Sanhe.

“So Zhu Xuanjiu believed Concubine Fu was suffering in hell at the Zhu residence?”