Chapter 237

Chapter 237: Your Mother Misses You

Hearing his son’s harsh warning back then, Old Master Jiang gave up. He wanted both children to be happy. He did not want to turn friends into enemies.

Jiang Yu Chuan gave a rueful smile and said: “When I was young, I was very stubborn. Anything I said, I would do.”

He continued plainly: “What I said then was not only to my father, but also to my childhood friend. Being rejected like that by the one you love, any person with self-respect would stop chasing. She did stop.”

“I wasn’t heartless either. I knew my words hurt her. She had grown up with me. Even without love, there was still the bond of family. I promised that even if we could not be husband and wife, we would be like brother and sister. If anything happened to her, I would not stand by.”

“After I married, she also married. It seemed that the misunderstanding had passed.”

He sighed: “No one expected that a few years later, her husband died suddenly while training. Her husband’s family treated her badly, so Old Master Jiang brought her back.”

His eyes lowered as he recalled: “Seventeen years ago, on the afternoon of the Qishui Festival, I was helping my wife prepare offerings. A servant rushed in to say my childhood friend was in trouble.”

“I feared my wife would misunderstand, so I only said I had to step out. I didn’t say why.”

“My wife waited and waited until the sky had nearly gone dark. I still hadn’t returned. She grew suspicious.”

“After asking the servants, she learned I had gone with my childhood friend’s servant. A bad feeling rose in her, and she went to my childhood friend’s rooms.”

“What she saw was the two of us in each other’s arms.”

“She turned and left in anger. Because she felt so shamed, she did not make a sound.”

“She lost her reason and, ignoring her pregnancy, only wanted to get far away from that dirty place. That is why she went to an inn alone and almost lost both her life and the baby.”

He finished the account with a long breath and added: “That is what happened, but…”

Before he could go on, the round-faced boy exploded: “Well, no wonder Mother still hasn’t forgiven you after all these years. If it were me, I wouldn’t forgive you either!”

Jiang Yu Chuan’s face twisted with pain as he barked: “Be quiet!”

He looked to Yu Zhi Yi and saw only clear eyes, with no sadness or joy, as if these things had nothing to do with her. That made his heart ache even more. He said carefully: “Yi’er, it was a misunderstanding. I had nothing improper with your Aunt Chen. I never did anything against you or your mother.”

He explained in a low voice: “That day she had been drugged. I wanted to fetch a doctor, but if such a thing got out, it would destroy a woman’s reputation forever. In the Martial Alliance, other than my sister-in-law, your mother was the only woman. My sister-in-law can never keep a secret, and your mother’s condition made it impossible for her to handle this. So I stayed. I sealed your Aunt Chen’s acupoints to stop her from doing anything indecent and to help her ride it out.”

He spoke plainly: “With that kind of drug, if you don’t do the deed, the only other way is to endure it. Enduring would hurt her body, but I refused to take advantage of her. I also did not want to bear that responsibility.”

“About four hours later, she said she felt better, so I released her acupoints.”

“Who knew that as soon as I did, she fell into my arms. I tried to push her back, but her legs were too weak to hold her. If I let go, she would have fallen. She was like a sister I had watched grow up. I couldn’t just let her get hurt, so I held her by the arms, trying to avoid more contact while keeping her from collapsing.”

He rubbed his brow and added: “At that moment, my wife walked in. I was facing away from the door, so from her angle it looked like we were embracing. To make it worse, my childhood friend said in a soft voice, ‘Second Brother, my legs feel so weak…’ It was easy to misunderstand.”

Jiang Yu Chuan closed his eyes and said: “These things touch a woman’s reputation. Normally I should never speak of them, but…”

He met Yu Zhi Yi’s gaze and pleaded: “Yi’er, I am not asking you to forgive me. I am begging you to go see your mother.”

The hardness on his face cracked to show a bit of fragility: “All these years, your mother has missed you so much, especially in the last few years…”

He stopped himself and shook his head, as if afraid to scare her, then said gently: “Just let her see you and know you are alive. That will be enough.”

Yu Zhi Yi let her eyes slide to the round-faced youth’s face, saying nothing. Jiang Yu Chuan somehow read her meaning anyway. He flushed, hesitated, and said awkwardly: “There is more to that matter. I will tell you when the time is right. I truly am not lying to you.”

Yu Zhi Yi narrowed her eyes and studied him. Very quickly, she judged he was telling the truth. [If Mother lost her mind from missing me, then how did this brother come to be? There must be hidden reasons.] She did not care about the hidden reasons. As long as he was not lying, that was enough.

She rubbed her thumb across the pads of her other fingers for a while, then said: “Let me think about it.”

Knowing how hard this was for her to accept all at once, Jiang Yu Chuan nodded: “All right.”

Seeing his father rise to leave, the round-faced boy stood up too, reluctant to go. He looked at Yu Zhi Yi with deep feeling and said: “Sister, whether you choose to come back or not, you are my sister. Father owes you seventeen years of love. Even if he doesn’t make it up to you, I will. Don’t worry. As long as I’m here, no one will bully you!”

Yu Zhi Yi glanced at his not-so-sturdy frame and fell silent: “…” [With his build, I could flick ten of him away with a finger.]

Jiang Yu Chuan rolled his eyes and scolded: “You little brat! Who said I wouldn’t make it up to your sister!”

Not long after, Red Luan rushed back in, face tight with worry as she looked at Yu Zhi Yi and asked: “Are you all right?”

Yu Zhi Yi looked puzzled and answered plainly: “What could happen to me?”

Seeing that Yu Zhi Yi’s mental state seemed fine, Red Luan let out the breath she was holding and said hoarsely: “I heard everything. The Yu Clan are awful. They came up with such a vicious plan to force you with public morals. Good thing you were a step ahead and made them speak the truth in front of everyone, or they would have gotten their way.”

Yu Zhi Yi pressed her lips together.

Red Luan had run all the way back and her throat was burning. She grabbed a cup and took a drink of tea.

With her gaze lowered, Yu Zhi Yi spoke in a low voice: “I found my birth father.”

“Pfft!” Red Luan spit out the tea, luckily not in Yu Zhi Yi’s direction.