Chapter 13: There is Room For the Poor Daughter
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Chapter 13: True Feelings Exist in the World
At the back courtyard of the county yamen,
A young man in scholar's attire, in his twenties, hurriedly walked towards a small courtyard.
"Greetings, Master Lin!"
The maids in the back courtyard saw him and bowed. They didn't rise until he had walked far away.
"This Master Lin treats the back courtyard of the yamen like his own home."
"Be quiet, the lady hasn't said anything yet, who are we to comment?"
"Well, Lin Yiniang is favored, so her daughter and son are favored too. The lady can't ignore her."
"Wonder what Master Lin is doing at Shuangxin Courtyard?"
"Who cares, it has nothing to do with us."
At Shuangxin Courtyard,
Lin Cailiang entered the yard and immediately called out to a young woman with a beautiful appearance and a graceful figure. "Hurry, get ready, we need to go to the yamen gate. The old lady is coming."
"What?!"
Lin Yiniang, who was watering the flowers in the courtyard, was so startled that she dropped the watering can on the ground.
Seeing that Lin Yiniang was frozen, Lin Cailiang grew impatient. "Come on, sister, don’t stand there! Quickly go call Wenbin and Yishuang. It’s your first time meeting the old lady; you need to make a good impression."
"I came to inform you early. Madam will hear about it soon, so hurry! If you meet the old lady before Madam does, the old lady will surely think highly of you."
Lin Cailiang had been on his way home when he witnessed the confrontation between the yamen guards and Old Madam Yan. Seizing the opportunity while the guards were intimidated by her status, he ran to find his sister.
If his sister gained the old lady’s favor, their lives would be much better in the future.
Lin Yiniang quickly reacted. "You're right!" She hurried into the house, instructing her maids to call for her son and daughter.
At the county yamen gate,
Old Madam Yan was wiping the dust from Yan Wentao’s face with a look of concern.
Her third grandson was honest and filial. He had carried her most of the way, even when his legs were trembling with fatigue, he never complained. Seeing him now pinned to the ground by the yamen guards, she was furious.
"Grandmother, I’m fine, it doesn’t hurt at all."
Yan Wentao tried to reassure her, forcing a smile despite the pain. But before he could finish, Daohua reached over and poked his cheek hard.
"Ouch, Daohua , what are you doing?"
Yan Wentao cried out, holding his face.
Daohua calmly replied, "Someone is pretending to be fine. I can’t let that slide."
She was doing it deliberately, wanting to show her grandmother how badly her brother was hurt.
At that moment, her heart was filled with disappointment.
Even though she hadn’t spent much time with her parents, she still had some expectations, especially for her father. As the county magistrate, she had hoped to see a responsible and benevolent official.
But the behavior of the yamen guards just now had truly repulsed her. They had abused their power to bully the weak, a behavior she despised.
If this was how the guards acted, her father probably wasn’t as great as her grandmother made him out to be.
She knew her grandmother’s character well. Despite being an ordinary farmwoman, she was highly respected by the Yan clan. Even the clan leader treated her with the utmost respect.
Why?
Because they admired her sense of justice.
The guards would get no further punishment from her, but her father would surely receive a harsh scolding.
While Daohua was lost in thought, a beautifully dressed young woman appeared at the county yamen gate, holding a child in each hand.
"Who are these beggars? Get them out of here, they stink!"
The young woman’s son pinched his nose and looked at Daohua ’s group with disdain.
The little girl also seemed disgusted, pointing at the yamen guards and ordering, "Why are you still standing there? Go get rid of them!"
Lin Cailiang, who had just arrived, nearly dropped to his knees.
At that moment, his only thought was: "It’s over!"
He had been so focused on urging his sister that he forgot to mention to her what the old lady was wearing.
Lin Yiniang, though bothered by the stench of the beggars, restrained herself from speaking out. After all, the old lady had arrived, and she needed to present herself as a virtuous woman.
Still, her disdain was clearly visible in her eyes.
From afar, Daohua looked at the young woman and the two children, who looked strikingly similar, and realized their identities.
This woman must be her father’s favored concubine, Lin Yiniang, and the two children were her father’s beloved twins.
They were certainly well-favored—while the legitimate wife had not yet arrived, they had the audacity to appear first.
What a lack of propriety.
Suddenly, Daohua felt that it was no wonder her father had been a county magistrate for nine years.
How could someone who couldn’t even manage his own household succeed in governing?
Her thoughts darkened. These three were truly pushing their luck.
It was clear to Daohua that her father, despite his post, had neglected his responsibilities. And his actions, or lack thereof, were being exposed in front of the old lady.
She felt both pity and frustration.
As she was thinking this, a powerful, emotional voice came from inside the yamen, calling out "Mother!"
The next moment, everyone watched as Yan Zhigao, dressed in official robes, rushed out and dropped to his knees with a loud thud.
The sound was so loud that Daohua could almost feel the pain for him.
"Son has been unfilial and made you suffer!"
Without hesitation, Yan Zhigao embraced Old Madam Yan, his tears flowing freely.
Old Madam Yan, also tearful, held her eldest son’s head, trembling as she struggled to speak.
Daohua raised an eyebrow, observing her father’s display. Despite the foul smell of sweat on his clothes, he buried his face in Old Madam Yan’s embrace.
What determination!
If this wasn’t genuine emotion, then he was a master of deception.
Just as Daohua was contemplating, someone grabbed her arm. She turned around to find a dignified, beautiful woman looking at her with misty eyes.
"Are you Daohua ?"
The woman’s voice trembled slightly, her eyes filled with both love and excitement.
In that moment, Daohua instantly knew who she was.
"Mother!"
The words left Daohua’s lips with genuine emotion.
She didn’t feel any disgust, only the joy and love clearly visible in the woman’s eyes.
"Oh!"
Madam Li’s tears fell immediately as she pulled Daohua into her arms, hugging her tightly.
As Daohua leaned into Madam Li’s embrace, feeling her warmth and joy, she was momentarily stunned. She glanced at Old Madam Yan and Yan Zhigao, still embracing and crying, and a complex emotion surged in her heart.
Mother-child love, the bond between mother and daughter, was the purest form of affection in the world, free from ulterior motives.
Daohua suddenly realized that she had been judging everything around her with the eyes of her past life, overlooking the fact that true emotions still existed in this world.
Not bound by distance or appearances.
(End of chapter)
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