Chapter 1474: 1469: The Pampered Su Miaoyan
Chapter 1474: Chapter 1469: The Pampered Su Miaoyan
Madam Yin’s maid was attending to Su Miaoyan as she entered the house.
In the courtyard, only Madam Yin and Xiao Yu remained. The peach blossoms in the garden were blooming, delicate and fresh, bursting with the colors of spring.
Madam Yin lifted her skirts and knelt down, her back straight, in front of Xiao Yu.
Xiao Yu immediately reached out to help Madam Yin, his voice warm and soft, “Mother-in-law, what is the meaning of this?”
Madam Yin pushed down his arm, her face somber as she said, “Xiao Yu, please hear me out.”
A darkness flickered in Xiao Yu’s eyes as he slowly let go of her arm.
Madam Yin had been preparing her heartfelt words for a long time, so as she spoke in front of Xiao Yu, she was especially calm and composed, “Our branch of the Marquis’s Manor, the third clan, has the least merit and no relation to the title. We can hardly be said to have added glory to the Manor, but for many years, my husband has defended the border without the slightest neglect. We’ve established a separate household and our family has lived harmoniously and peacefully.”
As Xiao Yu listened, an imperceptible hostility flashed in his eyes, and his fingers tightened around the jade thumb ring in his hand.
Madam Yin continued steadily, “When Miaoyan was thirteen years old, I began to look for a suitable match for her. Her father and I never wished for her to climb the social ladder or marry a high-ranking noble by leveraging the Manor’s power. Her temperament is not suited to being the mistress of a noble family; such a life would be a hardship for her. Initially, when you came to propose and had the emperor’s support, her father and I had no choice but to agree to this marriage. You understand the reasons behind this.”
Xiao family’s legitimate eldest son, the young master who grew up amidst fierce challenges, was exceptionally shrewd and unrivaled in stratagem. Even the emperor relied on the Xiao family’s wealth to balance the nation’s economy.
Hence, it was evident that this wealthiest family in the Great Cheng Dynasty, intricately connected with high ranking nobles, had a household complexity not inferior to any government or noble manor.
Xiao Yu’s face became cold and rigid, his lips pressed together as he said, “Xiao family’s affairs are complicated and perilous, but I will protect her.”
“How long can you protect her?”
There were traces of red in Madam Yin’s eyes, “If you truly could protect her, how would she have suffered today’s disaster? Xiao Yu, you have lost the use of your legs yourself. How will you protect her and the child? Is that grandson I’ve never met still alive? Miaoyan might not know this, but do we, as her elders, not understand clearly?”
Each of Madam Yin’s accusing words was like a sharp knife, slicing into him bit by bit, chopping him until he was bloody and battered.
He clenched the thumb ring in his hand even more tightly.
He couldn’t refute Madam Yin’s words; every sentence she spoke was the truth.
His child had died, Miaoyan was severely injured, and he himself was confined to a wheelchair for the rest of his life, never again to walk as before.
“Xiao Yu, I don’t mean to shame you. You are my son-in-law, I clearly see the true love you have for Miaoyan. The calamities that have happened recently are not your fault, and you are a victim too, but!!!”
Madam Yin took a deep breath, her tone filled with extreme helplessness, “But as parents, we only wish for our daughter to live safely! If she had been unlucky, not caught by branches when falling off the cliff, or if there hadn’t been a countryman to rescue her, would she still have her life today? Would her father and I, who are still at the border, not have experienced the grief of white-haired people sending off those with black hair?”
Xiao Yu listened in silence to all these words, not speaking a single word in his own defense. He had never bowed or admitted wrong to anyone. He could handle all hard times, even strategizing for things Chu Yihan couldn’t manage, risking his own life to earn his enemy’s trust.
His ruses were such that even Rong Qing couldn’t see through them, right?
But in front of Madam Yin, he felt like a coward!
Helpless and weak.
He had to admit to every sentence Madam Yin said; her words made sense. She was right… about everything!
“Xiao Yu, I beg you, let her go… release my Miaoyan. I know you love her, but she can’t shoulder the burden of being Madame Xiao.”
Madam Yin spoke with great emotion, deeply bowing to Xiao Yu.
She pleaded with Xiao Yu to let Miaoyan return to her side, to live a stable life, to be an ordinary daughter of the Marquis’s Manor.
Xiao Yu did not reach out to help Madam Yin; instead, he sat while Madam Yin knelt before him.
Madam Yin’s posture was extremely low, as low as it could possibly be, down in the dust, with nowhere left to descend.
His hands were still clutching a thumb ring, after a long time had passed.
Only then did he bend down and help Madam Yin up.
Madam Yin lifted her head, thinking Xiao Yu had consented to her wishes, with a hint of joy on her face, but what Xiao Yu said to her, in a low voice, was, “Yan’er will always be my wife.”
She was the person he loved the most.
Su Miaoyan had been recovering from her injuries in the Marquis’s Manor for so long, and today was the happiest she had been. She changed into a peach-pink ruqun, with two pearls of the same size adorning the red laces at her chest, shiny and round, swaying in the air as she happily hopped about, making her look even more playful and adorable.
She ran all the way to the front hall, heading straight for the person in the wheelchair.
“Brother Yu!”
She threw herself into Xiao Yu’s arms, and he gently embraced her, tucking the stray hairs beside her cheeks behind her ear.
“Miaoyan, you mustn’t be without manners. Go and greet grandpa first!”
Madam Yin, standing in order behind Qin Wan, gave a soft reproach.
Su Miaoyan instantly came back to her senses and sheepishly held her skirt, “Mother, I didn’t mean it, just… got a bit too excited.”
She immediately pinched her skirt and took small steps forward, bowing before Su Qingzhi, “Miaoyan greets grandpa.”
Su Qingzhi let out a hearty laugh, “You little girl!”
Even while sitting, he was taller than the standing Su Miaoyan. He patted her head, “You’ve been married for a few years now, but grandpa sees that you’re getting more and more delicate.”
In their Marquis’s Manor, the most whimsically clever was none other than Su Miaoyan.
This child was well raised, with a round and plump face, even more beautiful and adorable than a courtyard full of blooming peach trees.
Su Miaoyan bashfully lowered her head and mumbled with her lips pouted, “It’s because Brother Yu is here! At home, he dotes on me a lot. Everyone else comes to greet me, and I’ve forgotten how.”
At the Xiao family, there were no elders she needed to greet. Xiao Yu’s father, her father-in-law, was almost always away from the Xiao family.
Since Xiao Yu was the head of the household, only servants, younger brothers, sisters, nieces, and nephews would come to greet her. All she needed to do was to sit and wait, then have someone serve her tea.
She had almost forgotten about the protocol of greeting others.
It was also because at the Marquis’s Manor, Sister Xue and Brother Hao indulged her.
“Little auntie is really cute, if only my sister could be like little auntie.”
Su Chenyang stood beside Wu Jinyan, whispering.
The carefreeness that Su Miaoyan exuded was something even this child envied.
“Your little auntie has been the apple of everyone’s eye since she was a child, and after getting married, she became the treasure of your uncle’s heart. He can’t bear to see her suffer the slightest grievance. Naturally, she’s adorable. If your sister is fortunate enough to have this blessing in the future, it will be her good karma.”
Wu Jinyan’s eyes were gentle with mirth as she glanced down at her own belly. If this child she bore turned out to be a daughter, and if she could live a life as cherished as Su Miaoyan’s, it would indeed be an immense fortune.