I wish mother wasn't so sentimental!

  She's like this, it's really hard for herself!

  Dong Zhaode sighed deeply.

  A strange emotion suddenly welled up in her towards her mother.

  It seems like there's some heartache, some pity, and also... envy!

  She was startled by the sudden thought.

  It's normal for people to sympathize with a mother's situation and appreciate her hardships, but why does she have to envy?

  What is enviable about mothers?

  The deep affection they once had? Or the straightforwardness of a mother in front of her father?

  Dong Zhao was somewhat perplexed and disoriented.

  She saw Huan Xiang and Shuang Zhi helping their mother take off her hairpins as she sat on the heated kang.

  Father walked in.

  His face looked somewhat unsightly: "Gu Qiu, I have something important to tell you."

  The mother turned around, her slender fingers wrapped around the golden water grass patterned mirror handle with a big red tassel hanging down, her eyes deep and quiet, gazing at her father.

  The maidservant and daughter-in-law quietly retreated without a sound.

  Father half-knelt beside Mother: "Gu Qiu, Ying Xue... she... she... is pregnant..."

  The mother's fingers suddenly stopped circling around the flowing silk.

  Father hung his head: "...... I can only come and discuss with you ...... I know I owe you ...... but let me pretend that nothing has happened, I, I really can't do it......"

  "How did you two meet?" Mother asked Father softly, her tone calm, her fingers starting to twirl the tassel again.

  "My father's spirit lifted, and he said, 'I went to Kyoto and naturally wanted to visit Mr. Guanlan. Coincidentally, Yingxue was there borrowing ginseng...' He explained hastily, 'At the time, I didn't see anyone, but because Mr. Guanlan treated me like a son or nephew, the people in his household didn't intentionally avoid me. I heard from one of Mr. Guanlan's servants that Wang Xingyi's daughter came to pay respects to the mistress and said her nephew was ill and needed ginseng soup. She wanted to ask the mistress for help buying two stalks of ginseng over 100 years old, but unfortunately, they didn't have enough silver on hand. You know how hard it is to find such high-quality ginseng! The mistress tried every means and even added some of her own money, but she could only manage to get one 50-year-old stalk of ginseng. I thought about how Wang Xingyi and my fifth brother were from the same year, and how he was so loyal and righteous, while Madame Gao was so virtuous and kind... it's a pity they ended up in such a situation, and I couldn't help but feel some sympathy. So I let Gaosheng help buy two 50-year-old stalks of ginseng to send to her.' My father said, his face gradually turning red, 'I knew she was relying on the cotton business to make money, so I agreed to introduce her to our household's manager and also helped her get some other medicinal materials... She asked me if I was married...' His voice was like a mosquito buzzing, 'She often went to Kyoto with my brother to visit their father's generation... She was very straightforward... told me about the fun places in Kyoto... and we drank some wine together...'"

  The mother closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and didn't open them again until after a while. She then asked the father, "Hasn't she ever asked you who you are?"

  "No!" Father said in a low voice, "I... how did I know it was such a relationship..."

  Her mother's hand slapped the dresser, the jade bangles on her wrist colliding with each other, making a crisp sound: "Hmph! I don't believe she doesn't know who you are! This is the Dingguo government, within hundreds of miles, which family isn't living under the An's nose? Even if she didn't recognize you, if you introduced her to our household manager, wouldn't she be able to guess it was you? She has been coming and going in our house since childhood, who I married, doesn't she know? She knows nothing about you, just relying on two stalks of ginseng and a promise, dare to get into bed with you? Isn't she afraid of encountering a scoundrel...

  "Gu Autumn, Gu Autumn!" Father interrupted Mother's words with a look of shame and embarrassment, "She really didn't know! It was only after the fact that she remembered... If she hadn't been pregnant, she wouldn't have followed me back to Zhēndìng either..."

  "Don't you believe me?" Her mother's face clouded over like it was about to rain.

  "I believe you, I believe you!" Father said repeatedly, "No matter what, she's just a woman, encountering such a thing... In short, this whole thing is my fault, can you help me out?"

  "Y...ou..." Her mother bit her lip, and the tassel that was originally wrapped around her finger was pulled straight.

  "Gu Yu, Gu Yu, don't be angry!" Father said anxiously, "If this gets out, I'll really lose face... Just consider it a favor to me and your mother, help us get through this difficult time! Gu Yu, Gu Yu..." He looked at Mother with sad eyes.

  "Good!" Mother smiled and said, but that smile seemed to be tinged with a hint of bitterness. "You let Wang Yingshu sign the contract, I'll let her in."

  "How can this be!" Father shouted in a hurry, "You're doing this, how can the Wang family survive? You're too deceitful! No way, no way!"

  "What can we do?" her mother said calmly, with a hint of exhaustion in her expression.

  His father hesitated: "We'll give more betrothal gifts, don't want the Wang family's dowry... I think it was like this when Feng Baoshan took a concubine... Feng Baoshan said that this is similar to buying a concubine, but in order to save face, it became betrothal gifts... If you regret it, the betrothal gifts will be fully refunded..."

  "Isn't that the same as marrying a concubine from those merchant families?"

  Father was stunned, and after a while, he muttered: "This, how can it be the same? You live together, the Duan family knows who is older and who is younger..."

  "You've got everything figured out, haven't you?" Mother said with a smile, but the smile didn't reach her eyes. "Didn't your father forbid you from coming here? You should go back early! This matter can be discussed by me and your elder sister."

  Father jumped up with joy, holding his mother's hand and said: "Gu Qiu, so to speak, you agreed!" Like a child who finally got the candy.

  "I agreed." Mother's mouth corners rose, and she grasped Father's hand with her backhand, lowering her head to gently kiss him once. "Hurry back! Be careful or Grandfather will call you again for another scolding!"

  Father rushed towards mother and smiled, gently stroking mother's temples: "Gu Qiu, you are really good to me!"

  Her mother chuckled and laughed so hard that tears flowed out of her eyes.

  Father walked away happily.

  Her mother was still smiling there, but her smile gradually became thinner and thinner, and tears flowed more and more.

  "Mother!" Dou Zhao rushed into his mother's arms.

  Her mother slowly stroked her head, saying in a low voice: "Wang Yingshu is deliberate... maybe not at first, but at least later on. Shougu, your father doesn't believe me, do you believe Mother's words?"

  "I believe, I believe!" Du Zhao nodded repeatedly, his eyes moistening.

  "But do you think it's useful?" Her mother smiled, with tears shining like dew on her pale cheeks. "You little scamp, you don't understand anything!" She affectionately pinched her small nose.

  I know, I know!

  I know everything!

  Dou Zhaonan couldn't help but burst into tears.

  She is not really a two-year-old child.

  Since Father has already spoken out about Wang Yingshuang's pregnancy, it can be seen that he was forced to have no way out and is ready to go all out.

  "The Western Cave" has a thin heir, doing so may give Wang Yingshuo the reputation of being promiscuous, but if her mother insists on not letting Wang Yingshuo enter the door, it will make the elders of the Dugu family have some criticism towards her, and even give her the reputation of being unvirtuous. Moreover, this reputation of being promiscuous is only in the hearts of a few elders of the Dugu family, for the sake of the Dugu family's face, they will absolutely not speak out, not only will they not speak out, but also when hearing any rumors, they will strongly defend Wang Yingshuo. What effect does this bad reputation have on Wang Yingshuo?

  Wang Yingshuang has been plotting against her father, and such an obvious thing, with her father's intelligence, he is ignoring it, it can be seen that his heart has long been biased. Wang Yingshuang's good means, when she enters the door, who knows what will happen, if every time something happens, mother has to explain it like this, then what's the point of living?

  Father threatened mother with divorce to make Wang Yingshuo enter the house, then knelt down beside her and begged...

  How many more humiliations lay ahead of her!

  The boy under the magnolia tree is his mother's dream.

  The dream is shattered, should I wake up or sink?

  Dongfang's heart skipped a beat.

  So, mother chose death!

  She raised her head and stared at her mother in shock.

  Mother smiled, with tears falling.

  The gaze pierces through layers of emptiness and falls on an unknown place.

  "Shòu gū, niáng lèi le, yào xiē huì." tā nǎ nǎ de dào, "nǐ qù zhǎo Yú māmā wán qù ba!"

  Translation:

  "Shougu, you're tired, take a rest." She said softly, "Go play with Yu's mother for now!"

  "Mother! Mother!" Dou Zhao hugged his mother's leg and burst into tears.

  She will never leave her mother's side again.

  "Good child!" Her mother kissed her cheek, tears falling on her neck like ice, cold enough to make one shiver. "No wonder your aunt said you're clever... indeed a mother and son are connected at heart... only you know how bitter I am in my heart... but I really have no strength left... if you want to blame someone, blame your mother for being useless... weak and incompetent... Mother is leaving, but you still have your uncle..." She trembled as she spoke. "Perhaps it's better this way... they owe me, and will repay you... so we won't torture each other day after day, and exhaust all the affection between us... making us both become hateful to each other..."

  "No, no......" Dou Zhao muttered vaguely, "As long as you're alive, there's hope, as long as you're alive..."

  Her mother hugged her tightly, as if she wanted to embed her in her arms. After a while, she slowly let go of her and shouted "Yu Niang".

  Dou Zhao wailed loudly and shrieked "Mother dear, don't die! Mother dear, don't die!"

  Yu's mother was shocked and then knelt down at her mother's knees, crying: "You might as well take a pair of scissors to cut me off cleanly..."

  "Mother, mother......" Mother hugged Yu's shoulder, "I really can't pretend anymore... In front of Tian's sister, I still pretended to be a loving couple... My heart is bleeding..."

  "A child without a mother is like a rootless grass," Yu's nanny said, embracing Du Zhao. "If you leave, what will happen to Fourth Miss? Others may be close, but they are still separated by skin and flesh. The old lady passed away early, do you want Fourth Miss to end up like you?"

  "Mother, don't go! I'll be obedient!" Dou Zhao cried, gasping for breath, "Don't go..."

  "Shou Gu, Shou Gu..." Mother's heart ached endlessly.

  Three people cried like three waterfalls.

  The lights in the Duan family's house lit up one after another.

  Grandfather and father were both startled.

  ※

  It's written in a way that makes me feel melancholic too!

  Speed up and finish writing this section quickly...

  ※