Chapter Eighteen: The Angry Zhong Clan

  Liu Rong returned to her own house, but didn't see Zhong Shi, only Dong Er guarding the house.

  "After Auntie Zhong returned, Qiao came over and Auntie Zhong was unwilling to stay here anymore. She said that you, Rong Jie, have grown up and don't need her anymore, and insisted on moving to the Buddhist hall. No matter how I tried to persuade her, she wouldn't listen and left me here waiting for Miss." As soon as Liu Rong returned, Dong Er seemed to have found her backbone and quickly came over to greet her.

  After hearing Dong Er's words, Liu Rong hurriedly asked Dong Er to lead her to the Buddhist hall.

  Arriving at the Buddhist hall, she heard the sound of a wooden fish being struck inside the house. Only then did Liu Rong calm down and slowly walk into the house.

  In the Buddhist hall, Zhong Shi knelt quietly in front of the Buddha with her eyes closed, and Liu Rong couldn't help but call out "Young lady".

  Zhong's eyelids moved slightly, but he continued to knock on the wooden fish at a steady pace, completely ignoring her.

  Liu Rong walked over to Mrs. Zhong's side and sat down, saying again: "Mother, I'm back."

  "Bang! Bang! Bang!" The wooden fish continued to sound.

  Liu Rong looked up and gazed at Dong Er, who was standing respectfully beside her, with a questioning expression. Was it just because of Cui Er's visit? If so, why did Mother completely ignore me?

  Dong Er saw Liu Rong's face full of anger, and hurriedly made gestures to explain to her, although somewhat disordered, but Liu Rong still understood Dong Er's meaning.

  Zhong was angry. Only when Zhong is angry will he be like this, completely ignoring others.

  Liu Rong was taken aback for a moment, and couldn't help but think of the ugly look on Zhong's face that afternoon when she knew Liu had given birth to the second child by cesarean section. And the scene where she knelt in front of Liu Danni at that time.

  She clearly remembered that although Zhong knelt in front of Liu Dà Nǎi, trying to shield her from punishment, when she secretly approached him, Zhong completely ignored her.

  Afterwards, she was even more careful to curry favor, and the Zhong family also knelt a little further away, not getting close to her. Until Zuo Tingxuan appeared, telling the people in the house that they were going to take her to the yamen, the Zhong family immediately stood up and blocked her way.

  Even if that body is thin and weak, it still firmly wants to do something.

  Liu Rong lowered her head, and no one could see the expression on her face.

  "Since you went to the side of Madame Tai, Aunt Zhong has been very worried." Dong'er was worried that there would be a dispute between Zhong Shi and Liu Rong's mother and daughter in silence, so she hurriedly spoke up: "After you were taken away, Aunt Zhong went to the Buddhist hall to pray for your blessings, kneeling until now, not even eating dinner."

  "Mother, reciting Buddha's name can wait a bit, we can eat dinner first and then recite Buddha's name. Otherwise, the Buddha will also feel unbearable. Who knows, you might be harming him and making it impossible for him to attain benevolence, and instead, he won't want to fulfill your wishes." Liu Rong looked at Zhong Shi with a slightly coquettish tone, she roughly knew what Zhong Shi was angry about, Zhong Shi was angry that she kept putting herself in danger, knowing full well that their fate was controlled by Old Lady Liu, and yet still acting so recklessly.

  Zhong Shi was truly fond of her, which is why he got angry with her. Thinking about this, Liu Rong only felt warmth in her heart, and all the annoyance from today disappeared, restoring calmness. Who can ask for everything to go as smoothly as desired? But as long as there are people in this world who care about you and treat you with kindness, that's enough.

  Zhong's hand pounding on the wooden fish had no intention of stopping, still ignoring Liu Rong.

  Liu Rong couldn't help but look up at Dong Er, who although was a bit weak, knew more about the character and habits of the Zhong family than she did.

  Dong Er saw Liu Rong's expression and took a step forward, approaching Zhong Shi: "Auntie... Miss has not had dinner since she went out..."

  Zhong's hand paused slightly as he struck the wooden fish, although the amplitude was very small, Liu Rong saw it and hurriedly signaled to Dong Er to continue speaking.

  Dong Er's mouth stiffened, indicating that he really couldn't speak. Liu Rong glared at him, and Dong Er immediately looked at Zhong Shi and continued: "I heard you've moved into the Buddhist hall, so I rushed over to see you. You're not eating like this, Miss will feel distressed and probably won't eat either."

  Dong Er glanced at Liu Rong and, in response to her gaze, closed his eyes and continued: "Poor Miss's delicate body, how can she endure..."

  "Dong Er, go and lay out the dishes!" Zhong Shi finally stopped beating the wooden fish, opened her eyes, and instructed Dong Er.

  Dong Er was shocked and exclaimed, then turned around and ran out.

  "Dong Er, don't forget, besides preparing dinner, you also need to decoct the medicine that mother needs to take. Mother's body hasn't recovered yet and still needs to continue drinking medicine to recuperate." Liu Rong stood up and reminded Dong Er as he walked away.

  "Got it, miss." Winter's voice came from afar.

  Liu Rong then stepped forward to help Zhong Shi up, but Zhong Shi got up by herself and didn't even let Liu Rong touch her. Then she ignored Liu Rong and walked over to the chair specially prepared for people who came to worship Buddha on the left side of the Buddhist hall and sat down.

  "Mother, don't be angry with your daughter anymore, she already knows her mistake. She shouldn't have been so reckless and caused trouble for you to worry about." Liu Rong walked up to Zhong Shi's side with a thick face, pulling on her sleeve and speaking in a spoiled tone.

  Zhong still had a gloomy face and didn't say anything.

  Liu Rong is furious and it seems that apologizing or acting cute won't work this time. What can be done about it now?

  She can be quite harsh on those who treat her poorly, but she has no way to deal with someone who is so good to her. At the same time, she also pays more attention to the other person's emotions.

  What to do is good, can't Zhong's family always ignore oneself? Then how will she spend her next days in this annoying mansion, the only one who truly cares about herself and can talk to her has been made angry by herself.

  Suddenly, Liu Rong's eyes rolled over and the corners of her mouth slightly curled up.

  "Mother, daughter really knows she was wrong. The people in this mansion only treated daughter well because of you. You probably don't know why the old madam called me over today... " Liu Rong carefully watched Zhong Shi and saw that when she heard her words, her eyebrows furrowed slightly with worry before continuing: "The old madam wants me to take Ninth Aunt's place in the palace. The Emperor is getting on in years, if I enter the palace, it will probably ruin my life."

  Zhong Shi gripped her own hand tightly, Liu Rong couldn't bear to continue speaking, but in order to get Zhong Shi to listen to herself, she still steeled herself and continued: "The daughter refused, but the old lady wouldn't allow the daughter to refuse. She forced the daughter to agree to this matter. And just at that moment, news of the second madam's difficult labor arrived..."

  Liu Rong slowly told the story of that day, except for helping Zuo Tingxuan save people, she said everything without leaving out a single detail. In the end, she also poured out her own anxiety and helplessness.

  Liu Rong couldn't help but lean on Zhong Shi's knee: "Mother, in this world, only you are the most loving to your daughter. If even you don't care about me, what can I do?"

  Zhong's eyes were sour as she followed and wiped away tears, finally unable to bear ignoring Liu Rong any longer. She gently placed her hand on Liu Rong's hair to comfort her: "Don't be afraid, everything will be alright with Mother here... won't it?"

  Liu Rong forgot how she fell asleep that night, but remembered waking up and lying in Zhong Shi's arms like a child, which made Dong Er tease her. But for some reason, she felt it was real and reassuring.

  That memory which didn't belong to this world also gradually became much more blurred, that mother from the previous life who had worked hard for herself her whole life but never received even a bit of filial piety was also gradually becoming blurred, replaced by Zhong Shi's face which seemed slightly cold but was actually the warmest.