"Actually, I have some family upbringing and didn't get angry. I corrected Mrs. Zhuang: 'Mrs. Zhuang, I'm not Duan Shi, I'm Qi Shi.'"

  "Zhuang Lao Furen said: 'Qī Shì, who is Qī Shì?'"

  Zhuang said with a smile: "Qishi is my second sister-in-law, you forgot that she used to learn embroidery from you in the past."

  "Ah," said Mrs. Zhuang, "I remember now, is it the one who likes to wear red clothes and has a mole at the corner of his eye?"

  Zhuang said helplessly: "The one who likes to wear red clothes and has a mole at the corner of her eye is Xiangniang, my younger sister-in-law."

  The old lady nodded and said: "Your younger sister."

  Zhuang Er Ye's face turned red with embarrassment, and he apologized to Qī Shì: "Second Madam, please don't mind, Auntie is old and sometimes gets confused."

  "Doesn't matter," said Mr. Qi with a smile, looking at Old Lady Zhuang and continuing to smile, "It's been over a decade since we last met, and you're still as lovely as ever." He then added, "Old Lady, Mother and Yuanyuan are already waiting for you in Fuding Hall, shall I escort you there?"

  The old lady waved her hand and said, "Alright, alright."

  Qī shì walked over to the side of Zhuāng Lǎo Fū Rén and together with Zhuāng Shì supported Zhuāng Lǎo Fū Rén as they headed in the direction of Fú Níng Táng.

  "Zhuang's wife was still muttering and asked Zhuang, 'Xian Niang, where did the little girl with a mole at the corner of her eye go? I haven't seen her for a long time.'"

  Zhuang and Qi exchanged a glance, Zhuang's face showing helplessness, while Qi just smiled.

  "Old lady, Xiangniang has already married and her children are about the same age as Yuanyuan," explained Qī shì softly.

  "Ah, you're married! Married life is good. Where did you get married? How many children do you have now? Are they boys or girls?"

  "Then she married into the palace and had only one child, a boy."

  "Having just one child is too few," said Mrs. Zhuang, "you should let her have a few more, the more children there are, the merrier."

  Mr. Qi sighed and shook his head, this man has already gone to see King Yama, where can he still have a few more lives.

  Zhuang's family was helpless towards Old Lady Zhuang, and seeing her bring up Lin Xian, which reminded Qi Shi of past grievances, couldn't help but stop her: "Mother, you're talking too much, aren't you tired from speaking?"

  Old Lady Zhuang glared at her: "How, you're looking down on me? I knew that giving birth to a daughter is not as good as giving birth to a char siu bao, now you even dare to be unfilial to me."

  Zhuang Shi said: "Go ahead and say it if you want to."

  When the Zhuang family arrived at Funning Hall, Li Shi, Lin Di, Lin Wan, including Duan Shi and her daughter from the main house, two young madams from the second house, as well as Lin Di's half-brother and sister, Lin Chenggang and Lin Yan, were already waiting in the hall.

  Lin Yan was sitting next to Li Shi, smiling and teasing Lin Yu who was buried in Li Shi's arms: "Young Jade, your mother is back, are you happy or not? Young Jade will finally change from a child without a mother's love to one with a mother's love. It seems that from now on, no one can bully you anymore, otherwise Third Aunt will definitely not let me off."

  Lin Fan's face was furrowed, unable to tell if she was happy or unhappy. Upon hearing this, she glared at Lin Yan and angrily said: "You're the one who's not loved by your mother."

  Li also tapped Lin Yan's head lightly and said, "Go away, don't bully your sister, and don't talk nonsense." Then she comforted Lin Yu: "Our Young Jade doesn't need to be treated the same as her sister. When did Young Jade not have a mother's love? Young Jade will always have a mother's love, not only a mother's love, but also a father's love, a grandmother's love, a sister's love, and brothers' love..."

  Just then, a maid outside laughed and ran in to report: "They've arrived, they've arrived! The second and third madams have already reached the entrance."

  Li exclaimed "Oh" happily, stood up with a smile, and held Lin Yu's hand saying: "Yu Yu, let's go see your mother."

  As they walked out of the hall, they had just reached the door when they saw Zhuang Shi and Zhuang Er Ye supporting Madame Zhuang as they entered together.

  Zhuang's family first took a look at Lin Yun, who was holding hands with Li's family, then searched for Lin Xiao from the crowd before going forward to pay respects to Li's mother: "Mother, my daughter-in-law is back. My daughter-in-law is unfilial, not having been by your side to show filial piety for so many years."

  Mr. Li hurriedly helped her up and said, "Get up quickly, you see, as soon as you come back, you're stumbling around. Besides, taking good care of Old Three and the children in the northwest is already being filial to me." As he spoke, he looked at Mrs. Zhuang again, stretched out his hand to hold hers, and said, "Old sister, it's been many years since we last met. You're so heartless, going to Jiangnan and really not returning to Beijing for over a decade. Is the water and soil of Jiangnan more nourishing than Beijing, making you unwilling to return?" Then he looked at Mr. Zhuang Er standing beside Mrs. Zhuang and asked, "Is this Mr. Zhuang Er? He's truly a talented and handsome man."

  Zhuang Ziyi stretched out his hand and made a bow to Li Shi, saying: "I have seen the old lady."

  "It's all family, no need for formalities."

  The old lady looked at Li's face, which had hardly changed in over a decade, and said, "The water and soil of Jiangnan can't compare to the people it nurtures." She pouted and said with a tone of grievance, "Obviously I'm several years younger than you, yet now I look much older than you."

  Li was amused and burst out laughing, patting Mrs. Zhuang's hand, saying: "You, you, after all these years, your personality hasn't changed a bit, still so lovable."

  She looked at the old lady of the Zhuang family, who already had silver hair and wrinkles on her face. She was indeed much older than when she left the capital years ago. On the contrary, she didn't look as old as she actually was, thanks to the filial piety of her children and the joy brought by her grandchildren, which made her look younger.

  Thinking of this, Li said to her: "Since that's the case, I think you should stay in the capital with me this time. What's good about Jiangnan? You don't have any children or grandchildren there, and there's no one around to take care of you. In the capital, not to mention others, Ah Rong is by your side, filial and obedient, and Yuan Yuan and You Yu are also by your side, playing and having fun with you. Isn't that better than being in Jiangnan?" Ah Rong was Zhuang Shi's maiden name, surnamed Zhuang, with a single character "Rong". Also, because Madame Zhuang came from a family of silk merchants when she was young, she was skilled at embroidery, and after her daughter was born, her father gave her the nickname "Xian Niang" (Thread Girl).

  Mr. Li's words had some hidden meaning that the Zhuang family didn't take good care of her. Zhuang Er Ye listened with some embarrassment, hooked his nose, felt a bit ashamed and lowered his head to glance at Mrs. Zhuang.

  If it were usual, Zhuang would have explained a few words for her cousin, but this time Mrs. Zhuang's illness made Zhuang also blame the Zhuang family for not putting their mother in mind, and now she was expressionless, without any response to Zhuang's meaning.

  Lin Huan walked up and called out to Zhuang Shi, "Mother." Zhuang Shi lovingly stroked her hair and said, "Good girl." After finishing speaking, she looked at Lin Fen who was holding onto Li Shi's clothes and staring at her, her eyes suddenly turned red, and she choked back a sob as she called out, "You Yu."

  Mr. Li gently pushed his little granddaughter and smiled at her, saying: "You've been thinking of your mother all the time, now she's back, hurry up and go to your mother."

  Lin Wan muttered something and didn't come forward, instead hiding behind Li's body. After hiding, she became curious again and couldn't help but stick her head out to look at Zhuang Shi.

  Li took her out and said, "You child, this is your mother, why are you hiding?"

  Zhuang's heart ached, and she couldn't help but tear up, shaking her head: "It's not Yu Yu's fault, it's my fault, I'm the one who's not good enough as a mother."

  As she spoke, she took a few steps forward and picked up her daughter, saying: "Yu Yu, mother's Yu Yu has grown so big."

  Lin Xuan initially felt a bit repelled, and struggled lightly in Zhuang's arms. But when Zhuang flashed tears and kissed her face, the warm tears landed on her face, making her heart suddenly feel sour as well. She pouted, stretched out her hand to hug Zhuang's neck, and only then did she say with a mix of grievance and choking: "You're really annoying!"

  The people next to Li and Qi watched as the mother and daughter hugged each other, both crying bitterly, and they too were moved and relieved. Lin Dai was also finally able to put her mind at ease.

  Lin Zuo, who had been quietly standing aside, carefully avoiding detection, glanced at Zhuang Shi and Lin Yun with a raised eyebrow, then looked away with a secretly curled corner of her mouth. Lin Xiang finally put down his guard and hung his head in dismay. Meanwhile, Lin Cheng merely pursed his lips, revealing a hint of nonchalance.