Chapter 940: The Peasant Girl’s Splendid Manor
Chapter 940: Displaying Affection and Stirring Jealousy (1)
In the search for the runaway Master seventh young master Cui, it wasn’t just the Cui family that was thrown into chaos; even the streets and alleys of the capital saw an increased presence of patrolling officers, creating an atmosphere of panic. Several search parties even headed south toward Yuancheng, scouring the roads for any trace of him, but they found nothing—not even his shadow.
Fearing that Old Madam Cui would not be able to withstand such a blow, Cui Qingrou and Master Cui did their best to keep the matter from her. However, with such a commotion, how could they truly conceal it from her?
Upon learning that her most beloved grandson had not returned home all night, Old Madam Cui was both anxious and regretful. She was so distressed that she could not eat from that night until the following day. Seeing her eldest son exhausting all possible connections yet still failing to locate him, she began to suspect Princess Fuyun, believing that she had orchestrated something sinister against her grandson.
However, without any evidence, Old Madam Cui did not directly confront Princess Fuyun. Instead, she instructed her most trusted attendants to keep an eye on the princess’s movements and report any suspicious activity immediately.
On the day Cui Ping’an ran away from home, Princess Fuyun happened to be visiting another princess’s residence. She only learned about his disappearance upon returning in the evening. To her, Cui Ping’an and his mother were thorns in her side. With his birth mother already dead, all her resentment had transferred onto him, and she wished nothing more than for him to die outside and never return. Thus, she secretly sent people to track him down, planning to eliminate him quietly once he was found.
However, after an entire day and night of searching, all that was discovered was that Cui Ping’an had nearly fallen victim to a street swindler and had attempted to rent a carriage south to Yuan. Beyond that, no one could determine where he had gone.
Holding the safety letter Cui Ping’an had written, Mo Yan, mindful of Princess Fuyun’s threat, decided against delivering it directly to the Cui residence. Instead, she instructed an inconspicuous bird to carry it and drop it into Old Madam Cui’s courtyard.
Taking in Cui Ping’an was indeed troublesome. If Princess Fuyun were to find out, refusing to hand him over would mean offending her. But at this point, there was no turning back—she couldn’t just throw him out now. The only option was to hide him well and wait until someone from the Cui family arrived to take him away before letting Princess Fuyun catch wind of anything.
Even if the princess did eventually find out and blamed her for protecting Cui Ping’an, what could she do? Would she really go so far as to take action against her? And if she did, was Mo Yan supposed to be afraid?
The messenger bird followed Mo Yan’s instructions, waiting until the courtyard was empty before releasing the letter from midair. The letter drifted gently down into the center of the courtyard and was soon picked up by a maid, who quickly delivered it to Old Madam Cui. Only then did the bird fly away, satisfied with its task.
Recognizing the familiar handwriting on the envelope, Old Madam Cui sat up abruptly, her hands trembling as she opened it to read her grandson’s letter. Her eyes scanned the words swiftly, and upon confirming that he was safe and unharmed, the anxiety that had plagued her all day finally eased.
Yet, the thought that her grandson would rather wander outside, letting his family worry for him, than return home made her furious. Slamming the letter onto the table, she shouted, “That ungrateful brat! Leaving without a word—does he even care about the Cui family? Does he even have a grandmother in his heart?”
Cui Qingrou, worried that her mother’s health might suffer from the stress, had been staying by her side the whole time. Seeing that the letter was indeed written by her nephew, she set aside the urge to calm her mother and hurriedly picked it up for a closer look.
Finding nothing unusual between the lines, she was reassured that, as the letter claimed, he had encountered no danger. A long breath of relief escaped her. Noticing her mother’s angry expression, she gently consoled her, “Mother, Little Seven being safe is already a blessing from the Buddha. He wrote this letter to let us know he’s well, inquired about your health, and even apologized to you. It’s clear that he still cares about you. Please forgive him this once—when he returns, we can properly teach him a lesson.”
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