Chapter 20 Unable to Return

Mrs. Li could only nod her head with tears in her eyes after the young madam spoke those words. Living under someone else's roof, she had no choice but to bow her head, burying her longing for her child deep within her heart.

The Young Master was clever. Over the age of two, his enlightenment was no longer just about recognizing characters from pictures. Every day, a teacher would come in the morning to teach him for two hours, the 'Three Character Classic' and the 'Thousand Character Classic.'

In the afternoons, someone would come to teach the Young Master the horse stance and the basics of martial arts. The young madam was reluctant to see her son work so hard.

It was the Eldest Young Master's idea to hire a teacher for the Young Master. As a father who wanted his son to be successful, he invested all his affection and value in his first child, determined to turn iron into a needle.

Mrs. Li, who was illiterate, would stand by as the Young Master studied laboriously, occasionally taking care of him.

When the Young Master fell down in the afternoon, Mrs. Li did not go to help him up. This was the Eldest Young Master's wish, and she did not dare to disobey. From time to time, the young madam would hint that when the Eldest Young Master was not around, the Young Master could slack off a bit.

Mrs. Li did not approve of the young madam's indulgent heart, but she also did not entirely agree with the Eldest Young Master making such a young child suffer so much. Her own children suffered because of poverty.

In the prosperous Tang Mansion, there was no need for such hardship. They could enjoy a life of luxury and comfort as happy children.

But when Mrs. Li saw the Young Master fall without crying, and observed many bruises on his body at night, her heart ached.

She would massage the Young Master's feet to ease his pain. Although she never understood reading and writing, as the teacher taught the Young Master, she learned to recognize a few characters.

This was the only moment she felt joy here, and time quickly came for her monthly leave.

Following the incident with the Young Master's fever last time, Mrs. Li's leave was somewhat mentioned by the young madam, but Madam did not express anything.

Mrs. Li, longing for her child, could only suppress these feelings, and in the quiet of the night, she channeled her longing into sewing, making clothes and shoes for her children.

That evening, as the Young Master just fell asleep, Mrs. Li watched over him quietly, her thoughts dwelling on her own child. Was it the busy farming season at home now?

Her child at home must be suffering too. How could such a small child bear the burden of the farming work?

Unable to go back and help, to make her child's burden lighter, was her greatest pain as a mother.

Thinking of this, Mrs. Li's eyes brimmed with tears. She silently wiped them away, gently closed the bedroom door, and went to a smaller room where she slept.

Instead of sleeping, she started sewing again. After the rice harvest, the weather turned colder, and she needed to make winter clothes and cotton shoes for her children.

Over two years old, Young Master Tang Shunyan could sense that his wet nurse, Mrs. Li, was different from usual, and could feel the sadness behind her smile.

Tang Shunyan pretended to be asleep. After his wet nurse had returned to her room, he opened his eyes, tiptoed to the side door, and peeked covertly at her bed.

He saw Mrs. Li quietly shedding tears, her hands busy with needlework, immersed in silent sorrow.

Tang Shunyan, still young, did not understand why Mrs. Li was crying, but felt protectively that someone must have bullied his wet nurse.

He couldn't help but run in and say to Mrs. Li:

"Wet nurse, did someone make you cry?"

Startled by Tang Shunyan's voice, Mrs. Li put away her needlework and wiped her tears with her sleeve.

"Young Master, your wet nurse is not crying. There's just something in my eye."

"Wet nurse, don't lie to me. You're crying."

"Young Master, really, no one is bullying your wet nurse. I just miss my babies."

"Is it the wet nurse's elder sister and younger sister? Why doesn't the wet nurse visit them?" Tang Shunyan sat in Mrs. Li's lap, enjoying the warmth of her embrace.

"The wet nurse did something wrong, so I can't visit my family this month, but I hope I can next month," she said.

"Wet nurse, what did you do wrong? Nothing! Is it my grandma or my mother who won't let you go? I will ask them tomorrow to let the wet nurse visit her family."

"Young Master, please don't do this, or the wet nurse will make another mistake," Mrs. Li felt that it was good for Tang Shunyan to speak for her, but if the Madam or the young madam thought she was sowing discord in front of the Young Master, her transgression would be even greater.

"Oh, alright then! But next time the wet nurse visits her family, she must bring Shunyan with her." Little Tang Shunyan was too small to think of a solution right then and there, but deep down, he was eager to meet the elder sister and younger sister the wet nurse had mentioned.

"The wet nurse can't promise that to Shunyan, it must be approved by the Madam, the doctor, and the Young Master's elders first."

Mrs. Li, who was illiterate, understood one thing well: her home, that of a peasant's, was not a place the Young Master, born to wealth and status, could visit easily, unless he were to receive a significant favor first.

...

Today was supposed to be the day Mrs. Li visited home. The children at home had been looking forward to it, but instead of seeing Mrs. Li's figure, they saw a guard on horseback bringing a parcel to their house.

"People of the Li family, I was sent by the Tang Mansion's housekeeper. Mrs. Li cannot return home for a visit today, so the housekeeper sent me to deliver some things." The guard led his horse into the courtyard.

"Please, sit here for a moment, sir," said the man of the house.

Busy with carpentry in the thatched hut, Hongji and his sons stopped their work to wash up and welcome their guest.

"Could you prepare some grass for my horse?" The guard was fond of his steed.

"Certainly. This horse should eat straw, right?"

Hongji went to another thatched hut and took some straw left for the cattle to feed the guard's horse.

"Sir, what is this…" Mrs. Lai, hearing voices, came out from her room and looked eagerly at the parcel the guard set down, itching to open it right away.

"Mother, hurry up, what's in the parcel?" Ye Shuzhen, who was inside the room, saw the guard leading a horse and holding a parcel and excitedly walked out.

"Mother, see what elder sister brought back?"

Ye Shuzhi also came out of her room. Normally, since she was soon to be married, she shouldn't have been seen by a man from outside.

Seeing the tall and handsome face of the guard leading the horse, she thought of her betrothed, who was short in stature. Although he was the son of a shop owner in town, he lacked good looks and height.

"Also, here is Mrs. Li's salary from last month, which the Madam asked the housekeeper to deliver to me," the guard added.

He then took a wallet out of his chest and put it on the table, aware of the stares of the entire family watching him.

The guard, a bachelor himself, couldn't help but blush when he saw the gazes of the two young ladies upon him, making his heart race even more.

Mrs. Lai quickly snatched the wallet and weighed it in her hand. Content, she tucked it into her bosom.

"Guard, why hasn't my wife come back?" Hongji was most concerned about his wife, who he had looked forward to seeing for a month, yet she hadn't returned.

"Big brother, I am just a guard of the Tang Mansion; how would I know about Mrs. Li's circumstances? All I know is she takes care of the Young Master, accompanying him every day," replied the guard, not understanding the implication in Hongji's eyes, and relayed what he knew.