vrcanaries Chapter 303 The Truth
Chapter 303 The Truth
His words conveyed his blessing for the harmony between the couple.
It was May 19th when Duke Huguo Luo Qifeng, Marquis of Anyang Xiao Wang and Earl of Dingxi Teng Xuan led a large army back from Yizhou in triumph, causing a sensation in the capital.
His Majesty specifically ordered the Crown Prince, Prince Huai and Prince Wei to welcome him at the west gate to show his respect for the hero.
In the afternoon, Fan Yanmu, accompanied by Xiao Zhixue, returned to the Anyang Marquis Mansion with the young son "Xiao Niu Bao" in his arms.
Xiao Wangze was still participating in the celebration banquet in the palace, while Xiao Zhixue and her family were quietly waiting at home, preparing to attend a belated reunion banquet together.
Thousands of miles away in Chengyang County, Kangzhou, Pan Luonan finished his busy official duties and went to a house in the west of the city with his entourage.
He rented this house specifically for his parents. He originally wanted them to live in the backyard of the county government office, but because of Pan Xiatong, Xue was quite dissatisfied with this.
In desperation, they had to place their parents here as a temporary residence.
Although Xue was a concubine's daughter, her father was the prefect of Linzhou, holding real power and having extensive connections in official circles. At present, Pan Luonan was unwilling to make enemies with him easily and could only endure the humiliation temporarily.
Thinking of his sister's reckless behavior, which had ruined a good hand of cards, Pan Luonan couldn't help feeling mixed emotions.
If the capital knew about his relationship with her, his career would face unpredictable changes.
The attendant knocked on the mottled wooden door, and an elderly servant, Uncle Pei, came in and greeted him with a big smile on his face, "Master, you're back. Please come in quickly."
Pan Luonan nodded gratefully and then walked into the courtyard.
This courtyard is not spacious. It has a typical single-entry residential layout, with three main rooms in the front and two side rooms on the east and west sides. It is large enough for a family of all ages and several servants to live in.
When I stepped into the house, I saw Pan Zhuoqing and Liang sitting in the main room, talking in low voices.
"Dad, Mom, how are you two doing lately?"
Pan Luonan asked with concern.
Pan Zhuoqing raised his head, and replied with a hint of worry in his eyes: "Your mother and I are still in good health, but your sister's condition is really worrying."
When Liang heard this, her eyes suddenly turned red and tears welled up in her eyes, about to fall.
Pan Luonan felt mixed emotions. It seemed that his sister's pain was difficult to heal completely. This endless delay was undoubtedly the most severe torture for his parents.
"How about I think of another way and send some people to the neighboring county to look for famous doctors to see if they can find a good prescription for my sister?"
he suggested.
Pan Zhuoqing waved his hand, his voice full of helplessness: "No need, don't waste your energy. On the way from Huzhou to Kangzhou, we have consulted more than a dozen famous doctors, and their opinions are almost the same. Perhaps this is her fate. If you do something wrong, you will always have to pay the price."
Liang finally couldn't help herself and choked up, "How could that child be so cruel? That's her own mother, how could she have the heart to do that to her?"
Pan Zhuoqing interrupted her crying with a stern tone: "Don't let your imagination run wild. How can you be sure that it was that child who did it? Doesn't she really know we exist?"
"I guess she may have known everything when she and her husband went to Huaiyuan County, Qingzhou Prefecture to take up their posts, but she just didn't bother to pay attention to us. That's why Xia Tong mistakenly believed that no one knew about the past, and she ended up being so bold as to hurt innocent people."
These words shocked both Liang and Pan Luonan.
Liang was shocked by the words she had inadvertently revealed, fearing that the child had learned the truth through some channels - she knew very well that the child was doing very well in the capital, not only had he recognized a stepmother, but this stepmother was also a princess of the royal family, and the network of relationships behind her was intricate.
Pan Luonan's face suddenly turned pale. As an official, he understood better than anyone how dangerous the competition between the powerful people in the capital was.
Once certain sensitive nerves are touched, the consequences will be disastrous.
Sensing their panic, Pan Zhuoqing tried to ease the atmosphere and said to Pan Luonan calmly: "As for your official position, don't worry too much. I think that the other party is probably well aware of the past affairs of our family. There has been no action for so many years, I am afraid that the other party has no intention of revenge. If they really wanted to take revenge, I am afraid that you would have lost your official hat long ago."
Pan Xiatong, who was in the west room, could vaguely hear the low voices of her family members' conversation. Her knuckles turned white as she clenched the bed sheets tightly, and her eyes were filled with tears and endless regret.
A dream last night seemed to pull her back to another time and space - if that could really be called a previous life.
In that life that has now passed, she enjoyed all the warmth and happiness in the world, and died with a smile on her face at the age of sixty.
The difference between this life and the other world is as huge as the difference between heaven and earth.
In her previous life, she was able to return to the embrace of her family, married the talented Xu Weiwen, raised a son together, and lived a happy life; Xu Weiwen had a successful career and lived a noble and prominent life in his later years, and the family enjoyed the happiness of family in peace and glory.
However, at this moment, everything has deviated from its original track...
The King of Chu ultimately failed to ascend the throne and was instead weakened by the imperial court. He eventually fell in a rebellion and the imperial power fell into the hands of the previous emperor's eldest son.
Once, she sent people to Xiaojia Village with great hope to welcome the child, but was heartbroken to find that the young life had already withered silently in a dilapidated temple. He was only thirteen years old and was hastily buried by the villagers.
Xiao Wang, the man who had left almost no trace in her life in her previous life, might have died on the battlefield along with his father-in-law during that turmoil.
After Xu Weiwen passed the imperial examination, he was directly sent to Yangzhou to serve as an official, instead of being unknown in Huaiyuan County of Qingzhou Prefecture as he is now.
In this life, she and Xiao Chenxiong never had any intersection again, and Xiao Yuanming, the man she despised, never set foot in her world again.
Everything became unrecognizable. Pan Xiatong was often in a trance, unable to distinguish between reality and dreams.
How she wished her dream could become reality, because in that illusory world, she could still have happiness and laughter.
However, the conversation between her parents and brother was like a cold shower on her head, making her realize clearly that those beautiful things were just illusions she had woven, and that the days she had left were probably numbered.
Every time she woke up from a dream, she would carefully recall every scene in the dream, and suddenly realized the biggest difference between the two worlds - the child.
It was because of him that the King of Chu was able to successfully counterattack and change his fate in this life.
At the same time, because of his existence, her husband was sent to Huaiyuan County, Qingzhou Prefecture, where the child's fiefdom was located. Perhaps from that moment on, he already knew everything about her.
He chose to remain silent and not acknowledge her. He just looked at her as a stranger and let her destroy her grandfather's expectations with her own hands.
Pan Xiatong couldn't help but tremble all over. This child was so cunning that he could watch her make a big mistake without saying a word, as if he was waiting for her to dig her own grave.