That night, the man indeed behaved himself properly, not even taking care of himself. Qi Yue was truly exhausted and slept soundly until dawn.
When the sumptuous breakfast was served, she ate refreshingly while listening to the man sitting across from her, who clearly had dark circles under his eyes from a sleepless night.
“…Mother said you were tired, so you don’t need to observe those courtesies. As for what happened that day, as long as you know you were wrong in your heart, it’s over,” Chang Yuncheng said.
Qi Yue looked at him suspiciously. Madam Xie would say such words? That would be seeing ghosts.
“Really?” she asked.
Chang Yuncheng nodded without blushing or stammering. Never mind her—even he himself wasn’t being acknowledged by Madam Xie now.
“Actually, it’s nothing. That day it was indeed my fault for falling asleep. I don’t know how I just fell asleep,” Qi Yue smiled. “Since she’s your mother, naturally I should be more respectful. Don’t worry, I won’t stoop to her level.”
Chang Yuncheng’s face darkened. Why did these words sound so awkward…
However, it seemed Fan Yilin was right again. As soon as he mentioned that Madam Xie was being considerate of her, this woman had backed down a step…
After repeatedly reassuring Qi Yue, Chang Yuncheng couldn’t wait to rush to Madam Xie’s place to test his theory.
After kneeling for three consecutive days, Madam Xie finally felt sorry for her son. Seeing Chang Yuncheng kneeling outside at the drop of a hat all day long, she finally called him in.
“…I know Mother feels sorry for me and fears I’ll be wronged. I just want Mother to know I’m fine, that I haven’t been wronged, so I had Yueniang do those things to let Mother see that woman doesn’t dare to act up in front of me…” Chang Yuncheng said, half-kneeling before Madam Xie.
These words made Madam Xie feel comfortable.
As long as it wasn’t for that woman…
“However, what do you plan to do about that woman?” Madam Xie asked with a stern face.
“Whatever Mother says to do, that’s what I’ll do,” Chang Yuncheng replied. “If Mother doesn’t want to see her, then you don’t have to see her.”
Madam Xie nodded, but felt something wasn’t quite right.
Wouldn’t that be letting that woman off too easily?
However, giving her the cold shoulder would be the greatest torture for her, especially once there was a new daughter-in-law. With that comparison, she wouldn’t have good days in this household…
Thinking of this, Madam Xie smiled.
Chang Yuncheng breathed a sigh of relief, his hands hanging at his sides clenched into fists.
Good, if the two of them didn’t meet, surely they could live in peace.
“…Ailisha threw all the clothes in her hands out… immediately eleven handsome princes appeared, but unfortunately the youngest prince still had one arm as a swan’s wing…”
“…I can speak now, I am innocent… Ailisha said loudly…”
“…Fresh red roses grew from the firewood, the king walked over to pick these roses and personally put them on Ailisha…”
“Alright, time to sleep,” Qi Yue reached out and patted Yan’er’s head, smiling. “Story time is over.”
Yan’er looked at Qi Yue with satisfaction and obediently closed her eyes.
Chang Chunlan, standing nearby, lowered her head and wiped away tears.
“Thank you for taking the trouble,” she said, walking Qi Yue out.
“Elder Sister, you’re speaking like an outsider again,” Qi Yue smiled, then sighed and took Chang Chunlan’s hand. “That day you went to kneel at Mother’s place? Saying it was because of you that I couldn’t fulfill my duties as a daughter-in-law?”
The day Yan’er had just finished surgery, Chang Chunlan said she was going back to get something, and “getting something” took half a day. When she returned, she was limping. Sharp-eyed Que Zhi noticed and inquired, discovering that she had gone to kneel in Madam Xie’s courtyard for half a day.
Chang Chunlan lowered her head and wiped away tears.
“It was because of me to begin with…” she choked up.
“Elder Sister, don’t be silly. It wasn’t because of you,” Qi Yue smiled, patting her shoulder. “Don’t overthink it.”
Concubine said the same thing, and she said the same thing. Chang Chunlan sighed—only those who truly cared about her would comfort her this way.
When Chang Yuncheng returned from his routine visit to pay respects and dine with Madam Xie, he first asked the maid what Qi Yue had eaten and how much.
“Oh my, stop being such a busybody,” Qi Yue laughed from inside the room. “I’m not a masochist—how could I bear to mistreat myself?”
Chang Yuncheng entered sheepishly and saw Qi Yue sitting on the kang, fiddling with something strange.
“What’s this?” he asked.
“A wind chime,” Qi Yue said, lifting it up. The small bell-like objects strung on the rope made clear, crisp sounds.
Women love these little trinkets…
Chang Yuncheng immediately began thinking about where he’d seen similar things at whose house, so he could go ask for one.
“This is for Yan’er to practice speaking,” Qi Yue said, handing it to Chang Yuncheng.
Chang Yuncheng took it, puzzled. Qi Yue stood to one side and blew on the wind chime, making it spin and produce clear, crisp sounds.
“Practice speaking?” Chang Yuncheng asked, confused. “Speaking to the wind chime? Isn’t that silly?”
Qi Yue laughed heartily.
“You’re the silly one,” she stood up and said. “It’s blowing on the wind chime to practice breathing.”
“Breathing? That’s even sillier,” Chang Yuncheng said, trying to blow on it himself.
The wind chime spun and chimed melodiously.
He couldn’t help but smile. Here, Qi Yue also blew on it, and in the candlelight, the woman’s beautiful face bloomed like a flower.