CH 96.1

Hong Fei was about to assist Xiaobao, but he pushed her away.

Yet when he tried to walk on his own, his steps were crooked and unsteady. After taking only two steps, he was unable to support himself so Hong Fei hurriedly stepped forward to stabilize him.

He was still too young and had to wait some more!

As Xiaobao thought this in his heart, he wore a dejected expression. That little look of his made everyone in the room laugh and Yaoniang also laughed along.

Only when she wasn’t careful enough did she slip up, showing a look of despondency.

His mother was not happy.

Xiaobao quietly glanced at Yaoniang, thinking this in his heart.

Did Consort Jin commit a wrong?

To be honest, according to the norms of society, no she did not.

As the mistress of Jin Wang Manor, she paid great attention to each and every one of her words and actions. She was indeed the legal wife of Jin Wang and there was nothing people could pick on with her words. But as the person listening to her speech, it was inevitable to feel discomfort.

Xiaobao understood this very well but he still felt a sense of disgust towards Consort Jin in his heart.

The room was lively, then Jin Wang walked in from outside.

The giggling maids hurriedly stopped their laughter and bowed to salute. Yaoniang also greeted him but didn’t get off the Kang, feeling a bit lazy.

“What’s the matter?”

With Fucheng’s assistance, Jin Wang took off his fur cloak as well as his black fox fur hat. Hong Die and Hong Chou brought over a basin of hot water and a towel for Jin Wang to wipe his face and hands. Jin Wang then sat down on the Kang and had people take off his leather boots and replace them with indoor cloth shoes.

“It’s nothing. I’m watching Xiaobao try to walk.”

Jin Wang didn’t say anything.

When it was almost noon, Fucheng ordered the meal to be brought up.

After eating and sitting around for a while, Yaoniang took Xiaobao to take a nap. Then Jin Wang called for Yu Chan.

Yu Chan told him everything about the earlier conversation with Consort Jin and Jin Wang sneered.

Fucheng also had a complicated expression, standing next to them.

Consort Jin still hadn’t changed this problem of hers. She’s considerate from all aspects yet she always misses one thing.

Actually, it couldn’t be said that what she did was wrong. As the mistress of Jin Wang Manor, it was normal for her to make a show of her status and power. But the key point that she failed to consider was that people’s hearts weren’t impartial. When someone is biased, they will naturally find her words unpleasant to the ears.

Jin Wang didn’t speak but went to the bedroom.

On the bed, the mother and son were already asleep. Yaoniang was lying on the outside while Xiaobao was lying on the inside. 

Jin Wang watched the pair for a while, then laid down to join them.

Widow Feng had grown much older since the incident of Feng Heizi.

But since she could raise her son on her own as a widow, it showed that she wasn’t a weak-minded person. Widow Feng was dispirited for a few days before she cheered herself up. Apart from going out to work to make a living, her favourite thing to do was to sit by the window, listening to the hustle and bustle outside. Maybe one day her son would open the door and come back. 

Even she knew that this was an extravagant hope. He had committed murder, then became a deserter, so unless an amnesty was granted, Feng Heizi would never be able to return. Widow Feng was now gazing at the stars and the moon, hoping that something joyful would happen to the imperial family. Only then would the emperor would grant amnesty to the entire country so that the mother and son, can finally reunite.

Nowadays, no one would come to her house. Even before, Widow Feng wasn’t a person with many friends, so not many would come to visit her anyway. Once word spread of Feng Heizi being a murderer and a deserter, no one came to her door anymore. But today, someone knocked on the door.

Widow Feng was still sitting in the room, thinking that she was having auditory hallucinations. It wasn’t until the knock on the door sounded again that she hurriedly got up to open the door.

A man was standing outside the door, dressed in plain clothes, holding a bundle in his hands.

“You are?”

“Are you Mrs. Feng? I’m Heizi’s friend.”

“You’re my son’s friend? Have you heard from my son…” After a few words, Widow Feng didn’t dare to continue and pulled the man inside.

“Is my son okay? Where is he now? Is he fed and dressed warmly…” After closing the door, Widow Feng started shooting many questions nonstop.

The man’s face was a bit embarrassed. After she finished speaking, he said, “Auntie, I don’t know where Heizi is now, and I haven’t seen him. I was entrusted by others to bring something over.” Seeming to realize he had said the wrong thing, he hurriedly said, “It’s not a something, it’s, it’s…”

As he stuttered, he lifted the cloth in his hand, revealing a chubby female baby.

The child wasn’t big and seemed to be around ten months old. She was fast asleep.

“This, this is?”

“Heizi’s old friend asked me to bring her. I can’t say who it is. The baby is also weaned, and the baby’s mother can’t raise the child because of certain reasons, so she asked me to bring her to you.”

“This baby is Heizi’s child?” 

The man nodded.

Widow Feng was utterly shocked, “How could it be, Heizi clearly…”

“Heizi also knew about the existence of this baby. In the beginning, he didn’t plan to have her but the pregnancy was already too far along when he found out. His original plan was to marry the daughter of the Yao Family, then bring this baby back, but you’re also aware…”

Widow Feng nodded as she listened. Since Heizi was arrested, this matter was shelved until they couldn’t afford to raise the child anymore then sent her here. No wonder she saw her son was always rushing about. When she’d asked what he was doing, he said that he was busy making money outside. It turned out that not only did he want to marry Yao Yan’er but because he also needed to provide for this baby.

Widow Feng didn’t overthink it. She knew that the baby’s mother was definitely not the daughter of a normal family, it was more likely that she was a whore her son hooked up with in the brothel. In the past, Widow Feng never bothered with Feng Heizi’s affairs. Now that something big happened, she finally realized that her son had done so many things.

She looked at the baby girl and the more she looked, the more she felt the child resembled her son and even a bit like herself. Her son wasn’t stupid, so there’s no way he would’ve acknowledged a random baby.

Widow Feng took the child.

Yao Yan’er wasn’t anything decent and didn’t even leave behind a child for the Feng Family. Fortunately, there was now a baby girl. Although she was a girl, she would still have something to remember by if Heizi didn’t… if he didn’t come back. She will slowly raise the child then recruit a live-in son-in-law so the Feng Family won’t end with her.

In this brief moment, many thoughts flew across Widow Feng’s mind. Yet when she raised her head, she saw that the man was gone. There was a bag on the ground next to her. When she opened it, she saw that it was all baby clothing.

“This man is really… Running away so fast, is he afraid that I wouldn’t want the child?” 

Carrying the child in one hand and holding the bag in the other, she walked into an empty bedroom.

After entering, she sat down and touched the infant’s small face. “Your mother’s a nice person. It’s been hard for her.”

“From now on, grandma will support you. We’ll wait for your father’s return together. I just don’t know whether grandma can live for that long…”