sbdcsierra Chapter 69 I Did Not Receive a Letter
Chapter 69 I Did Not Receive a Letter
The Ghost Festival (Zhongyuan Festival) falls on the 15th day of the seventh lunar month.
The Ghost Festival is a major day for ancestor worship. The entire Shengguo Duke's mansion was busy all day long. Even as darkness fell, the whole mansion was still busy with trivial matters such as setting out offerings, burning paper money, and releasing river lanterns in the evening.
On this day, Madam Wei, who had come to help with the wedding arrangements, also returned to the Lan family. Madam Lan was still ill, so the affairs of the Duke of Sheng's mansion fell to the Second Madam and Sheng Yunzhu, the legitimate daughter.
The second madam intended to train Sheng Yunjiao to manage the household and have her work by her side. However, Sheng Yunjiao became cross-eyed whenever she saw Sheng Yunzhu, constantly finding fault with her. The second madam was extremely troubled and had no choice but to let her go for the time being.
Sheng Yunjiao excitedly ran over to gossip with Lu Yangyang. It just so happened that on this kind of day, Lu Yangyang didn't have to go to the Crown Prince's class, so she had some rare free time.
The two of them spent the whole day enjoying all sorts of delicious food that Sheng Yunjiao had someone bring from the kitchen.
It wasn't until after dinner that Lu Yangyang finally sent Sheng Yunjiao, who was still reluctant to leave, out of the room.
As a result, less than fifteen minutes after Lu Yangyang saw Sheng Yunjiao off, Sheng Yunjiao came running back with her eyes shining and her voice blazing: "Yangyang, hurry, hurry, big brother, big brother is back!"
Lu Yangyang's eyelids twitched violently.
To be fair, she didn't really believe in ghosts or gods.
But why did this older brother, who died young in my dream, have to come back at the Ghost Festival of the Hungry Ghost Festival of all times?
Lu Yangyang was still in a daze when Sheng Yunjiao grabbed her arm and ran towards Lan's courtyard in a flash.
Sheng Junyao traveled a long way from the border to return because he received an urgent letter from Lady Lan. She was critically ill and wanted Sheng Junyao to come back to complete their marriage.
Sheng Junyao, weary from his journey, made it his first stop upon arriving home to visit Madam Lan.
“Mother!” Sheng Junyao knelt down in front of Madam Lan as soon as he entered the room, his eyes red.
He is nineteen years old this year and has not yet come of age, but he went to the battlefield at the age of fourteen and has been there for five years. In those five years, he has only returned once, three years ago.
In the Great Zhao Kingdom, men's marriages were usually arranged around the time of their coming-of-age ceremony, which signified adulthood, marriage, children, and establishing a career.
Sheng Junyao's marriage was not in a hurry, but he was far away on the border and it was very difficult for him to come back. So after several deliberations, it was arranged to be at the end of the year, just after the New Year, when he would have his coming-of-age ceremony and then return to the border.
But this unexpected incident occurred.
When Lan saw her beloved son, her eyes instantly welled up with tears.
These past few days, with Madam Wei taking care of her at home, she has been given two doses of medicine. One dose comes from the small kitchen, and the other is secretly delivered to her by someone sent by Madam Wei.
Perhaps it was because the medicine was effective, but after a few days, Lan's complexion had finally improved somewhat.
At least it doesn't look as withered and emaciated as it did a few days ago, like a wilted flower.
Lan had someone help her up, walked to Sheng Junyao's side, and, ignoring the dust and grime covering him, hugged him and burst into tears.
Sheng Junyao comforted his mother in a hoarse voice: "It is your unfilial son who has caused you suffering."
Granny Hui, who was standing to the side, was supporting Lan Shi and wiping away her tears with a handkerchief.
"It's good that you're back, Ayao. Seeing you, your mother is at ease. Even if I die, I can rest easy." Madam Lan helped Sheng Junyao up, looking at his travel-worn face and the stubble on his chin that he hadn't had time to tidy up, showing how rushed he had been on his journey.
"Mother, be careful what you say!" Sheng Junyao interrupted her, "Mother will be fine."
With a tender heart, Madam Lan gently wiped his face with a handkerchief, saying, "Silly child, now that you're back, of course your mother will be alright."
Looking at her son, Lan was genuinely happy.
In this mansion, her true reliance was not on her husband of twenty years, nor on anyone else, but on her eldest son. This boy had been protecting his mother since he was two or three years old and had just started speaking. Over the years, no matter what happened to Lady Lan, he was the only one she truly depended on.
When Lan saw him, she immediately felt reassured, as if all the recent events were no longer difficult. The sudden joy made her feel lighter.
She pulled Sheng Junyao down to sit and hurriedly told him everything that had happened recently. Ever since she learned of Lu Yangyang's existence, she had written to Sheng Junyao, but for some reason, she had never received a reply.
She worried that Sheng Junyao was too busy in the military camp to read the letter.
That's why she went to Duke Sheng that day, making a fuss about bringing the marriage forward, in order to use Duke Sheng's channels to send the letter over as soon as possible and get Sheng Junyao back.
Thankfully, the person is finally back.
She was exhausted and only spoke for a short while before handing the rest over to Granny Hui. She quickly told Sheng Junyao everything that had happened recently, including what she had overheard outside the Duke of Sheng's study that day.
As they spoke, Sheng Junyao's originally handsome face gradually turned extremely ugly.
“Mother, I haven’t received the letter.” Sheng Junyao’s brows furrowed.
Such a big thing happened at home, and he didn't even receive a letter.
Letters from the household are never lost.
The only reason he didn't receive it is that someone didn't want him to receive it.
Before the two could continue speaking, an announcement came from outside the door.
As soon as Sheng Junyao returned to the manor, he went straight to Yulan Pavilion. Naturally, many people saw him along the way. Judging by the time, those who had received the news should be arriving soon.
Hearing the commotion outside, Lan's expression instantly turned grim.
But then she smiled again, took Sheng Junyao's hand, and said gently and happily, "Come on, Mother will take you to see Yangyang, your younger sister. She is a very good girl."
Sheng Junyao nodded, got up and went out first. He didn't rush to see the guests, but waited at the door of the outer room for Lan Shi to come out after she had finished getting ready. Then he and Granny Hui helped her to the living room.
In just a short while, almost everyone had arrived. Even the Duke of Sheng and Madam Li, who had heard the news and were supposed to be waiting for Sheng Junyao to pay his respects, rushed over.
Clearly, they hadn't seen each other for several years and were eager to meet the heir of the Duke's mansion.
Sheng Junyao helped his mother sit down, but he didn't sit down himself. He glanced indifferently at the people crammed into the room.
His brow furrowed slightly.
Where is the younger sister that Mother mentioned?
Before his expression could relax, Duke Sheng and Madam Li entered the room one after the other.
Sheng Junyao hurriedly knelt down to pay his respects.
Although Madam Li was biased, she loved her eldest grandson very much. She hugged him and cried for a while before reluctantly letting go.
Duke Sheng nodded to his son and patted him on the shoulder, saying, "It's good that you're back."
Sheng Junyao stood up, about to greet the others, when Sheng Yunzhu threw herself into his arms.
"Waaah, big brother, you're back! I missed you so much..."
Sheng Junyao pulled her away from his arms with a stern face. "You're not a child anymore. Be mindful of your behavior."
Lu Yangyang and her companion, who had been dragged by Sheng Yunjiao to join in the fun, had just stood at the door when they heard this.