A life of two souls traveling through time

Chapter 208 Breaking the pot

That night, Li Yunye returned to Zhuo's house as usual under the escort of Anyun and Lao Zhou. Li Xingyuan also told him not to go to the shop for the next two days and to spend more time with old lady Zhuo.

Li Yunye was worried about the arranged marriage he couldn't get rid of, and his brother Muliang had to accompany his father to inspect the shops these two days and had no time to take care of him. So he was naturally eager to have two days of quiet time in Zhuo's mansion, not to mention that he was about to leave Beijing, so he really had to say goodbye to his aunt and grandmother.

After returning to the Zhuo Mansion, Li Yunye did not dare to cry to Old Madam Zhuo about his grievances. After all, he had previously deceived his uncle and grandmother by saying that he had already found a marriage in Jiangnan. Now that he thought about it, it was really karma. He could only swallow his lies since they had come true.

Upon learning that Li Yunye would leave Beijing for Jiangnan in two days, even though Old Madam Zhuo was reluctant, she understood that no matter how close the child was to her, his surname was Li after all, not Zhuo.

"It's the end of the year, it's time to go back. This is the first time you've been away for such a long time, your mother must miss you a lot." Seeing the reluctance and sadness in Li Yunye's eyes, Mrs. Zhuo hugged him in her arms with tears in her eyes to comfort him. She was happy in her heart, thinking that her love for him was not in vain.

"Aunt and grandmother, I will come back to see you next year." Li Yunye snuggled in Madam Zhuo's arms and shed tears reluctantly, but quickly raised his hand to wipe them away. He was afraid that his tears would also make his uncle and grandmother cry.

Madam Zhuo's embrace often gave Jiang Siyao the illusion that she was back to her childhood when she was hugged by her grandmother. Although it was an illusion, she was very attached to it.

"Well, your uncle and grandmother will be happy that you are so filial." Old Madam Zhuo patted Li Yunye on the back and smiled lovingly. She couldn't help but let the tears slide down from the corners of her eyes.

Jiang Siyao originally wanted to invite Madam Zhuo to visit Jiangnan, but she thought that the journey was long and bandits were rampant and extremely unsafe. In addition, the carriage was bumpy. After all, Madam Zhuo was old and could not stand such a long journey. It was only when she arrived here that she truly experienced the inconvenience of ancient transportation.

The next day, after Zhuo Yanzheng finished the morning court, Li Yunye also went to the study to say goodbye to his uncle in advance. Zhuo Yanzheng heard his mother mention yesterday that Li Yunye's father Li Xingyuan had come to Beijing, so he guessed that he was going back to the Li family in Jiangnan, so he was not too surprised, but simply gave a few instructions.

"Uncle, do you have anything for me to say to mother?" Li Yunye saw that his cousin seemed to be hesitant to speak, so he hesitated for a long time before finally asking.

I once heard my maternal grandmother talk about my mother's childhood, and I accidentally learned that my mother and my cousin were very close when they were young, but they stopped contacting each other after my mother got married. Later, my cousin passed the imperial examination and got married, but my cousin's mother was unlucky and died of illness not long after the marriage. My cousin never remarried and never even took a concubine.

In this story, Li Yunye also realized that his cousin from the Zhuo family was stunned when he first saw him, which made him vaguely guess that his cousin's feelings for his mother went beyond those of a sister and a brother. After all, in this feudal society, cousins ​​can marry each other, but this feeling has always been hidden in his heart and cannot be expressed. Li Yunye couldn't help but sigh that if his mother didn't have to marry his father for the family marriage, but got together with his cousin from the Zhuo family, perhaps her life would not be as miserable as it is now.

Li Yunye asked this question not because he hoped that his cousin would still have inappropriate thoughts about his mother, but because he couldn't help but ask out of curiosity, but then he began to regret it.

"No." Zhuo Yanzheng had a complicated expression at this moment. He was panicked because his worries were discovered, but Li Yunye's words also ignited his longing for his cousin. But then he returned to the loneliness of reality. Finally, he returned to his usual serious face and said in a muffled voice.

My cousin is already a married woman, the mistress of a famous Li family in Jiangnan, and he is now also the imperial censor of the dynasty. Their identities do not allow for any transgression, especially since my cousin is a woman, her reputation cannot be damaged in the slightest.

Li Yunye was relieved by his cousin's decisiveness. Fortunately, his cousin knew his limits.

After coming out of his cousin's study, Li Yunye went to the Liu Mansion next door. When Liu Jiangxi heard that Li Yunye came to say goodbye to him, he was surprised and asked the housekeeper to invite him in.

"The talented lady Liu is finally willing to see me?" After several months, Li Yunye finally saw Liu Jiangxi again and couldn't help but let out a helpless sigh.

"You are going back to Jiangnan anyway, so I won't have to bother you anymore in the future." Liu Jiangxi glanced at Li Yunye and pretended to be disgusted.

"Hey, I thought you treated me as a friend, but I didn't expect you to bother me so much. But please bear with me. I will leave Liangdu the day after tomorrow, and I won't have the chance to bother you in the future." Having known Liu Jiangxi for so long, Li Yunye naturally knew that she was a person with a hard mouth and a soft heart. If she really bothered him so much, she would have ignored him long ago. So he didn't expose Liu Jiangxi, but joked along with her words.

"What? You don't plan to come to see the old lady again in the future? The old lady loves you so much, but you turned out to be an ungrateful person." Liu Jiangxi glared at Li Yunye and deliberately became sarcastic.

"I can't beat such a talented woman in her words." Unexpectedly, Li Yunye was defeated at the beginning, and he quickly waved his hands and smiled.

"Why did you leave so suddenly?" Liu Jiangxi was too lazy to argue with him anymore, so he asked seriously.

"The New Year is approaching, and my father came to Liangdu to inspect shops, and he took me home to celebrate the New Year." Li Yunye also came and sat next to Liu Jiangxi, sighing softly.

"Why are you sighing when you are about to go home?" Liu Jiangxi asked curiously.

"Of course I can't bear to leave my aunt and grandmother. I'm afraid I'll have to wait a year before I can come back." Li Yunye sighed again dejectedly.

Liu Jiangxi didn't know how to respond. She just picked up the tea beside her in silence when she heard Li Yunye ask, "If your father finds a marriage for you that you don't want, what will you do?"

"Why? Has your family arranged a marriage for you?"

"I know you're smart, but can't you see through it without saying it?"

"If you don't like it, just don't agree."

"It's easy to say, but it's my parents' order and the matchmaker's words. Do I have the right to make the decision?"

"You have to fight for the right to make decisions on your own. If you don't even dare to resist, why should others take the initiative to give you the right to make decisions?"

Liu Jiangxi's words choked Jiang Siyao. As a modern person, she naturally knew that she had to resist injustice, but not everyone had the courage to resist. Not to mention that there were still many injustices in her modern society ruled by law, how could she resist Li Xingyuan's dictatorship and the Li family's family rules when she was powerless? Thinking of the Li family's inhumane family rules, Jiang Siyao felt a dull pain in her buttocks. She didn't have the courage to be beaten again.

After leaving Liu Mansion and returning to Zhuo's House, Li Yunye went back to his room dejectedly. Although the arranged marriage still troubled him, he no longer felt so suffocated after talking it out with Liu Jiangxi.

Later, he changed his mind and realized that it was impossible for him and Brother Mu Liang to be together in this life, and he couldn't resist Li Xingyuan, so he might as well give up. It didn't matter to him who he married, so he might as well just complete his mission.