nucmednet Chapter 275 An Unusual Mother Zhou
Chapter 275 An Unusual Mother Zhou
Zhou Qingqi went to the General's Mansion and returned with a heavy heart.
"Brother, what's wrong? Is Uncle not going to take care of things?"
"No, Uncle is very angry and is going to teach Father a lesson. But Uncle told us to tell Mother about this directly." Zhou Qingqi was worried because of this. He really didn't understand what his uncle meant. His uncle should know how much his mother loved his father.
"Ah, did Uncle say anything else?" Zhou Qingran was also a little puzzled.
“My uncle told us to just say it directly: Mother is not that fragile; she is the eldest daughter of the General’s Mansion.”
"How about we go and test Mother first?" Zhou Qingran suggested.
"That's fine."
The next day, after Zhou's father left, the two went directly to Zhou's mother's courtyard.
"Why did you two siblings come together?" Zhou's mother said with a smile.
"Mother, my brother and I have come to have dinner with you. We haven't eaten together for several days," Zhou Qingran replied with a smile.
"Okay, then Mother will have the dishes served right away." Mother Zhou was quite happy.
While Zhou's mother was instructing the maid, Zhou Qingran winked at Zhou Qingqi.
Zhou Qingqi understood what his sister meant and pulled his mother to sit down: "Mother, don't bother, I've already had someone prepare it."
"Oh, so you've come prepared?" Zhou's mother stopped what she was doing and sat down.
"You all go down first, we need to talk to my mother for a while." Zhou Qingqi dismissed the servants in the room.
"Yes, young master."
"What's going on? What's the matter that requires everyone to leave?"
"Mother, where did my father go?"
"Your father went to the Court of State Ceremonial," Zhou's mother said casually.
The two siblings exchanged a knowing glance; their father had gone to see his mistress again.
"Mother, do you think the Court of State Ceremonial is really that busy? Why is Father always so busy and never home?" Zhou Qingran asked, feigning doubt.
"This must be very busy, how come Mother doesn't even know?"
"Mother, do you think Father might be lying to us? He might have other things to do. I've never seen any other adult as busy as him." Zhou Qingran originally wanted to test her mother.
But as soon as she finished speaking, Zhou's mother's smiling face changed.
"What do you know?" Zhou's mother asked calmly, which surprised the brother and sister.
"Mother, what are you saying? I'm just a little curious." Zhou Qingran quickly waved her hand.
"You don't need to hide it from me anymore, I actually knew all along."
"What? Mother, you already knew." The two siblings were even more astonished.
“As your husband, how could I not know that your father was acting strangely? I had my suspicions when he often went out under the pretext of being busy with official business. Then, one time when he was drunk and talking nonsense, I found out that he was having an affair.” There was not a trace of sadness in Zhou’s mother’s eyes, as if she were talking about someone else and it had nothing to do with her.
"Mother, what's wrong with you?" Zhou Qingran suddenly felt very sorry for her mother. She knew how long her mother had known, and how sad she was when she first found out, but she had to act as usual and not let others notice anything unusual.
"Don't be sad, I've already thought this through. I'm not sad. Before, I only thought you would be upset, so I pretended to love your father very much. Now that you know, I don't need to pretend anymore. I have enough for you two," Zhou's mother said with a smile.
"Mother, we will always stand by your side."
"Yes, you are all my good children." Zhou's mother stopped Zhou Qingran, lovingly patting her daughter's head, feeling very satisfied.
The atmosphere among the mother and her two children was harmonious; the mother was loving, and the children were filial.
After a while, Zhou's mother asked, "How did you know?"
Zhou Qingran recounted what she had seen to her mother.
"So the children are already this big. That woman is really bold. Don't worry, I will never let those two illegitimate children threaten your position."
She's no longer the young heiress obsessed with love she once was. Now, her children are her only bottom line. If anyone dares to lay a finger on her children, she'll resort to any means necessary.
"Mother, we are fine. As long as you are happy, that's all that matters. Those two sons of the outer princes can't threaten us."
“But Mother, my father will probably bring that mother and her two children back soon. You should prepare in advance. I think that woman is quite ambitious. If she enters the family, I’m afraid she will hurt you.” Zhou Qingran expressed her concerns.
"Yes, Mother understands. Mother won't let her bully me."
Just as they expected, only two days later, Zhou's father arrived with three other people.
However, because they were somewhat prepared, and under pressure from the General's Mansion and strong obstruction from the Zhou family elders, things did not go as they wished.
Aunt Liu was never allowed into the mansion and was sent back to Hundred Flowers Lane, where she would forever remain a concubine.
As for Zhou Qinglan and her brother, since they were of the Zhou family bloodline, they stayed in the mansion, but they were not included in the family genealogy, making their status quite awkward.
Over the years, the entire Zhou family mansion has long been in the hands of Zhou's mother. Those people look down on Zhou Qinglan and her brother. Although they don't abuse or bully them, they are not very kind to them either.
The two siblings were somewhat regretful, thinking that life would have been better back in Baihua Lane, and wanted to complain to their father.
However, Zhou's father was beaten and injured by the clan elder that day, and then he was severely beaten by the general. He is still lying in bed and cannot get up.
When he went to ask for leave, the Zhou Emperor found out. The Zhou Emperor, on the grounds that his father's moral conduct was flawed, ordered him to stay at home and reflect on his actions. He was to return to court only after he had fully reflected on his conduct.
However, the matter was so embarrassing that it was not spread.
Mr. Zhou is now filled with regret. Whenever he sees Zhou Qinglan and her two children, he thinks that all of this was caused by them, and he doesn't want to see them at all.
Oh, the siblings have changed their names now, dropping the character "Qing" from the middle, and are now called Zhou Yi and Zhou Lan.
"Is Uncle Zhou still injured?" Xi Ningzhi was shocked after hearing this, not expecting that so many things had happened to the Zhou family.
"Yeah, he's still lying down and can't get up." Zhou Qingran was clearly in a good mood when she talked about her father's injury, as she felt relieved.
"Is Aunt Zhou alright?" Xi Ningzhi had a good impression of Zhou's gentle mother and couldn't help but feel a little worried.
"My mother is doing very well now. She spends her days playing chess and playing the zither with the servants in the mansion. She's so comfortable." Her mother didn't care about Zhou's father's injuries; she just sent people to take care of him.
"Aunt Zhou is very understanding," Xi Ningzhi praised, showing her admiration for Zhou's mother.
"Yes, I didn't expect it either. I realized I've never really understood my mother." Xi Ningzhi smiled. She also felt that her mother was fine the way she was, as long as she was happy.