The Husky and His White Cat Shizun - Chap 258
“…!!”
“What?!”
Back then, when Duan Yihan came out with a pipa in her arms, the youths from the Five Tombs competed with each other. She sang countless songs — that peerless singing fairy was actually his mother?
“At that time, my mother met Nangong Yan by chance, who was the Ninth City’s Lord of Confucian Wind Sect. He knew some poems and songs, had a sweet mouth, and was also handsome. “Mo Ran paused.” My mother made a mistake and fell in love with this person. ”
Xue Meng couldn’t help but shake his head and murmur, “How could that be …”
“How could Nangong Yan refuse a beauty who threw herself at him?” Mo Ran said, “But after all, he had status and identity, so he didn’t dare to casually tell his real situation to Le Ling. So he lied to my mother and said that he was a businessman from Linyi who lived here. ”
“Well … at least they were in love and stayed together day and night. Didn’t your mother notice?”
Mo Ran sneered. “If she had noticed, there wouldn’t have been so many things later. Nangong Yan was very good at making up lies. Besides, he only lived in Xiangtan for a short period of time, so my mother didn’t have time to find out his background. Later, a letter came from Linyi. After Nangong Yan received the mysterious letter, he left Xiangtan in a hurry. ”
“Didn’t your mother ask where he was going?”
“He left in the middle of the night without saying goodbye to my mother. They were lovers for several months, but in the end, Nangong Yan only left a stack of silver leaves and a piece of paper with the words’ Don’t Miss’ written on it. ”
A female cultivator sighed and said, “Ay, the most difficult thing to find for these singers and courtesans of the Pear Garden is a sincere person. They’re really pitiful. ”
After sighing, she couldn’t help but ask curiously, “What happened later? Was your mother unwilling to be abandoned by her lover, so she asked someone to find him? ”
Mo Ran shook his head. “My mother was gentle and kind, but she was a bit timid. Even if she was abandoned, she would only swallow her bitterness and wouldn’t look for trouble. … But not long after, she found out that she was pregnant. ”
When Madam Wang heard this, she couldn’t help but let out an “ah”. Her eyes were full of sadness. She looked at Mo Ran, not knowing what to say.
“The Music Workshop was willing to keep her. But the premise was that she couldn’t give birth to the child. Women who have given birth won’t be so beautiful when they dance. They don’t do business. ”
Mo Ran’s eyes closed.
“My mother didn’t agree, so the Nanny in charge asked asked her to pay a large sum of money. Therefore, she gave all her savings, all her accessories, and even the embroidered shoes on her feet to the workshop. She earned her freedom and planned to go to Linyi to look for my father. ”
Madam Wang said softly, “She is a penniless woman, how could she walk from Xiangtan to Linyi?”
Mo Ran said, “Someone is helping her.”
…..
“Xunfeng Ruo.” Mo Ran said. “Sister Xunfeng knew that my mother left the Music Workshop and chased her out of the city. She gave all her money to my mother and told her that if she couldn’t find my father, she might as well come to Zuiyu Pavilion to find her. The two sisters could live a good life.”
Master Xuanjing sighed. “She had such a spirit of loyalty. I underestimated these weak women.”
Jiang Xi asked, “Then what happened? Did your mother find Nangong Yan? ”
Mo Ran was silent for a moment, then he sneered. “She found him. Although Nangong Yan’s identity and name were fake, my mother still found him effortlessly. ”
Someone said in surprise, “Huh? Is there such a heaven-defying ability? ”
“There’s no heaven-defying ability, it’s just a coincidence.”
Everyone looked at each other with suspicion. “How can there be such a coincidence? The City Lords of the Confucian Wind Sect rarely show themselves in public.”
“They really don’t show themselves …” Mo Ran’s face was gloomy. “However, the Confucian Wind Sect will hold a banquet for their wedding and children’s one-month birthday and receive congratulations on the city gate tower. Isn’t that so? ”
Everyone was stunned. “Nangong Yan received a letter. Was it to urge him to go back and get married?”
Someone else recalled. “Ah, I remember. Nangong Yan’s first wife was the daughter of a rich family. Could it be that he was forced to abandon the girl he was in love with and go back to marry that rich family’s daughter? ”
Mo Ran’s expression was extremely indifferent. “He wasn’t forced. He didn’t go back and get married. The mysterious letter he received was actually good news. It was the head of the Confucian Wind Sect who told him that his wife was about to give birth and asked him to go back and accompany her. ”
Even Xue Zhengyong, who had been silent, changed his expression. He said, “So when Nangong Yan went to Xiangtan, he was already a married man?!”
“Yes.” Mo Ran lowered his eyes. It was really difficult for him. Now that he was talking about this matter, his face didn’t have too much of a pained expression. He calmly said, “Nangong Yan’s wife was pregnant and her body wasn’t good. It was easy for her to miscarry, so he came out to relax. He met my mother and liked her. He lied that he had never married before to win my mother’s favor. ”
Someone was so angry that he stamped his feet. “He’s worse than a beast!”
“His wife was pregnant, but he ran out to play. He even had a child outside. Alas.”
“This Duan Yihan is really unlucky. Would Nangong Yan acknowledge her?”
The answer was self-evident. Everyone was excited and indignant. They looked at Mo Ran with a bit more pity. However, Mo Ran didn’t care about how others looked at him. He just continued to talk about his mother’s experience.
He had kept this secret for two lifetimes. This was the first time he spoke openly and sincerely. In addition to the pain, he also felt a bit relieved.
Mo Ran said, “At that time, there was a big banquet in Linyi to celebrate the birth of Lin ‘er. My mother came to the turret of the Ninth City and saw Nangong Yan holding his wife and child on the turret decorated with red ribbons. He greeted the people below and threw auspicious fruit cakes. After that, my mother … didn’t look for him again. At that time, she had used up all her money. She couldn’t even afford to pay for the passage back to Xiang. After half a year, she gave birth to me in an abandoned woodshed in Linyi. ”
Jiang Xi asked, “Then did you go back to Xiang Tan Zuiyu Building?”
Mo Ran shook his head. “When I was born, my body was very weak. I fell ill in less than a month. I couldn’t travel at all. In order to treat me, she begged all the doctors in the city. No one was willing to help her … She had no choice but to carry me. She found a way to enter the Confucian Wind Sect and found Nangong Yan. ”
That year, the weak mother appeared in front of her lover with a newborn baby who was as small as a kitten.
That man didn’t feel happy. He only felt endless shock, fear, and even anger.
He had a beautiful wife and child. His wife was the daughter of a famous and promising family. She gave birth to a chubby and cute son. The whole family was harmonious and happy. In his eyes, Duan Yihan was a piece of rat shit. She wanted to ruin his good reputation and ruin his family reunion.
She had bad intentions.
Why should he recognize them?
Afraid that she would make a big deal out of this, Nangong Yan gave her enough money to take the child and get out of the Confucian Wind Sect. Duan Yihan held on to her last hope and said with tears in her eyes, “The child hasn’t been named yet. Can you …”
He glared at her, his face as green as iron. “Get out! Hurry up and get out! This is not my child. Don’t be so shameless. Get out! ”
She was roughly pushed out of the door.
She didn’t have time to be sad. The baby in her arms was crying so weakly. His hands and feet were cold. He was curled up in her arms like a dying cat.
When she called him, he opened his dark eyes and looked at her blankly. He wasn’t naughty at all. He was very obedient and quiet.
She held back her tears and carried him to the medical center.
The doctor in the medical center shouted at her, “How many times have I told you? We are not Ji Shi Tang. How can we treat your child for free? If you don’t have money … ”
She hurriedly took out the stinky copper coins that Nangong Yan had given her. She was in a hurry for fear that others would frighten the baby in her arms.
Her eyes flashed with distress. She kept bowing her head and said, “Rich, doctor, rich. I beg you, please do a good deed and save my child. You see, he, he is still so young … ”
The medical center wasn’t completely without kindness. It was just that they were annoyed by this woman. The medicinal herbs used to treat children were not cheap, so they refused her so rudely. Since this woman was willing to pay enough money, their attitude became better.
Medicinal herbs and acupuncture.
If the illness was too serious, he had to live in the medical center. Mo Ran’s illness was sometimes good and sometimes bad. After a few months, he finally recovered. At this time, Duan Yihan didn’t have much money left. She thanked the doctor and left with the baby. Seeing that winter was coming, she was afraid that her baby would freeze again, so she went to get a small coat and a small quilt.
After doing this, her money was gone. She couldn’t go back to Xiang Tan. However, Duan Yihan sat in the abandoned woodshed and looked at the little guy who was chuckling at her with his finger in his mouth. She felt very happy and peaceful.
She had always been a person who was content with what she had.
“What should I call you?”
The baby babbled but didn’t know how to speak.
Duan Yihan made a fire and hugged his child by the fire pit to keep warm as he teased him.
When the child laughed, she laughed as well.
The fire flickered and burned. The house was remote and shabby, but because of this fire, she felt extremely warm. She rubbed his little face, making him kick his little feet and laugh out loud.
She thought for a while and said, “How about I call you Ran ‘er?”
Mo Ran sucked his finger and looked at her with his dark eyes.
Duan Yihan’s face seemed to be lonely for a moment, “I don’t know what your surname should be. You can’t be Nangong, but you can’t take Ah Niang’s surname. Ah Niang’s surname was given by the nanny in the music hall. If you follow me, it will be a bit strange … I’ll just call you Ran ‘er, okay?”
Mo Ran laughed and smacked his fingers. He didn’t nod or shake his head.
“Ran ‘er, when spring comes, we’ll go back to Xiang Tan.” Duan Yihan touched his soft hair, “Niang can play the pipa and dance. There’s a Miss Xun there. She’s Niang’s good sister. She must like you very much. You have to be good and learn to call her Yiniang as soon as possible … Oh, forget it. She has a bad temper. You should learn to call her Big Sister. When you see her, you have to say Big Sister Xun is good. Only then will you have candy to eat. Do you understand? ”
She held his soft and tender fingers and said gently, “Don’t worry.
“Ran ‘er, wait a little longer. Winter will be over soon. When spring comes, we’ll go home.”
However, this winter was still too long.
That year was a disaster year. The lower cultivation world was overrun with ghosts. Linyi was heavily fortified and ordinary people were forbidden to enter and leave. Therefore, Duan Yihan couldn’t leave.
She went to work in a shop to earn some money to support her family. However, there was no such thing as an airtight wall in the world. Someone revealed her husband’s romantic history to Nangong Yan’s wife. In short, not long after, the steamed bun shop that Duan Yihan was hired kicked her out for no reason.
From then on, Duan Yihan was ostracized. Unable to find a living in Linyi, she could only beg with her young son. There were a few times when she sang softly on the streets, while Nangong Yan was riding a horse in bright clothes. Behind him was a vast entourage, and behind him, he rode past in front of her.
He felt guilty and wanted to hide from her.
Actually, there was no need for him to do this. Although Duan Yihan was weak, she had her own pride. She only sang Xiangtan’s little song and didn’t even look at this man. She definitely wouldn’t cry to her former lover on the streets and ask why he was so fickle and untrustworthy.
He didn’t understand how proud this lute woman was.
“Look at her tear-stained face. Although her clothes are ragged, she has a kind appearance. Why do you look at me like that?”
Someone passed by her and casually threw her a copper coin.
She was like the beautiful Lady Yue Xian. She bowed and said softly, “Thank you, Master, for your kindness.”
The days passed like this. The lower cultivation world was in constant war. Linyi was a bystander, and the anti-theft wall was erected high.
This time, it was erected for five years.
Mo Ran was five years old.
One day, Nangong Yan quarreled with his wife. He was annoyed, so he wandered around Xi City. The weather was good that day. With his hands behind his back, he looked at the jewelry shops and pastry shops with disinterest. Under the big banyan tree, there were old men playing chess.
Linyi had always been a blessed land. So what if many people died in the lower cultivation world? They had been singing and dancing here for hundreds of years.
Nangong Yan walked over to watch the old men play chess.
He was in regular clothes, so no one could recognize him. He happily gave them pointers. In the end, those old men were so annoyed that they chased him away.
Nangong Yan was not happy. He walked a few steps forward and stood under a big tree. He looked at the golden embroidered birdcage hanging on the branches. The birdcage was letting out a clear chirp of the embroidered eyed bird.
Perhaps the sun was too good, making people feel comfortable. Nangong Yan stood under the tree and thought. Suddenly, he thought of the gentle girl in Xiangtan Restaurant five years ago.
He tilted his head and teased the bird, saying, “Hey, do you know how to sing Xiangqu ‘er?”
Of course, the bird didn’t know how to sing. It kept chirping.
Nangong Yan sighed as he hummed the tune that Duan Yi Han had sung countless times by his ears many years ago.
Suddenly, he heard a clear voice behind him. Someone was singing softly, “The wild clouds are low, the north wind is cold, the sky is full of ice and snow, the well bars are sealed.” The voice was like jade, tinkling.
He felt like a lifetime had passed. He suddenly turned around.
Because he had been deliberately avoiding her, he hadn’t seen her for a long time. At this moment, across the bustling downtown, he suddenly saw that slender and gentle woman again. Just like in the dreams that he didn’t dare to tell his wife for so many years.
He met her again.
Duan Yihan brought along a frail child as the mother and son stood by the side of the street. She lowered her eyes as she sang a little song that people couldn’t buy no matter how much money they had in the past, hoping to gain the pity of a nobleman and get some money for a meal.
She sang softly, “This road is in front of the mountain, behind the mountain, there are millions of pedestrians …”
Countless people came and went in front of her, but no one stopped for her.
Although the song was nice, it wasn’t a real thing. She wanted to sing it, so no one was willing to pay for her.
“… It’s easy to see a lover, but difficult to see a lover. Looking into the distance, the smoke and water of the river pass are cold.” Suddenly, a pair of gold-threaded shoes inlaid with emerald jade appeared in front of her eyes. She heard a man humming the song that she had not finished humming in a low voice. “Countless flying books have yet to arrive, the well has accumulated tears for you to see.”
Duan Yihan was stunned for a moment. Then, she slowly raised her eyes.
She saw him again.
He was still the same as he was five years ago, handsome, dignified, and extremely good-looking. He didn’t age at all. Time left no trace on his face.
Duan Yihan saw her own reflection in his eyes. Five years ago, she was a delicate young girl. Now, she had a face full of hardships. She was no longer beautiful and made people feel disgusted.
But the way Nangong Yan looked at her was somewhat affectionate.
After being married for so many years, his wife heard about his past. Although she didn’t dare to say it, she was very unhappy. She would throw a tantrum and put on airs. Their son was also very naughty. Today, he stood in front of Duan Yihan. Seeing her like this, his heart more or less gave birth to some guilt and pity.
Duan Yihan stopped singing. Her eyelids drooped and she didn’t sing.
“Mother?” Mo Ran was puzzled and turned to look at her.
Duan Yihan said, “Mother is tired today. Let’s go home.”
Mo Ran nodded obediently and smiled, “Then let’s go back and rest. I’ll think of something for dinner.”
Mother and son held hands and prepared to leave.
Nangong Yan called out to her, “You …”
His gaze fell on Mo Ran.
This child was thin and small. His clothes were tattered, but he was very sensible. His face was also very beautiful.
Nangong Yan suddenly realized that this was his own child.
He was his flesh and blood.
He reached out and patted Mo Ran’s head.
Mo Ran didn’t know who he was. He narrowed his eyes and let the man ruffle his black hair, “Oh …”
Nangong Yan remembered that year when Duan Yihan came to his residence with a kitten-like baby and begged him to save him.
At that time, she said, “He doesn’t have a name yet.”
“What’s your name?” Nangong Yan asked.
“Ran Er.”
“What’s your surname?”
“I don’t have a surname.”
Nangong Yan looked at Duan Yihan with a sour expression. He didn’t know why, but he said, “Why don’t you —”
Before he could finish, he suddenly saw a group of Confucian Wind Sect Daoists walking past the corner of the street.
Nangong Yan’s trance was interrupted.
He quivered and seemed to come back to reality.
He met Duan Yihan’s eyes again.
The pair of eyes that used to look at him with a smile were very dull now. There was no longer any dream of a young girl. Even when he wanted to recognize them just now, they were cold.
She had already seen through this man.
Nangong Yan looked a little embarrassed because of this, and also a little embarrassed. In order to hide his emotions, he coughed lightly and generously stuffed all the gold, silver, and treasures in his money bag into Mo Ran’s hands.
He patted Mo Ran’s head again, “Your mother sang very well. These gold, silver, and treasures should suit her.”
A slender hand took the money pouch from Mo Ran’s hand.
Duan Yihan only took out a copper coin from the bag and put it in the broken bowl in Mo Ran’s hands. Then, she handed all the heavy jewelry and money back to Nangong Yan.
She didn’t say much. She just gently and calmly bowed to him, just like any passerby who gave her money.
She politely said to him, “Thank you for your kindness, Master.”
Then, she turned around and left.
She was the Xiangtan Music Deity. She used to be the moon surrounded by stars, singing and dancing. When thousands of people emptied the streets for her, she was never proud. But now, her beautiful clothes had faded and her beauty had withered. She could only beg on the roadside, but she didn’t feel inferior.
It was also that day that Mo Ran became suspicious because of Duan Yihan’s subtle attitude. Later, after beating around the bush and asking in every possible way, he found out about his past.
“Mother told you all this because I don’t want to lie to you. But Ran’er, you have to remember, don’t be angry. “Duan Yihan said,” And don’t ask for anything from him. ”
As she said this, she poked Mo Ran’s little head.
“When the disaster in the cultivation world calms down and Linyi allows ordinary people to come and go, we’ll go back to Xiangtan.”
Mo Ran was quiet for a long time. Then, he nodded, “I won’t ask for anything from him. Mother and I will go back to Xiangtan.”
Duan Yihan smiled and said, “I don’t know if Little Sister Xun still recognizes me. I don’t look good anymore.”
Mo Ran was very anxious, “Mother, you look good.”
“Hmm?”
“Mother, you look the best.”
Duan Yihan smiled even more brightly. Between her eyebrows, she really did recover the charm of the past. She teased him, “You have such a sweet mouth. In the future, whoever marries you, you have to coax them well.”
Mo Ran was a little embarrassed. He pursed his lips, but after a while, he still revealed his sharp baby teeth.
“When I grow up, I want to find a wife who’s like a goddess. Then we can stay together by mother’s side.”
“Aiya, you’re dreaming. Who’s going to marry you?”
The mother and son laughed and joked. The bonfire in the woodshed crackled. It was very warm. It was as if every day in the future would continue to pass peacefully like this. Fire and night gave the poor an illusory comfort. Therefore, at that time, none of them expected that in fact, Duan Yihan’s days were numbered.
“It was in the autumn when I was five years old,” Mo Ran said, “right after the Mid-Autumn Festival. Because the Confucian Wind Sect had been closed to the outside world for a long time, Linyi’s food supply was already insufficient. So they adjusted the price of the goods. In the end, it was just to let the poor below control their appetite and not to fight for food with the rich. ”
Xue Zhengyong had all sorts of feelings when he heard this. His heart was in a mess. But when Mo Ran said this, he still thought about it in a daze. Then, he nodded.
“Yes, I remember that when the price was adjusted, the starving people in Linyi rebelled. Only then did the Confucian Wind Sect finally lower the price. It lasted for about … about a year? ”
Jiang Xi said, “I remember it was half a year.”
Mo Ran closed his eyes and said, “It wasn’t that long. It was one month and five days. It only lasted for a short thirty-five days. “
