[This couldn't be fake, could it?]
Liu Wan took the gold hairpin from her hand and put it away, afraid she might prick herself. "You haven't even grown any teeth yet!"
[Oh, I forgot.]
The little one lowered her head, looking bashful.
But what they did not know was this.
That afternoon, in the carriage returning to Jing'an Marquis Manor.
The old madam clutched Xie Jin'an's other arm, crying as she spoke. "Does your hand hurt? Quick, let Grandmother have a look. Oh dear! Now that Liu Wan's status has risen, she's grown even colder toward you. You're badly injured, and she won't even look after you."
Xie Jin'an pressed his lips together. "There's nothing she could do. The Ninth Prince is His Majesty's younger brother. Even His Majesty has to show him a great deal of deference. He isn't someone we can afford to offend."
"You're still speaking up for her? She's a useless woman who can't bear a son, yet she dares treat you this way! Liu Wan's status keeps rising. You can't let her have complete control of the Marquis's Residence, or won't you end up living off your wife?"
"Grandmother, you're being foolish. Wan'er receiving an imperial title means the Marquis's Residence still has a chance!" Xie Jin'an said, cradling his injured hand.
If Grandmother had not done those things, they would never have fallen so low.
"Jin'an, are you blaming Grandmother now? Don't forget, everything I did was for your son. If Liu Wan discovers that they're your son and your mistress, how do you think she'll deal with them?"
The old madam's legs were still trembling. After that visit to the palace, Liu Wan was no longer someone they could twist around their fingers.
Xie Jin'an's gaze froze.
Indeed, what would happen to Rou Rou and Huai Shan?
The old madam said, "Listen to Grandmother. Go to Golden Mountain Temple and bring your mother back. There isn't a daughter-in-law in the world who won't obey her mother-in-law."
Ever since his father had gone off to war, his mother had worried day and night. She had gone to Golden Mountain Temple to pray for blessings and had not returned home for years.
Now, his only option was to ask his mother to come back and take charge of the household.
By the time they returned to the Marquis's Residence, it was already dark.
The little one had been fussing earlier, but now she was fast asleep. A few days later, Xie Jin'an came to Liu Wan's room and said they should go together to bring Madam Li home.
Xie Jin'an's hand was wrapped in bandages and suspended from his neck. His expression was extremely unpleasant, and his words came out rather sharply.
Liu Wan did not argue with him. Madam Li was her mother-in-law, so she could not refuse.
[Mother, hungry...]
Hearing the little one's murmurs, Liu Wan asked Pan Chun to prepare a pot of cow's milk for her, then got ready and went out with him.
"If I go to fetch my mother looking like this, she's bound to be distressed. But I'll tell her this had nothing to do with you. Wan'er, we're husband and wife. Can we stop quarreling like this?"
Originally, he had thought Liu Wan was merely a woman who could manage a household and run shops.
Now that she had been made a Third-Rank Imperial Lady, the Marquis's Residence could not regain its standing without her.
He had stayed in Xu Rourou's room these past two days precisely to spare Liu Wan the trouble of looking after him.
Xie Jin'an considered himself a considerate husband. That was why he had deliberately found a chance to be alone with Liu Wan today and said those words.
[Well, would you look at that! Father brought this on himself, and now he's pinning it on Mother. Mother, this had nothing to do with you in the first place! Ugh, you stinking scumbag. You reek of rank milk...]
He must have been sleeping with his mistress.
"Ah... Ptooey..." Little Wanwan let out a milky burp, then spat out a mouthful of milk.
Xie Jin'an glanced at her, then looked back at Liu Wan. "Wan'er."
Liu Wan came back to herself. "When have I ever quarreled with you, husband? Besides, this had nothing to do with me to begin with."
Her cold expression and manner left Xie Jin'an feeling stifled.
She was always so aloof and restrained. She had never tried to please him, nor had she ever served him properly. Everything she did was so rigidly proper. How dull!
She was nothing like Xu Rourou, who appeared gentle but was uninhibited underneath.
Xu Rourou fawned over him and constantly praised him, giving him the satisfaction of feeling like a real man.
As for Liu Wan, heh, since she was so good at managing the household, all he needed was to keep her around.
Xie Jin'an reached out and clasped Liu Wan's hand. "Once we bring Mother back, you won't have to work so hard. Then we can spend more time talking heart to heart. Wan'er, shall I stay with you and our daughter tonight?"
[Ugh, how disgusting! He reeks of his mistress, yet he dares touch my spotless mother. Scumbag, back off, back off, back off!]
Little Wanwan kicked her legs, performing the classic move.
Liu Wan felt uncomfortable all over and immediately pulled her hand away.
In five years of marriage, he had touched her only twice. Her memories of the time she conceived Wanwan were hazy; recalling it made her ache all over.
But the first time, on their wedding night, her husband had only held and kissed her for a while before shuddering and saying he was finished. Then he had fallen sound asleep.
She had felt very little herself and assumed that was simply what marital intimacy was like.
Neither the old madam nor her mother-in-law had seen any blood on the sheets, however, and they had begun to look down on her.
Whenever she recalled it, Liu Wan blamed herself, not knowing where the problem lay. The entire family had repeatedly reproached her for being unable to bear children. For the sake of her husband's reputation, the old madam had even made her take medicine to nourish her body, waiting for her to give the Marquis's Residence new branches and leaves. Yet her husband had continued to neglect her.
"It makes no difference where you sleep, husband. You can also visit Wet Nurse Xu... Concubine Xu more often!"
After saying this, Liu Wan felt a wave of nausea wash over her.
At the mention of Xu Rourou, Xie Jin'an's expression darkened. "You're the one pushing me toward her."
She could not blame him.
Liu Wan pressed her lips together and said nothing, her expression indifferent.
The carriage soon reached Golden Mountain Temple. Although they had come to fetch her mother-in-law, Liu Wan also wanted to pray for Wanwan's safety, so she went off alone.
Madam Li was in the courtyard behind the guest rooms. Seeing her son arrive with his hand wrapped in white cloth, she pulled him into her arms in distress.
"Mother, I've missed you so much."
Breathing in Madam Li's scent, Xie Jin'an felt completely at ease.
He had never been apart from his mother growing up. Even before his marriage, whenever he could not sleep, she would sit beside his bed and fan him all night.
Sometimes he would wake to find his mother asleep beside his bed from exhaustion, and his heart would ache for her.
Liu Wan would never treat him that way.
Now that they had not seen each other for so long, he wanted his mother to spend more time with him.
Madam Li stroked his head, her already furrowed features full of distress. "Were you injured because of Liu Wan? How has she been looking after you?"
"She refused to come home with me. I stopped her at the palace gates, and the Ninth Prince's attendant beat me."
Xie Jin'an sounded rather aggrieved as he said this.
He had spent years being strong on his own out in the world. Now that he was with his mother, he no longer needed to put on a manly front.
Madam Li trembled with fury. "How dare she! Why did the Ninth Prince help her? What is their relationship?"
Xie Jin'an froze.
That was right. The Ninth Prince never meddled in other people's affairs. He was so arrogant that sometimes he did not even take the emperor seriously.
Let alone a mere woman.
Yet a man like that had actually helped Liu Wan teach him a lesson.
Could there be something between them...?
Before you continue