AFMUH Ch 116

Chapter 116: The Death of Yu Fengtang

 

As Qingyan’s belly grew day by day, his body became increasingly heavy, often feeling sore in the waist and back. After sitting or standing for a long time, he always needed to take a break. 

 

So, every time he returned home, Qiu Henian would always massage his waist and back from time to time.

 

At night, Qingyan couldn’t sleep well either. No matter how he lay down, he felt uncomfortable and had to toss and turn many times throughout the night. To help him sleep better at night, Qiu Henian would take him for a walk along the riverbank every evening after dinner, enjoying the scenery and chatting, calming his mind and allowing him to sleep more peacefully at night.

 

He also consulted Aunt Li on what to do. After thinking for a while, Aunt Li said, “I’ll sew a long pillow for Qingyan. When he lies on his side, he can place it under his belly to feel more comfortable.” 

 

She worked quickly and said she would have it ready the day after tomorrow.

 

Qingyan tried sleeping with the pillow at night and indeed felt much more comfortable. If he changed his sleeping position in the middle of the night, the person beside him would quietly move the pillow to the side he turned to, trying not to wake him. Still, he would inevitably need to get up two or three times during the night.

 

Qiu Henian felt sorry for him and specially had a wooden bed sent to Fragrant Melody Pavillion, placing it in the small room on the second floor so that Qingyan could lie down during the day as well.

 

…

 

When Little Bean was six and a half months old inside his tummy, the hawker who had been helping Qingyan with messages came to see him again. Yu Fengtang’s health was failing, and this time, it was true that he had only a few breaths left.

 

The hawker looked troubled and said, “I have some acquaintance with him. I can’t just watch him die with regret. That’s why I’ve come to ask you. Let him see him one last time, so he can close his eyes in peace.”

 

Qingyan didn’t reply immediately, just looked at him with a disappointed gaze and said, “I’ll think about it.”

 

The hawker, now relying on Fragrant Melody Pavillion for a living, dared not persuade further and could only sigh deeply before leaving.

 

That night, after returning home, Qingyan told Qiu Henian about it. 

 

Qiu Henian pondered and said, “If you don’t want to go, then don’t.”

 

Qingyan frowned and didn’t say anything.

 

Qiu Henian raised his hand and rubbed his brow with his thumb, saying, “If you want to go, I’ll accompany you tomorrow.”

 

Qingyan sighed and nodded.

 

Qingyan didn’t feel pity for Yu Fengtang. He had even less emotion for that younger brother and stepmother. He decided to go and see him one last time, fulfilling the original owner’s wish to cry and call for his parents at the last moment.

 

Qingyan wanted to give the original owner a sense of closure.

 

Moreover, in this era, filial piety was emphasized. Despite the harsh treatment from his biological father and stepmother, which was well known outside, if he didn’t show up now, it would probably lead to gossip in the future.

 

Qingyan didn’t care what others said about him, but he preferred to avoid unnecessary trouble.

 

So, the next day, when the carriage arrived in town, Qingyan didn’t enter Fragrant Melody Pavillion. Instead, he waited until everyone else had gotten off the carriage, and then Qiu Henian drove the carriage to the Yu family.

 

This was the first time Qingyan had stepped into the original owner’s house.

 

Although the Yu family claimed to be scholars, they were just an ordinary household. Their house was not in a good location in town, with narrow alleys where carriages couldn’t enter, so they had to park on the street outside the alley.

 

Qiu Henian gave a few copper coins to the nearby steamed bun shopkeeper to watch the carriage, and then he accompanied Qingyan into the alley.

 

The door of the Yu family’s house was tightly closed, with the red paint on it chipped off. The “Fu” (prosperity) characters and couplets pasted during the New Year had faded, and some places were already incomplete.

 

Qingyan glanced at Qiu Henian and knocked on the door.

 

After knocking for a while, there were slow footsteps, and the door creaked open from the inside. Yu Qingxi’s dispirited face appeared behind the door.

 

Seeing Qingyan, he paused for a moment, then glanced at Qiu Henian beside him, hesitated on the intact face, not daring to believe it, stayed for a moment before retracting his gaze.

 

A cold smile appeared on his face as he looked at his elder brother. 

 

“Now you know to come back? A married son is like water poured out, and this family property has nothing to do with you!”

 

Qingyan didn’t want to talk to this person at all. 

 

He replied, “Is there any family property left for you to divide? Isn’t this rundown house worth only a few coins?”

 

In the past, Qingyan’s words might not have been very convincing, but now that he was the owner of Fragrant Melody Pavillion, buying such a house on his own was completely feasible.

 

Yu Qingxi’s face showed anger, biting his teeth and staring at him for a while before snorting coldly and stepping aside to let them in.

 

Qiu Henian helped Qingyan across the threshold and entered the dilapidated courtyard that had obviously not been taken care of for a long time. Although the people were still there, the weeds grew like an old house abandoned for years.

 

Not far away, Zhou Yanliang stood at the door with a sullen face. Her original sharp appearance had now become more wrinkled at the corners of her eyes and mouth, adding a touch of bitterness.

 

She was dressed decently, but her head and hands were empty, without a single piece of jewelry.

 

In past seasons, Zhou Yanliang always bought the latest fashionable clothes and jewelry, dressing herself more delicately than young girls.

 

Nowadays, the most fashionable items in town were all hanging in Fragrant Melody Pavillion, and the owner of Fragrant Melody Pavillion was right in front of her.

 

Zhou Yanliang looked at Qiu Henian’s face, free of scars and handsome, and then saw his gentle and meticulous demeanor towards Qingyan, as well as the attire on his stepson, her heart filled with jealousy and hatred.

 

Yu Qingxi finished opening the door in silence and walked over to his mother.

 

Zhou Yanliang glanced at her own son, grinding her teeth in even more hatred.

 

Yu Qingxi hadn’t combed his hair, his robe was dirty, with dark circles under his eyes and a sallow complexion, looking like a sick person.

 

She had instructed her son early in the morning that Qingyan might come today, telling him to change into clean clothes and tidy himself up, not to embarrass her. 

 

But ever since she got involved with that wealthy man and thought about leaving home to remarry, her son no longer listened to her, always doing the opposite.

 

Yu Qingxi also did not consider that she had planned to live well herself, why wouldn’t she secretly look after him? They were mother and son, how could she mistreat her child?

 

But things turned sour, that wealthy man found someone else, dumped her, and Yu Qingxi had no way to vent her frustrations. Mother and son had almost become enemies.

 

The more Zhou Yanliang feared humiliation, the more Yu Qingxi wanted to humiliate her.

 

The entire Yu family, including her own son, Zhou Yanliang hated them all.

 

Qingyan didn’t care what she was thinking, nodded expressionlessly, and said, “Where is he?”

 

Zhou Yanliang’s chest heaved, suppressing her jealousy and hatred, she looked towards the door behind her, and said coldly, “Just waiting for you. Now that you’re here, that old man should finally be able to have his last breath.”

 

Qingyan ignored whatever she said, told Qiu Henian, “Let’s go inside,” and passed by the mother and son, entering the house.

 

Inside the house, the light was dim and the smell was unpleasant.

 

The smell of medicine mixed with a strong stench, almost nauseating.

 

Qiu Henian frowned and looked around. In the empty room, he found the only chair left and moved it a short distance from the bed, allowing Qingyan to sit down.

 

On the bed, a withered old man lay there, his eyes closed, with only a faint rise and fall of his chest.

 

The door behind him clicked open, Qiu Henian turned his head and glanced, it was Zhou Yanliang who came in. After thinking it over, she still didn’t trust Qingyan to talk alone with the old man, fearing that this dying old man would secretly leave something good for his son.

 

The family was now barely scraping by. Almost all the furniture and household items had been sold off. Even if the old man had only one or two taels of silver left, she had to scrape it into her own hands.

 

Qingyan sat for a while, cleared his throat, and said, “Are you still awake? I’m here.”

 

The person on the bed heard the movement, the eyeballs moved under the eyelids, but for a moment couldn’t open them. He only lifted his withered hand, as if calling Qingyan’s name.

 

Qingyan said, “The peddler said you wanted to see me one last time. Do you have something to say to me?”

 

Yu Fengtang’s gray, defeated face showed a pained expression, muddy tears streaming down his cheeks. 

 

He finally managed to speak, sounding like the leaking bellows, saying, “Qingyan, my son, father apologizes to you!”

 

Qingyan lowered his eyes, “Now that you’re dying, you remember that you owe it to Yu Qingxi.”

 

Yu Fengtang’s eyeballs moved rapidly, as if he was struggling to lift his heavy eyelids. He looked towards the person sitting in the chair, and suddenly widened his eyes, showing a shocked and terrified expression. 

 

He raised his finger towards Qingyan, his head leaving the pillow, roaring, “You… you’re not my son, you’re not Qingyan…!”

 

But before he could finish his words, his eyes widened, he couldn’t catch his breath, and his head thumped back onto the pillow. His body twitched a few times, then lay still.

 

Qiu Henian took a few steps forward, reached out to probe his neck, turned to look at Qingyan, and said in a deep voice, “He’s dead.”

 

Behind him, Zhou Yanliang burst into tears with a “wah,” but intermittently mixed with some crazed laughter.

 

Qingyan stood up from the chair, walked to the bedside and looked down for a while, then lifted his hand to close the pair of eyes that couldn’t be closed.

 

He murmured, “Yu Qingyan, in this household, finally someone could recognize that I’m not you.”

 

Qingyan sighed, Qiu Henian hugged his shoulders, and the two left the room.

 

Spoiler for the Next Chapter:

Qingyan gradually relaxed, sighed comfortably, lazily turned over, and playfully poked the man’s shoulder with his bare foot. His ankle was then held.

 

Qingyan blinked, saw the man glance at him, then turned his head, lips touching his ankle, kissing it lightly.