Chapter 544 - 544 Daughter realizes her mistake_1

Upon hearing the unexpected visit of King Yu’s concubine, Madam Yun was taken aback.

After last time’s incident, King Yu’s concubine cut off any connection with them. She was surprised why the concubine suddenly wished to visit the old duke and madam now.

“Where is she now?” Madam Yun asked.

“She’s at Shou’an Hall, currently chatting with the old madam.” Cuiping replied.

Madam Yun frowned.

Cuiping continued, “She also sent a message just now, saying she’ll come to visit Madam soon.”

“Tell her I’m a bit tired today and it’s inconvenient to see her.” Madam Yun said.

“As you wish.”

After that, Madam Yun went back to the inner room.

About an hour later, Wei Qingwan arrived outside Anxin Pavilion. Cuiping informed Madam Yun that she was resting.

Wei Qingwan said, “Please tell Madam, I will wait outside. Once she’s had enough rest, I’ll pay my respects.”

She knew Madam Yun’s schedule well; Madam was not going to rest at this lunch hour.

“Your Highness, it is freezing cold outside. Considering your invaluable status, it would be better if you wait in your former room, where a stove is already lit.” Cuiping suggested.

“No need to worry, I’ll wait for my mother here,” Wei Qingwan insisted.

Left with no choice, Cuiping went back and relayed Wei Qingwan’s words to Madame Yun.

After hearing this, Madam Yun didn’t say anything but closed her eyes pretending to rest.

After she attended to her for a while, Madam Yun opened her eyes again.

“You go outside and check.”

“Yes.”

Cuiping went to the courtyard gate and saw that Wei Qingwan was indeed still there.

So, Cuiping went back and reported to Madam Yun.

Madam Yun frowned, “Is she trying to force me to see her with this tactic?”

“Do you wish for me to let the young lady come in?” Cuiping asked.

“No.” After some thought, Madame Yun said, “If she wants to stand, let her continue standing.”

After waiting another hour, Madame Yun asked Cuiping to check outside again. To her surprise, Wei Qingwan was still standing at the gate.

“Just let her in,” Madam Yun conceded.

“Yes.”

Following the instruction, Cuiping invited Wei Qingwan inside.

The moment Wei Qingwan entered and saw Madam Yun, she knelt down.

“Mother,I’m sorry for my mistake.”

“There’s no need for such a formal apology, you are the King’s concubine, a member of the royal family. I can’t accept your reverence, it might shorten my life!” Madam Yun said cold-heartedly.

“Mother, I know you’re angry at me. You’re upset because I’ve become close to my aunt and because I didn’t listen to you…”

“The King’s concubine is very independent now. You decide whom to stay close to. It’s not necessary to explain it to me. I am not your biological mother anyway.” Madam Yun said.

“Mother, though you’re not my biological mother, you’ve been kinder to me than a real mother! How could I forget your kindness? This time, it’s my mistake. The scars on my back confused me. I solely focused on how not to be despised by the prince after entering King Yu Residence, and lost sight of who was really kind to me and who was pretending.”

As she spoke, tears welled up in Wei Qingwan’s eyes and trickled down her fair cheeks.

Madam Yun twitched slightly, and her stern expression softened a bit.

Wei Qingwan continued, “Mother, do you remember when I accidentally broke my brother’s brush as a child? You held me and said that making mistakes was not scary, but owning up to them was.”

“This time, I made a mistake. I’m not asking for your forgiveness, but I couldn’t feel at ease if I didn’t apologize to you.”

Wei Qingwan’s words reminded Madam Yun of the past, carrying an image of her 5-year-old daughter, weeping profusely for mistakenly breaking her brother’s brush.

She comforted her and made her apologize to her brother. However, just as she was about to say sorry, she got so nervous she immediately began to cry.

Madam Yun’s gaze upon Wei Qingwan, who was kneeling in front of her, stirred up a profound pang of melancholy in her heart.

The question was, how important was the fact of being biologically related? Over a decade of maternal love, could it be erased by simply saying, ‘we are not biologically related’?

Gazing into Wei QIngwan’s tear-brimmed eyes, Madam Yun couldn’t hold back her feelings anymore.

“You need to correct your mistake, just saying it is not enough.”

With these words from Madam Yun, a weight was lifted from Wei Qingwan’s heart.

“Mother!” Wei Qingwan stood up and rushed into Madam Yun’s arms.

Tears welled up in Madam Yun’s eyes.

###

After returning from the Loyal and Righteous Duke Residence, Wei Qingwan fell ill due to a cold.

Cuihe attended her and complained, “Look at you, Miss. You insisted on standing outside Madam’s courtyard. Now you’re sick.”

“You don’t understand, this illness is worth it.” Weak and pale, Wei Qingwan’s face still expressed satisfaction and relief.

“Why is that?” Cuihe asked.

“Although my elder brother hates me and wants to harm me, as long as my mother acknowledges me, I am the daughter of the Loyal and Righteous Duke Residence. I have a father who is known for his war heroics and an elder brother who is a top scholar. Life will not be hard for me here in the backyard of King Yu’s residence.”

Wei Qingwan had figured this out over the past few days.

Appearance and scars are not the keys to winning favour; the key lies in her maternal family.

Therefore, she was really wrong before, she didn’t figure out what she should hold on to tightly.

“But Miss, you shouldn’t ruin your health. Now, being sick, you can’t enjoy any favour. It took you a lot of effort to…” Cuihe said.

“I had to show my sincerity to make mother soften her heart. However, you’re right, falling ill right now isn’t exactly timely.” Wei Qingwan also appeared a little worried.

At this moment, the prince’s attendant came.

“Concubine, his highness got to know that you were sick. He specifically sent some supplements and told you to take care of yourself.”

Upon hearing this, Wei Qingwan felt a burst of warmth in her heart.

“I understand. Convey my thanks to the Prince.”

Wei Qingwan was joyful in her heart; it seemed her worries were unnecessary.

###

The end of the year was soon upon them.

Due to disasters occurring everywhere, the Emperor cancelled the annual banquet. All the families in the Capital City, dared not to host large banquets either, and everyone kept things simple.

That year, Wei Ruo and Wei Jinyi spent New Year’s Eve together in a small courtyard in the Prince’s mansion. It wasn’t lively, but it was definitely cozy.

They nestled in a room with a stove, warmed a pot of wine and a pot of tea. Wei Ruo personally cooked a table of side dishes, they sat on the warm Kang bed by the window, chatting and eating. From time to time, they admired the snowy landscape outside the window.

Although they managed to steal half a day of leisure, Wei Ruo didn’t neglect the disaster relief work at all. After New Year’s Day, she planned to send people to transport grain to the manor in Hejian Prefecture.

However, Wei Ruo found such a day very fulfilling, as there was no need to worry about unnecessary matters.

After a while, Wei Ruo changed her position, propped her chin with one hand, and was looking at Wei Jinyi, who was sitting in front of her, with an unwavering gaze and a smile around her lips.

Feeling Wei Ruo staring at him, Wei Jinyi showed a momentary strangeness, then calmly asked, “What are you looking at, Ruoruo?”