Chapter 83: Shift in Status

Chapter 83: Shift in Status

"Oh my god..."

The maid was terrified, "How dare this Aunt Ge try to injure herself!"

If the household had sent her to take someone to the farm and she turned a living person into a dead one, she would be held responsible.

"Stop it right now!"

The maid slapped Ge Bao'er, her palm bleeding from the force.

Ge Bao'er extended the jade pendant in her hand, weakly saying, "Take this and pawn it, and I won’t seek death. Otherwise, I’ll die by your hands!"

The maid was furious, tempted to slap her again.

But seeing how frail Ge Bao'er looked, one more slap might actually kill her.

Taking the jade pendant, she asked, "Do I get a share?"

Ge Bao'er nodded, "You get half, but I need the pawn ticket."

The maid, greatly tempted, agreed.

Ge Bao'er leaned in the carriage, tears streaming down like rain.

"Qing'er..."

She feared she would never return until her son grew up.

That Zhu Qing was too malicious, not allowing her to take anything, not even the jade pendant left by her birth parents. Without pawning it, she might not survive on the farm until Qing'er grew up to take her back.

"Qing'er..."

The more Ge Bao'er thought, the more her heart ached. Zhu Qing was cruel, Lin Yunwan ruthless; could her son grow up safely?

She gradually lost consciousness, unaware of when she arrived at the farm.

The coachman and maids who delivered her returned to the Wuding Marquis's household, the lead maid reporting to Zhu Qing, "Auntie, we’ve delivered her to the farm."

Zhu Qing asked, "Did everything go smoothly? She didn’t cause any trouble, did she?"

The maid hesitated.

Zhu Qing sternly said, "Did something happen? Tell the truth or I'll rip your mouth apart! If you do, you can have all the silver coins in this purse."

The maid reported everything: "Auntie tried to commit suicide, so I pawned her jade pendant. I just sold it at a random pawnshop, didn't get much money..."

Zhu Qing scoffed, "You gave it all to her?"

The maid said, "...I gave her half." Not daring to lie, she added, "Well, a small half. That money is barely enough for Aunt Ge to buy medicine at the farm."

Zhu Qing was indifferent to this.

Too many women died on the farm; no one lived a lifetime just by taking medicine. Anyway, Ge Bao'er couldn’t turn the tables anymore.

She handed the purse to the maid, "Take it."

The maid, grinning, took the purse and left.

Zhu Qing, after handling Ge Bao'er's situation, took the opportunity to inform Lin Yunwan. However, she omitted the part about Ge Bao'er attempting suicide and selling her jade pendant, considering it a minor issue.

Lin Yunwan was no longer much concerned about what happened to a concubine.

"Understood."

She responded calmly and continued to teach Changgong his lessons.

The child sat obediently on a couch in her room, silently writing with a pen. The candlelight illuminated his delicate face, but he was becoming increasingly silent.

Lin Yunwan, worried that her own affairs might have frightened him, dismissed Zhu Qing and asked Lu Changgong, "Are you troubled?"

Lu Changgong put down his pen and said, looking down, "...No."

"Still saying no."

He was clearly becoming increasingly gloomy.

With winter approaching, Lin Yunwan had someone bring a hand warmer, placing it in Lu Changgong's hands, "Your hands are freezing white. Would you like me to make you a pair of gloves?"

"Yes!"

His response was quick.

Lin Yunwan smiled and shook her head, still seeing the child in him.

Lu Changgong finally showed a hint of a child's softness on his face. He pursed his lips and said, "I do have something on my mind."

Lin Yunwan nodded, listening patiently.

Lu Changgong, under the small table, clenched his fists, restraining himself as he said, "I hate myself for not being able to support my mother like Uncle Yunyi."

He had overheard the discussion about the divorce between the two families.

But unlike Uncle Yunyi, who could stand up for his mother, he couldn’t! He hated his father and Old Lady Lu so much! He wished they were dead!

He knew such thoughts were unfilial and too extreme, so he dared not share them with anyone.

Lin Yunwan gently touched his forehead.

Lu Changgong looked up, seeing his mother's smile warm and gentle, and heard her say, "You can do it too. In a few years, you'll be able to support your mother."

"Mother."

Unsure what to say, he called out with a nasal tone.

Lin Yunwan pointed to the content in the book and said, "Tired? If you're tired, rest; if not, continue your silent reading."

Lu Changgong said he wasn’t tired.

After studying with Lin Yunwan for half an hour, she felt it was getting late and didn't let him study by lamplight any longer, urging him to go back, "Continue tomorrow, the books will never be finished."

Lu Changgong stood up to take leave, "Your son takes his leave."

It was completely dark outside and very cold; Lin Yunwan had someone bring a thick cloak for Changgong and asked Taoye to carry a lantern to escort him to the secondary gate.

Before leaving, Lu Changgong turned back with a smile, "Mother, don’t forget the gloves you promised me."

Lin Yunwan smiled, "I won't forget."

That very night, she started preparing to sew for him and his brother, with Pingye helping to trace the patterns – one pair embroidered with bamboo, the other with cypress, perfectly suiting their personalities.

The next morning, Lu Changgong and Qing'er came together to pay their respects.

Qing'er had lost a lot of weight and seemed absent-minded.

It was said that Zhang Fengan had criticized him many times recently, and due to the events in the Lu family, he was considering resigning.

"Mother."

Standing next to Lu Changgong, Qing'er's voice was much weaker.

Lin Yunwan's face was cold, "From now on, you don't need to come here to pay your respects."

Qing'er looked at his stepmother in surprise, asking grievously, "Mother, why?"

Lin Yunwan said indifferently, "You should ask your birth mother about that."

She no longer wished to deal with him.

Pingye bluntly said, "Young Master Qing, you should go back now! The eldest master and lady are about to have their meal."

Qing'er could only leave, crying.

His cries grew louder, calling out, "Mother, mother, mother…"

His mother used to be so affectionate towards him; why had she become like this? Mother, why?

He couldn’t articulate the reasons, but deep down, he understood that if it weren’t for his birth mother, he wouldn’t be in this situation. Now the servants privately called him the concubine-born son, his teacher looked down on him, and his stepmother and brother disliked him…

He was no longer as favored as his elder brother.

In the Shoutang Hall.

Old Lady Lu lay in bed, still informed by a trusted servant about the happenings in the household. She actually knew everything that was going on.

Nanny Yan asked, "Aunt Ge has already been sent to the farm. Should we continue to send her medicine?"

The main culprit was Ge Bao'er; it would be best if she died!

Old Lady Lu said fiercely, "Didn’t she pawn a jade pendant to buy medicine? Tell the people at the farm to make sure she takes her medicine properly!"

Nanny Yan nodded and then asked the old lady, "Should the lady come to attend to your illness?"

Old Lady Lu didn't say she didn’t want it, but also didn’t dare to say she wanted it.

She desperately wanted Lin Yunwan to come! As a daughter-in-law, Lin Yunwan should be bowing and scraping in front of her elders!

But the news of the Lu family's young master favoring a concubine over his wife leading to his title being stripped was widespread.

She really didn’t dare to provoke the Lin family anymore.

"Forget it. Let her focus on educating Changgong and Qing'er. In the future, our Marquis's household will depend on these two."

Without the title, the descendants of the Lu family would all have to enter civil service to make a name for themselves.

Although Lu Changgong was not her biological grandson, he was studious.

Old Lady Lu said helplessly, "We must be kinder to Changgong from now on."