Chapter 104: Apology

Chapter 104 Apology

"Tch! Where was this attitude before?" Marquis Wei sneered coldly.

Thankfully, Wei Xun was his son. If their roles were reversed—if A Yuan were his daughter—and Wei Xun dared treat her this way, he would’ve broken that ungrateful whelp’s legs.

"You want to stay with A Man? That depends on whether A Man is willing."

"A Man, do you want him to stay?"

Marquis Wei patted the little girl’s head. A Man fidgeted with her fingers, torn between choices.

She didn’t want the bad uncle to be her father, but she also wanted him to play with her...

Her inner struggle showed clearly on her face. Marquis Wei wasn’t truly trying to keep father and daughter apart—he still longed for his little granddaughter to come home.

The moment A Yuan was mentioned, A Man could no longer refuse.

"Okay."

She nodded, turned, and tugged at Wei Xun’s sleeve. "Take me, Bad Uncle."

That his daughter was willing to approach him left Wei Xun frozen stiff—equal parts shocked and awed.

Useless. Now get moving... Marquis Wei snorted. "You’d better treat my granddaughter right—if you upset her again, I’ll tan your hide!"

He’d gone out of his way to give them this chance. If this fool still couldn’t make things right, he’d disown the son and keep only the granddaughter!

---

......

The Jade Purity Courtyard remained exactly as A Yuan had left it. Wei Xun forbade anyone else from entering—aside from the cleaning maids, the place was kept untouched.

A Man pushed open the door and, spotting the embroidered screens and blue curtains inside, exclaimed, "Mama made these!"

Her mother had truly lived here once.

The little girl wandered around, her little mouth hanging open, the surroundings growing more familiar by the second. "Was my mother married to Bad Uncle before?"

Otherwise, why would she have lived here?

Wei Xun froze at her question. Under his daughter’s innocent gaze, the words caught in his throat.

"Your mother... was my one true love."

"Then why did Mama leave you?" A Man tilted her head and pressed.

A bitter ache tightened Wei Xun’s chest. He crouched to meet her eyes. "Because I did things that hurt her deeply."

"A Man... Papa regrets it more than anything."

He said "Papa," not "Bad Uncle."

How Wei Xun yearned to hear his daughter call him "Papa"—but he didn’t deserve it.

"If you do something wrong, you have to apologize. Mama taught me that, so you should apologize to her."

The little girl lectured with grave seriousness. Wei Xun’s heart swelled painfully. "But your Mama won’t see me. Could you... help me?"

"I... How can I help?"

The little girl didn’t realize she had already walked into the man’s scheme. After hearing his words, she hesitated but nodded. “Alright, but you’d better make a proper apology to Mother and not make her angry again.”

Wei Xun promised, “Okay.”

He’d do anything just to see A Yuan again.

......

During the meal, Madam Wei pleaded a headache and retired to her own courtyard. Zhao Wan also didn’t want to stay and went to attend to the old lady, leaving only the three of them in the dining hall.

A Man had quite the appetite—she loved any delicious dish.

The marquis loved how she dug into her food, unlike some children who picked at their food like it was poison.

“This lamb chop is roasted with spices from the Western Regions—not the slightest bit gamy. Eat more, A Man.”

“Mmm… thank you, Grandfather.”

A Man’s cheeks bulged like a chipmunk’s as she stuffed herself.

Not one to be left out, Wei Xun also picked a few pepper-garlic shrimp for her.

“These are delicious too.”

Father and son kept piling food on her plate until A Man's stomach was about to burst.

“Did you like Grandpa’s cooking?”

The marquis wiped her mouth with a handkerchief as he asked.

A Man rubbed her plump belly and nodded emphatically. “Delicious!”

“Then will A Man stay here?”

“But what about Mother and Uncle?” She bit her lip, torn.

She didn’t want to give up the marquis’s feasts, but she also couldn’t leave her mother and uncle behind.

“Your mother and uncle can come too. This is their home as well.”

If Wei Xun had his act together, he might have already given the marquis a grandchild by now.

The marquis scowled at the thought and glared at Wei Xun. “Later, you’ll take A Man back. Xie Zheng isn’t at the residence today—I’m giving you this chance, so don’t screw it up.”

“If you still can’t win back my daughter-in-law, you’re dead to me!”

......

A Man had left in the morning, and now it was already dark, yet she still hadn’t returned.

A Yuan sent someone to keep watch at the gate, and finally, at the third quarter of the hour of You, a servant hurried in. “Ma’am, the young mistress is back. Someone from the marquis’s residence is with her—should I send him in?”

The servant took him for a household guard.

Remembering her brother’s warning that morning, A Yuan jumped to the conclusion that it was Marquis Wei and quickly stood up. “Show him in.”

No matter what, Marquis Wei was her elder, and she couldn’t afford to be impolite.

But when she saw that it was Wei Xun, A Yuan went rigid.

“You?!”

“Mother, I brought Naughty Uncle here.”

A Man took Wei Xun by the hand and walked closer to her, "Naughty Uncle said he did something wrong and made Mother angry; he wants to apologize to you. Naughty Uncle, hurry up and say it to Mother!"

The little girl urged, only knowing that one should apologize when they've done wrong, unaware that A Yuan didn’t want to see Wei Xun at all.

"That won't be necessary. Wei Crown Prince hasn’t done anything to wrong me, and I don’t need your apology."

A Yuan’s face turned cold, clearly unwilling to discuss further.

Wei Xun’s mouth tasted bitter. "A Yuan, can you give me one more chance..."

"Even condemned men get stays of execution. Believe in me one more time."

"I wish I could believe you, but Wei Xun, I only have one life."

She had already been hurt and scarred because of him. If he couldn’t protect her, why did he keep provoking her?

A Yuan lowered her gaze, her tone indifferent. "I won’t hold it against Wei Crown Prince for his repeated schemes against me. The money for the embroiderers will be returned to you in full by my servants. As for using A Man to plead your case—if there’s a next time, I won’t let her have any contact with the Marquis' household again."

She wouldn’t let the daughter she'd raised side with someone else, even if that person was A Man’s father.

Wei Xun’s heart gradually turned cold. A Yuan had truly changed.

Perhaps she had always been this way, but in the Marquis’ household, she had no choice but to be obedient and docile to survive.

He had taken her for granted, treating her as his possession, never bothering to understand her. So when A Yuan left heartbroken, he had no chance to make things right.

"I won’t take the money. You’re opening an embroidery atelier—you’ll need a lot of funds. Take these embroiderers as my apology."

He had made A Yuan suffer so much; no amount of compensation would ever be enough.

A Yuan pressed her lips slightly, a flash of stubbornness crossed her face. "No need. I don’t want to owe Wei Crown Prince anything."

If we must part, let it be a clean break.

"A Yuan, must you be so stubborn?"