Chapter 58: Sisterly Affection (Conclusion) (Combined Edition)

At this moment, Yu Shanmeng was in a deep, unresponsive sleep. Chu Yunli sat by the bedside and said, "Anyway, you only sent word to find someone to pay for the medical fees. It doesn't matter who comes."

She pulled out a handkerchief to wipe Yu Shanmeng's face. Just this small action immediately made Zhang Qingyao nervous: "Don't touch him!"

Chu Yunli wore a smile that was not quite a smile: "He is the father of my children. Even if we are not husband and wife, we still have three children together. Otherwise, you wouldn't have called me here. The doctor will be here in a moment."

"He's just too tired," Zhang Qingyao emphasized. "We don't need to see a doctor."

"If you were the one lying here sick, Yu Shanmeng would have called for a doctor long ago." Chu Yunli shook her head. "Your relationship is completely unbalanced. I wonder if he'll regret this when he wakes up." Thinking of something, she suddenly chuckled: "He will definitely regret it!"

Zhang Qingyao's heart skipped a beat. Meeting her estranged sister's knowing gaze, she suddenly felt as though the other had uncovered the truth. Subconsciously, she blurted out, "He loves me deeply; his only wish for the rest of his life is to make me his wife, so he won't regret anything. The only thing he said he regretted was proposing to you..."

Chu Yunli was not phased, nor did she care to listen to such unpleasant words. Cutting her off, she said, "Having an adoring wife brought home is fine, but I'd worry about bringing home a venomous snake." Just as she said this, she heard the commotion of the doctor arriving outside and immediately ordered someone to lead him in: "Take a good look."

After examining him, the doctor's expression turned solemn.

Chu Yunli asked sternly, "Does he have some incurable disease?"

"No." The doctor looked troubled. "It looks like he's been given mutually antagonistic medicines... I can't be entirely sure... His constitution is severely damaged, and his internal organs are injured. I'm afraid... nothing can be done. He only has a few days left, so you should prepare for the funeral."

Zhang Huiniang was startled and blurted out, "How could this happen?" As a realization hit her, the look she directed at her daughter was filled with shock and suspicion: "Qingyao, you..."

Before the question could leave her lips, she had already guessed the truth. Qingyao must have wanted to get rid of Yu Shanmeng, which was why she poisoned him. Yet living under the same roof, her daughter hadn't mentioned a single word of it. If she had known beforehand, she would never have gone to notify the Yu siblings and foolishly handed them leverage... She looked at Chu Yunli defensively.

What if she hadn't found out?

A wishful mindset was the most dangerous thing of all. Chu Yunli had seen that something was wrong the moment she stepped through the door. Hearing the doctor's words, she sneered, "Indeed a venomous snake."

Zhang Qingyao's face turned ashen: "Doctor, don't talk nonsense." Then, turning to Chu Yunli, she argued, "I have no idea how he got poisoned. He's been eating out a lot lately..."

Regardless of whether anyone believed her, she certainly couldn't admit to it.

"As for this matter, I'll make the decision on Xuelin's behalf. Since someone is trying to murder his father, we naturally have to ask the magistrate to thoroughly investigate and bring the truth to light," Chu Yunli said loudly, instructing, "Go report this to the authorities."

With that, she turned back to look at Zhang Qingyao, who was opening her mouth to stop her, and said, "It's best if you truly knew nothing. But if you laid a hand on him, you will definitely pay with your life."

Zhang Qingyao: "..."

Zhang Huiniang had already guessed that this matter was most likely inseparable from her own daughter. At this moment, she was filled with agonizing regret over her own meddling; if she hadn't brought Zhang Qingxue into this, perhaps the plan would have succeeded.

"I really didn't know anything about it."

Ignorant or not, once the magistrate arrived, everyone in the courtyard was taken to the yamen.

In this world, anything that has happened leaves a trace. Initially, the magistrate failed to find any clues, but then Chu Yunli stepped forward, offering a bounty of fifty taels of silver to anyone who could provide a lead.

The servants in Yu Shanmeng's courtyard were not well-off. Seeing that their master was on the verge of dying from illness, they were all pondering their own futures. Two cook-maids who had witnessed Zhang Qingyao adding substances to the meals immediately stepped forward. Afterward, a maid from Zhang Qingyao's personal service also came forward, testifying that she had seen her mistress visit a medicine shop, though she didn't know the purpose.

That alone was more than enough.

When the magistrate interrogated Zhang Qingyao, she refused to confess at first, so the magistrate simply resorted to corporal punishment.

Zhang Qingyao had a stubborn spine and repeatedly cried out that she was wronged while being beaten. Having never suffered such torment before, she couldn't help but let out continuous, miserable shrieks.

It was right at this moment that Yu Shanmeng regained consciousness.

When he opened his eyes, his gaze was dazed, unaware of the time or date. Subconsciously following the sound of the screams, he saw that Zhang Qingyao was the one being beaten. Habitual instinct, forged over the years, made his heart ache for her instantly, and he roared, "Stop!"

The moment he spoke, he tasted the metallic tang of blood in his mouth.

Frowning, he realized he was in a courtroom. He felt a mixture of surprise and a dull ache in his chest, prompting him to reach out and clutch it. When he raised his hand, he felt weak all over... Only then did he dimly recall what had happened earlier—he seemed to have fainted.

Then, a slender figure drew close. A bright red, gold-woven dress caught his eye so vividly it made his vision smart. At the same time, a familiar voice sounded beside his ear: "You've been poisoned. Zhang Qingyao most likely did it. I reported it to the officials, but she refuses to confess."

These few short sentences made Yu Shanmeng's eyes bloodshot. He abruptly turned his head to look at Zhang Qingyao, who was still being beaten, and recalled her recent abnormal behavior.

The strange-tasting meals she had served him—she had indeed put a lot of effort into them. At the time, he had believed this woman was moved by him and finally willing to live a proper life with him. Now, he realized she had simply endured him to the limit and wanted to escape.

A mocking smile flickered across the corners of Yu Shanmeng's lips.

Over there, Zhang Qingyao noticed he had woken up and cried out, "Master Shan, believe me... I didn't try to poison you... Please, help me plead for mercy... Ah... Ah..."

Her screams grew louder and more desolate.

It was a sound heartbreaking enough to move anyone who heard it.

Yu Shanmeng closed his eyes briefly. "You know I couldn't bear to hurt you." After just these two sentences, blood welled up at the corner of his lips again. "Even if you admit to it, I won't blame you. We are husband and wife; we should understand each other."

Hearing this, Chu Yunli wore an expression of sheer astonishment: "You don't even want your life just to be with her? You truly are a saint of romance!" If he had applied this kind of devotion to Zhang Qingxue instead, how wonderful that would have been?

Zhang Huiniang was skeptical, but if her daughter refused to confess, the real culprit had to be found, and since her daughter was the most likely suspect, a beating was inevitable.

If she kept denying it, her daughter might actually be beaten to death.

Glancing at Yu Shanmeng's expression to make sure he wasn't deliberately saying those things to trick her daughter into a false confession, Zhang Huiniang hurriedly rushed over to Zhang Qingyao: "Yao Yao, don't hold out. Guilt or no guilt doesn't matter; staying alive is what's important!"

Only by staying alive was there hope.

Besides, her daughter wouldn't be able to endure much longer and would inevitably confess in the end. Setting aside the fact that she would suffer worse injuries by then, the news that she had poisoned her own bed partner would spell disaster for both herself and Zhang Qingyao.

Zhang Qingyao was already on the verge of a breakdown. Hearing this, she tearfully glanced at Yu Shanmeng and sobbed, "I admit it... He refused to let me go, forced me to be his wife, and almost strangled me to death... That's why I bought the medicine..."

Once a confession was secured, things became much simpler.

The magistrate then questioned her about the medicine she used. In truth, Zhang Qingyao hadn't used a lethal poison; instead, she had deliberately purchased herbs with mutually antagonistic properties and used them in extremely heavy doses. Because Yu Shanmeng harbored zero suspicion toward her and refused to let her "kind intentions" in the kitchen go to waste, he had forced himself to swallow every meal despite the strange taste. That was why he had begun vomiting blood and failing so rapidly within such a short span of time.

Listening to her plans and hearing how she had deliberately increased the dosage to get rid of him sooner... Yu Shanmeng felt an icy coldness in his chest. His entire body was exhausted, and his eyelids felt as heavy as a thousand catties, so he simply closed them and said, "My Lord, I have my faults... I don't blame her... I am fond of her and only wish to spend my remaining time alone with her... Thank you, My Lord!"

He truly intended not to press charges, just as he had stated earlier.

Chu Yunli was stunned: "You really are deep in love!"

Zhang Huiniang was overjoyed. As long as Yu Shanmeng refused to pursue the matter, it would be as if nothing had happened, and the impact on her would be virtually zero.

Surrounded by Yu family servants, the group walked out. Chu Yunli stood outside the yamen, watching them depart without chasing after them.

However, Yu Shanmeng was at the end of his rope and only had a few days left to live anyway. She went back and informed the Yu siblings of the matter, and even sent a message to Yu Xuelin on Jiangwai Mountain.

Although Yu Xuelin knew his father had acted wrongly, he still harbored resentment toward his mother for remarrying so quickly after their divorce, usually avoiding returning home whenever possible. He never expected that his father would be driven to such a plight by someone else. Upon receiving the news, without a moment to spare, he rushed back to fulfill his filial duties.

On the way, hearing about the events that had transpired with his father, he wore a complicated expression. Having lived in the suburbs recently, he had also grown fond of his teacher's daughter, but placing himself in his father's shoes, no matter how deep the affection, he could never—absolutely never—forgive someone who tried to poison him.

Thinking of this, he felt a fresh wave of injustice on behalf of his mother. How a husband and wife interacted was something outsiders could never truly see. The fact that his father could tolerate the very person who poisoned him spoke volumes about the depth of his feelings. Who knew how poorly he might have treated his mother behind closed doors all those years?

When Yu Shanmeng and his servants arrived at the gates of his courtyard, he refused to let them enter, declaring, "I will not forgive those who betrayed their master. All of you, get out of my sight!"

Not knowing how to face him, Zhang Qingyao feigned unconsciousness under the pretext of her injuries and remained silent. Zhang Huiniang was somewhat frightened, but thinking of the days ahead, she boldly stepped forward and argued, "With one of you sick and the other injured, how can you manage without anyone to wait on you?"

Yu Shanmeng snapped his head up, his gaze fierce: "Can't Zhang Qingyao wait on me? If she can't, she can go back to prison..."

"I can!" Zhang Qingyao opened her eyes at some point, speaking weakly, "Master Shan, I know I was wrong. I will do my best to make it up to you for the rest of my life."

Hearing this, a mocking smile touched the corners of Yu Shanmeng's lips. He had heard every word the doctor said—what rest of his life did he even have left?

"Let's not talk about unpleasant things." Speaking was a great effort for Yu Shanmeng, so he simply closed his eyes again and lowered his voice, "Tell your mother to leave as well!"

How could Zhang Huiniang possibly rest easy leaving?

Besides, her wedding date was approaching, and she truly didn't want to spend money renting another place to stay.

"I have to take care of you both," Zhang Huiniang argued with a self-righteous tone. "Neither of you has anyone to attend to you, and neither of you can move easily. How can you get by without someone keeping an eye on things?"

Yu Shanmeng let out a soft huff: "Then you aren't allowed to have any servants around you!"

Zhang Huiniang: "..."

From her perspective, her son-in-law was deliberately tormenting the two of them.

Fine! Who told her and her daughter to wrong him in the first place? She would just swallow her anger for now, make sure the man was sent off properly, and avoid provoking him into running back to the yamen to accuse her daughter again.

Thus, Zhang Huiniang dismissed her attendants and stepped through the front gates.

When the Yu siblings arrived, they were directly turned away. By nightfall, when Yu Xuelin rushed back, he argued at the gate for a long time but still failed to gain entry.

Yu Shanmeng preferred the company of the venomous snake who had poisoned him over seeing his own children. To be honest, being treated this way deeply hurt the three siblings.

Returning home, the three siblings were in low spirits. Chu Yunli stepped in to offer a few words of comfort. As for this outcome, she was actually quite pleased with it. To put it bluntly, the crueler Yu Shanmeng was, the less heartbroken the three siblings would be when he passed away.

At the end of the day, the living were what mattered most. Indulging blindly in grief only harmed both heart and body, which was bad for all three of them.

After comforting the siblings, Chu Yunli was planning to retire for the night when a young beggar suddenly arrived, bringing a message from Yu Shanmeng requesting to see her.

"It's the middle of the night, I'm not going! We'll talk tomorrow morning."

Tian Jia'an was nearby and strongly agreed with this decision. They had both had an exhausting day and desperately needed a good rest.

Late that night, a raging fire broke out in the Yu family's suburban courtyard, and nearby residents heard the miserable screams echoing from within. People rushed over with buckets of water to fight the blaze, but the fire was too fierce; those few drops of water did nothing to suppress it.

The crowd had no choice but to assign a portion of their number to clear away flammable materials surrounding the house. After burning for a full hour, the fire finally subsided. Fortunately, it hadn't spread to neighboring homes.

When Chu Yunli was woken up and rushed to the scene, the fire had already been put out. Even so, the intense heat radiating from the embers was palpable. In the chilly night air, it didn't feel cold at all; standing too close made one break out in a sweat.

"Only one person managed to get out. She's badly burned and can't even stand. There are also two charred corpses inside..."

A large crowd had gathered, mostly neighbors who helped put out the fire, along with many onlookers. In the darkness, people jostled for space, and Tian Jia'an shielded Chu Yunli to protect her from being shoved.

"Where is she?" Chu Yunli headed in the direction pointed out by the crowd. Since Yu Shanmeng was weak and Zhang Qingyao had just been beaten during the day... she could guess without seeing that the survivor must be Zhang Huiniang.

Lying on the ground, wailing incessantly while a doctor treated her, was indeed Zhang Huiniang. Covered in soot and dirt, her original features were unrecognizable. Most of her back was severely burned, her skin covered in massive blood blisters with torn patches oozing bloody fluid. The injuries were shocking to behold, and many people wanted to look yet didn't dare.

Illuminated only by torches in the dark, Zhang Huiniang spotted Chu Yunli standing amidst the firelight and shrieked, "That madman Yu Shanmeng... I don't know when he stored lamp oil in the house! I'm going to report him! Accuse him of deliberately trying to burn the two of us to death..."

Chu Yunli reminded her, "He didn't come out. He's already dead."

Having heard from the bystanders long ago that she was the only survivor, Zhang Huiniang acted as if she hadn't heard and continued cursing frantically, "He must have wanted to burn us to death all along... That lamp oil, he'd been hoarding it for a while now..."

With everyone now dead, the true purpose behind Yu Shanmeng's hoarding of lamp oil despite his lack of money would remain unknown forever. Perhaps, the moment Zhang Qingyao revealed her intention to leave him, he had already formed the resolve to drag her down with him.

For the better part of the night, everyone listened to Zhang Huiniang's agonizing wails.

Ever since she escaped, Zhang Huiniang had sent someone to notify her fiancé. Yet it wasn't until dawn that Liu Linfeng finally showed up.

By that time, Chu Yunli was standing before the ruins, looking at the two corpses fused together by the fire. At first glance, they looked like they were embracing, but upon closer inspection, it became clear that the taller, sturdier corpse behind had its head resting on the shoulder of the person in front, with both arms wrapped tightly around that person's waist.

Meanwhile, one foot of the person in front was extended forward, as if they had tried to flee.

With a complicated mix of emotions, Chu Yunli suddenly heard Zhang Huiniang's harsh voice ring out from behind: "If you don't marry me on schedule, we'll settle this in court!"

She turned her head just in time to catch sight of an extremely embarrassed Liu Linfeng.

Liu Linfeng cared deeply about his reputation and refused to become the talk of the town. Besides, the foul odor in the air made him sick, so instead of arguing with Zhang Huiniang, he hurriedly ordered his men to carry her away.

Chu Yunli took charge of burying Yu Shanmeng. Even if she had refused, the three Yu siblings would still have had to step up. Out of "kindness," she bought only a single coffin and chose a scenic mountainside to bury the two of them together.

The three siblings raised no objections. Since their father had preferred to die alongside this woman, this could be considered fulfilling his dying wish.

Afterward, Chu Yunli focused all her energy on her business, with Tian Jia'an accompanying her and fully supporting everything she wished to do.

During this period, Tian Jia'an "inadvertently" made his past sacrifices for his nephew known to everyone at the private school. As a result, Tian Guangzong was ostracized by his peers and decided he needed to find a place to start over.

Moving elsewhere was simple enough—as long as he had silver, and given that he had studied for nearly a decade, teachers willing to take him in were easy to find. However... tuition fees had to be paid.

He had initially obtained twenty taels, and though his pockets had briefly felt heavy, most of it was squandered shortly after, leaving him short of what he needed to relocate. Desperate, Old Madam Tian resorted to doing odd jobs for others, but she was too old to earn any substantial silver.

When a person desperately needed money, they always found a way. Perhaps inspired by Tian Jia'an's situation, the grandmother and grandson meticulously selected a young woman. Tian Guangzong deliberately tried to get close to her, but the girl already had a sweetheart, even though they weren't formally betrothed yet.

Tian Guangzong grew intensely envious of his uncle's current lifestyle. If he could become the son-in-law of a wealthy merchant, a life of luxury awaited him, rendering his studies completely irrelevant... Studying was exhausting; given the choice, he also wanted soft beds and fine food. Gritting his teeth, he decided to force the issue and make things a fait accompli.

As a result, his plan succeeded, and the girl was ruined by him. However, he hadn't expected her to possess such a fierce and uncompromising spirit—she would rather shatter like jade than remain whole like a tile. The moment she returned home, she reported him to her father.

Furious, the wealthy merchant immediately had men break Tian Guangzong's legs. Discovering that Old Madam Tian was the mastermind behind the scheme, he showed her no mercy either. Beaten to within an inch of their lives, the grandmother and grandson were dumped back at the Tian family's courtyard in the suburbs.

Though messengers were sent to summon Tian Jia'an, he refused to return. It wasn't until both of them finally breathed their last that he went back to handle their funeral arrangements.

Anyone with eyes could see how much Tian Jia'an had given up for his nephew. Since Tian Guangzong had brought this ruin upon himself, no one accused Tian Jia'an of wrongdoing when he refused to lift a finger to help.

After Zhang Huiniang was taken away by Liu Linfeng, Chu Yunli paid her no more mind.

Though she ignored her, Zhang Qingdong did not.

He demanded that Liu Linfeng marry her on schedule and dispatched two men to keep watch over them. Their job wasn't to wait on the couple, but to supervise Liu Linfeng and force him to personally attend to Zhang Huiniang's every need.

Liu Linfeng had never held a shred of genuine affection for Zhang Huiniang. Having lived as a master of the house for years, he was accustomed to being waited on by others—when had he ever had to serve anyone else?

To say nothing of how his clumsy hands caused Zhang Huiniang countless sufferings, he simply loathed the task of nursing such a disfigured and repulsive woman. Thus, whenever prying eyes were absent, new injuries frequently appeared on Zhang Huiniang's body.

Chu Yunli even went to visit once. A strange, pungent stench hung heavy in the room, mixed with the bitter smell of medicine—it was truly nauseating, enough to make anyone frown before even getting close.

Liu Linfeng offered an awkward excuse from the side: "I've tried my best to clean the place up, but this is all I can manage. She can't get out of bed..."

Zhang Huiniang wept bitterly, begging Chu Yunli to take her away. She no longer wanted to be Liu Linfeng's wife.

"Auntie, this is the life you always dreamed of. Qingdong has fulfilled your wish—how can you bear to let down his kind intentions?"

Zhang Huiniang: "..." She truly regretted it now.

Only now did she see through Liu Linfeng's true colors; he was fundamentally a heartless beast. She had treated him so well, practically offering him her whole heart, yet he pinched her in secret and deliberately sprinkled salt into her wounds to make her suffer.

In reality, given the severity of her burns, Zhang Huiniang wasn't destined to live much longer anyway.

Liu Linfeng was indeed a cunning man. Even though he loathed serving her, he restrained himself and stopped short of murder. A month later, Zhang Huiniang passed away, and he finally felt liberated.

Of course, that was only what he imagined.

Once the ordeal was over, he welcomed his previous wife and children back home, only to be promptly dragged to court by Zhang Qingdong.

He was accused of swindling Zhang Huiniang out of her money.

Hearing the court clerk meticulously list out his crimes, Liu Linfeng nearly lost his mind. Damn it, if he had known he would be prosecuted anyway, he would never have demeaned himself by personally nursing that rotting woman!

Everyone had to pay the price for their actions, and Liu Linfeng was no exception. As for the financial fraud, even though Zhang Huiniang was dead, the promissory notes she had signed remained intact, leaving him with no way to deny the charges.

Fifty thousand taels of silver was no small sum; Liu Linfeng would not be walking out of prison for the rest of his life.

His concubines rushed to beg Zhang Qingdong for mercy, and when that failed, they even sought out Chu Yunli.

Chu Yunli felt not an ounce of pity for them. The silver they had spent and the comfortable lives they had enjoyed were all stolen through Liu Linfeng's deception. Since they had reaped the benefits, they had to pay the price—what was there to pity?

At nineteen, Yu Xuelin passed the county examination to become a xiucai, married his teacher's daughter that same year, passed the provincial examination for juren at twenty-three, and finally earned his jinshi degree at thirty. He would have loved to stay by Chu Yunli's side, but his official career left no room for sentiment. Whether assigned to external posts or stationed in the capital, he rarely had the chance to return home, making meetings with his mother even scarcer.

As for Yu Xuelin, he married a local merchant's daughter nearby and remained constantly at Chu Yunli's side, while Yu Xuelin married locally and visited home every couple of days. Having married and experienced firsthand the anguish of having a spouse whose heart wasn't truly yours, the siblings grew to understand their mother with profound empathy.

In the years that followed, though the three siblings still paid their respects to Yu Shanmeng out of customary obligation, they rarely brought him up in front of Chu Yunli. Instead, they treated Tian Jia'an with increasing reverence, hoping only that he would treat Chu Yunli well—and even better as time went on.

The affection between Chu Yunli and Tian Jia'an remained deep and unwavering, leaving no room for anyone to worry. They did not have children of their own, but throughout the decades that followed, they never once exchanged a harsh word.

With their marriage setting an example, both Yu Xuehai and Yu Xuejiao lived harmoniously with their respective spouses, rarely ever quarreling.

Naturally, no marriage was entirely free of friction. Whenever Yu Xuejiao's husband occasionally strayed in thought, Chu Yunli would swiftly step in and set him straight.

If anyone asked who Yu Xuejiao's husband feared the most, the answer was unequivocally his mother-in-law.