NOVEL NEXT Chapter 627 - 627: Afraid to Face Qiao Xiaomai
Chapter 627: Chapter 627: Afraid to Face Qiao Xiaomai
After a separation of six months, mother and son were reunited, both teary-eyed.
Upon seeing Zhuang Luhe’s current state, Qiao Xiaomai felt a knot in her throat and also began shedding tears.
The woman in front of her was a far cry from the beauty in her memories. What hardships Zhuang Luhe had to endure over these past six months…
“Stop crying, let’s eat,” Tong Sanlang said, lighting up the firewood he had gathered earlier.
Qiao Xiaomai sniffled, pulling out the scallion pancakes she had cooked, along with the steamed buns she bought at noon, then she poured a bowl of water for Zhuang Luhe.
Scallion pancakes, steamed buns.
Zhuang Luhe couldn’t recall how long it had been since she last ate white flour. Now she was looking at these rare delicacies, her yet-to-stop tears were now flowing even more violently.
“Stop crying mother, it’s bad for your eyes, and your rouge is all smeared from the tears,” Qiao Xiaomai said, pulling out a handkerchief to comfort her.
Zhuang Luhe dared not look at her, responding with a few sobs and nodded, stuffing a steamed bun into her mouth.
Qiao Xiaomai then reached out to wipe the tears from her eyes.
Zhuang Luhe hung her head even lower.
Qiao Dami was okay, but Qiao Xiaomai, being a woman herself, understood the difficulties of being a woman. When she left, she hadn’t considered the situation Xiaomai would face…
Seeing this, Qiao Xiaomai felt somewhat helpless.
She originally feared Zhuang Luhe would discover her replacement of the corncob, seeing Zhuang Luhe now, it seemed that she should be the one comforting her.
With Qiao Dami present, she couldn’t ask Tong Sanlang for the full story, so she could only call both Tong Sanlang and Qiao Changshun to eat.
They needed to travel at night and arrive in Huai’an County before daybreak.
Once everyone had finished their hasty dinner, Tong Sanlang extinguished the firewood, and then Qiao Xiaomai brought out the lantern she had bought in Huai’an County for lighting.
Night traveling required a lantern.
The lanterns from ancient times were pasted with paper, and even with two lanterns, the lighting was still insufficient. Coupled with poor road conditions, the ox cart moved extremely slowly.
Qiao Dami, settled in Zhuang Luhe’s arms, fell asleep quickly, while the four adults remained wide awake.
Qiao Xiaomai drove the ox cart and talked to Zhuang Luhe about the changes at home over the past half year, starting from the recipe for cold jelly noodles to the present.
She spoke for an hour, her throat becoming parched. After she finished, she had to stop the ox cart to drink some water from the pottery jar.
Zhuang Luhe was dumbfounded the entire time.
Whether it was Qiao Xiaomai’s household’s rapid rise in status or the Tong family’s identity, to her, they all seemed like wild fantasies.
Her family’s savings had always hovered around dozens of wen, so the concept of owning five hundred acres of farmland and thousands of taels of silver was simply beyond her grasp.
Not to mention the appearances of real nobles, the retired Emperor, the Prince of Wei, the Prince of Duan, figures that existed only in dramas, had actually shown up in her home.
And then there was Tong Sanlang’s family.
She was previously puzzled as to how Tong Sanlang could marry Qiao Xiaomai given their family’s circumstances, but now it seemed that the Tong family was of significant status but had had their property seized.
Moreover, the reason Qiao Xiaomai agreed to the marriage was to repay a life-saving favour…
All these events were too mind-boggling.
Completely beyond her imagination.
“Mother, anyway, our family is living a very good life now. You do not need to worry at all. Father’s happiest time each day is to sit in the courtyard in the evening to pay the workers. He can enjoy being a rich landlord whenever he wants.”
“Once you’re back, you can do those duties. You can also enjoy the pleasure of being a rich landlady.”
Upon hearing this, Zhuang Luhe quickly shook her head, “I can’t, I can’t.”
Even though Qiao Xiaomai insisted that she had gone out to work, she knew in the hearts of others it was clear.
She did not want to face the peculiar looks from those people.