Chapter 27: Recognizing relatives
Cheng Pei-shi supported the unsteady Yun Laodameng, and the clever maid next to her had already moved the wooden stool over. Old Madam Yun looked at the wooden plaque in her hands over and over again, as if she had seen a priceless treasure. The old lady, whose heart was as dead as ashes, had a dry and desolate look in her eyes, but as soon as she saw the wooden plaque, it was swept away. As long as there was a male descendant alive in the Yun family, the family line would not be extinguished. She, Yun Hezhi, would be able to repay the ancestors of the Yun family, and the two maids would have a place to rely on. Even if she died immediately, she would smile in the underworld.
“Mrs. Cheng, where is the owner of the wooden plaque? Why didn’t he come himself?” After the surprise, Yun He’s heart again rose doubts.
“Brother Ye is now in the army of the Left Military Command of Longyou. He wouldn’t dare return to the capital without an order. Congratulations, Madam, your grandson is a great man. At the age of 15, he was appointed the male magistrate of Ping’an County and served as a military counselor in Lanzhou. He was a seventh-rank official. It was only after the imperial court investigated the officials and followed up on their origins that they discovered that you and Ye Ge’er were related. Ye Ge’er originally thought he thought he was an orphan and had been raised by his teacher since childhood, so he didn’t know that he had any relatives left. When the officials told him that you were still alive, he was so happy that he vomited blood. After he woke up, he ordered someone to ride a fast horse back to the capital to entrust his concubine to find your whereabouts. I inquired about it before and after, and only then did I find the old lady. Here is also a letter from Ye Ge’er. After that, she took out Yun Ye’s letter.
Old Madam Yun took the letter, opened it, and saw that the whole letter was written in a delicate script. It looked strange but not ugly, and even had a certain beauty. It was written horizontally from left to right, unlike the way others wrote vertically from right to left. Old Madam Yun forced herself to read it slowly, not used to it. In the letter, Yun Ye explained his background, which was of course fabricated. To increase the credibility of his story, he emphasized that he was found by his teacher in the chaos of Chang’an, and that the wooden plaque was on his body at the time. After the teacher found him, he searched for the Yun clan, but could not find them. He felt that a chaotic era was approaching, so he had to leave Chang’an with his infant son in his arms and live in seclusion in the wasteland of Longyou. He did not return to the world until early May after his teacher’s death, and wanted to ask the clan to help find his parents.
When she saw this, Madam Yun burst into tears and kept saying, “Who could you be? You are the eldest son. Your poor mother, in order to save your life, fled the Yun residence with you in her arms on the third day after you were born. Your father was killed while trying to save you. I held your father in my arms and watched him die. I thought that a weak mother and young son would not survive the pursuit, but I never imagined that the heavens would have mercy and that you would eventually leave a descendant for the Yun family.” She bent down and picked up Erni, who was at her feet, and kissed her over and over again, leaving the little girl at a loss as to what to do. She blinked her dark, bright eyes and looked at her grandmother in a daze.
“This is your daughter, isn’t she? She’s so pretty. I wonder how many suitors will come to ask for her hand in marriage in a few years.” Cheng Peishi pinched the little girl’s face and slipped a jade lock of emerald green on her neck. She then picked up the older girl and the old servant standing nearby opened a brocade box. Inside was a milky white bracelet. Cheng Peishi took the jade bracelet and put it on the older girl’s wrist. The bracelet was a bit big, so Cheng Peishi laughed and said, “It’s a bit big now, but it will fit in a couple of years. Old Madam is so lucky to have such a grandson and granddaughter.”
Old Madam Yun was born into a wealthy family and had seen many treasures. The gifts that Cheng Peishi gave to the two girls were all rare and exquisite jade. She originally wanted to stop them, but Yun Ye explained clearly in his letter that the Cheng family’s goodwill did not need to be rejected. So she took them as a favor, and Ye must have a way to return it.
Old Madam Yun is now full of emotion, thinking that her family is poor and has nothing to be schemed against. If Ye is not a descendant of the Yun family, he can easily take over the Yun family with his title. In addition, Ye’er said in his letter that if he were not a Yun family member, he would raise the Yun family’s orphans for the rest of his life, and he told the Yun family members to rest assured and live in their own fiefdom. He had already asked the Cheng family to help them build a house, and no Yun family members would be harmed in the future. Thinking of this, the old lady’s heart was warm, and she said to Cheng Pei, “My home is humble, but guests are welcome to have a cup of water.”
When she entered the house, Cheng Pei was overwhelmed with emotion. The dilapidated walls, the roof that could see the sky, the narrow thatched hut with only a bed and a loom, and the three large bowls of thick porridge on the earthen platform, which could reflect the shadows of people. She thought to herself, “Is the old lady really in such a difficult situation?”
Looking up, she saw a portrait of the Six Happinesses hanging on the wall, with six memorial tablets below it. She bowed, and Madam Yun returned the bow.
“Are these the deceased male members of the Yun family?” Yun Laoren replied.
“But which one is Ye’s ancestor?”
The old lady smiled and said to Mrs. Cheng, “I wonder if anyone has seen Ye Ge’er. I think Ye Ge’er is most likely my eldest son’s direct descendant.”
Mrs. Cheng clapped her hands in approval and turned to the official, asking him to summon Cheng Dong and the others to come in. In a short while, several burly men walked into the thatched hut and bowed to Mrs. Cheng.
“Cheng Dong, you have met Lord Yun before. Do you remember what he looked like?”
Cheng Dong replied with a bow: “Madam, the Duke was very friendly with people like us and I remember his appearance.”
“If so, look at the portraits on the wall. Is there one that looks like him?”
The four men pointed to the fifth portrait and said in unison, “Madam, this portrait is almost indistinguishable from the Duke, except for the age difference.”
“That’s right, that’s right. This is how the eldest son of the old lady looked when he was 25 years old. Ye’er is only 15 years old this year. There is a 10-year age difference, so of course there are some differences. My daughter-in-law fled with her beloved son in the cold night, and the child was rescued by a benefactor, but her whereabouts are unknown. I’m afraid there is little hope for her.”
Seeing the old lady cry again, the two little maids also burst into tears and hugged the old lady. Mrs. Cheng wept for a while, then wiped her tears and said to the old lady, “Old lady Zhang, people cannot be resurrected after death. Now that we have found Ye Ge’er, it is a joyous day. I heard that His Majesty has already decreed that the slaves of the Yun clan be freed from slavery and the slaves of the lower class be raised to the status of and will be allowed to stay in the male residence in Ping’an County. I believe that soon, your younger generation will gather together. When Ye’er returns from Longyou, the whole family will be reunited. What a joyous occasion it will be! From now on, there will only be good days. You should be happy. Otherwise, when Ye’er returns to the capital and you are in poor health, how can you face him?
After Cheng Dong and the others pointed to the portrait of the eldest son, Yun He’s last bit of worry also disappeared, and her whole body seemed to be enveloped in great happiness. She smiled softly and nodded to Mrs. Cheng. This is truly her eldest grandson. He has returned with incomparable glory. He has achieved the pinnacle that his ancestors The Yun family’s 15 years of suffering were not in vain. Those who have bullied, insulted, betrayed, and ignored the Yun family, look, the old woman’s grandson is back, you will be punished, you will definitely be punished.