The next morning, the two of them packed up and handed Xiao Xu'er over to the care of the wet nurse. After giving her repeated instructions, they headed to Jingyue Temple in the suburbs of Beijing.
According to Lin Yixuan's understanding of the Marquis' Mansion, Lin's mother would at most suffer some grievances in the nunnery, but she would not be really neglected. After all, the Marquis' Mansion had to maintain its reputation, and Lin's mother still had the title of Mrs. Lin San.
The weather in the capital was getting colder and colder. The sky was gloomy and it looked like it was going to snow soon. Even sitting in the carriage, one could feel the cold wind blowing in through the gaps.
Lin Yixuan was worried, and couldn't help but feel anxious. His mother had been strong all her life, but was defeated by her own family and her husband's family. Even though Jingyue Temple treated his mother as a distinguished guest, how could his mother get used to such an environment? He didn't know how much she had suffered these days.
Li Yaonan didn't like her husband's absent-mindedness, so she pinched his cheek and said, "Don't think about it. Your husband will support you in everything."
Lin Yixuan was amused. Her husband had always been so arrogant, as if he didn't know how high the sky was and how deep the earth was. She glared at him and said with a smile, "What can you do?"
Li Yaonan leaned back on the pillow with a carefree attitude, raised his eyebrows and said, "We have to wait until we see mother first. You and I don't know the inside story of this matter, and thinking too much will only add to your troubles." Since she was concerned about her husband, her mother's affairs were also hers, so she naturally had to consider them carefully.
Li Yaonan's heart was once again filled with the desire for power, stronger than any previous time. Although he said that he didn't care, how could he not take the show of power from Jingyang Marquis's Mansion to heart? In his past and present lives, he had never suffered such a humiliation. Even in the Li Mansion, he still pushed back on Ma Yulian's show of power. Jingyang Marquis's Mansion was good, they didn't even show their face, but made him and his husband lose face, and even plotted against them in the future. It was really hateful.
If he was not afraid of making his husband feel sad, why would he keep silent? Li Yaonan was determined in his heart that he must pass the imperial examination this time. If one year is not enough, he will try ten years. One day, he will step on the heads of Jingyang Marquis Mansion!
Jingyue Temple was far away from the capital, and the two did not arrive until the evening.
There were almost no pilgrims in the nunnery at this time of year. It looked deserted. There were only three or two nuns waiting at the door, shivering from the cold. When they saw a carriage approaching, they hurried to greet it.
"Hello, two donors."
After Lin Yixuan and Li Yaonan got off the car, he glanced at them calmly and asked, "Where does the noble of Jingyang Marquis's Mansion live?"
"The donor lives in the east wing. Would you like to go and meet the abbess first?" An older nun stepped forward and answered them with a smile.
Lin Yixuan thought for a moment and said, "Let's meet the host first." Since he had come here, he had to pay incense money, and also to reassure the host, lest they really think that no one was taking care of his mother. After all, the Jingyang Marquis's Mansion would definitely not send anyone here. It was still okay if the time was short, but if it was too long, I was afraid that some people would not be able to keep their eyes open.
The little nun took them to the main courtyard of the nunnery. The host was a nun in her forties. After they greeted each other, Lin Yixuan learned about Lin's mother's situation from her and donated two hundred taels of silver as incense money. Before they could say a few more words, they heard hurried footsteps outside the door, and Yang Yi shouted, "Cousin, cousin, are you here?"
Lin Yixuan suddenly turned around, and Yang Yi ran in excitedly: "I knew it was you, it must be you who came back, Jingyang Marquis Mansion will definitely not... "
"Yier." A stern voice interrupted Yang Yi's complaints. A middle-aged lady appeared in front of them. The lady's eyes were slightly red. She tried her best to suppress her composure. She looked eagerly at the pair of men in front of her and tears fell down.
“Mother—” Lin Yixuan’s voice was choked with sobs. He looked at the noblewoman in front of him greedily. He could no longer hold back his inner excitement and knelt on the ground: “Mother, I am unfilial, I am unfilial.”
The noble lady burst into tears and stepped forward to hug him: "Xuan'er, my Xuan'er, my little Jiu'er."
"Mom." Not until he saw his mother did Lin Yixuan realize how much he missed her.
"My little Jiu'er." Tears couldn't stop falling from the corners of Lin's mother's eyes, and the mother and son hugged each other and cried bitterly.
Yang Yi's tears also fell. His aunt had suffered so much, really so much. His fourth cousin was gone, and his ninth cousin was not around. His aunt was already heartbroken, and now the Marquis's Mansion even sent her to the nunnery.
Li Yaonan felt sad and bitter. He imitated Lin Yixuan and knelt on the ground and kowtowed three times to Lin's mother: "My son-in-law greets my mother-in-law."
Mother Lin wiped her tears and nodded repeatedly: "Okay, okay, you are all good children, get up quickly, get up quickly."
"Mom." Lin Yixuan stood up slowly, composed himself, and knew that this was not the place to talk.
The host quickly stepped forward to congratulate: "Congratulations on the reunion of the donor and his son."
Mother Lin wiped her tears, forced a faint smile, and quickly resumed her usual noble lady demeanor. Ignoring her slightly red and swollen eyes, it was impossible to tell that she had just cried. She clasped her hands together and bowed to the host: "Thank you, host." Then she said: "I will take the children back to the room first. I will trouble you to make arrangements for tonight."
"Don't worry, this is my duty."
Mother Lin nodded, turned around and looked at them with a smile: "Come with me."
Lin Yixuan and Yang Yi held her arms on each side. Li Yaonan touched his nose and followed behind him consciously. They came to the east wing. A charcoal basin was lit in the room. Although it was not very warm, it was much better than the freezing cold outside.
After the catharsis just now, everyone calmed down. A smile appeared on Lin's mother's face. She looked at Jiuer and her brother-in-law with more and more satisfaction.
"Mom." Lin Yixuan felt embarrassed by her gaze and pulled her mother's arm and shook it.
Mother Lin's face was full of kindness as she smiled at her little Jiuer, whose complexion was rosy and brows were affectionate. Yes, it seemed that her brother-in-law was really good to him, and those people did not lie to her.
"You sit down too." Mother Lin looked at Li Yaonan with a smile: "No need to be polite here, just treat me as your own mother. Xuan'er has a spoiled temper, if there is anything inappropriate, don't bother with him."
Li Yaonan said hurriedly, "How could that be? I like my husband's personality very much. Don't worry, mother-in-law, I will definitely treat him well."
People say that the more a mother-in-law looks at her son-in-law, the more satisfied she is. This is also true for Lin's mother. After Li Yaonan coaxed her with just a few words, Lin's mother immediately felt that this child was great, even closer to her than her own son. Her Jiuer was blessed.
Lin Yixuan's cheeks flushed with shame, but seeing that Lin's mother was happy, he let her husband talk nonsense, because his mother's happiness was more important than anything else.
It was freezing cold outside, but warm inside the house. Apart from feeling regretful for not seeing her grandson, Mother Lin smiled the most tonight. Seeing Jiuer and his wife living well, she felt more satisfied than anything else.
That night, they talked for a long time and didn't go to bed until late at night. No one mentioned the bad things because they didn't want to ruin their good mood. However, some things always had to be resolved.
The next day, after having a vegetarian meal in the morning, Lin Yixuan saw that there was no one in the room, so he looked at his mother seriously and said, "Mom, do you have a clear idea about what happened this time?"
Lin Yixuan's words were incoherent. As the mother who gave birth to him, how could she not understand? She glanced at Li Yaonan first, and seeing that he was not unhappy at all, she said gloomily: "Don't worry about it, just live your life with your husband in peace."
"Mom." Lin Yixuan looked at her dissatisfiedly and retorted: "How can I feel at ease if you are here?"
Mother Lin kept silent. Yang Yi was unhappy and started to complain: "It has nothing to do with my aunt. Zhou Wang's family has long been dependent on the second house. Aunt Rong had a miscarriage because of Aunt Xue and Aunt Fang. The red flower in my aunt's room was also a trap set by Zhou Wang's family and Li Cai's family. My aunt has no way to defend herself."
Mother Lin closed her eyes and clenched her fists. Although she had long been disappointed with the Jingyang Marquis Mansion, she was still sad. Those were her dowry and the people she trusted wholeheartedly, but they pushed her into the abyss in one fell swoop. Even if she defended herself by saying that someone had framed her, who would believe her
Li Yaonan frowned and thought, these were not the important questions. The important thing was how his mother could leave. After all, a nunnery was not a place to live in for a long time. If the foundation was damaged, it could not be repaired in the future, not to mention that Lin's mother was not young anymore.
Lin Yixuan frowned and quickly listed seven or eight countermeasures in his mind. It was not difficult for his mother to leave the nunnery, but after she left, although the nunnery was not good, the Jingyang Marquis' Mansion was not much better. His brother was not in Beijing now, and his mother was alone and weak. If she returned to the Marquis' Mansion, wouldn't it be like entering a den of wolves and tigers
Seeing Jiu'er and her brother-in-law frowning, Mother Lin felt a warm feeling in her heart and said lovingly, "Don't worry, my old bones are still strong, and I still want to see Yuan'er get married. It's just that my life will be a little dull, and I will just take it as a way to cultivate my character."
Without even thinking, Lin Yixuan rejected the idea immediately: "No, it's not right to live here. The New Year is almost here, and we don't even participate in the sacrifices. What does Jingyang Marquis Mansion want?"
Mother Lin glanced at him calmly: "After all, Jingyang Marquis Mansion is your mother's home, and your biological father is still alive."
Lin Yixuan curled his lips: "No one treats me as a son."
Mother Lin's face darkened and she said seriously, "Even so, you can't say they are wrong."
"I know. Didn't I say it in front of you?" Lin Yixuan didn't care much. With the word "filial piety" in front of him, he would not go beyond the rules in front of outsiders. He smiled and said, "I know it in my heart."
Seeing him like this, Lin's mother didn't know how to persuade him much. She understood the gap between Jiuer and the Marquis' Mansion, but she just couldn't understand it. Logically speaking, the Marquis' Mansion treated Jiuer well, and it was Jiuer who was at fault in that incident. Where did such deep hatred come from
Before she could figure it out, she heard her own Jiu'er ask, "Mother, do you have anyone useful in the Marquis' Mansion?"
"What are you doing?" Lin's mother glared at him and warned him, "Don't mess around. I live a peaceful life here. Don't make trouble."
Lin Yixuan felt sad. After hearing what his mother said, he knew that his mother would rather live in a nunnery than go back. His mother was deserted by everyone at that time, and he and his brother were not around. He must have been heartbroken!
"Okay, don't be like this. I'm fine here. You can come to see me more often in the future. You won't have this freedom when you return to the Marquis' Mansion." Mother Lin patted his hands and comforted him.
Li Yaonan seemed to want to say something but stopped himself. He glanced at Lin's mother, then at Yang Yi, and finally fell silent.
"What do you want to say." Lin Yixuan's voice was muffled. She had been paying attention to her husband's movements. From his expression, she knew he had something to say.
"No." Li Yaonan shook his head and decided to talk to her husband in private. After all, his idea was not very good, but it was the only solution he could think of at the moment.
Lin Yixuan knew her husband well, so she naturally did not ask too many questions. She talked with Lin's mother for a while, and then they said goodbye and left in the afternoon. After all, Xu'er was still young, and even if there was a wet nurse to take care of him, they were worried about leaving him alone at home.
Mother Lin did not try to keep them, as she felt sorry for her little grandson. She sent Jiuer and her brother-in-law to the gate of Jingyue Temple and watched the carriage go farther and farther away before turning back.
Originally, she wanted Yang Yi to stay with Jiuer to avoid the nunnery being boring, but Yang Yi refused. Mother Lin had no choice but to let him do what he wanted, and she couldn't help but feel relieved.