Caught off guard upon hearing soone calling her, Mo Yan, who was speaking with Xin Er, instinctively looked up and saw the last person she wished to encounter.
Heading out today, she really should have checked the almanac! Mo Yan thought to herself with a frown.
Rembering there were others around, especially with Xin Er present, and not wanting them to sense anything unusual, she forced a smile at the corners of her mouth, raising a cool smile on her face and said faintly, "It turns out to be the Lady, what a coincidence!"
Seeing the rejection in the depths of Mo Yan’s eyes, Mrs. Du’s eyes flashed with pain, and then she forced a smiling face and said, "This is fate! The first ti I saw you, I felt a closeness to you. Who would have thought that in such a big Jing City, we could still run into each other several tis? If this isn’t fate, then what is?"
Upon hearing this, Mo Yan almost couldn’t maintain her forced smile and was about to make an excuse to leave the place when Xin Er’s puzzled voice sounded beside her, "Huh, Lady, how do you know my sister’s na?"
Xin Er’s mories of Mrs. Du were confined to an incident last winter when two horse carriages collided in the city. It was Mrs. Du who stepped forward, preventing the situation from escalating, so she had a very good impression of Mrs. Du, who seed kind and gentle. Now hearing Mrs. Du call her sister’s na with such familiarity, she couldn’t help but ask.
Upon hearing this, Mrs. Du noticed Xin Er beside Mo Yan. Looking at her face that closely resembled her own, she suddenly felt her eyes brimming with tears, and she covered her mouth, unable to utter a word.
"La-, Lady, what’s wrong with you?" Xin Er was startled and never imagined that just asking a common question could make soone burst into tears.
"..."
Seeing Xin Er at a loss, Mrs. Du wanted to say she was fine, but though her mouth opened, not a word ca out, and her tears flowed even faster.
Seeing Mrs. Du like this, Xin Er also felt a lump in her throat. She really wanted to step forward to comfort her but didn’t know what to say. So, she turned to her sister with a pleading look, hoping that her sister could help her.
Seeing Xin Er’s pitiful gaze, Mo Yan sighed internally: Could this be the so-called ’mother-daughter connection’? If Xin Er ever found out that the woman weeping before her was the mother who had abandoned her, I wonder if she would choose to forgive or would harbor hatred in her heart.
Unable to withstand Xin Er’s pleading and the inquisitive looks of the bystanders, Mo Yan finally took out a clean handkerchief and handed it to Mrs. Du, her tone sowhat brusque, "Lady, this place is Duobao Pavilion, it’s bustling with people and certainly not like being at ho..."
Mrs. Du, thinking her daughter was concerned about her, gratefully took the handkerchief but could not bring herself to use it, gingerly placing it inside her sleeve, then pulled out her own kerchief to wipe her tears. Her voice trembled with sobs as she spoke softly, "I−I lost my composure, I haven’t scared you, have I?"
Mo Yan, watching her actions, frowned slightly but said nothing. She simply replied, "Lady, I just hope you don’t mind my ddling. You cried in front of us, and I am worried about misunderstandings." What she ant was, I’m not concerned about you; I’m just worried about getting into trouble.
Mrs. Du could obviously discern the subtext, and looking at her daughter’s indifferent gaze, her heart felt imnse grief, nearly breaking into tears again but she managed to hold them back this ti.
At this mont, Wu’s, who had been standing behind Mo Yan observing Mrs. Du for a while, seed to have confird sothing, suddenly changed her expression, and cut into the conversation between the three of them, addressing Mo Yan, "Yan girl, weren’t you going to pick out jewelry? Let’s go have a look, we still need to hurry back later!"
Having said that, as if she hadn’t seen Mrs. Du at all, she grabbed Mo Yan’s hand and led Xin Er, ready to leave.
Upon reflection, Mo Yan realized that Wu’s had recognized Mrs. Du. Wanting to get rid of Mrs. Du, she went along with Wu’s words, saying, "Yes, let’s go now, or we won’t have enough ti!"
After speaking, she turned to Mrs. Du, who was staring at Wu’s, and said, "Lady, we have other matters to attend to and can’t chat with you any longer! If you encounter any distressing matters in the future, you might want to consider discussing them with your family. It might not feel as bad then, after all, they are your family!"
Once she finished, she didn’t care if Mrs. Du understood the implication in her words. She followed Wu’s and the others and, guided by the shop assistant, entered the private room prepared for guests.
Mrs. Du wanted to say sothing but found she had no reason to keep her daughters behind. She watched, dazed, as the silhouettes of the sisters disappeared around the corner, the pain in her eyes like indelible ink.
...
Having encountered two people she did not wish to see one after another, Mo Yan looked at the dazzling array of jewelry, and with a forced spirit, she picked out two sets of exquisite pearl headdresses for Xin Er and Shengsheng, then she let Wu’s mother and daughter, Aunt Lixiu’s nephew, Shengsheng, and Tang Xin choose at will.
Unable to refuse Mo Yan’s kindness, they reluctantly chose the cheapest silver ornants, adamantly refusing the lovely and costly gold and jade jewelry she had selected for them.
When they ca out with the jewelry to pay, the shopkeeper suddenly told them that soone had already paid.
Mo Yan imdiately guessed that it was Mrs. Du who had paid the silver in advance. She did not want any involvent with Mrs. Du, naturally, she would not spend her silver. In the shopkeeper’s bewildered gaze, she took out eighty-six taels and six coins of silver to settle the bill and reminded the shopkeeper to return the silver to Mrs. Du the next ti she ca.
As an old and reputable establishnt, Duobao Pavilion would not damage their reputation by misappropriating Mrs. Du’s silver. The shopkeeper, having listened to Mo Yan’s instructions, naturally agreed.
Although her mood for shopping was greatly diminished, Mo Yan did not want to dampen everyone else’s spirits. Relying on her familiarity with Jing City, she took them all through the nearby streets and alleys. Along the way, they not only purchased everything they needed but also bought many delicious and fun things.
Not until the sun was setting did they return to the shop with their heavy goods and head back to Liu Yang Village with Lizhong, Tie Tou, and Wang Pangtou.
Back ho, Wu’s, knowing Mrs. Du’s identity, casually asked about Mo Yan’s acquaintance with her. Mo Yan gave a brief account, pretending not to have recognized Mrs. Du as the mother of the three siblings.
Wu’s breathed a sigh of relief and warned Mo Yan sternly not to believe any of Mrs. Du’s words, lest she harbor ill intentions and deceive her. Mo Yan happily played the fool and had no intention of recognizing Mrs. Du and her daughters; she readily agreed.
However, Xin Er harbored doubts in her heart and hesitantly asked about a few things. Mo Yan, in silent agreent with Wu’s, deflected the questions, and neither disclosed the truth to her.
As for the encounter with Mo Erni in the city, no one planned to inform Mo Yonglu and the others back at Lao Mo’s House. For one thing, it wasn’t necessary; for another, they didn’t want to deal with the people of Mo Hong’s family and risk being pestered by Mrs. Hong, who behaved like a locust. Ever since knowing Wu’s would build a brick-and-tile house after the autumn harvest, she hadn’t stopped making a fuss. Although she hadn’t managed to gain any advantage, she was still irritating enough.
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