Yu Yi followed her long-missed family from a distance for a short while, suppressing her impulse to approach them, then turned and left the crowded lantern festival. Although she could return to the past, her own time remained synchronized with the time management bureau’s standard time, so she couldn’t stay long and had to return before Meng Qing discovered her absence.
Finding a deserted place during the festival was not easy. Yu Yi walked quickly through a small alley and finally found a section with no people. She looked front and back, then quickly opened Lin Bai’s terminal and returned to her room in the bureau.
Meng Qing had not yet returned. Yu Yi breathed a sigh of relief. She changed out of her dress and veil, completely shut down Lin Bai’s terminal, and placed it in the white room’s storage cabinet.
She sat down at the table, her heart still racing.
Time reversal was indeed possible. She had even seen her past self. According to Lin Bai’s explanation about time reversal, if she truly changed the past, her father and brothers would not die, and she would not become a courtesan and then an executor.
The current her would disappear, and both Meng Qing and Lin Bai would forget her.
Or perhaps “forget” was not quite right – they had never seen her, they didn’t know she existed at all. Yu Yi suddenly felt a sharp pain in her chest. Was she really going to return to the past and change it?
Her room door slid open, and Meng Qing appeared at the entrance. Yu Yi hurriedly wiped away the tears from the corner of her eye.
Meng Qing quickly walked to her side, surprised and asked, “Why are you crying?”
Yu Yi turned to him and revealed a smile: “The movie just now had a tragic ending, which made me cry.”
Meng Qing let out a sigh and said, “You women always like to torture yourselves. Why not watch something happy when you’re looking for entertainment?”
Yu Yi changed the subject: “How is Lin Bai?”
“He’s fine. He and Xia Xuanxuan broke up two years ago. He might feel a bit uncomfortable, but not to the point of being unable to let go.”
Yu Yi was stunned by his words, with the phrase “even if their feelings were deep before, they’ve faded now” repeatedly spinning in her mind.
Meng Qing noticed her unusual expression and asked, “What’s wrong? Are you still thinking about that movie?”
“No,” Yu Yi shook her head and hurriedly said, “Since he’s okay, let’s go back to the villa.”
They changed and returned to Xiye Villa.
Meng Qing looked out the window and said, “It’s still early in the morning. Let’s wait a bit before sending Guan Dujiu off.”
Yu Yi paused, remembering this was the second day after Guan Yue’s injury. Although Guan Yue had said he would leave the next day, it would be inappropriate to rush him out so early in the morning. She nodded, “Okay.”
After breakfast in the main courtyard, Meng Qing received a message from Lin Bai and left the main courtyard.
Yu Yi sat chatting with her sisters, but her thoughts kept drifting. She wondered whether she should change the past. She had the ability to change the past and save her father and brothers, but how could she easily give up this opportunity?
However, saving them would mean her own disappearance, an idea equivalent to suicide that made her shudder. Before meeting Meng Qing, she might have unhesitatingly decided to sacrifice herself to save her father and brothers’ lives, as she was then lifeless. But now… she was reluctant!
She wanted to spend every day and year with him, to stay together until old age. But…
Yu Yi hesitated and stood up to find her mother in the inner courtyard, hoping to gain clarity through their conversation.
As she approached her mother’s room with the door slightly ajar, she heard suppressed crying from inside.
She was stunned. After redeeming all her sisters, her mother had appeared content seeing them safe. Since moving to Xiye Villa, her mother had always seemed happy. Yu Yi had never seen her mother cry, yet here she was, secretly grieving.
Peering through the partially open door, she saw her mother covering her face with a handkerchief, her head slightly lowered, revealing numerous white hairs at her temples and forehead. She was not yet forty. Yu Yi remembered the mother she saw at the Lantern Festival, with beautiful black hair, smiling at her husband, surrounded by her children – and now, barely two years later, she had become this sorrowful, aged woman.
How could her mother bear to forget her father? She could never forget their past, those harmonious days together as a family.
Yu Yi stood at the doorway, unable to enter. She stared blankly at her mother’s muffled crying, her body trembling. She now felt her previous desire to protect her own happiness was too selfish.
She painfully closed her eyes, slightly raising her chin, making a decision in her heart.
Yu Yi walked out of the inner courtyard.
Here is the edited article with irrelevant content removed:
Yu Yi, who had wanted to find a place to be alone, quickly adjusted her mood, instructed Fu Cheng to prepare the carriage, and sent a message to Meng Qing about Guan Yue’s departure.
Meng Qing arrived at the main courtyard and directed the servants to carry Guan Yue on a simple bamboo stretcher to the carriage. Guan Yue, already not talkative, was even more silent after last night’s events. Yu Yi was also unusually quiet, and didn’t even try to persuade Guan Yue when he insisted on refusing the gift money.
Guan Yue, leaning against the carriage wall, pointed at the silver package and firmly said, “Guan will absolutely not accept this silver. If Master Meng insists on leaving it in the carriage, Guan will treat it as lost property and send it to the yamen.”
Meng Qing was equally unyielding: “If Constable Guan sends this silver to the yamen, it would be better to help the poor.”
Guan Yue nodded, “Good, then Guan will do a good deed on Master Meng’s behalf. But Master Meng can be assured that Guan will make it clear this silver comes from Master Meng and will not take credit for your good deed.
Meng Qing raised an eyebrow. “Constable Guan is mistaken. This silver was not from me, but from my wife. Moreover, with such a small amount of silver, how much reputation could it possibly earn me?”
Guan Yue’s face turned red with anger, unable to match Meng Qing’s wit, and snorted in frustration. He cupped his hands and said, “Guan takes his leave.”
Guan Yue was speechless. Meng Qing saw the right moment to stop, smiled, and cupped his hands in return: “Captain Guan, take care. Aunt Liu, take Xiangzi with you to accompany Captain Guan and make sure to send him home safely.”
Arguing is one thing, but winning the momentum over Guan Yue is another. One must leave room for others. Xiangzi, Aunt Liu’s son, is a clever young man who helps in the main courtyard and does things efficiently, making him perfectly suitable to take care of the injured Guan Yue.
Although Guan Yue is straightforward, he is not a heartless and rash man. He could see that Meng Qing’s words came from genuine thoughtfulness. Living alone, he was worried about how he would manage meals and daily tasks with an injured leg.
Now, hearing Meng Qing suggest leaving Xiangzi to help felt different from being insulted by money.
Having someone to care for him was precisely what he urgently needed. After sending Guan Yue off, Meng Qing looked puzzled at Yu Yi and asked, “My dear, what’s wrong with you?”
Yu Yi was startled and turned to look at him: “What do you mean?”
“Why didn’t you persuade Captain Guan to accept the money? I had to waste my breath and almost became the bad guy.”
