“How could we mistake someone? You are clearly our young lady. Miss, please return home; don’t be so heartless as to ignore the master and lady.”
“A well-bred lady behaving this way? Running away from home is already against propriety, and now ignoring your parents, that’s too much,” an elderly man in the crowd chimed in.
“No! I haven’t, I’m not their young lady. They really have the wrong person,” Xu Caitong retreated, shaking her head.
“Miss, we haven’t mistaken you. How could we? One of the servants just returned from the market and reported seeing you. The master sent us to fetch you. Please return home and greet your parents!”
“I’m not, I really am not,” Xu Caitong felt at a loss for words to convince them.
“Oh, what could be so important to leave home? Showing no regard for your parents’ upbringing, this is unfilial,” the crowd murmured.
“It’s too unseemly,” others added.
“Miss, perhaps you should go with them to clear things up,” Ruiping, feeling somewhat guilty due to the crowd’s accusations, suggested.
Ruiping was unsure if this was real or a misunderstanding. Caitong had suddenly appeared in their Moon Village, which was already suspicious, but if she was indeed this family’s daughter, it would be understandable for her parents to be frantic with worry. However, they needed to clarify things with her parents, right?
“Sister-in-law, do you believe them?” Caitong asked, stomping her feet in frustration.
“Well, at least go with them to explain.”
“But, do we really have to do this?” Caitong was still in doubt.
Ruiping nodded. “Will you go with me?”
“Yes,” the middle-aged man called for a sedan chair, and they set off towards the city. After about the time it takes to smoke a cigarette, the sedan stopped in front of a lavish mansion adorned with dragons and phoenixes. The middle-aged man dismounted, knocked on the large red door, and a doorkeeper opened it, recognizing him and respectfully bowing. The group entered the courtyard, and Xu Caitong and Ruiping alighted from the sedan, realizing they had arrived. The surroundings were beautiful, with carved walls, fluttering willow trees, and lotus flowers in full bloom, a small bridge crossing over the lotus pond. It was clear they had come to a wealthy household.
A maid carrying a vegetable basket approached, gracefully stepping over the bridge, and bowed to Caitong, “Greetings, Miss.” Caitong frowned; why did everyone mistake her for this young lady? According to the middle-aged man, the young lady had been missing for months, and she might resemble her, causing the confusion.
The middle-aged man led Caitong and Ruiping across the bridge, through several corridors, to a grand hall. Inside, lanterns with intricate designs hung high, and several pieces of calligraphy adorned the walls. A man stood in the center, hands behind his back, and a dignified woman in her forties sat on a chair.
“Reporting to the master, the young lady has returned,” the middle-aged man respectfully announced to the man with his back turned.
The woman, upon seeing Xu Caitong, joyfully got up from her chair, approached, and took Caitong’s hands, examining her from head to toe, her eyes welling up with tears of affection. “My daughter, you’ve come back, your mother has missed you so much. Why did you leave home? Look how thin you’ve become,” she said, touching Caitong’s face with a pained expression.
Caitong stood there, unsure how to respond. What kind of girl was this family’s Hong? Spoiled and willful? How could she refuse a mother’s love? Thus, she allowed the lady to touch her face.
“Kneel down,” the master suddenly turned and shouted sternly.
Caitong’s eyes widened in shock at his fierce demeanor, startled by his sudden command. “Hey, be more polite when you speak. I didn’t choose to come here; you forced me to come,” Xu Caitong said rudely to the old master. “You, you, you are too impudent. How could a young lady run away from home and not even admit her fault when she returns, still arguing with her father like this?” “Rainbow, what’s gotten into you? How can you speak to your father like that? Hurry up and apologize to him!” the lady of the house said, her face filled with shock and tears streaming down. “What am I apologizing for? What have I done wrong?” Xu Caitong snorted coldly. “Rainbow, have you been possessed by evil spirits? How have you turned into this?” cried the lady. “A Fu, bring the family discipline,” the old master shouted to the middle-aged man standing by the door. “Yes,” A Fu replied. “Master, Mistress, why don’t you clarify things before disciplining the young miss?” At this moment, Ruiping stepped in front of Caitong and said, “We found the young miss by the Moon River and brought her back, but she never considered herself as the young miss of this household. She says she came from the moon to Moon Village, not that she ran away from home.” “What nonsense! Is she a goddess? Running from the moon to Moon Village?” The old master grew even more furious. “Let me tell you, I came from the 21st century, not here to be your Rainbow,” Xu Caitong retorted angrily. “Are you still talking nonsense? If I don’t discipline you, you won’t know your mistakes!” the old master said, gritting his teeth. “Hey, are you being reasonable?” A Fu handed a long whip to the master, and the lady cried, urging Xu Caitong to kneel and apologize. Caitong, pulled by the lady, knelt on the ground, completely bewildered. Did she really look so much like Rainbow? It seemed that if she didn’t acknowledge being Rainbow, the household wouldn’t leave her in peace. But what good would it do to admit it? It would just mean admitting to a fault.
“You disgraceful daughter, how could I, Xu Pucran, have a daughter like you who knows no shame and has brought such disgrace to our family. It’s all your fault for spoiling her like this,” Xu Pucran roared. He threw the whip at Xu Caitong, who turned pale with fright, her anger growing even more as the whip struck her, causing her to scream in pain, almost fainting. She knew she couldn’t explain herself today, but she had to think of something; she couldn’t just take the beating.
“Father, your child knows she was wrong. Your daughter shouldn’t have left home without permission. Rainbow promises not to do it again,” Xu Caitong said, pretending to cry while sneakily watching the man who claimed to be her father.
“Dare you do it again?” Xu Pucran was still fuming.
“Wah, it’s all my fault, all my mistakes. I’ve brought shame to our family. I have no face to meet others; I will atone with my death.” Xu Caitong said, suddenly rushing towards a large pillar in the hall. Neither the lady nor the master anticipated this move, and they panicked. The lady screamed, crying out, while the butler A Fu, with quick reflexes, rushed forward and pulled Xu Caitong back. Xu Pucran hadn’t expected such bravery from his daughter; seeing her intent on ending her life, he sighed heavily, dropped the whip, and his anger subsided by half.
“Enough, enough, Rainbow, does your father really want you to die? It’s just that you’ve caused me so much sorrow. How am I to explain this to General Liu?”
“Father, Mother, has sister returned?” A young man dressed in a plain robe, wearing a gauze cap, and fanning himself with a folding fan, walked into the hall. He noticed the unusual atmosphere, with no one paying attention to him. Sister Rainbow had messy hair, tear-stained cheeks, and Father was standing in the center of the hall with an angry face, a whip on the floor, while Mother was sobbing beside him. Xu Zhizhou understood what had happened. In this strict family, running away was a grave violation of decorum. He approached his sister, saw her tearful eyes, and holding her hand, said, “Sister, you’re back. Do you know how worried Father and Mother have been, not eating or sleeping? You must never run away again.”
