Chapter 942: Kneeling Until My Knees Are Almost Shattered

"Madam..."

Second Young Master Lai was about to persuade further but was interrupted by Lady Lai, who asked, "Where are the two girls? I haven’t seen them for a while, are they doing well? Let them come out and see me."

Lady Lai was very fond of Second Young Master Lai’s two daughters, treated them exceptionally well, and even set aside a decent dowry for them.

Second Young Master Lai and his wife were aware of the kind of life Lady Lai had been leading in the Lai Family in recent years, like living dead, only managing a smile when she saw the girls. Naturally, they immediately nodded in agreement.

"They were startled by the thunder last night and are catching up on sleep in the next room. I’ll go call them, while madam waits here." Second Young Master Lai went to the girls’ room and called them up.

Upon hearing that Lady Lai had arrived, the two little girls immediately put on shoes and ran over.

As soon as they saw her, they ran over and cried loudly, "Waa, waa, grandma, grandma, where did you go? We were so scared... The house was occupied by the government officials; they’re very bad and won’t let us leave the courtyard."

Lady Lai was heartbroken, held them close, and comforted them, "Don’t cry, don’t cry, they’re not bad people; they’re here to protect you... Listen and be good; you’ll be able to leave here in a month or so. Grandma bought you a new house, planted flowers and fruit trees you like. By then, you can see the flowers just by opening the window, and you can eat the fruits in autumn."

The two little girls, upon hearing this, were no longer afraid and happily talked to Lady Lai about eating fruits.

After chatting with them for a while, Lady Lai left.

The two little girls were reluctant to let her go and hugged her tightly, refusing to let her leave.

Lady Lai smiled, "Grandma is going to see Brother Yan’er, I’ll be back. You be good and don’t make trouble."

The two little girls, hearing this, finally let go of Lady Lai, "Then grandma should go see Brother Yan’er first, then come back and have lunch with us."

Lady Lai smiled but didn’t answer. She just left.

Lady Lai went to Lai Yan’s courtyard and saw his eyes swollen, seemingly from crying, yet he was still shocked to see her.

Lady Lai asked the old nanny beside Lai Yan, "How has Brother Yan’er been recently?"

The old nanny explained Lai Yan’s recent condition.

Lady Lai listened, nodding, and said to Lai Yan, "Your health is getting better; despite the family’s upheaval, your illness hasn’t worsened. You now realize that your body isn’t as frail as your grandfather thought. It will grow stronger with age."

Lai Zhi had only one legitimate grandson, Lai Yan, and he was very concerned. Whenever Lai Yan felt a headache or feverish, he’d get anxious, making the child sensitive, always thinking he was on the brink of death.

Lai Yan didn’t speak, only shed tears.

Lady Lai didn’t need him to speak and proceeded to tell him about Lai Zhi, explaining the details of Lord Lai’s case.

Lai Yan didn’t know if he understood or not; regardless, Lady Lai finished speaking and paused, saying to him, "You need not grieve for your grandfather; when a person commits sins, they must repay them. He enjoyed enough blessings; now it’s time to pay his debts."

She further told him, "Do not torment yourself either; as long as you have abilities, you can live the kind of good life you desire in the future. Moreover, you have your mother’s dowry; after this case ends, you and your Second Uncle can go live in Yuhu Prefecture in Jiangnan, where no one knows you, and you can live quite comfortably."

Lai Yan, after listening, showed no sign of happiness. Instead, he started crying even more and asked her, "Does grandma hate us?"

Lady Lai shook her head, "I don’t hate you; I only despise your grandfather. He’s a selfish person, ignoring the lives of his own children and yours. This time, luck was in our favor; a minor crime landed him in jail, otherwise, if his other deeds were exposed, the entire Lai family would be wiped out, those are sins that can’t be paid off with silver."

Dragon’s Contribution is not easy to achieve; many families have perished on this path.

She continued, "You don’t understand yet, but when you grow up, you’ll realize."

But Lai Yan was smart and said, "I understand; is this what Steward Yue calls abandoning the car to save the commander?"

Lady Lai thought for a while and said, "Somewhat, but correctly speaking, it should be called sacrificing the small to preserve the large, or cutting off the tail to survive."

Feeling she was too cold, potentially influencing the child negatively, she gently touched his head and praised, "Look, our Brother Yan’er is smart; at such a young age, you understand the idea of abandoning the car to save the commander. You’ll accomplish even greater things in the future."

Lai Yan, initially lifeless, after hearing Lady Lai’s words and feeling the warmth of her palm, finally smiled.

Lady Lai was relieved, and after saying this, she looked around the room and said to Lai Yan, "Move to live with your Second Uncle. You need to live together, treating him as a father, for the relationship to grow deeper."

Lai Yan was willing; with the family’s sudden changes, many servants in his courtyard were gone, only one nanny left. He was scared but said, "The government official uncles won’t let me leave."

Lady Lai said, "Don’t worry, I’ll handle it."

With silver in hand, Lady Lai found Zhang Sanjin to move Lai Yan to Second Young Master Lai’s courtyard without difficulty. Within 30 minutes, Lai Yan was residing in the right wing room of Second Young Master Lai’s couple’s courtyard.

"Mrs. Tao, you’ve been staying in the mansion for a long time; it’s time for you to leave." Zhang Sanjin received quite a few silver notes from Lady Lai and wanted to give her more time. But originally stationed at Moxiang Street to guard the Old Gu Family, he was recognized by Magistrate Gu and transferred to guard the Vice Magistrate’s residence. Seeing prospects of promotion, he couldn’t afford mistakes or allow anyone to seize a handle, so he said, "If you stay too long, we’ll be in trouble."

Lady Lai nodded, "I’ll leave now."

After saying this, she hugged the two little girls one last time and turned to leave.

Second Young Master Lai hesitated for a long time, and at the moment she exited the courtyard, finally knelt and said, "Thank you, mother, for saving our lives; we don’t hate you."

Second Young Master Lai was only a few years younger than Lady Lai; since Lady Lai was a stepmother, he respected her but never called her mother since he couldn’t bring himself to do it.

But now, he felt he should respectfully call her mother.

Seeing this, Second Young Master Lai’s wife quickly followed with the two daughters and knelt, "Quickly thank your grandmother."

"Thank you, grandmother, for saving us," the two little girls said, bewildered, then asked Lady Lai, "Grandma, would you stay and live with us?"

Lady Lai’s eyes grew red, but she didn’t come over. Instead, she turned and said, "Grandma needs to go outside and set up a new home for you, won’t live with you, be well."

Finishing her words, she didn’t say more, walked briskly away.

Crossing the threshold of the Vice Magistrate’s residence, she felt relieved. Once the Imperial Court of Judicial Review recertifies Lai Zhi’s case, after paying off their crimes, Second Young Master Lai and all of them will truly regain freedom.

Her whole life had been trapped, first by her family, then by the Lai Family; only this moment was the lightest.

...

The Lai Family case caused an uproar in He’an Prefecture but was merely a small case in the Capital... A young official had an affair with a maid who had redeemed herself and conspired to kill her husband, simply trivial.

With a snap, Ming Shaoqing reviewed the file and evidence presented by Magistrate Gu, quickly stamped it, then grouped it with many other files and sent it to the Monk from Da Li Temple to seal with a large seal.