Chapter 9: Liu Huaixu Seemed to Have Been Bullied

“Grand-niece’s wife, is Yu An at home?”

At the voice, both of them turned to look out the gate in unison.

At its head was an old woman in a crimson-purple round-collar robe, face stern, posture ramrod straight. A man and a woman flanked her on either side. Judging by what Wu Qiuqiu had said yesterday, Yu An guessed this must be Second Grandmother Yu.

The man on the left was Second Uncle Yu, with the textbook Lord Alpha look—burly and towering.

The woman on the other side was presumably also a Alpha, her features a shade softer, though her expression was far from pleasant.

While Yu An was still taking all this in, Liu Huaixu—pushing through her discomfort—had already stepped out first to receive them, greeting them politely: “Second Grandmother. Second Uncle. Fourth Aunt.”

Second Uncle Yu and Fourth Aunt Yu were comparatively courteous toward Liu Huaixu, but Second Grandmother Yu at their head offered nothing more than a slight nod, sparing her no pleasant face at all. Her gaze slid right past Liu Huaixu and fixed on Yu An alone.

Even Yu An could feel Liu Huaixu’s awkwardness.

Yu An met the stare with an unceremonious look of her own, then walked up to the group and bowed first to Second Grandmother.

Then she greeted the two beside her as well.

Then she took hold of Liu Huaixu’s wrist. Liu Huaixu gave a small struggle at being pulled, but perhaps mindful of the outsiders present, didn’t press the point, and let Yu An draw her over.

Yu An spoke as if scolding her: “Wife, why did you come out when you’re unwell? Go back and rest.”

Remembering that Liu Huaixu felt poorly because of her, Yu An was seized with guilt and wanted nothing more than to send her off to rest.

Difficulty crossed Liu Huaixu’s face. She glanced at Yu An, then at Second Grandmother and the others, and shook her head gently.

“Be good. Go back first—I’ve got this.”

Yu An patted her hand in soothing fashion—then registered how utterly stiff her body was. Assuming she’d only gotten worse, she urged, “Quick, inside.”

She wasn’t thinking that far, and never noticed the way Second Grandmother Yu’s gaze on her was growing stranger by the moment.

Since time immemorial, Alpha had handled affairs outside the home, and Omega had kept house and borne children.

That was precisely why Second Grandmother had been cold to Liu Huaixu just now: the Alpha hadn’t even emerged to greet guests, yet Liu Huaixu, a mere Omega, had come out first—intolerable to an old fossil like her.

But… even thinking that way, she hadn’t meant to look down on Liu Huaixu.

She was simply furious at Yu An.

After all, the Yu An household was a special case. Second Grandmother had watched the girl grow up and knew her true colors better than anyone.

If Liu Huaixu didn’t step forward, there would be no one left to hold that house together.

Never mind the Yu Family—all of Zeyuan Village knew that Yu An was good for nothing.

Drinking at wine houses and haunting brothels were the extent of her prospects.

Yet today she was behaving entirely against character, actually fussing over Liu Huaixu’s comfort, when ordinarily she couldn’t wait to dump every last burden onto Liu Huaixu’s shoulders. It earned Yu An several extra looks from Second Grandmother.

And only on looking did she notice: the habitual slouch was gone from Yu An’s face, her round-collar robe had been traded for coarse hemp clothes, and when she shielded Liu Huaixu there was even something like sincerity in it.

Could Yu An actually have reformed? Second Grandmother couldn’t help but wonder.

The thought survived one heartbeat in her mind before she strangled it.

Yu An had put on these model-behavior fronts before, only to show her true colors within days. Not to be trusted!

Liu Huaixu’s body truly was unwell—but if Second Grandmother had come in person, this was surely no simple matter. She didn’t believe for a second that Yu An was worried about her; she only believed Yu An didn’t want her to know something.

So she didn’t leave.

She released Yu An’s hand and turned to Second Grandmother Yu. “Second Grandmother, did you come in person for some matter?”

Watching Liu Huaixu refuse her goodwill, Yu An froze for a beat and said nothing more.

The moment of truth had arrived. Second Grandmother Yu’s brows snapped together, her glare pinning Yu An in place, and she addressed the man at her side: “Second child. Tell them what you heard yesterday.”

“Yes, Mother.”

Second Uncle Yu was in his forties, his voice steady and strong. “Yesterday, on my way to the county town, I was stopped by men from the gambling house. They said An’er owed them silver…”

The instant the words left him, Yu An watched Liu Huaixu’s brow cinch tight, her expression turning fit to curdle.

Yu An strained to recall precisely how much the original owner had owed the gambling house. The more she dug, the more it dissolved into knots…

The original owner had frequented the place too many times, and the memories were too muddled to yield a number. It surely wasn’t small, though.

Second Uncle Yu was a reasonably kind soul; one look at Liu Huaixu’s knitted brow told him she was panicking, and he hastened to add, “Don’t worry, niece. I’ve already repaid An’er’s debt for her.”

But the furrow didn’t smooth. Second Uncle Yu, at a loss, glanced at his mother and let the matter drop.

Second Uncle Yu had gone quiet—but Yu An wanted to talk.

She had no standing to, though, and she couldn’t have said how much the original owner owed anyway, or what else she might have gotten up to besides.

“Second Grandmother, Second Uncle, Fourth Aunt—thank you for the trouble. Whatever the amount, I’ll fetch the silver for you right now.”

Ever since Wu Qiuqiu had warned her yesterday of Second Grandmother’s visit, Liu Huaixu had prepared herself thoroughly, so nothing today came as a shock. She only hoped the sum would be small enough to make winter a little kinder to them.

Second Grandmother watched Yu An hold her tongue the entire time, eyes wheeling about over who knew what, then watched Liu Huaixu’s stubborn posture besides, and her temper frayed. Her tone wasn’t exactly warm: “The sum is no great matter, Grand-niece’s wife—spare yourself the fuss. I came today chiefly for the sake of my sister, to give An’er a proper lesson.”

A lesson for Yu An? This was hardly the first. These past years, Second Grandmother had lectured her more times than anyone could count, and she’d never once improved.

Liu Huaixu barely registered the words—her mind was on the silver. She held firm: “Second Grandmother. It will be repaid.”

The clan had treated them reasonably well; it was Yu An who was so hopeless that even Liu Huaixu got looked down on by association. Only Second Grandmother’s branch, out of old affection, had abstained from any heavy punishment—mostly they just wanted Yu An to straighten up and live properly with her wife.

The others did not see it that way.

Take Fourth Aunt Yu, standing at Second Grandmother’s side—the daughter of Second Grandmother’s brother, raised at her elbow since childhood.

Second Grandmother still honored what she’d owed Old Madam Yu. Fourth Aunt Yu honored nothing of the sort, and so her attitude toward Yu An had never been particularly kind—Liu Huaixu included.

“Niece, the clan will cover this sum for An’er. We came mainly to tell you this: from now on, whatever trouble Yu An stirs up, do not go calling her a daughter of the Yu Family—”

“Enough!”

Before Fourth Aunt Yu could finish, Second Grandmother cut her off, twisting her head to shoot her a glare. Knowing she’d overstepped, Fourth Aunt Yu swallowed her words—though she still managed a contemptuous flick of the eyes at Yu An.

At bottom, Second Grandmother did still cherish some old affection. When Second Uncle Yu had brought the news home yesterday, Fourth Aunt Yu and the others had clamored to strike Yu An from the clan register then and there.

The Yu Family was no great clan, but their numbers were far from few, and face still had to be kept.

What was more, Fourth Aunt Yu’s eldest daughter would sit the Imperial Examination the following year—no one alive cared more about reputation than she did.

Though her sentence had been cut in half, Liu Huaixu heard the meaning perfectly.

They meant to strike Yu An from the register. From that day forward, no ties to the Yu Clan whatsoever.

She knew Fourth Aunt’s circumstances too. Her eldest daughter, Yu Zheng, would sit the examination next year; a cousin like Yu An was not merely an ugly sound—it could poison the exam itself.

Liu Huaixu understood. And yet she couldn’t help feeling how cold the world could be.

When Old Madam Yu was alive, no one dared breathe such words, no matter how vile Yu An became. Now…

Nothing had been decided about striking Yu An’s name. With Fourth Aunt Yu blurting it out now, Second Grandmother’s face was naturally none too pleasant either.

“Grand-niece’s wife—”

“Second Grandmother, I understand. Yu An has stirred up no small amount of trouble over the years.” Liu Huaixu’s eyes stayed lowered, and no one could read her face. Only Yu An, standing at her elbow, could feel it: her body had gone stiffer than before, her fingers curling involuntarily tight.

She cared. Deeply. And had no way to say so.

Yu An had stayed silent at first purely because she didn’t understand the Yu Clan’s workings and feared that speaking rashly would seem strange. But now she could not stay silent.

Because she could feel it—Liu Huaixu seemed to be getting bullied.

Those beautiful eyes, drooping low.

These past days Liu Huaixu had been cold to her, yes—but never once had she worn this face. She was plainly hurting.

Before today, Yu An had only pitied herself—transmigrated into this world to play the scapegoat. Now she thought Liu Huaixu the unluckier of the two, and, if anything, rather pitiable.