Chapter 244 Having a Child and Getting Married

Chapter 244 Having a Child and Getting Married

After sending the letter, Du Minru felt relieved and relaxed, and began to have the leisure to accompany Caiwei for walks and chats.

"I don't know how long you'll be gone. By the time you return, the child in my belly won't even know who you are." Yin Caiwei was heartbroken for her unborn child. Although Du Min was secretive with her, he was kind to the child and could be considered a good father.

"As long as he's willing to acknowledge me as his father, that's fine." Du Min didn't care.

Yin Caiwei glared at him, "I'm a pitiful child, I've never had a father around since I was little."

“Isn’t my second brother home? He treats Ximei even better than I do. Even without me, the children won’t lack anything. When I’m not home, he’s the father of both children.” Du Min was even somewhat relieved that his departure allowed Du Lao Er to legitimately raise his children. The three brothers shared the same parents, but because Du Lao Er had been raised by his uncle for several years, his gentle nature was completely different from his and Du Ming’s—like a harmless snake, only meant to scare, not kill. With his children in Du Lao Er’s care, without his influence, they probably wouldn’t grow up to be like him.

"When I leave, I will entrust the two children to my second brother. If he disciplines the children, you are not allowed to interfere," Du Min instructed.

Yin Caiwei nodded, "My second brother is willing to go to the trouble of disciplining our child, how could I interfere? I'm too grateful to even thank him. Just don't be jealous in the future, the child is closer to my second brother than to you."

Du Min remained silent, but then he thought that if he raised the child himself, the father and son would not only be estranged in the future, but might even become enemies. Thinking this way, he felt relieved.

"That's a good thing; it shows the child has a conscience," Du Min said.

Seeing this, Yin Caiwei stopped talking.

"Third Uncle, Third Aunt."

"Father, Mother."

Wangchuan and Ximei ran into the backyard one after the other, each carrying a net, with two strong servants following behind carrying ladders. Du Min, seeing this, asked, "What are you doing?"

"Catch the cicadas," Wangchuan replied, "The cicadas are too noisy."

"Aren't you two too idle?" Du Min asked. "Have you finished your homework?"

"Master has heatstroke and is taking leave today." Wang Chuan had already climbed the ladder up the tree. He nimbly climbed up the tree, found the cicada that was chirping desperately, and put it into a net bag.

Yin Caiwei was terrified. "Wangchuan, come down quickly! Ximei, you're not allowed to go up there, or you'll fall!"

Du Min thought she was making a fuss over nothing, "We all climbed trees when we were little, it's not that easy for us to fall down."

Upon hearing this, Ximei excitedly climbed the ladder and sat on the tree trunk, exclaiming how cool it was up there.

Yin Caiwei watched from below with bated breath, but thankfully nothing unexpected happened; only the siblings' clothes were torn.

That evening, Yin Caiwei complained to Meng Qing and Du Li, only to find out that the two of them had also climbed trees when they were young, and Meng Qing had even dug up cicada pupae from the ground and fried them.

Upon hearing this, Wangchuan and Ximei also wanted to try the fried cicada pupae.

With the two of them climbing trees, digging in the ground, catching cicadas and digging for their pupae, the sound of cicadas chirping in the governor's mansion grew weaker and weaker.

Days passed by, and before they knew it, it was June 5th. Yin Caiwei went into labor in the evening and gave birth to a son in the middle of the night, whom Du Min named Wangshan.

After the third-day ritual at Wangshan, Du Min, along with Lin Canjun and the guards of the manor, set off for Youzhou, entrusting all affairs of Huaizhou to Meng Qing.

During the sweltering heat of summer, when the air was parched and people were restless, Meng Qing, newly appointed to her post, didn't rush to make any big moves. Instead, she remained calm and followed the plans and regulations left by Du Min. Just like Du Min had during his tenure, she would go to the library to read in the morning, return home when it got hot, and take her dog to her parents' house in the cool evening. Every two weeks, she would take her family to Luoyang for a couple of days to visit her eldest son who was studying at the Imperial Academy.

Seeing this, the officials in the court and the officials in Huaizhou gradually relaxed their vigilance and stopped paying attention to her every move.

Four months passed in the blink of an eye, and October arrived, marking the start of Meng Chun's wedding.

Wang Buyang's youngest daughter, Wang Yun, traveled by boat from Wu County to Luoyang. Wang Buyang bought a house in Luoyang, and Wang Yun was married off from Luoyang.

Five years ago, Meng Chun volunteered to be Du Min's groom, and now he too is dressed in a blue ceremonial robe and riding a tall horse to welcome his new bride.

From Luoyang to Heqing County, passing through Heqing County and then to Wen County, finally arriving at Henan County, and then at the Meng family's residence.

As the bride alighted from the sedan chair, Meng Chun stopped the matchmaker's hand and personally helped her down. "You came from Wu County to Luoyang, and then followed me from Luoyang to Henan County. You have walked the same path I have walked over the years. From now on, we will walk together."

The bride nodded gently under her veil.

Surrounded by relatives and friends, the newlyweds entered the mansion filled with the calls of geese.

Mencius's parents waited in the main hall. They had been waiting for ten years, and their son was finally getting married. The old couple were overjoyed.

After paying respects to his parents, Meng Chun raised his hand to interrupt the officiant's chanting. He walked towards Meng Qing and said, "Sister, sit down and accept my bow."

Meng Qing shook her head and refused, "I'll drink the tea you and my sister-in-law offer tomorrow morning."

“I must drink the tea and accept the gift. For the past thirty years, you have been like a sister and a mother to me. The effort you have put into me is no less than that of my own mother. I haven’t had a proper occasion to thank you before, so let me do my part today.” Meng Chun pleaded, “I have had this thought since the day the wedding date was set.”

Meng's mother stood up and said, "Qingniang, come sit here. You deserve this courtesy."

Meng Qing had no choice but to sit down.

Meng Chun walked over, lifted his robe, knelt down, and solemnly kowtowed.

The bride stood to the side and bowed.

Wangchuan and Ximei squeezed in front, craning their necks to watch with great interest.

"Get up quickly." Meng Qing helped Meng Chun up. She looked at the master of ceremonies, who announced: "Husband and wife bow to each other - the ceremony is complete - escort them to the bridal chamber."

Wangchuan and Ximei hurriedly followed and arrived at the bridal chamber. The bride's veil was lifted, and the brother and sister saw the bride's face. Satisfied, they left to eat the feast.

"Second sister-in-law, the new bride looks a bit like you. It's true what they say, birds of a feather flock together," Yin Caiwei teased.

Meng Qing and Wang Yun exchanged a glance, and Meng Qing smiled and said, "We both have round faces, so we do look alike."

Wang Yun nodded.

"Sister, Third Sister-in-law, the feast is about to begin. You should go and eat," Meng Chun said.

Meng Qing nodded, "Sister-in-law, I'll have someone bring you some food later so you can have something to eat."

"Thank you, sister."

Meng Qing glanced at Yin Caiwei, and the two sisters-in-law walked out of the bridal chamber one after the other.

“It hasn’t been long since I turned eighteen, but seeing my bride today, I suddenly realize I’ve aged,” Yin Caiwei sighed. “Youthful cleverness and energy can’t be hidden or faked.”

“I didn’t call you old, so don’t. I’m several years older than you,” Meng Qing said.

"Madam, Madam Yin, may we sit together?" As they passed the courtyard where the bride's family members were being entertained, Meng Qing and Yin Caiwei were stopped by Wang Yun's sister-in-law.

"Since my sister-in-law invited me, of course I can accept," Meng Qing replied with a smile.

Yin Caiwei gladly accompanied her.

The arrival of the two caused the guests at the table to stand up one after another. After some polite refusals, Meng Qing and Yin Caiwei took the seats of honor.

During the banquet, Meng Qing learned that Jin Shu had approached the Wang family two months ago, hoping to hitch a ride on the Wang family's wedding boat to Huaizhou, but was stopped by Li Hongguo.

"I remember his wedding was in the eleventh month. Why is he coming to Huaizhou so close to the wedding?" Meng Qing asked, puzzled. "Do you know why he wants to come to Huaizhou?"

“When your nephew came to me, he said that Governor Du had written a letter home, intending for your nephew to work for him,” Wang Yun’s second brother explained. “Afterwards, your sister-in-law came to our door, saying that she only had this one son and did not want him to leave home. She told us not to pay attention to what he said and asked us to tell you.”

Meng Qing frowned slightly. Li Hongguo had personally sent a message through someone, so it seemed the letter wasn't just empty talk. Du Min wanted Jinshu to work for him? What wicked scheme was he plotting this time?

"The uncle wanted to promote his nephew, but the nephew's parents didn't want their child to suffer, so they had to give up," Meng Qing explained to Du Min.

*

At this time, the Du family received a second letter from Du Min. The recipient of the letter was Jinshu. He wrote down the address on the letter, and five days later, in the middle of the night, while everyone in the family was asleep, he quietly climbed out the window, took the wedding gift given to him by his third uncle, and left Dujiawan.

Li Hongguo realized Jinshu had run away on the evening of the second day. She led her men to take a boat into the city overnight and arrived at the ferry at dawn, but they could no longer find her.

Li Hongguo stood at the ferry crossing, looking at the water, her mind blank. Du Min had taken her son away; what did he want to do with her in return?