Happiness Consist in Contentment

Chapter 23 The Scholar’s Wife

 Madam Liu. No, it should be Old Madam Liu now.

Old Madam Liu was sitting in the carriage, her hair was already gray, and there were obvious wrinkles on her face. Looking at the streets outside the window, she was full of emotion.

Yunying, the Empress did it, we did it! You see, now, how good it is!

Old Madam Liu had a satisfied smile on her face.

Angeng said: “Mother is happy?”

Old Madam Liu nodded, “Un, I am very happy.”

Angeng smiled slightly.

Then Old Duke said, “When is your mother not happy? You didn’t ask me if I am happy.”

Angeng had no choice but to ask, “Father, are you happy?”

Old Duke turned his head and said, “Insincere, too perfunctory.”

Angeng: …

Old Madam glanced at him annoyed, “Okay, you are a grown man, and still like to tease children so much, please stop.”

“Why should I stop…”

The old Duke’s indignant voice came out. The convoy gradually went away…

Liu Fang went back to the Duke Liu Mansion to attend a family banquet. The reception for her mother and father.

Old madam Liu didn’t feel moved by this warm reception. Looking at the family gathered together, she just has one thought: There are too many people!

In the next few days, family after family come to visit, and Old Madam Liu sighed: “When your father took a concubine, I should have stopped it. Even if I didn’t stop it, I shouldn’t have allowed so many children to be born in the mansion. Now, one family a day, I have to see for more than a month, sons, daughters, grandchildren, it’s too noisy!”

Liu Fang and others: … Well, mother, as long as you are happy.

“But,” the old madam smiled kindly, and said, “Looking at them, I seem to have seen you when you were young, that’s nice!”

Liu Fang looked at her gradually aging face, her eyes were teary.

This is the bloodline, this is the inheritance: generation after generation, never-ending…

The empress reigned for forty years. Old Madam Liu also lived to be more than 80 years old almost 90. Witnessed the era of a female emperor, and another female emperor who succeeded to the throne——Emperor Jin Xuan.

Old Madam Liu sent away the old Duke and all the concubines, and when she left, Liu Fang cried so much that she almost lost her breath.

Old Madam Liu still has the strength to roll her eyes. She was already very thin, old, and feeble, but she was still the same harsh on the surface but with a soft heart.

“Why are you crying? There will always be a day like this. Good child, you are not too young, don’t let the juniors laugh at you…”

“Mother…” Liu Fang held her mother’s hand, choking with sobs.

Old Madam Liu looked at the grey-haired eldest son, the current Duke Liu⎯⎯Angeng, “Mother is gone. From now on, as the eldest brother, you should take good care of your younger brothers and sisters, and don’t let them be wronged. Also, our family It’s enough to be rich and honorable, from now on, they can do whatever they like, as long as they don’t violate the law, don’t treason and turn to the enemy, let them do it. It’s fine to be a rich and idle person for the rest of your life.”

Angeng nodded with red eyes, “Yes, son has written it down.”

Old Madam Liu looked at Ansu at the side and said, “You sisters are the same, those who should retire should retire. After so many years of hard work, it is time to rest.” 

Ansu nodded with tears in her eyes, “Yes, mother.”

Old Madam Liu looked at the neatly arranged children and said with a smile: “In this life, I am most proud of raising you! After I leave, you can distribute my things as you like.”

Everyone bowed respectfully: “Yes!”

Everyone’s tears could not be stopped, but the old lady’s voice became softer and softer, “There are too many people, and there is not enough time for each person to explain. After so many years , I have said everything that needs to be said, you guys are good…then…that’s…well…”

“Mother!”

Everyone cried in grief, and the grandchildren and servants who were guarding outside also all cried out loudly…

The Taijun of Duke Liu’s Mansion, the first-rank Duke’s wife, and Princess Jiarong of Prince Cheng Mansion, this life ended here at the age of eighty-five.

[Tai jun (太君) respectful address for a high official’s mother]

After Empress Jinxua learned about it, she specially conferred the title of Eldest Princess Jiarong, and she was buried according to the regulations of the eldest princess!

[Da zhang gong Zhu (大长公主) The eldest princess is generally the emperor’s daughter or the emperor’s daughter, the emperor’s sister, and the emperor’s aunt. The status of a princess is equivalent to that of a vassal king, so only a very small number of princesses have been named the eldest princess in history]

The funeral was extremely grand, but Liu Fang fell ill immediately after the funeral. It took three months for her to fully recover from the grief of her mother’s death.

At this time, Liu Fang’s brothers and sisters all resigned on the grounds of their mother’s death.

The seventeenth sister⎯⎯Anhe, even ran to Liu Fang and said, “I’ve long been impatient with leading troops. If it wasn’t for the late empress’s trust, I really couldn’t bear to stay in the capital for so long…”

Anqing also looked relaxed. “Okay, I can finally travel the rivers and lakes! After so many years, I’ve been strangled to death…”

Anfei yelled at him, “Are you still able to run? How old are you? Becoming a grandfather and wanting to travel around the rivers and lakes? You are going too far!”

“Who says I can’t run? Fifth elder sister, why don’t we compare to see who can run faster?”

“Tch, I don’t want to compare with you. It’s better to compare marksmanship than light work, how about it? Let’s learn from each other?”

[Qing gong (轻功) is a real skill in traditional Chinese martial arts. Practicing lightness kung fu does not make the weight lighter, but it can greatly improve the ability of running, jumping, dodging and maneuvering, and can stand or act on objects that cannot bear weight, and even use luck to lift up in the air with light objects]

Anqing turned his head, “No comparison.”

Anfei despised, “You bastard.”

Anqing glared at her, “If you have the ability Go compare yourself with Eldest Sister!”

Anfei shut up, and immediately became as quiet as a chicken.

Liu Fang and other people present: …

Anying said: “Then let’s go together. Anyway, there is nothing to do in the capital.”

Everyone’s eyes lit up. That’s right, they can go together. They didn’t even need to bring a guard. They can just bring their spouse!

“Okay, let’s travel.” 

 Angeng nodded in agreement, and the others also had no objections.

In this way, the forty siblings went out of the capital to travel together.

All those who had titles on their bodies gave a memorial to Empress Jinxuan, passed the titles to their sons, and then ran away with a lot of money. As for the others, it’s even simpler. They just go home, pack up their things, drive the carriage, and leave the capital.

Liu Fang has also become a grandmother. She left all the family affairs to her son and daughter-in-law and took Yang An to pack up and ran away.

Although Yang An was helpless, he still resigned himself to being a coachman. Drove the carriage and took his wife all the way out of the capital to meet his brothers-in-law and sisters-in-law.

A group of people left in a mighty way, and they didn’t return to the capital until before their respective deaths.

In his whole life, Yang An was just a scholar. But he was outstanding in calligraphy and painting, especially after middle age, he created new fonts and painting styles and was praised by the world as a master and a great Confucian.

His Enlightenment School from the opening has always been only for the enlightenment of young children, regardless of status, high or low background, and of course no distinction between men and women.

Although Liu Fang has always been the wife of a scholar in her life, she has a strong natal family to rely on. A group of family who loved her as her backing, a husband who keeps her promise and loves her all her life, and smart and filial children.

In this life, she gave birth to four sons and two daughters, and when she was old, she was full of children and grandchildren, rich and without worries.

At the end of her life, she bid farewell to the old Yang An. When she returned to the underworld, she was still in a daze.

Liu Fang successfully completed this task and gained five merits.