Quick Travel to the Clouds

Chapter 700 My Family 18

"Prime Minister Gu?" Du Feiqin was slightly taken aback, then thought, "They both serve in the court and are like brothers, so it's only natural that they are close. Could there be some connection in the court?"

“It’s not just brotherly affection, Mother.” Yun Chu looked directly at her mother and clearly, word by word, unveiled that thin veil, “Brother, he is already with Brother Gu.”

"'Together'?" Du Feiqin repeated subconsciously, then her pupils suddenly contracted as she stared at her daughter as if she hadn't understood.

The impact of those three words was so great that her expression was momentarily blank, and then, as if struck by an invisible hammer, her body jolted violently! She instinctively grabbed the pillar beside her to steady herself.

The cozy warmth inside the room seemed to be instantly swept away by the cold wind outside the window, leaving only a bone-chilling cold.

"You...what did you say?" Du Feiqin's voice trembled, her eyes filled with disbelief and immense shock. "Lian'er...and Gu Ting? They...how could they?!"

Countless images flashed through my mind: the light and admiration in my son's eyes whenever he mentioned Gu Ting; Gu Ting's strict guidance and silent protection of his son; the unspoken understanding between the two of them during family reunions that was difficult for others to comprehend...

Those details she once proudly explained as "close friends, like brothers," now shattered like glass, reflecting a completely different, blinding light! So that's how it was...

Du Feiqin felt a wave of dizziness wash over her, and her chest felt as if it were being tightly squeezed by something, making it hard to breathe.

She was breathing heavily, her face appearing somewhat pale in the dim light of the lanterns.

After a long while, she seemed to catch her breath like a drowning person, letting out a long, heavy sigh.

That sigh contained too many complex and indescribable emotions: astonishment, shock, worry, a sense of absurdity, and finally transformed into a wisp of almost settled understanding and heavy weariness.

“…No wonder.” She murmured to herself, “No wonder he’s always been so evasive and dodging the question whenever I’ve brought up his marriage all these years…”

She closed her eyes, then opened them again. The initial shock had subsided, replaced by a weary, worldly-wise clarity. "Children and grandchildren... let them have their own blessings. Who he likes, who he wants to spend his life with, is ultimately his own path."

Her voice was soft, yet carried a calm that seemed to have settled.

However, this calm lasted only a moment.

A more acute practical problem, like a cold awl, pierced Du Feiqin's thoughts: "But... Gu Ting..."

Her brows furrowed tightly, worry gathering again in her eyes. "He is now the Prime Minister, a first-rank official! He holds the highest position in the court! So many eyes are on him! So many noble ladies are waiting to marry into the Gu family and become future ladies of high rank? He... he really can remain unmarried for life for Lian'er? Never take a concubine?"

She paused, her tone heavy, "Even if he had such intentions, under the emperor's nose, with the watchful eyes of censors and officials, and the harsh realities of the court, how could he allow himself to act recklessly? If in the future... if he were to succumb to societal norms for the sake of power and fame..."

Du Feiqin's voice trembled slightly as she thought of the worst possibility, her heart clenching as if it were being squeezed. "Then what about our Lian'er... what about our Lian'er? Our deep affection has become a joke, and deep affection is short-lived... wouldn't that ruin his life!"

She gripped Yun Chu's arm tightly, her fingers turning slightly white from the force, her eyes filled with a mother's deep worry and determination: "No! We can't leave it like this! I have to find Lian'er... and ask him face to face! Ask him what he's really thinking! And even more importantly, ask him... that child Gu Ting, what kind of future does he... what kind of future does he want to give Lian'er!"

As she spoke, she took a deep breath, stopped looking at Yun Chu, and resolutely turned to walk quickly toward the warm pavilion. Her steps were heavy with anxiety and urgency. She was going to face her most beloved son, who was also the one who was causing her the most worry at the moment.

The autumn wind under the eaves seemed to sense the tense atmosphere, whistling as it swirled up a few withered leaves, which landed on the hem of Du Feiqin's skirt as she hurried past.

Inside the warm pavilion, the charcoal fire flickered softly, and all was silent.

The suffocating atmosphere left behind by Yun Chu and her mother had not yet completely dissipated. Tang Yunlian's heart was pounding like a drum. He had just taken a difficult sip of cold tea to try to calm himself down when the door of the warm pavilion was suddenly pushed open.

Du Feiqin returned, her face no longer showing the peace she had when she went to "look at the beads" with her daughter. Instead, her expression was one of unprecedented seriousness and anxious inquiry.

She closed the door behind her and walked step by step to Tang Yunlian. Her steps were small, but they carried the heaviness of an impending storm.

"Lian'er," her voice was hoarse, cutting to the chase, each word seemingly squeezed out from between her teeth, "Chu'er just now... what Chu'er just told me... was it true?"

Tang Yunlian's heart clenched, and he could barely breathe. Looking into his mother's eyes, which were both all-knowing and filled with pain, he knew there was no longer any room for concealment.

He knelt down with a thud on the cold floor tiles in front of Du Feiqin, his forehead pressed deeply against the hem of his mother's skirt, which was embroidered with lotus blossoms, beside his knees.

"Mother..." The voice was muffled, choked with uncontrollable sobs.

He didn't say "yes" or "no," but this sorrowful kneeling carried more weight than any words, like a boulder crashing into Dufy's heart.

Only the faint crackling of the charcoal brazier and his suppressed sobs remained in the warm room.

Du Feiqin swayed, grabbing the edge of the table beside her to steady herself. She closed her eyes, her chest heaving violently, and after a long while, let out a heavy sigh: "A tragedy... truly a tragedy..."

Tang Yunlian's voice rang out, carrying a resolute and desperate courage:

“Mother!” Tang Yunlian raised her head, her face still streaked with tears, but now radiated a resolute and unwavering light.

He straightened his back, just as he had learned from following Gu Ting over the years, and fearlessly met the turbulent waves surging in his mother's eyes.

"It's true. I... I'm with Brother Gu... we're together."

He spoke the words "together" with exceptional clarity, as if he wanted to imprint them onto the moment with all his might. "I know this goes against the norms of society, is shocking and unconventional, and will be condemned by thousands and cursed by tens of thousands!"

A fierce flame ignited in his eyes, a burning and stubborn intensity like a moth drawn to a flame: "But I'm not afraid! Mother, we are sincere! This sentiment is far more important than the opinions of the world! Brother Gu has never treated me with the slightest disrespect."

"He taught me knowledge, guided me towards goodness, protected me, and treated me with utmost sincerity. Between us, there was no question of power or social status, only affection!"

"Even if the road ahead is full of thorns and fire, I don't care! Let the world curse me if they want! Once I, Tang Yunlian, have chosen a person and a path, I will never regret it until death!"

His voice was resolute and unwavering, every word conveying a steadfast and resolute determination to fight to the death.

Du Feiqin looked at her son kneeling at her feet—he was now a dignified fourth-rank censor, his posture upright like a pine tree and a bamboo, no longer the child who needed her to hold his hand and learn to walk.

But at this moment, the reckless light in his eyes made him seem like a reckless young man challenging the whole world alone.

Heartache, worry, confusion, grief... a variety of complex emotions entangled Du Feiqin's heart like a noose.

Her lips moved, as if she wanted to say something accusatory or admonishing, but in the face of her son's burning and fearless sincerity, they seemed so pale and powerless.

The warm pavilion fell silent once more. Only Tang Yunlian's slightly rapid breathing and the soft crackling of burning charcoal could be heard.

Du Feiqin gazed at her son's stubborn and determined profile, as if she could see through him the undeniable depth of her affection.

After a long while, she finally raised her hand, trembling slightly, yet with a heavy force, and slowly placed it on Tang Yunlian's tense shoulder.

There was no scolding, no crying or fussing.

The mother's hand, after experiencing shock, pain, and finally boundless helplessness, patted Tang Yunlian's hand firmly with a heavy warmth.

Then, seemingly having exhausted all her strength, her voice was low and hoarse, yet carried a sense of resignation after everything had settled:

"……Ugh."

A sigh, long and heavy, seemed to sink deep into his lungs.

“It’s your choice…your own path…” She looked at the spot on her son’s hand where she had just patted it, as if she wanted to imprint that entrustment into it, “You…just think it through.”

In just one short sentence, she contained utter helplessness and endless worries, yet in the end, she made the concession that could not stop her son from going.

Behind this concession lies the bitterness and worry that the mother had to swallow after her heart-wrenching pain—for the unshakable light in her son's eyes at that moment, light that could burn away all obstacles.