The Innocent Heart - Chapter 10

The nephew and the maternal uncle rushed back to the manor just before the nightly curfew. No sooner had they entered the inner courtyard than they saw Qing’e, Lady Wei Shao’er’s personal maid, standing by the courtyard gate, peeking and craning her neck.

Seeing the two suddenly approaching, she was startled, and without even having time to perform a proper greeting, she turned and bolted towards Lady Shao’er’s (Wei Shao’er’s) courtyard.

Upon seeing this, Wei Qing already had a vague suspicion in his heart. He had always adopted a “turn a blind eye” approach to his second elder sister’s private affairs, but he knew his nephew greatly disliked them.

“Qubing, you must be hungry. Let’s go back to the study first and have dinner together before going to see your mother,” he intentionally tried to draw Huo Qubing away, fearing he would notice the commotion in his mother’s courtyard.

However, Huo Qubing possessed extraordinary vision. He had a pair of “night eyes” and could always perceive things that others could barely see, even on a night with dim candlelight. Moreover, the Wei Manor was currently brightly lit, practically as bright as day.

“Stop right there!” Huo Qubing ignored his maternal uncle and turned to call out to Qing’e. The girl’s back stiffened. She hesitated for a moment and finally halted her steps.

“Ah, so the General and the Young Master have returned. My mistress is waiting for the two of you in the courtyard, and I was just on my way to inform her!” Qing’e turned around, her words eager, but the expression on her face seemed insincere.

Huo Qubing gave a cold, mocking laugh. “Is that so? That’s perfect. Let’s go, then; come with me to pay our respects to Mother.”

With that, and without waiting for Wei Qing to object, he strode towards Wei Shao’er’s courtyard. Although Huo Qubing was still young, his height had begun to increase due to his excellent nourishment since childhood. Being physically superior, he had long arms and legs, and in just a couple of steps, he overtook Qing’e, his pace unwavering as he headed toward his mother’s residence.

Wei Qing looked at his nephew’s tall, straight back and suddenly felt a wave of helplessness. He truly must have been indebted to this mother and son duo in a past life. He had just cleaned up the mess left by the younger one, and now he had to go clean up the mess left by the elder one. Even the deliberate provocations from the old officials opposing His Majesty’s use of troops against the Xiongnu on the imperial court, or the difficult plotting of the Grand Princess Guantao’s faction, had never made him feel so mentally exhausted.

He wanted to just drop everything and let the mother and son sort it out themselves. But on second thought, if he didn’t intervene now, given Qubing’s temperament, he feared the boy would cause an even greater scene.

With this thought, Wei Qing seemed to accept his fate and turned to run toward his elder sister’s courtyard. By this time, Huo Qubing’s figure had already disappeared into the night.

Wei Qing’s heart was anxious. He didn’t know what the situation was like in his second elder sister’s courtyard, hoping Qubing wouldn’t witness a sight that a child shouldn’t see.

Thinking this, he quickened his pace again, practically sprinting toward the courtyard.

Finally, the gate to Wei Shao’er’s residence came into Wei Qing’s view. Illuminated by the candlelight, silhouettes constantly flickered within, and a clamorous noise emanated from the courtyard.

This is bad, Wei Qing thought, and disregarding all sense of decorum, he flew forward.

Just as he reached the courtyard gate and before he could even react, he saw a familiar dark figure flash out of the doorway, brushing past his shoulder.

“Qubing?” Wei Qing called out, somewhat hesitantly, toward the dark figure. But Huo Qubing did not turn around to respond; instead, he kept his head down and quickened his pace even more.

What exactly had happened in such a short time? Wei Qing grew even more perplexed. He turned, wanting to chase his nephew, but the sound of his second elder sister’s weeping reached his ears from inside the courtyard.

Wei Qing rubbed his tightly furrowed brows in distress. Forget it, he thought. He should first appease his second elder sister, understand the whole story, and then go check on that troublesome little brat.

When Wei Qing entered Wei Shao’er’s room, as expected, Chen Zhang was there. Wei Shao’er was currently weeping miserably, leaning into his arms.

“Zhongqing…” Chen Zhang looked up at Wei Qing, his expression a little awkward as he greeted him.

Wei Qing looked down. Both their clothes were slightly disheveled. A overturned low table lay on the floor, its exquisite dinner scattered everywhere. The ambiguous atmosphere had long dissipated, leaving only a scene of utter chaos.

“Second Elder Sister, stop crying. What exactly happened?” Wei Qing frowned, looking at the two, his tone revealing a hint of impatience.

Yet, Wei Shao’er continued to weep, showing no intention of speaking to her younger brother. In his helplessness, Chen Zhang had no choice but to explain the current situation on her behalf.

“Shao’er heard that you and Qubing were summoned to the Palace, and seeing that it was late, she thought you would stay overnight in the Palace as you usually do. She was lonely in her chambers, so she invited me to the manor for a drink. Unexpectedly, Qubing arrived when we were halfway through our drinks. Seeing your second elder sister and me together, he became very angry. Without waiting for Shao’er or me to explain, he angrily kicked over the low table and stormed out.”

Wei Qing subtly scoffed in his heart. If it were merely drinking and enjoying themselves, Qubing would not have been so enraged. Although Qubing was closer to him, he still held basic respect for his mother, Wei Shao’er. Moreover, the way the two of them looked now suggested that this was far from being just a simple drinking session.

Wei Qing did not detest his second elder sister’s lover as much as Huo Qubing did, but he had never held Chen Zhang in high regard. Chen Zhang claimed to be a descendant of the Marquis of Quyun, Chen Ping, but he was neither from the main lineage nor highly valued within his own family. When their four siblings were struggling in the residence of the Grand Princess Pingyang, Chen Zhang was nowhere to be seen. When their third elder sister entered the Palace and had not yet won the Emperor’s favor, he was also absent. Yet, as soon as their third elder sister gained favor and gave birth to a princess for the Emperor, he suddenly emerged and attached himself to the family.

“Our Third Elder Sister is struggling greatly in the Palace; Second Elder Sister, you should at least restrain yourself a little. A man and woman alone late at night in a single room—if this were to reach the Emperor’s ears in the Palace, wouldn’t you be personally handing a weapon to the Chen family?”

Wei Qing did not address Chen Zhang’s words directly but turned to admonish Wei Shao’er.

“What is wrong with me just wanting to find a man and grow old with him? Both of you look down on me! Yes, among us four siblings, I am the most useless one, having been fooled by a man into giving birth to a child before marriage. But was that what I wanted? Now that A’zhang doesn’t mind this, you two have to come and stop us. Fine! I won’t live this life anymore; I won’t even live at all! If I die, you’ll finally have some peace and quiet, won’t you!”

Unexpectedly, just as Wei Qing’s words fell, Wei Shao’er, whose crying had already begun to subside, suddenly stood up. She angrily shouted while bolting out of the courtyard gate.

This happened so suddenly that both men were caught completely off guard. By the time they tried to grab Wei Shao’er, she had already run some distance.

This is bad, they thought. Just outside Wei Shao’er’s courtyard was a recreational lake in the garden. Although it covered less than one qing (a unit of area), the water was quite deep. Wei Shao’er was not a strong swimmer, and if she fell into the water, she might truly lose her life.

The two men exchanged a glance, finally waking up from their shock, and anxiously ran after her.

Fortunately, although Wei Shao’er had run out first, as a military general, Wei Qing’s speed and reflexes were far superior to his second elder sister’s. He finally managed to catch his second elder sister by the waist right by the lake, pulling her away from the water’s edge.

“Second Elder Sister, haven’t you caused enough trouble!” Watching Wei Shao’er still kicking and struggling in his arms, the usually good-tempered Wei Qing finally lost his patience and erupted in anger.

“Your Third Elder Sister and I walk on thin ice every day in the imperial court and the inner palace. If you cannot help us, can you at least do as our Eldest Elder Sister does and cause less trouble?” Wei Qing managed to restrain himself, ultimately choosing not to use his second elder sister’s private life as a reason for his censure. He knew that although she appeared flighty, her past affair with Huo Zhongru, Huo Qubing’s birth father, remained a past event she was unwilling to revisit or mention. That was why, even to this day, Huo Qubing still did not know who his birth father was.

“Zhongqing, why do you say that? When has your Second Elder Sister, living peacefully in the manor, ever caused trouble for you or the Empress? Speaking like this will only hurt her heart!” At that moment, Chen Zhang finally rushed over. Not being a military man, he was naturally slower than Wei Qing. Furthermore, although he was not highly valued in his family, he had been spoiled and well-cared for since childhood. After running only this short distance, he was already quite breathless.

Wei Qing heard Chen Zhang’s words behind him and let out a cold snort. Chen Zhang and Wei Shao’er had been in this murky relationship for so many years. Although he seemed devoted, if his feelings were truly deep and sincere, he would have long since taken Wei Shao’er as his wife, instead of leaving her in this passive, difficult situation.

Isn’t your relationship with Chen Zhang the biggest criticism people can level against Wei Shao’er? Wei Qing held onto his second elder sister, trying to calm her down, while mentally cursing Chen Zhang. Moreover, Chen Zhang had already received a minor official position due to the Wei family’s influence, yet he had made no further move regarding their relationship.

“In that case, are you planning to take my elder sister as your wife?” Looking at his disappointing second elder sister in his arms, Wei Qing finally could not help but turn his head and speak to Chen Zhang with sarcasm.

As expected, Chen Zhang, who had just been so righteously indignant, slightly changed his expression when he heard Wei Qing’s question. After a long pause, he replied unnaturally, “It’s not that I am unwilling, but Qubing, that child, has many complaints about Shao’er and me. If we insist on moving forward, I fear that with Qubing’s personality, it will only make things worse.”

Upon hearing Chen Zhang’s excuse, Wei Qing thought even less of him. It was clearly because the rivalry between the Chen and Wei families had not yet been decided, and Chen Zhang was unwilling to commit too early, yet now he was pushing all the blame onto Qubing, a mere child!

Wei Qing was about to mock Chen Zhang again when he suddenly heard his second elder sister, Wei Shao’er, who had only been crying until now, stop her tears and say mournfully, “A’zhang’s worry is very correct. I think so, too. Younger Brother Qing, don’t blame A’zhang anymore. He has also been through a lot these years.”

After hearing his second elder sister’s words, a wave of anger rushed to Wei Qing’s head. He was so furious he wanted to just let go and stop managing the tangled, messy relationship between the two of them.

Wei Shao’er was just like this: easily swayed and extremely indecisive. It was no wonder that among the three Wei sisters, though Wei Shao’er was the most beautiful, she had the most difficult life.

Wei Qing angrily thought to himself, and simply handed his second elder sister over to Chen Zhang, saying stiffly, “I’m going to check on Qubing. You two must act responsibly.”

However, when he entered Huo Qubing’s residence, the lights were dim; Huo Qubing was not in the courtyard.

“Where is your Young Master?!” Wei Qing, whose day had been full of misfortunes, finally lost his temper and roared at the servant boy guarding the courtyard gate.

“The Young… Young Master has not returned to the courtyard…” The servant boy, terrified at seeing his master so enraged, stammered a reply.