Spring Remains the Same - Chapter 42

Grand Tutor Wei boarded his carriage and returned to his residence. As soon as he entered the gates, he saw his third son standing there, waiting for him.

His third son, Wei Yi, had not entered official service and instead remained at home to attend to his parents, earning a reputation for his filial piety.

Grand Tutor Wei had three sons in total. The eldest had been driven from the family, leaving Wei You and Wei Yi. Ordinarily, as long as the parents were alive, the family would not be divided, and four generations would live under one roof. However, as Wei You had risen to the rank of General of Chariots and Cavalry and been granted the privilege of establishing his own administrative office, he had moved into a separate residence for the convenience of his official duties.

“Father, you’ve returned,” Wei Yi said, stepping forward to greet Grand Tutor Wei.

“Yes,” Grand Tutor Wei grunted, walking inside with his hands behind his back. Wei Yi turned and followed behind his father.

“Has it been confirmed that he is indeed my nephew?” Wei Yi asked.

Grand Tutor Wei paused for a moment, then nodded, his expression betraying neither joy nor anger. “I spoke with him privately. Everything matched up.”

Having spent a long time trying to please his parents, Wei Yi knew his father well. Seeing him like this, he knew he was mostly satisfied. He smiled and said, “It is good that you have found him. It was never right for Elder Brother’s bloodline to be adrift in the world. If it became known, people would inevitably say our Wei clan is cruel for not being able to accommodate a single child.”

Grand Tutor Wei sighed. “He may not care for it.” From his conversation with Wei Xiu just now, he could tell he was not particularly keen on returning to the family. However, this, in fact, reassured him. If Wei Xiu had eagerly agreed the moment he made the offer, he would have felt he had misjudged him.

But even so, the thought of it still left him feeling dejected.

Wei Yi furrowed his brow and asked cautiously, “Could it be that he harbors resentment?”

Grand Tutor Wei gave a cold laugh and turned to glance at his third son. Unsure how he had displeased his father, Wei Yi quickly lowered his head in deference.

“To ask such a question is truly naive. If it were you, cast out for over twenty years, with your family paying you no mind, acting as if you didn’t exist, would you be resentful or not?”

Of course, he would be. Wei Yi, forgetting his father’s reprimand, said anxiously, “What is to be done, then?”

Grand Tutor Wei did not say that resentment was a good thing. If someone could still smile and fawn after suffering such injustice, they would be far too spineless, and spinelessness often meant mediocrity. But when he recalled Wei Xiu’s unyielding demeanor today, he knew he would have to swallow his pride many more times, and he truly could not bring himself to smile.

“If not for the lack of successors in the Wei clan…” Grand Tutor Wei muttered to himself.

Hearing this, Wei Yi’s expression darkened. He followed behind with his hands clasped, saying nothing more.

The Wei clan’s lack of successors did not mean the bloodline was severed, but that none among the grandchildren’s generation were outstanding. Although the sons’ generation was also mediocre, they at least had Wei You, who could support the large family. But in the next generation, Grand Tutor Wei had surveyed the entire clan—not just the main branch, but all the collateral lines as well—and had not found a single person capable of shouldering great responsibility. When it came to feasting and drinking, however, not one of them was lacking in skill.

A great family needed a leader in every generation, someone who could bear the heavy burden. Without one, its decline was not far off.

Why were the great families so admired by the world? Because they produced gentlemen generation after generation? No. It was because they produced high officials and nobles, stood firm in the imperial court, and possessed power and influence. Only then could they endure and be revered.

Grand Tutor Wei had been constantly worried. Now, having met Wei Xiu, his hopes were rekindled.

Whether Wei Xiu acknowledged it or not, her surname was Wei!

Moreover, Grand Tutor Wei’s stern eyes narrowed, revealing a hint of shrewd cunning. Wei Xiu resided in the princess’s residence, which showed she had a deep relationship with Her Highness Puyang. The Wei clan had long wanted to gain merit by backing an imperial prince, but they lacked the foresight. Now, things were different. In the entire court, who knew the Emperor’s mind better than Her Highness Puyang? And who could have more timely information than her?

Once Wei Xiu returned to the clan, she could build a good relationship between the Wei clan and Her Highness Puyang. Then, they would surely be invincible.

The very person Grand Tutor Wei saw as a bridge between the Wei clan and Princess Puyang was, at that moment, contemplating leaving the residence to live elsewhere.

“Have I troubled you, Sir?” Puyang asked with downcast eyes.

She sat opposite Wei Xiu, and every nuance of her expression was visible to Wei Xiu. For the past few days, the princess had continued to visit daily, as if nothing had happened. But Wei Xiu believed this could not go on. How could they conspire for great things if they were always mired in personal feelings?

Wei Xiu hardened her heart and said, “I am assisting Your Highness, but I did not realize that I had, unawares, become a sycophant. If I continue to impose here, I will have no face to see Your Highness again.”

Puyang’s face turned deathly pale. She opened her lips but did not know how to make her stay. A look of regret gradually appeared on her face as she looked up at Wei Xiu, who remained completely unmoved.

Puyang suddenly saw it clearly: Sir had not a shred of affection for her. Perhaps her true feelings were nothing but a burden in Sir’s eyes, something to be avoided at all costs.

After a period of silence, Puyang’s spirits sank even lower. She did not speak rashly, still trying to think of words to persuade her to stay, but Wei Xiu had made things so plain that any further attempts seemed futile. Her thoughts turned from contemplation to panic as she stared at Wei Xiu, her lips pressed together in silence.

Wei Xiu blurted out words of comfort, “You know full well I am not a man, why must you…” She stopped herself there, a flash of annoyance crossing her face as if she resented her own loose tongue. Her tone became harsh. “Why must you be like this.”

Puyang was aghast, not knowing how she had found out. In the next moment, she felt it was for the best. Now that she knew, they could finally be truly honest with each other. She summoned her courage and took the initiative to grasp Wei Xiu’s hand. Wei Xiu instinctively tried to pull away, but Puyang refused to loosen her grip in the slightest. “I do know. But my love for you is only about whether it is you. What does it have to do with you being a man or a woman?”

Such unconventional words, yet she spoke them with righteous conviction, as if it was how things were meant to be. It would be a lie for Wei Xiu to say she was not moved. From her tolerance of the princess’s feelings in recent days to her blurting out words of comfort just now, Wei Xiu knew that she couldn’t help but have a soft spot for the princess.

But she could be cold, she could be ruthless; the one thing she could not be was soft-hearted.

Wei Xiu tried to pull her hand from Puyang’s grasp. Puyang held on so tightly that Wei Xiu’s hand turned red, looking painful, yet Wei Xiu seemed not to feel it at all, struggling even harder, as if she would not stop until she was free. In the end, it was Puyang who softened, afraid of truly hurting her, and released her grip.

Wei Xiu calmly tucked her hand under her sleeve. Her tone was cool, almost cruel. “I’m afraid I must fail to live up to Your Highness’s misplaced affection.”

She had known Wei Xiu would say such a thing. Her attitude had never softened. Puyang had believed that with the karma of their past life, she only needed to be a little more proactive, a little kinder to Sir, and Sir would eventually be moved. She had sunk into this belief alone, while the other person had remained a cold observer all along.

Puyang also calmed down. She would not give up. No matter what Wei Xiu said, she would not give up. To have her heart moved by only one person in two lifetimes, she was no longer willing to die old and alone.

“And what if I forbid you to leave?” Puyang said calmly, looking at Wei Xiu.

Wei Xiu also raised her eyes to look at her and suddenly smiled. “Does Your Highness intend for me to fawn and curry favor, to offer my body in service, just to make the best use of my talents?”

Her words, whether meant to belittle herself or mock Puyang, provoked a cold look from the princess, who frowned and said, “You know that is not what I mean.” Her tone, however, had clearly softened.

Seeing this, Wei Xiu’s expression also eased slightly. She said in a gentle voice, “If that were Your Highness’s intention, then I ought to return to Mount Mang and live as a hermit in the mountains.”

This, in a way, elevated Puyang, implying that she was a person of noble character who would not do such a despicable thing.

It was but a very subtle compliment, yet it made Puyang happy, and the somewhat tense atmosphere strangely dissipated. Puyang looked at Wei Xiu and asked, “Sir, you are so insistent on refusing me. Is it because you already have someone in your heart?”

Wei Xiu naturally replied, “There is no one.”

Puyang breathed a small sigh of relief, then continued, “When you return to the Wei clan, marriage will likely be unavoidable.” She herself could delay marriage because of the Emperor’s favor, but it was not the same for the Wei clan. The marriages of scions of great families were often used to unite two families; it was not something one could decide for oneself. Grand Tutor Wei, feeling “guilty” toward Wei Xiu, might grant her some autonomy, but he would inevitably press the matter.

As she spoke, Wei Xiu could almost guess what she was going to say next.

“I know you are resistant, Sir, but in the future, you cannot always be arguing with the Grand Tutor about whether or not to marry.” They had other things to do. How could they waste their energy on such an unimportant matter?

The more Puyang spoke, the more feasible the idea seemed. “Why don’t you and I marry, Sir? If you find someone else in the future, I will part with you amicably. And between us, as long as you are unwilling, we will not cross any boundaries. How about it?”

The proposal seemed reasonable, but was in fact absurd. Yet Wei Xiu found herself uncontrollably tempted. She knew, however, that to agree would be to step into a bottomless abyss with no way back.

Puyang looked at her expectantly. “I know you dislike the Wei residence. Once we are married, you can live here permanently and not have to go back. I truly cannot bear to see you compromise yourself. By staying here, you can at least see them less.”

Wei Xiu fell into silent contemplation.

Puyang pressed on earnestly, “You were absolutely right that day. I cannot bear to see you compromise yourself, but in the end, I am still asking you to do so. This is my fault, for being unable to promise you anything and only speaking empty, grand words. But this does not mean I will do nothing and simply watch you suffer.”

As she spoke, her words became ambiguous again. Wei Xiu quickly changed the subject, asking, “I have yet to ask Your Highness, how did you discover I was a woman?”

She had been puzzled by this for a long time. She had thought her dress and mannerisms were flawless, and her servants were extremely careful people. How on earth had the princess seen that she was a woman?

She had expected an immediate answer after asking. But who would have thought that as soon as the words left her mouth, Puyang’s face would turn completely red. The mouth that had just been so eloquent was now pressed tightly shut, as if determined never to speak of it.