Horse-head Wall Reflects the Qing Dynasty

Chapter 53: The past is gone, and the heart is still broken

The rain had already soaked the ground beneath his feet. The moment Sanheng knelt down without hesitation, Guan Yin, who was standing beside him, wanted to lend a hand - the condition of the two people in front of him was not right. What on earth had happened?
A cold voice said, "Get up."

Helplessness and disappointment were hidden in the word "get up", and Guan Yin didn't know how to start.

Liu Jiaoan doesn't like people around her using this method to try to make her change her mind. This is not begging, it's clearly coercion.

"Yes." Knowing Madam's temperament, San Heng did not continue to express his attitude by making people feel pity for him. He stood up and looked at Liu Jiaoan, "Madam, please let San Heng stay for a while longer."

"Madam, even if Sanheng goes back to the Liu family now, the master will not take Sanheng in. Madam, just think of it as giving Sanheng a home."

Sanheng was right. Liu's father wanted Sanheng to come, but Sanheng not only exposed himself, but was also driven back to Liu's house from the courtyard. With Liu Jiaoan's father's character, he would never keep Sanheng, who was not efficient, by his side.

Liu Jiaoan understood his father too well. When he became an official, he was naturally surrounded by people who flattered him.

As time went by, Liu's father never thought about what was wrong with him. Liu Jiaoan knew that she couldn't make it clear with him, and from the moment she made up her mind, she never thought about leaving herself a so-called way back.

"Okay." Liu Jiaoan finally softened her heart, her eyes fell on Guan Yin, then turned back to look at Sanheng, "Go clean the mud off your clothes first. You are still young, there are some things you should keep to yourself."

That being said, Madam would not send him back to the Liu family anytime soon. Sanheng breathed a sigh of relief, patted his trouser legs that had been soaked by water, and stood up straighter: "Thank you, Madam."

The wind will soon dry the mud on the trouser legs, and then you just need to gently shake off the dried mud. Sanheng returned to the yard and did not rush to deal with it. He just went to the kitchen and did what he usually did.

With the help of the burning stove fire, the water on his knees and trouser legs dried up quickly. Sanheng only needed to stomp his feet, and the dirt left on his clothes floated down, flashing a momentary golden light under the bright blue sky.

The only thing that made Sanheng feel a little regretful was the water marks on his pants. No matter if he woke up in the middle of the night or squatted down during the day, he could always see them, and they always reminded him of everything that happened today.

After all, this small courtyard could not be considered as his home. Sanheng understood that he was at fault. Since he had received the kindness of his wife and husband, he should not think about his master and his parents who were still in the Liu family.

"I'll go with my wife." From Liu Jiaoan's words and Sanheng's response, Guan Yin knew that if one of them had strange thoughts, the former would never keep Sanheng.

So Guan Yin knew that all this must be because of the Liu family.

Since the original body had the courage to disguise herself as a man and marry Liu Jiaoan, Guan Yin felt that there was nothing she would not dare to do - including facing the people sent by the Liu family.

"Where to go?"

"When Madam goes to the market, I will go with her." After returning to the house, Guan Yin did not ask what happened between Liu Jiaoan and Sanheng. Instead, he chose to mention the teacher Liu Jiaoan mentioned before, "Madam was still mentioning the teacher before, why don't I go and meet him and see what he wants."

After thinking for a moment, Liu Jiaoan nodded, as if to agree: "I am a little tired today, I will go another day, and you can accompany me."

Everything was settled, and Guan Yin sat down at his desk again, looking at the stories he had not yet finished writing. He suddenly wanted to meet Cheng Heng. If he met Cheng Heng, he could ask him if there was anything easier in writing a script, so that he would not end up with a lot of hair and still not earn enough money to feed himself!

But it is better to rely on oneself than on others. Guan Yin did not know when he would dream of Cheng Heng, nor did he know how much Cheng Heng would have time to tell him in the dream: "Madam, I intend to go to the temple to pray for blessings. What do you think?"

There are many stages in temples and ancestral halls. Guan Yin knew this without Cheng Heng telling him, so he asked Liu Jiaoan in a different way.

"Of course it's good, but I may not be free recently."

What Liu Jiaoan always needs to consider is the livelihood of the courtyard. Only by surviving, everything else is possible.

The sun sets, the moon rises, the stars move, and everything goes on as usual. Sanheng cooks and Liu Jiaoan makes a living by cooking.

As for the teacher, he had not appeared since Guan Yin followed Liu Jiaoan to the market. It was hard not to suspect that his target was Liu Jiaoan...

"My husband, just take a rest. Jiao An will do these things."

To be honest, Guan Yin really doesn't know how to do business. He is good at calculating accounts, but he is slow at keeping accounts. He wanted to help promote the business, but the words he said were not as attractive as those of other shops.

"Alright." Guan Yin couldn't help but give up on himself since he couldn't do anything. "I won't mess with Madam."

Even though her husband is older, he always needs to be coaxed like a child. Liu Jiaoan has gotten used to it these days. Just now, after completing a business deal by handing over the money and the goods, she had to turn around to comfort Guan Yin.

"girl."

A man's voice sounded, and Guan Yin and Liu Jiaoan became nervous almost at the same time. The teacher in front of them had few students, but his demeanor revealed the spirit of a scholar. Even though Guan Yin had never seen him before, he could immediately confirm that this man was the one Liu Jiaoan had mentioned repeatedly.

"Miss, I think you and Miss Guan are acquainted." This time, the man seemed to be well prepared. "I don't know if Miss Liu still remembers me, but Miss Guan and I are old acquaintances."

Guan Yin, who was sitting with his head down, stood up at this time. The teacher noticed Guan Yin's presence from inside out. The latter looked over and seemed to have seen through Guan Yin's identity.

"I have some things about Miss Guan's father that I would like to discuss with her in person. However, I heard that Miss Guan..."

"I have thought about it and found that Miss Liu and Miss Guan were very close and sworn sisters, so she must have some news about Miss Guan."

Liu Jiaoan subconsciously wanted to deny it until she realized that the man in front of her had his eyes clearly on her husband, and he looked away when she looked over. Finally, she chose to respond to the man's test with silence.

"This matter concerns Miss Guan's father and the rest of Miss Guan's life... If Miss Liu was really interested in being friends with Miss Guan, I don't think she would have refused."

The one who couldn't speak the most at this moment was Guan Yin. She was eager to know everything about the original body, but she didn't know whether the person in front of her was an enemy or a friend.

"it is good."

"If I can meet Miss Guan, I will naturally tell her." This time Liu Jiaoan did not exchange any glances with the people around him, not even a tiny extra movement, staring at the scholar in front of him, "If you really want to find her and tell her something important, please leave a letter for me."

"If we really meet, I can explain it to you."

Liu Jiaoan was really smart. The person in front of her seemed familiar, but she was worried that this person was an enemy rather than a friend, so she used her wisdom to do everything possible to protect her friend.

"Thank you very much, Miss Liu."

The gaze that seemed to be able to see through everything finally moved away from above his head. While Guan Yin breathed a sigh of relief, he suddenly realized that there was something unusual about Liu Jiaoan's words.

Did this scholar recognize his identity? Did Liu Jiaoan know from the beginning that his original body was a girl, and even this so-called marriage was a plan between the two of them?
After the visitor left, neither Guan Yin nor Liu Jiaoan took the initiative to speak.

Until the people on the street dispersed in twos and threes, and Liu Jiaoan had sorted out the accounts, she gently patted Guan Yin who had fallen asleep and said, "Husband, it's time to go home."

From sunrise to sunset, from morning till night, Guan Yin had never been so nervous. The moment he woke up, Guan Yin even had the idea of confessing everything to Liu Jiaoan. "Husband, you have also seen this person, I wonder..."

"This person shouldn't hurt anyone." Guan Yin's heart was beating so fast that he couldn't organize his words properly. "What I mean is, since this person is really a teacher, he shouldn't hurt you."

"It just so happens that I need to be busy with the things at hand for a while...I won't go to the market with you these days." Guan Yin subconsciously tried to avoid it again.

Guan Yin was trying to evade the question, but Liu Jiaoan acquiesced to the evasion: "Okay."

The dusk cannot cover the green mountains, but the morning is always hazy. When Sanheng was still burning firewood, Liu Jiaoan had already set out on the road to the market.

"Madam has gone out?" Liu Jiaoan asked for the letter yesterday, and the teacher must have brought it today. Guan Yin never doubted this.

The moment he saw Sanheng, Guan Yin suddenly brought his own identity into what happened to Sanheng that day.

Sanheng still has a master-servant relationship with Liu Jiaoan, so what about me? When the truth comes out, will I be unable to defend myself for hiding it all this time?

"Yes, the lady has gone out."

"Madam said that if she saw the teacher today, she would come back earlier."

"My husband, you should have some breakfast. It's almost noon now..."

San Heng followed his wife's instructions as always and did everything properly. But at this moment, how could Guan Yin have the mood to eat?

After taking a few quick bites, he went back into the house and sat at the desk, hoping to avoid everything he was about to face by sleeping.

The sun's shadow shone through the window onto Guan Yin, and the warm orange-yellow color became a little irritating for no reason, as if Guan Yin was being steamed in an oven.

"The teacher has indeed come. Would you like to read this letter first?"

Liu Jiaoan still did not reveal anything, but put the letter in front of Guan Yin and gave Guan Yin the right to choose.

After opening it, it turned out to be a letter from the teacher to Miss Guan.

If he doesn't open it, Guan Yin won't be able to see everything in the letter...

So Guan Yin could only take a gamble, perhaps the identities of the two people had always been tacitly known.

When taking the letter, Guan Yin tried his best to control his hands, fearing that his slightly cold and trembling fingertips would make everything clear.

"actually……"

The two people spoke almost at the same time. Guan Yin's eyes immediately shifted away from the letter and strayed to Liu Jiaoan.

"This is the book he wanted to give you. I never opened it. You know, I always believed that your father would not embezzle money."

As if to dispel Guan Yin's doubts about opening the letter, Liu Jiaoan did not give Guan Yin a chance to speak first this time: "If I can clear your father's name, it will also be a wish of mine, isn't it?"

"Jiaoan, you..." You know everything? Guan Yin swallowed the words back.

I can’t say it, at least I can’t expose so bluntly that I’m no longer my original self.

Since childhood, Guan Yin has always done things in a law-abiding manner. Time travel itself is beyond common sense, and Guan Yin has actually been panicking inside, so he escaped because of panic.

"Look, my father and your father were both Jinshi in the same class. If there is anything I can help with, I will go back and ask him. He will naturally be willing to do it for free."

"Perhaps then, you and I will be freer."

The letter felt soft in his hand. The paper used by the teacher was not very good. It was much thicker than the thin rice paper that Guan Yin used to write his letter. But even through the layer of paper, the strength of the ink could be clearly seen.

"it is good."

Unfolding it, Guan Yin's eyes fell on the paper.

"The person who framed you was your classmate."

"Classmate?" Guan Yin paused. Classmate? What Liu Jiaoan just mentioned was... Oh, yes, in the same class, probably not the same person.

"Because of our friendship as classmates, this person has always been trusted by the teacher. Otherwise, the teacher would not have been so easily framed."

When the phrase "not knowing people well" popped up in Guan Yin's mind, Guan Yin thought of what one of his colleagues said to those students.

"You said he cheated you, but that's because you don't know him well. Otherwise, why didn't others believe him, but you did? It's your own fault that you don't know him well."

Is it wrong to "not know people well"? Guan Yin knows: From another perspective, this is clearly loyalty.

"So you must remember, don't treat people who tell lies all the time as your friends. He has his faults, but you are wrong in not being able to judge people well. You will have to bear the consequences yourself. If you still fail to judge people well when you grow up, you will not only be criticized by your teacher!"

Guan Yin had already forgotten when he heard this, but now this sentence finally had more interpretations.

"Who would have thought that my childhood classmates would change like this..." Liu Jiaoan's sigh seemed to be an excuse for Guan's father's mistake caused by his "failure to judge people".

"Over the years, I only found out that this person died shortly after my husband passed away, and the rest of the clues were cut off."

In the end, it's still an unsolved case.

After reading the letter, the story of Guan's father being falsely accused of corruption was not over, and the secrets hidden between the original body, Guan Yin, and Liu Jiaoan were endless.

"Take your time, there will always be..."

Take your time. Guan's father has lived a slow life. Now his students and daughter have grown up. How much time is left in the future for him to follow this motto: Take your time?

"The injustice will eventually be redressed." No matter how many difficulties there are, Miss Liu will accompany Miss Guan to go on, "Your father is really not a bad person."

(End of this chapter)