A Maid's Survival Story in a Noble Family Mansion? Rich Landlords Are More Appealing.

After chatting for a few more minutes, Chen Wanxing finally asked, "Young Master Wang, besides wanting to see you since you've returned, there's something else I feel I should tell you in person."

"Please speak, young lady," Wang Yanning said solemnly.

"A few days ago, I happened to run into your father and mother." Chen Wanxing's voice was calm, as if she were stating an ordinary matter, but it sounded solemn because of the special nature of the content. "We chatted briefly."

I don't know why, but they recognized me immediately and were very certain it was us... But did you mention me at home before?"

Chen Wanxing asked tentatively, glancing at him discreetly, only to see Wang Yanning slightly startled, seemingly completely unprepared to hear this.

Wang Yanning was indeed confused. He had not told his family about his relationship with Chen Wanxing, so how did his family know about her?

Moreover, his return home today has been accompanied by a flood of information, from good news to conflict, leaving his parents with no time to spare. Perhaps they also felt it inconvenient to mention their past contact with Chen Wanxing.

But when Wang Yanning heard Chen Wanxing bring it up, she was surprised and her heart tightened. She immediately asked with concern, "They didn't offend you, did they? This is my fault. I didn't explain things to my family earlier, and I'm sorry you had to go through this."

He understood his father's temperament and Aunt Cui's thoughts, and was afraid that their enthusiasm or inappropriate words might make her uncomfortable.

Chen Wanxing gently shook her head, a reassuring smile curving her lips: "No, your mother is very gentle, and your father is also very polite. It's my oversight, really. Since we met, we've exchanged letters and talked about everything under the sun, but it seems we've never really discussed the trivial matters of our families in depth."

She paused briefly, carefully choosing her words. After a moment's hesitation, she decided to be direct with him and spoke frankly.

"I haven't been back in Ruyang long and I know very little about the people in the town, but I have heard some bits and pieces of gossip about your family."

However, we had met several times in the county before, and I never knew that you were also from Ping'an Town. I never thought that you were the Wang family's eldest son that they mentioned.

However, it was precisely because of this that I became even more puzzled. Your father and mother were exceptionally kind to me, even showing some unusual concern, which made me somewhat suspicious.

Since I consider you a close friend, I feel that it would be unwise to create unnecessary misunderstandings or put you in a difficult position due to the lack of information about our respective family situations.

Therefore, I am not asking you this today to find out anything, but simply to have some idea so that if we encounter each other again in the future, I will know how to behave appropriately.

Her words were clear and sincere, without beating around the bush, and her attitude was frank and considerate. Wang Yanning looked into her calm eyes, where there was only clear concern and frankness.

Wang Yanning felt a long-lost urge to confide in someone.

He nodded slightly, his voice lower than before, but no longer so hesitant: "Miss, you are thoughtful and considerate in every way. Yan Ning is grateful."

It's not that I intentionally concealed anything, but the past events in my family are indeed somewhat complicated, and for me, they are not pleasant memories. But since you've asked, I should be frank."

Wang Yanning spoke, his voice low and tinged with a hint of mockery, but more so with an unyielding melancholy.

"Is it rumored in town that Aunt Cui mistreated me and that my father was stingy with money?"

Chen Wanxing nodded in agreement.

Wang Yanning tugged at the corners of her mouth, but there was no warmth in her smile: "Actually, you should understand now that it's not like that."

Aunt Cui was originally my mother's maid, named Cuihe. She grew up with my mother since childhood and they were like sisters.

After my mother passed away, my father remarried her as his second wife, mainly so that someone could take good care of me when I was young, rather than because of the sordid thoughts that outsiders might have.

She treated me with genuine kindness, taking meticulous care of everything I needed, from my clothing and food to my shelter and transportation. Those rumors were nothing more than speculation by busybodies who noticed my infrequent visits and the apparent estrangement between me and my father.

He raised his eyes and looked at the old tree in the courtyard that was struggling to sprout new buds; his gaze became distant.

"Miss Chen, do you know about the flood that struck Runing Prefecture twelve years ago? Runing Prefecture was devastated by floods, resulting in a complete crop failure and widespread famine."

Chen Wanxing felt a chill run down her spine. Her memories of that year were filled with endless yellow floodwaters and desperate cries. She herself had sold herself during that famine.

She nodded slowly: "Yes, I know."

"At that time, the Wang family was a wealthy household with some foundation in Ping'an Town. They had plenty of grain and were able to protect themselves."

Wang Yanning narrated in a tone so calm it was almost cruel, as if she were telling someone else's story.

"The Wang family was lucky and managed to survive thanks to their meager savings, but my maternal grandfather's family, who were just small landlords in a nearby village, soon found themselves unable to make ends meet in those times. My uncle came to them begging for grain to save their lives."

His voice lowered, each word sounding like it was steeped in years of bitterness. "My father wanted to help, but my grandfather passed away early. When my father was young, he relied on the help of his uncles and elders in the clan to stabilize the family business."

The Wang family clan has always been extremely united, or rather, exclusive.

In their eyes, only those with the surname Wang are family; in-laws with other surnames are ultimately outsiders.

Faced with the flood, they believed that it was already a blessing to survive in a year of disaster, and they absolutely could not take any food out, even if it was our family's food, it belonged to my maternal grandparents.

The clan elders, led by my uncle who was in charge of preserving the family business, firmly opposed it, and my father could not persuade them otherwise.

My father and mother couldn't bear to watch my maternal grandparents' family starve to death, so they discussed secretly smuggling some grain out at night.

Wang Yanning's voice began to tremble slightly, "I was six years old then, ignorant and naive. While playing outside, I inadvertently let out the words that 'Daddy is going to help Uncle carry things tonight'..."

This single sentence was overheard by someone with ulterior motives, who then reported it to the clan elder.

His fist clenched suddenly, his knuckles turning white: "That night, they were intercepted."

Right behind my house, the clansmen gathered there, saying very nasty things. My uncle was humiliated and driven away by them, without even a grain of food to take with him.

"And then?" Chen Wanxing's voice involuntarily softened, and her heart clenched.

"Later..." Wang Yanning's Adam's apple bobbed, as if swallowing endless bitterness, "My father and mother were not willing to give up. After a few more days, seeing that there were more and more refugees and the situation was becoming more and more dangerous, they decided to try again."

This time, they were even more careful, choosing to do it late at night, hoping to bypass the town and deliver it directly to the village…

He paused for a long time, so long that Chen Wanxing thought he wouldn't continue.

"They encountered refugees, and their mother never returned."

He spoke those last few words very softly, yet they struck Chen Wanxing's heart like a heavy hammer.

The courtyard was deathly silent. The spring breeze was still warm, but it couldn't dispel the heavy sorrow that permeated the air.

"Actually, I later understood that some clansmen were unwilling to lend grain. After all, it was a year of famine, and everyone was in danger. They were probably afraid that if our family lent out the grain, they would have to ask us for help."

Wang Yanning slowly turned her head to look at Chen Wanxing, her eyes filled with unfathomable pain and self-loathing.

"But while I understand, I still resent them in my heart because of this. Especially my father, I resent him for not being more assertive back then, and for always being constrained by the clan."

But actually, I hate myself the most. If I hadn't been so outspoken back then, I might have succeeded the first time, my mother might not have had to take the risk a second time, and perhaps things wouldn't have turned out this way...

He choked up and couldn't continue.

The self-blame and regret that had been building up for twelve years, even now that he's grown up and rationally understands that he can't entirely blame the child, still lingers in his heart like a poisonous vine, never truly freeing him.