Li Mu’s tear-filled eyes turned to her daughter-in-law. “Sweetie, how did you know about Yao Guo?”
“That, I can’t tell you. I just want to know who Yao Guo is.”
The protagonist didn’t know this name, nor did any of the Li families in Kushan seem to have anyone named Li Yao Guo. Li Zheng Guo also appeared to be unaware. Li Rong Guo and Li Min were equally clueless. This suggested that Li Yao Guo was someone deliberately hidden and no longer mentioned.
Li Mu’s tears flowed as if they were inexhaustible. “Yao Guo, he, he is my eldest son.”
“Mom? Isn’t my eldest brother the oldest?”
“Yes, Mom, aren’t I the oldest?”
Li Min and Li Zheng Guo were both astonished. Did they have another elder brother?
Tian Jing glanced at Li Rong Guo and saw his surprise, indicating he knew nothing of any hidden matters.
“Then, where is he?” Seeing her mother-in-law’s vacant stare, lost in thought, Tian Jing pressed on.
“He, he’s gone. He passed away three days after birth. I clearly heard his cries, but I had bleeding signs. Your father was busy making medicine for me, and my mother-in-law helped care for him for three days, and then he was gone. I didn’t even get to see him, and he was gone.”
“Then, what did Grandma say?”
Li Mu’s gaze remained fixed distantly. “My mother-in-law just said he was gone. She took him to the mountains and buried him. I was so traumatized, my body only started to recover after half a month. After more than four years of recuperation, I conceived Zheng Guo.”
“I placed all my hopes on Zheng Guo, so I forbade him from being named after his cousin. That’s why his father chose the character ‘Zheng’ for him.”
“So, Li Yao Guo is also thirty years old?”
Tian Jing’s question drew Li Zheng Guo’s attention.
“Yes,” Li Mu’s eyes finally refocused. “The three of us sisters-in-law became pregnant successively. Yao Guo was only five days older than Rong Guo. My second sister-in-law’s first child was a daughter.”
“Then I have no more questions. Let’s eat.”
The entire table went silent.
Facing her still grief-stricken mother-in-law, Tian Jing expressed some dissatisfaction. “I thought you had become stronger, but it turns out you were just pretending.”
“With you like this, if Aunt Li and Second Aunt Li mention Li Yao Guo, you’ll be defeated without a fight. Pick up your bowls and eat.”
“Li Min, Li Zheng Guo, you two eat too. It’s not that big of a deal! In this world, too many heartbreaking and surprising things happen every day in every corner. You must learn to remain calm even when Mount Tai collapses before you.”
Li Zheng Guo sat back down beside Tian Jing.
Li Mu picked up her bowl, sobbing. Her daughter-in-law made sense, but she couldn't help it. He was her first child, born with so much anticipation.
Watching her mother-in-law force down food with tears streaming, Tian Jing decided to reveal more. “I suspect Li Yao Guo is still alive.”
*Clatter.* Li Mu’s bowl fell to the floor. “Sweetie, Sweetie?”
Li Mu’s voice trembled, and her body shook.
Li Zheng Guo immediately got up to support her. “Mom, calm down, calm down.”
“I don’t know, I’m guessing. Seeing how sad and guilty Grandma is, I thought I’d share my speculation with you.”
“You should live with hope, stay strong, and have Zheng Ge find a way to search for him. Don’t just listen to Grandma’s one-sided story. If he’s alive, we find him; if he’s dead, we find his body, right?”
“Yes, yes.” Li Mu perked up. “Sweetie is right. Zheng Guo, you must do your best to find him.”
“Even if we only find his burial place as Grandma said, I’ll accept it. I never even saw him once. I don’t even have a place to send him money.”
“Okay, I will definitely find my eldest brother, Mom. Wait for me.”
“Mmm.”
Li Min refilled her mother’s bowl. “Mom, my eldest brother, uh, my second brother will definitely find eldest brother.”
“Li Min, you still call Li Zheng Guo eldest brother. The search for Li Yao Guo must be kept secret.”
“Why?”
“I hate it when people ask me why!” Tian Jing said impatiently, her tone stern.
“Oh, I won’t ask anymore. I’ll eat.” Li Min conceded.
Li Rong Guo looked at his two daughters. “Da Mai, Xiao Mai, anything you hear in this house must not be spoken outside.”
“Understood,” replied Da Mai.
“Oh,” replied Xiao Mai.
“Eat, eat.” Li Mu was unusually cheerful. “Rong Guo, eat quickly. Xiao Fang must be hungry.”
“Oh.”
Li Rong Guo continued eating. He decided he would never mention his childhood again.
He decided? But Tian Jing disagreed.
Tian Jing followed him into the kitchen, sitting by the bed. While watching Li Rong Guo feed Zhao Xiao Fang, she began to inquire about his childhood memories.
Li Rong Guo didn’t remember much.
Tian Jing was quite dissatisfied. “You were at least six or seven years old, right? It wasn’t when Li Zheng Guo was too young to remember.”
“I really don’t remember. In my memory, it’s only Mom’s dissatisfaction with me and Grandma’s care and love for me.”
“Fine, if you remember anything, tell us later.”
Tian Jing finally let him off the hook.
Li Rong Guo breathed a sigh of relief.
Back in the west room, Li Zheng Guo embraced Tian Jing, his body trembling. There were things in his family he didn't know. “What do you know?”
“Not much. I found it through the memories of the big tree behind Aunt Li’s house.”
Tian Jing pulled him to sit on the bed. “Sit tight. Let me lock the door first.”
“What’s wrong?”
Li Zheng Guo felt inexplicably nervous, his eyes fixed on Tian Jing as she locked the door and walked towards him.
“I saw hatred in Aunt Li’s eyes. If her own son was an unforgivable person, her hatred would be understandable. But my eldest cousin was an honest and upright person.”
“So I went to her house stealthily, behind the house, wanting to pry into some gossip to find leverage against her.”
“But she remained silent, didn’t make a fuss. Uncle Li was helpless against her.”
“I then communicated with the old tree behind the house. The tree’s memories revealed that Aunt Li, besides scolding her daughter-in-law and granddaughters, treated her eldest cousin very poorly. She treated his family of four as if they were cattle and horses.”
“So I decided to search Grandma’s memories. Wasn’t Aunt Li unhappy with her mother-in-law, which is why she treated her eldest cousin badly? I wanted to see what kind of person Grandma was, to make Aunt Li take her anger out on the eldest cousin, who was raised by Grandma.”
“As a result, I saw an old woman holding a one or two-year-old infant and calling him Yao Guo, while Aunt Li called that infant Rong Guo.”
*Whoosh!*
Li Zheng Guo suddenly stood up. “You, you mean?”
“Mmm. If Li Rong Guo is Li Yao Guo, then Aunt Li’s attitude makes sense.”
“But, but my eldest cousin looks very much like Uncle?”
“Nonsense. You’ve lived two lives, and you don’t see it? If Li Rong Guo were a bit fatter, wouldn’t he look like you? He also resembles Uncle Li. They are brothers, the blood relation is there.”
“Then, then, where do we start?”
“Ask Mom, ask about Aunt Li’s pregnancy and childbirth, the baby’s physical condition. There’s no DNA in this country yet, otherwise, a test would provide proof.”
“Ask directly?”
Tian Jing slapped him on the head. “What’s with your thinking? Did it fly away?”
Li Zheng Guo rubbed the spot where she hit him, it really hurt. Sweetie was really willing to hit him. “It flew away from fright.”
“Think calmly. Although we don’t have evidence, we can break down Aunt Li’s defenses and make her talk.”