Chapter 407 — Settling In

Dou Yan listened.

"See, your brother has come looking for you, hasn't he?" She quickly wiped the corners of her eyes and smiled. "You are not only the Song family's daughter, but also the eldest legitimate daughter of the Ying family's Zhenguo estate — the heir's own full sister by the same mother. You were not born to Li Tiaoniang. It is only that your birth mother has already passed away from illness. If she knew your brother had found you, who knows how overjoyed she would be!"

Though there was no solid proof yet, Song Zhi's words and deeds in her past life had convinced Dou Yan that Yigui must surely be Lady Jiang's own daughter.

She went on, "There should be a portrait of Lady Jiang at the Ying family's Zhenguo estate. When the time comes, I will have your brother find it, and you can look at it before a mirror and see for yourself."

Yigui was like any child wronged by her parents — now and then she had fantasized that she was not her parents' own flesh and blood. Yet when someone told her that her real parents truly were other people, she was still profoundly shaken.

She bowed her head, and only after a long while did she hesitantly say, "Then why did they not come looking for me sooner? When did my birth mother pass away? Was it she who told my brother to come find me?"

As Yigui spoke, a choke crept into her voice.

Dou Zhiwei could hold her tears back no longer, and they fell.

"Of course it is true!" She took Yigui's hand and said, "Your birth mother is my mother-in-law — would I lie to you? It is only that this matter is very complicated, and it cannot be explained clearly in a moment. Once we return to the Ying family's Zhenguo estate, I will tell you in detail. What do you say?"

Yigui nodded meekly.

Dou Yan breathed a sigh of relief.

What she feared most was a girl who was like a punching bag, bursting into tears at every turn; next she feared a girl who was stubborn and dug in her heels regardless of the occasion. Yigui might shed many tears, but at least she could be reasoned with. If she had truly been saddled with a punching-bag or a stubborn little sister-in-law, it would have been a real headache.

Yigui lowered her head and twisted her fingers together, saying uneasily, "Whatever is said, she did raise me all these years. I want to go and pay my respects to her... and to my uncle as well. Could you let my uncle go? Just now I saw my brother beat him until he was flat on the ground..."

A Yigui like this could be called a hopeless softheart.

Taking the thief for her mother.

But if she had truly been sharp-edged, she would likely have been beaten to death by Li Tiaoniang long ago, would she not?

Some things could only be dealt with slowly.

Dou Yan patted her hand gently and said, "Sit here for a while first. I will go ask your brother and see how matters outside are coming along. Li Tiaoniang hanged herself, and the neighbors reported it to the authorities. Surely you cannot go to the yamen to pay your respects to her?"

In truth, she was afraid that Song Yan, upon hearing it, would fly into a rage and kill Li Liang as well.

And when Song Yan heard Yigui's request, his face indeed turned dark.

Dou Qu said, "She was raised by the Li family from childhood, and Li Tiaoniang would beat her at the slightest excuse, for no reason at all. Only by being obedient could she survive." Here she turned to Song Yan. "How do you plan to settle Yigui?"

Now that Li Tiaoniang was dead, Yigui's position had become a problem.

To return to the Ying family's Zhenguo estate, there had to be some presentable reason. Surely she could not go on following Li Liang?

Song Yan said, "You think that just because we have found Li Tiaoniang, Yigui can return to the Ying family's Zhenguo estate with her name justified? Do not forget — Li Tiaoniang is nothing but a fickle, loose woman. Even if the case were brought before the Emperor himself, so long as Father clenches his teeth and denies it, would the Emperor believe Li Tiaoniang? Yigui might instead be branded with the crime of 'falsely claiming kinship with an official family,' and it could cost her her life. You must know that in this world there are plenty of people who look alike yet share not a drop of blood! My only regret is that Li Tiaoniang died so easily. Far too cheap for her!"

Dou Chiyou said, "Who killed Li Tiaoniang?"

She suspected it was either Song Cen or Song Han.

Song Sui said coldly, "Whoever it was, they cannot be free of connection to the affairs of those years. Before this I could not be certain that Yigui was my sister, but with Li Tiaoniang dead, it has instead shown me a clear road."

Dou Yan nodded and said, "Then Song Han..."

At these words Song Yan's expression dimmed, and he said, "Whatever is said, he was my brother for fourteen years. When Mother was alive, she was so afraid of melting him in her mouth or dropping him from her hands that she doted on him utterly. I cannot, because of the elders' faults, lay all the blame at his feet. For now, let us keep this from him. When he is older, we will tell him the whole thing, point by point, and how he chooses then will be his own affair." So he said, yet a note of bleakness remained in his tone, and his warmth toward Song Han was no longer what it had been. "As for Yigui, Father will never acknowledge her no matter what — otherwise he would not have dumped her on Li Tiaoniang back then and washed his hands of her. Let Yigui live in Yizhi Hall under the identity of a distant relative of the Jiang family!" Here he raised an eyebrow, a trace of coldness showing. "And that name of hers must be changed as well. Yigui, Yigui — it turns my stomach to hear it... Let her take a name from mine." He lowered his head in thought. "Brush, ink, paper, inkstone — take a homophone of inkstone. Let her be called Yan, hoping that from now on she may be reborn, and think no more of the past."

"Jiang Yan!" Dou Yan murmured, then praised, "A fine name! 'Cherishing the jade of virtue within one's breast, breathing out gems from the tip of one's brush.' I will tell her — from now on her name will be Jiang Yan!"

"Jiang?" Song Yan was slightly taken aback.

Dou Yan felt that Song Yan was somewhat muddled.

Yet a Song Yan like this struck her as very familiar and very real.

"Did you not say she is to live in Yizhi Hall as a distant relative of the Jiang family?" Dou Xin said. "If not Jiang, would she still be Song?"

Song Yan sighed at this and said, "Jiang is fine. There is nothing so remarkable about being a Song. Bearing Mother's surname — if Mother knows in the underworld, she will be glad, and there will be no need to watch his face."

"His" meant Song Cen.

Dou Yan thought of how coldly her father had treated her in her past life, while she had set her heart on pleasing him, and she told Song Yan what she had thought when she heard Yigui speak of paying respects to Li Tiaoniang: "...Better to tell her the whole truth of those years, point by point, so that she does not come to feel filial affection for the Lord of Zhenguo. If she merely became a foolishly filial child, that would still be manageable. What I fear is that the Lord of Zhenguo feels not the slightest affection for her and instead uses her to do things that harm both her and you."

Song Yan thought of his delicate, tender sister and could not help rubbing his brow. "Then let us wait until we are back at the estate and tell her slowly!"