Fortunate Life of the Rural Beauty
Chapter 562: Extra Scene 1 Luo Yun 1

Chapter 562: Extra Scene 1 Luo Yun 1

Early in the morning, the sunlight slanted through the window pane, illuminating a corner of the glass mirror, reflecting a burst of brilliance, particularly dazzling. Mrs. Luo glanced at the large glass mirror in the distance, hesitated for a moment, and still sat down at the mahogany carved cosmetic table beside the bed.

In the bronze mirror on the dressing table, the woman’s face was not very clear, her skin slightly yellowish due to the mirror’s reflection, her hair cut to ear length and dressed in an amber vest. Despite having returned to secular life for over five months, she still found it hard to get used to applying makeup. Her current face was somewhat similar to the stunning beauty she used to be in the past, yet also vastly different.

The passage of fourteen years took away her youth and charm. The humiliation she had endured left not only physical scars on her face but also scars on her heart. The routine of morning bells and evening drums, the recitation of the sutras, all seemed endless...

She thought she would spend her day-to-day life in such a cycle, year by year, until death. But it turned out that those fourteen years were just a puff of smoke, disappearing into thin air, leaving no trace behind.

However, those fourteen years that had vanished was a catastrophe in her life, stealing away her husband, her happiness, her family, and altering her entire life.

Now she had returned, no longer Liao Chen, she was Luo Yun, Mrs. Luo, also known to others as "Mrs. Luo". Her mother was with her at the Tang Garden, her grandchildren stood by her showing respect and filial piety, it seemed like she once again had regained her family, her happiness.

Had she really regained them though? Probably not...

"Grandma, it’s time for us to go to great-grandma’s place."

The soft voice from behind pulled Luo Yun out of her thoughts.

Luo Yun smiled, turned around and saw a little girl about two or three years old coming in. The little girl, dressed in a light green dress and her hair tied up in two cute knots, looked adorable.

Luo Yun said, "Yu’er, why didn’t you sleep a bit longer?"

Standing beside Luo Yun, Yu’er replied, "The birds said, ’early to rise, good for health.’" She then looked puzzled and said, "Grandma, the glass mirror is very clear, the bronze mirror is not. If there is dust on my face, I can’t see it in the bronze mirror."

Luo Yun smiled and said nothing, took a clove-colored hat off the dressing table and put it on her head. The hat looked somewhat like those worn by barbarian women, yet not exactly the same. It was strange but not shocking, with a few small flowers embroidered on it in the same colour.

This was made for her by her daughter-in-law, Mrs. Chen. Mrs. Chen now greatly enjoyed making hats for her and had already made her more than a dozen hats. The hats varied in style and colour, they were all beautiful and stylish.

With wide eyes and a look of exaggerated surprise, Yu’er exclaimed, "Wow, grandma is so beautiful!"

Yu’er’s little antics made both Luo Yun and the maid burst into laughter.

Luo Yun pinched her little face, saying, "You little elf, always know what to say." Then, hand in hand, they walked over to the Yiran Courtyard.

When Mrs. Luo brought Liao Chen back to Tang Garden, she didn’t accompany Mrs. Luo and Mr. Luo back to their home in Shizhou Mansion, but continued to live at Tang Garden. As she explained, after such a long journey, her old body couldn’t take the strain. She would need to recuperate at Tang Garden before returning to Shizhou Mansion.

Mrs. Luo, being the wife in charge of the Luos’ family affairs, had to return home. Mr. Luo, having duties at the Yamen (ancient government office), must return as well. Granny Luo, who used to take care of the household affairs with the help of Mrs. Luo, also needed to go back. Thus, only Luo Yun, who had nothing urgent to tend to, stayed with Granny Luo at Tang Garden.

Even Luo Yun, who was the recipient of Granny Luo’s arrangements, understood her intentions, but could only stay with her.

Moreover, Granny Luo firmly kept little talkative sweet-talking Yu’er at Tang Garden. Everyone could see that Mrs. Chen was reluctant to let her daughter stay, but eventually, she had to bite the bullet and leave the little girl there.

The little girl proved to be delightful, making Granny Luo and Luo Yun happy every day.

The eldest grandson, Yu, was also in the countryside, not staying at Tang Garden but with his grandfather at Fu Garden. He would run over to Tang Garden several times a day. Likewise, Yu’er would go to Fu Garden multiple times a day. Since both the little siblings were agile and liked to report their activities to each other, even the slightest stir in each yard came to be known to the other. Luo Yun didn’t want to know, but their voices would always manage to reach her ears.

Granny Luo lived in the Yiran Courtyard, while Luo Yun stayed with Yu’er in the former Zen Courtyard, which had now been renamed to the Qingfeng Courtyard.

As soon as they entered the Yiran Courtyard, there was a faint medicinal smell in the air. Luo Yun had specially invited Master Gui Ling to take Granny Luo’s pulse, prescribe medication, and with a small piece of rare medicine that Chen Afu had kept from Master Wu Zhi, brewed a soup for soaking every night, Granny Luo’s health had greatly improved.

Even before entering the house, Yu’er began to call out, "Great grandmother, Yu’er and grandma are here to accompany you to have lunch."

Granny Luo’s laughter echoed from the room, "Good, good, great-grandma was waiting."

Granny Luo was reclining on her bed. Luo Yun fed her half a bowl of rice, then handed the bowl to a servant who continued to feed her while Luo Yun sat at the table for her meal. As for Yu’er, she ate some by herself first, then a servant fed her the remaining.

Just a few days ago, Luo Yun started eating eggs. After returning to a secular life, Luo Yun was reluctant to eat non-vegetarian food. Touched by her daughter’s frail health, Granny Luo persuaded her for many days, and only then did Luo Yun begin to eat eggs. However, she still refrained from eating meat, but if others at the table ate it, she could still tolerate it.

After lunch, Yu’er needed to head off to "class" at Fu Garden. The teacher was her elder maid, Dong Yue, who had undergone formal training from Xia Yue. The materials used for teaching were building blocks and comic books left behind by Chen Afu. The students included Yu’er, Yu, Dalong as well as several servants’ children.

Before leaving, Yu’er invited Granny Luo, "Great grandma, the sun is shining brightly today, don’t you want to bask in the sun at Fu Garden? You can watch Yu’er and elder brother practicing martial arts, and see many birds." In truth, she wanted to invite her grandmother more. But every time she invited her grandmother, her grandmother declined, her grandmother didn’t want to see her grandfather.

Thinking of their martial arts practice, Granny Luo burst into hearty laughter. She said, "Good, good, if the sun is nice, great-grandma will go and watch her great-grandchildren practicing martial arts."

Seeing Yu’er running out of the house, Luo Yun started to massage for Granny Luo again.

With a sigh, Granny Luo repeated her often-expressed sentiment, "Yun’er, even though Guangche hurt you, you can’t blame him for it all. The deseased Emperor commanded him to do so, could he refuse? If he refused, it would have been insubordination. He sent you to become a nun to protect you, it was the best he could do under the circumstances. All these years, he hasn’t changed his mind, he’s always been thinking about you, he even forced Rong Zhao into the nunnery without mercy. Everything he does now is to change your mind. Yun’er, we’re not forcing you, we just hope you will gradually come to understand this, but you also can’t be too stubborn. You’re forty-five this year, your prime is already over. If you get too old to move before you decide to forgive him, before you want to live a good life, it will be too late..."

Every time Granny Luo mentioned this, Luo Yun fell silent, tightening her lips, and let Granny Luo keep talking.

Mother, elder brother, sister-in-law, everyone in her mother’s family has called her stubborn. Although her own children never openly said so, they must also think this way.

She knew that everything he did was out of helplessness, in order to protect her in disguise. Nonetheless, whenever she remembered how she was forced to take the vows, almost dying from the heartache of missing her children in the nunnery, while he was intimately entwined with another woman, she simply couldn’t bear it...