Transmigration: A Farm Girl’s Brocade
Chapter 605 - 305: Purple Dragon Pearl_1

Chapter 605: Chapter 305: Purple Dragon Pearl_1

Liang Jinzhao contracted that illness, and Lady Cui was heartbroken to the point of wanting to die. The elders of the Liang family were also deeply upset, for he was the eldest grandson of the main branch of the Liang family.

The Old Duke Liang sought Elder Immortal Beikong, who was willing to treat the child’s illness, and even mentioned that if fate allowed, the child’s illness might be cured. To outsiders, it was said that Liang’s child was extraordinarily gifted and was thus taken as a lay disciple by the Old Fairy.

At the age of three, Liang Jinzhao was sent to the Daci Temple, where the Old Fairy and Zhang Zhongkun worked together to treat him. Before he turned ten, he spent more than half of each year away from home. Lady Cui bore the pain of separation from her son, hoping that he would recover.

After sending her child away, Lady Cui gave her own maid to her husband as a concubine, hoping to ensure a lineage for her husband. If her son’s illness could not be cured, at least her husband would have descendants, and she would have someone to rely on. Maternal Aunt Qin proved to be capable, indeed giving birth to a son. Though she felt a sourness in her heart, she still treated the child as her own.

At the same time, Lady Cui arranged for her most capable servant, Shopkeeper Cui—who was also the nephew of her wet nurse, Sister Cui—to open a shop in Xishan County where Daci Temple was located to help take care of Liang Jinzhao.

Unexpectedly, Lady Cui became pregnant again six years later, much to her joy. However, the Imperial Physician advised against carrying the pregnancy to term, saying her health was severely compromised and feared for the loss of both her and the baby. This news struck her like a bolt from the blue, shattering her heart.

After much reflection, Lady Cui made up her mind—she would have the child, even if it cost her, her life. She adored children, having spent countless nights in tears missing her distant son.

Ignoring her husband’s objections and enduring great hardship, she gave birth to a baby girl—tiny and weak. The midwife and the Imperial Physician both said the child was unlikely to survive. But the child, lucky as she was, happened to have the Old Fairy staying at the Baoguo Temple at the time, so the Old Duke Liang invited him over. The Old Fairy treated the child and chose the name "Jinyu," claiming it was the only name strong enough to protect her. Indeed, after being named, not only did the child overcome her illness, but she also grew up healthy. However, Lady Cui had been severely weakened by the childbirth, and Liang Jinyu was taken to Wanshou Hall right after birth. After recovering from her illness, the child lived there permanently because the Old Queen Grandma was lonely and could not bear to part with Liang Jinyu.

When Liang Jinzhao was seventeen, his illness was completely cured, bringing tears of joy to Lady Cui.

Lady Cui thought her life was complete, with a beautiful and healthy son and daughter. She was ready to enjoy her blessings. But Liang Jinzhao, upon returning home, insisted on joining the military, claiming it had been his dream since childhood. Although Lady Cui had married a military officer out of profound love, she sincerely hoped her son would be well-versed in literature and govern the world through civil means like her ancestors. But her opposition was futile; all the elders agreed that it was suitable for her son to join the military. That day, she experienced the bitterness of a child not raised by her own hands.

She then started thinking that her son, at the age of seventeen, should already be married like many young men of his age, promising herself that she would personally raise her grandchildren. She brought up the idea of arranging a marriage for her son, having already taken a liking to a few young women, but her husband said that Jinzhao was not suitable for early marriage for fear it would lead to a bloody calamity.

She also felt that her son was old enough to understand matters of adulthood. Worried that his time in the temple had bound him with strict rules and turned him passionless, she gave him a chambermaid. However, once back in his chamber, Jinzhao sent the maid away, leading to the first heated argument between mother and son.

Afterward, everything seemed to go against Lady Cui. Liang Jinzhao rarely stayed home even on rest days, always tinkering with fire muskets and cannons. When he was home, he would spend time in the front courtyard discussing such matters with his grandfather and father and would even visit Wanshou Hall more frequently than coming to see her. Later on, things went from bad to worse—Liang Jinzhao wanted to fight on the frontier. Even more dire, to persuade the Emperor to allow him to establish the Pili Camp, he staked his life by taking a military pledge.

She had only one son, and she knew all too well how difficult childbirth had been. She wasn’t willing to endure the pain of worrying about her son’s death every agonizing night as she had in the past. She cried, made a scene, pleaded, and even feigned a suicide attempt by threatening to hang herself with a rope—but none of this could deter her son’s resolve, and it only brought dissatisfaction from the elders, who said she had the narrow view of a woman.

Later, the Old Duke who had returned from Xishan County announced that he had arranged a marriage for Liang Jinzhao with a girl from the Qian family.

Lady Cui had heard about Miss Qian years ago from Shopkeeper Cui—she was precocious, shrewd, fiery, and handled business as well as any man. Unfortunately, the girl had a hard life: her father had died in battle, her mother had lost her memory, her grandfather was disabled, and the sickly family depended on her earnings to survive, often bullied by local thugs. Lady Cui felt a wave of compassion and instructed Shopkeeper Cui to look after the girl out of pity. Later, when the girl visited their residence, she proved to be not only shrewd but also smart and extremely beautiful. Lady Cui could not help but feel tender towards such a poor girl.