The old woman claimed her surname was Zhu and lived in Chuanxian Town.
In mid-April last year, a young master surnamed Fang visited Chuanxian Town. Caught in a heavy rain, he sought shelter at the Zhu residence. The Zhu family lived a simple life with few formalities. Their daughter, only sixteen, was kind-hearted. Seeing Master Fang drenched, she brewed him some ginger tea to ward off the cold.
Though young, the Zhu daughter was pure and beautiful, both charming and lively, instantly captivating Master Fang.
After the rain stopped, the young master refused to leave, staying at the Zhu residence for over half a month. Before departing, he promised to report to his parents and then send a matchmaker to propose, intending to marry the Zhu daughter with great fanfare.
Not long after he left, the Zhu daughter discovered she was pregnant. She sent several letters to the address he had given, but received no reply. After ten months of pregnancy, she gave birth to a son but died from postpartum hemorrhage.
Unable to raise her grandson, Old Woman Zhu took the address given by Master Fang and traveled to Duanjing. There, she discovered the location was a detached villa of the Duke of Loyalty and Valor's estate! The Duke's surname was Fang, and the young master was also surnamed Fang. Old Woman Zhu surmised that Master Fang was a young lord of the Duke's household and thus went to the Duke's estate to seek justice.
Upon hearing Old Woman Zhu's account, the crowd erupted in murmurs, their gazes, filled with contempt or suspicion, falling upon Fang Zheng.
The infant boy, barely over a month old, had been lying quietly in his grandmother's arms. The commotion startled him, and he began to cry loudly. His cries were small and soft, like a little mouse.
Old Woman Zhu lamented, "...we can only feed him rice water and vegetable broth. The child hasn't had a full meal in days."
Fortunately, a wet nurse was present in the crowd. Kind-hearted, she took the infant to a side room within the Duke of Loyalty and Valor's estate to feed him.
Old Woman Zhu kowtowed to the Heir, Fang Xiuqi, "I implore you, sir, to dispense justice for us. That Master Fang abandoned my daughter after seducing her, causing her death. I do not seek his life, only that he acknowledge the child and raise him to adulthood."
Fang Xiuqi glanced at his son, who stood tall and upright, his demeanor open and honorable, showing no hint of panic.
Fang Xiuqi cleared his throat and said, "There is only one young lord of the Duke of Loyalty and Valor's household, and that is my son."
He pointed to Fang Zheng.
Old Woman Zhu was taken aback. "It's not him."
The crowd buzzed again. If not the Heir apparent, then who? Could it be a scoundrel who was using the Duke of Loyalty and Valor's name to deceive the public?
Fang Zheng stepped forward and asked, "What did that Master Fang look like? Did he leave anything behind?"
Old Woman Zhu pondered for a moment and replied, "He was a little shorter than you, but more amiable. He had a square face, very handsome, and spoke and acted with refinement and courtesy. Even when not smiling, he seemed to be smiling. In short, he was very gentle, someone who would instantly be liked."
As she spoke, Old Woman Zhu took out a yellow jade pendant from her embrace. "This is what that Master Fang gave to my daughter. He said it was a family heirloom."
Fang Xiuqi glanced at it. It was a piece of Hetian jade of excellent quality, lustrous and shining, clearly valuable.
He recognized the jade pendant. It had originally belonged to his Duke of Loyalty and Valor's estate, but had later been given by the Heir's wife, Madam Huang, to Huang Xuanming.
He exchanged a silent glance with Fang Zheng.
"Send someone to invite Young Master Huang."
Huang Xuanming did not reside in the detached villa mentioned by Old Woman Zhu; he lived in another Fang family villa.
Fang Zheng said, "This matter is of great importance. I will go invite him myself."
Some curious servants quietly informed Fang Yuan of the events at the gate. Fang Yuan, spoiled and willful since childhood, was enraged upon hearing this. She stormed from the inner court to the gate, shouting that Old Woman Zhu was slandering someone for money.
When Old Woman Zhu heard that this was the fiancée of that Young Master Huang, she immediately knelt and begged Fang Yuan to accept the child. She vowed never to appear again, stating that the child raised by Fang Yuan would be her own, and she would call Fang Yuan "mother." She promised never to contend with Fang Yuan's children for anything.
Fang Yuan, an unmarried young lady, turned crimson at the words.
Fang Xiuqi reprimanded her to retreat, but Fang Yuan refused. In front of such a crowd, the Heir could not be too harsh, so he let it be.
Shortly thereafter, Fang Zheng arrived with Huang Xuanming, who looked like a defeated rooster, his expression complex.
Upon seeing him, Old Woman Zhu immediately identified him. "It's him! He is that Master Fang!" She then thrust the infant, who had fallen asleep soundly after his meal, into his arms. "Young Master, this is your son. Little Ying risked her life to give birth to this child for you. You cannot abandon him!"
Huang Xuanming looked at the tender infant in the swaddling clothes. Suddenly, a tear rolled down his cheek. He reached out, embraced the child, and held him tightly.
Everything was understood without words.
Fang Yuan stared at Huang Xuanming in astonishment. His gaze was so intense that Huang Xuanming had no choice but to meet her eyes.
"Fang Yuan, I am sorry. I have failed you," Huang Xuanming said, his voice as gentle as ever.
Fang Yuan could no longer control herself. Large tears rolled down her face.
The farce finally concluded.
Later, Wang Qingyao asked Xiao Yun, "Why did Huang Xuanming admit it so readily, without even a word of defense?"
Xiao Yun replied, "Fang Zheng pressured him with threats and inducements. You know his methods."
Wang Qingyao recalled the incident where Granny Yu was thrown to her death on the spot. She had no doubt that if the matter had not been resolved, Fang Zheng would have bound Huang Xuanming, stripped him naked, and hung him at the city gate.
The most pitiable was Fang Yuan.
She was deeply shaken. She cried at Madam Huang's place. Then she went to the Zuo family to find Zuo Yun and cried again. Her eyes were red, and her heart was broken. After crying, she said she had come to terms with it.
"Mother said he was just momentarily confused, and that men have moments of confusion. I shouldn't give up on our years of affection. That woman is already dead, and the child is so young. I have raised him since he was small, and he is no different from my own."
Zuo Yun was shocked. Her fetus stirred slightly. Madam Huang was truly skilled, coaxing Fang Yuan into selling herself while Fang Yuan still thanked her.
Using the excuse of "stirring the fetus," Zuo Yun sent someone to the Wang family to invite Wang Qingyao.
Huang Xuanming's affair had coincided with the announcement of the spring imperial examinations, and the news had already spread throughout the city. Facing Wang Qingyao's inquiry, Fang Yuan, though embarrassed, bravely said, "I have decided to forgive him. No one is a saint; who can be without fault?"
Wang Qingyao clapped her hands. "Wow, Fang Yuan, you are truly brave! I knew a girlfriend who was just like you! Her husband, like Young Master Huang, had an illegitimate child before marriage. She also chose to forgive him and proceeded with the engagement. People must love fiercely once in their lives to not have lived in vain!"
Fang Yuan nodded vigorously. Zuo Yun's eyes widened, and she frantically signaled to Wang Qingyao.
Wang Qingyao continued, "As a result, her husband never changed his ways. After marriage, he continued to fool around with women, and illegitimate children kept appearing. As the saying goes, domestic violence and infidelity are either zero times or countless times."
Fang Yuan's face paled a shade.
"Also, do you know? If a man has relations with too many women, he can contract a venereal disease and then transmit it to all the women he has relations with. Have you heard of venereal diseases? They are terrifying and disgusting..."