My Fulang is a Delicate Flower Chapter 7 Part 2

Yu Sunshi, seeing his reaction, knew something had indeed happened: "Out with it!"  

"It was during the exam results announcement. Ji Taoyu and I went to the city together. The crowd at the bulletin board was huge, he wasn’t careful and fell into the river."  

Yu Sunshi’s eyes widened in shock.  

She grabbed her ger's arm: "Did he fall, or did you push him? Don’t lie to me!"  

Though he wanted to insist it was an accident—after all, no one could prove he’d pushed him, his mother’s severity made him waver. His voice weakened: "W-well, he just fell in..."  

"Still lying!"  

Yu Sunshi shouted.  

Yu Xia flinched, his eyes reddening: "I-I didn’t mean to hurt him! I just wanted him to embarrass himself a little..."  

Hearing the admission, Yu Sunshi was both furious and horrified: "Everyone knows Ji Taoyu is frail. The village head and his wife have coddled him like a fragile treasure. And you dared to push him into the water? I’ve taught you since childhood to have a conscience - don’t let others bully you, but don’t become a bully yourself. Clearly, you’ve ignored every word!"  

Furious, she slapped her ger across the face.  

Yu Xia staggered, clutching his cheek in disbelief. His mother, always so reasonable, had never struck him before.  

"What kind of ‘embarrassment’ justifies risking a life?"  

"Cousin is a dragon among men! With Ji Taoyu’s weak health, how can he possibly deserve him? The village head took advantage of Aunt being a widow with two children and no support from the You clan, that’s why Cousin couldn’t even marry a healthy girl or ger!"  

Yu Xia, equally enraged, felt betrayed by his mother. Tearfully, he shouted: "Even if the Ji family is influential in the village, Cousin is now a juren, what an honor! Though he lost his father early, the You family is a major lineage here! They ignored Cousin’s family before, but now that he’s brought them glory, the whole clan will rally behind him. How could Ji Taoyu possibly measure up?"  

"Fool! Absolute fool!"  

Yu Sunshi’s chest heaved with anger. Though furious at Yu Xia’s ignorance, she quickly realized someone must have planted these ideas, otherwise, how would a young ger know about clan politics?  

And she didn’t even need to ask who that someone was, it must be her own sister.  

The realization chilled her to the bone.  

Instead of debating clan matters, Yu Sunshi snapped: "So you humiliated Ji Taoyu to ruin his reputation. Then what?"  

Before Yu Xia could answer, she continued: "Did your aunt tell you this would give them grounds to break the engagement? That then your cousin could marry you instead, is that it?"  

Struck to the core, Yu Xia flushed.  

"Fool!"  

Yu Sunshi scolded: "Your aunt is no good. She probably started regretting the engagement as soon as your cousin became a xiucai, seeing his bright future. But the Ji family has treated them too well over the years, she couldn’t just call it off. So she needed someone else to do the dirty work, and that’s where you came in!"  

"Child, your aunt used you as a pawn!"  

"H-how could that be? She’s my own aunt!"  

Yu Xia stammered: "Aunt said she likes me, wants someone like me as her daughter-in-law."  

"If she looks down on the Ji family, why would she favor ours? The Ji family is a major family here, what are we compared to them?"  

"Aunt said she doesn’t need someone from a great family, just a healthy daughter-in-law."  

Yu Sunshi scoffed: "Can’t Ji Taoyu run or jump? He’s just a little weaker than most. Besides, now that your cousin is a juren, does he need a strong ger or girl to till the fields? Was Ji Taoyu’s health fine before today? If your aunt didn’t care about status, why didn’t she say so from the start?"  

Yu Xia was stunned into silence, unable to refute her.  

"Your aunt has always been ambitious. Back then, our family originally wanted her to marry your father, but she refused, saying the Yu family was too poor. Instead, she married into the You family for their wealth, even knowing your uncle was sickly. A few years later, he passed, leaving her to raise two children alone. If she looked down on the Yu family back then, how could she possibly approve of you now that your cousin has succeeded?"  

"It’s also my fault. These past two years, I’ve been busy with your elder siblings’ marriages and didn’t pay attention to you always running to your aunt’s place. I know you like your cousin, but your aunt will never agree."  

Yu Sunshi sighed, pulling Yu Xia closer: "From now on, stay away from your aunt. She’s using you to do what she can’t, and when the time comes, she’ll wash her hands of it while you take the blame."  

"Our Yu family is just a minor family in the village, barely scraping by. Now that your siblings are starting their own families, things are finally improving. Don’t throw it all away. Think, if the village head holds a grudge against us, how will the Yu family survive here?"  

The harsh lecture left Yu Xia sobbing - for his own foolishness, for his dashed hopes with his cousin, and for the fear that the Ji family might not let this go.  

"Your aunt has no conscience. She’ll reap what she sows. But we mustn’t get tangled in their affairs anymore."  

Regaining her composure, Yu Sunshi took Yu Xia’s hand: "The village head has always treated our family well, never oppressing us. Come with me to the Ji family, we’ll apologize properly to Ji Taoyu and the village head."  

"B-but isn’t that admitting guilt?"  

Yu Sunshi tightened her grip: "It’s better to face their anger now than live in fear of exposure."  

Yu Xia shrank back but nodded: "O-okay."