670 I only want a listener [Bonus chapter]
Xu Zifan, Jingfei, and Feng Lao returned to the residence at night after meeting Li Hua and Lóng Wei. Since it was late, they headed to their respective rooms.
Feng Lao decided to take a bath first before having dinner, so he headed to the bathhouse. An hour later, when he returned to the room in a white pair of clothes, he asked the servant about Miaoran, who was setting the dinner table for him.
"She had her dinner earlier, My Lord," the servant said.
"Did she sleep?" Feng Lao asked.
"I have no idea, My Lord," the servant replied. Feng Lao hummed and sat on the floor chair. He began eating the dinner and soon finished it. He decided to take a walk in the garden for a while before going to bed.
As he entered the garden, he saw Miaoran there. A smile was carved on his lips to see her and he walked to her.
"You didn't sleep!?" Feng Lao exclaimed. Miaoran turned to him and was surprised to see him.
"You didn't sleep either. I thought you would be tired," Miaoran said.
"We went in the carriage. How could I be tired?" Feng Lao asked her and approached her. "Why did you not go to bed?"
"I could not fall asleep. So, I thought to take a walk for some time," Miaoran replied. Feng Lao hummed and they both began walking.
"I took Chen Xiao's matter to the Department of Justice. He will serve a prison term soon. His father and mother begged me to forgive him, but I didn't listen to them this time," Feng Lao informed her.
"Feng Lao, you have helped me so much. I do not know how to return all these favors," Miaoran stated.
"I don't think friends return favors to each other," Feng Lao affirmed. "Moreover, as a nobleman, it's my responsibility to do good for those who have no one around them," he said.
"You have such good thoughts, Feng Lao. No one thinks about the others these days," Miaoran stated.
"Because I was also vulnerable once. When I found out my father had the hands in the massacre of the Xu Family, I found no one around me to talk about it," Feng Lao said. Miaoran looked at his troubled face. "I thought they all were dead. I helped Li Hua escape that night and I was reprimanded for it. In vulnerable times, you really do not have anyone around you. This I realized."
Miaoran saw him sighing as if he was still guilty. He was broken from inside yet no one was there to heal him.
Miaoran stopped walking and seeing this, Feng Lao also halted in his steps. "What happened?" He asked when the next act of Miaoran startled him. Miaoran hugged him and caressed his back.
"But you have yourself. I am proud of you that you did not lose your good side even after all those things happened to you. You can tell me anytime about all those things to calm yourself," Miaoran asserted.
Feng Lao placed his hand on her back gently. "Will you listen to me? I don't want any consolation on that. I only want a listener," he said.
Miaoran pulled away and looked into his eyes. "I am a good listener. You can tell me without any worries."
Feng Lao smiled at her. She realized her hands were still on his arms and she lowered them slowly. She took a step back and apologized to him for hugging him suddenly.
"It's alright. You only wanted to make me feel better," Feng Lao said. He asked her if she decided to learn tailoring.
"Yes. Tomorrow is my first day at work. I will be busy all day," Miaoran said.
"Then, you should sleep now," Feng Lao told her.
"But I am not sleepy. I tried to sleep earlier," Miaoran told him.
"Is there any trouble?" Feng Lao asked.
"I did not like the way people talked about you and Brother Xu Zifan," Miaoran answered. "I know I should ignore them, but I am unable to," she truthfully told him.
"Well, did you get any solution by constantly thinking about it?" Feng Lao questioned her.
Miaoran shook her head in refusal.
"Then, you have to stop that. It's only affecting you mentally. We all know what kind of person Chen Xiao is!" Feng Lao said.
"I know, Feng Lao. I hoped that Chen Xiao would stop troubling me and the people around me. I wonder if he troubled my parents too. I know my father acted so rudely that day, but I would like to know once," Miaoran expressed her thoughts to him. Her father did not support her decision that day, but she could not stop worrying about them.
"I will check at your home," Feng Lao assured her. He did not tell her not to think about her parents anymore since it was impossible for her. He knew how soft she was by her heart.
"I want to go with you. I would like to see my mother once even from far," Miaoran requested him.
"Sure. I will take you tomorrow. If you want, you can even go to your mother and talk to her," Feng Lao asserted.
"That's not possible, Feng Lao. Father and Mother must be angry with me. Then, the people must be blaming them for raising a daughter like me. Men aren't blamed. It's always the woman who commits a crime in everyone's eyes," Miaoran affirmed.
Those words had a deeper meaning hidden. Their society was like that. A woman would be humiliated, especially a married one if her marriage failed or she was unable to conceive a child for her husband.
"Perhaps they await your return, Miaoran. Sometimes our parents are unable to tell us. I do not know what to say about your father because he always asked you to compromise with Chen Xiao. But I think your mother will understand you," Feng Lao stated.
"She will not either," Miaoran said and sighed. "I want to see her because I miss her in this tough time." Even though she was well aware of her mother's behavior but Miaoran's mind could not stop thinking about her mother.
These days I'm going through a lot of things. Because of stress related to my personal life I couldn't update more regularly here. Sorry for that.
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