For several days, Jiang Wu couldn’t eat or sleep well.

Chu Ling didn’t let her sleep with him again. Although he was cruel, he was not a lustful person in normal times.

But Jiang Wu needed to grind and serve him every day.

Chu Ling didn’t like other people getting close to him, so he used her for his own convenience.

Jiang Wu was so angry about this, but she still had to serve him with her head bowed.

He was not afraid that he would steal secrets to frame him. Jiang Wu really wanted to do this, but she was too useless and had no idea how to do such a thing.

In fact, Chu Ling would never allow himself to have political enemies. Not to mention that she didn’t know what to steal, even if she stole it, she didn’t know who to give it to.

So annoying.

She missed Mo Yangzhou a little. If she didn’t see him again, Jiang Wu felt like she was going crazy.

So she sent a visiting card to Qingyang Gōngzhǔ.

The two of them had now come to a tacit understanding. Once she sent out the visiting invitation, she would know how to arrange things.

But Jiang Wu didn’t make it this time.

She met her son on the road.

Chu Ye was about to enter a tavern when he was approached by several people who were of similar age, about fifteen or sixteen years old. They entered the tavern one after another while politely giving way to each other.

Although each of them could not hide their high spirits and were in their prime, her son was still the most eye-catching among them.

Jiang Wu was very proud. Even if she was not close to her son, he was still the son she gave birth to after ten months of pregnancy. Even if she did not raise him, he grew up to be a brilliant talent.

She didn’t call Ah Ye. Although it was not easy to meet each other, she didn’t want to disturb his interest in gathering with his friends.

Seeing him come in, Jiang Wu lowered the curtain and told the servants to settle their bill in advance before leaving.

The carriage had not gone far when it suddenly stopped.

“Madam,” the groom said from outside, “the Young Master is coming.”

Jiang Wu was stunned. She opened the car curtain and looked back. Sure enough, she saw the young man running towards him.

She couldn’t help but curl her brows and got off the carriage with the help of the servants, unable to hide her joy.

“Ah Ye.” She smiled and said, “Slow down.”

The boy ran so fast that he was a little out of breath when he stopped, but he quickly adjusted himself and saluted properly: “Mother.”

“Why are you here?”

“I saw your carriage. If you saw me, why didn’t you call me?” Chu Ye hesitated.

It couldn’t be said to be a complaint, but one could hear a hint of disappointment in the tone.

Jiang Wu was a little panicked, afraid that he would misunderstand: “Mother just doesn’t want to disturb the gathering of your friends.” But she also felt a little happy because her son cared about her.

She treated her children differently from Chu Ling.

Her children had never been close to her and were always too cold in their words, which had hurt her a lot. But every time they showed a little bit of affection to her, she couldn’t help but forgive the sadness.

“Other things are not as important as Mother.” Chu Ye’s tone was a little anxious, as if he was the one who was upset. However, she didn’t know what he thought of, and his eyes dimmed again. He quickly glanced at the servants behind Jiang Wu, and restrained his anxiety. “Since we have met, Mother, if you have nothing to do, can you accompany… the child for tea?”

Of course, Jiang Wu was willing, she was even very nervous.

The two went to a nearby teahouse.

There was not much to talk about. Chu Ye had passed the Huìshì ^[1]Metropolitan Examination held every three years this year and was now studying in the Imperial College, waiting for next year’s Diànshì. ^[2]Court Examination, held every three years

Jiang Wu was not worried. For one thing, he had a father named Chu Ling who was the Prime Minister. And Ah Ye himself was also very outstanding. He was the Huiyuan ^[3]first-place scholar in the Huìshì.

But she still asked a few questions about his studies.

Jiang Wu felt that Ah Ye probably knew she didn’t understand much, but he wasn’t impatient. He patiently answered each of her questions one by one.

She began to feel that sending the child to the old house to be raised was not a bad idea.

This child’s temperament was completely different from his father’s and he seemed to have been well educated.

Just then someone mentioned Ruyue Jùnzhǔ who was about to return to the court, so Jiang Wu went to listen.

Everyone praised and pitied this Jùnzhǔ. After all, such a weak woman had traveled far away for two countries, and now she finally returned after more than ten years. Who wouldn’t sigh when talking about her?

She listened to a few words, turned around, and saw Ah Ye was also listening.

“Ah Ye also likes these gossips?” Jiang Wu found it strange. In her impression, children might only be interested in books of sages.

Chu Ye smiled a little: “I’ll listen. Besides, it’s a wonderful woman like the Jùnzhǔ who carries such a heavy burden with such weak shoulders. The Jùnzhǔ has been away from home for so many years, and now she can come back, which is also proof of our Yan’s strength. And… Mother, you should be happy too, right?”

Jiang Wu’s nails dug into her palms tightly. Was she happy? She was quite happy if these words hadn’t come from her son’s mouth.

She knew that the child was kind-hearted, sympathetic to the weak, and full of compassion.

But Jiang Wu’s heart had never been so sad before. She couldn’t control her sadness.

Even if they divorced, she couldn’t take the child with her. Having a child was just a pipe dream and she didn’t dare to think about it.

When Chu Ling marries Chu Yan, she will be Ah Ye’s new mother.

She was someone Ah Ye revered and respected, a remarkable woman he admired.

They would become a real family.

What about her? It was obvious that she had carried him for ten months and gave birth to him. She had gone through the gates of hell and given birth to him.

Jiang Wu found herself crying under Chu Ye’s panicked gaze.

She wiped away her tears hastily: “No, Ah Ye, it has nothing to do with you.”

But because she felt so wronged, her tears seemed endless. It was so embarrassing, really so embarrassing, she was already an elderly mother, but she cried so ungracefully in front of her child.

As a result, in Ah Ye’s heart, she, as a mother, was even more useless.

Jiang Wu felt as if something was blocking her heart. She hated it so much! She didn’t know what she should hate. She hated everyone who had brought her to where she was today, including this useless self.