Chapter 264 - 272: The Color of Surprise

“How could I dare to bully you, daughter-in-law? I’m too busy cherishing you,” Han Yu chuckled, following his gaze only to see his son vigorously winking at his daughter-in-law, who was too busy being upset with him to notice, and was yelping anxiously.

Just then, Su Wenyue also heard it and turned to look. She saw her son waving his tiny hands at her, blinking rapidly as if stunned, and then her face broke into a look of joyous surprise.

“Son, did you listen to Mother’s words?!” Su Wenyue watched her son blink his eyes incessantly at her, feeling incredibly excited and surprised, wasn’t she?

“Alright, son, Mother knows you’re the most obedient. Mother understands what you’re saying; stop blinking or you might hurt your eyes,” she said. The infant’s face tensed imperceptibly, too small to be noticeable, clearly thinking his birth mother was unreliable.

Han Yu was actually a bit shocked at this point; he felt as if he couldn’t accept it. At first, he had thought his daughter-in-law was being silly, but now it seemed Brother Xing could understand their conversation. How could a child of less than two months not astonish people? Regardless, this was his son. Even if his intelligence was astounding, and his anxious look just showed how dutiful he was, Han Yu didn’t think too much about it. It was better to be clever when it was necessary and a bit confused when it was not.

“Husband, look, our son has so sensibly agreed. Now, you should let me come with you. Besides, I’m more familiar with the situation in Zhuangzi than you are. Taking me with you will definitely be advantageous,” Su Wenyue said, boasting as she picked up Brother Xing, seemingly unconcerned about her son’s intelligence or that both mother and child seemed a bit unusual, though Su Wenyue appeared even more mysterious than Brother Xing.

“Fine, I’ll take you,” Han Yu agreed helplessly. Seeing his daughter-in-law like this, how could he have peace of mind leaving her behind? And he would be there to take care of her anyway. However, regarding Brother Xing’s situation, Han Yu decided he needed to have a serious talk with his daughter-in-law. He was the child’s father, and even if the child was extraordinary, he would accept it. Ultimately, his concern would only be for his son’s welfare. If others noticed something amiss and word got out, it wouldn’t be a good thing.

“Daughter-in-law, although Brother Xing is intelligent, he’s still very young. Being too clever might not be a good thing to spread around. There’s a saying that what is abnormal is a monster. Brother Xing is our child, and of course, we wouldn’t think that, but if word got to someone malicious, they might make something out of it, which wouldn’t be good for Brother Xing.”

Su Wenyue nodded earnestly; she was actually very cautious on a usual basis, only letting her guard down in front of Han Yu and without being defensive. But since Han Yu brought it up, her demeanor became even more careful.

“Don’t worry, Husband, I understand. Brother Xing is just an ordinary child, and there’s nothing special about him. At most, he’s just a bit more intelligent,” Su Wenyue said, not forgetting to pick up Brother Xing and earnestly admonish him whether he understood or not.

“Brother Xing, you heard what your father said, too. Mother knows you are a clever child, so you never show anything different usually, but from now on you have to be even more cautious. There are many bad people out there with bad intentions, and both of us need to be extremely careful, not to show any flaws.”

Su Wenyue continued, inadvertently implicating herself. Han Yu heard it but did not correct her slip of the tongue, and he wasn’t even sure if it was a slip or an unintentional reveal. Not only was Brother Xing extraordinary, but his mother was even more mysterious.

Since they had agreed, Han Yu and Su Wenyue did not delay any further; they ate and then set out for Zhuangzi. Being considerate of Su Wenyue, they had no choice but to travel by horse carriage. They also needed to bring some supplies for Zhai Li and the others, as yesterday night’s rush to get people to a safe place left them neglecting other matters. n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

“This is it.” Su Wenyue had never been to Zhuangzi before, but seeing that the scene in front of her matched Xiao Xi’s description, she knew they had arrived. It was indeed well-concealed here, she thought, likely a lot of effort was put into building the underground Zhuangzi originally.

“Madam has arrived.” The housekeeper of Zhuangzi recognized Su Wenyue, naturally, as the affairs of Zhuangzi were secretive. When Xiao Xi had chosen people to go to Zhuangzi, he had specifically brought them to meet Su Wenyue. Seeing her arrival, the housekeeper hurriedly came over to show the way.

Su Wenyue nodded, “Were the few young masters who arrived yesterday evening settled in properly?”

“They have been settled in. Servant arranged them in the courtyard on the east side, as per Madam’s command to keep them from being discovered. That place is relatively secluded, and in case they get discovered, there is an escape route to quickly move them.”

Su Wenyue was pleased with the arrangement, which was exactly to her liking, “What are they doing now, have they requested anything?”

“Having not slept at all last night, the young masters fell sound asleep as soon as they arrived. They woke up around noon today, then ate heartily, and they are probably practicing swords in the courtyard now. Initially, they wanted to wander around Zhuangzi, but without your permission, Servant did not agree, given that this lot doesn’t seem like ordinary people, fearful they might discover our Zhuangzi’s secrets.”

“You did the right thing; it should be so. Our Zhuangzi is not yet ready,” she said.

“Servant will hasten to tidy up all the areas of Zhuangzi.” The housekeeper thought Su Wenyue was dissatisfied with his speed, but their Zhuangzi was different from other places. Because they had to maintain secrecy, there were many details to be considered, which had delayed the progress.

“I know you’ve tried your best. After all, such a big Zhuangzi has been neglected for so long; cleaning it up is indeed a lot of work. I will arrange for some reliable servants to come help you later, after all, our Zhuangzi is understaffed,” Su Wenyue said, pulling Han Yu to walk around the Zhuangzi. At first, Han Yu hadn’t noticed anything unusual, but after observing closely, especially when Su Wenyue reached a rockery and pressed a switch to open a hidden door and led him into an underground chamber, he showed a look of surprise.

“What’s this? How can there be an underground chamber in Zhuangzi, and it looks like there’s more than one?” Han Yu asked in surprise. Was this the surprise his daughter-in-law mentioned? Zhuangzi had been acquired not long ago by his wife and couldn’t have been built temporarily. The dust inside suggested it had been here for years.

“Of course, there’s more than one. I’m not sure who built this country estate, but they put in a lot of effort. The entire underground establishment is a hidden Zhuangzi, with a labyrinth of passageways that lead in every direction throughout the mountain and even to a secret valley. The valley is surrounded by mountain peaks, with that single secret passageway being the only entrance or exit. I can’t imagine how they discovered it—I even suspect this estate might have been built by some royal intent on staging a revolt.”