Chapter 1210 – Zhao Shao’s Death (Part 8)
Xie Ze didn’t wait long before Li Yun appeared before him.
“Mr. Han said you wanted to see me?” Li Yun, dressed in tight-fitting attire that showcased his broad shoulders and narrow waist, was completely unaware that if the idle folks in the livestream saw him, there would surely be a frenzy of admiration. He casually took a seat beside Xie Ze’s bed.
Xie Ze was a wounded patient, currently only able to speak, blink, and slightly tilt his head.
His gaze was fixed on Li Yun’s face, staring without blinking for quite a while until his eyes became dry and irritated.
“Wow, you really do look like—”
The more he looked, the more Li Yun resembled his uncle in his youth. However, this young man had more ruggedness than Xie Qian, lacking the refined scholar’s demeanor. If only Li Yun’s features were a bit gentler and his figure more slender, they would probably look even more alike.
Li Yun appeared unsurprised; he noticed Xie Ze struggling to turn his head and proactively helped him adjust his position.
“Can you, uh, tell me your father’s name?”
Xie Ze gazed earnestly at Li Yun, his striking eyes clear and pure, instantly making one feel favor towards him.
Li Yun replied softly, “My father is Xie Qian, said to originally hail from Huan Ning County.”
Xie Ze’s emotions fluctuated violently, feeling so excited he nearly leaped up, only to pull a muscle and let out a pained cry.
“Is what you said true?”
Xie Ze gritted his teeth to endure the pain, his teary eyes fixated on Li Yun.
Li Yun chuckled, “As a son, how could I possibly forget my father’s name?”
Xie Ze paused, his overheated brain finally cooling down enough for him to think clearly.
According to Mr. Han Yu, this person before him already knew of their blood relations.
“Do you know your father is from the Huan Ning Xie family?” Xie Ze cautiously asked.
Li Yun said, “Of course I know.”
“If Uncle hasn’t encountered misfortune, why hasn’t he… come to recognize his roots after all these years?” Suddenly recalling Li Yun’s surname changed his expression, and Xie Ze stammered, “Could it be that Uncle harbors resentment, feeling that the family didn’t support him in his time of need?”
Now it was Li Yun’s turn to be bewildered.
How could Xie Qian possibly blame the family for this matter?
If anything, it was due to misfortune; Xie Qian caused trouble, and the Xie family could only disavow him as a means to protect him indirectly.
Although the Huan Ning Xie family was one of the four ruling families in Dongqing, they weren’t so arrogant as to overthrow the royal family.
The families in the nobility were indeed powerful, able to wield authority and scorn the crown, but they weren’t a monolithic block—there were conflicts of interest and mutual checks among them. If that weren’t the case, how could the Dongqing royal family even have a chance to breathe? They would have been eliminated long ago——
“My father never held any resentment——” Li Yun reassured, “He jumped off a cliff years ago, managed to survive but unfortunately lost his memory. In the haze of it all, he fled with me to Wanzhou and Fengyi County. Luckily a farming family took us in, and that’s how we settled down.”
Xie Ze asked, “Uncle lost his memory?”
Li Yun answered, “He lost it for two years, but slowly recovered as the blood clots in his brain subsided.”
Having lost his memory, Xie Qian was muddled; he occasionally acted a bit crazy, yet he didn’t let his infant son starve. One couldn’t help but marvel at how strong Xie Qian’s paternal instincts were or how lucky Li Yun was to have survived—
A trace of pity and sympathy flickered in Xie Ze’s eyes.
While the Xie family offspring weren’t as affluent and extravagant as those of other aristocratic families, they still enjoyed a life without worry.
He couldn’t imagine the hardships Xie Qian and his son faced over the years.
But Li Yun didn’t view himself as suffering; after all, he learned martial arts directly from his father.
Considering the typical dynamics between patriarchs and their children in feudal families, Li Yun was quite lucky.
Moreover, he felt even luckier that his father’s timing for regaining his memory was just right. Li Yun certainly didn’t want to live with the nickname “Li Dog Pillar” for a lifetime.
“Where is Uncle right now?” Xie Ze pressed.
Li Yun replied, “Naturally in Wanzhou. My mother’s revenge has been exacted and the enemy has been crushed to dust. He’s been in a good mood these past two years, looking younger by the day. If given the chance, my father will likely visit the Xie family. Though disavowed, he still remembers the family fondly.”
Xie Qian’s daily routine now consisted of eating, sleeping, and playing with his granddaughter, leading an exceedingly comfortable life.
If not for Xie Qian’s longstanding habit of morning exercise over the years, he probably would have gained quite a bit of weight by now.
Xie Ze inquired, “If I may be so bold, why did Uncle let you take on the surname Li?”
Even though he had been disavowed, Xie Qian’s descendants were innocent—how could they bear a different surname?
Li Yun explained, “During my father’s two years of amnesia, I was taken in as an adopted son by that farming family and took their surname. My father felt remorseful towards the Xie family, and after regaining his memory, he didn’t think to switch my surname back. I’ve gotten used to it now, and changing it again would be inappropriate—”
Of course, this was the reason Xie Qian gave Li Yun; the real reason he never disclosed.
As a former hero of the previous generation, Xie Qian had long recognized Jiang Pengji’s position.
If Li Yun were to acknowledge his roots and connect with the massive Xie family, it was likely that they would exploit Li Yun’s relationship to interfere with Jiang Pengji’s influence. Li Yun would find himself caught in the middle—a precarious position. The disadvantages of acknowledging his roots far outweighed the benefits.
Should he cling to the family’s leg or focus on forging his bright future?
Xie Qian made a choice for Li Yun.
After over twenty years without enjoying the privileges the family offered, he certainly couldn’t bear the burden of the family’s misfortune now.
Thus, Xie Qian never had him revert to the surname “Xie,” and even named Li Yun’s eldest daughter Li Nuan instead of Xie Nuan.
Xie Ze believed Li Yun’s words and said, “Uncle has become cautious after the upheaval; it seems you’ve suffered a bit.”
Isn’t the inability to acknowledge his roots a huge grievance?
Li Yun shook his head with a smile.
“One more thing—might I ask if my cousin can help me inquire about something?” Xie Ze said.
Li Yun was just about to agree when he caught himself correcting Xie Ze.
“Yun is the elder brother.”
Xie Ze was the cousin!
Xie Ze chuckled, “How could that be? If we’re counting years, you’re more than two months younger than me.”
Eh——
Li Yun was bewildered, suddenly realizing that his father had intentionally misreported his age by two years to protect him.
He just couldn’t remember the details.
But——
It didn’t matter; he was still the elder brother!
“Clearly, it’s Yun who’s older; Father wouldn’t misreport the birth date.”
Xie Ze, being injured, had already exhausted most of his energy talking for so long and didn’t have the strength to argue with Li Yun.
He glossed over this issue and said, “My family remains in Zhe County, but recently Zhe County has fallen into the hands of Lan Ting Gong——”
Li Yun replied, “My lord is benevolent and virtuous, how could he possibly bully women and children? Your sister-in-law must be safe.”
Xie Ze was relieved to hear this, his anxious heart finally feeling settled.
“Once my injuries are a bit better——” Xie Ze frowned slightly, as if making a decision, “…… Could you possibly introduce me?”
