Everyone in the Moon Pavilion was stunned, and Tang San was stunned too, because he saw his father gently patting the beautiful woman's back, his face showing a tender expression. It was impossible to imagine that such an expression could ever appear on his father's face.
After a long while, the woman's sobbing finally subsided. She slowly raised her head, gave Tang Hao a deep look, then turned toward Tang San standing to the side. "Who is this? Your son — your son with her?"
Tang Hao nodded silently. Yuehua straightened up, her tear-blurred eyes turning to Tang San. She raised her hand, reaching toward his face.
Tang San frowned and naturally took a step back, avoiding her hand.
Yuehua's delicate brows furrowed slightly. "Why are you dodging? I'm your aunt."
"Huh?" Tang San's eyes widened. He looked at the beautiful woman before him, then at his aged father — he simply could not see the two of them as siblings.
Tang Hao nodded at Tang San. "She is your birth aunt."
Yuehua's hand reached out again. This time Tang San did not dodge. Aunt — that word was so foreign in his memory. Yet the feeling that blood runs thicker than water made him instinctively let his guard down before this woman.
Gently caressing Tang San's face, Tang Yuehua's eyes reddened once more. "You look like your father when he was young. You also look like your mother."
Hearing those words, Tang San's inner defenses crumbled completely, and every trace of his earlier composure vanished.
The people in the Moon Pavilion were now completely dumbfounded. They could never have imagined that this dirty, wretched-looking old man before them was actually the Madam's brother.
Turning around, she looked at Tang Hao with a hint of reproach. Tang Yuehua said angrily, "All these years, and only now you think to come find me? Come on — come upstairs with me."
With that, Tang Yuehua grabbed Tang San by the hand, turned, and headed for the stairs.
Tang Hao looked at his younger sister with a helpless expression, but on his face was a rare look of relaxation — one that had not been seen in years.
At the foot of the stairs, Yuehua turned her head and spoke to the steward, Ode. "What you all just saw never happened. You're responsible for this — understood?"
Ode hastily replied, "Yes, Madam."
Yuehua's hand was warm and soft. Held in her grip, Tang San felt as though he had become a child again. She led Tang Hao and Tang San all the way to the top floor of the Moon Pavilion.
As they walked, Yuehua wiped away her tears and asked Tang San, "Child, what is your name?"
"My name is Tang San."
Yuehua's body stiffened for a moment. She turned to look at Tang Hao, and a soft sigh escaped her lips.
The top floor of the Moon Pavilion was a vast hall, decorated even more elegantly than the ground floor. Tang San, who was knowledgeable about plants, was amazed to discover that every piece of furniture here was made of agarwood. The entire floor was suffused with a faint, fragrant scent.
What was agarwood? It was a grade of timber more expensive than gold of the same weight. The furniture in this hall alone was worth an astronomical sum.
Four doors surrounded the hall, leading to destinations unknown. The place radiated a sense of comfort, tranquility, stillness, and refinement. There was no excessive opulence, yet simply being surrounded by that subtle wood fragrance was enough to settle one's heart.
Tang Yuehua smiled and said, "The top floor is my private space. Without my permission, no one is allowed up here. Please, sit." She gently pressed Tang San into a chair, then turned to face Tang Hao.
"Brother, how did you end up like this?" Her emotions, barely calmed, surged again the moment she saw Tang Hao's aged face.
Tang Hao smiled faintly. "Silly girl, when did you become so prone to tears? That doesn't suit you at all."
Yuehua said angrily, "And whose fault is that? How many years has it been? And you haven't sent a single word."
Tang Hao fell silent. He walked over and sat down beside Tang San, head lowered, and said quietly, "How is Big Brother? Is he well?"
Yuehua froze. After a long pause, she slowly shook her head. "I don't know. You know what Big Brother is like. He keeps everything buried inside. The last time I went home, I accidentally saw him holding the portrait of the three of us from when we were children. He didn't even notice me walking by."
Tang San felt his father's body stiffen beside him. "I failed the clan."
Yuehua said coolly, "Does it do any good to say that now? You've finally come back after all this time. I'm not letting you leave again, no matter what. You're coming home with me. Big Brother — Big Brother has been thinking of you all along."