CWTGD Chapter 4 - The Lord Does Not Eat People

 After a night of heavy rain, the sky cleared at dawn. The snow at the foot of the mountain began to melt, tender buds appeared on the willows, and occasionally a green bird would chirp as it flew by, breaking the morning silence.

A ray of sunlight squeezed through the window and fell on Song Tangning's face, startling her awake. The strong scent of medicine filled her nostrils as she stared at the intricately carved patterns above her, momentarily unsure of where she was.

"Awake?"

A cold voice pierced the air, like a stone dropping into a lake, also awakening her memories from before she fainted.

Song Tangning sat up abruptly, ignoring the pain, and turned her head towards the screen with cranes painted on it. She vaguely saw the tall figure behind it set down the scroll he was holding and begin walking towards her.

Seeing the girl pale with fright, clutching the blanket with wide, almond-shaped eyes, Xiao Yan stopped by the screen and said, "Be careful with your hands."

Song Tangning shivered and mumbled, "Don't cut off my hands."

Xiao Yan: "..."

At that moment, Madam Qin walked in carrying a copper basin and laughed when she heard the commotion. She glanced at Xiao Yan's tense face and then at the girl who regarded him like a wolf, barely containing her amusement as she passed by him and entered the room.

"Don't be afraid, my lady. Our lord here doesn't eat people. Don’t listen to the rumors outside about how fierce he is. In truth, he has a kind heart and is very gentle..."

Song Tangning became even more frightened.

Seeing her huddled in a ball with the blanket, Xiao Yan’s face stiffened as if she were about to faint from fear. He glanced at Madam Qin and said, "If you can’t speak properly, then don’t speak."

"Isn’t it you who scared her?"

Madam Qin, with her straightforward personality, wasn’t afraid of Xiao Yan's cold demeanor. She smiled, wrinkles gathering at the corners of her eyes, and approached Song Tangning, “There, there, don’t be scared. Sister here was just joking with you.”

Madam Qin gently pulled Song Tangning's tense fingers away from the blanket.

"You’ve hurt your fingers quite badly. Although I’ve applied medicine, it will still hurt until new skin grows. During this time, be careful not to use too much strength or get them wet, and mind the wound on your face too."

"I've applied some medicine for you. Once the wound scabs over, I’ll use a special cream I’ve prepared to ensure you won’t be left with any scars."

Song Tangning looked at the smiling woman in front of her, feeling a bit lost.

Xiao Yan said in a calm voice, "Madam Qin is a descendant of the Cheng family from Shu. Her medical skills are excellent, even better than those of the imperial physicians."

"Don’t praise me too much, my lord. If you keep praising me, I’ll have to start charging for my services."

Madam Qin joked, then turned serious. “But Miss Song is so beautiful that I’ll waive the fees. Imagine how many handsome young men would beat their chests in despair if that lovely face of yours got scarred. I couldn’t bear it.”

Song Tangning blushed.

She could sense the kindness emanating from Madam Qin. It had been many years since anyone had cared about her appearance.

Even though it was said in jest, the rough fingers holding hers gave her an unexpected sense of comfort.

Feeling a bit embarrassed, she mumbled, "Thank you, sister."

Madam Qin smiled warmly, “With a fairy-like little sister like you, I’m the one who’s gotten lucky.”

Song Tangning smiled lightly, her lips curving to reveal shallow dimples in her cheeks.

...

A bronze incense burner shaped like an elephant's head warmed the room, dispelling any trace of spring chill.

Madam Qin, quite the chatterbox, continued to speak with Song Tangning, and whether it was her comforting smile or the fact that Xiao Yan remained seated on the long couch behind the screen without attempting to approach, Song Tangning finally started to regain some color in her face after having her wounds tended to.

Her lips were still pale, and her dark hair fell behind her. As her curled lashes fluttered, her slightly swollen eyes began to show signs of life, no longer as lost as when she first woke up.

After Madam Qin left, only Song Tangning and Xiao Yan remained in the room.

Song Tangning cautiously lifted her gaze.

The person opposite her was dressed in a black brocade robe, his hair casually tied with an ink-black hairpin. Gone was the initial cold and hostile demeanor, replaced by a lazy indifference as he leaned against the couch.

He was known as a treacherous eunuch, feared by all for his ruthless methods, yet there was no trace of the feminine air often associated with palace eunuchs. Instead, his features were clear and handsome, exuding a noble aura that was hard to decipher.

Perhaps sensing her gaze, his sharp eyes lifted slightly.

Song Tangning immediately shrank back, lowering her head and clutching the edge of the blanket.

"Did you forget what Madam Qin said? Do you want to lose your hand?"

Seeing her instinctively retract her hand, Xiao Yan seemed to sigh softly. "What are you afraid of?"

When she didn't respond, he continued,

"Your appearance on the mountain was too coincidental, and I’ve recently offended many people. Everyone in the capital knows that I visit the mountain at this time of year to pay my respects to the deceased. When you stammered and couldn’t explain your reasons, I assumed you were an assassin sent by those people, which is why I nearly killed you."

"Now that everything has been cleared up, I won’t harm you."

His voice was still calm, but it was different from the cold lethality he displayed on the mountain.

Though still fearful, Song Tangning recalled how she had cursed at him before she fainted. She cautiously asked, "Then can the lord let me leave?"

"You want to leave?" Xiao Yan looked at her.

Tangning stammered, "I didn’t return last night. The household must be worried..."

"No one from the Song family went to Lingyun Temple to look for you, and to this day, no one knows that you nearly lost your life in those woods."

Her heart clenched, and her face turned pale.

"You went to Lingyun Temple with Song Jinxiu, but he left you alone in those woods. Accompanying you were your cousin Xie Yin and your childhood fiancé Lu Zhinen, but all they cared about was that weeping concubine's daughter."

"After they returned to the city yesterday, they took that concubine’s daughter to the Treasure Pavilion to buy jewelry to cheer her up, and then they went boating on the lake. Not a single one of them remembered that you spent the night outside the city."

Xiao Yan wasn’t someone who would let rot fester inside, and he didn’t want the girl to deceive herself either.

"Last night, there was a heavy rain in the mountains. If I hadn’t passed by by chance, you would have already fallen to your death in that snowy valley."

"Your brother knows how dangerous the mountains are, yet he hasn't even left the city to look for you. Even Song Hong and the old Madam Song are completely unaware. Your maid wanted to come find you, but Song Jin Xiu beat her a few times under the pretext that she offended that illegitimate daughter."

"Are you sure you want to go back just like that?"

Xiao Yan's words were like knives, stabbing Song Tang Ning so deeply that her face turned pale, and she found it difficult to breathe.

Ever since Song Shulan entered the household, nothing had gone well for her. Every time they had a dispute, she would always end up in a heated argument with her brother because of Song Shulan.

Yesterday was her mother's death anniversary, and she had specially gone with her brother and the others to Lingyun Temple to offer incense.

She had originally planned to go out with Xie Yin and Lu Zhiyun to relax and improve her relationship with her brother, but she didn't expect her brother to bring along Song Shulan.

She already had a deep dislike for Song Shulan, this daughter born out of wedlock, and even more so hated how close her brother was to her. When she saw Xie Yin and Lu Zhiyun also paying attention to Song Shulan and even neglecting her for the sake of this illegitimate daughter, she was filled with anger.

After they climbed the mountain, Song Shulan "accidentally" knocked over her mother's eternal lamp, scattering her mother's blessings everywhere.

All her pent-up anger erupted, and in a fit of rage, she slapped her. Song Shulan ran off crying.

Song Jin Xiu, looking anxious, rode off into the forest to retrieve her, and her cousin Xie Yin and Lu Zhiyun also dragged her along to apologize to Song Shulan.

But Song Tang Ning was naturally unwilling.

She wasn’t wrong, so why should she apologize to Song Shulan?

In her fury, she cursed Song Shulan a few times, and Song Shulan started crying, saying she wanted to return to Anzhou.

Song Jin Xiu was furious and scolded her for being ungracious and lacking the humility of a proper woman. He accused her of bullying the pitiable Song Shulan, saying she had no tolerance for others.

She quarreled with him in defiance, and he told her to go back to Lingyun Temple and reflect on herself. Even Xie Yin and Lu Zhinian, who should have protected her, frowned and said she was too childish.

The three of them were too busy chasing after the tearful Song Shulan, leaving her alone in the vast, snowy forest.

In her previous life, she had gotten lost in the forest, and after nightfall, her horse was injured and fell off a steep slope.

She didn’t have the luck she had in this life to be saved by Xiao Yan; instead, she rolled into a bottomless snow pit and wasn’t found by a passing farmer until the third morning.

When she was brought back to the capital unconscious, she had a crippled leg, a ruined face, and her body had been completely destroyed by the cold.

Song Tang Ning's breathing was filled with resentment. "She's not an illegitimate daughter."

"Hmm?"

"I said, Song Shulan is not an illegitimate daughter; she’s just a daughter born out of wedlock with an unknown background."

She recalled how, after returning in her previous life, she was filled with resentment, and her aunt went mad with anger over her injury.

At first, Song Jin Xiu and the others felt guilty and knelt in front of her, crying and apologizing. The old Madam Song and Song Hong also heavily punished them, saying they would send Song Shulan away.

But after her aunt had an accident, the Song family’s attitude toward her changed.

They began advising her to let go of the past, urging her to have compassion for Song Shulan’s misery. They admired Song Shulan’s righteousness in offering her blood to save her and loved her for her gentle and soft-spoken demeanor. Meanwhile, she, with her ruined face and crippled leg, trapped in the back courtyard and grieving the loss of her dear aunt, became someone everyone despised.

The initial disputes, time and time again, ended with her slamming the door and leaving.

Her resentment and bitterness became "immaturity" in their eyes. Later, when she realized how heartless the Song family was and only wanted to stay away from them, they would come one by one to scold her, saying that her mere presence outside would damage Song Shulan’s reputation and bring shame to the Song family.

They severed her ties with the outside world, took away everything her mother had left her, and locked her away in an abandoned courtyard where she never saw the light of day.

Her face was covered in festering sores, and she barely clung to life, confined to that room in "reflection."

Meanwhile, Song Hong was promoted, Song Jin Xiu became famous throughout the capital, and Song Shulan, holding the items her mother had left her, became a celebrated talent, even leading Lu Zhiyun to break off their engagement and fall in love with her.

Song Tang Ning was filled with pent-up resentment. "She said she was the result of my father’s youthful indiscretions, a daughter he kept outside."

"Grandmother and the others said if this matter got out, it would tarnish the Song family’s reputation, and my mother would be ridiculed. So, they told everyone that Song Shulan was an illegitimate daughter born to a loyal servant by my mother’s side."

Xiao Yan frowned. "They said that, and you believed them?"

"So, I was stupid." Song Tang Ning's eyes reddened.

Xiao Yan was at a loss for words. He saw the young girl lowering her head, revealing a small cowlick, and faintly noticed tears. He sighed and tried to soften his voice.

"Whether she’s an illegitimate daughter or a daughter born out of wedlock, are you sure she’s your father’s blood?"

Song Tang Ning looked up.

"Your father and mother were deeply in love. After your mother gave birth to you, her body was so damaged that she couldn’t conceive again. Back then, many girls in the capital were infatuated with your father’s charm, eager to marry into the Song family as his secondary wife or concubine to continue the family line, but he refused them all."

"If he really had a taste for women, would he have kept a mistress that everyone scorned?"

Song Tang Ning's eyes widened. "But Third Uncle and Eldest Uncle both said..."

No.

That’s not right.

Song Tang Ning’s face turned pale as she suddenly recalled that when Song Shulan first arrived at the household, her third uncle had directly sent her to the main house.

At the time, her aunt’s face was extremely displeased, and her grandmother was also very disgusted with her. They had only placed her in a remote courtyard, which made her mistakenly believe she was a relative seeking refuge.

It wasn’t until a few days later that her third uncle suddenly claimed she was the child her father had left behind in his younger years.

Song Tang Ning vaguely sensed that something had been concealed from her. She bit her lip hard, trembling with anger.

—-------

Daily updates continue as usual but you can read ahead to chapterr 100 here

Prev Chapter Chapter List Next Chapter