"Has the princess consort returned?"
When the Princess Consort of Prince Cheng returned to the manor, she just happened to miss Song Hong, who had left moments ago. Upon hearing the servants greeting outside, Prince Cheng looked up, and his heart sank as soon as he saw her.
When did she come back?
The Princess Consort entered with Nanny Jiang and immediately asked, "Did a guest come to the manor?"
"Why? Did you run into him?"
Prince Cheng stood up and helped his consort inside, his tone straightforward, even voluntarily bringing up Song Hong.
"It was none other than someone from the Song family. Song Hong came to pester me, claiming that Tang Ning had broken the hand of the Song family’s old matron, and they’ve been preventing the imperial doctors and other physicians in the capital from treating her. He said the matron was gravely injured and begged me to go to the Imperial Medical Office on his behalf."
"Of course, I couldn't agree to that, so he kept bothering me endlessly. It took all my effort to get rid of him. Did you run into him? Did he trouble you?"
The Princess Consort of Prince Cheng looked at him, who was full of concern for her, and only felt a coldness in her heart.
She had only casually asked a question and hadn't even mentioned Song Hong, yet Prince Cheng had proactively explained everything. If she hadn't already known why Song Hong had come to the manor, she might have been touched by Prince Cheng's honesty and fully believed his words.
Suppressing her impulse to interrogate him, she pretended to be outraged, "He still had the nerve to come to you? That old hag from the Song family nearly ruined Tang Ning’s face! Tang Ning is still unconscious! I haven’t even settled accounts with them yet, and he dared to bother you?"
"I only saw a carriage leaving, didn't see who it was. I never thought it was those scoundrels from the Song family. This isn’t over between us!"
The Princess Consort turned angrily, as if to storm outside, but Prince Cheng hurriedly stopped her.
She turned around and smacked his arm with a sharp "smack," glaring at him, "You’re stopping me? You better not be siding with those bastards from the Song family!"
"What nonsense are you saying? How could I side with them? But they’ve already gone far. Are you planning to chase him down to fight in the streets?"
Prince Cheng pulled her down to sit beside him, exasperated, "You always get worked up so easily. I know Tang Ning is your favorite, and I wouldn’t stand by and watch her suffer. I flatly refused Song Hong; otherwise, how could he have argued with me for so long?"
"What good does refusing do? You should have slapped him hard!"
"Yue Niang..." Prince Cheng chuckled, "He’s the Assistant Minister of the Secretariat, not some commoner. And the one injured is still Tang Ning's elder."
"The old matron's hand is broken, she’s running a high fever and hasn’t woken up. If she doesn't recover soon, she could lose her life. If I push her further, what will people say about me? And about Tang Ning? They’ll call her heartless and cruel."
Still as handsome as ever in his middle age, Prince Cheng’s face softened with helpless affection as he gently held the Princess Consort.
"Don’t you know how much I care about you? How could I side with outsiders?"
The Princess Consort looked up at him. His face was filled with familiar tenderness, and his eyes reflected the deep affection she once knew. Yet, her heart kept sinking lower and lower.
He was still lying to her!
Her eyes reddened as she held back tears. "I know you care about me, but the Song family has gone too far. You don’t know how badly Tang Ning was beaten. That old witch was aiming to ruin her face. I grew up with my sister, and she only left me this one daughter. If something happens to her, how could I ever face my sister?"
"I know how close you were with your sister, so of course, you should care for Tang Ning. I feel for her too. Please, stop crying."
Prince Cheng held her close, softly comforting her.
Resting her head on his shoulder, she murmured, "My lord, have your people from Anzhou sent any word back? Did they find out the truth about Song Shulan?"
Prince Cheng’s hand paused for a moment before continuing to stroke her back. "How could they be so quick? Anzhou is several days’ journey from the capital. Once they arrive, they’ll still need time to investigate. Rushing back and forth, it’ll take at least half a month. But I really think you’re overthinking it."
"The Song family isn’t crazy. Why would they mix up the bloodline of the Duke’s family with some random woman? Besides, that illegitimate daughter does resemble the Song family members somewhat."
"Tang Ning's grudge with the Song family has clouded her judgment, and you’re letting her stir you up. I agreed to send someone to investigate, but we can’t make a big deal out of this. If we find nothing, people might start gossiping about how Tang Ning meddles in the family’s affairs."
The Princess Consort's hands turned cold, her heart plunging into a bottomless pit, extinguishing even the faintest hope she’d held.
Sensing her silence, Prince Cheng softly asked, "What’s wrong? Are you upset?"
He kissed her forehead gently.
"I’m not blaming you. It’s just that Tang Ning is still part of the Song family. If we fall out with them completely, it’ll only hurt her. You and I can protect her, but we’re not her parents."
"I’ll make sure to hurry up the investigation in Anzhou, but shouldn’t you also spend more time in the manor? Yin’er has been moping around lately, always saying that you love Tang Ning more than your own son and that even I, your husband, don’t measure up to her."
"Yue Niang, you’re being unfair to me too."
His once sweet words now stung her heart deeply.
Every seemingly sincere word tightened the knot in her chest. She clenched her sleeves so hard she could barely breathe.
Feigning embarrassment, she gently pushed him away.
"How childish, still jealous at your age."
The Princess Consort stood up and stepped back, saying, "But I’m telling you, if the Song family dares to bully Tang Ning, I won’t let it go. And if you help them, I won’t want you anymore."
"Yue Niang, so heartless?"
"I’m serious." Her gaze was stern. "You know my temper."
"Yes, yes, my Yue Niang is righteous and can’t tolerate injustice. I’ll remember."
Seeing his indulgent smile and hearing his tender words, which had once made her heart soar, only deepened her sense of betrayal. He still hadn’t spoken a single word of truth to her. His easy demeanor, free of guilt or hesitation, left her cold. Every lie he told with such sincere affection made a chill spread down her spine.
This man she had lived with for nearly twenty years, the father of her children, the man she had trusted implicitly—she had never seen this side of him.
He wasn’t the honest, open-hearted man she thought he was. He wasn’t the husband who had never hidden anything from her. He was a masterful actor, telling lies so effortlessly, with such emotion, that it chilled her to the bone.
After leaving the study, the Princess Consort forced a smile as she returned to her quarters.
As soon as the door closed, she staggered, her face pale as paper.
"Your Highness!"
Nanny Jiang rushed to support her, only to see her eyes brimming with tears she had long been holding back.
=====
You can read ahead to chapterr 100 here
Oh no, poor aunt! 😥
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