Lu Zhinian stared intently at everything in the courtyard, his face whiter than the moonlight.
This was a place he had never been before; no one from the Song family had ever mentioned that there was such an abandoned courtyard. He had never come here, yet he saw things he had never seen before.
If everything he saw in his dreams was false, a figment of his imagination, then what was this courtyard? But if it were true...
Lu Zhinian pinched himself hard, his entire body swaying as he struggled to stand.
Song Mo rushed forward to support him. "My lord, what’s wrong... Please don’t scare me..."
"It turns out this is the truth..."
"It turns out I have wronged her..."
Lu Zhinian seemed to hear nothing from the outside world, his face pale as he gazed at the half-rotted wood, his mind throbbing with pain.
He suddenly seemed to understand why Song Tangning had changed overnight. She was no longer as gentle as before, no longer obsessed with love; he could no longer see a hint of affection for him in her eyes.
She was ruthless towards the Song family and heartless towards him, willing to send the Song family to prison and sever ties with him and the Lu family. She had never acted out of anger, nor was she petty; they had wronged her.
Those days of suffering like a festering sore, the pain of being full of wounds yet unloved, the cries filled with despair, and the dull, lifeless eyes—everything, all of it, was caused by them.
They had harmed her, stripped her of hope and a future, made her stop holding onto any expectations. It turned out everything she said was true.
She really had died once...
Lu Zhinian's face turned pale, and tears suddenly streamed down his cheeks. His throat was filled with harsh laughter, a mixture of crying and laughing that left Song Mo at a loss.
"My lord..."
Song Mo wanted to step forward but had just prepared to say something when a light suddenly appeared in the previously dark distance. As the swaying lantern approached, someone shouted sternly.
"Who dares to intrude into a sealed area?!"
"My lord, run!!"
Song Mo never expected that there would still be people from the Song family. Hearing the sounds of armor and footsteps drawing near, he panicked and pulled Lu Zhinian to turn and flee.
But after just a few steps, a thrown lantern struck his ankle with a loud bang. Song Mo stumbled and fell to the ground, dragging Lu Zhinian down with him.
Before the master and servant could get up, they were pressed to the ground, their hands twisted behind their backs by the encroaching figures.
"What audacity, daring to run!"
One of the black-armored guards spat and stepped on Lu Zhinian’s leg bone. He picked up the lantern and cursed, "Let me see which brat dares to trespass into the black-armored guard's territory..."
The flickering candlelight fell on Lu Zhinian's face, highlighting his pale complexion.
The man paused, suddenly intrigued. "Isn’t this Lu family's third young master?"
Others nearby were surprised; after taking a closer look at the fallen man, someone immediately laughed out loud. "Oh, Third Young Master Lu, why are you out here enjoying the moon at such a late hour?"
Lu Zhinian felt a chill all over: it was over.
Song Mo hurriedly said, "My lord is ill with a high fever and a bit confused. He thought Miss Song was still in the Song family. We came to look for her..."
Bang!
"Nonsense!"
The man smashed his sword sheath against Song Mo's mouth.
This Lu family member was no good, daring to use their master’s lady as an excuse.
The previously smiling man suddenly turned cold and kicked the bloodied Song Mo down, saying, "Speaking such nonsense, whether you're confused or not, you trespassed into a sealed area with ulterior motives. Take them back and let them accompany the Song family."
"You..."
Song Mo, bloodied, whimpered and could not speak clearly.
Lu Zhinian tried to speak but was gagged and dragged away.
The leader of the black-armored guards wiped the sword sheath in disgust. "We didn’t find anything from the Song family, but it seems we’ve made an unexpected catch. This Lu family matter is getting interesting."
As night fell, the Lu family was eerily quiet. Lu Chongyuan had no idea that Lu Zhinian had fallen into Xiao Yan's hands and was still discussing Song Tangning's matters with Lu Zhao and the others.
He hadn’t anticipated that the little lady would be so difficult to deal with, nor that Xiao Yan would have managed to escape. With both sides in such turmoil, the situation seemed unlikely to end well.
"Father, what should we do now?" Lu Zhao asked in a low voice.
Lu Chongyuan's expression was extremely grim. Even with his cunning mind adept at schemes, he was at a loss regarding the current situation, feeling trapped with all routes blocked.
"Song Tangning seems to despise our family for some reason and gives us no room to maneuver. She intends to use the engagement to force her hand, but now she would rather tear her face than reconcile..."
Making Lu Zhinian kneel and apologize to her, even telling the world that the Lu family had mistreated her—what difference would that make to their family’s dignity?
It appeared that she was merely retaliating against Lu Zhinian, making him lose face, yet the Lu family would also be utterly humiliated. And if Lu Zhinian truly knelt, his future would be completely ruined.
How could a young master from a prominent family kneel before a girl? What would others think of him?
Lu Chongyuan could never agree!
He frowned tightly. "In the past, when the Song family was still around, we could handle them. Even if Prince Cheng was well, he could have pressured Song Tangning. But now..."
The only remaining elder from the Song family was the fiercely protective Princess Cheng. With the Song family and Prince Cheng both imprisoned and confined, no one could control Song Tangning.
She was like a slippery eel, impossible to grasp.
Lu Qin, unable to hold back, said fiercely, "Since we can’t control her and Song Tangning refuses to relent, we might as well take the initiative. She’s just an orphaned girl; as long as we ruin her reputation, I don’t believe she’ll have the face to cause trouble for the Lu family..."
Upon hearing this, Lu Zhao immediately looked up. "Second brother, isn’t what you’re suggesting too despicable?"
"What do you mean by despicable?"
Lu Qin's face was filled with anger. "This girl shows no humility and disregards the longstanding friendship with the Lu family. She is almost trampling on our family's dignity, wishing nothing more than to ruin the Third Young Master."
"If you think it’s despicable, then tell me a more honorable way. Do you really want to wait for three days until she takes the entire Lu family to court? What will the Empress and the Fourth Prince do then?"
"Or would you prefer to send the Third Young Master to kneel before her, bowing to her and admitting fault, so that she can ride on the Lu family's head from now on?"
Lu Zhao’s face turned ugly under the pressure of Lu Qin’s words, and he fell silent.
Lu Qin turned to Lu Chongyuan. "Father, since Song Tangning is so unyielding, our Lu family cannot fall to the hands of a little girl. To achieve great things, one must not be picky. Let’s get through this hurdle first."
"As long as Song Tangning’s reputation is ruined, even if we break off the engagement, it won’t be the Lu family’s fault. Even if Xiao Yan protects her, we will have ways to stop the rumors. No one will stand with her. If you think this method is too cruel, we can let the Third Young Master take her into the mansion as a concubine later; that will also be seen as the Lu family's benevolence."
===========
You can read ahead to chapterr 200 here
Comments
Post a Comment