Lu Zhao paced back and forth in front of the prison, the spring sun already beginning to feel scorching. The light hitting his face was extremely blinding, making him squint as he tried to look towards the prison gate.
After a while, the prison gate swung wide open, and when he saw Lu Zhinian being helped out unsteadily, Lu Zhao hurried forward.
"Third Young Master!"
"Father..." When Lu Zhinian saw his father, it was as if he had found a support. Unable to restrain himself, he cried out hoarsely, tears brimming in his eyes.
Seeing his son's disheveled appearance, Lu Zhao felt pained and gently patted him. "Get into the carriage first; we’ll talk when we get back."
"Wait." Suddenly, Wu Kui, who had come out behind them, interrupted. "Lu Langling, although the matter regarding Third Young Master has been temporarily clarified, and he can return home for now, I still need to remind you that he should avoid places he shouldn’t go to, lest he brings about unnecessary misunderstandings again."
Lu Zhao's face darkened. "You don't need to say more!"
Wu Kui shrugged. "I’m just being kind; if Lu Langling doesn’t want to hear it, fine, but I must remind you once again."
"Third Young Master is still in a guilty position. Our supervisor has taken into account that Lu Zhongshu is elderly and frail, and has generously compensated the Yiyang County Master, which is why he has temporarily allowed him to return home. However, until the case with the Song family is resolved, he still has suspicions against him. Therefore, during this period, Third Young Master must report to the Privy Council every three days and is not allowed to leave the capital without permission."
"It is already leniency to release him from prison; I hope the Lu family doesn’t spoil this rule."
Upon hearing this, Lu Zhao's expression turned extremely grim. Just as he was about to say something, Wu Kui clasped his hands together. "There are urgent matters in the Privy Council; I won’t bother you any longer." Without waiting for Lu Zhao to respond, Wu Kui turned and walked away. The way he casually rested a hand on his sword hilt made Lu Zhao and the others' faces turn ashen.
"These black-armored guards are simply despicable." Lu Rong could no longer contain his anger and exclaimed, "He’s just a mere captain, not worth much, yet he dares to treat you with such disdain?!"
In terms of official rank and background, what is Wu Kui, that he dares to act so arrogantly in front of their Lu family’s heir?!
Lu Zhao’s face was cold as ice. "He is despicable, but what’s even more despicable is their master." A pack of rabid dogs, following a vile and malicious person, emboldened them to act arrogantly.
If it weren’t for Xiao Yan backing them up, would these black-armored guards dare to be this bold?!
Lu Zhao felt an extreme sense of humiliation and held resentment towards Xiao Yan, angry that he hadn’t killed him on the outskirts of the capital that day.
Taking a deep breath to suppress his anger, he turned around and saw Lu Zhinian’s pale face, his lips cracked, looking utterly defeated. He suppressed his rage and said, "Get in the carriage; we’re going home."
The Lu family carriage was parked in front of the prison. Lu Zhinian had been beaten and had injuries on his body, and the carriage was padded with a thick layer of cushions.
After being helped into the carriage and leaning against the cushions, Lu Zhinian finally felt that he had come out of the prison. The swaying carriage made him feel uncomfortable, but compared to the dark and damp prison, everything outside felt much better.
Lu Zhinian adjusted his position against the soft cushions when he suddenly remembered Song Mo, who had been captured with him. He asked, "Father, what about Song Mo? Were you able to rescue him?"
"Do you still have time to think about him?" Lu Zhao's expression darkened. "Why don’t you ask about your grandfather and what’s going on at home?"
Seeing Lu Zhinian's confused and uneasy expression, Lu Zhao coldly continued, "Song Mo is not dead. He has served you for many years and should have been cautious everywhere, yet he failed to stop you from making foolish decisions, leading you to commit a grave mistake. If he hadn’t remained silent about what he shouldn’t have said after you were captured, at least he knew how to protect you. With your grandfather's temper, he would have long been beaten to death."
"I ordered that he be sent to the estate; he doesn’t need to stay by your side any longer." Such a servant is not worthy of remaining in the Lu family!
"Father..." Lu Zhinian opened his mouth, wanting to plead for Song Mo. He wanted to explain that it was his own decision to go to the Song Duke’s mansion that night, that he had been foolish and deluded by a dream, and that Song Mo had tried to stop him but couldn’t.
However, before he could speak, Lu Zhao had already said, "You still have time to care about that Song Mo? Do you know what kind of disaster you’ve caused this time?"
"Because of your sudden imprisonment, the Lu family has suffered a tremendous defeat in front of the Song family and Xiao Yan. We could have had a chance to negotiate, but we completely lost our advantage. Your grandfather was humiliated, and the Lu family suffered heavy losses to calm the situation; even the queen was reprimanded by His Majesty."
He had wanted to ask Lu Zhinian for a long time, but now he could no longer hold back. "Third Young Master, what on earth were you doing at the Song Duke’s mansion that night?"
Lu Zhinian's face turned pale. "I..." He wanted to say something, but the words got stuck in his throat, and he didn’t know how to start.
That dream was utterly absurd to outsiders; even he could only use the abandoned courtyard and the withered tree he had never seen to prove its truth. But if he told others, who would believe him? Perhaps even his father would think he had gone mad, or even be regarded as a demon.
He couldn’t possibly tell his father and the Lu family that he had gone to the Song Duke’s mansion to validate a dream. Or should he tell them how he had betrayed Song Tangning, how he had broken his engagement and fallen for someone else, how he had forcefully taken away Tangning's possessions and handed over the position of the Lu family's matriarch to an unknown wretch, and how he had even harmed Song Tangning to the point of being neither human nor ghost?
Seeing him remain silent, Lu Zhao pressed further, "What? Speak! Did you discover something about the Song family, or do you have something on Song Tangning that made you rush to the Song Duke’s mansion and get caught off guard?"
Hearing this, Lu Zhinian's face turned pale, gripping the cushions beneath him as he avoided Lu Zhao's gaze. "No, it wasn’t like that. That night I was confused; I thought Tangning was still at the Song family. I wanted to go find her and ask for her forgiveness. I didn’t expect to run into those black-armored guards..."
"Say that again?!" Lu Zhao was astonished, and even Lu Rong, who was beside him, showed a look of shock.
Even though they had imagined countless possibilities, even considering that perhaps Lu Zhinian had unintentionally been captured while trying to do something at the Song family, they never expected he was there for this reason.
Lu Zhinian was startled: "I just thought that if Tangning forgave me, the Lu family's issues would be resolved. I was just temporarily confused..."
"Slap!" Lu Zhao was furious and slapped Lu Zhinian across the face, his hand shaking as he pointed at him. "Confused? I see your brain has gone mad!
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Read ahead to chapter 245 (100+ extra chapters) here
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