Di Fangyun's face tightened, and her back looked disheveled as she turned to leave.
"What do these people want?"
Only the lady can bear the temperament of the lord. Besides, his face is handsome, but good looks alone can’t put food on the table.
"Beauty is indeed seductive."
Zhang Bin sighed lightly. He should have let Tu Bai stay behind. He had gone to "see off" Madam Di and them. What he hated the most was dealing with those oblivious men and women who were completely clueless—it gave him a headache just to look at them.
He turned and ordered, "Keep watch outside. Without the lord's orders, don't let anyone disturb him."
The two outside whispered, "What about the Di family people…?"
"What about the Di family? It’s the same no matter who comes."
"Understood."
In the capital.
After Tang Ning sent out the letter, she returned to her previous routine, busy every day with the academy and the Tang Manor, only occasionally meeting with Qian Qiyue and Zhou Yuchang. Most of the time, she was with Xue Ru, buried in the sea of books.
Cao Dejiang had sent someone with a message saying that the person Tang Ning had been waiting for, Shi Chang'an, had entered the capital, but his whereabouts were unknown. Tang Ning eagerly sent someone to search for him, but despite their efforts, they couldn’t find any trace of him. She had to let go for the moment, waiting for Shi Chang'an to appear on his own.
She was busy with her studies, with the affairs left by Xiao Yan, and she only realized something was off with her aunt when the Mid-Year Festival was approaching.
One night, Tang Ning and Xue Ru went to Rong Yue’s courtyard to invite her to go to Lingyun Temple the next day, but when they arrived, it was completely dark. After inquiring, they found out from the servant that since the night of the Qixi Festival, Rong Yue had moved back to the now-renovated Rong residence.
"What?" Tang Ning was stunned. "Why didn’t anyone tell me?"
Xi Chun was also shocked. "Didn’t the lady know?"
Tang Ning was shocked. "How would I know? I saw Aunt in the manor yesterday afternoon."
Even Xi Chun and Hua Wu were stunned.
The young maid blinked and said, "Madam comes back during the day to help the lady manage the household and eat with the lady, but at night she returns to the Rong residence. I thought the lady knew."
Tang Ning: "…"
What does she know?
She had been so busy these days that she didn’t pay attention to her aunt’s matters. She had been visiting He Li Tang at night to care for the seriously injured "Xiao Yan," handling some of the affairs of the Privy Council, gathering news from all over the capital, and keeping an eye on the Lu family and the Fourth Prince. She also had to pay attention to matters concerning the Princess of Le Yang and Lingyun Temple. She only returned home very late at night.
Every morning, Tang Ning took Xue Ru to the academy to study, and only returned in the evening. By then, her aunt was already waiting at the manor to have dinner with her, and never mentioned anything about returning to the Rong residence.
Xi Chun opened her mouth. "Madam comes back every day to see the lady, and leaves at night. The household thought the lady knew, so no one mentioned it."
The identity of Madam Rong was special, and she had a close relationship with the lady. Moreover, she had built a new residence, the Rong manor, and the whole household knew she planned to move out in the future. Since she came and went every day and had been behaving the same with the lady as before, everyone assumed the lady was aware of it, so no one thought to mention it.
But who would have expected that the lady had no idea?
Tang Ning felt some regret. She thought she had been too caught up in her work to pay attention to her aunt’s situation. At the same time, she was puzzled. Her aunt had previously said she planned to move out and raise a successor for the Rong family. Tang Ning had no objection, but why had her aunt been secretly moving without telling her?
She immediately turned and said, "Prepare the carriage. We are going to the Rong residence."
Before she could finish speaking, a small hand pulled on her sleeve. Tang Ning turned around to see Xue Ru softly saying, "Sister, don’t go."
Tang Ning furrowed her brows. "What’s wrong?"
"The sky is already so late…"
Xue Ru hesitated, then glanced at Hua Wu and the others before pulling Tang Ning aside a few steps, lowering her voice. "The master of the Gu family is also not at the manor."
"Uncle isn't at the manor, so what? He has a residence in the capital, and he's busy with the Gu family business. It’s normal for him not to come back…" Tang Ning’s voice gradually lowered as she stared at Xue Ru with wide eyes.
"Are you saying that Uncle and Aunt…?"
Xue Ru whispered, "I don’t know. But on the night of the Qixi Festival, when we were leaving the manor, I saw the master of the Gu family leaving with Madam. Later, the Gu master moved out, and Madam went to the Rong residence every day."
"The night before yesterday, when Madam went out, I saw the Gu master come to pick her up…"
But at that time, they looked like they were sneaking around, as if they were doing something wrong.
The master of the Gu family looked overjoyed, trying to hold Madam's hand, but Madam seemed flustered and slapped his hand away. She looked around, almost seeing me, but fortunately, the guard who taught me martial arts, Hang, pulled me out of sight in time.
Xue Ru lowered her voice as she met Tang Ning’s stunned gaze. "I think Madam doesn’t want anyone to know. She usually avoids you. If you go over so late, what if you bump into them…"
Cough!
She cleared her throat, her cheeks slightly flushed.
Having been in a relationship herself and also been intimate with Xiao Yan, Tang Ning somehow understood immediately and couldn’t help but stammer a bit.
The next moment, her face turned red.
Hua Wu and the others, standing at a distance, didn’t know what Tang Ning and Xue Ru had talked about, but seeing the two of them together, they could sense an indescribable atmosphere.
Hua Wu couldn’t help but ask, "Miss, do you still want to prepare the carriage?"
Tang Ning quickly replied, "Forget it, it’s too late to disturb Aunt now. You can send someone to the Rong residence to tell Aunt that I’m going to Lingyun Temple tomorrow. I’ll stay there for two days to attend the Festival, and then return. If she wants to go with me, she can come tomorrow."
The Rong residence was quite far from the Tang Manor. By the time someone delivered the message, it was already late. When Madam Rong heard that Tang Ning had sent someone to find her, she panicked. She quickly put on her shoes and went out to meet the messenger. After returning, she was filled with unease.
"What does Little Haitang want with you so late?" Gu Helian entered, holding a plate of jujube pastries and snow ear soup.
Rong Yue looked dazed. "Tang Ning said she’s going to Lingyun Temple tomorrow to pray for Sister and the others, and will stay there for two days to attend the Yulan Festival."
"I’ll go with you..."
"No need!!"
As soon as Gu Helian spoke, Rong Yue instinctively refused, her voice fast and urgent.
The room fell silent, and Rong Yue couldn’t help but look up at Gu Helian, who was standing not far away, his expression solemn as he held the things in his hands.
Under the dim light, his eyes were filled with shadow. Rong Yue pinched her fingers and softly explained, "The Yulan Festival is all about chanting prayers and making offerings. There will be rituals where we have to kneel and pray to the gods. You’re the one who dislikes this the most. Besides, it’s just me and Tang Ning going. If you come with us, what would people think…"
"Is it that you don’t want me to go, or are you afraid Tang Ning will find out about us?"
"Gu Helian…"
Rong Yue’s face showed a guilty expression. She was about to speak when Gu Helian suddenly walked toward her.
He put the things aside and, without warning, leaned in and trapped her between his tall frame and the soft couch, his large form almost looming over her.
"Rong Yue, do you want to abandon me after having intimacy?"
===============
You can read ahead to chapterr 470 (100+ extra chapters) here
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