Chapter 147: Confronting Cheng Yunshuo

Chapter 147: Confronting Cheng Yunshuo

"Where are you going, Ah Ruo?"

Du Ruo had barely moved when Qian Heng stopped her.

"I'm going back! Move aside!"

Qian Heng looked her up and down. "What’s the rush to leave? Didn’t you promise to join us for drinks last time?"

"Exactly, why wait for another day? Let’s do it now! Let’s go together right now!" Liu Fei stepped forward with a smile.

All four of them had a gleam in their eyes.

"I’m in a bad mood today, so I’m not going."

"Oh, that’s even more reason to drink and cheer up!"

"Exactly, Ah Ruo, tell us what’s on your mind. We’ll make sure everything’s taken care of."

"Who would dare upset our Ah Ruo? I, Guo Zhengming, won’t let them get away with it!"

"Tell us, who’s so blind as to upset our lovely and spirited Ah Ruo?"

The four of them took turns speaking, and Du Ruo's guard gradually lowered as she listened.

"It’s nothing, I don’t hold grudges. I wouldn’t waste my time on those old women."

"Ah Ruo is truly magnanimous!"

"Refreshingly direct!"

"As I said, Ah Ruo is no ordinary woman."

"I’ve never met a woman as interesting as Ah Ruo before!"

As Du Ruo gradually let her guard down under their flattery, they continued urging her to go drinking, and she eventually relented and agreed to go along with them.

Just then, a sharp female voice echoed down the corridor.

"Du Ruo!"

Du Ruo looked up and saw Auntie Wang striding towards her with a fierce expression.

Upon seeing her, Du Ruo's smile instantly disappeared, turning into annoyance. "Auntie Wang."

"Where are you going now!" Auntie Wang eyed the four Golden Armored Guards around Du Ruo.

"They are my brother's colleagues," Du Ruo answered.

Auntie Wang gave each of them a wary glance, then gave Du Ruo a meaningful look. "Come inside and we'll talk."

Du Ruo didn't dare to disobey and followed Auntie Wang into the room.

After she was taken away, Qian Heng and the others looked visibly displeased. However, they didn't dare to interfere directly.

Clearly, Auntie Wang was Du Ruo's elder.

The four could only disperse, feeling regretful.

Once inside the room, Auntie Wang began scolding her harshly.

"How could you just leave the banquet! Everyone was still there, and you left!"

"What happened to the floral hairpin on your head!"

"Miss Lu kindly helped you dress, and you just tossed it aside! How could you treat her like that!"

"You act without any sense of decorum. How old are you? How can you still be so immature!"

Du Ruo, being scolded, furrowed her brows. "I just didn't want to attend that kind of banquet. If you had told me it was that kind of banquet, I wouldn't have gone!"

"And you dare to talk back! You're really out of control!"

Just then, the door opened, and Cheng Yunshuo returned from his patrol.

Seeing him return, Du Ruo immediately ran over to him as if he were a sturdy tree offering shelter from the wind and rain.

"Master!"

"Cheng Yunshuo was slightly taken aback to see Du Ruo, 'Why are you here?'

Wang Niangzi saw Cheng Yunshuo return, and the anger on her face subsided a little, 'Lord Cheng.'

'Lady Wang,' Cheng Yunshuo nodded slightly at her in greeting.

Wang Niangzi looked at Du Ruo hiding behind Cheng Yunshuo and, not knowing how to scold her, said disappointedly, 'This girl is really beyond help!'

'What did she do again?'

'Today at the Hairpin Banquet, she left early while everyone else was still there,' Wang Niangzi explained the situation.

'Master, I really don’t want to attend those kinds of banquets,' Du Ruo said.

'And you still have the nerve to talk back?' Wang Niangzi's anger flared up again, 'Your aunt has been worrying herself sick about you, and this is how you repay her!'

'Did I ask her to worry about me?'

'You... come here right now! I’m taking you back right now!'

'Master, I’m not going with her.' Du Ruo clung desperately to Cheng Yunshuo's sleeve.

'Lady Wang, please calm down,' Cheng Yunshuo intervened, 'I’ll have a word with her later.'

Hearing this, Wang Niangzi had no further comment, glaring at Du Ruo, 'If that’s the case, I’ll leave it in your hands.'

'Hmm.'

Cheng Yunshuo saw Wang Niangzi off, and Du Ruo breathed a sigh of relief.

'What trouble did you get into this time!'

'Master, I really didn’t cause any trouble, I just don’t want to attend those kinds of banquets. You know how I am, I can’t stand being around so many women.'

Cheng Yunshuo’s expression turned serious compared to before, 'Don’t ever say such things again! I’ll have Shiniang discipline you properly!'

'Master... humph!'

That evening, Cheng Yunshuo took Du Ruo back to the Marquis’s Mansion."

Lu Lingyun learned that Du Ruo had visited the Prefectural Commandant Manor again in the afternoon.

Seeing her return with others, she said nothing.

Du Ruo, not scolded or punished, left happily after dinner.

After she left, before Lu Lingyun could speak, Cheng Yunshuo spoke first, "Lingyun, did Ah Ruo leave her seat without permission today?"

"Hmm." Lu Lingyun responded.

"How can you not discipline her properly?"

Lu Lingyun: "..."

She looked at the serious Cheng Yunshuo and smiled with a frown.

Men in this world all share one common flaw: they naturally push responsibilities they cannot handle onto their wives.

Lu Lingyun remained silent, and Cheng Yunshuo continued, "How can you let Ah Ruo's character go unchecked! She's not a little girl anymore."

Lu Lingyun looked calmly at Cheng Yunshuo and said only one sentence, "Young Master, what position does A'Ruo hold in our household?"

Lu Lingyun's words struck at the heart of the matter.

What exactly is her status?

What exactly is her relationship with me?

Why should I be held responsible for her actions?

Cheng Yunshuo was taken aback by Lu Lingyun's question. He thought for a moment and said, "A'Ruo is a guest."

"Since she is a guest, on what grounds can I discipline her?" Lu Lingyun directly questioned Cheng Yunshuo.

Cheng Yunshuo was momentarily speechless. "Lingyun, you know A'Ruo's background is tragic. She has no mother to guide her. I thought you could take charge of her upbringing."

"Is her suffering due to us? I am neither her mother nor an elder of hers, so what right do I have to guide her? Young Master, with just a word, you're imposing a great responsibility on me, but what authority do I have over her? What qualifications do I have?"

"Just because of the title of 'Master’s wife'? Then I must ask you, as her teacher, what have you taught her? What kind of teacher are you? Was there any witness to her discipleship? Do her parents or outsiders acknowledge you as her teacher?"

Cheng Yunshuo: "......"

He was left speechless, unable to retort. His master-disciple relationship with Du Ruo was purely verbal. In those days, because he was living at Du Ruo's family home, the two Du brothers were very kind and respectful toward him. He found Du Ruo likable and, to save face, reluctantly accepted the role of master.

It wasn’t a matter of formal recognition; over time, he was simply known as 'Master.' Gradually, he took on more responsibility for Du Ruo. Primarily out of a sense of face, he took on the responsibility of looking after her.

Lu Lingyun gave a cold scoff. Men are all the same. They agree to things for the sake of face but leave the work to others.

She wasn’t going to indulge him!

Cheng Yunshuo looked at Lu Lingyun, and after a long pause, his face flushed, he said, "Lingyun, please don’t be angry."