Chapter 27

Chapter 27

Qin Garden.

Lu Jingrong lay back on the soft couch, eyes closed, his breathing still somewhat labored and shallow, a stark contrast to his vibrant presence at Qinian Hall earlier that day.

The physician checked his pulse, and examined his head, chest, and other areas, then stroked his beard thoughtfully before declaring, "The Marquis suffered from a sudden surge of anger, causing liver fire to attack the lungs. The stagnation of heart qi is due to excessive liver fire. Fortunately, it is not too severe at the moment, but if it worsens, it could lead to a sudden loss of breath."

"The Marquis should maintain a calm mindset, reduce alcohol consumption, avoid overthinking, and refrain from anger even when faced with frustrations. When idle, he can regularly press the Danzhong acupoint. I will also prescribe some remedies to help regulate his qi. There should be no major issues."

Old Doctor Cao from Jishi Hall was a familiar and trusted figure to the Lu family. His medical skills were exceptional, and the Lus often sought his advice for any ailment.

After the diagnosis, everyone breathed a collective sigh of relief.

Once the consultation was over, Lu Suian handed the prescription to Chang Li to have it filled and to escort Old Doctor Cao out. As they reached the entrance, they were met with the sight of a frail, slender figure kneeling outside the main hall.

The August night had already turned chilly.

In the deep night, heavy with dew, the figure wore thin clothing, shivering and swaying as if on the verge of collapsing at any moment.

Seeing Lu Suian emerge, she mustered some energy and urgently asked, "Brother, Father... is Father alright?"

Her voice was so weak it seemed it could be carried away by the wind.

Old Doctor Cao and Chang Li, who were accompanying him, could barely make out what she said, only noticing her pale, almost transparent lips moving slightly.

She seemed to merge with the night, as if becoming transparent herself.

Lu Suian looked calmly at his adopted sister in the distance. Since she was brought back to the Lu family at the age of five, his father Lu Jingrong and mother Xiao Shi had made it clear to him that she was the child from Lady Shen’s womb, his future wife.

Xiao Shi had tried to foster a bond between them from a young age. However, he was naturally aloof and not particularly close to anyone. Still, compared to others, he had accepted her occasional offerings of soup, tacitly agreeing to his parents' arrangements.

He had no objections to the marriage. Whoever his wife would be was fine. According to his parents' plans, once she came of age, they would naturally be married and become husband and wife.

This was also a specific instruction left by his late grandfather.

Unexpectedly, just a few days before her coming-of-age ceremony, the court underwent a major upheaval. The Huo family fell from power, and the Crown Prince, who had been confined to the imperial mausoleum, was brought back to the capital by officials to ascend the throne. The first thing the new emperor did after taking the throne was to clear the Shen family’s name. Only then did they learn that the last descendant of the Shen family still existed and had been living among the common people. They realized that the girl they had raised for fifteen years was merely a substitute due to an unexpected mix-up.

It turned out she was not the girl from Lady Shen’s womb after all.

In just half a year, he had married the wife he was supposed to marry, while she—

In his memory, she was a kind and delicate woman, the cherished daughter raised by his mother Xiao Shi. Yet, after half a year—

Lu Suian looked indifferently at Lu Anran in the distance.

Lu Anran also gazed intently at Lu Suian. The indifference in his eyes made her heart tighten. Soon, she shook her head desperately, looking weak and panicked as she said, "It wasn’t intentional, Brother. Ran'er... Ran'er truly didn’t mean to..."

"I had no intention of harming Sister-in-law, nor any desire to harm the Lu family. If I did... may Ran'er be struck by lightning and die a terrible death."

Lu Anran burst into tears, crying like a helpless child.

As if overwhelmed by emotion, she sobbed and gasped for breath, seeming on the verge of collapsing again.

Chi Yu, standing nearby, immediately stepped forward to support her, saying anxiously, "Miss—"

But Lu Anran gritted her teeth and pushed her away, stubbornly straightening her posture as she knelt.

Seeing this, Zhu Yu, who was kneeling a step behind, crawled over and grabbed the hem of Lu Suian’s robe, pleading, "Young Master, please plead for Miss. She truly had no idea. It was all my fault. When that person was still around, the Cold Fragrance Pill was popular, and all the women in the capital bought and used it. Miss also loved that fragrance and purchased quite a few. After that incident, Miss immediately ordered us servants to destroy them, and we did. I don’t know how that Cold Fragrance Pill suddenly reappeared, mixed in with other fragrance pills. The pills look quite similar, and I didn’t notice, so I placed the Cold Fragrance Pill into the perfume ball."

"It was me, all my fault. Miss truly had no idea, Young Master. You watched her grow up. Don’t you know what kind of person she is?"

Zhu Yu pleaded tearfully.

But Lu Suian’s expression remained unchanged. Soon, his cold, sharp gaze swept over the hem of his robe, causing Zhu Yu to shrink back in fear and release her grip.

The next moment, Lu Suian turned and walked back without a word. However, as he stepped through the doorway, he paused briefly and finally said, "Let Doctor Cao examine her."

With that, Lu Suian entered the main hall with his hands behind his back.

Hearing these words, the figure kneeling in the courtyard relaxed slightly, as if relieved. Tears welled up in her eyes moments later.

In the side room of the main hall, Fang Shi, Xiao Fang Shi, and Lu Jingxing were still waiting outside. Fang Shi had her eyes closed, seemingly drowsy but lost in thought, unusually quiet for once. Fang Siyan appeared restless and anxious, while Lu Jingxing was unusually agitated, pacing the room but not daring to enter and inquire.

When Lu Suian entered, Fang Shi opened her eyes and snorted, finally snapping out of her daze. She glared at him disdainfully and said, "What a fine wife you’ve married. She’s only been here a short while, and she’s already thrown the entire household into chaos."

Fang Siyan, feeling guilty and fearful, didn’t dare to look at her brother-in-law.

Only Lu Jingxing immediately approached, nervously and ingratiatingly asking, "Elder Brother, how is Father—"

But before he could finish, his elder brother Lu Suian shot him a cold, sharp glance. The look was unexpectedly severe, like a sharp, poisonous arrow piercing his brow, or the icy chill of winter, carrying a bone-deep coldness. Even Lu Jingxing, who was usually fearless, felt a chill run down his spine under that gaze.

"Tell that unfilial son to get in here!"

At that moment, an angry voice filled with restrained fury came from the inner room. Though no name was mentioned, everyone knew who "that unfilial son" referred to.

Lu Jingxing’s heart trembled. Moments later, he felt both wronged and fearful, thinking, "What does this have to do with me?"

Why were both his father and elder brother directing their anger at him?

Lu Jingxing was usually unafraid of his parents, but at this moment, he dared not voice his grievances.

Lu Suian, his face stern, didn’t even glance at him as he strode into the inner room.

Seeing this, Lu Jingxing immediately shot a glare at his wife Fang Siyan, as if saying, "This is all your doing," before reluctantly following Lu Suian into the inner room.

Upon entering, he saw Lu Jingrong lying on the soft couch with a towel on his forehead, his outer robe removed. His face was pale and grim, and in an instant, he seemed to have aged several years.

Xiao Shi was by his side, massaging his chest to help him breathe.

As soon as Lu Jingxing stepped inside, Lu Jingrong hurled a teacup at him, angrily shouting, "Useless fool! You achieve nothing outside and manage nothing at home. This household will be ruined by you sooner or later!"

"I had hoped that after marrying, you would settle down and bring a virtuous wife into the family. But you? You’ve only become more worthless. What kind of life is this? There’s not a single day of peace in this household. A good-for-nothing like you has no business marrying or having children. If you marry, you’ll only bring harm to others. Any child you have will be raised without guidance—"

Lu Jingrong berated his second son Lu Jingxing mercilessly.

Lu Jingxing, stiff-necked and furious, didn’t dare to retort. He didn’t know what he had done to deserve such scolding from his father. Clearly, the accusations made by his sister-in-law today had nothing to do with him.

He didn’t understand why, but Xiao Fang Shi in the outer room knew exactly why.

Every word of the furious scolding pierced through the door curtain and reached her ears clearly.

Phrases like "manage nothing at home," "virtuous wife," and "raised without guidance"—though seemingly directed at her husband, Fang Siyan knew every word was a veiled criticism of her as a wife and daughter-in-law.

It was only due to the propriety between father-in-law and daughter-in-law that he couldn’t scold her directly, so he resorted to indirect accusations.

It turned out that shortly after the Marquis had been overcome with anger earlier, he summoned Fang Shi, Xiao Fang Shi, and the maids who had accompanied Lu Anran into the palace that day into his room for interrogation. No one knew what had transpired inside. Fang Siyan had initially held onto a sliver of hope that the maids would remain tight-lipped.

But now, with the scolding from her father-in-law, how could Fang Siyan not realize that her wishful thinking had likely come to nothing? Everything that had happened in the palace that day must have been laid bare.

As the cherished legitimate daughter of the Fang family, raised with utmost care and never subjected to harsh treatment, she had never been so openly criticized and shamed. Having been married into the Lu family for less than three months, she was already so despised by her father-in-law that her eyes reddened, and tears of shame and anger streamed down her face.

Xiao Fang Shi, scolded into weeping with grievance, was not as unafraid of consequences as her aunt, Fang Shi. Even if it was she who had damaged that ruined embroidery, so what? Could Lu Jingrong really divorce her over such a trivial matter?

Fang Shi sneered coldly, raising her voice defiantly: "With such full energy, I’d say he’s fit enough to keep going for decades. Since he’s fine, he should rest properly and not work himself into another fit!"

With that, she shot a glance at her niece: "Why are you still here, getting in the way? Their eyes are only on the daughter-in-law who stole the spotlight—who would remember you?"

Then, with an arrogant flick of her sleeve, Fang Shi swept out.

Fang Shi could leave as she pleased, but Xiao Fang Shi dared not follow suit. She could only sit there, filled with resentment, forced to listen to her father-in-law’s accusations.

Unexpectedly, just as Fang Shi reached the doorway, a final verdict was announced from inside: "Sell off all the maids who accompanied them into the palace today—those who aided the wrongdoing."

In the end, Lu Jingrong took charge, deciding to sell all the maids who had entered the palace with Fang Shi, Fang Siyan, and Lu Anran, thus settling the matter of the ruined embroidery.

When Fang Shi heard that Lu Jingrong intended to sell off her people over a mere piece of worthless embroidery, wasn’t it a direct slap in the face?

Furious, she turned around and made to charge into the inner room.

But Lu Mama, standing beside her, quick-eyed and swift-handed, intercepted her, blinking repeatedly and signaling with her eyes: "Miss, the Marquis is in a rage right now. You must not confront him!"

Fang Shi was still seething with anger, her chest tight with suppressed fury, but when she glanced outside and saw the kneeling figure, she gritted her teeth and held back. Her face darkened as she said, "I will remember this humiliation."

With that, she stormed off.

Back in the inner room, after announcing the verdict, Lu Jingrong shot a fierce glare at Lu Jingxing and roared, "What are you still standing here for? Do you want a beating too? Get out of my sight!"

Under Lu Jingrong’s thunderous scolding, Lu Jingxing was so scared out of his wits that he scrambled to his feet and fled in a panic, vanishing without a trace.

With Lu Jingxing gone, the room fell into complete silence.

Lu Jingrong’s anger flared up again, his temples throbbing violently. Soon, the veins on his forehead bulged, refusing to subside—a clear sign of his extreme fury.

Seeing this, Xiao Shi shot him a sidelong glance and scolded, "I told you not to get angry, not to get angry. Have you already forgotten Old Cao’s advice? He hasn't even left yet—shall we trouble him to come back again?"

Xiao Shi glared at Lu Jingrong, who glared back and retorted, "Men are talking - what business is it of yours to interrupt?"

Lu Jingrong had always been gentle and considerate with his wife, Xiao Shi, but today he raised his voice unusually.

Xiao Shi was taken aback. After a moment, she tossed the wrung-out towel back into the silver basin and said, "Indeed, what right do I have to speak? If you want to be angry, be angry. If you want to rage, rage. If you choke on your anger, what does it have to do with me?"

With that, she turned away, pretending to smooth her hair while secretly wiping away tears. After a long while, she lifted her head and said, "In the end, it’s my fault for failing to manage the household properly, leading to all these troubles. If you truly wish to punish someone, you should punish me, the lady of the house!"

Xiao Shi, rarely showing such defiance, traded barbs with Lu Jingrong.

Seeing this, Lu Jingrong immediately regretted taking his anger out on his innocent wife. But, unwilling to lose face in front of his eldest son, he stubbornly held his ground. He glanced around and finally settled his gaze on his silent eldest son, sighing, "As for Ran Jieer—"

Before he could finish, Xiao Shi suddenly stood up, picked up the silver basin, and walked into the bathing room behind them. It was unclear whether she was still resentful toward Lu Jingrong or simply couldn't bear to witness what was to come.

After all, the matter involving Fang Shi and her daughter-in-law, Xiao Fang Shi, was not particularly serious—at most, it was just petty squabbles and rivalry among the women of the inner household, with no real harm to the family’s interests.

The real severity lay in what was yet to come—

At that moment, the adopted daughter, Lu Anran, was still kneeling in the courtyard.

Although she categorically denied it and there were maidservants providing testimony with reasonable accounts, the maids were, after all, her people. Moreover, she had... a motive to harm the eldest daughter-in-law.

Even though everyone, including Lu Jingrong, was unwilling to believe that the foster daughter could harbor such intentions,

the fact remained that the deed was already done.

She only knew that the eldest daughter-in-law had usurped her position,

but did not realize that without the eldest daughter-in-law, there would have been no place for her in the first place!

They had simply returned to their rightful places.

If she harbored resentment over this, Lu Jingrong would not tolerate it—especially when it jeopardized the entire Lu family!

This was something Lu Jingrong absolutely could not allow!

Whether intentional or not, today’s events had breached Lu Jingrong’s limits.

If only... if only he had sent her away decisively back then.

With these thoughts, Lu Jingrong looked up at his eldest son and said, “This matter concerns Lady Shen and is inescapably tied to you as well. How to handle it is yours to decide.”

After glancing in Lady Xiao’s direction and pondering for a long while, Lu Jingrong passed the difficult decision to his eldest son like passing the buck.

At that moment, Lu Suian was seated upright on a chair by the window, half of his face hidden in shadow, betraying no emotion or expression. He pursed his lips and remained silent for a long time, as if in deep thought until the night deepened. Then, he finally spoke calmly, “Confine her for three months. Within these three months, Mother will arrange a marriage for her—”

Here, Lu Suian’s tone paused briefly before rising to his feet and adding three final words: “Marry her off to a distant place!”

Upon hearing this, the handkerchief in Lady Xiao’s hand fell to the ground with a faint thud.

Both Lady Xiao and Lu Jingrong turned to stare at their eldest son in disbelief, their shock unmistakable.

Marry off to a distant place?

Within three months?

But by then, the door curtain had already fallen, and the tall figure had long since departed. The couple had no time to discern their son’s expression, leaving them somewhat dazed, as if what had just transpired were merely an illusion.

In the courtyard, Lu Anran’s body swayed like a falling leaf before she collapsed weakly to the ground.

After Lu Suian stepped out, she dug her hands into the gravel on the ground with such force that her palms scraped against the earth until they bled. Her eyes fixed fiercely on the unyielding figure at the doorway, she suddenly let out a laugh—a laugh accompanied by two streams of clear tears.

“Hah, Ziyou, your heart is so cruel.”

Hah, marry off to a distant place?

Within three months?

So eager to send her away? To discard her like a dirty rag.

Just like half a year ago.

The adoration in her eyes gradually gave way to threads of resentment and hatred.

Author's Note:

Thank you all very much for your support. I will continue to work hard!