Chapter 155: Returning Home
Chapter 155: Returning Home
After Meng Qianqian left, Shangguan Ling sneaked into the room and sat down on a stool. He picked up the medicine bottle from the table and sighed, "Madame is being overly cautious... Well, I wasted a needle on myself."
Lu Yuan remained silent.
Shangguan Ling clicked his tongue and said, "It hasn't been that long, and Madame has already managed to injure the Grand Governor. What progress, a thousand miles a day!"
"Are you done?" Lu Yuan asked.
"Yes," Shangguan Ling replied as he took out a secret letter from his pocket. "It just arrived."
Lu Yuan opened the letter, and there were only four short words: "Tai Bai returns to the dynasty."
After freshening up, Meng Qianqian realized that it was already late.
She left a lamp lit and lay quietly on the bridal bed.
She wasn't afraid of the dark; she simply didn't like the night.
Earlier, she had specifically gone to deliver the antidote to Lu Yuan, and the conversation that followed was simply small talk. The question about whether the Crown Prince was killed by Lu Yuan was a sudden thought.
She never expected that it would kill the mood so thoroughly.
Tonight wasn't the first time Lu Yuan had reminded her of the dangers of being by his side.
"Being associated with me is an extremely dangerous thing. Before getting involved with me, it's best to think clearly about whether you can bear this risk."
That was what he had said to her before he left for the border.
He was so contradictory.
On one hand, he made a deal with her, and on the other, he constantly reminded her not to be too aligned with him.
However, upon further reflection, she realized that she didn't truly understand Lu Yuan.
In fact, all of Jingcheng didn't know much about him.
His background was still a mystery, and he had never mentioned his family to anyone outside. Everyone assumed he was an orphan with no parents.
Ten winters ago, the Crown Prince had saved a young Lu Yuan, who was nearly frozen to death by the roadside. He brought him back to the Crown Prince's mansion and, discovering his talent, kept him as an aide in the mansion.
The Crown Prince was the blood brother of Princess Wanping, which also explained how she had come to know Lu Yuan.
Relying on the Crown Prince's influence, Lu Yuan entered the political arena. Despite having no official titles or honors, he squeezed out the jinshi scholars who had passed the imperial examinations and gradually became prominent in the political scene, climbing his way up to a high position.
People had expected him to assist the Crown Prince in his bid for the throne, creating a beautiful tale of lord and vassal. Who would have thought that he would kill the Crown Prince, force the Grand Emperor to abdicate, and install the ninth prince, Zongzheng Xi, who was not yet ten years old, as a puppet emperor?
These were the rumors circulating in Jingcheng about him.
But were the rumors necessarily true?
First of all, his background was ridiculously wrong. He wasn't an orphan.
So, did he really kill the Crown Prince? Was it him who forced the Grand Emperor to abdicate? Did he put the nine-year-old Zongzheng Xi on the throne out of his own ambition, or because Zongzheng Xi was his cousin?
It was a pity that Grandma had left for Miaojiang the day before their wedding; otherwise, she could have indirectly inquired about some of these matters.
"Sister."
Tan'er's voice, sounding drowsy, came from outside the door. "I want to come in."
Meng Qianqian stopped her train of thought and softly said, "Come in."
Tan'er pushed open the door, hugging her pillow as she climbed onto Meng Qianqian's bed. "I want to sleep with Sister tonight."
Meng Qianqian smiled and asked, "Do you want to sleep on the inside or the outside?"
"Inside," Tan'er replied.
Tan'er crawled over her and pulled open the blanket before snuggling into Meng Qianqian's embrace and hugging her tightly.
Meng Qianqian gently stroked her head and asked, "Do you miss home?"
In a drowsy voice, Tan'er mumbled, "I miss Mother."
Meng Qianqian whispered, "Do you want to go back?"
Tan'er yawned and said, "Can't go back..."
Meng Qianqian had asked about Tan'er's background before, but Tan'er never wanted to talk about it.
What she didn't tell Tan'er was that from the first moment she saw her, she felt a sense of destiny on this child.
"Sister, I called out to you a few times before you responded. What were you thinking about?" Tan'er asked.
Meng Qianqian gently rubbed her head and said, "I was thinking about Lu Yuan."
Outside the door, Lu Yuan's footsteps paused slightly.
Tan'er snuggled closer to Meng Qianqian and, after a yawn, asked, "What were you thinking about him for?"
Meng Qianqian whispered, "I was thinking about what kind of person he is."
Tan'er hugged Meng Qianqian tightly and mumbled sleepily, "Mother said that if you want to continue living with a man, you shouldn't understand him too well."
"Continue living..." Meng Qianqian gazed at the red canopy above and said calmly, "...I don't even know if I have the fate to continue living with him."
Lu Yuan always said that he was dangerous, but wasn't the path she was walking on dangerous as well?
Tan'er's voice was soft, as if she were sleep-talking, "If you have the fate, do you want to continue living with him?"
Lu Yuan stood quietly in the corridor. Without waiting for an answer, he turned and left decisively.
---
The next day was the day for the new bride to return home three days after the wedding. Although she couldn't return to the Meng family in Youzhou, she had to pay a visit to Fengshui Hutong.
Li Mama had prepared the return gifts early in the morning, but even though Cen Guan had entrusted the matter to her, Li Mama didn't dare to take charge of the accountant's duties so quickly.
She took the list to Cen Guan for review.
As expected, Cen Guan's face turned somewhat solemn as he said, "These return gifts... they're not appropriate, are they?"
Li Mama was taken aback. "Ah, yes, there are indeed quite a lot of them. Then I'll follow your arrangements, Cen Guan."
Cen Guan waved his hand and doubled the amount of return gifts.
Li Mama was stunned.
Lu Yuan left early in the morning to attend the early morning court session. By the time he returned to the mansion after the court session, Meng Qianqian had just finished breakfast with Baoshi and the Old Dowager.
Meng Qianqian was surprised to see him, "You're not reviewing memorials today?"
Lu Yuan replied, "I'll do it when I get back."
Meng Qianqian glanced at the abundance of return gifts, thinking that he couldn't accompany her on the visit to her family, so he had specially instructed Cen Guan to prepare so many gifts.
It seemed that today was also the day the Lu family had chosen to present the betrothal gifts to the mansion of the Duke of Anyuan.
The two parties met on the road.
Without a comparison, they would never have known, but the betrothal gifts from the Lu family were far less grand than Lu Yuan's return gifts.
The two elders from the Lu family had embarrassed looks on their faces, wishing they could hide. If they had known this would happen, they wouldn't have agreed to help with this task.
Meng Qianqian and Lu Yuan didn't even spare the Lu family members a glance.
Upon arriving at Fengshui Hutong, Baozhu called out to her grandfather and great-grandfather, then went next door to call for her great-grandmother before going off to find Da Fotou.
Tan'er and Hanxia followed closely behind her.
Meng Qianqian and Lu Yuan served tea to Meng Tianlan and Qi Shugong as a sign of respect for their elders.
The two elders happily accepted the tea.
Suddenly, Meng Tianlan's expression turned serious, "Third niece, I have something to tell you and your husband."
"Please speak, Uncle," Meng Qianqian said.
Meng Tianlan said, "Your seventh uncle and I plan to return to Youzhou."
Meng Qianqian was taken aback, "So soon? I thought you would stay for a few more days before leaving. And it was only the seventh uncle who was returning, wasn't it, Third Uncle? You decided to stay in the capital, aren't you afraid that Grandfather will beat you to death?"
Meng Tianlan cleared his throat awkwardly, "Ahem, in front of my nephew-in-law, at least give me some face."
Meng Qianqian thought about it and said, "If you don't leave, I'll make sure you have all the face you need."
Meng Tianlan sighed, "If I don't leave now, I really will be beaten to death by your grandfather."
The old master was extremely fierce.
Meng Qianqian didn't try to stop Meng Tianlan and the seventh uncle from leaving.
What she was about to do would be very dangerous, and it would be safer for them to return to Youzhou than to stay in the capital.
At this moment, she felt like she understood Lu Yuan a little better.
After finishing their meal, Meng Tianlan and the seventh uncle set off on their journey, with Lu Yuan arranging for Jin Yiwei to escort them along the way.
Leibo wasn't home today, and according to Feng Po Po, he hadn't returned for quite a few days.
Ji Li hadn't shown up either, and no one knew where he had gone.
Feng Po Po said guiltily, "I'm not a fan of crowds, so I didn't attend your wedding, but I'll give you a gift to make up for it."
Meng Qianqian's eyebrows furrowed, "It's not... another skull, is it?"
"What are you thinking? Where would I get so many good things for you?"
Feng Po Po said as she took out a black iron box from the cabinet, "These are the hand bones of my late husband. I wouldn't give them to anyone else."
Meng Qianqian, who didn't want them, was speechless.
Meng Qianqian and Lu Yuan stayed at Fengshui Hutong until evening before returning to the mansion.
As soon as they got off the carriage, a well-dressed nursemaid with a pleasant smile greeted them, "Young Lady! Son-in-law!"
"Who are you?" Meng Qianqian asked, as she didn't recognize the nursemaid, yet this woman was calling her 'Young Lady' and addressing Lu Yuan as 'Son-in-law'.
The nursemaid smiled and said, "This old servant is Lu, from the Marquis of Anyuan's mansion!"
Just as she had thought—
Meng Qianqian's gaze shifted past her and towards the carriage parked by the road, "You have the wrong person, I am not the eldest young lady of the Marquis of Anyuan."
After saying that, she carried the sleeping Baoshi and walked up the steps.
Seeing this, Lu Yuan also ignored the nursemaid surnamed Lu and followed his wife and child.
Nursemaid Lu panicked, "Hey—Young Lady! Don't go—Son-in—"
After all, Lu Yuan's reputation was less than stellar, and she didn't dare to shout out 'Son-in-law' a second time.
Just as they were about to enter the mansion, she rushed up the steps, but was stopped by the two gatekeepers.
She paced back and forth anxiously, glancing at the carriage standing silently in the night.
Finally, there was movement inside the carriage.
A noblewoman dressed in fine clothes lifted the curtain and stepped out, frowning as she called out to Meng Qianqian's back, "Must you treat me like this?"
It was Lady Yu.
Meng Qianqian paused in her steps.
Lu Yuan looked at her, "Do you want me to chase her away?"
Meng Qianqian heard the whispers of the onlookers, and the commotion had attracted the attention of passersby, who had gathered to watch the spectacle.
In the past, the common folk wouldn't have dared to do so, but as Lu Yuan's reputation improved, people no longer saw him as a terrifying monster.
It would be easy to chase Lady Yu away, but if it damaged Lu Yuan's hard-earned reputation, it would be a loss.
Meng Qianqian said to Lu Yuan, "No need, I'll handle it."
Meng Qianqian handed Baoshi to Hanxia.
"Miss," Hanxia said worriedly.
Meng Qianqian assured her, "It's fine, you all go in first."
Lu Yuan went inside.
He was a decisive man who never hesitated in his actions.
Hanxia thought for a moment, then followed her master inside.
Only Tan'er remained, sitting on the doorstep, clutching a sugar-coated hawthorn stick that they had bought on the way, and glaring at the people from the Marquis of Anyuan's mansion.
Meng Qianqian walked down the steps and stood before Lady Yu, her expression cold and distant as she asked, "Lady Yu, why are you here so late at night? What business do you have with me?"
A short, sweet chapter, gaga
(End of Chapter)
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