Chapter 33 Jealousy: "Wait for Master to come back."

Lu Xiuyi was momentarily dazed, then lowered his head and laughed angrily.

But in just half a breath, he suddenly stepped forward, raised his head and grabbed her neck, his rough fingertips slowly stroking her chin, his expression like a demon emerging from a damp and dark hell: "Meng Yu, don't push your luck. While I can still talk to you properly, you'd better agree to this."

Upon hearing this, Meng Yu slightly raised the corners of her lips, calmly meeting his dangerous gaze. She grabbed his wrist and twisted it forcefully, her eyes filled with icy coldness as she slowly raised her hand: "You shameless person, you're already engaged to my sister, yet you still try to seduce me? Disgusting."

Yesterday, Chu Ze quickly found a soldier who knew sign language. Lu Xiuyi learned quickly, and after only one night, he understood several of Meng Yu's gestures. Through the sign language of "shameless", "sister", "marriage contract" and "flirting", he roughly guessed what she was saying.

Thinking of this, the overwhelming anger that had been surging in his heart instantly dissipated. Lu Xiuyi turned over and lay down next to her, resting his head on his hands. He glanced at the plain-colored canopy ceiling in the dim candlelight before slowly closing his eyes.

"Meng Yu, stop being stubborn. I know you're jealous." The whole room was filled with her unique fragrance. Lu Xiuyi took a deep breath and felt completely relaxed.

Meng Yu: "..."

Meng Yu looked down at her hands with a mixture of amusement and surprise, wondering if she had misread the sign language, which was why Lu Xiuyi had acted so shamelessly.

But she clearly remembered that he couldn't understand sign language, so why did he think she was jealous? Then Meng Yu thought again about his expression just now; it seemed he understood…

He still didn't get angry when she hit him a second time. Meng Yu stared at his face, growing bolder. Seeing him close his eyes and lie down, taking up half of her bed, she impatiently kicked his waist.

To everyone's surprise, this shameless man didn't move an inch. He even rolled over and muttered, "Yu'er, stop fooling around. I'm sleepy and want to take a nap."

Meng Yu clicked her tongue in anger, wanting to kick him hard, but she was afraid of making too much noise and waking up Aunt Chen and Huaiyin. So she could only lift him over and try to pull him up with all her might.

Unfortunately, he was very heavy, and no matter how hard she tried, he remained motionless on the bed.

Seeing this, Meng Yu was so angry that he laughed, but he couldn't do anything about it and could only glare at him coldly.

After a while, Meng Yu's patience was about to run out. Just as she was wondering how to get rid of this pest, she suddenly noticed a shuttlecock on the small table at the foot of the bed. This shuttlecock was originally made by Huai Yin out of boredom, by collecting some chicken feathers.

She immediately had an idea, bent down and plucked a chicken feather.

Perhaps due to the continuous discipline of the troops in the Western Camp and the banquets hosted by Prince Rui, Lu Xiuyi fell into a deep sleep after lying down at Meng Yu's place for a short while.

Suddenly, Lu Xiuyi felt an itch in his nasal cavity, but before he could open his eyes, he sneezed loudly, the force of which completely woke him up from his deep sleep.

Lu Xiuyi propped himself up on his arms and saw Meng Yu still huddled in the corner. He deliberately yawned and asked, feigning ignorance, "Why isn't Yu'er asleep so late at night?"

He opened his sleepy eyes, looking tired as if he had just woken up, and looked at her with feigned innocence.

Meng Yu was absolutely furious at his expression. She grabbed a pillow from the side and threw it at him, yelling, "Get out!"

Silence fell as the words were spoken.

It poses no threat whatsoever.

Meng Yu felt a lump of air stuck in her throat, and her face turned red from holding it in.

Understanding the word she uttered, Lu Xiuyi's mood improved even more. In the past, she had been the one who made him so angry that he would break down in a rage. Now that he saw her experiencing the same thing, he felt all his fatigue vanish instantly.

Lu Xiuyi straightened his wrinkled clothes, got up from the bed, and said as if he had taken pity on him, "Alright, I won't tease you anymore. It's late, you should rest well. Don't tire yourself out when you're embroidering that mandarin duck pillow, wait for me to come back."

Meng Yu gestured and quickly asked, "Where are you going?"

Seemingly surprised that Meng Yu would take the initiative to ask about his schedule, Lu Xiuyi paused, a smile unconsciously spreading across his lips. He looked her up and down, leaned closer, and said leisurely, "What? Is Yu'er worried about your master?"

He was indeed able to understand her sign language.

Meng Yu concealed her surprise, glanced at him sideways, and raised her hands in sync with her lips: "You're just being presumptuous."

Lu Xiuyi understood the shape of her lips, but he wasn't angry. He smiled faintly and couldn't help but reach out and pinch her cheek: "Don't have any funny ideas. You know that someone is watching your every move. Don't think you can escape again."

He spoke of this dirty act of sending people to monitor her with such righteous indignation. Although Meng Yu knew that this man's skin was thicker than a city wall, she still blushed with anger when she saw his expression.

She was about to retaliate when Lu Xiuyi had already stood up and quickly walked to the door. As he unlatched the door, he turned back to warn her, "I'm going to Yuezhou with Prince Yu to manage the floods. Meng Yu, remember what I said, don't even think about escaping."

The smile on his face had long since faded, and the cold light in his eyes seemed to want to seize her soul. Meng Yu gripped the corner of the blanket tightly, her gaze fixed on the doorway, as if trying to stare a hole through the departing figure.

It wasn't until the cool night breeze swept in, reminding her that the person had already gone far away, that she came back to her senses.

He clearly didn't want to let her go, yet he still proposed marriage to Meng Yin.

Meng Yu really couldn't figure out what he was trying to do.

This situation is the most terrifying. It's like knowing there's a venomous snake lurking at your inevitable crossroads, and you know it will attack. But when you spot it, and the snake and you stare at each other, it remains motionless. If you run, it will be faster than you. Unfortunately, at this moment, there are only two paths in front of you: going forward means certain death, and retreating means falling into an abyss.

Faced with this situation, the fear and shock she felt were beyond words.

Because of Lu Xiuyi's sudden visit, Meng Yu was completely unable to sleep. Although her eyes were closed, a thousand thoughts rushed in, like an invisible net that made it hard for her to breathe.

She finally fell asleep just as night was about to end, but only a few hours later, the sky brightened and the first rays of dawn peeked in. Then, she could faintly hear the sounds of footsteps and clattering outside.

Meng Yu's thoughts gradually cleared.

The Emperor bestowed a marriage upon him, and he chose Meng Yin. This was already common knowledge. Even if he wanted to go back on his word, what could he do?

No matter what tricks he plays, as long as she refuses to marry, there's nothing he can do about it. If things get even worse, the worst that can happen is death. Anyway, she's already died once; maybe she can even travel back to her past life if she has to go through another one.

With a "what's the use" attitude, Meng Yu's mood finally improved, so she tidied up and started having breakfast.

***

Since he was to set off for Yuezhou today, Lu Xiuyi quickly packed his things and then went to tell Zhuang Mama about it.

As soon as she entered, she bumped into Ying Congxin coming out with red eyes. Upon seeing him, she merely curtsied slightly before running away with her head down.

Lu Xiuyi was not one to care about formalities, so even though she was being rude, he didn't bother to argue with her and simply walked into the inner room.

“Mother, it’s not enough to have just two people serving you. I’ve already told someone to go and buy a few more maids,” Lu Xiuyi said loudly as he went inside.

While Zhuang's mother was worrying about Ying Congxin's matter, she suddenly heard Lu Xiuyi's voice and quickly got up to greet him with a smile: "Brother Yi, weren't you supposed to be going to Yuezhou today? Why are you here at this time?"

Diexue served tea, and Lu Xiuyi helped Zhuang's mother sit down: "We'll be setting off soon, but we still have some time, so I came to see you, Mother."

Remembering what Lu Xiuyi had just said, Madam Zhuang smiled and said, "I'm practically halfway to the grave, how can I need several people to take care of me? Besides, Congxin and Diexue have done an excellent job, so Yi-ge'er doesn't need to spend that money."

Lu Xiuyi said gently, "It's just buying a few maids, how much money could it cost? Mother doesn't need to worry about this. Besides, I'm getting married soon, and when the mistress enters the mansion, it wouldn't look right to have just a few people."

As soon as he mentioned marriage, Madam Zhuang beamed with joy and immediately changed the subject: "What Yi-ge'er said is absolutely right. If it were just an old woman like me, that would be fine, but I've heard that the Meng family girl is a good one. Yi-ge'er must not wrong her."

Upon hearing Madam Zhuang mention the Meng family's daughter, Lu Xiuyi immediately pictured Meng Yu's charming appearance yesterday, her face flushed red—truly captivating.

He smiled leisurely, as if in a very good mood, and said, "She is indeed a good person, and I will certainly not wrong her."

Mrs. Zhuang rarely saw him smile so happily. After hesitating for a moment, she couldn't help but ask, "Now that Yi-ge'er is getting married, have you thought about taking in another person to take care of you?"

Lu Xiuyi frowned slightly, roughly guessing who she was referring to, and couldn't help but feel a little disgusted, but on the surface he remained calm: "What do you mean by that, Mother?"

Madam Zhuang smiled faintly: "Congxin is a clever child, thoughtful and good-looking. If Yi-ge'er wants to take a concubine, why not bring her into the room as well?"

Just as I expected.

“Mother, my heart for the Meng family girl is as firm as a rock, unwavering in this life, and I have absolutely no intention of taking a concubine.” His tone was gentle, yet contained a hint of stubbornness that brooked no argument, forcefully silencing the words that were about to come out of Zhuang’s mouth.

It was precisely because of this that Mrs. Zhuang couldn't help but feel a bit curious about the Miss Meng, whom she had never met before.

After saying this, Lu Xiuyi stood up: "It's getting late, Mother, please rest well. If there's anything you need, just tell someone to do it. You don't need to do it yourself. I'll be leaving now."

Madam Zhuang also rose and saw him to the door. She watched him leave the courtyard, then frowned and sighed, “Die Xue, you heard what I just heard. It’s not that I don’t care about what’s best for you, but ultimately, I’m not the General’s biological grandmother. Such an important matter as the General’s marriage and taking a concubine isn’t something I can decide with just a few words. Besides, given the General’s temperament, even if Princess Minghua were alive, if he didn’t want it, she might not be able to persuade him otherwise. Just tell her exactly what the General and I said, and tell her to behave herself and stop having such inappropriate thoughts.”

Diexue sighed silently and then nodded in agreement.

***

Meng Yu and Aunt Shen arrived at Zhenhuazhai early in the morning to pay their respects. They found that Madam Yuan had shed her melancholy and her face was filled with undisguised joy.

“Third sister, fourth sister will be getting married soon. We’d like to go to Lin’an Temple today to pray for her, hoping that she and her husband will be a harmonious and loving couple,” Meng Shuang glanced at Meng Yin and saw that she had lowered her head slightly and her face was flushed, as if she was a little embarrassed. “Why don’t you and third sister come with us?”

Upon hearing this, Aunt Shen was about to refuse when Madam Yuan chimed in, "Shuang'er is right. Since you and Third Miss are just idling at home anyway, why don't you come out for a walk with us?"

Since they had already said so, it would be disrespectful for Meng Yu and Aunt Shen to refuse again, so the two had no choice but to nod in agreement.

Since they were going out, the two of them had breakfast at Zhenhuazhai.

After breakfast, Huaiyin took Mengyin's veil, and the group immediately boarded the carriage and set off.

It was fine for her to go out with Ji Mengshuang and Meng Yin on ordinary days, but now she had to go with Yuan Shi. Meng Yu really didn't like it. When they passed by Xiazhen Pavilion, she quickly gestured to Aunt Chen and made up an excuse: "Aunt, the other day when I went out, I saw a hairpin that I liked at Xiazhen Pavilion, but someone else bought it first. I wanted to go and see if the shopkeeper had brought in any new ones today."

Aunt Shen frowned and scolded her in a low voice, "We came out today specifically to pray for the Fourth Miss's well-being. What are you doing here now? Go tomorrow when you have time."

Meng Yu lowered her brows, feigning sadness.

Seeing this, Madam Yuan smiled at Aunt Chen and asked, "What was Third Miss saying just now?"

Aunt Shen smiled faintly: "It's nothing. When this girl came out the other day, she saw a hairpin she liked at Xiazhen Pavilion, but unfortunately someone else bought it first. She just said she wanted to see if the shopkeeper had received any new stock. But we came out today specifically to pray for the Fourth Miss's well-being. How could we ask her to do anything else?"

"It's just a small matter, what's the harm?" Madam Yuan said gently to Meng Yu, "Third Miss, go ahead! Mother has made the decision."

Upon hearing this, Meng Yu quickly stood up with a smile, put on her veil, and bowed as she got out of the carriage.

Watching the carriage disappear into the distance, Huaiyin clicked her tongue: "Why is she being so agreeable today?"

Whenever she recalls the day she returned to the manor, when Madam Yuan, under the guise of scolding Deng Mama, injured Meng Yu with a teacup, she becomes furious.

Meng Yu naturally knew who she was referring to. She turned and walked towards Xiazhen Pavilion, making quick hand gestures with a nonchalant expression: "She is naturally easier to talk to than usual. Her second daughter has gained the favor of the Marquis of Chengyi's mansion, and her fourth daughter is engaged to the Emperor's own nephew, the current General of Huaihua. Moreover, it's not just her; even Father has likely gained much more face in the court."