Seeing that Lianhua was acting like a fool, Cui Wanyun immediately started to act all high and mighty.

"I'm only saying this because we're close. A woman has to keep a close eye on her husband, otherwise she'll be corrupted by those people outside!"

"The fact that you two can't see each other might be because your families are deliberately keeping you from seeing each other! Studying at the Imperial Academy is so hard; if you prepare some food for him and give it to him, he'll definitely appreciate your kindness!"

Cui Wanyun was thinking of encouraging Lianhua to deliver food to Lu Zilei, so that she could go with her and have more opportunities to see Lu Zilei.

Meanwhile, if word got out that Lianhua, an unmarried woman, was going to the Imperial Academy every day to find men, her reputation would be ruined.

As for her, she was nothing more than an innocent victim implicated by Lotus.

Thinking this, she felt exceptionally happy, thinking that Lu Hei Ya (a type of braised duck) was really delicious, and that she would bring some home for her mother later.

Lotus shook her head pitifully, "I...I dare not...Waaah..."

She couldn't hold back her tears as soon as she opened her mouth.

Cui Wanyun was surprised to see the person who had been smiling just moments before suddenly burst into tears. She quickly stepped forward and asked, "What's wrong? Is there something you can't tell me? Don't worry, just let me know if you need any help, and I'll definitely find a way to help you."

Lotus wiped her eyes with a handkerchief and said aggrievedly, "Miss Cui, you know my background. I am just an orphan girl from the countryside. I have never seen the world and I don't know anything. How could I dare to go to a place like the Imperial Academy? Besides, it is full of men. How could a girl like me go there? I just hope to finish my business at the shop as soon as possible. Maybe I can see him again when I go back."

Cui Wanyun's eyes lit up instantly, and she said, "Yes, you can go home earlier! There aren't many people around now, are there? You can go back, I'll go with you, let's walk!"

She had wanted to do this for a long time. Going to the Lu family with Lianhua would allow her to get close to the other members of the Lu family, build good relationships first, and make it easier to get along with them after she joined the family.

Lotus was even more heartbroken and said, "How can I just go back like that? I came to the capital to help Aunt Jiu Niang, so naturally I should do more. Aunt Jiu Niang has been so good to me, how can I betray her trust?"

"Oh dear, that doesn't mean you can't meet because of this! Didn't Young Master Lu speak up for you? Did he just watch you get bullied?"

Cui Wanyun directly distorted the facts and sowed discord.

Lotus paused for a moment, looking dazed, and said, "No one bullied me. I just didn't want to let Aunt Jiu Niang down, so I wanted to do things well."

Cui Wanyun felt even more that she was easy to fool, and continued to speak ill of Jiang Jiuniang, trying to ruin their relationship first.

Lianhua dealt with the situation calmly, never saying anything too harsh no matter what Cui Wanyun said. When she ran out of things to say, she would cry, thus creating an image of herself as weak, timid, and easily bullied.

After crying for a while, Cui Wanyun took the opportunity to say, "Don't be sad. It's getting late. Let me take you home."

Originally, it was thought that Lianhua would still be busy in the shop, but to everyone's surprise, Lianhua agreed immediately. She got up, wiped away her tears, and the two of them took a car back to the General's Mansion.

Cui Wanyun had hoped to see Lei Zi, but the house was empty; the student hadn't returned yet.

It seems like get out of class has already ended by now.

She asked indirectly, and Lianhua said she didn't know either. The servant in the house took the initiative to say, "The young masters have been invited by the young prince to visit the palace, and they won't be home for dinner tonight."

Upon hearing this, Lianhua dismissed the servant and then felt even more aggrieved.

Cui Wanyun hadn't expected such a coincidence and was speechless for a moment. After thinking for a while, she said, "It's okay, it's okay, there will always be another chance."

A maidservant came over and called them to have a meal. Lianhua smiled again and said, "Miss Cui is taking me home. Why don't you have a simple meal at home? I hope you won't mind."

"Not at all, not at all! How could I!"

Cui Wanyun couldn't have been happier; this was a perfect opportunity to get to know the Lu family.

Besides, the Lu family is so rich, they must eat very well, so what grievances could she possibly have?

When I got there, I realized I had been overthinking things; the food at the Lu family's house was really simple!

Jiang Jiuniang, dressed in comfortable home clothes, sat at the table waiting. When Lianhua brought her in, she didn't say anything, but just glanced at her and said, "Let's eat."

After saying that, he turned to Cui Wanyun and said, "I didn't know Miss Cui would be coming, so I didn't ask the kitchen to prepare anything. Please make do with what you have and don't mind."

Jiang Jiuniang's attitude was not like what she had seen at the banquet before; in fact, she was somewhat indifferent and not very enthusiastic towards Lianhua and the other younger ones. It was just a meal together.

There was a plate of boiled sweet potatoes and a bowl of boiled green vegetables on the table, which was worse than what her servants ate.

Cui Wanyun was so disgusted that she didn't know how to eat it, but she saw that Lianhua and Youya were eating very leisurely and even chatting during the meal, as if this kind of dish was very normal in the Lu family.

But Lianhua was very enthusiastic, constantly urging her to eat and even trying to serve her food.

Unable to maintain her composure, she made an excuse and hurriedly left.

Watching her run away as if fleeing, Jiang Jiuniang and Lianhua Youya exchanged a glance and couldn't help but laugh out loud.

"Serve the food quickly!"

Jiang Jiuniang gave a call, and immediately a maid brought up a variety of prepared dishes.

"Finally, I'm gone! I was so suffocated!"

Youya let out a long breath, then grinned.

"Isn't setting this up way too much trouble? How many times do I have to meet her? I've never seen such a shameless person in my life!"

Youya was exhausted, feeling that facing Cui Wanyun was more tiring than working in the shop all day.

"It'll be soon, she won't be able to hold back any longer."

Lianhua is very shrewd. These past few days, she has been pretending to be stupid and pitiful, which must have made Cui Wanyun arrogant. She will think that she is no match for Leizi and is not good enough for him. Therefore, she will definitely use a ruthless move to defeat Cui Wanyun in one fell swoop.

While eating, Jiang Jiuniang gave a thumbs up: "Awesome! I'm waiting to see the result. It would be best if that family never dares to come to our door again, so I can have a few days of peace."

"Don't worry, Auntie, I'll do my best!"

Lotus chuckled, revealing the shyness of a little girl, but her eyes were filled with determination and confidence.

Jiang Jiuniang nodded in satisfaction. This was exactly the effect she wanted—to cultivate Lotus to face those troubles on her own.

She had no interest in scheming or fighting, nor did she care about her reputation. If it were her, she would have simply resorted to violence to resolve the situation. But Lianhua and the others couldn't do that; they had to learn to grow up.

I can never protect them for a lifetime.

In the following days, Cui Wanyun continued to visit Lianhua, but she did not see Leizi. Instead, she was persuaded by Lianhua to spend a lot of money and directly ordered six months' worth of Lu Hei Ya (a type of braised duck).

After several days, Cui Wanyun finally couldn't bear it any longer. She ran to her mother, Hu, and cried bitterly, deciding to make a big show of herself.