Chapter 26 I was trying to reason with her, I didn't...

Looking at her sister-in-law and her wronged friend, Lu Xuan's tears streamed down her face as she sobbed and leaned against her friend's chest.

Shen Rong felt even more sorry for her; the young girl was too sensitive and easily taken advantage of.

She turned and glanced at her great-aunt, her expression showing a hint of criticism and disdain: "Great-aunt, you are an elder, and this is not how you tease a child. You start spreading rumors right away. No wonder you have sores on your lips."

My great-aunt's face instantly turned an eggplant color.

The silence continues:

"Who did I have an affair with? Did you see us under the wall or catch us in the act? You talk about how well-behaved you are. These are all unmarried young women. You keep talking about marriage and having affairs. Do you think the Lu family's flower hall is some wild field? You can say whatever you want, whether it's good or bad."

“Grandmother, I’m not trying to be mean, but you’re all so old. Don’t be so disrespectful. How can the younger generation respect you if you act like this? What kind of skill is it to scare young girls with the rules of the husband’s family every day? This is a new era, not like when you were young. They don’t have to be child brides anymore. They have the Lu family backing them up. They will never be bullied by their husband’s family in their entire lives. You can rest assured.”

She unleashed a barrage of words like a machine gun, making her great-aunt so angry that her lips trembled, and she pointed at her as if she had Parkinson's disease, her eyes rolling back.

"I'm just telling the truth. The Lu family has strict rules. If an elder makes a mistake, the younger generation has to gently remind you to avoid being laughed at by outsiders. Don't you think so? If you have this kind of free time, you should worry more about your own children's and grandchildren's marriages. Our Lu Xuan is still young!"

Actually, she still had a lot more to say, but seeing that the old woman was about to faint from anger, she decided to stop while she was ahead and not actually collapse to extort money from her.

"Alright, I won't keep you from watching the show. I'll take these girls somewhere else to play, so they won't bother you again and scare them."

She quickly concluded that her great-aunt was petty and deliberately tried to scare people because she thought the younger generation was being noisy.

Lu Xuan stared at her sister-in-law with her mouth agape, completely shocked.

I'm curious how my sister-in-law manages to drive someone half to their death in one breath.

The others looked at her with admiration; her sister-in-law was really good at arguing.

"Alright, go have fun, don't take your great-aunt's words to heart." Shen Rong led them a short distance before dismissing them.

Lu Xuan came closer, her eyes sparkling with admiration: "Sister-in-law, you're so amazing! Teach me how to argue!"

Shen Rong looked completely bewildered: "I don't know how to argue!"

"Are you kidding me?" Everyone looked unconvinced.

Shen Rong said, "I was reasoning with her, I didn't argue with her."

Everyone stumbled; that makes perfect sense.

After this incident, the group of girls no longer wanted to sit in the hall, and several of them went to play in the courtyard.

Shen Rong returned to the flower hall and found that Lu's mother had gone to play cards with someone, so she followed her.

When Lu's mother saw this, she smiled and waved for her to come over and help watch the cards.

Shen Rong was also itching to play, so she moved closer to her and occasionally offered some advice. As a result, Lu's mother's luck turned around, and she won several hands in a row.

The woman opposite was displeased and laughed, saying, "That's not fair! Are you two, mother-in-law and daughter-in-law, ganging up on us because my daughter-in-law isn't here?"

She beckoned to the woman beside her, "Jingyi, come over here and help me watch the cards. I can't let myself be taken advantage of."

“This is my niece, Cao Jingyi. I brought her along to broaden her horizons.”

She pointed to Lu's mother and Shen Rong and said, "These are the eldest son's wife and young mistress of the Lu family."

"Jingyi's card skills are also quite good, so you'd better watch out," she said to Lu's mother with a smile.

The other two players also asked for help to watch the cards, so four more strategists were added to the four-person card table.

Whether it was her imagination or not, Shen Rong felt that Cao Jingyi was looking at her strangely, with a scrutinizing, probing, and even a hidden hostility.

Did she offend someone?

That evening, she couldn't help but tell Lu Lin about her doubts.

After careful consideration, she felt that it probably wasn't her enemy, but perhaps the Lu family or Lu Lin had offended someone.

With such a good temperament, it's impossible for me to have any enemies.

Lu Lin remained silent for a long time after hearing this, seemingly wanting to say something but holding back. Shen Rong's heart felt like it had been scratched by a cat's claws, waiting for him to speak.

"She's Kang Wenbai's ex-wife, didn't you know?"

Shen Rong was stunned. She really didn't know about this! No one told her, and she wasn't even in the dream. How could she have known?

So she asked incredulously, "He's divorced?" with a look of disgust on her face.

Lu Lin remained calm: "He didn't tell you."

Shen Rong was stunned for a moment, then said...maybe...there might be.

She must have told the original owner, which is why she couldn't understand it. Does love make people blind? After picking and choosing, she still couldn't find anything good about Kang Wenbai.

She couldn't compare to Lu Lin at all. Shen Rong moved her chair closer to him, proving with her actions that her choice was right.

Lu Lin glanced at her, then sat down to the side, creating some distance between them.

Shen Rong was displeased. How could this person be so disrespectful, lacking any gentlemanly spirit, and discovering Lu Lin's flaws?

She asked curiously, "Why did they get divorced? No wonder the way she looked at me today was so strange. Does she know me?"

Could it be that Cao Jingyi still can't let go of her ex-husband? Shen Rong couldn't understand what was so special about a scumbag.

Lu Lin casually observed her.

Expressions can't be faked. She and Kang Wenbai weren't in cahoots, and she wasn't that familiar with Kang Wenbai, so why did she dislike him so much?

Lu Lin replied, "How would I know the reasons for the divorce? It's nothing more than a lack of affection, incompatible personalities, a pursuit of freedom, or someone else loving someone else."

He glanced at her after each reason he gave, his gaze carrying a hidden meaning.

These were the things the original owner said when he was getting a divorce. Shen Rong awkwardly dug his toes into the ground.

"Feelings can be cultivated. Sometimes the most important thing is communication. Look at us now, aren't we doing great?" She laughed awkwardly a few times, grabbed his arm, and smiled with a hint of flattery.

Lu Lin glanced at him, and Shen Rong wisely let go.

A chaste and virtuous man, I won't touch him.

"Who is this Cao Jingyi?"

The saying goes, "Know yourself and know your enemy." If someone is hostile towards her, she naturally needs to find out their background as well.

Lu Lin told him what he knew.

"Cao Jingyi is the niece of the Chen family. Her parents died early. The Chen family ancestors were prefects and were wealthy. Her maternal uncle's family adopted her until she married into the Kang family at the age of fifteen. The Chen family only had sons, so her uncle and aunt raised her as a daughter. It is said that in addition to giving her the property left to her by her parents as dowry, the Chen family also provided an extra generous dowry."

Although her uncle was just a doctor, her cousins ​​were all very successful and influential in both political and business circles. If it weren't for Kang Wenbai's father and the children, they wouldn't have let Kang Wenbai off so easily.

"Fifteen years old?" Shen Rong exclaimed in surprise. "Then how old is she this year?"

“Her son is already eight years old, and he seems to be three years younger than Kang Wenbai.”

Shen Rong's eyes widened: "And a son!"

So, was the original owner blinded by boogers? Not only did she cheat on her husband with a divorced man, but she also had to become his stepmother.

No wonder Cao Jingyi looked at her that way. If her son suddenly had a stepmother with bad character, she might have reacted even more violently!

Seeing that Lu Lin's expression was off, Shen Rong realized that she had overreacted.

"I was just surprised." Yes, just surprised; Shen Rong's explanation was somewhat of a cover-up.

Lu Lin didn't say anything, as if he hadn't noticed anything.

At this moment, Shen Rong also remembered something and felt a little embarrassed. Her momentum weakened and she became somewhat timid: "I think I caused you a little trouble today."

Lu Lin looked up, waiting for her to speak.

"It's your great-aunt who's so disrespectful to her elders..." She recounted what had happened that day, glossing over her accusations of infidelity but emphasizing her threats and intimidation of Lu Xuan, adding embellishments to the story.

"I only said a few words back, but she seemed a bit unhappy. Will she come and complain to me?"

She looked innocent, with a hint of grievance and a cautious expression.

His acting skills have improved, Lu Lin thought to himself.

"Since that's what you say, then what are you afraid of?"

Shen Rong choked up for a moment. How annoying this person was; he was not easy to fool at all.

"Isn't this just taking precautions? What if she turns around and makes false accusations? I'm so honest and kind, and she's an elder, so I can't just argue with her to her face, otherwise it would seem disrespectful. But if I let her slander me, wouldn't that be a disgrace to you, the eldest son of the Lu family?"

Lu Lin almost couldn't help but laugh.

At this moment, she remembered his reputation. Given her temperament, it was a miracle that she didn't make her great-aunt faint on the spot.

***

However, Shen Rong's guess was correct; that great-aunt really did come to complain to Lu's parents.

As she was an elder, Mr. and Mrs. Lu had no choice but to put on a smiling face and promise to teach Shen Rong and Lu Xuan a good lesson.

Seeing their perfunctory attitude, this great-aunt refused to leave, showing no sign of wanting to drag it out. In the end, Mr. Lu had no choice but to promise to find some work for her two sons before finally sending her away.

With a sullen face and his hands behind his back, Lu's father ordered someone to fetch Lu Lin.

Lu's mother became anxious: "Don't you know what kind of person your aunt is? Let me tell you, Shen Rong is carrying my eldest grandson. If you scare her, I'll never forgive you!"

"I think Shen Rong was right to scold her. If she hadn't been gossiping and talking nonsense, how could she have been scolded to her face? She's the epitome of disrespecting elders."

Mr. Lu's face grew increasingly dark. "She's an elder, after all." How could she say something like that?

"Does she act like an elder?" Lu's mother retorted.

Mr. Lu was speechless. He said helplessly, "Who said I was going to scold them?"

Why would he call his son over with that dark look on his face?

"Although there are extenuating circumstances, it is still necessary to give a warning. Criticizing elders in this way will not be well-received by outsiders."

Lu's mother was unreasonable: "Then you can scold your son." As long as her daughter-in-law wasn't touched, everything was fine.

When Shen Rong heard that Lu's father had come to invite someone, she was a little worried, her eyes darting around, and she felt guilty.

She saw Lu Lin to the door and repeatedly instructed him, "Please apologize for me." She added that he should take the punishment for her if necessary.

She clasped her hands together and looked at him expectantly.

I entrust everything to you; I will repay your great kindness in the next life.

Lu Lin scoffed inwardly. What was the point of her actively admitting her mistake? She was determined not to change anyway.