Jiang Songyi, who had remained silent beside the carriage, slowly raised his eyelids.
Her gaze was calm and unperturbed, merely skimming the street where the two had fled. It was like watching a lackluster street circus, the excitement fading, leaving only a chilling aftertaste.
"Dirty." She opened her lips very lightly and uttered only this one word.
The maid Xiang Zhu beside her immediately understood and bowed in response, "Yes, County Lady."
She turned and nodded to the coachman.
The driver was an experienced man and immediately put the footstool in place neatly.
Xiang Zhu took a step forward and firmly held Jiang Songyi's outstretched arm.
Jiang Songyi lowered her eyes slightly, lifted her skirt, and stepped onto the exquisitely crafted stool.
"Go back home." It was still Xiang Zhu's concise order, and his tone returned to its previous calmness.
The coachman responded and shook the reins slightly.
The wheels inlaid with copper nails began to turn slowly, rolling over the cobblestone road, making a strong and dull rumbling sound.
Jiang Qingmo and Bai Linxi quickly restrained their expressions and walked gracefully towards their own cars, surrounded by servants.
Their carriages followed immediately.
The spectators gathered in front of the gate of the Sang Mansion, who had not yet recovered from the continuous farce, whispered about the miserable appearance of the young lady of the Sang family, marveled at the imposing style and power of the Jiaqing County Lady, and then dispersed in twos and threes.
…
Yao Mansion in Jiangnan.
The gate is particularly busy today.
A group of people and horses wearing red silk clothes stopped, and the sound of gongs and drums was deafening, revealing a lively atmosphere of bluffing.
The leader was none other than Yao Zhenyun, the Yao family's always low-key illegitimate son. He was dressed in a brand new red wedding gown, but his expression was darker than the silk he wore.
The curtain of the sedan chair was roughly opened.
A woman who was also wearing a bright red wedding dress was pushed down.
But her arms were tied behind her back, and the red veil covering her head was tilted, revealing a small part of her pale chin and obvious scratches and blood on her lips.
She looked more like a prisoner being escorted than a bride.
This scene was seen by several other young masters of the Yao family who came rushing over after hearing the noise.
There were a few suppressed sneers and teasing looks from the crowd.
"Oh, Brother Zhenyun, you are so lucky! This is your 'cousin' whom you have been thinking about for many years and haven't seen. She is really special!" Someone dragged out the tone and spoke with a double entendre.
Another immediately chimed in, "That's right! The daughter of the Sang family in the capital, she's incredibly valuable! Look at how impressive she is...tsk tsk, just not very presentable. I heard it was sent back intact? Brother Zhenyun, you're so wronged!"
This statement is more like gloating than sympathy.
In order to cover up the scandal, the Sang family promised an extremely generous dowry. This was no secret in the Yao family.
They laughed at Yao Zhenyun for marrying a shameful cousin despite having a beautiful wife, but they were jealous in their hearts: he had suffered a great humiliation, but he also had to make a lot of money, which was enough to kill him, and he no longer had to study for the imperial examinations.
For these illegitimate sons who were neither the eldest nor the legitimate son, this deal was a windfall.
Yao Zhenyun's face instantly turned as dark as the bottom of a pot, and his cheeks were clenched tightly. But he held back and didn't lose his temper.
Yao Zhenlin, the eldest son of the Yao family, frowned and strode forward. His voice was filled with the authority of a legitimate son of the eldest son of the eldest branch, "Zhenyun! Nonsense! She is now a member of the Yao family and your newlywed bride. How can you tie her up like this? What a shame if this gets out! Untie her immediately! Bring her to the main hall to meet my father and mother!"
He swept his sharp eyes over the brothers who were making sarcastic remarks, and they calmed down a little.
Yao Zhenyun was furious, but he didn't dare to disobey his elder brother. He had no choice but to step forward and forcefully pull the thick ropes that bound the bride.
The woman had obviously been tied up for a long time, and the rope had torn her delicate wrists, leaving deep red and purple marks.
As soon as the rope loosened, she immediately shrank and hugged herself tightly, her body shaking under the veil.
"Don't blame me, big brother," Yao Zhenyun explained in a dry voice, his face showing uncontrollable irritation and embarrassment. "I didn't do this on purpose. All the way from the capital, this 'cousin' has been like crazy! She tries to run away at the first opportunity, saying she's not Sang Wenyin, but a maid named Cui Yan! She says the young lady ran away, and she was kidnapped and married off! I don't believe it. She's crying and making a fuss, trying to commit suicide. If she hadn't been like this, she would have jumped into the river long ago. How can I bring this mess back?"
These words silenced the whispers around them for a moment.
The mockery on the faces of the young masters of the Yao family faded a little, and they looked at each other in bewilderment.
A maidservant was marrying in place of the bride? Did the bride make a scene all the way?
Yao Zhenlin's brows knitted even tighter as he stared at the trembling figure, lost in thought: "She always said she was a maid?"
"Yes!" Yao Zhenyun said in an annoyed tone, "She cried all the way, it's so annoying. If she really is Miss Sang, why would she be like this? She must have lost her mind."
At this moment, the trembling bride suddenly raised her hand and used all her strength to pull off the red veil.
A face that was handsome but haggard due to days of torture was exposed to the sunlight.
There were tear marks on his face, his lips were cracked and bleeding, and his eyes were filled with fear and helplessness.
"Let me go! I'm telling the truth! I'm really Cui Yan! I'm not Sang Wenyin!" Cui Yan's voice was hoarse as she desperately cried out to Yao Zhenlin and everyone else, "My young lady...she ran away with that scholar named Liao! She tied me up and forced me to wear a wedding dress. Wuuuuu...I'm not the young lady! I really am not! Please believe me! Let me go!"
Everyone was stunned.
Yao Zhenyun was the first to react. He bent down to pick up the veil on the ground and roughly tried to put it back on Cui Yan's head: "Nonsense! You lunatic! Shut up!"
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