Seeing that Lingwu had turned to the other side, Lu Fengjun continued, "Their daughters are all ugly. Just look at that vain brat. They're all greedy and only know how to enjoy themselves. They have no sense of humanity at all."
"You're also her relative. Relatives of rats are never good people, get out of here!"
I was completely stunned. Could Lu Fengjun have feelings for Lingwu? He's even started belittling the Empress. Lu Fengjun smiled at us and then pulled Lingwu into the house.
"What are they?" My mind was a little blank. Could it really be what I thought?
"Ying'er, I told you not to come, but you didn't believe me. Now you know how serious it is."
Xie Yuancheng laughed beside me. He led me to sit on the carved wooden bench in the corridor and told me to wait. Anyway, we were going to take Lingwu back tonight and couldn't let Lu Fengjun take her away.
I went to see Lin Chao, but he knew I wanted to see him, so he turned away to the other side. These people are all acting strangely; Xie Yuancheng is probably plotting something, and it's definitely not going to be good.
We chatted casually outside, and Xie Yuancheng bragged to me about his merits, describing them in such exaggerated and unbelievable ways that I found it amusing.
"Thump!" We were just chuckling when a large rock slammed into the door outside, and it was that same childish voice again.
"Let me in! I'm the lady of this house, the darling of the wealthy! Open the door!"
She's probably delusional. Who taught her this before? She's so young and already knows how to compare herself to others and enjoy life.
With a "whoosh!" I saw the arrow fly out, and then I heard cries for help outside, followed by silence.
I shook my head, and Xie Yuancheng poured me tea: "Lu Fengjun entertained her here before, so he remembered her."
"Are you treating her like a princess? That's why you had inappropriate thoughts."
"No, they just gave her a table of cold rice. She wanted pretty clothes and money to eat, so she was kicked out. Later, everyone caught her, and she was also sentenced to tattooing. They were supposed to leave together, but Lu Fengjun spared her this time."
"That's strange. Her village was quite far away back then, so why did she end up in Linyang?"
"She was brought here. I told you, those people went to grab her in the middle of the night and followed her. Later they were discovered, and the whole village was arrested. Many of them even had children in the capital."
Anyway, they were all relatives of the Empress, and none of them were spared. But the people from the village, who were using aliases, told us to bring her to see Lu Fengjun to see if he would keep her, so they brought her along.
"I see." I didn't know what to say. It sounded unbelievable, but life is hard for everyone. Who would be willing to sacrifice themselves to reform some bad people?
Lu Fengjun came out quickly, his face even happier. He pulled Lingwu over with him and said, "My lord, you said last time that if I helped you once, you would grant me one request."
Xie Yuancheng stood up: "Lingwu won't do!"
"You've seen those ugly, smelly, and vain girls in the city. If I go back to the capital like that, won't I be disgusted by those ugly old women every day?"
"Who is this ugly woman?" I was completely confused. Could it be the Empress? Lu Fengjun mentioned the Empress, and I really applauded that nickname.
"Lingwu is my junior brother, the only son of our teacher. It's impossible for him to be with you." Xie Yuancheng really knows how to say something shocking. When exactly did they get together?
"Senior brother~" Lingwu said softly, "I don't want to get married either. You, you should agree to his proposal."
My eyes widened in disbelief, and I pulled Lingwu back: "Do you know what you just said? Have you lost your mind?!"
“Sister-in-law, I’m perfectly clear-headed. When he comes to Linyang, we’ll work together. We just happen to hit it off, and I don’t like marrying women.”
Anyway, he promised me that if he doesn't come back to Linyang after he gets things sorted out, I'll beat him to death!
"This." I was still hesitating when Xie Yuancheng pulled me back.
"Ying'er, who are you pulling? How dare you pull another man here? Are you trying to drive me crazy?!"
I then realized that I had been holding Lingwu's hand the whole time, and quickly comforted him, "Don't be so petty. Lingwu and Lu Fengjun are both my saviors. I just thought it was a fantasy and wanted to clarify things!"
"It's not like there's no precedent in the Great Zhao. People outside still think I married a man. It's all because of your reputation as a prince consort!"
Xie Yuancheng's face began to show displeasure, so I obediently leaned against him and listened to him speak.
"My lord, you promised me, and I am willing to use my reputation as an official of the imperial court to help you protect Linyang. This deal is very worthwhile."
Lu Fengjun smiled happily. I still don't understand what's going on between them. They used to fight and argue when they met, but now they're so close.
I didn't hear a word they said in the end. All I knew was that Xie Yuancheng agreed. Towards the end, I started to wonder if he had deliberately used Ling Wu to lure Lu Fengjun, killing two birds with one stone.
After Lu Fengjun and Ling Wu returned to the manor to see their teacher, they didn't know what was going on inside, but I could hear the sounds of weapons clashing in the courtyard.
Later, they left that night. When Xie Yuancheng came back, I kept pestering him for a long time, and he just told me that the teacher had agreed, without saying anything else.
"Ying'er, go to sleep. We have to see someone tomorrow." Xie Yuancheng rarely went to bed early, so I went closer to him and asked.
"Did you deliberately put them together to recruit talent?" I became increasingly suspicious, but Xie Yuancheng only opened one eye and remained silent.
Looking at his flawless face, I knew he wouldn't speak, so I clutched my collar tightly. Only then did Xie Yuancheng speak.
"You already know, why are you asking me? I didn't do it on purpose, I just wanted them to become partners."
He wasn't being honest at all; he was definitely doing it on purpose. "Don't give me that. With your clever brain, what else are you hiding from me? Tell me!"
“There’s just one thing,” Xie Yuancheng said, playing with my hair. “When you first came to Linyang, you were sleeping in the carriage, and I made a move on you.”
I pinched his cheek in anger: "You, you really, that's not right, there's no way you didn't notice."
“When you wore men’s clothing, you were an exceptionally handsome man from head to toe. I was feeling guilty, so I only dared to touch you. I didn’t think much about it.”
I grabbed a new blanket: "You're terrifying, I'm going to stay away from you!"
"But this really isn't my fault. How could I have known that Lingwu would be with him? Lu Fengjun is the Empress's man. He gave me directions when we were in the Western Regions. I'm just thanking him."
"Thank you for sending him the Lingwu. You're such a cunning marquis! Alas, I'm just too stupid; you've played me for fools."
"My sincerity towards you is as clear as day; stop making excuses. Pull back the covers and come here, or I might get a little petty later~"
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