Chapter 62 Chapter 62 Tension
He had a cold and arrogant face, and just lowered his eyes to look at Du Lingjing.
Du Lingjing: "..."
In the whole capital, Marquis Lu is the most powerful. No one can control him. Instead, all the most important positions are given to him, and everything he wants is put in front of him so that he can control everything.
But Du Lingjing refused to tolerate him and just turned her head away.
As soon as she turned to look at him, she noticed from the corner of her eye that his expression had become gloomy.
Du Lingjing ignored him, pursed his lips, and was about to say something when suddenly someone came quickly towards him from another road.
She walked over in two steps at a time, and when she stepped in, she saw Du Lingjing and the man next to her.
It was a good year.
She suddenly rushed in, and the situation between the five people changed.
The murmurings and chirping of birds in the garden completely disappeared.
Nian Jia's eyes met the person unexpectedly in mid-air. They hadn't seen each other for many years. The moment their eyes met, they both stopped in their tracks.
Wei Jue's eyes trembled almost imperceptibly.
Du Lingjing was stunned when she saw Nian Jiading standing there.
Until someone called her softly, "Princess."
Nian Jia's eyes widened and she saw her husband Wei Cong standing beside her.
"Prince." She answered him.
She didn't look at Wei Jue any more and turned away.
Wei Jue also withdrew his gaze, his eyelids drooped, as if neither of them had ever experienced that moment of encounter and distraction.
People in the garden, in groups of three or four, were looking at this place silently.
Du Lingjing ignored the marquis who was only staring at her, and saw that Wei Cong on her left looked normal, so she asked Xiang Nianjia in a gentle voice.
"The princess came from the waterside pavilion?"
Nian Jia hadn't yet fully recovered his consciousness, and his words reminded him of this.
She nodded and said yes, thinking that she had come here to find Du Lingjing, she said.
"I invited Madam Hou to enjoy the view at the waterside pavilion."
Du Lingjing didn't want to be stared at anymore, so she said, "Okay, then go ahead."
He just caught a glimpse from the corner of his eye that someone seemed to want to say a few words to her, but seeing that she didn't want to pay any attention, he could only keep silent.
Du Lingjing turned around and laughed secretly, and left with Nian Jia without being noticed by him.
There was no one in the water pavilion at this time. The lotus leaves on the lake were spread out like soft green carpets. Some of the lotuses were propped up on tall poles with their heads tilted back, while others were just lying lazily on the water.
Nian Jia lost interest in talking. He said a few words to Du Lingjing casually, then lay on the windowsill and stared at the lotus leaves in a daze.
Du Lingjing didn't want to disturb her, and let her be stunned for a moment in this complicated world.
However, neither of them spoke a word or moved around, so others thought that there was no one in the pavilion.
Suddenly, there were footsteps approaching. Du Lingjing looked outside and saw a group of elderly ladies walking towards this place.
The woman in the lead wore a pair of golden phoenix hairpins and looked elegant and luxurious. Du Lingjing looked at her and she also looked over.
It turned out to be Mrs. Baoguo, Lu.
There were five or six ladies following her, and the one closest to her was unexpectedly Madam Wan.
Naturally, her second sister Du Runqing was also there.
Nian Jia also turned around at this time. She had just met Wei Jue suddenly, but unexpectedly, she ran into Madam Baoguo again.
Du Lingjing saw that Mrs. Baoguo frowned slightly, while Nian Jia secretly clenched the embroidered handkerchief in her hand.
At that time, Nian Jia and Wei Jue had already reached the stage of discussing marriage, but they eventually parted ways. The matter behind this must be complicated.
Mrs. Baoguo had already led her people towards the waterside pavilion, so there was no reason for her to give way to the younger generation.
Du Lingjing quickly said to Nian Jia, "Is Princess Yu here to look for you? Don't delay, go now."
Today, Nian Jia's mother, Princess Yu, also came to Marquis Jing'an's Mansion. Du Lingjing found an excuse and asked Nian Jia to leave.
Nian Jia reacted immediately. It was obvious that Mrs. Baoguo didn't want to talk to her any more. Nian Jia greeted her hurriedly. She nodded casually and Nian Jia was about to leave.
But as Nian Jia took a step forward, he remembered that Du Lingjing was still there, so he turned around and was about to take her away, but Mrs. Baoguo spoke first this time and called Du Lingjing.
"Madam Lu is here too."
What she meant was that she wanted to keep Du Lingjing to talk. Seeing that she couldn't get away, Du Lingjing could only wink at Nian Jia and let her go first.
However, when Nian Jia walked out of the pavilion, his footsteps paused again.
She couldn't help but look back again, and saw that the people beside Mrs. Baoguo were all ladies who were not easy to get along with. Although they were not as high in status as Du Lingjing, they were older in generation, especially Mrs. Baoguo, who was sitting next to Old Lady Wan.
At that time, Old Madam Wan wanted to marry Jingniang to Shao Boju, and then there was the issue of sisters swapping homes. It was obvious that Jingniang was being bullied because she was an orphan. She had heard all of this.
At this moment, Nian Jia saw that Du Lingjing was detained by this group of ladies, he could not help but frown and immediately called the maid forward.
"Go tell Lord Lu that his wife has been left in the waterside pavilion."
The maid obeyed the order and left quickly.
*
Waterside pavilion.
Du Lingjing stepped forward first and saluted Mrs. Baoguo.
Although Mrs. Baoguo said that there was no need to be so polite, she still asked her to complete the formalities before letting her sit down.
Madam Baoguo was from the Lu family of Yongding Marquis's mansion, so Du Lingjing should call her aunt. She was also the emperor's aunt, so no one dared to be arrogant in front of her.
As for the other noble ladies in the hall, except for Madam Wan, whom she knew quite well, she had only met the others.
At this moment, her second sister Du Runqing naturally did not say much to her. She greeted her and sat back.
Du Ling sat quietly among the crowd, inexplicably as if she was separated from the crowd on an isolated island surrounded by waves.
The lotus fragrance outside the window no longer wafts in, and the atmosphere in the waterside pavilion becomes slightly condensed.
Mrs. Baoguo Lu looked her cousin's wife up and down.
She originally intended to marry her youngest daughter to Lu Weishi. The age difference between the two was actually nothing. However, the Lu siblings had no such intention at all. She thought that her little daughter had not yet reached the age of marriage, and the Imperial Concubine and Marquis Lu were not in a position to mention it. She did not expect that when her daughter was about to reach the age of marriage, Lu Weishi would marry the girl from the Du family.
She really couldn't say that she liked the girl from the Du family.
But more importantly, she was now close to Madam Wan, and she still had to rely on Madam Wan for some difficult matters. The previous Mid-Autumn Festival marriage, whether it was Lu Weishi or Du Shi, made Madam Wan completely embarrassed.
At this moment, Old Madam Wan was sitting next to her, and she had no choice but to save her face.
Seeing that Du Ling was sitting quietly and being well behaved, she naturally did not want to make things difficult for her.
"Madam Lu is usually quite busy at home? Apart from the palace banquet and the birthday banquet for Madam Jing'an, you have never shown up at any of the flower banquets, tea banquets, or ordinary wedding banquets."
As soon as she said this, everyone in the pavilion fell silent and just looked at Du Lingjing.
Everyone in the capital knew that Marquis Lu had opened a tall building that had been under construction for six years for his new wife to store books. It was named Guilin Tower, and Marquis Lu's wife would often go out of the city to visit the library.
Du Lingjing herself knew it very well, of course. Besides the fact that she couldn't go out recently, she really wasn't very interested in the previous banquets. Instead, she was often busy running around the library.
But she couldn't respond, so she could only lower her head slightly and heard Mrs. Baoguo speak again, and as expected, she mentioned the library.
"Collecting books is a good thing for future generations, but it is also what a man who reads should pay the most attention to. Since you are the Marquis' wife of my Lu family, you should focus on entertaining guests in the Marquis' mansion and outside."
Among the circle of noble ladies in the capital, there is really nothing wrong with this statement.
Du Lingjing had no rebuttal.
But Madam Baoguo did not let her go easily. She glanced at Madam Wan from the corner of her eye and said something.
"The most important thing for a woman is to be respectful and not arrogant. If you read too much, you will inevitably become arrogant and think that you are on par with saints and sages, which makes you superior to ordinary people. Little do they know that poetry and books only make people arrogant, especially women, who cannot be officials or give lectures, and will only make their elders dislike them."
These words of hers were what Old Lady Wan liked to say the most, and at this moment, Du Lingjing said exactly what Old Lady Wan said.
"Read less and be respectful and obedient to your elders. This is the way to be a daughter. You don't have a mother-in-law, so I, as your aunt, have to give you a few words. Do you understand?"
That's really rude.
Because of being rude to Du Lingjing, it was considered to have saved some face for Madam Wan. Everyone present was clear-headed, and no one spoke up to help Du Lingjing out of the embarrassment. Instead, they mentioned their own daughters-in-law and nieces, saying that they were disrespectful because they read too much.
Mrs. Baoguo was the one who took the lead and let them "supplement" her ideas. She glanced at Mrs. Wan beside her and saw that Mrs. Wan's brows were much more relaxed.
Du Runqing looked at her elder sister. She would not stand up for her elder sister. At this moment, she just looked at her sister being surrounded by everyone's words, and suddenly felt that what her grandmother said made sense.
The eldest sister only cared about studying books and ancient and modern articles. When the Marquis married her, she refused to attend the flower banquets of other families. She was not liked by the ladies. Instead, she wanted the Marquis to open a building for her, publish books, find people for her, and restore the power of the Fu Party in the court... ...
Mrs. Baoguo suddenly called her name.
"Miss Qing, was I wrong to say what your elder sister said?"
Du Runqing quickly stood up, glanced at Du Lingjing, and immediately put her anger back.
"Runqing has not read much, so he dare not criticize his sister, but Runqing deeply agrees with what the lady said."
No one helped Du Lingjing, even her own sister said so.
All the secret conversations of the people around her came to light. Even if they didn't mention her by name, they were all said to her.
Only then did Madam Wan slowly smile.
Du Lingjing was not angry. What she would do and what she would decide to do would not change because of these people's criticisms.
She exchanged glances with Qiulin silently, preparing for Qiulin to find a reason for her to leave.
Unexpectedly, at this moment, she heard the familiar heavy footsteps suddenly outside the pavilion.
Du Lingjing looked outside, and Du Runqing also looked outside with awareness, and they saw the Marquis striding towards them.
She saw the Marquis followed by Commander Wei, who had a sullen expression on his face and stepped into the pavilion.
When he entered the pavilion, he looked at his sister first, checking her up and down to make sure she was fine, then he turned to Madam Baoguo who was sitting at the top.
Mrs. Baoguo was frightened by him.
"Why is the Marquis here? There are only women here."
When Mrs. Baoguo saw her nephew's cold face, her heart skipped a beat and she quickly reminded him that it was inappropriate to come here and he'd better leave.
But if one sentence could make him leave, he wouldn't have barged in like this.
Du Lingjing didn't know why he came suddenly, but he seemed not to hear what Madam Baoguo said at all. He didn't retreat or avoid, but instead scanned the entire water pavilion.
All those who had been talking about Du Lingjing openly or secretly just now shut their mouths.
Du Lingjing's ears immediately calmed down, but the man's cold gaze did not stop there.
The atmosphere in the room became depressing, not a trace of lotus fragrance wafted in, and everyone felt inexplicably nervous.
They did not dare to look at Marquis Lu or his wife, and could only secretly glance at Madam Baoguo and Madam Wan at the top.
Mrs. Baoguo frowned and said nothing, while Mrs. Wan beside her turned three shades paler.
Everyone suddenly remembered that Marquis Lu got married last year.
At that time, there were rumors that Madam Wan wanted to exchange her granddaughter for the Madam Lu.
Who would have thought that this action would lead to Marquis Lu directly arresting Madam Wan's son, and the man was brought from Shuntian Prefecture to the Jinyiwei. When he was released, he was almost beaten to death!
Lord Lu is not someone you can easily mess with...
No one in the pavilion dared to utter a word.
On the contrary, it was Lu Shenru who seemed to have just heard what Madam Baoguo had said.
He said "Oh" lightly, "Thank you, Madam Baoguo, for reminding me."
He didn't call her aunt, but just Madam Baoguo.
Mrs. Baoguo couldn't help sweating, but she felt that she hadn't done anything out of the ordinary. She just said a few words to his wife.
She couldn't help but open her mouth to make amends for herself, but before she could say anything, she was stopped by a look from her son Wei Jue.
Wei Jue frowned and shook his head at her.
Mrs. Baoguo's words were stopped, but Lu Shenru spoke.
He smiled faintly.
"Ladies, please invite my wife to have some tea and sit for a while in the waterside pavilion. I would like to thank her first."
He said, "It's just that my wife is very introverted and quiet. I'm always afraid that she will be bullied outside and won't tell me when she gets home."
These words attracted Du Lingjing, and she looked up at him.
He continued.
"I think all the ladies are people who love the younger generation. My wife is like this, so I would like to ask you to keep an eye on her in the future. She was not bullied by others, but she did not tell me. She did not do anything wrong, but was accused for no reason and suffered losses."
He smiled and asked everyone, "How is it?"
Du Lingjing's face felt a little hot.
From now on, no one will dare to say a word to her...
The ladies also understood the current situation. Seeing Marquis Lu like this, they knew that he was still giving face to everyone and not making them too embarrassed, so they couldn't help but speak up.
Mrs. Baoguo, who was sitting at the top, turned pale.
Madam Wan lowered her eyes and said nothing. Lu Shenru glanced at her and then looked away.
Du Runqing, on the other hand, stared blankly at the Marquis and her sister.
My Lord, are you really going to stand up for my sister like this?
They all say "neizi is quiet and reserved"...
Du Runqing was in a trance.
Du Lingjing couldn't help but look at the marquis of her family.
The man also looked down at her.
At this time, someone outside came with a message, saying that Princess Yu had sent someone over, "Please ask Madam Lu to come over for a chat."
Princess Yu was Nian Jia's mother.
So, Du Lingjing stood up, and someone said goodbye to everyone on her behalf, and looked at her as she left the pavilion.
After taking two steps out of the pavilion, the wind outside became lighter.
Du Lingjing let out a light sigh.
There was no one on the roadside, only a patch of gardenias nearby was filled with fragrance.
The man lowered his head, studied her expression, and lowered his voice.
"Not fast?"
When he asked, Du Lingjing realized that he was staring at her intently, looking into her eyes, and saw that he was somewhat unhappy.
Du Lingjing actually didn’t think it was a big deal. These people had nothing to do with her, and she didn’t take anything they said to heart.
But she saw that he was frowning. Although she did not show any displeasure, there was anxiety and depression on his face, and he kept looking at her.
Suddenly, a wind blew in the garden and swirled between the two people.
Du Lingjing's eyes suddenly flashed back to the day when she was looking for someone in the mountains of Baoding.
She left him a letter and left, but he followed her on a galloping horse.
Across a mountain stream that could not be crossed in one step, he saw her in the distance and called her hurriedly.
"come over!"
The sound could not be heard, and she was not unwell, but his expression at that time was very similar to his current one. He looked anxious and depressed, afraid that she was unwell, uneasy, and unhappy... ...
"If you're not feeling well, let's go home now," he said.
How could she go home when the banquet hadn't even started? Mrs. Kuang Baoguo couldn't do anything to her.
She shook her head and said that Princess Yu had invited her over.
"I will go sit with the princess and Nian Jia and the others. You can go back and wait for the banquet."
She couldn't help but soften her tone with him.
But he still asked, "Is it okay?"
It seemed that as long as she said no, he would take her away immediately.
Du Lingjing is not that pampered. She came out with great difficulty to "get some fresh air".
But she didn't get angry with him for saying this, she just spoke softly.
"Okay. I'm leaving. You can go too."
After she finished speaking, she turned around and followed the person sent by Princess Yu, heading off into the distance. However, she could feel someone behind her following her steps closely, step by step, until he sent her to the bend and the bushes blocked her sight.
*
Waterside pavilion.
Mrs. Baoguo said she was tired, and stood up and left.
The atmosphere was awkward and no one said anything. Only Wei Jue and his mother went outside to the lake.
There was no one by the lake, and the lotus leaves were swaying with the waves.
"Why does mother want to make things difficult for Jingniang?" Wei Jue asked.
Mrs. Baoguo took a deep breath and exhaled before speaking.
"What's wrong? I'm the aunt and she's the niece-in-law. I said a few words to her, but she didn't give in."
Mrs. Baoguo said, thinking of her cousin's attitude just now, "Lu Weishi is becoming more and more disrespectful to me!"
She even started to criticize Lu Shenru, and Wei Jue sighed heavily and advised her.
"You shouldn't have messed with him. Even the Imperial Concubine can't control him."
I'm afraid the only one who can cure him is Jingniang.
He also didn't know what had happened between Wei Shi and Jing Niang in the past, but it was obvious that Jing Niang was not the wife casually assigned to Lu Wei Shi by the emperor's decree.
His mother, on the other hand, kept Jingniang and scolded her.
Wei Jue didn't want to just blame his widowed mother, but instead Madam Baoguo became annoyed.
"What about you? You also stood up for others. Could it be that it's because Mrs. Du and Nian Jia are old acquaintances, and you still can't let go of Nian Jia?!"
Wei Jue was stunned.
The clear waves of the lake splash against the bluestone on the shore.
Mrs. Baoguo looked at her son and saw him smiling faintly.
"She has married my cousin Cong... Please don't bring up the past anymore, it will mess up the current relationship."
He didn't want to say more and turned to leave, but Mrs. Baoguo said anxiously.
"Then can you get married? Lu Weishi has already got a wife..."
But Wei Jue just shook his head and walked away from the lake.
*
Du Lingjing then followed Princess Yu and met Princess Yan again.
Prince Yan is the head of the clan and the emperor's uncle, so naturally Princess Yan is of higher generation. She likes Du Lingjing very much and stays by her side to talk to her.
But Nian Jia was obviously in a low mood during the banquet and didn't say much. It was only after the banquet that he called Du Lingjing.
"Mrs. Baoguo made things difficult for you, and it may be because of me that I implicated you."
Du Lingjing waved her hand, but Nian Jia said, "I'll come to your house to see you in a few days."
Du Lingjing said ok and comforted her with a few words. The birthday banquet ended and the guests left one after another.
When Du Lingjing arrived at her carriage, someone was already waiting for her there.
Some people were talking around him. He saw her coming from afar and sent them away with a few words.
He walked up to her and looked her up and down, and was relieved to see that not a single hair was missing.
Du Lingjing walked to the side of the carriage and handed it to him.
Chong'an, who was standing nearby, saw the Marquis stretch out his hand again and his heart began to beat fast.
The lady would most likely not give the Marquis this face, so his brother would have to help her get into the car.
If this goes on and on and the lady holds her brother's hand twice, will her brother still want her hand?
Chong'an secretly stared at the situation beside the carriage.
Unexpectedly, this time, the lady put her hand on the Marquis's hand.
Chong'an opened his mouth wide.
Beside the carriage, Du Lingjing did not refuse someone's face and gently placed her hand on his.
The man was startled and looked down.
The next moment, he immediately grasped her hand tightly in his palm.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
