The pleasant voice stopped abruptly upon seeing Jiang Qinyu.
“You…and this is…” Yu Hanyan suddenly stood up straight, subtly sizing up Jiang Qinyu.
Displeased at being interrupted from his meal, Lu Yanzheng glanced at her with his cold eyes and said in a chilling tone, “Miss Yu, this is my wife. We are having a meal. If you haven’t eaten yet, you can go to the kitchen to find Uncle Zhao.”
The implication was clear: don't disturb him while he's eating.
Yu Hanyan had originally wanted to ask about Jiang Qinyu's identity, but upon hearing Lu Yanzheng's words, it was as if a bucket of cold water had been poured over her head. She instantly turned pale and looked at Lu Yanzheng, "General, I..."
"Shufan, Pan'er, have you finished eating?" Lu Yanzheng had already turned his head away, no longer looking at her, and asked about the two children.
Yu Hanyan then noticed that there were two children sitting at the table. She was immediately struck dumb, and her distraught gaze swept over Lu Yanzheng, Jiang Qinyu, and the children.
"Is there anything else, Miss Yu?" Feeling her gaze, Lu Yanzheng frowned and turned to ask.
Yu Hanyan lowered her eyes, tears welling up, and curtsied, saying, "Hanyan takes her leave."
After saying that, he turned and left, and Jiang Qinyu could still vaguely hear sobbing.
Jiang Qinyu asked curiously, "Who was that girl just now?"
Judging from Lu Yanzheng's attitude, she could tell that it was just the woman being infatuated, and she didn't suspect that Lu Yanzheng had another woman outside.
“Yu Hanyan was the woman that Deputy General Ling was in love with. Deputy General Ling died to save me, and Miss Yu had nowhere to go, so I agreed to let her stay at the General’s Mansion temporarily.” Lu Yanzheng said calmly.
Jiang Qinyu was still very curious, "Is she an orphan? Why does she have nowhere to go?"
Lu Yanzheng pursed his lips, as if he had something difficult to say. After a while, he finally spoke, "This matter is Miss Yu's private matter, and I cannot say it out loud."
"Oh, I understand, it's okay if you don't say anything," Jiang Qinyu quickly replied.
Since they had already said it was inconvenient to talk about it, she certainly couldn't keep pressing them for details.
But after thinking for a moment, Lu Yanzheng still said, "Her past is not very honorable. Qinqin, please don't ask her too many questions when you see her in the future."
Although Jiang Qinyu was still curious, she nodded in agreement, "Okay, I won't ask anymore."
Everyone has a past. Since it's said to be something shameful, it's probably something sad. As long as that Miss Yu doesn't provoke her, she certainly won't make things difficult for her.
As for her liking Lu Yanzheng? Heh, with Lu Yanzheng's face, if she had to care about and fuss over every woman who liked him, she wouldn't be able to do anything else.
Besides, she and Lu Yanzheng aren't even in a romantic relationship yet, so why should she care?
However, what was insignificant to Jiang Qinyu was a bolt from the blue for Yu Hanyan.
"Well, young lady? Have you seen the general?"
When Yu Hanyan returned from the main courtyard, she was greeted by her personal maid Ruhua, who always followed her. Ruhua asked her questions.
Only then did Yu Hanyan finally let her tears fall, and she rushed to the bed and burst into silent sobs.
"Miss, what's wrong? Are you feeling unwell?" Ruhua asked anxiously upon seeing her. When she didn't answer, she turned and walked out. "No, I'll go find the general and have him fetch a doctor for you!"
"Ruhua, come back!" Yu Hanyan cried out, her voice trembling with tears.
Ruhua stopped and quickly went to the bedside, looking at her with concern. "Miss, what's wrong?"
“The general… he already has a wife and children!” Yu Ruyi said for a long time before burying her face in her hands and weeping.
Ru Hua gasped in surprise, "Ah? When did the general get married? How come he has a wife and children?"
Yu Ruyi shook her head, choking back tears, and said, "Just now when I went to see him, I saw him having dinner with a woman and two children, and he introduced the woman as his wife..."
"How is this possible? Didn't Deputy General Ling and Uncle Chen say that there was no mistress in the General's Mansion?" Ru Hua was a little confused. This was too different from the information they had received before!
Yu Hanyan shook her head, sobbing uncontrollably.
After a long while, Ruhua said, "Miss, you can't be defeated. Even if the general said that it was the lady, he has always been in the border town and definitely doesn't have any feelings for that lady. This is actually a good thing for you."
"Good news?" Yu Hanyan raised her face, her tear-streaked appearance extremely endearing. "Why do you say that?"
Ru Hua calmly said, "Given your status, it would have been impossible for you to become the general's legal wife. Now that he has a legal wife and a legitimate son, can't you boldly carry out your previous plan?"
Yu Hanyan stared blankly at her, her mind a complete blank, but the blank gradually cleared up.
“You’re right, it’s a good thing for me that he has a wife and children,” Yu Hanyan’s tears continued to stream down her face. “I don’t want his position as his legal wife, I just want his affection…”
Ruhua continued to persuade, "Yes, young lady, haven't you come to terms with it all these years? It's not easy for women in this world. As long as we can live well with the general, that's enough."
"Yes!" Yu Hanyan gripped Ruhua's hand tightly. "I only ask to live. If I can leave a bloodline for the Yu family, that will be enough!"
Ruhua added, "Regarding that lady and those two children, I'll go ask Xiao Wu about it in a bit. You don't need to get involved, Miss."
“Okay,” Yu Hanyan looked at her with tears in her eyes, “Ruhua, thank goodness for you, otherwise…”
Ruhua smiled and said, "My life was saved by you, Miss. It is only right that I do anything for you."
After calming Yu Hanyan down, Ruhua found Xiao Wu.
“Brother Wu,” Ruhua said with a smile, “you’ve grown stronger and stronger in just a few days.”
When Xiao Wu saw her coming, he greeted her with a smile, "I just heard from Uncle Chen that Miss Yu is back. I was thinking of going to visit you later, but you came. How have you been? Have you been doing well these past few days?"
"It's alright. Since you're now staying at the General's Mansion, your uncle's family doesn't dare to neglect you anymore. We've been fine these past few days. We just heard that the General has returned, so you rushed back," Ruhua said with a smile.
Xiao Wu also laughed and said, "Yes, the general returned a couple of days ago, and he brought back his wife and young master and young lady. Our mansion is going to be very lively from now on."
"I've heard about it too, but when did our general get married? How come there wasn't a word about it before?" Ruhua asked, feigning curiosity.
Xiao Wu grinned. "Well, this all started a few years ago..."
...
"You're saying those two children aren't the general's? Really?" Yu Hanyan finally felt a huge weight lifted from her heart when she heard that Shufan and Pan'er weren't Lu Yanzheng's biological children.
Ru Hua nodded, "That's what Xiao Wu said. The two children call the General Uncle and the Madam Aunt!"
“Then it seems the general and that lady’s relationship is truly not good,” Yu Hanyan said with a beautiful smile. “But why did that lady come to the border town?”
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