Chapter 98. Big brother, little sister is missing.
Shen Rong hadn't expected him to ask this, and replied with a smile, "We haven't been in contact much lately. I received a letter from her a few months ago. Why is Mr. Wu suddenly asking about this?" We've already broken up.
Seeing her expression, Wu Yong understood that Mrs. Lu knew everything, and couldn't help but smile bitterly: "At the time, Pei Fang was angry, and I could only go along with her. I originally thought it would be good for her to go to Shanghai, and I would bring her over when I came to Jincheng."
He was driven to desperation by the two women, but who knew that Hu Peifang had gone to Shanghai and only sent him a telegram saying she had arrived safely, and then there was no further news.
He wrote many letters to the address she left, but received no reply, so he became worried.
Shen Rong didn't take it to heart. Isn't breaking up about cutting off all ties cleanly? If there's still lingering connection, then what's the point of breaking up? She didn't find it strange at all that he didn't reply to her message.
It would be strange if he replied, but judging from Wu Yong's expression, does he want to salvage the relationship? Why didn't he do that earlier?
She looked somewhat embarrassed, but finally spoke up: "Actually, this is Mr. Wu's family matter, and I shouldn't have interfered. Peifang is my friend, and naturally I want her to be happy. Since you've already separated, why not just live your own lives peacefully? Why is Mr. Wu inquiring about her?"
Wu Yong paused for a moment, then said somewhat dejectedly, "I didn't want to break up with her."
"What does this mean?" Shen Rong laughed, her tone becoming somewhat sarcastic: "Then what does Mr. Wu consider her? A mistress? You want to have a virtuous wife at home and a beautiful concubine outside, enjoying the bliss of having two women at once?"
Wu Yong blushed with embarrassment and awkwardly explained, "No, I do want a divorce, but... I need her to give me a little more time. I will definitely give her a proper status."
Shen Rong chuckled dryly, "Does Mr. Wu even believe what he himself is saying? You two have been together for quite some time now, so why didn't she leave before, and why does she suddenly want to break up with you now?" Hasn't he thought about the answer?
Wu Yong was also troubled. He really couldn't understand: "Yes, we used to be very good together. She never cared about these things..." She used to understand and be considerate of his difficulties. Why has it turned out like this now?
Sometimes men can be really good at playing dumb, so Shen Rong simply made his stance clear: "Mr. Wu, if you want me to help persuade her, then please don't ask."
She would never advise a friend to become a mistress.
Wu Yong felt embarrassed. That was indeed his plan. Hu Peifang didn't have many friends, and Mrs. Lu was her only close friend.
He knew that some of his actions might have hurt Hu Peifang, but he was already trying to get a divorce. Give him some more time, and he could guarantee that he would definitely get a divorce.
Shen Rong shook her head, believing that Hu Peifang had heard many such assurances, and she didn't want to get involved in these messy matters: "Mr. Wu, ruining a marriage is not a good thing. To be honest, I think it's a good thing that Peifang and you broke up. Although we are friends, to be honest, I don't really approve of some of Peifang's actions. Her interference in your marriage with Mrs. Wu is immoral, and I have never really approved of your relationship."
Hearing this, Wu Yong became unusually anxious: "Mrs. Lu, we are truly in love. This has nothing to do with Pei Fang; it's a family problem..."
Shen Rong reached out her hand to refuse: "Mr. Wu, you don't need to explain to me. This is my personal opinion. I know you have feelings for each other, but isn't your love also hurting another innocent woman?"
Wu Yong knew she was referring to his first wife.
"But I have no feelings for her!"
"Old Wu."
As soon as she finished speaking, a middle-aged woman in a cheongsam hurried over. She had a deep vertical line between her eyebrows, indicating that she often frowned. Her gaze toward Shen Rong was critical and wary.
Wu Yong composed himself, his brow furrowing slightly in disgust.
"What is it?" he asked coldly.
The middle-aged woman's expression froze, and she looked somewhat displeased, but her tone was gentle: "You disappeared in the blink of an eye, and I don't know anyone here."
"I told you to stay in Pingcheng and not come with me, and it was your own choice."
His tone was harsh, especially in front of outsiders, which put the middle-aged woman in an awkward position, and her smile froze.
"Mrs. Wu, it's a pleasure to meet you." Shen Rong greeted her with a smile, which was considered as giving her a way out.
Mrs. Wu glanced quickly at Shen Rong and saw that the woman was young, beautiful, slim, and fashionably dressed—the kind of woman Wu Yong liked. Her smile became somewhat faint.
In particular, Wu Yong showed no intention of introducing her to anyone, which made Mrs. Wu even more wary.
City women are shameless; they'll climb up to any man with some ability. She won't let any other woman get involved with Wu Yong.
Knowing that city women valued their pride, she deliberately gave them a bold, slightly humiliating look as she assessed them: "This young lady is truly young and beautiful. You know our Old Wu, don't you? You don't know, our Old Wu always tries to put on a show of wealth when he's not, he's just a poor, bookish scholar..."
Seeing that she was speaking inappropriately, Wu Yong grabbed her and scolded her in a low voice, "Shut up!"
This was outrageous. Mrs. Wu assumed her husband was defending the woman, and her voice rose eight octaves: "What did I say? You're shameless yourself, and you won't even let others talk about you..."
Enraged, Wu Yong raised his hand and slapped him across the face.
Shen Rong let out a sigh, which earned him a furious glare from Mrs. Wu.
"Alright, you two can explain it yourselves. Outsiders shouldn't interfere in matters between husband and wife." Shen Rong bowed slightly and said, "I have to go now. You two can talk it over."
Mrs. Wu was unconvinced and tried to stop this little vixen, but Wu Yong shoved her aside.
"Do you really want me to go back to my hometown to farm?" This question made Mrs. Wu stop in her tracks.
Wu Yong is now a well-known figure. If he really goes back to farming, what will happen to his son's future?
She scoffed, "Then just stop flirting with other women."
In the blink of an eye, he had hooked up with a vixen.
Wu Yong was so angry that his eyes were blurry and he could hardly stand: "Go ahead and make a scene, shout as loud as you want, and I'll die in the moat tomorrow, and that will be your wish."
Mrs. Wu was frightened, her face turned pale, but she forced a strong voice: "Who are you trying to scare? This is Jincheng, not some lawless rural area."
Wu Yong sneered. Was she deliberately doing these things because she knew he cared about his pride?
“I’m sorry, but my patience has its limits. You’ve already caused a huge mess in Pingcheng, and you want to do the same in Jincheng? Do I not even have the freedom to talk to other people anymore?”
If she hadn't made such a fool of herself, he wouldn't have come all the way to Jincheng, but who knew he still couldn't get rid of her.
Mrs. Wu stared intently at him: "It's good that you know you're sorry to me. I didn't tell you not to talk to anyone, just don't chat and laugh with that little vixen."
Wu Yong gave a mocking smile, his tone indifferent: "That's Mrs. Lu, the eldest daughter of the Shen family. Go ask around before you come here acting crazy."
He took off his glasses, wiped them, and strode away, leaving Mrs. Wu standing there looking completely bewildered.
Shen Rong took her mother's arm and went out, yawning. It was a bit cold in Jincheng that night, and she shivered.
A figure walked over from a short distance away, took off his coat and draped it over her shoulders.
"Why are you here?" Shen Rong looked up at him, wondering if he really came to wait and see if she was flirting with any handsome guys.
She stared at Lu Lin with a half-smile, raising her eyebrows in a teasing tone.
Feeling uncomfortable under their gaze, Lu Lin turned around and spoke to the two elders of the Shen family: "I reckon you're almost done here too."
Shen's father asked him, "How long have you been here? Why haven't you gone in?"
Lu Lin shook his head: "I just arrived, and going in means another round of socializing. It's too much trouble."
Mr. Shen shook his head helplessly. Isn't this all about socializing in officialdom? Seeing that he was about to speak again, Mrs. Shen secretly pinched him.
"Rongrong just said she was a little hungry, so let's go back first and have Tianming take her to get something to eat."
Shen Jiashi also said he wanted to go, but his mother glared at him fiercely, so he could only change his words: "Forget it, I won't be a third wheel, I'll go back and eat noodles."
After the Shen family left, Shen Rong, arm in arm with Lu Lin, strolled slowly down the road.
Tall trees lined both sides of the road, and the streetlights were dim. Occasionally, two or three pedestrians would pass by. She would be a little scared if she walked alone, but with Lu Lin by her side, she felt very safe.
"What are you laughing at?" Lu Lin asked her, his mouth stretched wide.
Shen Rong leaned her head closer: "It just feels like I've never taken such a leisurely stroll before."
Lu Lin reached out and took her hand: "Then I'll try to make some time to go for a walk with you."
"The atmosphere needs to be good too, right?" If you just walk around like this every day, what's the difference between that and exercising after a meal?
She meant a walk on the street for a date, not exercise, and Shen Rong gave him a reproachful look.
Lu Lin smiled and asked her if the ball was fun.
What's so fun about it? It's all the same old stuff: drinking, dancing, chatting, nothing interesting.
"Let's talk about what to eat instead," Shen Rong asked, tilting her head. "What are we going to eat?"
Lu Lin glanced at the surroundings and said, "I heard from a colleague that there's a place nearby that serves really good crab roe buns. Would you like to try it?"
Shen Rong nodded vigorously, his mouth watering. He was so hungry!
Lu Lin took her hand and held it tightly with his fingers: "Go that way."
The two were crossing the street when they just brushed past a car.
The woman inside the car exclaimed, then curled her lip and spat, "Indecent."
As Wu Yong watched the two figures embracing each other, he felt a pang of nostalgia, remembering how close he and Pei Fang had once been.
Mrs. Wu: "This man wasn't at the ball, was he?"
Did she hook up with a gigolo? She suddenly perked up.
Wu Yong ignored her and focused on what was ahead.
***
The next day, Mrs. Wu served Wu Yong breakfast and tidied up the house before her old maid returned with a vegetable basket.
She asked urgently, "Have you found out everything?"
She always felt that Wu Yong was lying to her. What was so great about being Mrs. Lu or Miss Shen? Wasn't he just trying to stop her from making trouble?
Such tension might mean something's up.
However, she was also shrewd enough to find out more about the person first, so that she would be more confident. If she was going to make a scene, she would make a big one, so that Wu Yong would know to be afraid and never dare to have any more tricks up his sleeve.
The old woman poured a bowl of tea, drank it all in one gulp, and wiped her mouth.
"Madam, it's really hard to find out. I've been to quite a few places."
Mrs. Wu was a little annoyed: "I know, I know, I'll give you more money this month."
The old woman lowered her head, pursed her lips, and continued drinking water.
With the wife's stingy nature, she'd probably only add a few copper coins at most. If it weren't for the difficulty of finding work these days, she really wouldn't want to work here anymore. The money is meager, but the workload is plentiful, and the wife in charge is so stingy.
"Speak quickly, stop drinking!" Mrs. Wu snatched the bowl from her; tea was free!
"What did you find out?" Surely you didn't find out nothing at all.
The old woman plopped down: "Madam, don't worry, there's no one in Jincheng we can't find out about. The person you're talking about is indeed hard to find out about. He just moved here, but he's very famous."
"Madam, do you know her family? They're high-ranking officials!" she asked curiously, her face beaming with confidence, as if the officials were her relatives.
Mrs. Wu exclaimed, "Really?"
The old woman nodded: "It's true, Mrs. Lu's husband is now..." She pointed upwards, "...working as an attendant to him."
She countered by asking Mrs. Wu if she knew what a page was, and Mrs. Wu genuinely didn't know. The old woman was showing off again.
Actually, she didn't know either; she had only overheard it in a teahouse today.
"Just like the emperor's trusted ministers in the past."
Mrs. Wu felt a chill run down her spine. Could it be that Wu Yong really wasn't lying to her? But that Mrs. Lu was so young, could she be a second wife?
Yes, that must be it. If someone can become a high-ranking official, they must be quite old. So the young man she saw last night must not be her husband! She was a little agitated.
To everyone's surprise, the old woman slapped her hand and said, "What remarriage? They are the original couple. This lady is truly born with a life of wealth and privilege. Her family is rich, her husband is powerful, and she gave birth to a son as her first child. It's something to be envied."
"Is her family also very famous?" Mrs. Wu asked.
"That's right. If you go out of this alley and walk two streets, there's a big bank, the Shen Family Bank, which belongs to their family."
The old woman sighed, "Such a big bank, there must be so much money in it, how can we possibly spend it all?"
Mrs. Wu looked rather unwell, feeling a bitter taste in her mouth. How could others be so lucky? If... if her family hadn't fallen into ruin, Wu Yong probably wouldn't have dared to say anything about divorcing her.
However, someone like that probably wouldn't even look down on Wu Yong.
"Madam, why are you asking about their family? Do you have relatives there? Oh, right, they just came from Pingcheng too."
Mrs. Wu felt a mix of emotions and waved her away, saying, "No, I just met her once and was curious. Go on with your work, there's a lot to do in the kitchen."
The old woman pursed her lips and picked up the basket with heavy movements. If she hadn't been instructed by her mother to inquire about information early that morning, she would have finished her work in the kitchen long ago.
Mrs. Wu poured herself a cup of tea, her hands trembling slightly, she was furious!
That Wu Yong is a heartless and ungrateful scoundrel. They're both from Pingcheng, so they must have known each other before. If he had introduced her to him from the beginning, how could she have misunderstood and said those rude things? Now she's probably offended someone!
She had been married into the Wu family for almost twenty years, had given birth to his son, and served his parents, yet he showed her no affection whatsoever.
Wu Yong is so hateful! Now that he's achieved success, he wants to dump her and marry another beautiful wife. Dream on!
If it weren't for me, Wu Yong would still be farming in the countryside!
***
Shen Rong was unaware that someone was secretly inquiring about her. She and Lu Lin arrived at the station early to pick up Lu Chang.
Lu Lin didn't really want to come. Lu Chang wasn't a child; he had hands and feet, so why should he take on this task?
Shen Rong coaxed him, "Let's just pretend we're shopping."
"Why did you bring him shopping?" Lu Lin was referring to Xiao Ming in his arms.
Shen Rong kissed her son's little hand: "I know you want some alone time with me, but our Xiaoming hasn't met his uncle yet, so he should at least meet him and get a red envelope or something."
Lu Chang is now receiving a salary, so he has to make the sacrifices.
Lu Lin's face turned slightly red and dark. What kind of private time is this? How could he say such a thing in public?
"Bao!" Xiaoming didn't know his father was shy. He only heard "bao" and remembered the bao he ate last night. It was really delicious. He let out a loud shout and his mouth watered.
Shen Rong and Lu Lin exchanged a glance and smiled wickedly.
"Little foodie." Shen Rong pinched his nose and wiped his mouth with a hint of disgust.
The train pulled into the station, and Lu Lin pulled his wife to a less crowded area to avoid getting jostled.
A short while later, Lu Chang got out of the car.
Lu Lin was tall and carrying a child, so he was spotted immediately.
However, Lu Chang frowned, and his expression was not good.
"What happened?" Lu Lin asked.
Lu Chang: "Big brother, little sister has gone missing."
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