Chapter 330: Chapter 331 - Following!

Song Yixiao made up her mind to let it go. Madam Lu went out of the door and quietly returned to her own residence, then she asked Zhang Cuiniang, “Did someone look for me just now?”

“Master came here just now and I gave him the runaround.” Zhang Cuiniang said, “Master should not suspect.”

After answering, Zhang Cuiniang couldn’t help persuading her again, “No matter whether that Princess Consort of Wei was forced to remarry or not, she could marry into the prince’s mansion in a proper manner and was deeply favored by Prince of Hengshan after she married into the Song Family for ten years and gave birth to Eldest Young Lady, which shows her cunning. Madam, you have always been kind and generous, how could you be a match for someone like her? Why do you need to go to her? After all, she only occasionally met and talked with Master, what can happen in broad daylight?”

Like Song Yixiao, Zhang Cuiniang did not support Madam Lu’s direct confrontation with Wei Mengying. In her mind, Wei Mengying did not do anything to seduce Song Yuan, except for that day when Wei Mengying met him by chance and talked to him alone. In addition, the conversation that day was also Song Yuan’s request.

If Madam Lu went to Wei Mengying and Wei Mengying said, “What does it matter to me that you can’t control your husband?” This would be enough to make Madam Lu cover her face and walk away.

However, Madam Lu did not think so. She said, “It has been a long time since Princess Consort of Wei remarried. If she had not said something to my husband that day, why would he have been staring at her old things all these days? Besides, it was my husband who asked to talk to her alone, but if she had no feelings for him, why did she agree?”

Zhang Cuiniang said, “Madam, you are not good at arguing with people. To be honest, Princess Consort of Wei’s status today is also above yours. If you become her enemy, it will definitely be a storm. Besides, Princess Consort of Wei is Eldest Young Lady’s birth mother. Although Eldest Young Lady respected you, you never raised her. Between her birth mother and stepmother, would she choose the latter? Madam, you have put so much effort into making up with her, but this time it might waste all the previous efforts.”

“…” After a long silence, Madam Lu said, “Eldest Young Lady didn’t promise to make a separate appointment for me with Princess Consort of Wei. She only said that Princess Consort of Wei would participate in a lake tour organized by Young Mistress Cao. I… I’ll think about it then.”

But two days later, Madam Lu still got up in the morning and ordered Zhang Cuiniang to fetch a set of inconspicuous subordinate clothes.

Zhang Cuiniang originally wanted to persuade her, but looking at her gloomy face, Zhang Cuiniang did not dare to speak in the end, but secretly prayed that nothing would happen.

She had no idea how much Madam Lu had been suffering. Because Liu Zhijin was sent away, Song Yuan stayed in Madam Lu’s room these two days, he whispered Wei Mengying’s name every night. Madam Lu listened to it all night, so the torment in her heart could be imagined.

Last night Madam Lu could not stand it and pushed Song Yuan awake to question him, but Song Yuan was just silent.

Finally, seeing that Madam Lu was getting more and more agitated with her questions, he got up and got dressed then went to sleep in his study.

Madam Lu spent most of the night crying in her room. Song Yuan came back at dawn. He personally wrung the handkerchief out to wipe her face and eyes. He looked guilty, but didn’t mean to explain.

Finally, Madam Lu asked him, “If you are still obsessed with Princess Consort of Wei, why did you say that you hope me to be your first wife two days ago?”

“I am going out today, and I will give you an explanation when I come back,” Song Yuan pondered for a long time before saying vaguely, “Can you believe me once more?”

If he said this before, Madam Lu would believe him.

But today…

Madam Lu immediately thought of what Song Yixiao had said about Wei Mengying’s whereabouts.

How could she not suspect that Song Yuan was going to Wei Mengying?

With such suspicions, how could she remain indifferent?

Madam Lu’s face and hands were covered with dust and she tried her best to look unremarkable as an inconspicuous servant. Madam Lu didn’t let Zhang Cuiniang accompany her. She followed Song Yuan alone from afar on the remote mountain path. Seeing that he was really headed to the lake, Madam Lu’s anger, pain, jealousy and HYPERLINK “../../../../software/YoudaoDict8.9.6/Dict/8.10.3.0/resultui/html/index.html” l “/javascript:;”grievance in her heart were like boiling oil.

However, to her surprise, Song Yuan at first looked to be walking towards the lake. But when he reached the vicinity of the lake, he stepped on a path that could not be seen without careful observation.

Madam Lu was puzzled at first, but after following for a while she came to her senses: “Yes, Eldest Young Lady said that Princess Consort of Wei was invited by Young Mistress Cao to the lake today, and that Young Mistress Cao seemed to have invited many other people as well. The former relationship between my husband and Princess Consort of Wei is not a secret in the imperial capital, how can they meet under the watchful eyes of the people? They must be looking for a quiet place, so as to avoid the eyes and ears of the people.”

This speculation became more and more convinced after Song Yuan finally entered a very secretive small valley.

Madam Lu watched Song Yuan walk to a newly built cabin in the corner of the valley, and she almost couldn’t control the urge to rush up to him. She originally thought that her husband and Wei Mengying only met in private to talk, but she never thought that these two had even built a house. Then it was obvious what they would do after they met.

Biting her lip, she detected a distinct salty taste between her teeth. She did not show up immediately by her last sanity. She thought, this was only a cabin and it could not prove anything, who can guarantee that there must be something of Wei Mengying inside? Even if there was, Song Yuan could say that he found this room inadvertently, and he wanted to see it out of curiosity.

“Wei Mengying will definitely come over.” Madam Lu thought silently, “When she comes, I will catch her in the act and make them dumbfounded.”

It was just that the wait was extraordinarily long in this case. Madam Lu also thought of Song Yuan inexplicably loving to his eldest daughter and granddaughter, and also gave the granddaughter a considerable estate.

Like Jian Xubai and Song Yixiao, she originally thought that Song Yuan was about to be HYPERLINK “../../../../software/YoudaoDict8.9.6/Dict/8.10.3.0/resultui/html/index.html” l “/javascript:;”sent HYPERLINK “../../../../software/YoudaoDict8.9.6/Dict/8.10.3.0/resultui/html/index.html” l “/javascript:;”to HYPERLINK “../../../../software/YoudaoDict8.9.6/Dict/8.10.3.0/resultui/html/index.html” l “/javascript:;”be HYPERLINK “../../../../software/YoudaoDict8.9.6/Dict/8.10.3.0/resultui/html/index.html” l “/javascript:;”local HYPERLINK “../../../../software/YoudaoDict8.9.6/Dict/8.10.3.0/resultui/html/index.html” l “/javascript:;”officials, so he came to his sense and felt guilty about his eldest daughter.

Now it occurred to Madam Lu that he was simply rekindling the past romance with Wei Mengying.

“I’m so silly.” Madam Lu thought sadly, “The reason why Eldest Young Lady was not loved by my husband before was because of her birth mother. Now that my husband has changed his attitude towards her, what else could it be but reconciliation with her birth mother?”

A HYPERLINK “../../../../software/YoudaoDict8.9.6/Dict/8.10.3.0/resultui/html/index.html” l “/javascript:;”few HYPERLINK “../../../../software/YoudaoDict8.9.6/Dict/8.10.3.0/resultui/html/index.html” l “/javascript:;”days HYPERLINK “../../../../software/YoudaoDict8.9.6/Dict/8.10.3.0/resultui/html/index.html” l “/javascript:;”ago, Madam Lu was so excited that she burst into tears because of Song Yuan’s words, “If only you were my first wife”. Now she only felt that this was extremely ironic.

She even suspected Song Yixiao, too. Song Yixiao’s birth father and mother reconciled. As the only daughter of the two, how could she not know?

No wonder Song Yixiao refused to help her ask her birth mother out. It turned out that she was also afraid her mother would be found out. Song Yixiao revealed the lake tour because her status was lower than Wei Mengying’s, and in front of everyone, what she can do to Song Yixiao’s birth mother?

The more Madam Lu thought about it, the sadder she was, and her heart welled up a complaint.

Just as she was unable to contain herself any longer, there was finally movement on the trail into the valley.

“Aunt, there is a valley here, let’s take shelter. When the clothes are dry, we will go out and call someone, so that no one will see us and gossip.” A girl’s voice, clear and concerned, came from a distance. “Watch your step… I’m sure no one’s been in this place before, and the grass is a mess, look out!”

This voice was unfamiliar to Madam Lu, and she had never heard it before. She was wondering who the visitors were, and whether they had anything to do with Song Yuan and the cabin in the valley. The next moment, she heard Wei Mengying’s voice, “Good children, thanks to you two today. I thought to take you out for a break, I did not expect to meet the capsized boat. But fortunately you both can swim, otherwise how can I explain? Even I have to rely on you to survive today.”

“My pleasure?” The other girl interrupted her softly and said thoughtfully, “Mother, you have always been blessed, how could something happen? Thanks to you, we are threatening but not dangerous.”

This valley was not large, but the location of the cabin was relatively remote. Besides, no one cleaned up the grass in the valley and the vegetation was lush in this season, so when people enter the valley, they could not see the cabin and Song Yuan who was standing in front of the cabin with his hands at his back.

Madam Lu, who was hiding not far from the cabin listened to the three people walking and talking, feeling surprised and strange. According to their words, it seemed that their boat capsized during lake tour and the two girls saved Wei Mengying. Because of their thin summer clothes, the two girls persuaded Wei Mengying to take shelter in the depths of the valley in order to avoid being seen by people.

When the dresses dried, they would go back out to find someone.

If only Wei Mengying came here, Madam Lu would have thought it was Wei Mengying’s trick to get rid of the crowd and meet with Song Yuan in private. But the two girls accompanying her, according to their ways of address, one of them was Wei Mengying’s niece Wei Chan, who could still be seen as Wei Mengying’s people. But the other was the sixth young lady Lu Chai’er who just got married from the prince’s mansion.

“Wei Chan may know that her aunt has a love affair stealthily with her ex-husband and still help keep it a secret, or even to keep watch. But Lu Chai’er is Prince of Hengshan’s daughter, how could she help her stepmother betray her own father?” Madam Lu was HYPERLINK “../../../../software/YoudaoDict8.9.6/Dict/8.10.3.0/resultui/html/index.html” l “/javascript:;”anxious HYPERLINK “../../../../software/YoudaoDict8.9.6/Dict/8.10.3.0/resultui/html/index.html” l “/javascript:;”and HYPERLINK “../../../../software/YoudaoDict8.9.6/Dict/8.10.3.0/resultui/html/index.html” l “/javascript:;”doubtful, she thought, “Could it be that Princess Consort of Wei and my husband really have nothing to do with each other and this is just a coincidence?”

But she immediately came to her senses. How could there be so many coincidences?

Song Yuan went out alone early this morning and came here. Later, after the two girls saved Wei Mengying, they did not go anywhere but also came here.

Wasn’t it clear what happened?

Nine times out of ten the capsized boat had a relationship with Song Yuan.

Madam Lu felt like a bucket of ice water was pouring down from her head.

In the summer of the sixth lunar month, she felt a visceral chill.

She unconsciously put the back of her hand in her mouth to keep from making any noise. At this moment, the words of Song Yuan in the morning “I will give you an explanation when I come back” suddenly rang in the ear. Dull and terrified, she thought, did her husband mean…he was going to do something…with Wei Mengying?

Madam Lu’s mind was in chaos. She did not know what to do next.

As she cowered in the grass, the three who were talking and laughing, looking for a place to rest, finally saw the cabin.

They also saw Song Yuan, who stood in front of the cabin and abruptly turned his head.

He was wearing a light green HYPERLINK “../../../../software/YoudaoDict8.9.6/Dict/8.10.3.0/resultui/html/index.html” l “/javascript:;”long HYPERLINK “../../../../software/YoudaoDict8.9.6/Dict/8.10.3.0/resultui/html/index.html” l “/javascript:;”gown, with a black soft scarf over his head, a leather belt wrapped his waist, and light boots. The mountain breeze passed through the lush mountain, and gladly lifted his sleeves. Fluttering and waving, it made Wei Mengying remember her first meeting with Song Yuan almost twenty years ago.

Under the riverside willow, a green-shirted teenage boy, smiling, turned his head to look at her and his bright eyes full of warmth and amazement.

After nearly two decades of grudges, Song Yuan, at this moment was still youthful and handsome, but when he looked at Wei Mengying, there is no youthful brightness and fascination, only endless gloom.

It liked the clouds before a heavy rain.

Heavy and ominous.

Wei Mengying was about to blurt out surprise, but was stopped by his eyes. The mountain wind blew through her wet hair and dress. She could not help shivering in the scorching sun in the sixth lunar month. Her legs were weak and she almost fell.

Only then did she realize that Wei Chan and Lu Chai’er, who had been supporting her left and right, had quietly left.

She looked around in panic, but there was no sign of the girls.

Here only Song Yuan was stepping on weeds and thorns towards her.