Chapter 116: Chapter 100

Jun Zishu chewed her food with her cheeks puffed up, not quite understanding why everyone looked at her.

Meanwhile, Luo Minghuan smiled, finding Jun Zishu’s appearance to be very cute. The little dummy’s cute appearance was like a spring breeze that blew away all of the gloomy coldness in her heart.

Luo Ziqi originally wanted to cause a scene. However, after looking at Jun Zishu’s reaction, she suddenly found herself at a loss on what to do. The way Jun Zishu looked at her made it look like she was causing a fuss for no reason.

“I must’ve been seeing things. Since it’s delicious, make sure to have some more.”

“Oh.”

Jun Zishu looked at Luo Ziqi strangely before lowering her head and resuming her meal.

With the atmosphere turning awkward, Luo Ziqi quickly picked up her chopsticks and focused on her meal as well, doing her best to hide her embarrassment.

As for everyone else, some people found this situation to be quite amusing. After all, the newly-arrived Second Young Madam was clearly a fool, so how could a fool respond to a veiled provocation? Luo Ziqi must be a fool as well would try to provoke the Second Young Madam.

Disregarding the hidden daggers the others at the table exchanged, Jun Zishu placed her attention entirely on her meal.

There were many dishes spread across the big table. However, because of her short stature, there were some dishes Jun Zishu wanted that she couldn’t reach. At these times, she would look at Luo Minghuan with a pleading look, and Luo Minghuan would gladly come to her help.

The Luo Manor might seem peaceful on the surface, but it was actually split into three separate factions: Luo Minghuan’s faction, Lord Luo’s faction, and Madam Luo’s faction. Of the three, the first two were one-man factions, whereas Madam Luo’s faction was composed of herself, her son, the concubines, and the concubines’ children.

Although Lord Luo held the most power within the Luo Manor, he maintained a very ambiguous attitude regarding which of the other two factions he favored. Sometimes, he would favor Luo Minghuan’s side. At other times, he would favor Madam Luo’s side. Specifically, he constantly went along with the two sides’ manipulations, behaving as if he did not mind being manipulated at all.

In reality, though, nobody knew what he was actually thinking deep down inside.

Honestly, even Jun Zishu, who knew the story’s general plot, did not know what was going through her new father-in-law’s mind.

If one were to say that he loved his former wife, that would be very much correct.

Most of the older people in Yunshui Town knew how much effort Lord Luo had put into winning the previous Madam Luo’s heart. Then, when he finally wedded his sweetheart, the celebration that took place subsequently was utterly massive.

Moreover, for Madam Luo’s sake, Lord Luo had even dismissed all of his bed-warmers, leaving Madam Luo as his only woman. This action had caused many of the women in town to envy Madam Luo greatly.

Meanwhile, shortly after Madam Luo married into the Luo Manor, she brought Lord Luo a son, further increasing Lord Luo’s joy. Then, a year later, Madam Luo added a daughter to the Luo family.

Moreover, surprisingly, Lord Luo behaved like a filial husband, not taking in any concubines during his wife’s pregnancy. He did not drink himself drunk, either.

Nobody would dare say that Lord Luo did not love Madam Luo after this.

However, on the year Young Master Luo got into an accident, which was the sixth year that Madam Luo married Lord Luo, Lord Luo took in his first concubine.

Some people said that Lord Luo had already done very well as a husband. After all, he had only taken in his first concubine six years after his marriage with Madam Luo. However, some people felt that his actions contradicted his usual behavior. He had only lost his son not long ago, and Madam Luo should be in great grief. Yet, he had chosen to welcome another woman into the Luo Manor at this precarious time.

Outsiders originally thought Madam Luo would lose her mind over this matter. Indeed, Madam Luo did make a big move according to everyone’s expectations. Only, it was a move that nobody had ever expected her to make.

—Madam Luo had added three more concubines for Lord Luo. All three of them were beauties, each with her own merits.

Upon hearing this news, men thought that Madam Luo was a very considerate wife, while women thought Madam Luo must’ve gone crazy already.

Did Madam Luo go crazy, though? Of course not.

Jun Zishu ate as she thought. Then, when she suddenly saw a piece of meat appearing in her bowl, she snapped out of her daze and beamed a smile at Luo Minghuan.

Luo Minghuan was under the assumption that she had already uncovered most of the Luo Manor’s secrets and had guessed the rest of the story on her own. However, she failed to realize that her assumptions might not necessarily be correct.

Currently, not only was Luo Minghuan in a state where she believed that there was no mistake in her assumptions, but she even firmly believed that her version of the story was correct.

Jun Zishu set aside her chopsticks after Luo Minghuan did with hers. Then, she grabbed her handkerchief and wiped her mouth with it.

The Luo Manor was an interesting place. Some people pretended to be sincere, some pretended to be insincere while actually being sincere, and some were idiots and had no idea how to act.

Despite being pretty on the outside, the Luo Manor was actually a monster on the inside. It was a monster capable of devouring someone whole and making people lose their humanity.

“Are you full?”

Luo Minghuan lowered her hand and squeezed Jun Zishu’s hand under the table.

“Mhm.”

Jun Zishu nodded obediently like a good child.

“Father, we’ll be taking our leave first,” Luo Minghuan said to Lord Luo.

Lord Luo nodded, and Jun Zishu took this opportunity to get a closer look at the man.

At first glance, Lord Luo seemed to be an ordinary middle-aged man. However, when Jun Zishu looked carefully into his eyes, she noticed a flash of shrewdness hidden within them.

Lord Luo was a man who operated a large family business, after all. There was no way he could be an ordinary person.

Lord Luo had a very upright appearance. Although he couldn’t be considered handsome, Jun Zishu could imagine him being an elegant prince when he was young.

After exiting the dining hall, Luo Minghuan continued holding Jun Zishu’s hand. Then, when she noticed that her wife didn’t seem very happy, she asked, “Why the long face?”

“I don’t like those people.” Jun Zishu frowned, the expressions on her face looking very intuitive. “No, no, there is one person that I like.”

“Hmm? Who?”

Before Luo Minghuan could ask the little dummy which person specifically had upset her, she heard the little dummy’s follow-up sentence.

Personally, Luo Minghuan held no interest in anybody inside the dining hall. Every one of them looked abominable in her eyes. The only difference was how much of an eyesore she found each person to be. So, she couldn’t help but grow interested when she heard the little dummy’s follow-up sentence.

“It’s the person sitting next to me.”

“Fourth Sister, huh?”

Luo Minghuan pondered for a moment, her mind going over that person’s information. Then, she found that the girl was actually one of the more pleasant ones out of the group of eyesores.

Though, the only reason Luo Minghuan found her fourth sister pleasant was because the girl’s mother had died shortly after giving birth to her. Meanwhile, as the girl didn’t have any backing, she had spent all these years living in her own little courtyard with her maid, the two quietly fending for themselves in their small corner of the manor. Thus, they didn’t have any opportunities to get in Luo Minghuan’s way.

“There are two people I hate a lot.”

“Which two?”

“The girl who spoke to me and the one sitting next to her.”

Luo Minghuan instantly knew who Jun Zishu was talking about, and she couldn’t help but let out a cold laugh.

There were just some people who were ignorant of their place in life and foolishly insisted on standing in her way.

Luo Minghuan’s feud with Luo Ziqi had been going on for years now, so she wasn’t surprised that the little dummy would find Luo Ziqi detestable. As for the other one, she felt that he was indeed a disgusting existence as well. He was not worthy of being considered her little brother at all.

“If you see those two, stay far away from them.” Until the day comes where neither of them can make a sound anymore.

“Okay.”

Jun Zishu wore light-blue clothes today, similar to Luo Minghuan’s.

It was currently early autumn already, so the spring flowers lining the path they walked no longer bloomed. As they walked through the manor, an inexplicable sense of sluggishness spread across their bodies.

Luo Minghuan’s hands were still as cold as always. However, after holding Jun Zishu’s hand for a long time, she started feeling more comfortable than before.

Luo Minghuan didn’t know why she would be filled with warmth whenever she held Jun Zishu’s hands. Even though the autumn weather was chilly, her heart felt inexplicably warm.

…

At night, Luo Minghuan slept with Jun Zishu like she did yesterday.

Even though they had only slept together for a night thus far, Luo Minghuan found that she had already grown accustomed to Jun Zishu’s sleeping posture. By the time Jun Zishu’s back approached her chest, she had already taken the initiative to open her arms and embrace Jun Zishu’s small figure.

“We have to get up early for real tomorrow,” Luo Minghuan said as she fiddled with Jun Zishu’s hair.

“Hm?”

Jun Zishu responded with a soft hum, her voice wandering off as she pretended to struggle to stay awake.

Jun Zishu naturally knew what she needed to do tomorrow. In fact, she even knew what Luo Minghuan would do tomorrow.

“Sleep well.”

Luo Minghuan did not explain and simply ended their conversation with those words.

Hearing this, Jun Zishu finally closed off her mind and fell asleep. Whatever was going to happen tomorrow wouldn’t have anything to do with her, anyway.

Meanwhile, Luo Minghuan inwardly let out a soft sigh, her eyes fluttering in the darkness as she thought about tomorrow’s event. Then, while listening to the steady breathing of the person in her arms, she gradually grew sleepy and closed her eyes as well.

…

The thing Jun Zishu and Luo Minghuan needed to do the next day was visit a temple outside the town.

Madam Luo planned to take all of the Luo family’s female members to the temple. Though, before setting off for the temple, she sent someone to remind Luo Minghuan about the temple visit.

“Second Young Miss, the madam has said if you are feeling unwell, you can rest in the manor lest your condition worsens by going out,” the maid sent by Madam Luo said.

Essentially, what Madam Luo was trying to say to Luo Minghuan was: “You’re sick, so just stay at home and don’t come out.”

“I know my own body. Go back and tell the First Madam that I will be going on this trip,” Luo Minghuan said dismissively.

Hearing this, the maid bowed and quickly left to report back to her master.

“Are we going out to play?” Jun Zishu asked as she looked at Luo Minghuan.

In response, Luo Minghuan revealed a meaningful smile and said, “We’re going to watch a play.”

“What kind of play? Is it the kind of play sung by opera troupes?” Jun Zishu asked eagerly. “I’ve only glimpsed one before.”

However, Luo Minghuan shook her head, a cynical look appearing on her face as she thought of the upcoming “play.”

Meanwhile, seeing Luo Minghuan’s response, Jun Zishu lowered her head in disappointment, perfectly enacting the thought process of a simpleton.

“Do you like plays?” Luo Minghuan asked when she saw her wife’s downcast look.

“I’ve only ever seen one from afar. I think that those people look nice.”

The members of opera troupes were dressed colorfully, so they were indeed interesting to look at.

However, only wealthy people could afford to hire an opera troupe to perform in their manors. Meanwhile, the original owner of Jun Zishu’s body had only managed to catch a glimpse of a performing opera troupe when passing by a wealthy person’s manor.

Of course, Jun Zishu personally wasn’t interested in watching an opera troupe’s performance. She was merely doing what fit her persona.

Meanwhile, Luo Minghuan nodded when she heard Jun Zishu’s words. Then, when she heard another servant informing her that it was almost time to depart, she held Jun Zishu’s hand and made her way to the manor’s entrance.

The Luo family had eight female family members in total. While it might not seem like a lot, after including the maids and household staff members, the size of the group traveling to the temple increased significantly.