Lu Chengzong was loyal and honest, but not foolish. Lu Chengzhang had already told Lu Chengzong on the way back from Hongdu Prefecture about what Qian Hong had done. Li Zhongjue’s current reaction had already confirmed Qian Shi’s actions.
Although he didn’t know the reason, recalling the incident where he, his father, and brother were stopped at the gate, and later played around at Longxing Cloth Shop and Hongdu Prefecture, Chen Shi’s words seemed entirely justified even to someone as honest as Lu Chengzong.
It was only their past relationship and Li Zhongjue’s politeness that prevented him from directly calling Qian Shi “Madam Li” in front of Li Zhongjue. That was all.
Li Zhongjue was completely bewildered; Lu Chengzong’s words echoed in his ears repeatedly.
After a while, he realized what Lu Chengzong meant. Lu Chengxiao had called his uncle “Uncle Shi” before, and Lu Chengzong should have done the same. But Lu Chengzong had changed “Uncle Qian” to “your uncle” in the middle.
Thinking of the more than two years when the Lu family’s goods were all brought in together with his uncle’s, Li Zhongjue found it difficult to breathe. He looked at Lu Chengzong and said, “Was your procurement successful?”
Lu Chengzong smiled and remained silent.
Although Li Zhongjue didn’t know the specifics, he vaguely guessed.
His face burned hotly, making him lose face in front of Lu Chengzong.
Lu Chengzong also saw this. Li Zhongjue had no idea before, and knowing how close he was to his younger brother, Lu Chengzong didn’t want to embarrass him. Instead, he quickly got to the point and said, “I came this time to retrieve the letter my father sent to your household.”
This sudden turn left Li Zhongjue stunned, and he hadn’t reacted yet.
Lu Chengzong continued, “My younger brother’s wedding is scheduled for the end of next month, and we haven’t prepared the invitations yet. My father was happy at the time and sent a letter here first. My mother’s intention was that at that time, she didn’t know Madam’s thoughts and came to invite her rashly. Although it’s not a formal invitation, it’s not lacking in respect. Afraid of troubling Madam, she specifically asked me to come and retrieve the letter.”
“Retrieving the letter means you don’t need to come to the wedding.”
Li Zhongjue felt panicked. He knocked over the tea cup on his table, and the tea quickly spread across the tablecloth. Ignoring it, he stood up and said, “Big Brother Chengzong, this is our fault. There may have been some misunderstanding.”
As he mentioned misunderstanding, his voice was strained, and he couldn’t continue. He could only bow his head and say, “When I received Uncle Lu’s letter in July, I had already written to inform my father of Chengxiao’s wedding news. My father was very pleased and replied that he would return in August. Perhaps he is on his way or will be home soon. Big Brother Chengzong, when my father returns, I will immediately inform him truthfully about everything. We will personally visit the prefectural city to apologize, and I hope Uncle and Aunt won’t break ties with our family because of this.”
He didn’t mention Qian Shi and Li Yunbi in his words, knowing that the Lu family must not want to see the mother and daughter.
Lu Chengzong didn’t respond to this. He simply said, “Zhongjue, please don’t make it difficult for me. Although I don’t quite understand what caused the rift between the two families, I am here on my mother’s orders and must bring back that letter before I can leave. Please go and fetch it for me.”
With just this sentence, Li Zhongjue knew that Lu Chengzong still didn’t know about the incident in May, and the Lu family had still kept some face for their younger sister.
He felt both grateful and ashamed in his heart, thinking about how both families had come to this point today, and his heart was even more bitter. With difficulty, Li Zhongjue spoke up, saying, “Chengxiao has done great favors for my family. He is like a brother to me, and my father values him greatly. Brother Chengzong, if my mother has done wrong, I dare not ask Uncle and Aunt for forgiveness. The letter… I will go and fetch it for you, but please, tell Uncle and Aunt on my behalf. When my father returns, we will visit immediately.”
Lu Chengzong carefully considered his mother’s instructions again. She hadn’t explicitly forbidden anyone from visiting, so he didn’t say anything further, neither accepting nor refusing.
Seeing that he didn’t outright refuse, Li Zhongjue felt slightly relieved. Just then, the waiter brought the dishes. Li Zhongjue forced a smile and said, “Brother Chengzong, let��s eat first. After dinner, I’ll go home and fetch the letter for you.”
They had ordered a table full of delicious dishes, so they couldn’t just leave them uneaten. However, they didn’t open the wine, and both ate in silence.
Li Zhongjue wanted to inquire about the procurement process from Lu Chengzong, but after several attempts, he couldn’t bring himself to ask.
After dinner, Lu Chengzong was about to go with Li Zhongjue to wait outside the Li family mansion for the letter. However, Li Zhongjue insisted on first accompanying Lu Chengzong to find accommodations and promised to deliver the letter later.
Lu Chengzong didn’t want things to become too tense, so he agreed and found an inn, paying for the room himself. They agreed on a time, and he waited at the inn.
Once Li Zhongjue left the inn, he went straight to Longxing Cloth Shop, where he privately sought out Xiao Qian. After questioning him in detail, he left Longxing a quarter of an hour later, feeling disoriented, and returned to the Li residence.
By the time he returned home, it was already late in the evening. Qian Shi and her daughter were waiting for him to have dinner. As soon as they saw him return, they asked why he was back so late, sensing something amiss from Li Zhongjue’s expression.
“What’s wrong with you? Why do you look so bad?” Qian Shi asked, bewildered.
Li Zhongjue stared at her blankly, full of frustration and embarrassment because she was his mother. He couldn’t say a word.
All he felt was deep exhaustion.
Finally, he managed to say, “I’m going to Father’s study.”
Qian Shi looked puzzled.
Li Zhongjue glanced at her and said, “Think about how you’re going to explain the Lu family’s affairs to Father. When Father returns, I’ll explain everything clearly.”
Qian Shi’s face suddenly changed. “What are you talking about?”
Li Yunbi, standing nearby, also froze upon hearing this. “Brother, what’s wrong with the Lu family?”
Li Zhongjue’s biggest annoyance now was Li Yunbi. If it weren’t for her, none of these troubles would have arisen. All the fondness and care he had shown her in the past were now impossible to summon. He didn’t even want to look at her or respond to her.
Turning his eyes away, Li Zhongjue addressed only Qian Shi, saying, “Auntie Lu asked Brother Chengzong to come and retrieve the letter that Uncle Lu wrote to Father in July. Do you understand what that means?”
Li Yunbi’s heart raced with panic, her legs went weak, and her face turned pale as she trembled, asking, “Mother, Second Brother, what are you talking about?”
No one responded to her. Qian Shi stared at Li Zhongjue blankly and asked, “What does it mean?”
“It means that they don’t want our family to attend Chengxiao’s wedding.”
“I won’t repeat the exact words, for fear you won’t be able to bear hearing them.”
“Father is almost home. He was so happy to rush back for Chengxiao’s wedding, but now, you need to figure out how to explain this to him yourself.”
With each sentence Li Zhongjue uttered, Qian Shi’s face flushed deeper.
Aunt Lu… Chengxiao’s biological mother?
In the recesses of her memory, Qian Shi searched carefully. Was her surname Chen? Or Zheng? Qian Shi couldn’t quite recall, but she remembered the woman was well-born, gentle, and smiled often.
In nearly four years, she had only seen her twice. Once when she received a letter to fetch Li Cunyi in Changfeng Town, where she saw her husband covered in bandages, and they exchanged a few words.
The other time was when the couple accompanied Chengxiao to Yuanzhou Academy. The woman’s eyes were red, and she had so much to say to fourteen-year-old Chengxiao. They had also visited the Li family’s home, seeming reluctant to leave Chengxiao in Yuanzhou for his studies. Most of the time, she forced herself to stay cheerful, only brightening up when discussing where to buy things.
Was it her who sent the eldest son of the Lu family to retrieve the letter stating Chengxiao’s wedding date?
Taking the letter was a pretext, a way to confront her, to expose what she had done to her son, and either through Zhongjue or herself, to confront Li Cunyi directly was the real purpose.
Qian Shi felt as though she had been slapped in the face by someone she had never truly taken into consideration.
Sansukini: A veritable slap in the face. Chen Shi won this battle.
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