His cousin would rather knock him unconscious than submit to him—just thinking with his toes, he knew it couldn’t possibly have been his cousin who drugged him.
Then, recalling the oddness of his mother summoning him to the flower room, the answer became clear.
Madam Meng’s expression turned somewhat awkward. After all, she couldn’t admit that she had schemed to disgrace Chu Yun, only to end up causing her own son to suffer.
Meng Zhuo was no fool and immediately asked, “Then back then, when cousin fell into the water, was it also you, Mother—”
“Enough!”
Madam Meng suddenly stood up, cutting him off. “Who did I do all this for? It was for the good of you and your father! Although Grand Tutor Chu is gone, Chu Yun holds a substantial dowry, and Grand Tutor Chu had numerous disciples. All of this is of immense help to your and your father’s careers.”
Meng Zhuo opened his mouth but couldn’t muster a rebuttal. On one hand, he felt wronged for marrying a woman he didn’t love; on the other, he knew his mother’s words held truth.
If not for Chu Yun, his father wouldn’t have risen so quickly in rank over the years, nor would he have been so highly regarded among scholars.
Seeing Meng Zhuo’s devastated expression, Madam Meng couldn’t bear to speak harshly further. Glancing at Liu Sisi beside them, she reluctantly said, “These days, take good care of Zhuo’er, but don’t drag him into mischief. If I find out you’ve neglected his well-being, I’ll have your skin.”
Liu Sisi quickly and obediently agreed.
Seeing her compliance, Madam Meng’s frown eased slightly. She sighed and left the room.
Once the others were gone, Liu Sisi collapsed to the floor as if she had survived a disaster, then quietly let out a relieved smile.
Ever since Madam Meng brought her to this courtyard, she had been watched daily. Whenever Madam Meng was displeased, she would face beatings and insults, being scorned for her lowly origins and accused of corrupting Meng Zhuo.
Yesterday, she had bribed a young maid serving Madam Meng, hoping the maid would help her pass a message to Meng Zhuo—to convey her tender affections and find a way to get her out of Songhe Courtyard.
After delivering the message, she tried to sneak back but inadvertently overheard Madam Meng and Nanny Liu plotting beneath the window.
Who would have thought that a wealthy family like the Mengs would stoop to scheming for their daughter-in-law’s dowry? Even among humble households, such behavior would be scorned!
But the dowry had nothing to do with her. She was only worried that Meng Zhuo might be swayed by the Young Mistress because of it.
She had just entered the household and couldn’t afford to lose his favor so easily.
So she sought out the same maid again, offering more silver, and asked her to find an opportunity today to secretly swap the positions of the two cups.
According to her plan, once Nanny Liu brought the tea over, she would hurry to the flower room, find an excuse to anger Madam Meng away, and then naturally spend an intimate moment with the young master. Afterward, she would coax him into taking her back.
Who knew that as soon as she showed herself, Madam Meng ordered her locked in the prayer hall? Anxious and frantic, she feared she had overplayed her hand and instead facilitated a union between the young master and the Young Mistress.
Thankfully, the Bodhisattva watched over her. The young master was brought back after being drugged, forcing Madam Meng to turn to her for the antidote.
Although the process was fraught with twists, it had ultimately ended without disaster.
Moreover, because she had been locked in the small prayer hall early on, no one suspected her involvement. And to placate Meng Zhuo, Madam Meng finally relented, allowing him to take her away.
How could this not be considered a blessing in disguise?
“Bad news, bad news, Miss!” Zhaixing pushed open the door with a panicked expression, only to find her young mistress lounging on the couch with one leg crossed over the other—a rather inelegant posture that, thanks to Xie Zhaoshen’s carefree and relaxed demeanor, appeared exceptionally charming.
Xie Zhaoshen said, “What’s the rush? Speak slowly.”
Zhaixing replied, “Nanny Li has locked the courtyard gate! She says you’ve been disrespectful to your mother-in-law and have been placed under house arrest!”
Xie Zhaoshen abruptly sat up: “Really? That’s wonderful!”
Zhaixing exclaimed, “What’s so wonderful about it? It’s house arrest!”
Xie Zhaoshen shrugged, “So what if it is? Now I don’t have to get up early to pay respects, and I don’t have to see the faces of that old hag and that useless waste.”
Even without the house arrest, he wouldn’t have obediently gone to pay his respects anyway, but having a legitimate excuse made slacking off feel all the more justified.
Zhaixing was left speechless by this reasoning, but… well, it did make sense, didn’t it?
However, when mealtime arrived, Nanny Li personally delivered the food. Zhaixing opened the food container and found nothing but bland, watery dishes, not even steaming with warmth.
Zhaixing said, “Was this sent by mistake? My young mistress doesn’t like this kind of food.”
Nanny Li retorted, “Oh, my dear young lady, what do you think this is? This is house arrest! Did you expect delicacies from land and sea?”
“But…” Before Zhaixing could finish, Nanny Li ordered the door shut.
Carrying the food container, Zhaixing trudged back to the room, her eyes reddening. “Meng Mansion is too cruel. You’ve just recovered from your illness, and they won’t even give you a hot meal.”
Seeing her on the verge of tears, Xie Zhaoshen immediately thought of Chu Yun, who as a child could cry for an entire day, impossible to console. He quickly interjected, “Stop, stop! Hold it right there!”
Zhaixing let out a hiccup, holding back her tears.
Xie Zhaoshen declared, “If Meng Mansion won’t feed us, we’ll just go out to eat.”
Zhaixing looked utterly bewildered: “Huh?”
Her confusion persisted from the moment Xie Zhaoshen rolled up his sleeves and scaled the wall, all the way until the two of them were seated in a private room at Tianxiang Restaurant, feasting heartily.
Even with a chicken leg stuffed in her mouth, Zhaixing felt as if she were dreaming.
During house arrest, sneaking out with her young mistress to scale walls and indulge in a lavish meal—how thrilling… Surely nothing could be more thrilling than this.
Mimicking her young mistress, Zhaixing took a hearty bite of chicken. It was delicious.
Xie Zhaoshen ate until his lips glistened with oil. Remembering how overeating had caused indigestion last time, he stopped at eighty percent full this time. The remaining dishes were packed by the waiter to keep as a midnight snack.
After three days of house arrest, Xie Zhaoshen showed no signs of the imminent demise Madam Meng had anticipated. Instead, he looked radiant and had even gained a little weight.
By the fourth day, the master and servant had become so adept at scaling the wall to visit the restaurant that it felt like second nature.
However, as they were descending the stairs this time, they overheard diners in the main hall discussing the recent battle.
“In the blink of an eye, the winds shifted and clouds gathered. General Xie seized his spear, charged across the snowy plains for two hundred li, and struck down the fleeing Shuomo general from his horse. With their leader gone, the Shuomo Army fell into disarray, surrendering completely. They returned the cities and offered fine horses and beauties as tribute.”
“What a hero among the young!”
“With such a fine general, how could the borders of our great Dayong ever be unstable?”
Amid the chorus of praise filling the hall, Xie Zhaoshen’s face beneath the veil was brimming with pride, and his steps unconsciously slowed.
Chu Yun really should have heard his heroic exploits firsthand. Back when she broke off the engagement, she claimed he was only tough at home and would tremble with fear at the sight of enemy troops, which had infuriated him.
“I heard General Xie will make a detour to our Jiangzhou. I’ll definitely wait at the city gate to see his majestic presence!”
“Ah, you’ll be out of luck then. General Xie was originally going to detour to Jiangzhou, but the Emperor urgently summoned him, so he turned back long ago.”
“What?”
Xie Zhaoshen’s heart tightened. In two quick strides, he reached the man, grabbed him by the collar, and demanded, “What did you just say? Explain it clearly! Has Xie Zhaoshen returned to the capital?”