Before Ye Wanning could speak, Yunzhi grew anxious first. “Xu Zhuling actually has a child?”
The errand-runner was Fusheng, who was equally shocked. But at this point, he hesitated and looked at his mistress.
Ye Wanning had long known about this matter. “Continue.”
“That… that child even called Lord Zhou ‘Father’.” Fusheng had been terrified at the time, nearly losing his footing. The young lady had asked him to keep an eye on Xu Zhuling, but who would have thought he’d uncover such a thing? With the young lady’s wedding to Lord Zhou scheduled for next month, the Ye Family had long been busy with preparations. Now that this had happened, what was the young lady to do?
“What father?” Yunzhi thought she had misheard. After repeatedly confirming that Fusheng hadn’t mistaken what he heard, she immediately wanted to find the eldest young master to seek justice for her lady.
Ye Wanning stopped Yunzhi. “If I were to make a scene, my eldest brother and grandmother would certainly break off the engagement for my sake. But if we confront them directly like this, who can prove that child is Zhou Yu’s? When Zhou Yu stubbornly denies it, what should we do then? Without solid evidence, if we make a fuss, the Ye Family’s reputation will also suffer.”
She knew Zhou Yu well—unless backed into a corner, he would never give up resisting.
Her grandmother doted on her and would certainly break off the engagement for her, but her grandmother’s health could no longer withstand such strain. If they directly called off the wedding, given Zhou Yu’s character, he would certainly shift the blame and instead find fault with the Ye Family. After all, this marriage was extremely important to Zhou Yu; he wouldn’t give up easily.
She had known about Feng Ge’er in her previous life. Initially, Zhou Yu brought him back, claiming he was the orphan of a benefactor and wanting to adopt him as a foster son. Ye Wanning had no children of her own, and seeing Feng Ge’er well-behaved and adorable, she registered the child under her name and devotedly raised him.
Little did she know that Feng Ge’er was actually the illegitimate child of Xu Zhuling and Zhou Yu. When she was imprisoned, Feng Ge’er spat at her, “You’re not my mother! All you do every day is force me to study and write, and the tutors you found for me are even more detestable. My real mother said you’re just a vicious woman and told me to endure it for a while, which is why I called you mother. Now that you’ve been divorced, I don’t have to endure you anymore!”
Swinging a branch he had picked up, Feng Ge’er mercilessly beat Ye Wanning, disregarding their former mother-son bond.
She remembered this child vividly.
Yunzhi fell silent, stunned for a long while before bursting into tears. “But young lady, what will you do then? If Lord Zhou truly has a child with Xu Zhuling, will you still marry him?” Her heart ached for her mistress. Having finally looked forward to getting married, only for this to happen—how could one not feel wronged?
“Of course I won’t marry him.” Ye Wanning patiently wiped Yunzhi’s tears. “I haven’t even cried, so why are you crying? Now that I know in advance, it’s a good thing. You should be happy for me. I’ve devoted myself wholeheartedly to Zhou Yu all these years, but since he has betrayed me like this, it shows he isn’t worth my continued devotion.”
Over the years, Zhou Yu had lived off the Ye Family, relying on their connections to study under renowned teachers. The Ye Family was willing to provide all this because they regarded Zhou Yu as their future son-in-law.
But for Zhou Yu to use her money to support another woman and child was truly going too far.
Ye Wanning instructed Fusheng to continue watching Xu Zhuling. “You don’t need to do anything else—just record what she does every day. Yunzhi, dry your tears and summon my Second Brother for me.”
Zhou Yu was already a Zhuangyuan Lang. To deal with him, Ye Wanning couldn’t rely solely on herself. Her Second Brother had made many friends over the past few years, and they would now come in handy.
On the other side, Zhou Yu and Xu Zhuling were speaking behind closed doors.
Feng Ge’er was taking his afternoon nap. Watching her son sleeping soundly, Xu Zhuling felt a pang of heartache. “I won’t be able to appear in the Zhou family anymore. Since Cousin plans to register Feng Ge’er under Ye Wanning’s name, when will I ever get to see Feng Ge’er again?”
As she spoke, Xu Zhuling shed tears of sorrow. Having endured numerous grievances that day, she leaned into Zhou Yu’s embrace when he approached.
“Don’t overthink it. You are Feng Ge’er’s birth mother—that’s an unchangeable fact. Haven’t I already assured you? I won’t let Ye Wanning have children of her own. Without her own offspring, she will surely treat Feng Ge’er as her own. Although Ye Wanning is rigid and rather dull, she comes from a prestigious family. With her upbringing, Feng Ge’er is bound to benefit greatly.” Zhou Yu held Xu Zhuling and comforted her softly. “As for you and me, we’ve waited this long—just a little more patience.”
“But I… I’m afraid Ye Wanning won’t let it go.”
“She won’t. Ye Wanning has the pride of an aristocratic family in her bones, and she trusts me the most. If I say I’m sending you back to your hometown, she absolutely won’t send anyone to investigate.” Zhou Yu was very confident in his ability to control Ye Wanning.
Xu Zhuling was still unwilling, but her entire family had been killed by bandits. Apart from Zhou Yu, she had no one else to rely on. Knowing that Zhou Yu preferred obedience, she nodded meekly. “I’ll listen to you. During this time, I’ll take good care of Feng Ge’er.”
Pleased with Xu Zhuling’s compliance, Zhou Yu held her and began to be affectionate.
In truth, he had once felt something for Ye Wanning too, but there always seemed to be an insurmountable gap between them. A friend had said it was his inferiority complex—coming from a poor background, he could never relax around Ye Wanning, always having to put on a front, afraid she would see through his lack of substance.
But he didn’t agree with his friend’s words. The Zhou family had once been prosperous, and with his own abilities, reviving the family wouldn’t be difficult.
He was very confident in himself. Hadn’t the Ye family recognized his potential, which was why they didn’t break off the engagement? When it came down to it, the Ye family wasn’t as righteous as they appeared—they were actually quite hypocritical.
Holding the warm, soft jade in his arms, Zhou Yu still preferred the posture of a superior. No matter what he said or did, Xu Zhuling would always agree, because she could only survive by depending on him. This kind of admiration satisfied him completely.
Soon, the sounds of intimate relations between a man and a woman could be heard from the room. No one noticed two figures flash past the window.
Qingshan followed his master into a narrow alley, muttering incessantly, “So Zhou Yu and Xu Zhuling really are involved! This morning, Zhou Yu was still swearing oaths—men’s words really can’t be trusted. You were right, sir. Miss Ye really doesn’t know how to judge character. If she marries Zhou Yu, she’ll have a hard time ahead.”
His own master was much better—after all, he cared for him and didn’t actually make him run laps or chop firewood, instead taking him out. He just hadn’t expected such a coincidence, overhearing Zhou Yu’s private conversation.
“Sir, do you think we should inform Miss Ye?” As soon as he asked, Qingshan shook his head again. “Never mind. Miss Ye’s wedding with Zhou Yu is imminent. Even if we tell her, firstly, the Ye family won’t believe it, and secondly, even if they did, they wouldn’t call off the engagement. They’ve been betrothed since childhood and share deep feelings. At most, they might get rid of the mother and keep the son—many wealthy families do that. Hey, Third Lord, why did you suddenly stop… stop walking?”
Seeing his master look over, Qingshan’s heart sank. Had he said something wrong again? Why did a flash of killing intent cross his master’s eyes?
“Do you also think she shares a deep bond with Zhou Yu?” Xie Bohuai suddenly stopped.
“Of course! During the years Lord Zhou studied in Jingcheng, he lived with the Ye Family. They’re engaged, so they didn’t need to avoid each other much in daily life. Even a stone would develop some affection after spending so many years together, right?” Qingshan replied matter-of-factly.
Xie Bohuai turned and quickened his pace. “Go run twenty laps around the training grounds now.”
“Ah? But master, I’ve already… Very well, Third Master, I’ll go right away.” Qingshan felt deeply wronged. His master had clearly said he didn’t need to run anymore, so why had he suddenly added ten more laps?
But since his master had given the order, Qingshan dared not disobey. He’d just treat it as extra training.
After seeing his master off, Qingshan belatedly realized something: his master wasn’t someone who liked to meddle in others’ affairs, so why had he stayed at the Ye residence to watch the commotion today?
No, when he returned, he must ask Shuyan – that clever fellow – for advice. He needed to get to the bottom of this to avoid saying the wrong thing again next time.
When Qingshan finally finished his twenty laps and returned to the Xie Family, he couldn’t find his master. Shuyan patted his head and called him a fool, telling him to save his questions for later and go find their master first.
The evening glow burned like fire as Xie Bohuai stood atop the tavern roof, gazing precisely in the direction of the Ye Family residence.