Song Jianing’s head hurt so much. Someone kept rubbing the back of her head, rubbing and rubbing until it hurt…
She instinctively reached out to push away that naughty hand, but before her small hand could go halfway, it was suddenly grabbed. The palm was rough and unfamiliar. Song Jianing woke up completely. She instinctively looked back and saw a broad chest in white inner clothes. She stared blankly and raised her head, unexpectedly meeting a pair of sharp, indifferent black eyes. The man slightly lowered his head. With long eyebrows and starry eyes, he was exactly the man from the boat today — the one suspected to be the Duke of Weiguo.
Song Jianing blinked in confusion. Why was he here?
“You were hit by a bad person. There’s a bump on the back of your head. I’m helping you reduce the swelling,” Guo Boyan said. He was sitting on the ground, one hand supporting Song Jianing’s shoulder while the other gently continued rubbing the small bump on the back of her head.
Only then did Song Jianing realize their current position. She was actually sitting sideways on the man’s lap — on the lap of someone who might be Guo Xiao’s father!
Her bottom felt as if it had been burned by fire. Without thinking, Song Jianing tried to stand up.
Guo Boyan was in a very good mood right now. Lin-shi, after removing her veiled hat and revealing her true appearance, was even more beautiful than he had imagined. She was not an ordinary beauty, but the kind of immortal, nation-toppling beauty. And such a beauty would soon become his woman. Loving the house and its crow (love extends to everything associated), the more Guo Boyan looked at Lin-shi’s beloved daughter, the more he liked her. While Wei Jin had taken Lin-shi aside to persuade her, he had nothing to do. Seeing Song Jianing lying pitifully on the ground, he had taken the initiative to pick up the little girl and help reduce the swelling on her head.
“Don’t move,” Guo Boyan pressed down the little girl who was afraid of him and held her small hand, letting her feel the bump on the back of her own head.
Song Jianing sucked in a breath from the pain. She finally remembered that she seemed to have been hit by a stick. Her heart panicked. Song Jianing immediately looked around for her mother. She first saw Qiu Yue lying unconscious on the ground. After turning her gaze halfway around, she was shocked to see her mother standing dozens of steps away, draped in a man’s long robe, with her back facing them. Beside her mother was the other man who had been on the same boat earlier.
Song Jianing was full of doubts. What exactly had happened?
While continuing to rub her head, Guo Boyan explained in a low voice, “A bad person tried to bully your mother. I chased him away. Now your mother wants to repay me, so I asked my servant to discuss the matter of thanks with her.” In his eyes, Song Jianing was just an eight- or nine-year-old little girl who was still innocent and ignorant, so Guo Boyan used the tone of coaxing a child.
But under Song Jianing’s young appearance hid the heart of an adult. She looked at her mother from afar, and her small brows slowly furrowed. After a long while, Song Jianing did not rush to avoid the middle-aged man behind her. Since the other party was trying to fool her like a child, she blinked her eyes innocently and asked in a pure, naive voice, “Yesterday the tutor taught us that when you do a good deed, you should not expect repayment. You saved us, so why do you still want thanks?”
Guo Boyan choked for a moment. Looking at the little girl’s watery almond eyes, he quickly adapted, “It’s not that I want it. Your mother insists on giving it.”
Song Jianing glanced at her mother in the distance and did not quite believe it. If this man had really saved them, her mother would definitely want to thank him. But why would her mother hand her over to a stranger and go so far away just to discuss it? It was only some polite words — there was no need to avoid her at all. Putting that aside for now, Song Jianing continued asking in a confused tone, “Who are you? Qiu Yue said you look like a high official.”
Guo Boyan smiled and patted the top of the little girl’s head. “I am the provincial governor sent here by the Emperor. I am also the Duke of Weiguo from the capital. Do you know what a provincial governor and a duke mean?”
Song Jianing’s little heart pounded wildly. She had planned to spend this life depending on her mother, never getting involved with Liang Shao or Guo Xiao again, and preferably never seeing them for the rest of her life. Yet on her very first trip out of the house, she had run into Guo Xiao’s duke father?
On the other side, Wei Jin was also gently persuading Lin-shi, “Madam, have you heard of the Duke of Weiguo’s Mansion? When the founding Emperor led troops to conquer the world, our old Duke was the most capable fierce general by the Emperor’s side. He was a founding hero of our Great Zhou. The moment the founding Emperor ascended the throne, the very first title he bestowed was to our old Duke. After the current Emperor took the throne, he continued to heavily rely on our Duke and even granted the Duke’s younger sister the position of Virtuous Consort. If we speak of personal relations, the Emperor even has to call our Duke ‘elder brother-in-law’.”
“…The Duchess passed away early due to poor fortune. Our Duke has never remarried, and there are no concubines in the mansion. As long as Madam is willing, you will be the only one in our Duke’s rear courtyard. Wouldn’t you then enjoy thousands of favors all to yourself? Moreover, this is not only good for Madam, but also good for your daughter. With the Duke supporting you, in the future, what kind of son-in-law could you not choose for her? Wouldn’t that be much better than staying in this small county town?”
“Alright, let’s not talk about glory and wealth for now. Let’s talk about safety and security. Madam has outstanding beauty, and when your daughter grows up, she will surely also be a nation-toppling beauty. As the saying goes, possessing a precious jade invites crime. Can Madam guarantee that no more incidents like today will happen in the future? Since ancient times, beautiful women have had unfortunate fates precisely because they had no one to support them…”
Lin-shi stood with furrowed brows. She heard everything, but she gave no reply.
Wei Jin had said all he could. Seeing that Song Jianing had woken up over there, he sighed and finally said to Lin-shi, “Everything I just said came from the bottom of my heart. Madam, please think it over carefully. But don’t blame me for not warning you — our Duke has a rather bad temper. If you agree now, he will definitely cherish Madam. But if you wait until you anger the Duke and then become afraid and want to regret it, the Duke may not be so understanding.”
Lin-shi pressed her lips tightly together.
“Mother…” Song Jianing finally gained her freedom and ran anxiously toward them.
Lin-shi quickly turned around. Seeing that her daughter was fine, she took a few quick steps and tightly hugged her daughter in her arms. Mother and daughter comforted each other.
Wei Jin quietly walked back to his master’s side and reported the result of his persuasion in a low voice.
Guo Boyan’s expression remained unchanged. His black eyes stared at Lin-shi’s slender figure. He was determined to have her. With his hands behind his back, he said, “You go back to the city first and buy a jacket of similar style.”
Wei Jin accepted the order and left. Two hours later, he brought back three bean-green jackets. Qiu Yue picked the one that most closely resembled the one Lin-shi had been wearing and helped her go deeper into the peach blossom grove to change. After she had changed, Guo Boyan did not pester Lin-shi any further. On the boat back to shore, he even stayed politely outside the awning. Only before Lin-shi got off the boat did he speak softly beside her, “We will meet again another day.”
Lin-shi’s elegant brows were tightly knitted, and her expression was unhappy.
Song Jianing, who was being led by her mother, also heard those words. She held back with all her might and did not look up. Only after they got onto their own mule cart did she lean into her mother’s arms and ask worriedly, “Mother, what did they say to you? Are they trying to take advantage of the favor they did for us?”
They were all men from the Guo family. In the past, Guo Xiao had only needed one look at her to claim her as his own. Now, would the Duke of Weiguo also set his sights on her mother with improper thoughts?
Lin-shi felt bitter inside, but she did not want her daughter to worry. She gently brushed the question aside with vague words.
Song Jianing could not get any answers. She lowered her head in discouragement. She was worried about her mother, but what could worry do? If the Duke of Weiguo really wanted to bully her mother, the two of them — a widow and an orphan with no power or influence — would either have to fight desperately or accept their fate. There was no other path.
Song Jianing felt heavy with worry.
Lin-shi pulled her innocent-looking daughter into her arms. Only by doing this did she have a reason to keep living. If not for her daughter, the moment Guo Boyan openly and secretly threatened her to obediently become his concubine, she would have already sought death. After worrying about Guo Boyan, Lin-shi then thought of Hu Zhuang. Hu Zhuang lived in the neighboring county — how could he have appeared so coincidentally on Peach Blossom Island?
Her sister-in-law, Hu-shi…
Safety and security.
Lin-shi’s face grew paler and paler. Hu-shi already harbored ill intentions toward her and her daughter. Now that Hu Zhuang had disappeared without a sound, once enough time passed, Hu-shi would definitely suspect her. Even without any reason, Hu-shi had already tried to harm her together with her brother. If Hu-shi now saw her as the murderer of Hu Zhuang, how could she let it go easily?
It seemed she was destined not to stay in the Song family any longer.
~
Back at the Song residence, Hu-shi had returned from her parents’ home right after lunch. She had been paying attention to the movements at the gate. When she heard that Lin-shi and her daughter had come back, she went to greet them as if nothing had happened. From far away, she began observing Lin-shi, but she was surprised to find that Lin-shi looked completely normal, as if nothing had occurred. Hu-shi felt doubtful inside and asked warmly, “Sister-in-law, you’re back. Were the peach blossoms on the island beautiful?”
Lin-shi smiled faintly, “They were quite pretty. An’an even begged me to take her again another day.”
Hu-shi lowered her head to look at Song Jianing.
Song Jianing cooperated with her mother and grinned widely.
Hu-shi’s thoughts drifted far away. She secretly wondered: Could it be that her brother had not found the opportunity?
Eager to find out what happened, early the next morning, Hu-shi’s family of four went back to her parents’ home to visit relatives again. Second Master Song did not want to go, but Hu-shi was worried that her husband would sneak over to the main house to flirt while she was away, so she forcefully dragged him along. Hu-shi was anxious and kept urging the coachman. The coachman cracked his whip repeatedly, making the mule run very fast. Unexpectedly, they collided head-on with an oncoming carriage. The mule cart was unharmed, but the carriage was knocked over and fell into the ditch beside the road!
Hu-shi’s family of four got off the cart with pale faces.
“Grandfather! Grandfather, you can’t die!”
A young man’s sorrowful cry suddenly came from the overturned carriage. Upon hearing that someone had died, Hu-shi’s legs trembled in fear. Second Master Song reached out to support his wife, but his own legs also went weak. The couple collapsed to the ground together.
An hour later, someone hurriedly ran to the Song family and reported to Lin-shi, “It’s bad! It’s bad! Your brother-in-law’s family knocked over and killed an old gentleman. They’ve been dragged to the yamen. The county magistrate is currently hearing the case!”
Lin-shi was greatly shocked. Although she had already decided to cut ties with the second branch, to outsiders the two branches were still one family. She immediately ordered the gatekeeper to go to the county yamen to inquire about the situation. Not long after, the gatekeeper returned, panting as he said, “The verdict has been given! Second Master and Second Madam each received one hundred strokes of the plank. The young master and young miss each received twenty strokes and three years in prison…”
Lin-shi was speechless for a long time. Song Jianing stood dazedly beside her mother, completely stunned. How could this happen? In her previous life, her second uncle’s family had only become poorer and poorer — they had never gotten involved in any official lawsuit.
Although she was shocked, deep in her heart, Song Jianing felt a slight sense of satisfaction. Back then, after both her father and mother had passed away and her maternal uncle and aunt did not like her, she had treated her second uncle’s family as her closest relatives. She had trusted them so much that she handed over her mother’s dowry for her second aunt to manage. In the end, the couple had quietly used her to please Liang Shao…
Now that her second uncle’s family had met with disaster, was this the cycle of heaven’s justice?
Just as Song Jianing thought that Heaven still had eyes, in a residence in the county town, Wei Jin was reporting to Guo Boyan, “Your Grace, rest assured. That old gentleman died of natural causes from old age. His son received a large sum of silver for nothing and absolutely will not dare to speak nonsense. If the truth gets out, the authorities will definitely charge him with fraud.”
Guo Boyan nodded. These were small matters. He did not take two mere commoners seriously — it was merely a small gift he had given while sending Lin-shi off.
Next…
Guo Boyan glanced out the window, only hoping that night would come soon so he could go collect Lin-shi’s “thanks.”