Elder brother Lu Qizheng hurried over, stood in the courtyard, and asked, “How is your sister doing?”
Lu Qizheng was the son born of the fourth master’s first wife, as well as the only surviving son of the fourth branch at present, ranking sixth at home.
Hearing her sixth brother’s voice, Lu Huiyi hurriedly stood up to welcome him.
“Sixth Brother! I am fine.”
As soon as she finished speaking, Lu Huiyi clutched the door frame, a wave of dizziness washing over her.
Qingzhu and Chuntao both stepped forward in a rush to steady her.
“And you still say you are fine, just look at how weak you are.” Lu Qizheng nagged endlessly, insisting that Lu Huiyi lie back down on the bed to rest. He said he would come to check on her the next day, and then hastily made ready to leave.
Before her death, Lu Huiyi had not seen her sixth brother for quite some time, and she was extremely worried about him.
At that time, her sixth brother had already entered the cabinet as an official. However, thanks to the Prince of Xing, the frontline military camps had fallen into chaos. During the New Year of the forty-fourth year of the Jianping era, her sixth brother had gone to the military camps to appease the soldiers, but shortly after, a mutiny broke out in the army, and Guyang could no longer receive specific news from the front lines.
Lu Huiyi wanted to keep her sixth brother a little longer to talk. After all, among the entire Lu family, only her sixth brother would ever care whether she lived or died.
She opened her mouth and asked, “The Mid-Autumn Festival has passed for so long, why hasn’t Sixth Brother returned to the academy yet?”
“Could Hui Niang be muddled? In a few days, I will be married and welcoming your sister-in-law across the threshold, so I have asked the academy for a full half-month of leave.”
Lu Huiyi froze in a daze for a long time, looking completely blank. Realizing this, Lu Qizheng stopped bothering her, turned around, and instructed the two maidservants to take good care of her.
That was right. It was in this very year, on the second day after her sixth brother’s wedding, before the new bride could meet her elders and offer tea, that her mother and Little Concubine Yuan had gotten into a scuffle and accidentally lost their footing. Her mother had tumbled down the steps, her lower abdomen happening to strike a garden rock.
That poor child had already suffered a miscarriage by the time its existence was even known.
Her mother had grown deeply melancholy, and because the Lu family was in trouble and could neither afford a good physician nor purchase precious medicinal herbs, she passed away amidst the heavy snow of that winter.
Since Heaven had granted her a second chance, she would never again give Little Concubine Yuan the opportunity to harm her mother in such a way.
Just past noon, Lu Huiyi was standing in the courtyard. It was the season of osmanthus blossoms, filling the entire yard with their fragrance. Accompanying the osmanthus fragrance was none other than the Fourth Mistress of the Lu family.
Because of the dizziness she experienced that morning, Chuntao had gone to invite Lady Physician Wang, so only Qingzhu remained by Lu Huiyi’s side.
The Fourth Mistress carried the surname Zhang. With no influential family of her own aside from an uncle serving as the Minister of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices, she had been married off to the fourth master of the Lu family, a widower of rather mediocre capability.
When her daughter had been pushed into the water and fell unconscious, apart from keeping vigil for a short while at the very beginning, she had not come to check on her even once in the days following, spending her entire time confined to her small Buddhist shrine, though nobody knew what business she was actually attending to.
It was only when the sixth young master mentioned to their grandmother that the twelfth young miss had already woken up, though she still looked somewhat unsteady on her feet, that she hurriedly came over to Begonia Courtyard where Lu Huiyi lived.
At this moment, Madam Zhang looked at her daughter standing beside the osmanthus tree. Had she already grown this tall? It seemed overnight that the adolescent awkwardness had faded from her face, leaving behind a delicate, charming countenance dominated by a pair of sharp eyes.
For a split second, Madam Zhang was reminded of the past.
Sensing this gaze, Lu Huiyi abruptly turned her head, crashing straight into the lingering sorrow that Madam Zhang had not yet had time to retract from her eyes.
Living her life over again, she had finally seen her mother once more, yet why did it feel as though her mother was looking at someone else through her?
Not expecting Lu Huiyi to turn around, Madam Zhang caught herself off guard, hastily pulling back her gaze and deliberately pushing those thoughts aside as she asked, “Has the physician examined you?”
Madam Zhang had always been habitually cold. Knowing that her mother simply lived a life of great unhappiness, Lu Huiyi did not hold it against her.
“Mother, rest assured. I have nothing majorly wrong with me, and Chuntao has already gone to invite Lady Physician Wang.”
Mother and daughter walked into the room together, and Madam Zhang spoke up, “You really are something. That woman Yuan and Lu Zhenyi are hardly decent people. Why must you always provoke them?”
Provoke?
Lu Huiyi frowned, her gaze turning critical as she reassessed Madam Zhang.
Why hadn’t she noticed before that her mother could be so muddled? Then again, if she weren’t, how could she have allowed herself to be bullied in the Lu household all the way until her death?
A flicker of suspicion arose in Madam Zhang’s heart. The child she had watched grow up, that timid and unpolished Lu Huiyi, how could she possibly possess such a gaze?
Lu Huiyi’s scrutiny lasted only a fleeting moment. A smile bloomed across her face as she looked gently at Madam Zhang, “What are you saying, Mother? It has never been me provoking the concubine and my younger sister. For all these years, your daughter has constantly suffered bullying from them. Surely Mother has taken her share of grievances from them as well?”
“What can be done about it? Yuan has always been favored by your father, not to mention her ties as my cousin.”
The fourth master of the Lu family was born to Concubine Yuan, who served by the old master’s side. Furthermore, Concubine Yuan’s niece had become the fourth master’s concubine, which was why people in the manor referred to them as Elder Yuan and Younger Yuan.
Just as they were speaking, Chuntao led Lady Physician Wang inside.
“Our young miss almost fainted again this morning, so we troubled you to come and take a look.”
Upon seeing Madam Zhang present, Chuntao and Lady Physician Wang both froze in place, deep in their own thoughts.
Sweeping her gaze across their faces one by one, Lu Huiyi spoke up, “How fortuitous. Doctor Wang, it seems to me that Mother is not feeling quite well today either. Please be so kind as to check on her as well.”
Madam Zhang opened her mouth to say she was perfectly fine, but Lu Huiyi grabbed her hand tightly under the table.
Fine, let’s see what kind of game this girl is playing.
As soon as Lady Physician Wang arrived, she asked Madam Zhang when her last menstrual period had been. Hearing this, the stone hanging in Lu Huiyi’s chest instantly dropped; since this pregnancy was being diagnosed earlier this time around, they only needed to take extra care of it.
“Why ask about that? My monthly flow has always been irregular. The last time was quite a while ago.”
Madam Zhang looked up toward Nurse Hu standing behind her, and Nurse Hu chimed in, “Mistress’s last period was already three months ago.”
Lady Physician Wang nodded gently, speaking with caution, “Judging by the Madam’s pulse, she should be three months pregnant, though the fetus is somewhat unstable. The Madam still needs to exercise caution.”
Lady Physician Wang cast a quick glance at Lu Huiyi. Since there was still an unmarried young lady present, it was inconvenient for her to speak too elaborately, so she simply picked up her brush and wrote out a prescription for a stabilizing tonic.
“The young miss has nothing majorly wrong; she merely suffered a fright, leading to overthinking and a restless mind.”
“You see, Doctor Wang said I am fine. There is truly no need to worry.”
As soon as Doctor Wang departed, Madam Zhang eagerly rose to leave as well.
“In the future, stay away from that pair. Are you really going to rush up and fight them just because they pinch you with a few words? If you cannot settle your mind, come to the Buddhist shrine and read scriptures with me.”
Lu Huiyi twitched the corners of her mouth, ultimately failing to produce a genuine smile. With a cold face, she said, “Understood, Mother.”
Knowing that Lu Huiyi was harboring resentment and merely brushing her off, Madam Zhang did not press the matter further. Whether Lu Huiyi listened or not didn’t matter, as long as she didn’t cause any extra trouble for her fourth mistress.
Far from listening to her mother’s advice, Lu Huiyi set off to find the fourteenth young miss that very same day.
Lu Zhenyi had been punished with kneeling in the ancestral hall. Sitting on the floor, she was eating the food sent over by Lu Qizheng with a rather disgusted expression.
Lu Qizheng crouched down beside her, “Zhenniang, can’t you give people some peace of mind? What is wrong with the food sent from the main kitchen that you refuse to eat it?”
Lu Zhenyi thought to herself that her usual meals were prepared in her concubine mother’s small kitchen; aside from someone as useless as Lu Huiyi, who on earth would be willing to eat food from the main kitchen?
Her disgust was written all over her face. Finding himself unable to do anything with her, Lu Qizheng changed the subject, “What grudges could you sisters possibly have that cannot be cleared up face-to-face? Why must you resort to physical maneuvers? To make such a mess on a fine day like the Mid-Autumn Festival, were you trying to make Grandfather and Grandmother fly into a towering rage to be happy?”
Just as Lu Zhenyi was about to reply, she caught sight of Lu Huiyi standing right in front of her, just behind Lu Qizheng.
Raising an eyebrow and taking advantage of Lu Qizheng’s oblivious state, Lu Zhenyi deliberately spoke up, “Sixth Brother, is there nobody you loathe? I simply despise her. I feel thoroughly uncomfortable all over just looking at her, and I don’t need any reason.”
“I don’t loathe anyone! I really can’t understand you two.”
“Then who does Sixth Brother like? We are all your sisters, do you like Hui Niang more, or do you like Zhenniang more?”
Instead of answering, Lu Qizheng stood up, placed his hands on his hips, and asked in bewilderment, “What kind of talk is that? Both of you are my sisters; there is no favoritism here.”
“Sixth Brother, just say you like Zhenniang best! Zhenniang has been punished, and that is the only phrase she wants to hear.”
“Alright, alright, alright! Sixth Brother thinks Zhenniang is the best sister! How about that?”
Remaining silent, Lu Zhenyi cast a provocative gaze past Lu Qizheng, meeting Lu Huiyi’s eyes head-on.
“Naturally, the person Sixth Brother likes is his sixth sister-in-law. Zhenniang is no longer that young; previously, accustomed to vying for favor by Father’s side alongside her concubine mother, she claimed she didn’t know any better. Why must she utter such uninteresting and base remarks before her elder brother now?” Meeting her gaze, Lu Huiyi launched a counterattack.
“You!” Lu Zhenyi was rendered speechless.
Looking back, Lu Qizheng spotted Lu Huiyi. Although he didn’t know when she had arrived, he could tell that Lu Zhenyi had intentionally asked those questions right in front of her.
Laughing off the awkwardness, Lu Qizheng played it off, “I have always treated both sisters the same way. I was merely joking with Zhenniang just now.”
“I know Brother’s true heart and will not take Zhenniang’s teasing to heart.”
Turning to Lu Zhenyi, she added, “I originally came to check if my sister had been properly reflecting on herself. Now it seems she still needs to spend more time kneeling before the ancestors in the ancestral hall to contemplate her faults.”
The smile vanished from Lu Zhenyi’s face. When did Lu Huiyi learn to speak like this? Shouldn’t she be grinding her teeth in frustration, lowering her head, and acting like a timid quail?
If that Lu Huiyi who couldn’t squeeze out a complete sentence for half a day used to annoy her, this Lu Huiyi who dared to pierce her with neither soft nor harsh words made her blood boil with rage.
Flaring up with a trace of anger, she retorted, “What kind of talk is that, Twelfth Sister? You are just as unlikable as your mother, unlike me and my mother who are valued by Father. Why are you turning around and taking your anger out on me?”
Lu Huiyi rolled her eyes, very obviously.
“People tease beasts, yet only low creatures like you and Little Concubine Yuan would mistake that for affection.”
“Lu Huiyi! You are the beast!” Lu Zhenyi jumped up, hurling abuses at the top of her lungs.
“Stop! Both of you, shut your mouths right now! Where is the poise of young ladies from noble families? For one or the other to utter such words, it is completely unrefined!”
Unable to swallow her anger, Lu Zhenyi shoved past Lu Qizheng’s arm, which was blocking the space between her and Lu Huiyi, determined to have a full accounting with Lu Huiyi.
Instead, Lu Huiyi let out a yawn and said, “I do not have such idle time as you, nor do I possess your robust health to remain full of vigor after kneeling in the ancestral hall for so many days. Your elder sister here suffered terribly after being pushed into the water by you, and I must heed the physician’s orders to go back and recuperate.”
Lu Zhenyi grabbed hold of Lu Huiyi’s arm tightly, refusing to let her leave.
“I do not have such good health to accompany you in kneeling at the ancestral hall.” Gently brushing Lu Zhenyi’s hand away, Lu Huiyi saw the intimidation in her eyes cause a subconscious loosening of her grip. Leaning in closer, Lu Huiyi whispered right into her ear, “Your greatest mistake was ruining such a wonderful festive holiday while everyone was celebrating, and doing it right before Grandmother’s own eyes.”
Smiling, Lu Huiyi stepped back, gently dusting off a nonexistent speck of dust from Lu Zhenyi’s shoulder with utmost gentleness, the very picture of deep sisterly affection.
Frozen in place, Lu Zhenyi was struck with profound terror: Is this really Lu Huiyi?
Over the past thirteen years, the words Lu Huiyi had spoken to her probably didn’t even add up to as much as she had said today.