During morning horse-stance training, Li Yue stared intently at her older sister.
Her gaze was so direct that Li Chu couldn’t ignore it even if she wanted to. “Ask away.”
“What is going on with those rumors outside?” As soon as Li Yue spoke, she lost all her strength and collapsed onto the ground.
Li Chu did not hide anything from her. “I spread them.”
Li Yue, “?”
Li Yue’s eyes widened in shock.
Li Chu continued practicing Tai Chi, her movements fluid and unbroken, though her peripheral vision scanned behind her. “Otherwise, did you think Feng Zhang went insane? That after I broke both his legs and kept him bedridden to this day, he would still be thinking about marrying into our family as a live-in son-in-law?”
Li Yue was too stunned to speak. “Why would you spread such a thing?”
Li Chu replied, “Naturally, to muddy the waters.”
Finishing her movements and standing straight, Li Chu didn’t even have a thin layer of sweat on her. “It wasn’t me who made the first move. The Yang family wanted to probe the relationship between me and Wen Shu, so before noon, they released word that Wen Shu was going to marry into the Yang family.”
Li Chu squatted on one knee beside Li Yue, raising her eyebrows triumphantly. “For every rumor she spreads, I spread two.”
Li Chu rested her hand on Li Yue’s head and patted it gently, filled with immense sentiment. “It is fortunate that your big sister chose to join the military; otherwise, if I had pursued the imperial examinations and an official career, I would have been a master at manipulating the imperial court as well.”
Li Yue, “…”
Li Yue still didn’t understand why Li Chu was spreading rumors about her and the Feng family.
However, her sister had her own plans. Although she was curious, there was no need to ask further.
Li Yue’s eyes curved into crescents. “It seems like good news is approaching; the household should prepare in advance… There are too few servants in the mansion. I will buy more maids and cooks in the next two days.”
Originally, it was just her and her sister; her sister lived roughly and disliked having people serve her too closely, so the current staff was barely enough.
Now that her sister was getting married, and with more people in the house, plus the possibility of children in the future, they would truly need more hands.
Furthermore, since the Wen family had lived in Pingjiang for a long time, their tastes were surely more accustomed to Southern cuisine. Unfortunately, the mansion’s chef knew too few regional styles. Her sister wasn’t picky about food, but she had grown tired of it.
Thinking about whose taste she had been spoiled by, Li Yue’s gaze flickered. Feigning that she was rubbing her sore leg, she lowered her head and averted her eyes.
Li Chu stood up. “I’m going to wash up and change clothes. I’m going to the Pei family’s small courtyard for lunch today. Oh, by the way, didn’t you want to know why I spread the rumors about the Feng family? You’ll find out at the welcoming banquet tonight.”
As a County Princess, Li Yue was qualified to attend the banquet at the palace, but she had been in low spirits recently. Aside from accompanying her sister out once, she had spent the rest of the time holed up in her own courtyard.
Moreover, the people she sent to Pingjiang to investigate matters had not yet reached their destination, and she did not know exactly what had happened during the time Li Yue was lost, so she had to wait patiently.
Therefore, when Li Yue finally showed interest and said she wanted to buy maids and a cook, Li Chu was genuinely happy.
Li Chu was truly afraid that if Li Yue continued to be listless and idle, she would fall ill from boredom.
Li Chu rode her horse to the Wen family’s house again today. She arrived too early, even having time to stop on the street to buy steamed buns for breakfast to bring to the Wen family.
When she arrived, the Wen family hadn’t eaten breakfast yet.
“Uncle, Auntie, I’m disturbing you again.” Li Chu was full of energy, curiously looking left and right. “Where is Little Sheep? I brought you some buns; there are both meat and vegetable fillings.”
Since it was a rest day, Master Wen was also at home.
When he received the buns from Li Chu’s hands, he was dazed.
He was actually eating buns delivered by General Li?!
Madam Wen pushed her husband and turned toward Li Chu with a gentle, playful reproach. “You came, so why bring things? If you do this again, you’re really treating us like strangers.”
She greeted Li Chu and Guan Lu, invited them inside, and had a maid add two chairs to the dining table. At the same time, she took Li Chu’s wrist and said softly, “She hasn’t woken up yet. It’s a rare rest day, so she’s being lazy and catching up on sleep.”
Madam Wen signaled Doubai to go call Wen Shu to wake up. “Tell her Little Chu is here.”
Madam Wen whispered to Li Chu, “You haven’t come in the last few days. Shu’er hasn’t said it, but I can tell she has been thinking of you.”
Li Chu just smiled.
She didn’t think Wen Shu was necessarily “thinking of her” in that way, but she was definitely anxious to see her.
Li Chu replied, “I had urgent matters to attend to these past two days, so I couldn’t find a suitable time to come over.”
Li Chu had just sat down and lifted her teacup when she heard hurried footsteps outside. When she turned to look, Wen Shu was already standing at the doorway, breathless.
A smile appeared in Li Chu’s eyes; she asked silently with her lips:
Miss me?
Otherwise, why come so quickly?
Wen Shu understood, “…”
Wen Shu had been in a rush to climb out of bed and hurry over; she hadn’t even washed her face. She didn’t approach Li Chu, but instead cleared her throat and purposely raised her voice to ask her mother, “Mother, who is this in our house?”
Li Chu, “…”
Madam Wen, “?”
Madam Wen looked at Wen Shu in bewilderment and confusion. She walked over and placed the back of her hand against her forehead. “Are you running a fever?”
Facing Li Chu’s teasing gaze, Wen Shu’s face flushed red. She pulled her mother’s wrist down with both hands. “I don’t have a fever.”
Her eyes drifted away. “It’s just that I haven’t seen her for a few days, and I thought General Li had already forgotten about our family.”
When there was nothing to ask, she was always hovering in front of her, impossible to avoid. When she wanted to see her for something, she couldn’t see her for a long time.
Madam Wen patted Wen Shu’s hand lightly. “What nonsense are you spouting?”
She turned to Li Chu and smiled. “Shu’er has been missing you.”
Wen Shu’s eyes widened; her mother dared to say it, but she didn’t even dare to listen!
Madam Wen urged Wen Shu to go wash up. “Little Chu said you two agreed to go out for lunch today.”
Wen Shu was pushed toward the door. She looked back at Li Chu with a frown, “Why so early?”
It was only mid-morning; it was still a long way from lunchtime.
Li Chu held her teacup and sighed, “It can’t be helped. Whoever wants to eat lunch at Aunt Liu’s has to arrive early.”
Aunt Liu’s rule was that there is no such thing as a free lunch; whoever came to eat had to work first.
With her parents and grandmother all at home, Wen Shu couldn’t ask Li Chu directly. It wasn’t until they were both sitting in the carriage on their way to the Pei family’s courtyard that Wen Shu tentatively probed, “Have you heard any rumors lately?”
Li Chu looked innocent. “No, why?”
Seeing that she didn’t know, Wen Shu subconsciously scooted over and leaned in close, whispering to her, “It’s spread like wildfire outside—they say things about my family and the Yang family, and your family and the Feng family.”
That’s not right.
Li Chu leaned in, using the posture of whispering to get her forehead almost touching Wen Shu’s. She asked in a breathy voice, “Why did you leave out the rumors about your family and mine?”
“?” Wen Shu looked up at Li Chu abruptly and gasped, “!”
Out of instinct, she tried to pull back.
Li Chu’s reaction was faster; she firmly grabbed the back of Wen Shu’s neck to block her retreat.
The two were now forehead-to-forehead. Wen Shu could feel the heat radiating from Li Chu’s palm and forehead, burning her face until she was flushed, her breathing trembling, and her heart skipping a beat.
Li Chu smiled and pinched the back of her neck. “Wen Xiaoyang, you aren’t being honest.”
Wen Shu, “…”
Wen Shu really thought she didn’t know, so she had deliberately hidden their rumors, only to be called out on the spot.
Wen Shu glared at Li Chu in annoyance, reaching out to push her shoulder and trying to pull away. “Didn’t you say you hadn’t heard them?”
Li Chu was righteous and bold. “That’s right, I haven’t heard them—but I’m the one who spread them, so how could I not know?”
Wen Shu, “…………”