The carriage came to a halt.
Just as Lu Yuan and the others were about to alight, Song Jinyao stopped them.
“Wait, don’t get off. Stay seated inside the carriage.”
Outside, lush apricot leaves shaded a small blue-brick courtyard, with several ripe apricots dangling from the branches.
The delicate orange-yellow fruit against the vibrant green leaves created a delightful sight.
It truly made one want to pluck a couple to taste.
Not allowed to leave the carriage?
Could Mother simply want them to enjoy the scenery from inside?
Lu Wenyin couldn’t help but chuckle.
“Mother? Did you bring us out today just for a carriage ride?”
She asked with her usual gentle smile.
Truthfully, even confined to the carriage, she wouldn’t mind as long as she was with Mother.
Lu Wenhui seemed to have an inkling of something, remaining silent without asking anything.
Though the eldest, Lu Yuan, didn’t speak upon hearing his younger sister’s question, he looked curiously at Song Jinyao.
“I’m taking you to meet an old acquaintance.”
Song Jinyao lifted the right curtain of the carriage, gazing outward through the transparent gauze as she spoke calmly.
Her voice was eerily composed, her eyes like frozen ice: “No matter what you see later—whether it shocks or angers you—do not make a sound.”
The three nodded solemnly upon hearing this.
Lu Yuan and Lu Wenyin grew even more curious.
Who could possibly evoke both shock and anger in them?
At that moment, the vermilion lacquer gate of the residence opposite creaked open, and a man emerged from within.
“Mother? That… that person is Fa… Father?”
Lu Wenyin gasped in shock, quickly covering her mouth upon realization.
Her trembling index finger still pointed through the gauze curtain at the man who had just exited the front residence.
Lu Yuan was equally astonished, though he seemed to guess something, his hands on his knees suddenly clenching, veins bulging.
How could this be?
Father wasn’t dead?
Then who was in the coffin?
Had he deceived Mother?
Deceived his own children?
Why would he do this?
What could possibly be Father’s reason for this?
Countless questions flashed through his mind, yet none found answers.
Just then, a gaudily dressed woman emerged from behind the vermilion gate.
She appeared to be around Song Jinyao’s age.
The two behaved intimately, with the woman even straightening Lu Xiuyuan’s collar and brushing leaves from his hair. She giggled coquettishly, her fingers lingering on his chest.
“My dear, please return inside first. I’ll be back shortly. Remember, no matter who knocks, do not open the door, understand?”
“Understood. Oh, you worry too much. I’ll be waiting for you inside.”
Their conversation drifted over.
Then the woman cast a seductive glance at Lu Xiuyuan, suddenly rising on her toes to kiss his cheek.
Witnessing this, Lu Yuan gritted his teeth audibly, his eyes burning crimson, barely containing his surging rage.
That old scoundrel, utterly shameless!
Behaving so wantonly at his age—how disgraceful!
Was that really his father?
Nothing but a hypocrite cloaked in righteousness!
Lu Yuan’s fury blazed within him.
At that moment, whether sensing something or not, Lu Xiuyuan glanced toward them. Song Jinyao swiftly lowered the curtain.
“Mother?” Lu Yuan began hoarsely, but Song Jinyao shook her head, whispering, “We’ll discuss it when we return.”
With that, she reached out the window and gestured toward the shadows. The hidden guards, receiving their orders, followed Lu Xiuyuan as he departed.
The carriage was eerily silent on the return journey.
Lu Wenyin’s eyes were red, tears held back with effort.
Lu Yuan sat with his head in his hands, lost in thought.
“Did Mother know all along?”
It wasn’t until they entered the small parlor in Song Jinyao’s courtyard that the eldest, Lu Yuan, finally broke the silence. At his words, Lu Wenyin finally let her tears fall.
They weren’t fools. After witnessing what they had today, even without their mother’s explanation, what was left to guess?
Now they felt only overwhelming heartache and indignation for Song Jinyao.
“I’m going to bring Father back!” Lu Yuan sprang up from his chair, ready to charge out.
Song Jinyao quickly stopped him: “Yuan’er, don’t be impulsive! I have other plans for this matter!”
Bring him back?
That shameless old beast—she wanted nothing to do with him!
The scoundrel and his mistress had actually kissed right at the manor gates! It made her sick to her stomach!
“Big brother, big sister,” Lu Wenhui spoke up angrily, having long moved past her own grief and disappointment. “Mother and I have known about this for a while. We kept it from you precisely because we were afraid you’d act rashly.”
She sniffed and continued bitterly: “It doesn’t matter. He faked his death to abandon us, didn’t he? Well, I, Lu Wenhui, don’t want a father like him anymore!”
“How dare he deceive and humiliate Mother and us like this? I won’t let him get away with it!”
“Yuan’er.” Song Jinyao called softly, gesturing for him to sit down before carefully explaining everything.
Half a cup of tea later, Lu Yuan clenched his fists, eyes bloodshot: “Mother, are you saying Second Brother, Third Brother, and Fourth Brother all knew about this? And it was Third Brother who suggested this plan to Father?”
This shattered all his moral convictions!
Seeing Song Jinyao nod in confirmation, Lu Yuan instead grew quiet.
No wonder.
No wonder Mother had changed so drastically since the first night of the vigil.
No wonder she later found the strength to sever ties with her three biological sons.
To be betrayed simultaneously by both her husband and her own sons—how heartbroken must Mother have been?
Suddenly, Lu Yuan felt a wave of sympathy for this stepmother of his.
“For now, pretend you don’t know anything. Just keep it in mind.”
“The reason I’m telling you the truth today is because I’m worried that someday, when that old fool can’t make it on his own outside, he might come begging to you. Don’t soften your hearts when that happens.”And—” Here, Song Jinyao glanced ambiguously at Lu Yuan, hesitating.
She wasn’t sure whether to tell the eldest what came next.
“Mother, please speak freely. I can handle it,” Lu Yuan said, noticing her hesitation.
“—Eldest, do you have any memory of the circumstances surrounding your biological mother’s death?” Song Jinyao suspected the question was pointless—what could a child barely two years old possibly remember?
Sure enough, Lu Yuan shook his head blankly.
All he remembered was being told his birth mother died in childbirth, that his sister had been stillborn—two lives lost together.
Had it not been that way?
Doubt began to grow in Lu Yuan’s heart.
When he looked up at Song Jinyao, he met her frost-cold gaze.
A terrifying suspicion suddenly dawned on him, and he grew agitated: “Mother? Do you… do you suspect my mother’s death… wasn’t straightforward?”
Just then, a sudden gale swept outside, rustling the osmanthus trees in the courtyard noisily.
Song Jinyao rose slowly and walked to the window.
Dark clouds gathered outside—a storm was coming.
Indeed, summer weather could change in an instant.
She sighed deeply, weighing how to begin.
In truth, it wasn’t suspicion—she was certain. But she had no proof.
In her past life, during her three years as a wandering spirit, her soul once drifted to the third branch’s residence, where she overheard Lu Xiuyuan speaking with Tao Shi about the birth mother of the eldest son, Lu Yuan.
To be honest, the death of Lu Yuan’s birth mother had some connection to her.
Back then, her Song Family had moved from Jing City to Taihe Xian. As they were living under the stigma of a criminal past, they dared not draw attention, keeping a low profile and even concealing their identities.
Unexpectedly, Lu Xiuyuan somehow uncovered some details about her Song Family and, for reasons unknown, concluded that the Songs had the potential to rise again.
Song Jinyao guessed that Lu Xiuyuan might have learned about their family’s connections in Jing City, possibly through her maternal grandfather.
At that time, Lu Xiuyuan’s branch had fallen into such dire straits that they could barely make ends meet. Coupled with his repeated failures in the imperial examinations, he grew desperate and conceived a reckless plan to latch onto the Song Family.
The problem was, Lu Xiuyuan was already married and had a son with his wife—Lu Yuan.
Lu Xiuyuan knew full well that even in decline, the Song Family would never allow their daughter to become a concubine.
So, that scoundrel decided to go all the way and murdered his first wife.
That was what later paved the way for her marriage into the Lu Family.
Unfortunately, at the time, she was unaware of Lu Xiuyuan’s vile and sinister intentions and actions. Otherwise, she would never have agreed to marry into the Lu Family.
“Mother?” Lu Yuan called out softly, his voice filled with anxiety, pulling Song Jinyao back from her thoughts.
“Yuan’er, perhaps it’s better if you ask him yourself someday. For now, all I can say is that your birth mother’s death was no accident, nor was it simply due to difficult childbirth.”
After a moment’s thought, Song Jinyao decided against revealing the whole truth.
Since her rebirth a few days ago, she had been trying hard to mend her relationship with this stepson. But given the short time, even if she told him everything, the eldest son might not fully trust her.
Wouldn’t it be better to wait for the day when Lu Xiuyuan himself confessed his crimes?
That would be far more convincing, wouldn’t it?
Over the next two days, Song Jinyao stayed within the residence without going out.
She had sent an invitation to the Xue Family, intending to first cancel Lu Wenhui’s engagement. However, the Xue Family did not respond immediately. Rumor had it that the Xue boy had gotten into trouble again, so they were likely unavailable to receive guests these days.
She could only wait a few more days. In the meantime, she considered spreading the Xue boy’s scandals throughout the city to gain the upper hand when breaking off the engagement.
But on second thought, a peaceful resolution would be best. The Xue Family was not to be trifled with—there was no need to turn a failed marriage alliance into a feud.
So, the matter was temporarily set aside.
Every day, Qiu Ling, a maid from the third branch, brought her the leftover medicinal dregs from Qiao Shi’s brewing.
She had a physician examine them and found that two key medicinal ingredients were missing. While it wasn’t poisoned, following this prescription, Lu Yue’s injuries would likely take a year or more to heal properly.
Moreover, it was highly probable that lasting complications would remain.
Besides, in such scorching summer heat, without proper care, those wounds would hardly heal and were bound to fester.
“Old Madam? Should we expose Qiao Shi?” Qiu Ling asked hesitantly.
Then, she couldn’t help but scoff inwardly. These past few days, Qiu Ling had watched Qiu Ling, with her prominent belly, putting on a show of caring for Lu Yue. The third master actually believed her act, treating Qiu Ling as a confidante.
Little did he know that Qiu Ling wanted him dead!
Sometimes Qiu Ling just couldn’t understand – Third Master always appeared so shrewd, yet when Old Madam had treated him so well before, he failed to recognize her good intentions and ended up hurting her so deeply.
Meanwhile, Qiao Shi clearly harbored malicious intentions, yet Third Master treated her like a treasure.
Was this what they called “lust blinds reason”?
Or “having eyes but failing to see”?
Well, she, Qiu Ling, wasn’t educated enough to come up with the precise term.
If you asked her, it could be summed up in one word – blind!
Song Jinyao curled her lips in a faint smile: “No need. As long as Qiao Shi hasn’t started poisoning him, let her torment Third Master however she wants.”
“Heh… What’s poison to one may be honey to another. How do you know your Third Master isn’t enjoying every moment of it?” Song Jinyao twirled her bodhi bracelet, her smile cold and mocking.
The chilling aura emanating from Song Jinyao made Qiu Ling shiver all over. This “honey” was certainly tormenting enough.
Today she had even detected a foul odor coming from Third Master’s room – who knew if it was from rotting flesh in his wounds?
If you asked her, Qiao Shi’s way of tormenting people was worse than outright poisoning.
What was truly exasperating was that their Third Master had been trusting Qiao Shi more and more these days, even handing over his private assets to her.
If Qiao Shi ever ran off with all the money one day, Third Master would probably cry himself to death!
After Qiu Ling left, Song Jinyao ate an extra half bowl of rice that evening.
She was delighted.
She knew Qiao Shi hadn’t yet mustered the courage to poison him, but the longer this went on, the more suffering Third Master would endure.
Ah—
Seeing that ungrateful wretch suffer put her in such a good mood. Oh dear, what a vicious mother she was!
But what could she do?
She was simply someone who always repaid grudges in kind!