Chapter 555
Chapter 555
“I understand.” Li Zhiwei nodded when she heard this.
She knew Xu Heming must have something very important to deal with. Naturally, she had to support him.
Besides, if she were asked to be dignified and composed, she might not manage it. But making a grand spectacle of herself in public? That was far too easy.
And if the Jiang family failed to recognize their place when the time came, she could finally act without restraint.
“Your Highness, if I make too much of a display of myself, will I cause you trouble?” Li Zhiwei asked uncertainly.
“No. Don’t worry. Even if you were to punch a hole in the sky, your husband would hold it up for you.” Xu Heming spoke with absolute certainty as he looked at her.
“Since my husband has put it that way, then I won’t hold back.” Li Zhiwei nodded in relief.
“Your Highness, it’s getting late. Shouldn’t we turn in early?” Seeing Li Zhiwei’s playful expression, Xu Heming’s lips curved faintly.
The silver candles flickered. Within the gauze curtains, springtime bliss unfolded without end, and even the moon, blushing with shyness, quietly hid itself away.
Meanwhile, the Li residence was in utter chaos.
“My lord, do you think this outfit is suitable for me to wear?” Lady Yao held a garment against herself, then decided it did not seem quite right.
“My lord, what about this set of jewelry?”
“My lady, let’s travel light. We don’t need to bring anything. If we find ourselves lacking something, we can simply buy it when we get there.” Seeing Lady Yao rushing about in a panic, Li Tianyou took her hand and tried to reassure her.
“How can we do that? We’re going to the place where Zhou'er grew up, and we’ll be meeting the woman who raised him. We can’t let her outshine us.” Whenever Lady Yao thought about how her son had been raised by someone else, she felt grateful toward that woman.
Yet how could she not resent her as well?
If that woman had not taken her child away, perhaps they would have found him sooner. Then they could have been the happiest and most harmonious of families.
“We’ll see what happens after we get there.”
Whenever he thought of Jiang Yuanrang’s birth mother, Li Tianyou’s eyes turned dark. He had already sent people to investigate. Back then, that woman had taken Jiang Yuanrang because she wanted him to replace her own son, who had died of illness, so that she could preserve her family’s estate.
Even the name Jiang Yuanrang had originally belonged not to Li Tingzhou, but to the dead son of the Jiang family.
If Madame Jiang had not deliberately found a child and soaked him in water, they would never have mistakenly believed that their own child had died.
The reason they had been separated from their son for so many years was entirely due to Madame Jiang’s selfishness.
Now that Zhou'er had been reunited with them, Li Tianyou could not tell what attitude that woman would take.
What worried him was that she might refuse to let Zhou'er leave with them.
“My lord, do you think Zhou'er will come back with us? I don’t know why, but I have a bad feeling.” Lady Yao sighed and sat down beside Li Tianyou.
She had always felt vaguely unsettled.
That was clearly her own child, yet he had grown up by someone else’s side.
How many years of his growth had she missed?
“Don’t worry.” Li Tianyou did not tell Lady Yao what he had discovered through his investigation.
In his heart, however, he had already made up his mind. Whether Madame Jiang was willing or not, he would not allow his son to remain away from home.
The Jiang residence in Lu City
Madame Jiang had no idea that Jiang Yuanrang’s birth parents were already on their way to Lu City.
At that moment, she was staring at Jiang Siyue, who was crying bitterly, with an exasperated expression.
“If you had nothing better to do, why did you provoke them? Didn’t I tell you that your aunt would make the arrangements?”
“Aunt, I simply couldn’t stand that woman showing off. What right did she have to steal Cousin away from me?” Jiang Siyue sobbed indignantly.
“Who told you any of this?” Madame Jiang felt that Jiang Siyue truly had no sense at all.
The people surrounding that young woman clearly looked dangerous, yet she had still gone out of her way to provoke her.
In Madame Jiang’s opinion, Jiang Siyue had deserved every bit of the beating she received.
“Aunt, you promised that I could marry Cousin. But now Cousin only likes that shameless woman. Will he still marry me?” Jiang Siyue had completely failed to notice the displeasure in Madame Jiang’s eyes.
She continued to whimper and complain.
“Don’t be impatient. I have my own arrangements. For now, your priority is to learn to keep a low profile.” Madame Jiang sighed as she looked at Jiang Siyue.
Inwardly, however, she felt a trace of disgust. She wondered whether a woman as foolish as this could give her a clever grandchild.
If her son, Yuanrang’s father, were still alive, she would not even consider taking a daughter-in-law like this.
But now, she had no choice.
Although Jiang Siyue was stupid, she was easy to control. Moreover, she was a member of the Jiang family, so she would certainly stand on Madame Jiang’s side in the future.
“Aunt, if you still haven’t made the arrangements soon, I’m going home. My mother said that if Cousin truly has another girl, then I should go back and get married.”
How could Jiang Siyue fail to hear the evasiveness in Madame Jiang’s words?
Yet her own statement was also a reminder: she would never agree to become Jiang Yuanrang’s concubine.
“Enough. I’ll write to your parents and explain everything to them. You should simply prepare yourself to become my daughter-in-law.” Madame Jiang gently patted Jiang Siyue’s hand.
In truth, Madame Jiang was anxious as well. But Jiang Yuanrang refused to give his consent.
She was merely trying to figure out how to make the marriage happen.
If Jiang Yuanrang remained determined to refuse, she would have no choice but to force the matter.
Qiyun Courtyard
“Miss, that Cousin Jiang and Madame Jiang have been conspiring in their room for ages.” Qiu Shui hurried over to Wen Xiu, excitement written all over her face.
“What did you hear that has you so happy?” Wen Xiu asked, not particularly pleased.
“Miss, I heard that Cousin Jiang was complaining to Madame Jiang. Madame Jiang told her to be patient and even promised that she would make Li Tingzhou marry her.” Qiu Shui grinned.
“Oh? Did Li Tingzhou agree?” Wen Xiu asked calmly.
“Hehe, Miss, I didn’t see Young Master Li at Jing’an Courtyard.” Qiu Shui had no idea whether Jiang Yuanrang had agreed or not.
“There’s no need to concern ourselves with them. It’s nothing more than a scheme between those two aunt and niece. Besides, even if Li Tingzhou agreed, there’s still nothing to fear.” Wen Xiu remained unconcerned.
After all, she was in Lu City now.
The Third Prince of Qinling could not possibly chase her all the way here.
If she and Jiang Yuanrang managed to become a couple, she would be happy enough. If they did not, she could use the matter as an excuse to stay in Lu City and enjoy some peace and quiet.
“But Miss, weren’t you and Young Master Li betrothed by Imperial decree? Aren’t you afraid he’ll break off the engagement?” Qiu Shui looked at Wen Xiu’s calm expression in confusion.
“What is there to fear? I’m not the one breaking off the engagement. Besides, if he truly dares to wrong me, someone will naturally deal with him.” As Wen Xiu spoke, a smug smile lifted the corners of her mouth.
After all, she had already received a letter from Li Zhiwei. They were on their way to Lu City.
When the time came, if Jiang Yuanrang betrayed her, Li Zhiwei certainly would not let him off!