Chapter 113: Offering Oneself in Return

Huangfu Chen felt a tinge of admiration for Lu Yanran’s courage; to think she dared to glare at him. If this were in the past, she would have long since been left without a complete corpse.

"Do as you please. Go out and kill someone, just don’t loiter here and eat my rice!" Huangfu Chen remarked.

Lu Yanran found Huangfu Chen’s demeanor utterly ridiculous. "How about I go out and kill Weishao Qianyu?"

"Heh," Huangfu Chen sneered. "Do you think you’re capable of that?"

"Then I truly must thank the Young Pavilion Master for showing mercy to my Lu family!" Lu Yanran retorted with a cold laugh.

Upon hearing this, Huangfu Chen’s expression darkened, and he stared coldly at Lu Yanran. He caught the subtext in her words and was about to retort when his mind suddenly went completely blank.

"Find a way to leave the pavilion!" Huangfu Chen left behind this icy command before turning and walking away.

Why was this man just as annoying as Weishao Qianyu? Huangfu Chen always had so much he wanted to say to Weishao Qianyu, yet the words would never come out.

Lu Yanran also wished to leave the Twilight Pavilion as soon as possible, but the place had been eerily quiet lately, and the Assassin’s Tower’s bounty board was desolate. Returning to her small attic, she found the recent atmosphere in the Twilight Pavilion strange. Ever since she last left, the only time she had been involved with the pavilion again was when she placed the order to kill Mianyin. By rights, that order should have reached Mei Ji by now, yet the pavilion still tolerated her presence. She wondered how Weishao Qianyu was faring, and how little Rui’er was doing after she had been away for so many days.

At that moment, in Guanlin City, Rui’er was busy turning the Duke’s Mansion upside down. Ever since Feng Jinye had saved Rui’er at the city gates the day he returned, the boy had followed Lu Liyuan back to the Duke’s Mansion. When Weishao Qianyu’s Gu poison had flared up, Lu Liyuan had rushed back to the mansion in a panic, mentioning that Lu Yanran was in danger in Yue Capital and that he needed to head there. He had failed to notice that Rui’er was playing in the study and had overheard every word.

From that day on, Rui’er had been crying and fussing to find his mother. Lady Lu had coaxed him for days, but lately, he had become inconsolable. He had even climbed up a tree, screaming and shouting for his mother. This stunt had turned the servants of the Duke’s Mansion deathly pale, and Lady Lu had nearly fainted from fright. Several times, Rui’er had tumbled from the branches, only to be caught by the hidden guards. In truth, Rui’er only climbed the tree to get a better view, hoping to spot his mother returning outside the gates.

Today, after watching for a long time without seeing Lu Yanran, he had burst into loud, wailing sobs. As he cried, he looked toward the gates and saw Weishao Qianyu and Feng Jinye walking in. In his excitement, Rui’er scrambled and leaped straight down from the tree. Duke Lu, standing beneath, managed to catch him, though Lady Lu fainted on the spot. Duke Lu laughed heartily as he held the boy, feeling gratified that Rui’er was so fearless.

After returning to Guanlin City and purging her Gu poison, Weishao Qianyu had been deeply worried about Rui’er. Having heard about the near-abduction of the boy and Xue Chun, she had hurried to the Duke’s Mansion to see the Duke and Rui’er. She was informed upon arrival that Rui’er had been throwing tantrums for days, often hiding in the trees, and had nearly fallen multiple times. Weishao Qianyu shot Feng Jinye a fierce glare before rushing into the inner courtyard, with the innocent-looking Feng Jinye following behind.

As soon as she entered, she saw Rui’er struggling to get out of the Duke’s arms, pointing at her and crying, "Aunt, save Rui’er!"

Weishao Qianyu picked him up and comforted him softly, "What’s wrong, Rui’er? Why do you need me to save you?"

"Great-Grandfather was going to spank Rui’er, Aunt, please save me!" Rui’er sobbed pitifully. He had been spanked quite a few times by his elders for climbing the trees, and the moment he saw Weishao Qianyu, he felt he had found his protector.

"Since when did you learn to climb trees?" Weishao Qianyu asked sternly.

Rui’er blinked his clear, dark eyes and said in a milky voice, "It was Aunt who taught me!" As he spoke, he looked at Duke Lu, his expression clearly implying, "If you want to hit someone, hit Aunt."

"I..." Weishao Qianyu truly wanted to discipline the little brat for lying, but then she paused—could it have been Dong Nuan who taught him? "Did you see me enter from the tree?" she asked instead.

Rui’er nodded vigorously, tears welling up in his eyes, "Was Mother kidnapped?"

Weishao Qianyu frowned, thought for a moment, and said, "No, your mother went to find your father for you."

Rui’er stared at her wide-eyed, then glanced at Feng Jinye standing behind her. "Rui’er is Feng Jinye’s son," he declared in his small, piping voice.

This statement stunned everyone in the mansion. Weishao Qianyu froze, feeling as though she had brought this upon herself. This was something she had told Dong Nuan during the chaos in Yue Capital—that if they were captured, they should claim he was Feng Jinye’s son to avoid immediate execution. Helplessly shaking her head, she took Rui’er and returned to the Prince Yuan Mansion after lunch.

Two days prior, Lu Liyuan had ridden non-stop to the Yue Capital, heading straight for the residence of Leng Ling. By the time he arrived, half the time had already passed. Seeing that the venerable physician was nearly sixty, Lu Liyuan realized it would be impossible to make the return trip in a single day and night. Upon hearing the situation, the old physician understood the urgency and decided to send his grandson, Leng Qi, in his stead. Leng Qi, his direct grandson, was skilled in medicinal diets and pharmacology and could help tend to the Princess.

Watching his grandson depart with Lu Liyuan, the old physician smiled, already planning to move his entire family to Guanlin City.

Two days later, in the side courtyard of the Prince Yuan Mansion, Dong Nuan woke up. As she moved, her left wound throbbed painfully, but it had been bandaged well; she had survived. Struggling to her feet, she headed toward the main courtyard to assess the situation. Just then, Lu Liyuan arrived with Leng Qi and caught sight of Dong Nuan walking despite her clear agony.

Lu Liyuan was instantly incensed. He strode forward, scooped her up in his arms, and barked, "You’re in such pain, yet you’re wandering around? Does the Prince Yuan Mansion have no one to care for you? What is Feng Jinye doing?"

Dong Nuan stared at him coldly, momentarily at a loss for how to react.

"Major General Lu, I..." Dong Nuan began to explain, but Lu Liyuan, assuming she was just being defiant as Weishao Qianyu always was, adopted his tone of an elder brother: "What, can’t your brother even speak to you now?"

Dong Nuan was rendered speechless. Lu Liyuan carried her to the main courtyard. Being a man, he did not take her into the bedchamber but placed her on the chaise longue in the outer room where Weishao Qianyu often rested. He reached out to touch her forehead, asking softly, "Does it still hurt?"

Dong Nuan: "..."

Weishao Qianyu and Feng Jinye had just returned from the Duke’s Mansion. Standing outside the room and witnessing this scene, Weishao Qianyu’s lips curled into a faint smile. Feng Jinye, holding Rui’er, remained silent as he watched his wife enjoy the show. Rui’er, shocked to see two "aunts," looked back and forth between them, his little head unable to process the situation.

Weishao Qianyu put a finger to her lips, signaling the others to remain quiet, and they waited for Lu Liyuan to notice them. Lu Liyuan, thinking of the Gu poison, turned to grab Leng Qi to take her pulse, only to freeze when he saw Feng Jinye holding Rui’er alongside the real Weishao Qianyu standing at the door.

He was struck dumb, then turned back to look at Dong Nuan. Weishao Qianyu laughed out loud, acting as if she hadn’t seen them. "Feng Jinye, what was that phrase again?"

Rui’er answered faster than Feng Jinye: "Men and women should not touch when passing items."

Weishao Qianyu chuckled, "A child worth teaching."

"Men and women should not touch" was exactly what she had told Rui’er when Feng Jinye had taken him from her arms earlier. Lu Liyuan finally understood—the person behind him was an impostor. Feeling flustered and irritated, he turned to scold Dong Nuan, but realized she had never claimed to be Weishao Qianyu; it was his own mistake. Remembering Rui’er’s words, he felt suddenly awkward.

Dong Nuan stood up, only to be overcome by a fit of coughing. As she shared Weishao Qianyu’s appearance, Lu Liyuan instinctively reached out to pat her back. Dong Nuan retreated awkwardly, and Lu Liyuan, startled by his own action, frowned and demanded, "What is going on?"

Weishao Qianyu stepped over to help Dong Nuan sit and examined her wounds. She then explained how Feng Qingxuan had been controlled by the "Captured Eye" technique to assassinate her, and how Dong Nuan had been disguised as her to take the blow. Upon hearing this, Lu Liyuan looked at Feng Jinye with fury, yet found himself unable to utter a word of blame.

Weishao Qianyu summoned Xue Chun and Qing Xia to help Dong Nuan to the side hall. Sensing Lu Liyuan’s mounting anger, she tried to change the subject. "Brother, Dong Nuan saved my life. I have no way to repay her—why don’t you marry her to show your gratitude?"

As she said it, she recalled Feng Qingxuan’s words: Dong Nuan was a secret guard of the Zhan Prince’s Mansion, meaning she was "one of their own." If she married into the Lu family, wouldn’t she be a perfect member of their household? Lu Liyuan couldn't tell if she was joking, but looking at Dong Nuan, who now looked exactly like Weishao Qianyu, he couldn’t fathom how he could possibly marry her.