Chapter 4

Chapter 4: You Don’t Trust Me? Su Qingluo panicked. Being caught crying by him twice in one day was mortifying. She had glanced hurriedly into the pavilion earlier and thought it was empty. Now that she thought about it, he must have been hidden behind one of the pillars. A breeze stirred, carrying the faint scent of wine from the man. He had only just returned to the Lu Family today. He had no doubt attended a banquet with the various branches of the family and drunk wine. He had probably come here afterward to rest, only for her to disturb his peace. His mood was clearly poor. Su Qingluo didn’t dare provoke him, and bowed. “I didn’t know Third Master was here. Please forgive my discourtesy. I’ll take my leave.” “Stop,” Lu Hengzhi said mildly. His voice carried the unquestionable authority of someone accustomed to giving orders, and Su Qingluo stopped in spite of herself. His tone was cool. “I asked you a question. Why are you crying again?” Su Qingluo pressed her lips together. How could she tell a man outside her family about something like this? When she didn’t answer for a long while, he asked, “What is it? Did you twist your ankle again?” Su Qingluo flushed, wishing the ground would open and swallow her. Fortunately, Song Wen arrived just then. Carrying a colored-glass lantern in one hand and a food box in the other, he hurried over. “Master, you had quite a bit to drink just now. You should have a bowl of hangover soup.” He turned and saw Su Qingluo, then froze. “Miss Su, what are you doing here?” Su Qingluo lowered her eyes and said nothing. Lu Hengzhi gestured for Song Wen to set the food box on the pavilion’s stone table, then took the lantern from him. “Go wait outside.” Song Wen was astonished, but quickly answered, “Yes, Master.” Ever since his master had become the Top Scorer, there had been no shortage of distinguished young ladies in the capital seeking his hand in marriage. Some were even members of the imperial family, and many women had thrown themselves at him, openly or in secret. Yet he had never shown interest in any of them. Today, he had made an exception for Miss Su for the second time. But—wasn’t Miss Su already betrothed? Could his master really…? At the thought, Song Wen’s legs nearly gave way. He glanced inside. The two figures seemed to be standing closer now. Lu Hengzhi lifted the lantern a little higher. “Come up.” Beneath its light, Su Qingluo’s pale face showed a hint of stubbornness, and the corners of her eyes were red. She didn’t move. Lu Hengzhi added, “Or do you want me to come down?” Su Qingluo’s vermilion lips pressed together. After a moment, she lifted her skirts and climbed into the pavilion. Once inside, she bowed to him. Lu Hengzhi removed the lantern’s shade and set it on the round table. He sat down, opened the food box, and slowly finished the bowl of hangover soup before speaking. “How did Lu Yan bully you?” Su Qingluo was slightly startled. Unlike earlier, when he had asked, “Who bullied you?”, this time he sounded certain. No wonder he could sway the court at will—he had guessed the truth. Su Qingluo lowered her eyes and didn’t answer at once. Lu Hengzhi waited a moment, then said, “Tell me. I’ll set things right for you.” There was unexpected patience in his voice. Su Qingluo was even more surprised. After hesitating for a moment, she only said quietly, “Nothing happened.” He belonged to the main branch. What right did he have to set things right for her? The only person who could do that was her Maternal Grandmother, but her health had deteriorated considerably. Su Qingluo couldn’t burden her with something like this. Besides, given the man before her’s abilities, even if she said nothing, he could find out the reason soon enough. But if she spoke up, she might instead be accused of being unreasonable. Instinct, honed by years of living under someone else’s roof, quickly told Su Qingluo what she should do. Lu Hengzhi rose and took a step toward her. His presence was impossible to ignore, and he exerted a kind of pressure. Su Qingluo instinctively stepped back and looked up. Lu Hengzhi wore a moon-white robe. He was as aloof and pristine as the bright moon above a snow-covered mountain. His face was as flawless as carved jade, his sideburns as sharply defined as if cut by a blade. His eyes were cool, and his voice was cooler still. “You don’t trust me?” There was unmistakable displeasure in his tone. Su Qingluo didn’t respond. Lu Hengzhi’s gaze darkened. “Why not give it a try?” Su Qingluo lowered her eyes. “I wouldn’t dare. Truly, nothing happened. I was just missing home.” That was half true and half false, but it wasn’t entirely an evasion. Lu Hengzhi studied her for a moment, but didn’t say whether he believed her. Su Qingluo bowed again. “It’s late, Third Master. You should turn in.” At last, Lu Hengzhi said no more. He handed her the lantern. “Watch your step on the way.” Su Qingluo meant to refuse, but when she saw his deep, shadowed eyes, she accepted it without thinking. “Thank you, Third Master. I’ll have someone return the lantern tomorrow.” “No need,” Lu Hengzhi said. “I’ll send someone to collect it.” Su Qingluo breathed a sigh of relief. That would be much easier. It wouldn’t be quite proper for her maid to go to the front courtyard to find him; people might gossip. Lu Hengzhi’s interruption had eased her sadness considerably. She went back to her room, lay down, and soon fell asleep. Early the next morning, Su Qingluo got up and went to pay her respects to her Maternal Grandmother. Several of the madams were there, and Second Aunt stood off to one side. Maternal Grandmother had caught a slight chill the night before. Her head felt heavy, and she wore a forehead band. Still, when she saw Su Qingluo, she warmly beckoned her over. “Qingluo, come here. It rained yesterday—did you sleep well last night? Did you catch a chill?” Su Qingluo’s eyes grew slightly moist. She nestled against the old madam. “I’m fine. I should be asking you that, Maternal Grandmother. Did you go out to enjoy the cool night air and catch a chill?” Maternal Grandmother couldn’t help laughing. She reached out and poked Su Qingluo’s cheek. “What sort of nonsense is that, you little rascal?” As usual, Su Qingluo had breakfast with Maternal Grandmother. Mustering her strength, Maternal Grandmother said, “I’ve lived a long life, and my time may be near. But I have to see our Qingluo married first.” A pang of sorrow rose in Su Qingluo’s heart. Second Aunt immediately said, “Pah, pah! Mother, may you live to a hundred. You won’t just see Qingluo married—you’ll have to help look after her child for a few years after she gives birth to the Crown Prince’s eldest grandson!” Maternal Grandmother beamed. “Look at how lazy your madam is! The child’s mother-in-law won’t look after the baby and expects me to do it instead. What sort of thing is that?” Everyone burst out laughing. Su Qingluo said nothing. She knew Second Aunt had said it deliberately—to make her obediently marry Lu Yan. After leaving Maternal Grandmother’s room, Second Aunt pulled Su Qingluo into another room with a smiling apology. Lu Yan was indeed already waiting inside. When he saw her enter, he slapped himself across the face. “Little Sister, yesterday was all my fault. I deserved to die.” The slap made no sound at all. Lu Yan came over and reached for her hand, but Su Qingluo jerked away. Lu Yan immediately tried to placate her by presenting her with a translucent jade pendant. “Little Sister, I picked this out especially for you. Let it make up for what I did. You’ll always come first in my heart.” Su Qingluo took the pendant. An orchid was carved into it. She didn’t like orchids. She loved peonies. She didn’t like jade, either. Jade was fragile, not as sturdy as gold or silver. Only then did Su Qingluo realize that over the years, he had given her plenty of gifts, but not one of them was something she liked. And yet he kept saying she came first. When he saw that she hadn’t refused the pendant, Lu Yan was pleased. He hurriedly said, “I only felt sorry for Yanran. Her father died young, and she lives in poverty. She cried and told me she was about to turn fifteen and didn’t even have a decent hairpin. That’s why I accompanied her to the jewelry shop.” “Don’t worry. You’re the only one I want to marry.” Seeing that Su Qingluo had accepted the pendant, Second Aunt took her hand as well and smiled. “That’s more like it. Yan’er was just foolish for a moment. Qingluo, be generous and don’t hold it against him. You’ll soon be family—there’s no reason for you to quarrel every day.” Su Qingluo let out a cold laugh and flung the pendant to the ground with all her strength. It shattered into pieces. Second Aunt and Lu Yan were both stunned. Su Qingluo said coldly, “It’s a pity I don’t want to marry you. I’m determined to break off this engagement. You both know the reason, and if we keep talking, we’ll only damage our relationship. I’ll give Aunt half a month. If you haven’t settled this by then, I’ll have no choice but to ask my Maternal Grandmother.” Second Aunt shouted, “Nonsense! Is this trivial matter worth troubling your Maternal Grandmother over? Her health is poor. How can you be so unfilial?”