Chapter 127

Chapter 127: Utterly Satisfying Song Shulan furrowed his brow, his gaze dark and unreadable. He was deeply irritated at the moment. The moment he confirmed there was no one else in the room, he felt relief in his heart. He had always trusted Cui Lingrong on this point, after all, her upbringing would never allow her to commit something so contrary to human decency. His earlier suspicions had been more about believing Xie Yunting harbored ill intentions. Seeing Cui Lingrong look over, Song Shulan moved his lips, "As long as you explain clearly, we'll apologize to you." "Forget the apology. If I prove this is a misunderstanding, then deduct half a year's allowance from Wutong Courtyard." Cui Lingrong now felt that many things could be measured in money. Just like how Old Madame was dissatisfied with her but didn't dare reprimand her harshly—because when it came to money, Old Madame herself felt guilty and feared it would become known throughout the city. Now she wanted to cut off County Princess Rongjia's allowance entirely—not a single cent would be given, forcing County Princess Rongjia to pay for her own expenses. She knew that County Princess Rongjia was actually quite short on money. County Princess Rongjia's face turned pale. "Sister Cui, is this really necessary?" "Absolutely. If I had led people in with a furious face to catch you in the act, could you still calmly say, 'It's fine, no worries, I'm innocent anyway'?" Cui Lingrong smiled slightly, then slowly explained the matter of Caixia and Xu Baihu's matchmaking meeting. "A few days ago, General Xie came to my residence, wanting me to help arrange a match for Xu Baihu. Xu Baihu had taken a liking to Caixia, so I had to arrange for the two of them to talk. That's all it was." Seeing that County Princess Rongjia didn't believe her, Cui Lingrong continued, "After Caixia and Xu Baihu went out, General Xie went to meet a friend. If the Marquis doesn't believe me, he can send someone to find him." Seeing that Song Shulan hadn't moved, Cui Lingrong simply sent her own people to find him. Only then did Song Shulan speak, "Since you brought Caixia here for a matchmaking meeting, why didn't you inform the household?" "Marquis, when it concerns a young woman's reputation, how could I say anything? You see, even now when I'm explaining this matter, I've had everyone else step out." Cui Lingrong said. "Besides, Caixia is someone from my quarters. Her marriage is mine to decide. Do I need to consult anyone?" She looked at County Princess Rongjia. "Just like when County Princess Rongjia arranged for Lanxin and the others to enter the household, she didn't inform me either." Normally, before arranging for people to enter, one should first inform Cui Lingrong, as the managing mistress. County Princess Rongjia had acted first and reported later—bringing the people back and only then having Cui Lingrong register them, without even going through the motions. Moreover, Lanxin and Zhuqing were bedchamber maids that County Princess Rongjia had arranged for Song Shulan. In that instant, Song Shulan's face felt hot, and he couldn't find words to say. Before long, Xie Yunting arrived with a friend—also a military officer—who said Xie Yunting had been drinking tea with him the whole time, and asked what was going on here. Family scandals should not be aired in public. Song Shulan certainly couldn't let others know that his two wives were at odds, so he had to go out and send the people away. Xie Yunting knew the inside story. Once in the courtyard, he deliberately teased Song Shulan, "Marquis Song is truly blessed—even coming to offer incense, you bring both wives along. May I ask what the Marquis came to pray for today?" Song Shulan didn't want to talk more with Xie Yunting, but fearing Xie Yunting would keep pestering him, he instead brought up the matter of Caixia and Xu Shuanzi. "I heard that Xu Baihu took a liking to Caixia at first sight?" Xie Yunting gave two cold laughs. Seeing that Song Shulan had brought this up in front of his friend, he didn't give Song Shulan a good face. "Marquis Song truly has a thick skin." He put his arm around his friend and left without looking back. Only then did Song Shulan breathe a sigh of relief. Inside the meditation room, Cui Lingrong smiled faintly at County Princess Rongjia. "If you walk along the river often, your shoes are bound to get wet. The County Mistress schemes against me at every turn—aren't you afraid that one day you'll capsize in a ditch and never climb back out?" County Princess Rongjia's face flushed red as she retorted, "You should think about that yourself. Holding onto what doesn't belong to you—sooner or later it will backfire!" "Doesn't belong to me? I married into the Marquis's household through proper rites. No one can say I stole anything from anyone. But the County Mistress hasn't even served me tea since marrying in. Who is the one without proper standing, and who is the one hiding in the shadows like a bedbug?" Cui Lingrong paused deliberately, then stepped closer to County Princess Rongjia one pace at a time. "Even a rabbit will bite when cornered. The County Mistress should be more careful when sleeping at night—one day it might be me bringing the Marquis to catch you in the act!" Thinking of Yu-jie and her younger brother's matter, and with no one else around, she vented all her old and new grievances in one go, feeling much more satisfied in her heart. When Cui Lingrong reached the door and saw Song Shulan returning, she took the initiative to say, "The Marquis seems concerned about Caixia's marriage. Why not come with me to see for yourself, so you won't misunderstand anything again?" Song Shulan looked toward the meditation room. "Let it go. The Commandery Princess said she accepts the punishment. I won't bring this up against her anymore. The six months' allowance will be her compensation to me. If the Marquis wants to privately subsidize her, just don't let me know about it." Cui Lingrong walked forward two steps. It wasn't that she truly wanted to walk with Song Shulan—it was that she knew taking Song Shulan away would anger County Princess Rongjia. Song Shulan hesitated for a moment, then followed Cui Lingrong. Inside the meditation room, County Princess Rongjia had drawn water with a bamboo basket today—gaining nothing at all. Instead, she'd had six months' worth of allowance deducted by Cui Lingrong. When Chen De's Wife entered, she was throwing things around like a madwoman. "Why? Why did she get away scot-free again?" From Commandery Princess down to County Princess, not only had her status been lowered, but she also had to be controlled by Cui Lingrong at every turn in the Jiangyuan Marquis Mansion. Six months? How could Cui Lingrong even think of that? She had been using her own money to subsidize Shouan Tang, and now even the food, clothing, housing, and transportation of Wutong Courtyard had to be paid for by her for half a year. Especially when she heard that Song Shulan had not refuted Cui Lingrong's words and had even followed Cui Lingrong away, County Princess Rongjia completely lost her composure. Chen De's Wife tried to console her from the side, "Please don't get agitated. The Eldest Young Madam really has a silver tongue—she can talk black into white. This time, the Marquis won't take it to heart. Once you coax the Marquis later, everything can return to how it was." "What I'm angry about is Cui Lingrong, and all of you—completely useless. Every time you come up with some brilliant scheme, Cui Lingrong turns it right back against us." The more County Princess Rongjia spoke, the angrier she became, and the fury in her chest simply would not subside. "Now even one of her maidservants can latch onto Xie Yunting. If her son and daughter grow up in the future, will there still be any place for me in the Jiangyuan Marquis Mansion?" A child! She desperately needed a child! Before she had married into the family, she had been very confident in herself. She had thought that Cui Lingrong was merely the daughter of a minor official and could be dealt with easily, yet she had lost to Cui Lingrong every single time. And Cui Lingrong's three children—the older Yu-jie grew, the more striking her appearance became. Xuan-ge had even passed both the county and prefectural examinations in succession. If he passed the provincial examination, he would become a xiucai. Cui Lingrong's children were already grown, but she still hadn't seen any hope for herself. The mere thought of this made County Princess Rongjia frantic with anxiety. "Come, let's go find You Shuyi and have her prescribe me several more doses of medicine. And for Lanxin and Zhuqing too—prescribe some for them as well!" She wiped away her tears and hurriedly left with Chen De's Wife and the others. Little did she know, not long after County Princess Rongjia left, Er Shun came to report before the Eldest Young Madam and the Marquis. "Eldest Young Madam, the County Princess has boarded her carriage and left. It's not in the direction of the Marquis Mansion—I'm not sure if she's going to the Rong Prince Mansion." Upon hearing that County Princess Rongjia had not returned home, what came to Song Shulan's mind was not the Rong Prince Mansion, but that courtyard the County Princess had been frequenting lately. His face immediately darkened. Cui Lingrong casually remarked, "If the Marquis is worried, why not follow and see?"