Chapter 329

Chapter 329: The Female Tutor When Cui Lingrong learned that Song Shulan had arrived, she didn't want to see him. "Nanny Qiu, go ask him what he wants. If he has something to say, he can tell you. I won't see him." Nanny Qiu carried the message over and returned after a while. "Master, Marquis Song says he's come to deliver jewelry to you. He thanks you for your help with Xuan-ge's matter and has come to express his gratitude." "Heh, Xuan-ge is my son. He doesn't need to come here to disgust me." Cui Lingrong had no desire for any private entanglement with Song Shulan. "Tell him to take it back. I won't accept a single thing from him." Nanny Qiu went to relay the message again. Song Shulan insisted on seeing Cui Lingrong. Nanny Qiu couldn't understand him. "Marquis Song, even if you sit here until dark, my master won't see you. Why put yourself through this? What's the point of pestering her like this?" "I—" "Marquis Song, if it weren't for the fact that you're the father of the young master and young miss, we would have already thrown you out." Nanny Qiu cut him off. "A person should still keep some dignity. You and my master have already parted by mutual divorce—there's no need for further contact. If it weren't for the matter of Xuan-ge and his brother, you shouldn't come here at all anymore!" Having said what needed to be said, Nanny Qiu left. She didn't want to listen to Song Shulan's nonsense either. And Song Shulan actually did sit there until dark. The Cui residence offered him neither tea nor food. His legs went weak from hunger, and the moment he stepped out of the Cui residence, he nearly stumbled and fell. "Marquis Song, these are your things. Take them back." Caiyue came out with a cold face, shoved the jewelry box into Qingshan's arms, then turned and ran back inside. She loathed Song Shulan and the Jiangyuan Marquis Mansion even more and would never give him a kind look. Song Shulan got no kindness. A few days later, he came again and sat for another whole day. He thought, Cui Lingrong is angry with him—he just needed to come a few more times and it would be fine. That day he still didn't get to see her. On the way back to the Jiangyuan Marquis Mansion, his carriage suddenly overturned. A group of people rushed out from who knows where, threw a sack over his head, and started beating him. "Who—?" Song Shulan barely got the words out before he was kicked twice more, and his clothes were stripped off. His companion Qingshan got the same treatment. The master and servant couldn't get up for a long while. By the time they pulled off the sacks, not a single person was in sight, and they were left with only their underpants. "Oh my, who is this? Shameless!" An elderly woman passing by glanced at them and hurried away. Song Shulan's cheeks burned hot. Qingshan said they should report it to the authorities, but Song Shulan wouldn't allow it. "If anyone finds out who we are looking like this, wouldn't that be utterly humiliating?" He had no choice but to swallow this bitter loss. Fortunately, it was dark by then. They took secluded paths and didn't encounter too many people. After Song Shulan and his servant had left, Cui Zeyu let out a cold snort. "He's like a stubborn plaster. If I didn't have to pay with my own life for killing him, I'd love to slice him into a thousand pieces!" Xie Yunting laughed. "You kicked him pretty hard just now. Seems you truly despise Song Shulan. Judging by his behavior, is he perhaps thinking of reconciling with your sister?" "He's not worthy!" If Xie Yunting hadn't come to tell him, Cui Zeyu wouldn't have known that Song Shulan was pestering his sister again. "Has he lost his mind? Out of nowhere, why is he sending jewelry?" "He hasn't lost his mind. Song Shulan is the most snobbish of men. Now that Prince Rong has fallen out of favor, and you and Lord Zhuang have gained importance, he knows full well which side matters more." Xie Yunting said he wasn't deliberately sowing discord. "Someone like Song Shulan—we absolutely cannot let him keep clinging to Sister Cui." "That's certain!" "So, we need to create some trouble for him." Xie Yunting gave a sly smile. Cui Zeyu asked Xie Yunting what plan he had in mind. "Come here, I'll tell you." Xie Yunting whispered a few things. "Once we cause trouble for Song Shulan, he won't have time to come bother Sister Cui." "And what about you?" Cui Zeyu suddenly asked. Xie Yunting blinked. "What about me?" "You announced in front of everyone that you're impotent—that's fake, right?" Cui Zeyu didn't believe such nonsense from Xie Yunting. "What are you really thinking? Surely you don't intend to never marry and have children your whole life?" "Is that not allowed? Who says a man must marry and have children?" Xie Yunting spread his hands. "I, Xie Yunting, come from the wilderness. Everything I own, I built with my own hands. While I live, I'll live well and freely. When I die, I don't expect anyone to burn incense for me. Mingling with a bunch of lonely ghosts will still be lively enough. Besides, I understand your sister's concerns. She's a woman—she has more difficulties." "Don't you think it's possible my sister just doesn't like you?" Cui Zeyu didn't know where Xie Yunting got his confidence. "Every time I go over, Sister Cui has never shown any sign of annoyance, which means she doesn't reject me in her heart. As for refusing me, it's more that her thinking is bound by those stale conventions. Once time passes, she'll go from not disliking me to liking me—that's not hard at all, is it?" Xie Yunting nudged Cui Zeyu's arm as he spoke. "Brother, you're already married, yet you still don't understand women?" He hooked his arm around Cui Zeyu's shoulder. "Tell me, how are things between you and your wife? Getting along well?" Cui Zeyu pushed Xie Yunting away without answering. "Hey, don't leave! Let me take you out for a drink! We snatched Song Shulan's silver today—let's celebrate!" Xie Yunting said with a grin, pulling Cui Zeyu along toward the tavern. As for Song Shulan, he made his way back to the Jiangyuan Marquis Mansion in utter disarray, and the next day sent someone to the Cui residence, claiming that the public security had been poor lately and he had been robbed. When Cui Lingrong heard about it, she first laughed, then felt something was off. "He was riding in a carriage—who would dare rob him?" "What do you mean?" Nanny Qiu asked. Cui Lingrong thought for a moment. "I'm afraid he's offended someone. Otherwise, who would rob him? But it's good that he was robbed—he's been muddle-headed lately, wasting his days without knowing what he's doing." With the weather hot recently, Cui Lingrong stopped going to the academy. She stayed home every day with Yu-jie and Qi-jie'er, essentially serving as half a female tutor. Yu-jie didn't need much teaching, but Qi-jie'er was a different story. Zhuang Qi's mother had been in poor health for years and had no time to manage her, while her grandmother, perhaps having been too strict with Cui Lingrong's generation, doted on Zhuang Qi instead. As a result, Zhuang Qi had a sweet, naive disposition and wasn't well-versed in the ways of prominent households. After a few days of lessons, Zhuang Qi wanted to slack off. Coincidentally, her period had just arrived, so she sent her maid to the main courtyard, making excuses that she wasn't feeling well. Cui Lingrong then invited You Shuyi and the others over, taking the opportunity to have her examine Zhuang Qi and regulate her constitution. "Qi-jie'er likes cold things, doesn't she? No matter how hot the weather, when your monthly cycle comes, you can't indulge in cold treats." After taking Zhuang Qi's pulse, You Shuyi turned to Cui Lingrong. "I heard you're planning to establish a school. That's wonderful—when the time comes, I'll teach there too." Yuan Mingzhu asked, "What can you do? You're not going to teach the children how to play, are you?" "I can teach medicine, and I can also teach the girls how to care for their bodies—that's an excellent thing." You Shuyi said it would be of great use. "Getting sick less means living longer. Ordinary families can't afford medicine or doctor visits. If they know a bit themselves, they can avoid falling ill." Cui Lingrong nodded. "That's true." She then looked at Yuan Mingzhu. "Mingzhu, don't you know martial arts? You could also teach those young girls—nothing too advanced, just enough to defend themselves if they encounter a villain." "I... can I?" Yuan Mingzhu had grown much quieter since losing her husband. Apart from Cui Lingrong and You Shuyi, she wouldn't go out even when others called on her. "Of course you can." Cui Lingrong said. "You used to always say that if you were a man, you'd be even more formidable than your father and brothers!" If she went to the school, having something to do would help take her mind off things. Cui Lingrong hoped that the people around her could all live a little better.