The Favorite of the Sick and Weak Lady - Chapter 61

“Shut up. Tomorrow, you’re sleeping in the study.”

“…”

Xiao Yu wanted to plead her case, but Song Luoning had already turned her back to her. Finally, she opened and closed her mouth, then silently pulled her into her arms. Who knows what tomorrow will bring? Saying more now is useless.

Song Luoning frowned. “The maid is still outside.”

“Mmm,” Xiao Yu answered nonchalantly with her eyes closed.

Song Luoning was exasperated and ground her teeth. “And you still dare to be reckless.”

“She wouldn’t dare to come in.”

…

The next day, when the maid came to knock on the door, Xiao Yu had already left at some point. Song Luoning pursed her lips, staring at the empty space beside her for a long time before finally answering.

When Cui Zhu led the maids in, Song Luoning was still staring blankly at the bed.

The maid carried hot water into the washroom, and Cui Zhu took out clothes from the cabinet, ready to help her young mistress get dressed and wash up. Seeing her constantly staring at the bed, she looked for a while but couldn’t find anything wrong. She asked, puzzled, “Miss, is there something wrong with the bed?”

Song Luoning paused and then went into the washroom.

When she came out, Xiao Yu was standing outside with a smile on her face. The morning light shone on her, making her delicate features look even softer and giving the young man a spirited appearance.

Song Luoning looked at her, her cheeks slightly flushed. Realizing her lapse, she quickly looked away, her tone unnatural. “Why are you here?”

“To have breakfast with you, of course,” Xiao Yu said, as if it were the most natural thing in the world.

“Mmm,” Song Luoning replied indifferently. “I won’t be eating at home. I promised my sister-in-law and the others yesterday that we would have a meal at Mingpin Restaurant today. You can do as you please, my husband.”

“Hmm?” When did you make that promise? Xiao Yu was stunned for a moment, then came to her senses. “Oh, is that so? I’ll go with you.”

Song Luoning frowned. “No need. My husband should spend more time with Miss Yuan.”

“…” Didn’t I explain everything yesterday? Why is the young mistress still being so sarcastic?

“Cui Zhu, let’s go.” With that, Song Luoning took Cui Zhu and left the courtyard. She had given instructions yesterday, so the carriage was ready early. Mingpin Restaurant was on Chang’an Street, a three-street distance away, and they would arrive in the time it takes to drink a cup of tea.

Cui Zhu helped the young mistress into the carriage. The butler had arranged for two capable guards to follow on either side. The carriage rattled for a while, and the coachman shouted. Cui Zhu lifted the curtain and was stunned. The person running alongside the carriage was none other than her young master. She secretly glanced at her mistress. “Miss, your husband…”

Song Luoning looked up, her face expressionless. She gave a faint “mm.”

Cui Zhu hesitated for a moment. Although she was upset with the young master for upsetting her mistress, seeing her running under the hot sun—looking so thin and frail—she knew that if she were to faint again, it would be her mistress who would be distressed.

It was really a lot of trouble. Cui Zhu, while observing her mistress’s reaction, tentatively asked, “It seems like the young master is following us.”

Song Luoning’s eyebrows slightly furrowed. She lifted the curtain and met a pair of sparkling eyes that looked at her expectantly. The owner of the eyes had flushed cheeks from running alongside the carriage.

Song Luoning curled her fingers, let down the curtain, and said nothing, leaning against the carriage wall with her eyes closed.

“Miss, should we stop and let the young master in?” Cui Zhu looked at her mistress. What did it mean to say nothing? Her mistress’s thoughts were getting harder to guess, and she, a maid, couldn’t figure them out.

“No need,” Song Luoning said without opening her eyes.

Cui Zhu nodded blankly, then glanced at Xiao Yu. For some reason, she felt a little sympathy for the young master.

Forget it. Since the mistress had given the order, she probably wanted to teach the young master a lesson this time. She obediently shut her mouth and took out a food box from under the low table. “It’ll be a while before we can eat when we get there. Miss, have a few pieces of pastry to tide you over. These are…”

“Why is the carriage so bumpy today? It’s making me dizzy,” Song Luoning interrupted her, her tone flat.

“Hmm?” Cui Zhu was startled, then realized. She couldn’t help but twitch the corner of her mouth. It wasn’t that the carriage was bumpy; it was clearly because she felt bad for the young master. With a sigh, Cui Zhu lifted the curtain and gave the coachman a few instructions.

“How are you feeling now, Miss?” Cui Zhu asked.

“Mmm,” Song Luoning responded faintly. She opened her eyes and glanced at the pastries on the low table. “Just leave them.”

Cui Zhu said nothing and put the pastries back into the food box.

Just then, the carriage stopped in front of Mingpin Restaurant. The coachman put down the step stool and stood respectfully to the side.

“The pastries won’t taste good if they sit out for too long. Give them away,” Song Luoning said.

“…” Cui Zhu finally understood. Couldn’t her mistress’s intentions be any more obvious? It wasn’t that they wouldn’t be good for long; it was because she felt sorry for the young master and was worried she would be hungry.

She had worried for nothing.

“Yes,” Cui Zhu replied.

Not many people came to Mingpin Restaurant for early meals. Most common folk couldn’t afford to eat out, and the young masters and ladies from wealthy families were likely not even awake yet at this hour. The Song family’s private room was on the second floor. Song Luoning got out of the carriage without even looking at Xiao Yu and was escorted into the private room by the guards. Xiao Yu, however, was blocked outside.

Inside the private room were all the female relatives of the prime minister’s mansion, especially the sweet-talking Song Ling’er, who made for a very harmonious atmosphere with their chatter and laughter.

When the meal was over, the group of female relatives was escorted by the guards into their respective carriages. Xiao Yu quickly followed the young mistress’s carriage, all the way back to the mansion.

On the other side, after receiving the report from the spy, Xiao Chengze was overjoyed. He was busy calculating how to kill the person without a trace, while also planning to win over his supporters. It was a given that Xiao Chengan would be deposed. Even his father’s intervention wouldn’t be able to save him. For the past few days, Prince Chang had been sending him letter after letter, urging him to work for Xiao Chengan.

They were all his sons, yet now they wanted him to be sacrificed to protect his power.

A sinister look flashed in Xiao Chengze’s eyes. Why should he help that useless person? A ruthless man does what he must. Since they wanted to sacrifice him, what he would do next was to scheme for himself and, after Xiao Chengan was deposed, take the opportunity to ascend the throne. As for that Xiao Yu, even if she lived, without the support of the prime minister’s mansion, would she, by herself, be worthy of competing with him? Besides, he had evidence in his hand that could be fatal to her.

“Prepare the carriage. I am going to see General Li,” Xiao Chengze instructed.

“Yes.”

The so-called General Li was the commander of the Imperial Guards. Originally, the Imperial Guards were the emperor’s personal troops. However, after Xiao Chengan’s ascension, he only cared about pleasure and never bothered to reorganize the army. This General Li had not taken a side in court and had always remained neutral. If he could be brought into his camp, his chances of winning would increase by another notch.

The Song family had the Jinwu Guards, and he had the Imperial Guards. It was still uncertain who would win in the end.

…

As soon as Song Luoning returned to the mansion, she went back to her room. Xiao Yu was blocked outside the door, staring longingly at the tightly shut door. After a while, she sighed and returned to the study, looking dejected.

Cui Zhu took a blanket from the inner room and draped it over the young mistress’s legs. Seeing her looking as calm as ever, she thought that even though the young master cared for the young mistress now, constantly pushing her away might lead her to think of other things. She hesitated. “Miss, although the young master was wrong, a little punishment is enough. If this continues, pushing her toward that vixen might not be worth the trouble.”

“Hmm?” Song Luoning was stunned for a moment, then laughed. “Don’t you dislike her?”

Cui Zhu scratched her head. “I don’t hate the young master. It’s just that what she did was too much. The young master is such a good person, and she doesn’t know how to cherish her.” The more she spoke, the more indignant her tone became.

“Isn’t it good to push her away then?” Song Luoning didn’t even lift her head, her gaze fixed on the book in her hand.

“That may be true, but what if the vixen seduces the young master?” Cui Zhu couldn’t help but worry. That Yuan Niang looked like a fox spirit. She wore so little, and when she saw the young master, she was like a dog seeing meat, wanting to stick to her.

Her own mistress’s attitude was clearly pushing her away.

Song Luoning turned a page and said indifferently, “If she’s truly seduced, what use would such a person be anyway?”

Although she said that, still…

Cui Zhu couldn’t help but worry about her young master being seduced.

Xiao Yu wasn’t idle in the study either. She carefully reviewed the original plot and suddenly felt a shock. In the original plot, the male and female leads did not marry. The male lead married the daughter of a General Li, and it was with the support of this general that he secured the throne.

Whether the male lead could ascend the throne, this General Li was the key.

She knew nothing about court affairs. The original novel didn’t describe this general much. Xiao Yu got up and pulled open the study door, calling Liang Chengqiu inside. She got straight to the point. “Captain Liang, do you know of any general named Li in the capital?”

Liang Chengqiu shook her head. “I’m not familiar with the capital.”

That’s right. How could she have been so foolish? Liang Chengqiu, like her, came from Linyang County. Besides, as a minor constable, how would she know about things in the capital?

Xiao Yu thought for a moment. That night, she once again secretly climbed into the young mistress’s room through the window.

“Didn’t I tell you not to come?”

In the quiet room, a voice suddenly rang out. Xiao Yu was so startled that she almost lost her footing and fell from the window. She steadied herself. “Why aren’t you asleep yet?”

She jumped down from the window and quietly walked to the bedside. The inner and outer rooms were separated by a curtain. The maid on night watch was on the porch outside the door, so if the sound in the room was a little louder, it could be heard outside.

Song Luoning put down the book in her hand, her eyes fixed on her with a complicated expression. She said coldly, “Did you go to Luoshuang Courtyard today?”

Xiao Yu was surprised. Why was she suddenly asking her that? She shook her head and sat on the edge of the bed. “No, I went out with you this morning.” She paused here and looked at her with a face full of resentment.

She had run after her all morning and hadn’t even had breakfast (only ate a few pieces of pastry), yet the young mistress hadn’t shown any concern, instead worrying about irrelevant things.

Moreover, she had already sent a person to deliver the message to that Yuan Niang, and the person sent to monitor Luoshuang Courtyard had also reported back that Yuan Niang had also sent the message out today. Why wouldn’t the young mistress let her come back to sleep? Wasn’t that a bit too much?

Hearing her say that, Song Luoning’s expression softened. “You still need to be careful.” With that, she stood up.

“Where are you going?” Xiao Yu anxiously grabbed her hand and looked up at her.

Song Luoning looked back at her. In the dim candlelight, the young man’s features became more and more heroic. She was no longer the person she was when they first met.

Song Luoning was in a daze for a moment before she pulled her hand away. “I’ll have the maid send you back to the study. Let go first.”

“I’m not going back.”

Song Luoning frowned, looking at her.

Seeing that her attitude showed no signs of softening, Xiao Yu gave in and waved her hand. “Fine, I’ll leave on my own later. Actually, I came here tonight because I wanted to ask you something.” Her tone carried a hint of grievance.

She grabbed her hand again and pulled her down to sit with her. “Do you know of a general named Li in the capital?”

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