Lanting - Kapitel 178
Lu Qingcheng sat down beside the bed, took her mother's hand, and gently comforted her, "Don't be afraid, it's alright."
Madam Lu and Qingfeng were both astonished and puzzled.
The door opened, and Cai Zhonghe entered the room carrying water. This time, someone followed behind him, carrying a tray with wound ointment, gauze, scissors, and other items. Qingfeng quickly looked away upon seeing the person, a blush rising to her cheeks.
"Lord, the water and medicine have been brought," the man said.
Lu Qingcheng, who was carefully removing the shards embedded in her mother's flesh, immediately looked up upon hearing the sound, meeting a pair of captivating eyes as bright as black gemstones. Qing Jianyue grinned, her pearly white teeth gleaming with a mesmerizing light.
Lu Qingcheng smiled with relief, "You've come."
"Hmm." Kiyomizuki said with a smile, "Leave it to me."
Lu Qingcheng stood up and let Qing Jianyue sit in his original seat. Lu Qingcheng looked at Qingfeng, his gaze instantly becoming as sharp as a knife. Qingfeng arrogantly raised his head, looking like a warrior ready for a duel at any moment.
"What a fool," Lu Qingcheng finally spoke. "So much time has passed, can't you forget it yet?"
Qingfeng angrily retorted, "What kind of son are you if you can't avenge your parents who died unjustly?"
“If that’s the case, you should have killed me, right?” Lu Qingcheng said somberly, “If I hadn’t seduced Liu Mei, none of those things would have happened.”
"Whether you want Liu Mei or not is none of my business," Qingfeng said sorrowfully. "What I can't forgive her for is that killing my father wasn't enough; she also drove my mother to her death. How can you expect me to forgive her?"
"She is not."
Old Madam Lu cried out, startling Lu Qingcheng, Qingfeng, and Cai Zhonghe, who all turned to look at her. Old Madam Lu immediately shrank back.
Qingfeng sneered, "See that? Your mother shamelessly claims she's my biological mother. If word gets out, cousin, how will you ever face the world?"
Lu Qingcheng's face darkened, and she remained silent.
Madam Lu was so ashamed that she couldn't even lift her head.
“That’s right, I do want revenge. But, cousin, before you blame me, please think about this: the assassination attempt on Madam Long of Tianlong Fortress has enraged both Tianlong Fortress and Fengyue Manor. Now, they are waiting for us to hand over the murderer. If we don’t ask your mother to end her own life, how can we explain ourselves to them?”
"That's just an excuse." Qing Jianyue had already bandaged Old Madam Lu's wounds. She jumped down and stood beside Lu Qingcheng. "Actually, you guessed that there were loopholes in the assassination of Madam Long. To be more precise, the assassination of Madam Long was very likely a frame-up by the Sky Eagle Sect against Old Madam. As long as you connect the events of yesterday, you can guess the general outline. That's why I came to find Old Madam to confirm. You probably thought of that too, so you came to stop me. Because, by using Old Madam's guilt to force her to commit suicide, you don't have to do it yourself, and you can still get revenge. It's a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity."
Qingfeng scoffed, "Hmph, it's a pity that the old lady doesn't feel much guilt as you think. She's quite afraid of dying."
“You’re wrong,” said Old Madam Lu. “After all, I’ve been in charge of Lu Family Fort for so many years, and there are many things I see more clearly than any of you. Jian Yue’s question has actually been lingering in my mind for a long time. However, I have no evidence to prove my innocence. When you forced me to commit suicide, I did indeed want to end it all. But what I cannot tolerate is that you did it for that bitch.”
Qingfeng was furious, "You are not allowed to insult my late mother!"
Madam Lu shrieked, "She's not, I am!"
"Stop being shameless!" Qingfeng retorted angrily. "Who can prove that you are my biological mother? Who can prove that Madam Yan is not my biological mother? Show me the evidence!"
"You want evidence? I can give it to you."
A kind voice came from the direction of the door. Everyone looked in the direction of the voice and saw Madam Cai walking in, supported by Madam Cai. Behind them was Lijiang, who was wrapped in a purple cloak.
Cai Zhonghe hurried towards his mother, reaching out his hand and saying, "Mother, why are you here so late?"
"With such a big thing happening, how could I not come?" Madam Cai pushed her son's hand away, walked quickly to the bed, and said apologetically, "I'm a little late."
Tears streamed down her face uncontrollably, and Old Madam Lu covered her face and wept.
After sighing, Madam Cai said with a serious expression, "Qingfeng, listen carefully. Everything I'm about to tell you is the truth. If there is even one lie, may this old woman suffer a terrible death."
Unexpectedly, Madam Cai would make such a vicious oath, causing everyone present to turn pale with shock.
"I remember twenty-five years ago, when Fengxian married into the Lu family, the wedding was more luxurious and grand than ever before. But who could have imagined that Lu Ji would leave the Lu family the day after the wedding and never return? Fengxian not only lost her husband but also became the laughingstock of everyone. No matter how strong and capable she was, she was still a woman after all." Old Madam Cai said with pity, "How many people can understand her pain?"
“No matter how heartless he is, I still can’t give up. Day and night, I long for his return, but as my belly grows bigger every day, he never comes back until Qingcheng is born. He came back once when the old master passed away, but he completely ignored us, mother and child, coming and going in a hurry.” Endless sorrow overwhelmed her, and Old Madam Lu frowned, saying softly, “No one sympathized with us, mother and child. It was him, he protected us.”
Everyone knows that "he" refers to Lu Yan.
"He had a very gentle personality, which was both his strength and his weakness. Because of this weakness, the old master didn't pass the leadership of the sect to him; but it was also because of this strength that I fell in love with him. That period was the happiest time of my life, but not long after, I discovered I was pregnant. Can you imagine? What would happen if word got out that a woman without a husband was pregnant?"
Old Madam Lu raised her head, looking at Qingfeng with such a complicated expression. Her gaze made Qingfeng tremble as if she had fallen ill.
"He was terrified and kept urging me to abort, but I desperately wanted to give birth to you. This is the second mistake I've ever made in my life. I gave birth to Qingcheng to get Lu Ji, but he abandoned me on the second day of our marriage; I gave birth to you to get Lu Yan, but I never dreamed that he would abandon me and marry that woman. He abandoned me and married that woman, he abandoned me and married that woman, he abandoned me and married that woman..."
Disappointment gnawed at her lonely heart, and Old Madam Lu burst into tears.
Each sound was like a whip lashing mercilessly at Qingfeng, and tears flowed like a torrent, unknowingly covering his cheeks.
“Only my husband and I, Yongqing and Bo’an know about this. In order to give birth to you, Fengxian took Qingcheng back to Baishi Manor and stayed there until you were born. Three months later, Madam Yan also gave birth to a child, a girl, but because Madam Yan was weak and sickly, the child died at birth. My husband suddenly thought of using you to impersonate Madam Yan’s child. In this way, not only could we bring Fengxian and Qingcheng back, but we could also give you a formal title. This idea is good, but…” Madam Cai suddenly cursed angrily, “That bastard Lu Yan, if he were here right now, I would kick his head off.”
yeah!
Everyone present was startled.
Cai Zhonghe couldn't stand it anymore and said, "Mother, this is too violent. Don't you think about your age?"
Grandma Cai stood by with a smile.
Kiyomi Tsuki couldn't help but ask, "What happened?"
Madam Cai said angrily, "He didn't care at all about Fengxian's feelings as a mother, and actually stole the child away secretly."
Everyone was shocked upon hearing this.
Two glistening tears streamed down Madam Cai's face. "Fengxian thought the child had been stolen by an enemy, and she was frantic with worry. Sigh, now when I think of how she fainted in the blizzard while searching for Qingfeng, I just want to slap Lu Yan twice across the face, and then add my invincible, lightning-fast kick." Madam Cai was filled with murderous intent, rolling up her sleeves and swinging her arm, looking like she really wanted to start a fight.
Grandma Cai hurriedly pleaded, "Mother, please calm down, please calm down."
Cai Zhonghe sighed helplessly, "How embarrassing."