"Madam, the Marquis has sent word that he wants you to prepare a guest room, as he will be bringing two people back soon."
Because of what happened more than ten years ago, Lu Mingxiu doesn't have many friends or relatives in the capital. Those who kicked him when he was down or stood by and did nothing back then, now that Lu Mingxiu has become the powerful Marquis of Pingyuan, even if these same people came back to beg him and cry and repent, Lu Mingxiu wouldn't bother with them.
Who could have persuaded Lu Mingxiu to bring them back? An Ran was curious, but without hesitation, she had Cuiping prepare a small room in Tinglan Courtyard, which was located next to the outer courtyard.
"Who came back to deliver the message?" An Ran asked.
Songyang replied, "It is Lord Qin Feng, who serves the Marquis."
If the person accompanying Lu Mingxiu is Qin Feng, it means that he has just returned from court and should not be part of the original plan.
So who exactly are these two people?
******
"Mother, you and Sili wait for me at Huichun Hall!" Yu Zhou said with some worry, "I can go and ask by myself."
Yu's mother shook her head.
"It's so rare to see the head of the Chen family in the capital, I must go and ask him myself." Madam Yu's face was pale, but her eyes shone with excitement. "Perhaps I can even find out news about your father!"
Yu Zhou sighed inwardly.
His mother had been feeling unwell these past few days. The last time he took Sili out, they learned that the head of the Chen family had come to the capital. Yu Zhou had planned to go and ask about it himself, but Sili let it slip when she got home. Upon learning this, Yu's mother insisted on coming.
Yu Zhou had no choice but to have Yu Sili come along, instructing him to wait with his mother at Huichun Hall for a while. However, once they arrived in the capital, his mother changed her mind and insisted on going herself.
He left Yu Sili at Huichuntang and went to the Chen family with Yu's mother.
Before arriving, Yu Zhou already knew why Chen Li had come to the capital. It was said that his eldest son, Chen Qian, was going to marry a girl from the Marquis of Nan'an's family. In fact, the Chen family was marrying above their station, so they attached great importance to this marriage. Not only did they not return to Yangzhou, but they also bought a large house in the capital and held a grand wedding ceremony.
Yu Zhou had no good feelings towards Chen Qian. Previously, he and his mother had tried to inquire about his father, but no servant stopped them at the door, and they hadn't even seen Chen Qian. When they finally managed to run into him, Chen Qian was extremely contemptuous, treating him like someone trying to freeload. He didn't even listen to what Yu Zhou was saying and casually threw a few taels of silver at him to get rid of him.
Yu Zhou was a proud man and naturally didn't want to deal with someone like Chen Qian. However, since it concerned his father's whereabouts, he had no choice but to try and mediate.
Chen Qian's future wife was actually a girl from the Nan'an Marquis's mansion. Yu Zhou remembered that the Lady of Pingyuan Marquis, that gentle and beautiful young girl, came from the Nan'an Marquis's mansion.
He chuckled to himself, but that figure remained etched in his mind, impossible to shake off.
Before even reaching the Chen residence, Yu Zhou was already troubled. Not only could they not get in, but even getting someone to announce their arrival would be incredibly difficult. Yu Zhou fiddled with the few coins in his sleeve, deciding he could only try to persuade them with money.
When the mother and son arrived at the front of the Chen residence, the gate was guarded, with two imposing lions standing there.
Chen Qian decided to take his mother around to the side gate and ask the gatekeeper to pass on a message.
However, the mother and son were lucky today. Just as they were about to leave, a carriage suddenly stopped at the gate. The gate opened, and they heard the gatekeeper's voice, addressing them as "Master."
Yu Zhou quickly turned around and saw a tall, middle-aged man getting off the carriage and heading towards the mansion.
"Are you Mr. Chen Li?" Yu Zhou asked loudly before he even arrived.
Sure enough, the man stopped upon hearing this.
He looked at Yu Zhou with some surprise, his eyes filled with doubt, and asked, "You are—"
Upon seeing this, Yu's mother hurried over. Her voice trembled as she asked, "Mr. Chen, do you still remember Yu Cheng?"
Upon hearing this, Chen Li shuddered almost imperceptibly, but quickly regained his composure. He calmly replied, "Who are you? I don't know this person."
“Think about it again. Eight years ago, he went to Yangzhou, saying he wanted to do business with the Chen family there—” Yu’s mother looked at Chen Li with hopeful eyes, as if grasping at a last straw. “He only sent one letter home afterward, and then we never heard from him again. The letter only said that he had met with you, and you agreed—”
Chen Li's expression was rather unpleasant. He remained indifferent and coldly said, "There are countless people who think of doing business with the Chen family every day. How could I possibly remember them all?"
When Yu's mother wanted to ask more questions, Chen Li was about to leave in a huff.
It seemed that this was going to end in nothing again, and Yu Zhou felt a pang of sadness. He helped his mother, who was swaying and almost unable to stand.
"Mr. Chen, please think this over carefully!" Mrs. Yu only remembered her husband saying it was a huge business deal; if it succeeded, their family would never have to suffer again. How could Mr. Chen forget? "It was some kind of mine—don't you remember?"
Chen Li, who was about to leave, suddenly stopped. A sharp, dark glint flashed in his eyes, but it disappeared in an instant.
"Ma'am, if that's really true, your husband has already made his fortune doing business in Yangzhou." He looked at Yu Zhou and her son with a half-smile, a cruel smile playing on his lips. "Perhaps he doesn't want to contact you anymore. Maybe he's taken another beautiful wife and concubine, abandoning you and your son here—"
Yu's mother was so angry that she almost fainted.
"Mr. Chen, if you don't want to tell me, then so be it, but please don't use hurtful words." Yu Zhou held his mother tightly, returning her with a cold gaze.
Regardless of the truth, he must take good care of his mother and brother and prevent them from being harmed.
Chen Li sneered and casually tossed a few silver ingots on the ground.
“Countless people come to our house every day to beg for money. With this kind of silver, you could use it to do some honest work and support your family.” He said with a mocking look in his eyes, “A strong young man like you actually thought of bringing your mother to beg for money.”
Yu's mother couldn't bear being slandered like this, and she was so angry that her body trembled violently.
"What, you want your mother to die in front of our door again, so you can at least swindle some money from the Chen family?" Chen Li's attendant, trying to curry favor with him, said obsequiously, "Master, you don't need to pay them any attention. Tell them to leave quickly."
Yu Zhou was furious, but he had to consider his mother, who was on the verge of fainting from anger. He gritted his teeth and was about to help his mother away.
Chen Li did not allow his servants to cause trouble; he simply instructed them to close the gates of the mansion and have someone drive away Yu Zhou and her son.
Yu Zhou helped his mother up to the oxcart. He noticed that his mother's face was growing paler and realized they needed to get to Huichuntang as soon as possible.
Yu Zhou hadn't gone far when he noticed that his mother was in bad shape and was even having some spasms.
"Mother!" Yu Zhou was extremely anxious, but dared not move his mother at will.
Just then, a cold, deep male voice sounded from the side. "Brother Yu?"