YBTS - 14

Thinking about how his mother had treated Luoyun in the past, Lu Shi finally understood Luoyun’s thoughts. He also realized, in despair, that her admiration for him wasn’t enough for her to completely trust him and rely on him...

Just then, a hurried female voice came from the inner staircase on the other side. “Young Master Lu, where are you?”

It was Su Caijian who had arrived.

Thinking that her sister might be alone with Lu Shi, Caijian was anxious. After getting out of the carriage, she didn’t wait for her brothers, but instead, she shook off her maid’s hand, lifted her skirt, and ran up the stairs first.

When she finally arrived, out of breath, she saw her fiancé with a pale face, staring blankly at a platform in the corridor.

As for her sister Luoyun, she, Guiyan, and Lu Lingxiu were sitting in the tearoom, leisurely preparing tea.

Although the atmosphere among the few of them was somber, she saw that the two of them were not alone. Caijian finally let out a sigh of relief.

Hearing her sister’s footsteps, Luoyun looked up and smiled. “I didn’t dare to make tea until you came. Hurry and sit down, and let’s have some tea together!”

The two Jin brothers, who came up later, didn’t know what had happened. They laughed and pulled their brother-in-law, Lu Shi, to sit at the tea table as well.

The few young teenagers completely livened up the atmosphere. The joyous laughter in the tearoom was enough to drown out the disappointment of a sad person...

They didn’t know that on the other side of the tearoom, around a corner, a tall man was standing behind the rolled-up blinds, taking in the entire scene in the corridor.

Of course, the tall man also heard every word that Luoyun had said.

“Brother Linfeng, what are you looking at?” Guo Yan, the heir of Prince Yong’an, walked behind Han Linfeng. He stood on his tiptoes and looked in the same direction, only to see an empty corridor.

Han Linfeng turned his head nonchalantly and just chuckled softly. “Nothing. I just thought the environment here was elegant and interesting...”

Old Prince Yong’an was a prince of a different surname who had made outstanding military contributions. But by the time of Guo Yan’s father, all he had was the ability to eat, drink, and be merry.

As for Guo Yan, he was an expert in such matters and a frequent visitor of the pleasure houses.

Since Han Linfeng’s arrival in the capital, he and Young Master Guo had found a common interest in having fun. Guided by him, the newcomer Han Linfeng got to know a group of the capital’s dissolute young men.

The incident of playing the zither and begging on the street a few days ago was also a ridiculous thing Han Linfeng did after making a bet with Guo Yan.

But today’s tea was for Guo Yan to apologize to Han Linfeng.

Just yesterday, he had heard from his father that Han Linfeng, for the sake of entertaining a few “cuju” experts, had stayed up all night drinking at a restaurant on the day of the former emperor’s death anniversary, which had drawn the emperor’s reprimand.

It was said that the emperor had summoned Han Linfeng to the imperial study and, in front of a group of important officials, severely criticized his lack of virtue. If Han Linfeng were his own grandson, the emperor would have had such an unfilial descendant executed in front of the ancestral temple.

However, precisely because Han Linfeng was the great-grandson of the former Emperor Zong, the emperor, although furious, let him off with a scolding out of respect for Emperor Zong’s abdication.

When Guo Yan heard this news, he was completely shocked. This was because it was he who had asked Han Linfeng to attract a few “cuju” experts for him.

So, Young Master Guo, scared out of his wits, immediately disbanded the “cuju” team he had assembled and waited for the matter to die down before coming to ask Han Linfeng about the hidden details.

Han Linfeng, who had suffered such a great disgrace, was as calm as ever. He just said that the emperor was benevolent and kind and would not lower himself to the level of an ignorant boy like him.

Guo Yan nodded in agreement. The emperor, in his reverence for the former emperor, was just like Emperor Xuan, a true role model. Han Linfeng, a descendant of the former emperor, was indeed far inferior in comparison!

Han Linfeng smiled slightly at Guo Yan’s words, but when he turned his head, the smile on his face faded a lot, and his eyes held an indescribable look of indifference.

However, the deep thoughts in his heart seemed to dissipate a little when he looked out the window facing the street.

It seemed that the tea party next door was over, and the blind woman who was unwilling to go down the dangerous ladder was getting into her carriage with the support of her maid.

And the persistent Young Master Lu was standing at the entrance of the teahouse, looking dejected, and staring blankly as the carriage drove away...

Han Linfeng chuckled softly. This Miss Su, although a woman, was as clever and insightful as a person could be. Her independence and decisiveness were far superior to many men.

It had nothing to do with anything else; she just didn’t want to rely on others completely? It was a shame that she was blind. She was truly a beauty cursed by the heavens...

Meanwhile, Luoyun was summoned back to the residence by Ding Shi after that day.

Although Su Luoyun had not met with Young Master Lu in private this time, in Ding Shi’s opinion, Su Luoyun had been using her wit to get Lu Lingxiu to invite Young Master Lu.

Her daughter Caijian was guileless, and as her mother, she had to be on guard.

Since Su Luoyun was clinging to her stay in the capital, she had to have a frank talk with her and give her a stern warning, lest Su Luoyun have a change of heart and remember her old engagement, and want to marry into the Lu family with Caijian.

“The Lu family used to be stronger than ours, but things are different now. Your father and Master Lu are both officials in the Office of Trade and Exchange. If both of the Su family’s daughters were to marry into the Lu family, our colleagues would probably laugh at your father behind his back...”

Su Luoyun smiled faintly. “Why are you saying such things, Madam? Haven’t the marriage contracts between the Su and Lu families already been exchanged? Who is talking such nonsense about sisters marrying into the same family? If Father hears you say this, he will think that I’m trying to bully my sister again.”

Ding Shi knew she couldn’t see, so she didn’t bother with pretenses. A cold smile curled on her lips, but her voice was gentle. “You’ve always been unwilling to call me ‘Mother,’ but I know you are the most sensible one, unlike your sister, who is guileless. It’s best for you to yield to your sister as the older one. If you don’t, there’s nothing I, as a stepmother, can say about it. Think about it, your father dotes on you so much. You wanted to live alone, so he bought you a house, completely disregarding the fact that the family is now split up and the expenses have increased. Your house also needs renovations. It costs a lot of money...”

At this point, she paused and said, “You know that your sister will be getting married in a few days, and money is being spent like water. Your father has been complaining that I don’t know how to manage the household, but he doesn’t know the difficulties I face. Later, he also learned about the family’s financial situation, so he could only prioritize what was urgent. And that house, though old, is still livable. If you’re not in a hurry, I would like to wait a bit... Of course, if your sister’s marriage goes smoothly, the family will have plenty of money to renovate your house properly... Guiyan is still young, and you are in this state. Even if you marry into a good family, they may not treat you with sincerity. In the future, you will have to rely on your father’s clan a lot. As the older sister, you should set an example and not let Guiyan, at such a young age, be disobedient to the family’s advice. Otherwise, you know your father’s temper... If it causes discord between a father and his children, it’s always the younger generation who suffers the consequences...”

Su Luoyun understood the meaning behind Ding Shi’s words. She was using money to give her a stern warning, telling her to be well-behaved and not to interfere with Caijian’s marriage. She just gave a cold laugh. “Thank you for the reminder, Madam. If Father is willing to take care of his children and not be influenced by others, that would be the best.”

Ding Shi pretended not to understand the sarcasm and said with a smile, “Of course, if you can blend a few more new formulas to improve the shop’s business, wouldn’t your share of the profits also increase? At that time, when the public funds are sufficient, your father can buy you a better house, and you can live more peacefully.”

Su Luoyun finally understood. Besides not planning to pay for the house renovations, Ding Shi was also trying to use money to pressure her into creating more perfume formulas.

After all, the formulas her mother left behind were a bit old. Although the scents were rich and mellow, some of the processes had been leaked more or less, and people were trying to imitate them.

Shouweizhai was now finding it difficult to be the sole dominant shop.

Su Luoyun couldn’t be bothered to argue with her stepmother over a few silver coins. When she had asked for the house, she never planned to rely on the Su family for a living again. She also wouldn’t be like her mother, who poured her heart and soul into her work, only to have her efforts benefit others.

After exchanging some polite and insincere words with Ding Shi and dealing with her, Su Luoyun stood up and left.

Ding Shi watched her back, her eyes growing cold.

Just as her husband had said, she was an ungrateful wretch who couldn’t be tamed, and she had big ambitions! If that girl got her hands on a large sum of money, she wouldn’t even see her, the mistress of the house, as a person worth respecting!

Leaving Ding Shi and all her schemes behind, Su Luoyun focused all her attention on finding a tutor for her brother.

Her brother was smart. If she could find a suitable tutor to help him prepare for his exams, he would be able to achieve a lot with little effort.

But at this time, all the good tutors were already working in various academies and private schools. If she wanted to hire a good one, she had to be willing to spend a lot of money.

She gritted her teeth and pawned a few of the valuable headpieces her mother had left her. She used the heavy sum to hire a decent tutor, finally ensuring her brother would not be left without proper guidance.

Listening to the sound of the tutor’s patient instruction from the study, Su Luoyun felt a little more at ease.

But Xiangcao was heartbroken for her young lady. She had pawned all the good hairpins and bracelets. In the future, for any formal tea parties, the young lady’s head would be bare.

Su Luoyun didn’t care about that. “I can’t see, so why should I wear so many hairpins to please others? Besides, I didn’t get them pawned as a dead pledge. When I earn money in the future, I can redeem the headpieces my mother left me.”

She was a bit short on cash right now. The rent from the land her mother left her wasn’t enough, so instead of letting the hairpins collect dust, it was better to exchange them for cash to get by. Once her father gave her the profits from the new fragrance, she wouldn’t be so financially strapped.

Besides hiring a tutor, her brother also needed to buy many books. He had shared many of his books with the two Jin brothers before.

Now that Guiyan had moved out, he didn’t bring many books with him.

She had no other choice but to have the tutor make a list of books to buy from the bookstore. So, on this day, when things weren’t busy, Luoyun took her brother to the bookstore to buy books.

The alley was narrow, and Luoyun had instructed the coachman to drive slowly. But just as they were leaving the alley, the carriage suddenly lurched violently. Su Luoyun was caught off guard and hit her head on the carriage wall, letting out a muffled groan.

“How are you driving? Didn’t you see the young master’s carriage? Don’t you know to get out of the way?” a person outside the carriage suddenly shouted.

Su Guiyan quickly held onto his sister and leaned out to look. He then realized that their carriage had collided with a carriage coming out of Green Fish Alley.

The intersection of Sweetwater Alley and Green Fish Alley was narrow. He had heard of carriages and sedan chairs colliding at the alley entrance before. He didn’t expect that it would happen to Luoyun and him today.

However, in such collisions, the judgment of right and wrong depended on whose carriage was bigger and whose family plaque was more powerful.

Su Luoyun’s carriage, by chance, had collided with the carriage from the Prince of the North’s residence. The one in the wrong was naturally her coachman!

Luoyun should have gotten out of the carriage to apologize, but she had hit her head so hard that it was no minor injury. The old wound was triggered, and she felt dizzy and her ears were ringing. She couldn’t even speak.

Su Guiyan had been scared before when his sister was injured and unconscious. Now, seeing his sister with her eyes closed and not speaking, he didn’t care about the commotion outside. He was so anxious that his voice broke. “Sister! Sister, what’s wrong? Wake up quickly, don’t scare me!”

Han Linfeng also felt the jolt in his carriage. He frowned and leaned out. He then realized that they had collided with another carriage.

Hearing the young man’s mournful cry from the other carriage, he waved his hand and stopped the shouting servants. “Go and take a look. If anyone is hurt, go and get a doctor immediately.”

But after giving the order, Han Linfeng saw the “Su” family plaque hanging on the carriage and then told Qingyang to go and check. “Go and see if it’s Miss Su Luoyun’s carriage.”

When Qingyang ran back and reported that it was indeed Miss Su’s carriage and that she seemed to have been knocked unconscious, Han Linfeng’s eyebrows furrowed even more.

His encounters with this Miss Su... seemed to be getting a bit too frequent!