"Bang!"
Both of them jumped.
The person who had entered was a middle-aged man dressed in opulent clothing, followed by several servants.
"I heard our carriage was smashed by you?" the man asked, getting straight to the point.
Song Lin frowned. "The carriage was struck by the Heir of Yong'an Marquis. If you want compensation, go to the Marquis's Mansion."
"Pah!"
The middle-aged man sneered. "Who doesn't know the truth? You two wild lovebirds were busy flirting in broad daylight, so lost in your own world that you distracted the coachman, causing him to crash into the Marquis's carriage... And now you want to frame the Marquis's Mansion?"
Since they ran the largest carriage rental agency in the Capital, they naturally had their own connections and had investigated the incident thoroughly.
"You... nonsensical! Shameless!" Song Lin, being a scholar who prided himself on refinement and elegance, felt his face flush a deep red at these words.
Having been separated for a lifetime, he simply wanted to be close to his beloved; he had done nothing untoward. In his previous life, he had remained chaste for Meng Wan, and even his two sons had been adopted from his eldest brother's family to be raised by Lu Wanwan. How could he possibly have acted impulsively with Meng Wan before they were even formally betrothed?
Meng Wan’s face turned from red to white, and she was so angry that tears began to stream down her cheeks.
The middle-aged man didn't dwell on the matter. "Enough talk. You smashed my carriage, so pay up! One hundred taels of silver, and no credit!"
"One hundred taels?!" Meng Wan was so shocked she forgot to cry; tears hung frozen on her face.
Song Lin understood the situation. The Qianli Carriage Agency was backed by the Second Prince, and almost no one in the Capital dared to provoke them. Even in his previous life, after the Second Prince fell and the miserly Fourth Prince took over, the agency only became even more difficult to deal with.
After a moment's thought, he said calmly, "Since you know what happened yesterday, you should be aware that I am a close friend of Superintendent Xie. If you don't want your master to fall out with the Eastern Depot, leave immediately. I will overlook your insolence this time."
The aura of someone who had held high office for many years in his past life was still capable of intimidation. The middle-aged man hesitated for a few seconds.
But soon, he let out a mocking laugh. "The whole Eastern Depot is currently gossiping about how your face is thicker than the territory of Great Chu itself, yet you dare claim to be friends with Superintendent Xie? Your face truly is massive!"
"What is the Eastern Depot saying?"
Song Lin’s expression shifted from shock to horror. Which big-mouthed idiot was spreading rumors?! How dare they insult him like this!
He said coldly to the middle-aged man, "Superintendent Xie personally allowed me to stay at the Yunzhu Courtyard in Jing'an Temple. Do you still think we aren't friends? If you aren't afraid of offending Superintendent Xie, is your master?"
"You dare bring up the Yunzhu Courtyard?!"
Hatred flared in the middle-aged man’s eyes. "Since you know who my master is, you should understand why you are facing this disaster today!"
Not only was the Yunzhu Courtyard tainted, but during the morning court session, the Second Prince had been fiercely impeached by the Censor-in-Chief, nearly being sprayed with blood by the vitriol of the Censorate. The damned Fourth Prince’s faction had fished in troubled waters, causing the Second Prince’s faction to lose two high-ranking officials of the third grade!
The root cause of it all was Song Lin—a man who had nothing to do with the Second Prince. Once the Second Prince investigated and found out the truth, he was so furious he nearly fainted on the spot. With political enemies watching, he couldn't kill a dog like Song Lin, but if he didn't give him a lesson, he wouldn't be able to sleep at night.
Song Lin naturally couldn't produce one hundred taels. All he possessed in the world was the forty taels Meng Wan had on her. Consequently, the house he rented was smashed to pieces; anything of value was seized as debt repayment. If it weren't for the fact that Meng Wan was a woman and they couldn't search her, even those forty taels would have been taken.
After the group left, the landlord arrived to reclaim his property.
"I rented this for half a year! The time isn't up, how dare you break the contract?!" Song Lin roared.
"Cut the crap!" the landlord cursed. "You’ve left my house in a mess and a state of ruin, and I haven't even demanded compensation from you yet! The remaining rent will serve as the payment for the damages. Get out! Now!"
Song Lin knew he had no ground to stand on. After a futile fit of rage, he took Meng Wan to an inn.
Yunji Inn was a property of the Lu Residence. In his previous life, whenever he wanted to avoid Lu Wanwan, he would stay here; it was very convenient.
Meng Wan, however, was hesitant. "Brother Lin, this inn looks very expensive. Should we find another one?"
"Don't worry, this inn belongs to us," Song Lin comforted her.
The innkeeper looked at them with a hint of disdain. Meng Wan’s eyes lit up, thinking of the thousand-acre estate he had mentioned, and she felt even more expectant.
"When Uncle and Aunt Song and Eldest Brother and Sister-in-law arrive, will they also be staying at the residence?"
Privately, she was a bit reluctant. That residence was a gift from Song Lin to her; it would be her home once they were married, and she didn't want too many people living there.
"Naturally. Mother and Father have suffered much; it is time they enjoyed the blessings their son provides," Song Lin said gently. "You won't need to do much—just pay your respects every morning and evening, arrange their daily needs, and manage the household affairs and the interactions between the estates."
He spoke lightly, failing to notice the distressed look on Meng Wan’s face.
After Song Lin checked in, the Second Prince received the news. Knowing the scoundrel still had money to stay at an inn made it even harder for him to sleep. That night, he lay in bed for a long time before suddenly sitting up. "Wait, is he insane?!"
The young eunuch dozing by the bed was startled awake.
The Second Prince’s handsome face was full of gloom and bewilderment. "I recruited him as a retainer, and he had the audacity to ignore the Marquis's Mansion? How dare he think like that! No... this dog must be a spy sent by the Fourth Prince. How devious!"
"..." The young eunuch tried to soothe him. "He is merely a junior scholar. When the palace examination comes, won't he be at your mercy? By then, you can avenge the two officials who were dismissed."
The Second Prince’s anger subsided slightly.
"If I can't finish him off during the palace examination, I’ll write my name backward!"
But that would still be 'Second,' wouldn't it? The young eunuch didn't dare say that; serving a petty master meant being responsible for every stroke of every word you spoke.
...
Amidst great anticipation, the day of the palace examination arrived.
Most of the Capital was focused on the event. Lu Wanwan had entered the palace days ago, both to accompany the Empress Dowager and to secure first-hand news. She had also dragged the Eldest Princess along to keep her from running off to provide 'comfort' to her husband’s family.
Now, she was just waiting for the illegitimate child—who would serve as evidence—to be born so she could help the Eldest Princess clean house.
"Why is Wanwan so distracted?" In Cining Palace, the well-preserved Empress Dowager sighed playfully. "It seems this old woman has lost her charm; even Wanwan can't be kept here."
Lu Wanwan hurried over to coax her, holding her arm. "Auntie is as youthful as a girl of sixteen, in the prime of her beauty. Wanwan loves Auntie the most!"
The Empress Dowager was delighted. She had no children of her own, and the nominal Emperor Yongguang was not much younger than her. She had never experienced true family joy and couldn't imagine the Emperor acting like a doting son at her feet. Compared to the imperial princes and princesses with whom she shared no blood, she naturally preferred her niece and nephew. Especially Lu Wanwan, who resembled her by forty or fifty percent—the Empress Dowager showered almost all her maternal affection on her.
She held Lu Wanwan for a long while before saying, "Alright, my old bones can't take your fussing. Go out and play."
"Then I shall go to the Imperial Garden and pick the most magnificent, brilliant peony for Auntie to wear in her hair!"
"Good, I shall wait for it," the Empress Dowager said with a doting tone.
Lu Wanwan went to the side hall to call the Eldest Princess to join her. But as they reached the Imperial Garden, they saw it was heavily guarded.
"Which imperial consort is here to have such a grand display?" the Eldest Princess asked, puzzled.
Lu Wanwan glanced at the person emerging from the corner and said calmly, "It’s my 'wonderful' older nephew."
The Eldest Prince, whose processions were always grander than the Empress’s own.