Chapter 93: The Dogma of Rites and Law
Chapter 93: Chapter 93: The Dogma of Rites and Law
"You still have the nerve to show your face?"
Cao Danqing ignored Cao Luyun’s attempt to stop her and moved to the front.
This time, she didn’t rush forward in a childish tantrum to grab at her like the other day. Instead, she puffed out her chest, tilted her chin up, and looked over with an air of arrogance, her tone utterly contemptuous.
Cao Jun turned his head and chided her softly, his voice holding no real anger.
Gao Qian had publicly announced that Cao Luyun was the one who had a secret meeting with Lu Xiu among the garden rocks. They hadn’t reacted at the time, perhaps even believing him. But after returning home, they must have realized Cao Luyun had been framed.
Though they didn’t understand the Emperor’s motives, his decree was impossible to resist. They must have surely loathed her in their hearts, seeing her as the culprit who had tarnished Cao Luyun’s name.
If it weren’t for the restraints of their noble upbringing, someone else probably would have rushed up and given her a couple of slaps by now.
Facing their varied expressions, Liang Wan simply offered a curtsy and said nothing more.
She was now merely a concubine, a gift from the Emperor to the Grand Commandant. A concubine should know her place.
Besides, the Duke Wei Mansion was in mourning; she had absolutely no reason to cause a scene.
After her curtsy, she stepped back to a position half a pace behind Lu Xiu.
Lu Xiu simply turned his head and stared at her brazenly.
In front of so many people, his stare carried an ambiguous, suggestive meaning. And crucially, he was doing it right in front of his future wife.
Liang Wan subtly took another small step back.
His stare was making her hair stand on end. She finally managed to lift her gaze and look at him cautiously. "My lord?"
He simply smiled. "You’re very beautiful."
Liang Wan’s smile froze. ’Can he not feel their glares?’
’Or is he just doing this on purpose to make them hate me?’
"Let’s go."
After speaking, Lu Xiu retracted his gaze and headed inside, not sparing them a single glance from start to finish—the very picture of a man who considered everyone else beneath him.
Liang Wan lowered her head and followed him.
"Grand Commandant, don’t you know my Sister is your betrothed? How can you ignore her like that?"
Liang Wan didn’t have to look back to know how indignant Cao Danqing sounded.
"Danqing!" Cao Jun’s voice was cold as he yanked Cao Danqing behind him. "Hold your tongue!"
Lu Xiu stopped in his tracks but didn’t turn around.
But Cao Danqing refused to listen, her voice growing louder. "And you call yourself an Upper Duke! You don’t even know the difference between a wife and a concubine—who is superior and who is inferior!"
The Duke Wei Mansion was in mourning, and there were many guests paying their respects. Cao Danqing’s loud outburst immediately drew the attention of many, who stopped and stared.
Liang Wan broke out in a cold sweat. ’I can’t believe she’d dare to offend Lu Xiu so publicly...’
Cao Jun’s voice was sharp. "Shut your mouth!"
"Am I wrong?"
Cao Danqing was the youngest child of the Prime Minister’s Mansion and had been spoiled since birth. She had never heard a single harsh word, let alone been rebuked so fiercely in public. Already indignant, the humiliation made her feel even more wronged.
Cao Luyun snapped out of her daze and quickly clamped a hand over Cao Danqing’s mouth.
Cao Jun stepped forward and bowed with his hands clasped. "Grand Commandant, Danqing is young and reckless with her words. She didn’t mean to offend you. Please, don’t take it to heart. When we return, I will ensure she is strictly disciplined at home."
He bowed again as he finished speaking.
Only then did Lu Xiu turn around, slowly and deliberately.
Liang Wan secretly lifted her gaze to look at him. His expression was completely placid, showing no trace of anger, which only made her feel a deeper chill.
Once, his political enemies had banded together with numerous courtiers to impeach Lu Xiu before Gao Qian. They accused him of flouting the rules, disregarding all laws and discipline, and running rampant through Jinye City.
One courtier was in the middle of an eloquent, detailed list of his crimes when Lu Xiu himself arrived. He went straight to his seat and began sipping tea, not even batting an eye. He listened to their accusations with a blank face, and would even speak up to correct any inaccuracies in their accounts.
Gao Qian, already displeased that his amusements had been interrupted, had long grown tired of listening. Upon seeing Lu Xiu, he simply dumped the whole affair in his lap and went back to his own life of wine and women.
Lu Xiu patiently heard them out. When they were finished, he stated calmly that he considered all laws and etiquette meaningless, save for the Emperor’s direct edicts. As for those courtiers, he had them and their entire clans executed for the crime of treason.
’Thinking about it now, Gao Qian must have known he was being turned into a figurehead. Perhaps his indulgence in wine and women was just a means of self-preservation. He probably never imagined that the very man who had always protected and enabled him would be the one to eventually devour all his power...’
A sudden warmth on her wrist made Liang Wan flinch. She looked down with a tremor, jolted from her thoughts as if waking from a dream.
"Why are your hands so cold?" Lu Xiu frowned, looking at her.
Liang Wan’s lips twitched. Even on a summer day in the sixth month, a chill ran down her spine that she couldn’t shake.
"Are you unwell?"
"No." Liang Wan shook her head instinctively. She wanted to pull her hand away but didn’t dare.
"Shall we go in, then?"
"Alright."
’Liang Wan couldn’t stop trembling. They hadn’t seen it. They hadn’t seen how, after Lu Xiu had so casually uttered a single word—kill—the blood of Jinye City had dyed the Si River red...’
Lu Xiu paused, then said coolly to Cao Jun, "Does the General of Cavalry not understand this matter?"
Cao Jun was visibly taken aback, his gaze shifting to Cao Luyun with a complex expression.
Liang Wan was still trying to make sense of his words when Lu Xiu took her by the hand and started walking inside, not giving the others another glance.
’Liang Wan’s palms grew sweaty. In the time she had spent with Lu Xiu, she could sense that he was different from the man in her past. But who knew when he might revert to that cold, bloodthirsty monster?’
’Lu Xiu had said that as long as he was here, he wouldn’t let her kill Gao Qian. Was it because he needed to use Gao Qian to seize power? But he’d also said that power was the one thing he loathed most...’
"Why are you looking at me like that?"
Perhaps sensing her stare, Lu Xiu turned his head to look at her.
Liang Wan took a breath. "My lord, what is it that you desire most?"
Lu Xiu paused, then let out a low chuckle. "I’ll tell you later."
Liang Wan nodded lightly. ’It’s only natural that he wouldn’t tell me.’
Many people had come to offer their condolences, and the air was filled with mournful weeping that stirred grief in all who heard it. Liang Wan followed Lu Xiu numbly, her eyes vacant as she watched the people come and go. It reminded her of the bitterly cold, snowy night she had died.
Whether it was out of deference to Lu Xiu or fear of Gao Qian, neither the Lou Family nor the Lu Family did anything more than give her cold stares.
After offering their condolences, Lu Xiu was about to leave with Liang Wan when a maidservant stopped them. She said that the Guanglu Doctor’s wife wished to speak with him.
’Lu Ying is looking for him. It’s probably about Lou Xu Ru again.’
Knowing her place, Liang Wan prepared to head back to the carriage and wait.
But she had only gotten halfway when she heard footsteps hurrying up behind her.
Liang Wan stopped and turned to see a maidservant, panting and out of breath.
The servant curtsied before asking cautiously, "Excuse me, are you Liang Ji?"
Liang Wan frowned. "I don’t know. Am I the Liang Ji you’re looking for?"
"You came with the Grand Commandant, right?"
Liang Wan nodded. "I am."
The maidservant visibly relaxed, letting out a breath of relief. "Duke Wei requests your presence."
’Duke Wei? Lou Jing?’
Liang Wan was surprised. "May I ask why the Duke has summoned me?"
The maidservant shook her head. "Please, Liang Ji, you must come."
’The Duke is even older than Awen, and his health has been failing in recent years. My Liang Mansion has never had any dealings with the Duke Mansion. Aside from seeing him at the banquet the other day, we’ve never even met. Why would he want to see me?’
’Could it be because of Awen?’