Chapter 084
Chapter 84: I Am Sincere
Duan Yi Chen did not know how long he had been sitting on the floor when he suddenly burst into loud laughter, but the laughter carried endless sorrow.
He remembered that Xia Meng Yan said he dragged down the Xia Family, and his mother also said he dragged down the Xia Family. One was the person he liked, the other was the one who gave him life. They were the two people he cared about most, yet at this moment both had stabbed him in the heart.
Hearing noise from inside, Jian Ping came in with worry. Seeing his master like this, he did not know how to comfort him.
Duan Yi Chen asked in a low, dry voice: “Jian Ping, tell me, are they really doing this for my own good?”
Jian Ping slowly crouched down, thinking his master meant the marquis and the Eldest Princess, and said: “This servant has not read many books, but I understand one thing. If everyone opposes what you are doing, then even if it works in the end, no one will cheer for you, and you may lose the people who matter most to you.”
Duan Yi Chen’s heart skipped a beat as a chill ran through him: [Lose the people who matter most to me?]
For years he had drifted through life, now and then helping his father with a few tasks, tagging along with the people from the Marquis Manor who never took him seriously. If he wanted to stand firm and openly marry Xia Meng Yan, he would first have to pass through the wall that was the Marquis Manor.
He took a long breath and suddenly felt that Xia Meng Yan leaving the capital might not be a bad thing.
He asked with focus returning to his eyes: “Have you found out why Meng Yan left the city?”
Jian Ping nodded and gave the report: “Lord Xia has been promoted, so Big Miss Xia’s marriage was brought up again. Her belly is getting bigger. She left both to avoid trouble and to give birth quietly.”
Jian Ping did not realize that of all he said, the only words his master grabbed hold of were “avoid trouble.”
Joy rose in Duan Yi Chen’s heart: [So Meng Yan looks down on the people in the capital. Good that she is leaving.]
He gave quick orders: “Go ask when Meng Yan will leave the capital. No, forget it. Buy everything a pregnant woman needs. Tonic foods, clothes, anything useful. Hand them to Chun Yue in secret.”
Seeing his master’s face clear like the sky after rain, Jian Ping finally relaxed and said with spirit: “This servant will do it right away.”
Duan Yi Chen added in a colder voice: “And do not let the people from the Marquis Manor find out.”
Jian Ping bowed his head: “Yes.”
At the same time, Xia Meng Yan was also buying things for the journey. The child would most likely be born at the Lin Family. Her maternal grandfather loved her and would not let her suffer, but there were still other people to think about.
She touched a bolt of cloth as white as snow and said to Chun Yue: “Tell the shopkeeper I will take all the cotton cloth. Leave the rest.”
In her past life, when she was in the army, she had heard the cooking aunties say that no brocade or fine satin felt as comfortable as cotton that had been washed several times and dried under the sun. [Cotton is simple, but it is the most comforting.]
Just as Chun Yue left, Xia Meng Yan heard a familiar voice: “Meng Yan, I finally found you.”
Lu Rong Fang came in with excitement on his face and hurried to her side as he asked: “How are you? Father locked me up. I only learned about the Xia Family after I got out. I wanted to ask my sister to invite you over, but you refused. Meng Yan, are you angry that I failed to help?”
Xia Meng Yan stepped back two paces to open the distance and said coolly: “Young Master Lu, did being locked up rattle your mind? The Xia Family’s matters have nothing to do with the Lu Family.”
Lu Rong Fang’s eyes turned sorrowful as he pleaded: “Meng Yan, you have every right to be angry, but please do not refuse to see me.”
A’Four, seeing his master rebuffed, rushed forward with a sharp tongue and said loudly: “Big Miss Xia, if not for you, how would my young master have ended up confined? If you do not appreciate it, fine, but how can you still blame him…”
Lu Rong Fang cut him off with a deep voice that carried displeasure: “A’Four.”
A’Four puffed up, unwilling to stop: “Young master, I am upset for you. Master beat you so hard you ran a fever for four or five days. The first thing you did after you got out was come to see Big Miss Xia. Look at how she treats you.”
Lu Rong Fang raised his voice, cold and stern: “One more word and do not follow me anymore.”
A’Four, still unconvinced, snorted coldly at Xia Meng Yan and went to stand at the door.
Lu Rong Fang softened and said to her: “Meng Yan, it is my fault for not keeping my servant in line. Please do not be angry.”
Xia Meng Yan had already seen through the play between master and servant and did not care. She lifted her chin and said plainly: “What Young Master Lu wants or does is not my concern. I have other matters.”
She started to leave, but a hand caught her sleeve.
She turned with a frosty face and said, each word clear: “Young Master Lu, please show some respect.”
One after another kept grabbing her like this. Did they think she had endless patience?
Seeing her displeasure, Lu Rong Fang quickly let go and tried to explain: “Can you hear me out? I am sincere.”
At the word sincere, a flush of cold shame washed over Xia Meng Yan. [So sincerity is worth so little now that any man can throw it out like a cheap token?]
She reminded him, calm and firm: “Young Master Lu, we made it very clear last time. I refuse the deal.”
His fallen hand closed into a tight fist. After a long moment he slowly released it and said with restraint: “Find a quiet place. Let us talk properly.”
She thought of how she would be leaving in a few days and decided that clearing things up might be best. She nodded and said: “The back courtyard.”
This shop was her property, and there was a room in the back where she could rest.
“Good,” said Lu Rong Fang, keeping his face even as he stepped aside to let her go first.
The shopkeeper, seeing the owner heading to the back with a stranger behind her, frowned a little. He did not question her, but he ordered tea and snacks to be served, then stood at a distance in case he was needed.
Lu Rong Fang spoke as soon as they sat down, his eagerness showing even as his fists clenched and betrayed his true mood: “Meng Yan, Father has agreed to let me marry you as my main wife.”
Xia Meng Yan did not look moved. She met his eyes and asked straight out: “What are the conditions?”
He froze for a second, then quickly lowered his gaze to hide the extra thoughts in his eyes and said: “Father wants you to leave the child with the Xia Family.”
Her fingers, which had been playing with the teacup lid, fell still. Her voice remained even, but her presence pressed hard enough to fill the room as she said: “Lord Lu is so thoughtful on my behalf. Should I be thanking him?”
“Meng Yan,” said Lu Rong Fang, a thread of begging creeping into his tone, “Lin Ye Lan has been demoted. If the Lu Family takes in his child, His Majesty will suspect us. Father is thinking of our future. We are young and will have our own children together. The main branch of the Xia Family has only you. If you marry out, your elders will be lonely. If the child stays with them, they will have hope.”
The longer she listened, the darker her face grew. Cold mockery gathered in her eyes as she said: “The Lu Family is so good at calculation. You think of my child and me at every turn, yet at every turn you treat us like chess pieces.”
She leaned forward, her gaze like a blade: “Lu Rong Fang, you once praised me for being smart. Was that a lie? Did you think I could not see through your family’s plans?”
He furrowed his brows and put on the face of someone doing it for her sake: “Meng Yan, all of us are trapped by our roles. As long as the result is good, why care about the small details?”
“You want to sell my child and me, and I am not allowed to refuse? Lu Rong Fang, where do you get the confidence to think I must marry you?” She pushed her chair back, feeling she was wasting her breath. “The Lu Family climbed up by marriage ties. Now that you think Consort Ping may not be reliable, you want to find a new ally?”
“Elders see farther than we do,” he said after a steadying breath, wearing a strained, troubled look. “I have already done my best. Can you not make a small sacrifice for me?”
Looking at that calculating face, Xia Meng Yan’s heart sank. Lin Ye Lan ate soft meals by force. Lu Rong Fang ate soft meals by trickery. Both were worthless. They wanted the wealth she would bring but also wanted to push away the so-called bad influence of her child. How was this different from a brothel client picking and choosing?
She lifted her head slowly, a proud smile at the corner of her eye that she had never shown before as she said: “Why should I suffer for a man? My father is a Second Rank Official, my mother’s dowry rivals the State Treasury, and my maternal grandfather is a merchant who dominates his region. Even if I stood here with three or four children by my side, I would still not worry about marriage. On what grounds do you ask me to bow my head?”
“Meng Yan, you…” he began, at a loss.
She let out a short laugh and said with ice: “Lu Rong Fang, from the start it was you asking me for help, not me begging you. If you had another way, why would you carry the pressure of marrying me?”
He drew in a breath to argue, but Xia Meng Yan rose to end it and said clearly: “Young Master Lu, let me tell you plain. I do not plan to marry again. If we meet later, please show proper respect. Shopkeeper, see the guest out.”
The shopkeeper walked forward quickly, bowed to Lu Rong Fang, and said with courtesy that did not bend: “Young Master Lu, please.”