Chapter 51

Chapter 51: Second Brother’s Misfortune

This novel is translated and hosted on bcatranslation.

[Why didn’t he smash into it?!] Lu Chao Chao scratched at the wall in frustration.

In the original novel, Lu Zheng Yue had gone as far as smashing his head until it bled just to make Su Zhi Qing stay.

Hearing the sound of someone gnashing their teeth beside him, Lu Zheng Yue glanced around and took a deep breath.

[Where on earth is that voice coming from??]

In these times, do spirits and demons enjoy mocking people?

“Kick…” Lu Chao Chao pointed at the osmanthus tree in front of her.

Deng Zhi blinked in confusion. “Kick the tree?”

Lu Chao Chao nodded vigorously.

“To…together.” The baby grinned, revealing two tiny teeth, her expression clearly stating that if no one cooperated, she’d roll in the snow until someone did.

Deng Zhi’s eyelid twitched.

The two maids immediately lifted their legs, pretending to kick the tree.

Lu Chao Chao’s eyes sparkled, and she infused a touch of spiritual energy into her little hands. As the two maids feigned their kicks, she struck the tree forcefully with her spiritual power.

The osmanthus tree, pruned into a round shape, was heavy with accumulated snow. When the spiritual energy hit, the snow that had gathered overnight came crashing down.

“Aoooooh!”

The snow fell directly onto Lu Zheng Yue and Su Zhi Qing, burying them completely.

Su Zhi Qing, dressed thinly to appear delicate and frail, was now shivering uncontrollably.

[Romantic fool, eat some snow to cleanse your brain…]

Lu Chao Chao rolled her eyes dramatically.

Hearing the commotion, Deng Zhi realized something was amiss. Looking at the little miss pouting in defiance, she finally understood that the little one was exacting revenge for Madam Xu.

With a resigned sigh, Deng Zhi picked up the tiny troublemaker and entered the courtyard.

“Madam, please forgive me. The maid accidentally bumped into the osmanthus tree, causing the second young master to catch a chill.” Deng Zhi apologized to Lu Zheng Yue before carrying Lu Chao Chao inside.

Lu Zheng Yue, focused on brushing the snow off Su Zhi Qing, suddenly noticed Lu Chao Chao. He couldn’t take his eyes off her.

What a beautiful child.

“Big… big bro,” she said, her words garbled like a baby’s.

Lu Zheng Yue froze, his expression shifting to one of disbelief.

That voice…

Wasn’t that the voice he had heard in his head earlier?

Had that been her inner thoughts just now?

Madam Xu threw him an exasperated look. “This is your little sister, Chao Chao.”

Lu Zheng Yue had heard about Lu Chao Chao before. Madam Xu often shared amusing anecdotes about her, like how she loved sucking her fingers and would generously offer her saliva-coated fingers to her favorite playmates.

His little sister was even more adorable than he had imagined.

“Chao Chao, I’m your second brother,” he said, still kneeling in the snow, his eyes brimming with anticipation.

Lu Chao Chao tilted her head haughtily. “Stu…stupid.”

[Only an idiot could claim to be my brother.]

[Ugh, could love-addled brains be contagious?]

Although Lu Zheng Yue didn’t fully understand what a “love-addled brain” was, he could guess from context. Seeing the ten-month-old baby’s look of disdain, he felt a pang of sadness.

“Zheng Yue, you fell off a cliff, and in just one moment, the servant at the scene said they couldn’t find you. It’s hard for me not to feel suspicious,” Madam Xu’s eyes were sharp as she looked at Su Zhi Qing.

Su Zhi Qing straightened her back and spoke with a mixture of stubbornness and pride. “I happened to be gathering herbs at the foot of the mountain.”

[Ha! What a joke.]

[She squatted at the foot of the mountain for three days, her face covered in mosquito bites, just to wait for my second brother to fall off the cliff…]

Lu Zheng Yue blinked, confused. Wait, squatted for three days?

And now that he thought about it, when he woke up, Su Zhi Qing’s face indeed had several little red marks!

He felt increasingly perplexed.

“Fine. Since you saved Zheng Yue’s life, you may stay in the Marquis’s manor for now. However, the engagement is absolutely out of the question!” Madam Xu’s tone was cold and decisive. She could easily see through Su Zhi Qing’s delicate pretense, but her son couldn’t.

“Deng Zhi, take Miss Su to the Mingxin Courtyard.”

Su Zhi Qing looked back at Lu Zheng Yue with every step she took. Only after seeing him nod did she reluctantly follow Deng Zhi away.

Once Su Zhi Qing was gone, Madam Xu gestured for her son to rise. She didn’t scold him further.

“Mother, I knew you couldn’t bear to punish me,” Lu Zheng Yue said with a cheeky grin, wincing as he stood, his knees numb from kneeling in the snow.

Ying Xue quickly brought him hot tea. “Warm yourself so you don’t fall ill.”

Lu Zheng Yue, like all the Lu children, was strikingly handsome. Despite his limp, he still carried himself gracefully as he entered the room.

“Mother, I truly love Qing Qing,” he said sincerely.

Madam Xu frowned. “Do you have no brain? I can tell she’s a fraud.”

Lu Zheng Yue chuckled. “Mother, there are so many wealthy people in the world. Why would she choose to deceive only me?”

Then, with a self-deprecating smile, he added, “If she’s lying to everyone else but only me, doesn’t that mean she has feelings for me too?”

Madam Xu nearly fainted in anger.

Although she didn’t entirely understand the term “love-addled brain,” at this moment, she suddenly did!

[That’s right. She waited three days just for you to fall off that cliff.]

Lu Zheng Yue’s smile froze.

“Why did you decide to climb the mountain?” Madam Xu asked, her brows furrowed.

Lu Zheng Yue hesitated briefly. “Brother Jing Huai mentioned that the sunrise there is particularly beautiful,” he said, altering the truth slightly.

Hearing Lu Jing Huai’s name, Madam Xu clenched her teeth. She already knew that Zheng Yue and Lu Jing Huai were close friends.

[No wonder! Lu Jing Huai can’t wait to see him dead…]

Lu Zheng Yue looked baffled. What is my sister saying? Jing Huai has been my trusted friend for years!

Madam Xu sighed and motioned for someone to take Lu Chao Chao away.

The mother and son spoke for a long time behind closed doors. When they emerged, Lu Zheng Yue’s expression was utterly shattered.

“Why? How could this be? Father and Mother were known for their harmony and undying love. Why did this happen? Why did Father do it?” he muttered, dazed as if the ground had been pulled from beneath him.

He had always seen other classmates’ families rife with conflict, with fathers and mothers clashing over concubines. He had often thought of himself as lucky, growing up in a loving household. But now, all of that had crumbled.

For seventeen years, his father had maintained a mistress. The illegitimate child was the same age as his eldest brother.

And worse… his closest friend, Lu Jing Huai, was…

His father’s illegitimate son!

Thinking back to when he had first met Lu Jing Huai, it was under his father’s recommendation, who spoke highly of Jing Huai’s talent and encouraged him to befriend the boy. Jing Huai often inquired about his parents.

Lu Zheng Yue felt as if he’d been struck by lightning.

Even his sister, Lu Chao Chao, had narrowly escaped being killed at birth, just to make way for Lu Jing Huai’s sister.

Staring at his tearful mother, Lu Zheng Yue felt his heart shatter into pieces.

He stumbled out of the room, his thoughts in chaos.

Standing outside the Mingxin Courtyard, he longed to see Qing Qing and pour out his heart.

He knocked softly at Su Zhi Qing’s door. Qing Qing understood him better than anyone; she was different.

Kind and pure, Qing Qing couldn’t possibly be connected to Lu Jing Huai’s schemes.

[My second brother’s life is so tragic.]

[Not only is his best friend his father’s illegitimate son, but even his wife has slept with him.]

Lu Chao Chao, watching from the shadows, silently continued her inner commentary.