Chapter 165: Making Headlines Daily
This novel is translated and hosted on bcatranslation.
“Ungrateful wretch!”
“Are you cursing me?” The Old Madam was so furious that she nearly toppled over, her face flushed crimson, and her eyes seemed to ignite with flames.
“Madam Pei came to the manor and said you were on your deathbed! Who cursed you, exactly?” Yu Shu retorted on the spot.
“She even came crying!”
“If you don’t believe me, ask around! Everyone saw it!”
Lu Yuan Ze knew his mother too well. Her vague responses hinted at deceit.
Grinding his teeth, he immediately said, “Mother is elderly and has shown some confusion recently. I apologize for the misunderstanding and for troubling you all. I’ll visit each of you tomorrow to make amends.”
Thick-skinned, Lu Yuan Ze offered his apologies to the crowd.
“She’s fond of Chao Chao, so she likely concocted this out of longing for the child. Her momentary lapse caused all this trouble…” Lu Yuan Ze’s heart ached with shame.
Ever since Madam Xu’s divorce, Marquis Zhongyong’s Manor had been nothing but a laughingstock.
They graced the front pages of the capital’s gossip columns daily!
And now? Rumors were spreading that the Old Madam had died!
It took every ounce of Lu Yuan Ze’s strength to convince the officials to leave.
Lu Chao Chao shyly eyed the Old Madam, fidgeting as though she wanted to say something.
“Grandmother, am I your most precious grandchild?” Lu Chao Chao asked with wide, expectant eyes.
The Old Madam snorted coldly.
“When you die, can I take the first round at the feast?” she asked cautiously.
The Old Madam erupted, her fury sending waves of dizziness through her head.
“You ungrateful wretch! Are you cursing me to die? You’re nothing but a debt collector sent to torment me!”
“How did I end up with a granddaughter like you?” The Old Madam clutched her chest in frustration. “All you ever think about is eating!”
“Eat, eat, eat—useless child! Look at Jing Yao, then look at yourself!” she scolded.
Lu Chao Chao gave her a pitiful glance. If such an expensive coffin didn’t come with a feast, why bother?
[If I’d known, I would’ve sent her a bed of straw instead.]
Lu Yuan Ze glanced at Lu Chao Chao. Now the emperor’s beloved Princess Sunshine, she was untouchable.
He didn’t even dare to raise his voice at her.
“Mother, what are you trying to achieve today? Do you want the Marquis’s Manor to become the laughingstock of the entire capital?” Lu Yuan Ze’s tone was exhausted.
After a long silence, the Old Madam said, “I simply miss Chao Chao. Couldn’t she stay at the manor for a few days?”
“You’re dreaming!” Lu Chao Chao stood akimbo, defiant.
“Mother, Chao Chao is no longer a member of the Marquis’s Manor,” Lu Yuan Ze replied, his voice dry.
“How is she not? Born a Lu, she’ll die a Lu. So what if her name is stricken from the family register or a severance document was signed? She’s still your bloodline!” the Old Madam argued viciously.
“Enough, Mother. Chao Chao has been recorded in the imperial genealogy. She belongs to the royal family now.”
“She is Princess Sunshine.”
Not someone you can summon or dismiss at will!
Lu Yuan Ze’s stern tone reflected his fear of angering the emperor further.
The Old Madam glared at him, unwilling to yield.
After a long pause, she softened her stance.
“Then… could she at least leave an article of clothing for me? Something for remembrance, to symbolize our severed fate?”
Lu Yuan Ze turned to his daughter.
“Chao Chao, would you agree to that?”
Rolling her eyes, Lu Chao Chao replied, “Of course not.”
The Old Madam countered, “I’ll pay for it. Would that work?”
Chao Chao’s eyes sparkled. She held up three fingers.
The Old Madam clenched her teeth and ordered a servant to bring 3,000 taels of silver.
Her gaze turned sinister as she glared at Chao Chao. [Let’s see if you can live long enough to spend it!]
Lu Yuan Ze found the situation increasingly suspicious.
The Old Madam hated Chao Chao. Spending 3,000 taels for her clothing? Absurd.
Clutching the silver wrapped in red cloth, the Old Madam asked, “Lu Chao Chao, will you accept 3,000 taels for something of yours? Do you agree?” She enunciated each word clearly.
Glancing at the spiritual energy swirling in the air, Chao Chao nearly laughed aloud.
[Borrowing lifespan, are we?]
Borrowing my life? You must be joking!
Chao Chao nodded.
The Old Madam frowned. “Answer verbally.”
Chao Chao beamed. “I agree.”
Her crisp response sealed the Method of Borrowing Lifespan. There was no turning back now.
The Old Madam’s expression briefly showed delight as she quickly stuffed the money into Chao Chao’s hands.
Lu Yuan Ze wasn’t naive. The Old Madam’s near-oath-like phrasing suggested a darker purpose.
The Old Madam shot him a warning glare.
[Let her die—it’s what she deserves!]
“Father, have you nothing to say?” Chao Chao asked the nominal head of the family.
Had he intervened, she might have given the Marquis’s Manor a chance.
“A wretch who can’t even call me ‘Father’—what could I possibly say?” Lu Yuan Ze scoffed.
Chao Chao chuckled, handing over a handkerchief.
“This has been mine since childhood—it carries my scent.”
The Old Madam sniffed it, satisfied by the faint milky aroma, and eagerly accepted.
Once Chao Chao left, her grandmother’s expression darkened.
“I sold her birth chart for 50,000 taels! Don’t meddle—pretend you know nothing!”
“That wretched life of hers, used to extend a noble’s lifespan, is a blessing for her!” The Old Madam’s voice was sharp.
Lu Yuan Ze left silently.
Outside, Yu Shu hesitated. “I’ve heard of masters who use birth charts and personal belongings for evil spells. Could the Marquis’s Manor intend to harm you?”
Chao Chao laughed slyly. “I hope they do.”
“Don’t tell Liang Qin.”
As she strolled home, her swagger suggested schemes in motion.
Back at the Princess’s Manor, Madam Xu awaited her in the hall.
“She lied. She’s not sick—she tricked us!” The little girl tattled gleefully.
“You wicked girl, sending a coffin to the Old Madam! She must be fuming.”
“She didn’t trouble you, did she?” Madam Xu examined her carefully.
“Nope!” Chao Chao covered her mouth, giggling.
[The real show’s about to begin…]
Late that night, the chill of October deepened as white mist blanketed the air, obscuring everything.
Lying in bed, Chao Chao heard a faint, ethereal voice.
“Lu Chao Chao, will you lend 50 years of your life to Lord Xue?”
“Lu Chao Chao, will you lend 50 years of your life to Lord Xue?”
The voice persisted, refusing to fade until she replied.
Murmuring softly, she answered, “Fine.”
As the words left her lips, a sliver of golden light was drawn from her body, ascending toward the heavens.
It was her lifespan.
Chao Chao sat up with a mischievous grin.
[Borrowing 50 years from me? Who do you think you are?]
As a master of divine beings, she shared eternity with the heavens.
Trying to shorten her lifespan? Even the emperor’s ancestors would quake in their graves!
[Let’s see who’s courting disaster now.]
Uh-oh someone’s in trouble