"Second Lady! The old lady has already gone to bed," the head maid of Lady Wen said, immediately stepping in front of her mistress as she watched the imposing Lady Wen Jr. approaching.
"Get out of my way! I want to see Mother!" Lady Wen Jr. roared.
The head maid remained calm and tried to persuade her. "Second Lady, you're still in confinement. You should go back and rest properly."
*Slap!*
Before her words could even fade, a resounding slap landed hard on the head maid's face.
"Shut up! How dare a lowly maid act so presumptuously! Do you think I won't have Mother sell you off?"
The maid's face turned deathly pale. She knelt on the ground, trembling.
Just then, the door of the room opened, and a maid said respectfully, "Second Lady, the old lady invites you in."
Lady Wen Jr. let out a cold snort and strode into the room.
"Mother, Big Brother is back in the mansion, and he's been enfeoffed as the Marquis of Loyalty and Righteousness by the emperor. Even Lady Song has been granted the title of a second - rank imperial - appointed lady. You have to stand up for our second branch!"
Lady Wen Jr. shed tears as she shouted at Lady Wen, completely different from her overbearing self at the door.
Lady Wen was no less dissatisfied than Lady Wen Jr. She said in a cold voice, "That's enough! Go back to your courtyard and stay in confinement properly. If you ruin your health, it's your own fault!"
As she spoke, she turned to the head maid and said, "Go and ask the eldest master to come to me!"
Xue Chucheng and Song Zhaoyang were about to go to bed when the chirping of a magpie came from outside the door.
"My lord, my lady, the old lady requests your presence."
Xue Chucheng frowned. "Isn't the old lady asleep yet?"
Originally, Xue Chucheng had planned to pay his respects to Lady Wen when he returned to the mansion, but it was already late, so he had intended to do it early the next morning.
He never expected that Lady Wen would send someone to invite him so late at night.
Song Zhaoyang sat up. She sneered inwardly.
She thought that after such a big fall, Lady Wen would behave herself for a while. But only a few days had passed, and she was already causing trouble again!
She looked at Xue Chucheng seriously and said, "Husband, there's something I need to tell you."
Song Zhaoyang told him how the second branch and Lady Wen had caused her to give birth prematurely, how Lady Wen had sent her medicine, and about the moldy rice a few days ago.
She didn't mention the matter of the baby switch.
If she did, the game wouldn't be as fun.
As Xue Chucheng listened, his expression grew increasingly grim. He clenched his fists so tightly that they creaked.
Song Zhaoyang said calmly, "Husband, if you don't believe me, you can send someone to investigate."
Xue Chucheng took Song Zhaoyang's hand and said with a look of apology on his face, "I believe you, my lady. You've suffered. Don't worry. When I go to Mother's place later, I'll definitely get justice for you!"
Hearing this, Song Zhaoyang's eyes welled up with tears.
She thought about how she had been alone since her rebirth. Now that Xue Chucheng was back, she had someone to rely on, and her tense nerves relaxed a little.
Xue Chucheng hugged Song Zhaoyang and said, "You go to sleep first. Don't wait for me."
After saying that, he got up, dressed, and headed towards Lady Wen's courtyard with a cold look on his face.
"Yo, our Marquis of Loyalty and Righteousness is back. You don't even pay your respects to your elders when you return. If this gets out, I wonder if people will say that the Marquis of Loyalty and Righteousness is unfilial after winning the battle!"
As soon as Lady Wen saw Xue Chucheng, she started mocking him.
Xue Chucheng didn't respond to Lady Wen's words. He said calmly, "Mother, your words are a bit too harsh. Actually, I did have something to tell you when I came back. Since you were so eager to see me, I might as well not wait until tomorrow."
"His Majesty has enfeoffed me as the Marquis of Loyalty and Righteousness and bestowed a mansion upon me. On an auspicious day, our first branch will move into the new mansion, and this mansion will be left for you and the second brother."
Lady Wen's face instantly changed. She struggled to prop herself up and angrily accused him, "Xue Chucheng, you want to split the family? I'm not even dead yet! Aren't you afraid that people will say you're unfilial?"
Due to her emotional outburst, she tugged at her wound and turned pale from the pain.
Seeing this, Xue Chucheng frowned and said to the maid serving in the room, "Go and call the mansion doctor!"
"What are you shouting for!" Lady Wen scolded. "I might as well just die, so you can split the family as you wish!"
Xue Chucheng remained expressionless. He said calmly, "Mother, this is a reward from His Majesty. As for why His Majesty bestowed a new mansion, it probably has something to do with the moldy rice incident."
As soon as Xue Chucheng finished speaking, the anger on Lady Wen's face froze, and there was a hint of guilt in her eyes.
But soon, Lady Wen retorted, "I didn't do this!"
Xue Chucheng scoffed, his eyes as cold as ice.
"If you don't want others to know, don't do it. Mother, not everyone is a fool!"
"I've been leading the troops outside, but I won't let you bully my wife and daughter!"
"If Mother doesn't want to split the family, then I'll have to invite the clan elders to handle this matter."
Lady Wen was so angry that her chest heaved. She angrily pointed towards the door.
"Get out! Get out of here!"
Before leaving, Xue Chucheng left a message.
"Mother, I'm the eldest legitimate son. If the second brother wants to live here after the family split, he needs my permission."
After he said that, Lady Wen's face turned alternately green and white. Looking at Xue Chucheng's departing back, she wished she could pierce a hole in it with her angry eyes.
When Xue Chucheng returned to Song Zhaoyang's side, he saw that she was still lying there with her eyes open, looking at the bed canopy.
"Still awake?"
Song Zhaoyang sized up Xue Chucheng. Seeing that his face showed no abnormalities, she let out a sigh of relief.
"I was afraid you'd get beaten up."
Hearing this, Xue Chucheng frowned. After his body had warmed up, he lay down beside Song Zhaoyang.
He said, "My lady, you've suffered during the time I was away."
Song Zhaoyang hugged Xue Chucheng's arm and said lazily, "Since you know I've suffered, you have to stand by my side from now on."
"Of course." Xue Chucheng patted Song Zhaoyang's hand soothingly and said gently, "Just now I told Mother that we should split the family."
"Split the family?" Song Zhaoyang sat up suddenly.
"Slow down!" Xue Chucheng looked at Song Zhaoyang disapprovingly. "You're still in confinement. Don't move so quickly."
Song Zhaoyang gave Xue Chucheng a disdainful look and said, "You're as verbose as Nanny Xia. Hurry up and tell me what you said to Mother just now."
Xue Chucheng helped Song Zhaoyang lie down and continued, "Today, besides conferring the title on me, the emperor also bestowed a mansion upon me. At that time, I was just wondering why the emperor suddenly bestowed a mansion on me when I already had a place to live. Later, when I came back and learned that you had been bullied by Mother during this period, I understood what the emperor meant."
As he spoke, he looked at Song Zhaoyang with a hint of jealousy.
"The emperor really does think about you."
Hearing his jealous tone, Song Zhaoyang was both angry and amused.
She flicked him on the head.
"What are you talking nonsense about! The emperor and I are cousins, and we grew up together."
Xue Chucheng was still a bit jealous and said, "If you had married the emperor back then, you'd be the queen now."
Song Zhaoyang didn't know whether to laugh or cry. She pinched Xue Chucheng's face and said, "It's a pity I'm married to you now. Do you regret marrying me?"
"Never! I definitely don't regret marrying you!" Xue Chucheng said seriously, looking at Song Zhaoyang affectionately.
"Then that's that. It's old news. Don't bring it up again, or you'll be laughed at! The emperor and I are innocent. We're just talking privately. Once you step out of this door, keep your mouth shut." Song Zhaoyang reminded him.
Xue Chucheng nodded and said, "My lady, I know. I definitely won't talk nonsense."
Then he continued with the previous topic.
"Mother flew into a rage, but I told her that if she didn't agree, I'd invite the clan elders to mediate for us."
Song Zhaoyang smiled. Lady Wen never expected that the always filial Xue Chucheng would defy her.
Even a cornered rabbit will bite. Since Lady Wen had meddled in their first branch's affairs, Xue Chucheng would never let her off easily.
Xue Chucheng placed his big hand over Song Zhaoyang's eyes and said, "Alright, go to sleep. We'll move to the new mansion after you're out of confinement."
Hearing this, Song Zhaoyang thought that if they moved to the new mansion, wouldn't it be a good thing for Lady Wen and the second branch?
Why should they leave while the second branch stayed?
Song Zhaoyang remembered what Xue Yunning had said in her previous life about the Xue family's treasure. She turned to look at Xue Chucheng, wondering if this man knew about the treasure.
But before she could ask, she saw that Xue Chucheng had closed his eyes and fallen into a deep sleep. She had to drop the topic.
Time passed quickly. Song Zhaoyang would be out of confinement tomorrow.