At this moment, Liang Yuzhou's eyes were fixed solely on Yu Huiyan. He was a good swimmer, and Song Wanchu thought he would jump into the water without hesitation to save the girl.
Behind them, countless pairs of eyes, both male and female, were fixed intently on his every move.
What would it mean for a man to rescue a drowning woman?
Intimate contact, regarded as skinship.
Everyone knew full well that if Liang Yuzhou were to jump in, it would not only add another touching chapter to his and Yu Huiyan's love story but also nail down their marriage.
But he stopped in his tracks by the lake.
"May I ask, Your Highness the Princess, is there any woman in the mansion who can swim?"
Princess Jiahe was stunned, and her tone took on a hint of reproach and anger. "It's this critical moment, and you're still looking for a woman? The one who should save Huiyan the most is you!"
"Mother!" Liang Yuzhou's expression was solemn. "Huiyan's life is important, and so is her reputation!"
Princess Jiahe was so angry that she couldn't speak.
How could her usually smart and clever son turn into such a stubborn fool at this crucial moment?
What reputation? If he just took a leap, their marriage would be a done deal, and even the old lady wouldn't be able to stop it!
Caidie, standing beside, was already sobbing uncontrollably. "Miss, hold on! Second Master is coming to save you!"
She seemed extremely certain that Liang Yuzhou would jump in.
Yu Huiyan's cries for help were growing weaker.
With a "plop," a dark figure jumped into the water, causing ripples to spread across the surface.
The crowd didn't even care who had jumped in. Their eyes were fixed on Liang Yuzhou, who still stood on the shore.
Why didn't he jump?
It was Aunt Fang who had jumped into the water.
Although Aunt Fang was already in her thirties, she was still extremely agile. She easily fished Yu Huiyan out of the water.
But she felt that Yu Huiyan seemed a bit resistant, as if she didn't want to be rescued by her.
Yu Huiyan's wet body was exposed to everyone's view. Tears mixed with lake water streamed down her cheeks. She looked like a frightened fawn that had survived a disaster, extremely pitiful.
The princess handed the blanket she had prepared earlier to Liang Yuzhou, but he gave it to Caidie instead.
Caidie was stunned for a moment before she squatted down and wrapped Yu Huiyan tightly with the blanket.
She didn't forget the task Yu Huiyan had given her. Pointing at Song Wanchu, she tearfully accused, "Concubine Song, how could you be so heartless! What did my miss ever do to you? Why did you instruct your maid to push her into the water?"
The implication in her words was too obvious, and even Princess Jiahe understood immediately.
"Song Wanchu, you slut, you venomous woman!" Princess Jiahe raised her arm and slapped Song Wanchu hard across the face. "Do you think that if you kill Huiyan, Zhou'er will make you his legal wife? Don't dream!"
The princess also fanned the flames. "Liang Er, you've seen it all. This woman is so vicious. She dares to harm someone on my territory! Why are you still keeping such a slut?"
Yu Huiyan turned her side face towards Song Wanchu and sobbed softly, as if she had suffered a great deal of injustice.
"Cousin, don't blame Concubine Song. She must have been stimulated today when she heard the princess propose marriage for us. That's why she instructed her maid to push me..."
Her sobs drowned out the rest of her words.
But everyone understood the meaning she was trying to convey.
No wonder Yu Huiyan had inexplicably staged a scene of being threatened in front of Liang Yuzhou earlier. It turned out to be a well - planned scheme!
The image of Song Wanchu as a vicious and calculating woman had taken root among the high - ranking nobles.
Liang Yuzhou looked at Song Wanchu, his gaze lingering on her bleeding lips.
Song Wanchu had no choice but to meet his eyes.
His eyes were like ice, so cold that they sent shivers down one's spine.
"Song Wanchu, you are so vicious. I've told you before that Huiyan and you should stay out of each other's way. Why did you try to take her life?"
The summer heat seemed to freeze at this moment. The sunlight quickly disappeared from her, and a fierce cold swept in from Liang Yuzhou's direction, engulfing her completely.
Her body felt like it was in an ice cellar, shivering from head to toe. Her mind went blank, and all she could hear were the words of Liang Yuzhou's scolding.
Vicious, trying to take Yu Huiyan's life...
She had thought that her image in Liang Yuzhou's heart was already bad enough, and he couldn't think any worse of her.
But Liang Yuzhou once again shattered her illusion with his cold and heartless words and attitude.
In his eyes, she not only lusted after wealth and glory, told lies, and was calculating but also a vicious murderer who would harm Yu Huiyan for her own interests.
Liang Yuzhou, can I be any more despicable in your heart?
"I didn't push her."
She instinctively defended herself, but in front of the pitiful Yu Huiyan, her defense seemed so weak.
Under the piercing gazes, Suyue stepped in front of Song Wanchu to protect her and tried her best to defend her. "My lady didn't instruct me to push Miss Yu. It was Miss Yu who jumped in by herself!"
Liang Yuzhou's already deep black eyes seemed to be churning with huge waves.
He was clearly standing not far away, but Song Wanchu felt as if there was a vast expanse of mountains and rivers between them. At this most helpless moment, he stood behind the woman who slandered her and coldly judged her with his eyes.
"How can you prove that Huiyan's drowning has nothing to do with you?"
Although he asked this question, his face clearly showed that he didn't believe her.
He stood in the most prominent position in the crowd. He was supposed to be one with her as husband and wife, but he mercilessly threw her into the hateful and contemptuous gazes of the crowd.
At the time of the incident, no one had passed by this side of the lake, so there were no witnesses. And the maids of Song Wanchu and Yu Huiyan each had their own version of the story.
Liang Yuzhou clearly knew that she couldn't prove her innocence.
She was speechless.
"Zhou'er, this vicious slut has shamed our Duke's Mansion. You must punish her severely!"
Earlier at the banquet, Princess Jiahe had been outmaneuvered by Song Wanchu and had accidentally revealed something, which had led to a lot of gossip behind her back. She had been looking for an outlet for her anger.
Now that she had caught Song Wanchu's mistake, she regained her arrogance and glared at Song Wanchu viciously, looking extremely triumphant.
"Liang Er, if you don't teach her a lesson, she will only harm Huiyan more severely in the future. If this gets out, what will people think of you, the legitimate son of the Duke's Mansion, if you can't even handle a concubine? Where will your dignity be, and where will the dignity of the Duke's Mansion be?"
The princess's words were even more severe than Princess Jiahe's.
Anger was quickly gathering on Liang Yuzhou's handsome face, which was originally as calm as the moon.
"Apologize to Huiyan!"
He was going to pin the hat of attempted murder on her head forever.
It seemed to be snowing in Song Wanchu's world, colder and more despairing than the snowy night when she had a miscarriage.
"I'm not wrong. Why should I apologize?"
She stood alone and stubbornly, defying the malice from the whole world.
In Liang Yuzhou's deep eyes, his emotions were unpredictable. His tightened jaw, pursed thin lips, and every line on his face showed his strong disgust for her.
"If you can't prove your innocence, then apologize!"
His words almost pushed Song Wanchu to the edge of a cliff.
One more step back, and it would be an abyss.
But Liang Yuzhou didn't intend to offer her a helping hand.
A beautiful but cold and broken smile appeared on Song Wanchu's lips.
"Can this prove my innocence, Liang Yuzhou?"