Shi Luohan had been to the border and heard that the Kingdom of Gaochang was destroyed by the Huns. The entire royal family was almost massacred, and only a princess escaped with the national treasure, the Blood - dripping Rose.
The Blood - dripping Rose was the auspicious symbol of the Kingdom of Gaochang, representing the national fortune. The princesses of the royal family would have the pattern of the Blood - dripping Rose tattooed on their bodies at birth to show their noble status.
The maid beside Liang Yuzhou was actually the only surviving bloodline of the Kingdom of Gaochang!
This earth - shattering news left Shi Luohan stunned for a long time.
"See?"
Being stared at intently by a man, Yaoguang felt a bit uncomfortable and blushed even more. "No Han woman in the Central Plains would ever get a tattoo on her skin. Yue Chengkong has been hunting me everywhere. I was afraid that the female doctor or the old maid would see the Blood - dripping Rose, and they would be in danger."
She looked different from Han women in the Central Plains, and with the mysterious tattoo on her back, if she became the topic of people's discussion, it would bring about a disaster.
If Yue Chengkong knew she was in Yunzhou, he would never spare anyone who had contact with her.
To be on the safe side, Yaoguang didn't want anyone other than Shi Luohan to discover her abnormality.
So she would rather let Shi Luohan bandage her wound.
"You mean you don't care whether I live or die?"
This sounded a bit harsh.
"Yes." Yaoguang nodded. "You're different from them. You're hard to kill."
Shi Luohan twitched the corner of his mouth. "Thank you for the compliment!"
He started to wipe the blood off Yaoguang and bandage her wound.
The two fell into silence again.
The man's rough fingers inevitably rubbed against her delicate skin.
The soft and smooth touch stimulated Shi Luohan's senses. His heart rate gradually accelerated, and his breathing became rapid.
Yaoguang's whole body was always tense.
Shi Luohan's body began to heat up. To avoid the awkwardness, he took the initiative to speak. "What on earth is your feud with Yue Chengkong?"
"He colluded with the Huns and led them into the palace. My father and brothers all died at his hands."
Yaoguang recounted calmly. Shi Luohan's fingers paused for a moment. From her calm tone, he felt the surging hatred and the bleeding grief.
She should have been a precious princess. Watching her father and brothers die one by one and shouldering the national and family hatred, how had she endured all these years?
Suddenly, Yaoguang turned her head, her eyes blazing. Shi Luohan's eyes flashed, and he hid the pity in his eyes.
"I don't need your pity."
She smiled faintly.
Shi Luohan stared into her deep and beautiful eyes and rarely fell silent.
...
Song Wanchu was about to go to bed when Shi Luohan arrived at the outer hall.
She was about to put on her clothes and get up when she heard Shi Luohan say outside, "It's cold. Don't bother. I know you're worried about Yaoguang. Her injury is not serious. She'll recover after a few days of rest. Zhou Yan has gone to that mansion. I've told them not to rush out of the city. Yue Chengkong is conducting a large - scale search. We'll wait until this storm passes."
Hearing this, Song Wanchu felt relieved.
"Has anything happened to you after I left?" Shi Luohan asked with concern.
Song Wanchu suddenly felt nervous for no reason and curled her fingers tightly in her sleeves.
She told him about Yue Chengkong's search.
As for being knocked out by Taoist Qiu and sent to Liang Yuzhou's bed and seeing him spitting blood and fainting on the spot, Song Wanchu completely omitted this part.
She didn't want her elder brother to know about her involvement with Liang Yuzhou.
She was afraid that her elder brother would get overly excited again.
Shi Luohan learned that Wanchu had cut her own palm to deceive Yue Chengkong. For the first time, he had a clear hatred for Yue Chengkong.
He wanted to kill Yue Chengkong.
After leaving Meiyingxuan, he was still planning the feasibility of this matter in his mind.
When he realized that he was seriously planning to assassinate the governor of Yunzhou, the calm and determined look in Yaoguang's eyes appeared in his mind.
For a moment, he was in a daze and couldn't tell whether his hatred for Yue Chengkong came from which woman.
A few days later, Mrs. Chu said that she would take Song Wanchu and Chu Yueying to the Yue family's banquet.
When the carriage arrived at the main entrance of the Yue family, Mrs. Yue actually came to greet them in person.
Although her hair was completely white, she was full of energy. She held Mrs. Chu's hand with a beaming smile.
"Why did you only bring one granddaughter?" She seemed to casually glance at Song Wanchu and focused all her attention on Chu Yueying.
Intentional neglect was often secret attention.
Acting cold and indifferent on the surface was just to put pressure on her, making her feel unimportant and thus inferior.
However, this kind of oppression didn't harm Song Wanchu at all.
Having been the mistress in charge of the Duke's Mansion for three years, what hadn't she experienced?
It was warm that day. Mrs. Yue held the banquet in the pavilion in the back garden.
She had only one granddaughter named Yue Jiaojiao, who was the same age as Chu Yueying.
She was big and strong and didn't look delicate at all.
When she saw Mrs. Chu and the others, she lazily glanced at them and continued to eat the cakes piled up like a hill in front of her without any intention of getting up.
Mrs. Yue glared at her, and then she reluctantly got up and perfunctorily saluted Mrs. Chu.
As for Song Wanchu and Chu Yueying, she just ignored them.
That arrogant look was exactly the same as her father's.
Mrs. Yue smiled. "She's been spoiled by me and her father. She has no respect for elders."
When mentioning Yue Chengkong's wife, she sighed deeply and looked sad. "Her mother passed away three years ago. I'm old, and there's no one to take charge of the family. Even when I invite guests, it's so deserted. I'm really ashamed."
Mrs. Chu politely comforted her. "Lord Yue is so affectionate. Hasn't he taken a second wife all these years?"
Song Wanchu was skimming the foam off the tea with the cup lid when Mrs. Yue's eyes turned to her. "He hasn't found anyone he really likes. You Chus have a wide network and know many people. Do you know anyone suitable? Tell me, an old woman."
Mrs. Chu just smiled politely and didn't say much.
In terms of network and power, who could compare with the governor's mansion?
Seeing that Mrs. Chu didn't respond, Mrs. Yue finally fixed her eyes on Song Wanchu's face.
"Miss Song is twenty this year, isn't she? Has she gotten engaged?"
She asked straightforwardly.
It seemed that the situation for the princess was really urgent. This wet - nurse didn't even bother to beat around the bush.
Mrs. Chu's face turned a bit ugly. "Wanchu and her adopted elder brother are already engaged, and the wedding date has been set."
Mrs. Yue's mouth twitched slightly, showing a look of disdain.
"Has the official marriage certificate been issued?"
In the Great Zhou Dynasty, there was a law that when two families got engaged, the government had to stamp the marriage certificate.
Otherwise, it would be regarded as a private marriage and elopement.
Mrs. Chu frowned.
"Their hometowns are both in Huzhou. It's not too late to get the official document after winter when they go back to Huzhou."
She guessed what Mrs. Yue was thinking. She felt as sick as if she had swallowed a fly.
"I've heard that that young Master Shi is as handsome as a jade tree and highly skilled in martial arts. He even ranked second in the military imperial examination last year. The emperor is going to appoint him an official. Such a young talent is actually willing to marry a woman who has been married before?"
Mrs. Yue still smiled, and her eyes flashed slightly, showing a shrewd calculation.
Mrs. Chu was furious.
Suddenly, a maid came to report. "Madam, the Taoist Qingzhou who was invited to perform the ritual a few days ago is waiting outside the door."
Song Wanchu's heart suddenly trembled.