The old woman's hair was completely white. The deep wrinkles at the corners of her eyes drooped. Her gaze on Song Huaizhi was full of sorrow.
Guilt, pain, relief...
Meng Ruyi could read so much from her expression and actions. She saw the old woman tremblingly reach out her hand as if to touch Song Huaizhi, but in the end, her hand dropped, looking flustered and guilty.
Meng Ruyi looked at her and guessed that this might be an old acquaintance of Song Huaizhi's.
Since Song Huaizhi couldn't bring himself to talk about it, he brought her here directly, which was also an euphemistic way of expressing his feelings to her.
"Aunt Liu," Song Huaizhi said, stepping forward to support her. He said gently, "I've been doing well."
"Good! Good! Good!"
The old woman was stunned for a moment. Then, unable to hold back her tears any longer, she grabbed Song Huaizhi's hand and said, "Young Master! Young Master! You're still alive. I can die in peace even if I go now!"
Song Huaizhi pursed his lips.
"I happened to leave the mansion that day. When I went back..." Aunt Liu choked with sobs. Her eyes looking at Song Huaizhi were full of grief. "I only hate that I couldn't die with everyone else!"
"Aunt Liu," Song Huaizhi said calmly. Looking at her, he said gently, "I've avenged everyone. I didn't let any of those who did it back then go unpunished."
"Aunt Liu, don't worry. I'm doing well now. I'm leaving the capital this time to accompany my fiancée back home."
Aunt Liu was stunned for a moment. Then she looked at Meng Ruyi, her eyes full of gratitude. "Good girl! You look like a good girl at first sight!"
Meng Ruyi smiled and said gently, "Don't worry. With Brother Song with me, nothing will happen."
"Right," the little boy beside them remembered Song Huaizhi's answer just now and couldn't help but whisper, "The benefactor is going to be a male consort. His life will surely be good."
Meng Ruyi: "...... Cough, cough, cough."
Hearing his words, Aunt Liu was stunned for a moment. Looking at Song Huaizhi, she smiled and said, "That's good. The young master will have a family like this. I can rest assured now."
Aunt Liu was the personal maid beside Song Huaizhi's mother. She watched Song Huaizhi grow up, so she naturally knew what kind of person he was.
The fact that he was willing to be a male consort meant that this young lady in front of him must be the one he cherished most. That was why Song Huaizhi didn't care about those vain names and chose to be a male consort.
Moreover, judging from this young lady's expression, she must know about the young master's past. The young master trusted her so much, and this young lady didn't despise him because of his family background. Aunt Liu looked at Meng Ruyi as if she were looking at gold.
"That's good! That's good!" Aunt Liu said. Looking at Song Huaizhi, she sighed, "I'm almost at the end of my life. Now that I know the young master is still alive and is about to get married, I can finally feel at ease."
"Go quickly, young master. It's not safe when it's late at night. As long as you're well, I won't ask for anything else."
Aunt Liu was actually only in her forties, but she looked like a woman in her fifties or sixties. Her health was not very good either. Song Huaizhi remembered that she used to be hot-tempered and agile.
It was obvious that she hadn't had an easy life these years.
"Aunt Liu, don't worry. Everything is in the past. You don't have to hide from those people anymore. You can move to my mansion with this child."
Aunt Liu was silent for a moment. Looking at Song Huaizhi, she cried loudly.
How much suffering had the young master endured these years?
"I'll take good care of this child. Don't worry, young master," Aunt Liu wiped the tears from the corners of her eyes and looked deeply at Song Huaizhi. "If the master and the mistress knew in the underworld, they would surely be at ease."
Aunt Liu didn't say anything else, for fear of bringing up sad memories for Song Huaizhi. In the end, she just wiped her face and forced a smile at him. Then she continued, "It's enough that the young master is still well. I'm not in good health now and can no longer serve the young master. I just hope that the young master and this young lady will be happy together for a lifetime and grow old hand in hand."
"Thank you, Aunt Liu," Song Huaizhi replied, with a gentle smile on his face. "I will."
...
There were even fewer people on the way back.
"What about Aunt Liu..." Meng Ruyi hesitated. "Will you just let her stay there?"
"Of course not, but if I ask her, she will definitely not agree."
Song Huaizhi smiled and said to Meng Ruyi, "I'm a male consort, so I'll naturally follow Miss Meng's arrangements."
"Aunt Liu is very stubborn and definitely doesn't want to be a burden to me anymore. But it will be different if you ask her."
Meng Ruyi: "......"
It seemed that the words "male consort" would always be brought up by Song Huaizhi.
Meng Ruyi subconsciously rolled her eyes at him and continued, "Then you have to listen to me from now on. After all, you said you're my male consort."
Hearing this, Song Huaizhi smiled slightly and said to Meng Ruyi, "Huh? Haven't I been listening to you?"
Meng Ruyi had nothing to say in rebuttal. She rolled her eyes at him again.
At this moment, night finally fell, and the lights of thousands of families were lit. Meng Ruyi and Song Huaizhi looked up and saw the quiet night and the equally quiet candles.
Meng Ruyi subconsciously held her breath. Then she saw Song Huaizhi point to a mansion in front and say, "Yuyu, that was my former home."
Meng Ruyi looked in the direction he pointed and saw that the gate was tightly closed. The stone lions at the door were clean, which showed that someone lived there.
It seemed as if nothing had happened back then.
But there were so many powerful and wealthy people in the capital. A good mansion in this area would surely not be left empty.
"Let's go," seeing Meng Ruyi standing still, Song Huaizhi smiled and patted her on the head. His tone was gentle and calm. "We'll be home soon. This is just a mansion."
Meng Ruyi followed Song Huaizhi forward. But at the corner, she felt that Song Huaizhi seemed to turn his head and look at the mansion. A glint of moisture flashed quickly in his eyes.
...
It took them several days to pack up before they left. There was an extra person named Cheng Lang beside them. He said he wanted to go with them to see the world and then return to the capital.
They originally planned to leave quietly, but they didn't expect that as soon as their carriage left the city, they were stopped.
Meng Ruyi lifted the curtain and looked out. She saw Wen Xiuzhi, Shangguan Xue, Zheng Yuanqing, Tang Xiyi, the Fifth Princess, and Gu Ling all standing there looking at her.
She subconsciously smiled guiltily. Then she saw Song Huaizhi's face appear beside her. He said to the others, "What's up?"
"You didn't even say a word when you were leaving!" Gu Ling was the first to speak. He was full of grievances. "Do you even consider me a friend!"
Saying that, before Meng Ruyi could say anything, Gu Ling quickly threw a letter into the carriage. There was also a jade pendant tied to it.
"Remember to write to me!"
Before Song Huaizhi could throw the things out, Gu Ling ran away quickly, leaving the people present with complex expressions.
"Thank you," Wen Xiuzhi and Shangguan Xue said at the same time.
Meng Ruyi nodded with a smile and said, "Then I wish you two a happy marriage for a hundred years."
Shangguan Xue nodded with a blushing face.
Song Huaizhi gave the others a warning look.
"Miss Meng! After I finish dealing with these things, I will definitely come to visit you two. Then we can make money together!"
Tang Xiyi said. After that, he handed over a small box and said, "These are the gifts I promised you two."
The Fifth Princess stood beside Zheng Yuanqing. There was a relaxed smile on her face. She waved to Meng Ruyi.
Zheng Yuanqing was wearing ordinary clothes. He looked deeply at Song Huaizhi and asked, "Are you really not going to stay? I'm willing to..."
"No," Song Huaizhi interrupted him. He said to Zheng Yuanqing gently, which was rare for him. "The emperor is a qualified emperor. I'm sure he will achieve great things."
"Then I wish you two a smooth journey. I, Zheng Yuanqing, will never forget your kindness in this lifetime. If you need anything, just ask. I will surely go through fire and water for you."
Meng Ruyi smiled and said to them, "Then we'll leave first! I hope all of you will have a bright future and be healthy and safe."
She put down the curtain.
Watching them leave, Zheng Yuanqing looked deeply at the carriage for a moment. Finally, he took a deep breath and swallowed it back. A look of determination flashed in his eyes.
Thinking about what had happened along the way and seeing the dense bullet comments, Meng Ruyi couldn't help but smile faintly. She teased Song Huaizhi, "Brother Song is so fierce. They didn't even dare to say much."
"If I weren't fierce, do you think they would stop talking to you until tomorrow?"
That was true.
"Then let's go home!"
Meng Ruyi said in a relaxed tone. She pinched Song Huaizhi's face and said, "Congratulations, Young Master Song. You're about to be my male consort!"
There was a full smile on Song Huaizhi's face. He caught Meng Ruyi's hand and intertwined their fingers.
Looking at the gentle smile in his eyes, Meng Ruyi's ears turned red.
Thump, thump, thump -
She could hear her own heartbeat.