"Second Master, look. The Zhao family attaches great importance to your arrival. They're preparing a banquet to entertain you."
Ji Shisu shook his head. If they really wanted to entertain him, they wouldn't have initially claimed to be ill and refused to see him.
Ji Shisu still remembered the birth date written on the betrothal letter. "Could they be preparing for Zhao Luoning's birthday?"
After all, according to the betrothal letter, her birthday was tomorrow.
Yu Chi suddenly realized.
"It's possible."
Watching the servants bustling in and out, Yu Chi sighed, "They say the Second Young Mistress isn't favored in the Zhao family. But it seems the rumor is false. Preparing such a grand birthday banquet for the Second Young Mistress, it seems Lord Zhao attaches great importance to her."
Importance? Yu Chi's words made Ji Shisu sense something was off.
He still remembered what Zhao Luoning had said to him in front of Zhao Luoyu's grave.
Lord Zhao had even driven Zhao Luoning out. How could he value her?
Ji Shisu asked Yu Chi to catch a servant for questioning.
"Seeing you all so busy, is there a happy event in the mansion?"
The servant replied respectfully, "Replying to the young master-in-law, tomorrow is the Second Miss's birthday. We're preparing the birthday banquet for the Second Miss."
"Second Miss?" Ji Shisu asked in surprise, "Do the eldest and second miss of the Zhao family have the same birthday?"
The servant shook his head. "No. The eldest miss was born in winter. It's still far off."
The servant looked at Ji Shisu with a contemptuous expression as if saying, "The eldest miss is your wife. Don't you even know this?"
"Winter, winter."
Ji Shisu murmured. All the strange things seemed to connect in his mind.
The name on the betrothal letter was Zhao Xinyue.
He had just assumed it was her family name and didn't think much about it. Right, it was a family name, but not Zhao Luoning's.
The birth date on the betrothal letter was five years younger than him. He had been surprised that Zhao Luoning showed maturity beyond her peers. It turned out the birth date on the betrothal letter wasn't even hers!
The person on the betrothal letter wasn't her.
That meant at first, it wasn't her who was supposed to marry him. It was Zhao Luoyue.
Did the Zhao family use a substitute?
No, that was wrong.
Zhao Luoning was the eldest legitimate daughter of the Zhao family. There was no reason for the legitimate daughter to replace a concubine's daughter in marriage.
There must be something fishy going on.
Ji Shisu suddenly thought of Nanny Xu, who had been burned crazy on the day of Zhao Luoning's wedding.
"Yu Chi, is Nanny Xu still in the other courtyard?"
Yu Chi didn't understand why his master suddenly mentioned Nanny Xu.
"Yes, she is. I invited the best doctor in the city to see her. I heard her madness has improved a lot. Sometimes she can even regain consciousness. Nanny Xu heard that it was you who saved her and has long wanted to see you. She said she has something important to tell you. Second Master, do you want to see her now?"
"Let's go and see her."
...
At this moment, Zhao Luoning was in the nunnery, persuading her mother, Lady Zhao, earnestly.
"Mother, today's tea-tasting banquet was a great success. Zhao Luoming has begun to gain supporters. If you don't leave now, do you want to wait until Zhao Luoming becomes powerful and then be driven away?"
Lady Zhao was kneeling in front of the Buddha hall, holding a string of Buddhist beads and chanting scriptures to herself.
Zhao Luoning was so tired from persuading that she didn't care about her image anymore. She plopped down on the cushion, with her back to the Buddha statue.
Only then did Lady Zhao speak up and remind her, "Ning'er, don't disrespect the Buddha."
"Mother, you've been eating vegetarian food and chanting scriptures every day. Has the Buddha really blessed you? Big brother almost went to jail. Luoyu is dead. Luojing..." Zhao Luoning almost slipped up and quickly changed her words, "Luojing's health is getting worse every day. Now he has to hand over the tea house business. Mother, all I want is for our mother and children to be safe and sound together. You've been suffering in this Zhao mansion from Father and the concubines. Are you really happy?"
"Ning'er, every cause has its effect."
"Then tell me, Mother. What exactly is the cause for all the hardships our eldest branch has suffered?"
Lady Zhao looked up at Zhao Luoning, with some complex emotions in her eyes that Zhao Luoning couldn't understand.
Was it heartache?
No, it was more like guilt.
Before Zhao Luoning could continue to question, Lady Zhao had already withdrawn her gaze.
"Ning'er, I'll support whatever you want to do. But don't try to persuade me. I won't leave the Zhao mansion. I'm guilty, and I have to stay here to atone."
Zhao Luoning got a headache when she heard this.
Her mother always said she was guilty but never said what the guilt was.
Zhao Luoning thought to herself that her mother couldn't possibly think that her inability to keep a man's heart was a sin.
Every time it came to this, Zhao Luoning was extremely disappointed.
Why did all the women in the world use whether a man liked them as the standard of success? Clearly, it was the men who were fickle and philandering. Yet, women like her mother took all the blame on themselves.
Living their whole lives by guessing men's preferences.
What was the difference between them and prostitutes?
Zhao Luoning was so angry that she trembled. At this moment, Caixue pushed the door and walked in.
Seeing this scene, she knew that Zhao Luoning and Lady Zhao had failed to reach an agreement again.
She could only drag Zhao Luoning out and said, "Oh, Miss, don't be in a hurry. You know the Lady's temper. Just persuade her slowly."
Zhao Luoning was so angry that she blurted out angrily, "I don't care if she wants to leave or not. If she doesn't want to, I'll just tie her up and take her away. It's better than her being bullied to death here."
Caixue: "..."
Caixue knew she was just saying angry words, so she quickly changed the subject.
"Eldest Miss, the Second Master just left the mansion."
"Left the mansion? Why? Is there something wrong with the Ji mansion again?"
Caixue shook her head. "The Second Master doesn't seem to have returned to the Ji mansion. But indeed, there's no peace in the Ji mansion. Just now, Feixing reported that the Grand Matriarch welcomed a woman back to the mansion. That woman seems to be bringing a two-year-old child."
"Another woman?!" Zhao Luoning was speechless. She had caused a big scene just yesterday. Were they deliberately going against her?
"How many mistresses does Ji Shisu have that I don't know about? Let's go and ask him!"
Caixue reminded carefully, "Miss, I just told you. The Second Master has left the mansion."
Now that Ji Shisu had left the mansion, Zhao Luoning was sure that he was just hiding because he was scared.
Caixue asked, "Miss, what should we do now? Should we go back to the Ji mansion? Or should we tell the Lord and the eldest young master?"
"Now that the Grand Matriarch has welcomed the woman in, it's obvious that it's because of what Ji Shisu said yesterday. She's deliberately going against me. Now that we've all fallen out, the Ji family clearly doesn't care about the friendship between the two families anymore. It's useless for Father and Big Brother to go." Zhao Luoning ordered, "We won't go back for now. You ask Feixing to find out about that woman's background."
Caixue stammered, "Feixing said that you know that woman."
"I know her?"
"She's the one you saw at the tea-tasting banquet today..."
"Ning Ruonian?!"
Why was it her?!
On the other side, when Lady Ji saw Ning Ruonian in a white dress getting off the sedan chair, she initially nodded in satisfaction.
But when she saw the baby following Ning Ruonian out, her smile instantly froze.
What was going on?
Didn't Lianxiang say she was a virgin?
Why was there a two-year-old child?
Where did this child come from?!