Chapter 51: Stealing a Wife (Part V)

Jiang Wu decided to leave quietly.

While she was still pondering her plan, she heard the undisguisedly cheerful voice of her eldest sister.

"A-Wu, look what I brought for you?"

Sitting in her room, Jiang Wu looked over to see her eldest sister standing at the doorway, radiant with joy, gesturing backward with her hand. "Bring them all inside, and be gentle." Following that, a line of maids carrying multiple trays entered one after another.

Puzzled, Jiang Wu stood up and went to greet her.

"What is this?"

The servants had already placed the trays on the table in the room, and her eldest sister affectionately took her hand, leading her forward. "Won't you know once you take a look?"

Beyond joy, her eyes and brows carried an unmistakable trace of envy.

Jiang Wu watched as she removed the red cloths covering the trays, revealing a dazzling array of gold and silver jewelry underneath.

She froze. "This is..."

Though dazzling, it was also very familiar. It was the jewelry she had looked at in the gold shop that day. In fact, if her memory had been just a little better, she would have recognized that these were the pieces she had given relatively high praise to yesterday.

Yet Jiang Wu was not foolish. As she connected the events before and after, she slowly began to understand. The vague suspicions she had harbored after seeing her mother two days ago now solidified into an inescapable reality. Her hands clenched tightly together, and her expression sank.

Her eldest sister had not yet noticed her strangeness, still thoroughly immersed in her own joy.

Because Chu Ling had not only sent gifts to Jiang Wu, but also left behind things Jiang Wu didn't want for them as well. Although it felt somewhat damaging to one's self-esteem to pick up the items her younger sister had discarded, what did such a tiny bit of pride matter compared to gaining tangible benefits?

That was what she thought, yet looking at the dazzling display before her now, she still felt overwhelmingly envious.

"A-Wu, aren't these the things you saw and liked at the gold shop that day? Look, someone has had them sent right to you."

Jiang Wu was so angry that her hands were trembling, and her voice turned icy. "Who sent these? Unearned rewards are not to be accepted; I cannot take these things."

Just as her eldest sister was about to persuade her, someone burst through the door.

"Eldest sister, A-Wu, Jiang Geng is back from the Imperial Academy. Father wants us all to go to the front hall for a meal."

As she spoke, she deliberately glanced at the eldest sister twice. The latter immediately understood the hint, grabbed Jiang Wu, and resumed her affectionate demeanor. "All right, let's not talk about this for now. It's rare for Jiang Geng to be back; our family should gather together first, and other matters can wait until later."

Jiang Wu yanked her hand back from the other's grasp. Suppressing her anger, she forced her mind to calm and think for a moment. As they wished, she no longer dwelled on the issue of the gold and silver.

"Since Jiang Geng is back, we should indeed gather," she said. "You two elder sisters go ahead first. I'll tidy up and be right there."

"All right, you ought to tidy up properly."

Although the eldest sister said this and allowed her to do so, she still waited right outside the door until Jiang Wu finished, then escorted her together to the front hall.

Before even reaching the entrance of the front hall, they heard their father's voice. The man who was always accustomed to acting haughtily and putting on the airs of a patriarch was at this moment playing the part of a humble and obsequious flatterer.

And the object of his flattery—Jiang Wu walked all the way from the courtyard entrance until they were almost at the door before she finally heard that man's low, monosyllabic response: "Mn."

As soon as Jiang Wu appeared, everyone inside turned to look.

Compared to the others sitting rigidly upright, the person in the dark purple robe occupying the seat of honor looked far more leisurely and much more like the master of the house.

"A-Wu has come?" Her usually stern father's face softened considerably.

Jiang Wu paused at the threshold, pressing her fingernails into her palms to keep herself calm.

By today, how could she still fail to understand? It was indeed Chu Ling.

But why? Jiang Wu could not figure it out.

Even granting that she possessed some degree of beauty, a man like him—what kind of women had he not seen? Moreover, she was already another man's wife and a mother.

What could he possibly fancy about her? A passing whim for novelty?

All these thoughts flashed through her mind in an instant. Jiang Wu quickly stepped inside and, with a normal expression, lowered her eyes to greet him. "Greetings, Lord Chu."

Her manners were so impeccably proper that not a single flaw could be picked.

"No need for formalities."

His demeanor was equally proper, devoid of any discernible ulterior motive, and the man did not even let his gaze linger on her for too long.

Jiang Wu then paid her respects to her father. Sure enough, her younger brother Jiang Geng was here too, flashing her a smile. Jiang Wu nodded gently in return. With outsiders present, the two of them did not speak much.

Once everyone had arrived, Jiang Father invited Chu Ling to take the seat of honor, with a large group of others following behind. Jiang Geng seized the opportunity to quietly ask Jiang Wu, "Sister, when did you arrive?"

"A few days ago," Jiang Wu replied softly.

"Why didn't you give advance notice? I didn't receive any word at all."

Jiang Wu pressed her lips together in silence. At this point, she could not even be certain whether her mother's illness had been a deliberate trap to lure her into the capital.

Chu Ling had naturally been invited to the uppermost seat.

Jiang Father took his place to Chu Ling's right. Just as Jiang Wu prepared to sit down further down the row alongside Jiang Geng, she suddenly heard her father speak: "A-Wu, it is rare for you to come to the capital. Sit closer to the front so your father can chat with you more."

His pretense of being a loving father made Jiang Wu feel utterly nauseated.

The only vacant seat above was the one directly to Chu Ling's left; no one dared to sit there. Her father's intention went without saying.

Jiang Wu did not move immediately. She glanced at Chu Ling.

Chu Ling was also looking at her. The man's inscrutable eyes carried a certain leisurely composure, much like a patient and confident hunter waiting for his prey to walk into the net.

He said nothing, acting as though wherever Jiang Wu sat was entirely unrelated to him, and whether she refused or accepted was of no consequence to him either.

The others dared not make a sound; only Jiang Geng wore an expression that showed he understood nothing of the situation.

With no one speaking, Jiang Wu stood isolated among these family members whom she had known since childhood.

This was no longer her home, Jiang Wu thought to herself; her only homes now were Liang Qian and Mingzhu.

Suppressing the bitterness, silent anger, and terror in her heart, Jiang Wu walked over and sat down right beside Chu Ling.

The servants began arranging the tableware and dishes, and the sound of conversation filled the room once more, growing lively again.

Jiang Wu kept her head lowered, concentrating entirely on the food directly in front of her. Even without looking, the presence of the man beside her was impossible to ignore. When he occasionally spoke with her father, his deep voice seemed to resound right next to her ear, making Jiang Wu's entire body stiffen to the point where she could no longer taste the food in her mouth.

She truly should not have made this trip to the capital.

Yet how could she have anticipated it? No matter how strained their relationship usually was, or how bitterly they had argued in the past, how could she ever have imagined that her so-called family would scheme against her in this manner?

"Come, Lord Chu," Jiang Father picked up the wine ewer, "let me fill your cup."

With that, he moved to pour wine into Chu Ling's empty cup, but Chu Ling covered the rim with his hand in refusal. "No need. I have official business to attend to this afternoon."

How would that do?

He had only drunk a single cup since arriving; didn't this signify dissatisfaction? Jiang Father naturally noticed that Chu Ling's gaze had inadvertently swept over his head-down, eating daughter several times earlier, so his mind shifted gears.

"A couple of cups won't hurt," he smiled. "Why don't you pour the drink for Lord Chu, A-Wu?"

Hearing her name called, Jiang Wu paused. She glanced sideways, not daring to look at Chu Ling's face, fixing her eyes instead on the man's hand. Chu Ling, who had just refused, remained silent this time, prompting her at last to pick up the wine ewer in front of her.

"My lord, let me fill your cup."

The man maintained his impeccably serious demeanor, a flicker of unreadable emotion flashing through his pitch-black pupils. But this time, he withdrew his hand. "Since it is poured by Madam Liang, this official naturally must drink it."

Jiang Father on the other side was practically beaming with joy. He had initially been quite worried; this daughter of his possessed a stubborn mind of her own—even regarding her marriage back then, she had cajoled, tricked, and threatened him until he compromised.

Therefore, he had originally feared she would not cooperate.

Fortunately, judging by the present moment, this girl was still sensible enough.

Jiang Wu stood up to pour his wine.

Her hand trembled slightly. She dared not display her true emotions, but inwardly she was both furious and terrified, feeling as though a massive boulder were pressing down upon her chest.

She had only crossed paths with Chu Ling a few times and could not claim to understand him well, but her intuition told her that if this trap was truly aimed at her, could she possibly escape from his grasp?

For now, Jiang Wu had no choice but to comply.

Because her hand was shaking, she poured a bit too much wine, filling the cup to the absolute brim, level with the rim. While Jiang Wu stood at a loss, Chu Ling reached out and steadily lifted the wine cup. Only then did Jiang Wu sit back down, and the moment she was seated, she heard him ask:

"Does Madam Liang drink?"

When he spoke, his body leaned slightly toward her, seemingly just to ensure she could hear him clearly.

Jiang Wu said she did not drink, and Chu Ling did not press the matter, drinking the wine she had poured himself.

The meal was entirely tasteless to Jiang Wu, yet once it truly ended, she almost wished the meal could have continued indefinitely.

She had intended to leave the moment the meal concluded, but her father stopped her. Perhaps Jiang Wu's cooperative attitude a moment earlier had emboldened him, as he dropped all pretense.

"Lord Chu," he smiled with exceptional subservience, "have A-Wu take you for a stroll in the back courtyard to help sober up."

"There is no need. Madam Liang must be tired, she should rest wel—" Chu Ling refused this time.

"This concubine is not tired," Jiang Wu suddenly interrupted, offering a faint smile. "Father is right. My lord drank a few extra cups just now; perhaps you would like to take a walk in the back courtyard to sober up before leaving."

In truth, the man's eyes were perfectly clear; where did he look like someone who needed to sober up?

Right now, those eyes, which seemed capable of seeing through everything, were fixed upon her with a scrutinizing gaze.

Jiang Wu grew flustered under his stare. Just as she was about to back down, Chu Ling spoke:

"Very well."

Jiang Father's earlier disappointment vanished as his mouth split into a wide grin.

Good, good, good; fortunately, his daughter wasn't entirely foolish.

***

Jiang Wu led Chu Ling toward the back courtyard.

Naturally, it was just the two of them, with no attendants following behind.

Walking ahead, Jiang Wu pondered when Chu Ling's intentions had first arisen, for previously they had been entirely imperceptible. Why had he stopped concealing them at all now?

If he truly intended to force the matter, what could she do? Jiang Wu could only try to stall him first.

"Madam Liang."

Snapping out of her thoughts, Jiang Wu stopped and turned around. Chu Ling stood two steps behind, gesturing toward another path beside him. "This way."

Jiang Wu blanked for a moment before she reacted.

She had taken the wrong path.

"I... I'm sorry, I only arrived recently and am not very familiar with the roads."

Chu Ling uttered an affirmative hum, waiting in place for her to walk back before saying, "Since you are not very familiar with the way, do not walk so fast."

Having lost her excuse for leading the way, Jiang Wu was forced to walk alongside him.

In the somewhat narrow corridor, the two of them were very close, and Jiang Wu could even feel the man's robe brushing against the back of her hand.

She shifted the hand that had been hanging at her side to the front of her body.

She was intensely uneasy, already beginning to doubt whether her feigned submission and yielding attitude could truly deceive a man like this.