Chapter 52: Seizing a Wife (Part Six)

After passing through the corridor, the two arrived at the back courtyard garden. By this time, Jiang Wu had fallen into step following Chu Ling. Within the sea of flowers, the path remained narrow, and it was only upon reaching this spot that Jiang Wu thought of a question.

"My lord, how is it that you know the way here?"

"Hmm?" Chu Ling uttered this as if in question, yet his tone carried a thoughtful intent.

Before Jiang Wu could hear his reply, she suddenly saw him reach out his hand, causing her entire body to stiffen instantly. However, that hand merely passed behind her, brushing aside a branch extending from the flowerbed that was about to strike her face.

His wide sleeves draped down behind Jiang Wu, enveloping her in the man's distinctive fragrance. The posture was as though she had been gathered into Chu Ling's embrace.

Jiang Wu looked up to see a flourishing branch. After the man brushed past it, before she could even clearly perceive his movement, the branch had already been snapped off and drifted downward.

"Your esteemed father is still rather negligent in the management of this estate."

As Chu Ling's voice sounded, his hand had already been withdrawn. With the oppressive feeling of encirclement lifted, Jiang Wu was finally able to breathe.

"In the past, one would never see such obstructive branches in this garden," he continued.

Jiang Wu glanced at the fallen branch on the ground and then processed his words. He seemed exceptionally familiar with this place. Recalling what her third sister had said earlier about the origin of the estate, she suddenly understood something.

"Could it be that this residence previously belonged to my lord?"

Chu Ling did not answer, but Jiang Wu already knew the answer.

Her heart grew increasingly cold. Truly, was this a trap laid specifically for her from the very beginning?

Why? She still could not figure it out. Was she truly worth Chu Ling going to such great lengths? Lowering her gaze, she temporarily pushed these thoughts aside and said in a low voice, "Thank you, my lord."

"It was merely doing a favor for my uncle, after all."

Chu Ling's gaze lingered for a moment on the woman's smooth neck.

There was no helping it; it had been this way ever since the dining table. She always kept her head lowered like a little quail, avoiding any intersection with his gaze.

Every time Chu Ling looked over, he could only see this small expanse of smooth skin, its snowy texture half-hidden by stray dark locks—a sight that inexplicably made one's throat go dry.

He recalled when the woman had poured wine for him earlier, her hands trembling with fear, truly resembling a little white rabbit that had accidentally strayed into a tiger's den.

Chu Ling suppressed the restless stirrings in his heart. There was no rush; she was currently enduring her fear while pretending to curry favor with him, and she was quite alluring indeed.

He did not lack patience.

Jiang Wu subsequently asked about his injuries and other matters, and Chu Ling answered each one unhurriedly.

Once both fell silent, the atmosphere grew inexplicably stagnant.

Perhaps it was merely Jiang Wu's unilateral perception of stagnation, for her nerves were strung tight every single moment, whereas the man appeared quite at ease.

His prey had already fallen into the net, waiting for him to harvest it; naturally, he was at ease.

"Do you like the gift I sent?"

Jiang Wu knew he was referring to the items her eldest sister had brought in the morning. She was not even surprised that they had actually come from him.

By now, the two of them were seated in the pavilion, maintaining a distance neither too close nor too far. When Jiang Wu met Chu Ling's deep-pool-like gaze, she realized that his bluntness was actually a direct inquiry into her choice.

Jiang Wu bit her lip unconsciously out of anger. She could finally understand why Bai Su had cursed him as a "scoundrel"; this was indeed a beast-like scoundrel.

Yet Bai Su was a princess after all, while compared to Chu Ling, she was undoubtedly a mayfly trying to shake a tree. She could not afford to offend Chu Ling first.

"I like it," Jiang Wu finally managed to say with difficulty. "It's just... I have never worn such precious things before, so I suppose I still need time to adapt."

A prolonged silence fell over the pavilion.

After a long while, Jiang Wu finally heard Chu Ling say very well, and at the same time, the man stood up. "My wine has worn off, so I shall take my leave."

Jiang Wu naturally desired nothing more.

She did not see the profound gaze Chu Ling cast after turning around.

Upon seeing her unconsciously biting her reddened lips and reluctantly claiming to like the gift, Chu Ling felt a momentary urge to kiss her.

The man's eyes darkened slightly. All his previous urges toward Jiang Wu had been regarding matters of flesh and blood between man and woman, and as for kissing, it was naturally included within bedchamber affairs.

That kind of included activity seemed rather different from the pure impulse that welled up under a sudden surge of affection.

Let it wait, he thought to himself.

***

Jiang Wu lay low at home for two days.

Fortunately, Chu Ling did not come again.

When she went to see her mother once more, no one was guarding the doorway. It seemed they felt everything had been laid out in the open and there was no longer any need to guard against her mother letting slip any secrets.

When Jiang Wu went to see her, she merely sat by the bed in silence.

At first, Madam Jiang called out to her cautiously. Seeing that she ignored her, she began to sob softly a moment later.

"A-Wu, do not blame your mother," she said through her tears. "Your mother had no choice either. Look at your father, your sisters, and your brother-in-law—being able to live such a life now entirely depends on Lord Chu. And your younger brother, his marriage and his future official career are all matters decided with a single word from Lord Chu..."

"So I am to be sacrificed?" Jiang Wu finally failed to hold back. She took a deep breath, suppressed the overwhelming fury of that instant, and at last looked at her mother on the bed. "I have a husband, a child, and a home. I thought you were ill, so I abandoned them and hurried all the way here out of concern."

"Is this how you treat me?"

Madam Jiang's lips moved, but not a single sound came out. In the end, she could only repeatedly say she was sorry.

Jiang Wu turned away in irritation.

Originally, she had not wanted to say these things to her mother. Surrounded by a house full of selfish people, she dared not vent to anyone while trembling with fear, yet she seemed only able to direct her anger toward this equally pitiful woman.

She no longer wished to throw a temper tantrum with her, but at the same time, the very last shred of warmth she held for this family vanished completely.

"If you aren't ill, stop lying in bed. Go out and walk around yourself."

Dropping these cold words, she turned and left.

***

Jiang Wu announced that she wanted to go shopping, saying she hadn't bought the toys she had shown to Mingzhu last time and wished to purchase them now.

She refused her two sisters' company, but two maidservants still followed at her side.

They claimed to be there to take care of her, but Jiang Wu knew they were actually there to monitor her.

She could only pretend to be oblivious as she arrived at the toy stall she had seen previously.

Jiang Wu's hand brushed over a small pinwheel.

She recalled her frame of mind the last time she stood at this stall—filled entirely with the anticipation of Mingzhu seeing these novel playthings, and the joy of a mother and daughter reuniting.

Yet now, everything had blurred.

Mingzhu, Liang Qian—she was truly terrified and desperately longed to see her family.

Jiang Wu suppressed the tears threatening to spill. Once the dampness at the corners of her eyes had dried, she selected a few items and paid for them.

Looking up, she abruptly caught sight of a somewhat familiar figure.

She pondered for a moment before remembering—was this not the Miss Chu she had encountered last time?

A thought flashed through her mind, and she immediately called out, "Miss Chu."

The young lady turned around with a puzzled look, thankfully recognizing her after eyeing her for a few moments.

"It's the younger sister from the Jiang family, isn't it?"

Fortunately, she still remembered her.

A smile graced Jiang Wu's face. "Yes, I didn't expect Miss Chu to still remember. My elder sister truly overstepped a bit that day."

Chu嫣 let out a cold snort. "It's not just this once that she's overstepped."

Jiang Wu's expression grew even more apologetic. "I truly am sorry. If Miss Chu doesn't mind, I'd like to invite you for a cup of tea as an apology."

Chu嫣 swept her gaze over her, presumably weighing whether to accept. Seeing her like this, Jiang Wu could roughly understand why she was the mistakenly swapped daughter of the Duke's estate, as she truly bore little resemblance to Chu Ling.

"Very well," Chu嫣 eventually agreed. "Though an apology isn't necessary, I rather like you anyway."

This was the truth. Chu嫣 had felt this way when she first saw her; this person was simply breathtakingly beautiful. Like a little rabbit, innocent and pure, yet carrying a hint of cleverness. She inexplicably felt a surge of favorable impression toward her.

Since Jiang Wu was unfamiliar with the area, it was Chu嫣 who led the way to a teahouse.

When Jiang Wu handed the items she had just bought to the maidservants behind her, Chu嫣 caught sight of them and casually asked, "Who are those bought for?"

"They are for my daughter."

Only then did Chu嫣 display a look of astonishment. "You already have a daughter?"

"Yes. My daughter is a little over a year old."

Only then did Chu嫣 notice that when Jiang Wu spoke of her daughter, a smile graced her face—a smile far more genuine than the one before, lending her a tender aura.

The two chatted for a while longer. Since they were not far apart in age, they conversed quite congenially.

However, just as they were about to leave, Jiang Wu suddenly frowned, a look of pain crossing her face.

Naturally noticing this, Chu嫣 hurried over and asked anxiously, "What is wrong?"

"Well..." Jiang Wu looked somewhat embarrassed, and after a long moment, answered coyly, "It's just... I seem to be experiencing milk engorgement."

These words caused Chu嫣, an unmarried maiden, to blush. "Does it hurt? What should be done about it?"

"It hurts," Jiang Wu lowered her head, feigning a look of great distress, her voice dropping until it was almost inaudible. "I need to find a place to express it."

Chu嫣 thought for a moment and said, "Then come with me, I know a place."

Jiang Wu expressed her gratitude in a low voice and softly asked her to help keep it from others.

Seeing that Jiang Wu was thin-skinned enough to practically bleed, Chu嫣 nodded and instructed the attendants on both sides to wait at a distance.

Jiang Wu had originally intended to escape through a window, but she had not expected the place Chu嫣 found to have a back door—truly an unexpected stroke of luck.

Glancing at Chu嫣 guarding the outside, she silently murmured an apology and bolted straight through the back door.

The process of escaping the capital was unexpectedly smooth. Jiang Wu could not think too deeply about whether Chu Ling would implicate Liang Qian; her sole thought now was to leave the capital as quickly as possible.

She even harbored a naive hope in her heart: perhaps once she left, that man's interest would fade, and he surely wouldn't be idle enough to deliberately go out of his way to trouble a mere magistrate.

Jiang Wu walked on tenterhooks the entire way, terrified that Chu Ling's men would give chase.

As it turned out, Chu Ling's men did not come; instead, her own family members arrived.

Jiang Wu could not describe her despair. Perhaps this too was what Chu Ling wished to see—he had deliberately ignored her disguise, deliberately let her run off without interference, waiting for more suitable pawns to make a move for him.

Then, adopting an indifferent posture as if to say, "Look, this is hardly my fault."

"I am your daughter! How could you do this?" she shrieked hysterically, casting accusations at her father.

Why? Why treat her this way? Why must every step follow that man's design? Yet in the end, she was still knocked unconscious by her father and dragged back.

When she woke again, she found herself in an unfamiliar environment.

An unfamiliar room and an unfamiliar bed filled Jiang Wu's heart with dread, and that dread reached its peak the moment she caught sight of that familiar figure.

She had failed to escape after all, she thought.

The man's gaze remained deep and inscrutable, yet Jiang Wu saw leaping flames within those eyes.

Especially as he sat down on the edge of the bed, Jiang Wu could clearly perceive a repressed excitement within him.

His hand finally, openly and audibly, caressed Jiang Wu's face. Exactly as he had imagined, it was delicate and soft, incomparable to even the finest fabrics.

His body stirred with excitement almost instantly, especially upon seeing the bound woman's tear-filled eyes brimming with fear. Perhaps because the wait had been somewhat long, his body's reaction exceeded his expectations, and Chu Ling even felt a twinge of regret for having consumed so much time with her.

Yet Jiang Wu felt as though her face were being crawled over by a cold, venomous snake; anger and terror caused her eyes to fill uncontrollably with tears.

"How pitiful," he murmured, his tone that of a confident hunter at ease. "You have already been handed over to me by your father."

Perhaps out of a final shred of mercy, he did not say it aloud, but Jiang Wu knew she had been sold to him.