Chapter 97: Misbehaving
The servant hurried to the stable to hitch a carriage. Song Hemei only brought Chunhui with her, and also sent someone to find a physician to examine Madam Zhang, so that she wouldn't die here.
The servant who came to deliver the message was also the one who drove Shao Wen'ang's carriage, so he knew the way. There was no one on the roads at night, and the carriage wheels turned without rest, jostling Song Hemei and making her even more irritable.
Without thinking much about how long or how far they had traveled, the carriage suddenly stopped. The servant hesitated and spoke: "Madam, this servant only knows that the master came to this place. I know nothing else. When the incident happened, the yamen runners seized the master's attendant as well. Where they took him, this servant doesn't know either…"
Song Hemei couldn't help but furrow her brows.
She didn't know this, she didn't know that—then why had he hurried back to the residence and called for her? If the yamen had truly gotten involved and something serious had happened, they would have sent someone to summon her on their own.
She took a deep breath, but ultimately did not vent her anger on the servant. She intended to first see what the situation was here, so she lifted the carriage curtain and prepared to step down.
Just as she poked her head out, she felt her arm being pressed. Startled, she immediately shook her arm, but someone directly grabbed her wrist. Before she could let out a low cry, the corner of the curtain that hadn't fallen revealed a familiar figure.
"Don't go out."
Yu Yeqing's low voice came over: "This place is unclean. I wouldn't want to dirty your eyes."
Hearing his voice, Song Hemei's irritated heart calmed down a little. She couldn't help but lower her voice and ask: "Why are you here? What exactly happened?"
Although the carriage curtain had not been fully lifted, Yu Yeqing was very close to her, and his voice easily reached her ears.
"A male prostitute died in Shao Wen'ang's room. The person in charge reported it to the authorities, and the matter has been handed over to the Linzhou Prefect for handling. Don't worry, I will take care of this matter. I just didn't expect that someone would call you over."
After saying this, his cold and distant gaze swept over the servant driving the carriage. The servant immediately broke out in cold sweat and stammered in reply: "My lord, this servant was also acting on the orders of the head of the household. I had no choice but to seek the madam and find a solution."
The servant's voice grew softer and softer. Yu Yeqing said bluntly: "Please step aside for a moment."
The servant was stunned for a moment, but quickly snapped out of it, letting out several "oh's" as he hurriedly got off the carriage and stepped far away. Yu Yeqing didn't use the footstool and directly stepped onto the carriage. He suddenly lifted the curtain, and his tall figure loomed over her. Song Hemei sucked in a breath and hurriedly shifted to make room for him.
Chunhui wisely looked away, shrinking into a corner and not watching them. Song Hemei didn't care about that and directly grabbed his hand: "You're not going to trouble yourself to smooth things over for him, are you?"
Yu Yeqing felt the force transmitted through her hand and held hers back. His ink-black eyes were exceptionally beautiful under the moonlight.
"No, it's just that since I am investigating here, I can't allow an unjust case to happen right before my eyes. Moreover, this matter involves a court-appointed official. You don't need to worry, and you don't need to appear, so that no one sees you and you end up being gossiped about for nothing."
Song Hemei realized the meaning of his words belatedly, and also recalled what he had just said… a male prostitute.
Her gaze followed an unclosed corner of the carriage window and looked outside.
Before her was an extremely luxurious five-story building. Each window was lit with dim, ambiguous candlelight, and many red lanterns hung outside the windows. She hadn't noticed it just now, but now that she took a look, it seemed as if a scent of powder and perfume lingered in the air around her.
Song Hemei immediately felt a little nauseated.
Shao Wen'ang was a man who had injured his body. He couldn't even engage in ordinary whoring. Why would he come to a place like this?
A male prostitute… how could he be involved with a male prostitute? Even that thing was broken. A person who couldn't even control his own urination was actually still coming to this kind of place.
When would he ever settle down? When would he restrain himself?
Song Hemei's temple throbbed. Yu Yeqing tightened his grip on her hand: "Don't worry."
"I'm not worried, I just feel annoyed. He got into this kind of trouble, and I'm being dragged down with him in shame."
Yu Yeqing lowered his eyes to look at her, a surge of tenderness in his gaze. He pulled her into his arms and gently patted her back: "That's why I said you don't need to appear. Don't let them see you now, so that in the future, those unpleasant words won't be directed at you. It will be over soon. As long as you leave this place, everything here has nothing to do with you."
He was trying his best to comfort her, his tone very careful, as if he truly felt that her mood was very bad.
Song Hemei could feel that her emotions were being cherished by him. Listening to his words, one after another, the annoyance in her heart was smoothed out quite a bit.
She thought, inappropriately, if this were in the past, she couldn't imagine what could make Yu Yeqing say so many words at one time.
"Then… I'll go back to the Shao residence first?"
Yu Yeqing gave a low affirmative sound, then released her first. As he looked down at her, the moonlight reflected in his eyes, making it seem as though her reflection appeared in his ink-black pupils.
He said: "Go back. Rest early."
His words carried an inexplicable weight. Song Hemei's eyelashes fluttered, and her heart settled down accordingly. She nodded in response twice.
She watched as his Adam's apple moved and his thin lips pressed together. She felt he seemed to want to do something else, but she didn't know if it was her imagination. Yu Yeqing just stared at her again and again, and in the end did nothing, only turning around to get off the carriage.
The carriage gently swayed with his movement, and Song Hemei felt her heart sway as well. She couldn't help herself and lifted a corner of the carriage curtain to look outside. In front of the brothel door stood two people. One was an older woman, but very brightly dressed. The other was wearing an official robe. She thought about it and it seemed to be Linzhou Prefect Zheng.
She wasn't familiar with this man, but she knew his wife, Madam Zheng, very well.
Her family background wasn't good, and Prefect Zheng was Shao Wen'ang's superior. Ordinarily, Madam Zheng looked down on her. It wasn't to the point of mocking or taunting her, but she did ignore, cold-shoulder, and ostracize her.
Song Hemei watched as Prefect Zheng respectfully clasped his hands in a bow to Yu Yeqing, yet she didn't feel much satisfaction. Officialdom was nothing more than this—flattering and bowing to superiors, and taking out the grievances suffered from above on those below. It was an endless cycle, and extremely boring.
She let the curtain fall back down. When the servant returned to the carriage, she said: "Go back to the residence. There's no need for me here."
The carriage meandered back to the Shao residence. Inside the residence, the physician had already administered acupuncture to Madam Zhang and said that she was merely frightened and not in any danger to her life.
For Song Hemei, receiving this news was enough. She had the accounting office wrap up some silver to send the physician away, then went back to her room to rest.
The next morning, just at the break of dawn, Madam Zhang woke up and led her people straight to Song Hemei's courtyard, intending to barge in. Before Song Hemei had even opened her eyes, she heard Madam Zhang's maid shout: "Open your eyes and take a good look! The old madam is here, and you dare to block her? Have you forgotten whose servants you are?"
In this courtyard, only Chunhui and Suhui were people she had brought from her maiden home. The rest were all Shao residence servants. Once Madam Zhang put on the airs of a mother-in-law, no one dared to stop her. They could only come and knock on Song Hemei's door.
Song Hemei irritably draped a robe over herself, got up, and took a few steps to the door. She yanked it open. The bright morning light outside did not dispel the displeasure radiating from her. She said coldly: "What's all this noise about?"
Madam Zhang was still standing below the steps, her face pale and bloodless. Apparently she had just woken up as well. Perhaps because she was worried about her son, in the space of one night, the white hairs in her bun seemed to have increased.
Even so, this old woman's momentum did not diminish: "Where is my son now? How can you be so cold-hearted? With such a big incident, you can still sleep peacefully in your room? You've been in Linzhou for so long, and my son is an official here, yet someone dares to frame him? This is utterly ridiculous!"
There seemed to be resentment in her eyes, as if she wished she could turn all the gazes she cast over into countless fine needles, to pierce Song Hemei all over.
Song Hemei raised her hand and rubbed her brow, then gave a cold laugh: "The way you say that, anyone would think I was the one who framed him."
She tightened the robe she was wearing and casually leaned against the door: "But you say I slept peacefully in my room—that's really slandering me. Last night, you fainted just in time, so I had to go see what had happened. Fortunately, Lord Yu was there, and he has already discovered the irregularities in the matter. There's no need for you to worry blindly."
At this, Madam Zhang's expression turned even uglier: "Lord Yu?"
She scolded harshly: "With him here, isn't my son more likely to face deadly danger? Relying on him is no different from asking a tiger for its skin—what good can come of it? Don't think I'm afraid of you. If anything happens to my son, even if I have to go to the capital and beat the petition drum, even if I have to roll on a bed of nails, I will make my voice heard to the emperor and beg His Majesty to uphold justice!"
Song Hemei heard this and again felt that wave of irritation surge up. She said impatiently: "Fine, then go ahead and roll on over there. Just don't come here to make noise at me."
She lifted her eyes and saw Chunhui and Suhui stride over aggressively. She gave them a look, then went back into her room.
Chunhui was steady, Suhui was sharp-tongued and aggressive. One used words, the other used actions, and together they forced Madam Zhang's people back several steps. The Shao residence servants who served in this courtyard did not dare to obstruct the master's own mother, but they also could not openly disrespect their direct mistress. They all shrank their necks, not daring to speak or intervene.
Madam Zhang was driven to outside the moon gate. Her lips were blue and trembling with rage. If not for the maid supporting her, she probably would have fainted again.
She simply could not rest easy no matter what. She insisted on leaving the residence to see what was happening. Song Hemei couldn't be bothered to care. Let Shao Wen'ang's own mother go and disgrace herself along with him. Let them show their mother-son bond—there was nothing wrong with that.
She waited in the residence peacefully until evening. The sun set in the west, and lanterns were lit in the courtyard. Only then did she hear someone come in from outside to report that everyone had returned.
Hearing this, Song Hemei walked toward the outer courtyard. When she reached the front hall, she saw Yu Yeqing's tall and slender figure standing in the hall. Beside him, Madam Zhang stood at the head of the hall with a pale face. Shao Wen'ang was kneeling before her, his body hunched, his back looking desolate. Looking closely, his bun was a mess, and his clothes seemed to be stained with straw.
She stood not far from the doorway and did not approach. But Madam Zhang put on a fawning smile toward Yu Yeqing beside her, nodded respectfully and said a few words, then prepared to personally see him out.
When Madam Zhang reached the doorway and looked up, she saw Song Hemei. The arrogance from the daylight hours was gone from her eyes; she kept avoiding her gaze.
Yu Yeqing, however, paid no attention to anything else. He hurried toward her, and in front of Madam Zhang, he grabbed her hand: "Why did you come? Don't worry, everything is fine. Go back and pack your things. Tonight, you will leave with me."
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