Su He did not know what to say. Du was stationed far away at the frontier while unrest prevailed in this backyard. If Du found out that Jiang Yin was trying to "rekindle his relationship" and "never leave" his sister-in-law, he would probably go mad.
For a moment, Su He could not decide whether or not he should write a letter to inform Du.
He suspected this matter was far more complicated than it seemed.
However, with the intense fighting at the frontier and Du leading troops deep into enemy territory, it was already fraught with danger. If he were to tell Du about this now, it might disrupt Du's plans.
But before Su He could ponder further, behind him came Mrs. Lin's quavering voice, "A Ying, who is Jiang Yin?"
Gu Ying's heart sank. She turned around and saw Shen Ruxu supporting Mrs. Lin as they stood at the door. Mrs. Lin looked as if she had been frozen in place, motionless, dazed, shocked, incredulous...all kinds of complex emotions played across her face.
The night wind howled. Though it was the summer of the sixth or seventh month, the chill was bone deep.
Mrs. Lin held onto Shen Ruxu's arm. Disappointment surged in her eyes.
A cold feeling rushed through Gu Ying's heart and it plummeted to the bottom of a ravine. She pursed her lips. "Mother, why are you here?"
There was a hint of anger in Mrs. Lin's eyes. She said solemnly, "I'm asking you, who is Jiang Yin?"
Gu Ying bit her lip. "He is my eldest sister's husband, Gu Jia's spouse, but he has no relationship with me."
"How can he have no relationship?" Shen Ruxu exclaimed in pretend shock. She said to Mrs. Lin, "Mother, I didn't expect that even after marrying the Heir Apparent, Sister Gu still kept in touch with this Jiang gentleman. From what I overhead earlier...the two of them are probably having an affair behind the Heir Apparent's back. Maybe the child in Sister Gu's belly is even—"
Ye Zhuojiang impatiently cut her off. If not for Su He stopping him, he would have torn Shen Ruxu's mouth apart. "What nonsense is this woman spewing? My A Ying is not that kind of person!"
Shen Ruxu abruptly covered her mouth. "Master Ye, since this is the situation, why are you forbidding me from speaking of it? Could it be that Sister Gu feels guilty? Is that why Master Ye is so furious? You can stop my mouth but can Sister Gu face her own conscience? She still wants to deceive my mother...she sees that my mother has a soft personality and is easy to bully!"
Ye Zhuojiang looked at Gu Ying in confusion and urged, "A Ying, say something. Don't let this woman smear you. We Ye family will never shrink back like a turtle!"
Shen Ruxu mocked, "Master Ye, you don't need to explain for Sister Gu. If I had not wanted to bring my mother to see Sister Gu tonight to discuss my marriage, and just so happened to see Sister Gu going out, my mother would not have witnessed this spectacle."
Mrs. Lin said painfully, "A Ying, why aren't you saying anything?"
Gu Ying's elegant brows were knitted together. Her dark eyes were unfathomable, carrying an aura that could not be ignored.
Shen Ruxu wanted to say more but she opened and closed her mouth, suddenly losing some of her nerve.
Mrs. Lin laughed coldly as she gazed steadily at Gu Ying, extremely disappointed. "Gu Ying, Du has been wholeheartedly devoted to you, yet I was mistaken about you!"
Having said this, she left without listening to Gu Ying's explanation.
Shen Ruxu's mouth curved up in an inscrutable faint smile. She hurriedly pretended to be worried as she chased after Mrs. Lin, "Mother! Mother! Wait for me!"
Gu Ying stood ramrod straight in place, closing her eyes briefly without saying anything.
She was far too calm, not even defending herself with a single sentence.
"Let's go. Take the wooden plaque when we leave. It cannot remain here." Ye Zhuojiang held her arm in his big hand. His handsome face was anxious. He wanted to interrogate her but feared hurting her heart and affecting the fetus. Seeing such a delicate young lady being looked down upon by his mother-in-law made him unhappy too.
"Why didn't A Ying explain herself? Or could it be that A Ying really does have something going on with that Jiang Yin?" Su He immediately perked up his ears in gossip as he dug the wooden plaque out from the ruins. He followed behind the two.
Gu Ying glared at Ye Zhuojiang. "Do I look like that kind of person to you?"
Ye Zhuojiang felt relieved. He was taken aback. "Little uncle certainly believes you. But how do you explain the words on the plaque?"
Gu Ying leisurely straightened her skirt. "It's a frame-up and smear campaign to sow discord, just a simple little trick."
Su He tilted his body and appropriately inserted, "Though the trick is small, it is effective. Isn't sister-in-law worried that the princess consort will truly believe Jiang Yin's words?"
Gu Ying's face was tranquil as she got on the carriage and sat inside the compartment. She leaned back against the carriage wall with both hands gently covering her belly.
When she first saw Jiang Yin's message, she did feel somewhat flustered and inexplicably afraid.
But upon Mrs. Lin's arrival, she relaxed instead.
Jiang Yin had not told the Heir Apparent about her rebirth. He wanted to make everyone disappointed in her and disconnected from her.
This way, she would be isolated without aid and sink into being his plaything to arbitrarily ravage, just like in her past life.
As a minister who rose to power in her previous life, Jiang Yin was extremely skilled at manipulating people's hearts.
She understood his scheming all too well.
Now that things had developed to this point, as long as the Heir Apparent did not know about her past, she still had a chance.
Gu Ying collected herself. She already had a plan in mind. "Mother is not an unreasonable person. I will explain it clearly to her."
Ye Zhuojiang's brows were tightly knitted. He said objectively, "You saw her attitude just now. A Ying, you've missed the best opportunity to explain."
Gu Ying did not care. She only lifted the carriage curtain to take one last look at the dilapidated residence.
No one knew what she was thinking as she watched for a while before gently lowering her eyes. "Let's go. Back to uncle's home first."
Ye Zhuojiang's tone was annoyed. "A Ying!"
The carriage quietly traveled on the blue stone road. To be careful of Gu Ying's condition, Yin Lan had deliberately slowed their pace.
Inside the carriage, the two men had different expressions.
Gu Ying calmly looked at them. She said lightly, "Listen to me. I have one very important thing to tell you now. You two must promise not to tell anyone else before I can speak."
Su He did not know what to say. Du was stationed far away at the frontier while unrest prevailed in this backyard. If Du found out that Jiang Yin was trying to "rekindle his relationship" and "never leave" his sister-in-law, he would probably go mad.
For a moment, Su He could not decide whether or not he should write a letter to inform Du.
He suspected this matter was far more complicated than it seemed.
However, with the intense fighting at the frontier and Du leading troops deep into enemy territory, it was already fraught with danger. If he were to tell Du about this now, it might disrupt Du's plans.
But before Su He could ponder further, behind him came Mrs. Lin's quavering voice, "A Ying, who is Jiang Yin?"
Gu Ying's heart sank. She turned around and saw Shen Ruxu supporting Mrs. Lin as they stood at the door. Mrs. Lin looked as if she had been frozen in place, motionless, dazed, shocked, incredulous...all kinds of complex emotions played across her face.
The night wind howled. Though it was the summer of the sixth or seventh month, the chill was bone deep.
Mrs. Lin held onto Shen Ruxu's arm. Disappointment surged in her eyes.
A cold feeling rushed through Gu Ying's heart and it plummeted to the bottom of a ravine. She pursed her lips. "Mother, why are you here?"
There was a hint of anger in Mrs. Lin's eyes. She said solemnly, "I'm asking you, who is Jiang Yin?"
Gu Ying bit her lip. "He is my eldest sister's husband, Gu Jia's spouse, but he has no relationship with me."
"How can he have no relationship?" Shen Ruxu exclaimed in pretend shock. She said to Mrs. Lin, "Mother, I didn't expect that even after marrying the Heir Apparent, Sister Gu still kept in touch with this Jiang gentleman. From what I overhead earlier...the two of them are probably having an affair behind the Heir Apparent's back. Maybe the child in Sister Gu's belly is even—"
Ye Zhuojiang impatiently cut her off. If not for Su He stopping him, he would have torn Shen Ruxu's mouth apart. "What nonsense is this woman spewing? My A Ying is not that kind of person!"
Shen Ruxu abruptly covered her mouth. "Master Ye, since this is the situation, why are you forbidding me from speaking of it? Could it be that Sister Gu feels guilty? Is that why Master Ye is so furious? You can stop my mouth but can Sister Gu face her own conscience? She still wants to deceive my mother...she sees that my mother has a soft personality and is easy to bully!"
Ye Zhuojiang looked at Gu Ying in confusion and urged, "A Ying, say something. Don't let this woman smear you. We Ye family will never shrink back like a turtle!"
Shen Ruxu mocked, "Master Ye, you don't need to explain for Sister Gu. If I had not wanted to bring my mother to see Sister Gu tonight to discuss my marriage, and just so happened to see Sister Gu going out, my mother would not have witnessed this spectacle."
Mrs. Lin said painfully, "A Ying, why aren't you saying anything?"
Gu Ying's elegant brows were knitted together. Her dark eyes were unfathomable, carrying an aura that could not be ignored.
Shen Ruxu wanted to say more but she opened and closed her mouth, suddenly losing some of her nerve.
Mrs. Lin laughed coldly as she gazed steadily at Gu Ying, extremely disappointed. "Gu Ying, Du has been wholeheartedly devoted to you, yet I was mistaken about you!"
Having said this, she left without listening to Gu Ying's explanation.
Shen Ruxu's mouth curved up in an inscrutable faint smile. She hurriedly pretended to be worried as she chased after Mrs. Lin, "Mother! Mother! Wait for me!"
Gu Ying stood ramrod straight in place, closing her eyes briefly without saying anything.
She was far too calm, not even defending herself with a single sentence.
"Let's go. Take the wooden plaque when we leave. It cannot remain here." Ye Zhuojiang held her arm in his big hand. His handsome face was anxious. He wanted to interrogate her but feared hurting her heart and affecting the fetus. Seeing such a delicate young lady being looked down upon by his mother-in-law made him unhappy too.
"Why didn't A Ying explain herself? Or could it be that A Ying really does have something going on with that Jiang Yin?" Su He immediately perked up his ears in gossip as he dug the wooden plaque out from the ruins. He followed behind the two.
Gu Ying glared at Ye Zhuojiang. "Do I look like that kind of person to you?"
Ye Zhuojiang felt relieved. He was taken aback. "Little uncle certainly believes you. But how do you explain the words on the plaque?"
Gu Ying leisurely straightened her skirt. "It's a frame-up and smear campaign to sow discord, just a simple little trick."
Su He tilted his body and appropriately inserted, "Though the trick is small, it is effective. Isn't sister-in-law worried that the princess consort will truly believe Jiang Yin's words?"
Gu Ying's face was tranquil as she got on the carriage and sat inside the compartment. She leaned back against the carriage wall with both hands gently covering her belly.
When she first saw Jiang Yin's message, she did feel somewhat flustered and inexplicably afraid.
But upon Mrs. Lin's arrival, she relaxed instead.
Jiang Yin had not told the Heir Apparent about her rebirth. He wanted to make everyone disappointed in her and disconnected from her.
This way, she would be isolated without aid and sink into being his plaything to arbitrarily ravage, just like in her past life.
As a minister who rose to power in her previous life, Jiang Yin was extremely skilled at manipulating people's hearts.
She understood his scheming all too well.
Now that things had developed to this point, as long as the Heir Apparent did not know about her past, she still had a chance.
Gu Ying collected herself. She already had a plan in mind. "Mother is not an unreasonable person. I will explain it clearly to her."
Ye Zhuojiang's brows were tightly knitted. He said objectively, "You saw her attitude just now. A Ying, you've missed the best opportunity to explain."
Gu Ying did not care. She only lifted the carriage curtain to take one last look at the dilapidated residence.
No one knew what she was thinking as she watched for a while before gently lowering her eyes. "Let's go. Back to uncle's home first."
Ye Zhuojiang's tone was annoyed. "A Ying!"
The carriage quietly traveled on the blue stone road. To be careful of Gu Ying's condition, Yin Lan had deliberately slowed their pace.
Inside the carriage, the two men had different expressions.
Gu Ying calmly looked at them. She said lightly, "Listen to me. I have one very important thing to tell you now. You two must promise not to tell anyone else before I can speak."
