The Battle of the Noble Ladies (Book 2)

Chapter 38 - Illusions

On the stone steps, a thick layer of snow soon piled up like a white carpet. The north wind howled as it swept up a flurry, only to drop it back down, swirling about and making it hard to keep one's eyes open.

Song Chuyi followed Old Lady Song and First Lady Song out of the palace, waiting at the Xihua Gate, where they soon spotted their own carriage. Once they were ushered into the carriage, the First Lady lowered the curtain and let out a deep sigh. "From what Noble Consort suggested, it seems the Empress originally intended to summon us, but now..."

The news brought back by Zhuying indicated that something seemed to have happened in the Eastern Palace, and the Empress was overwhelmed with work.

This sudden news inevitably made people feel heavy-hearted and anxious. Old Lady Song sighed and lowered her head, murmuring, "It seems that the Crown Prince is unwell again... Well, this isn't something we should pry into. Let's keep quiet about it."

The First Lady hurriedly agreed, serving Old Lady Song hot tea and personally covering her with a blanket.

However, Song Chuyi felt a vague sense of worry. If her memory served her right, this time it wasn't the Crown Prince who had fallen ill, but rather Zhou Weiqi, the son of the Crown Prince's favored consort, Fan Shi, who had injured her leg.

Over the years, due to the Crown Prince's health issues, the Eastern Palace had not been blessed with many heirs. Aside from the Crown Prince's son, Zhou Weizhao, born to the Crown Princess, and Zhou Weiqi, born to the Crown Prince's favored consort, there were only a few princesses and no other male heirs.

After the Crown Prince was assassinated and the Crown Prince's heir passed away on the way to mourning, Emperor Jianzhang intended to establish the Crown Prince's illegitimate son, Zhou Weiqi, as the Crown Prince's heir. However, Prince Duan outmaneuvered him...

At that time, sending Zhou Weizhao to Longhu Mountain was reportedly the Crown Princess's tearful plea in front of the Emperor and Empress. It's uncertain whether there were any ulterior motives involved.

When they returned home, it happened to be mealtime. Old Lady Song decided to keep the First Lady and Song Chuyi at Ningde Courtyard for dinner, instructing the First Lady to have a midwife on standby these days: "We can't let anything happen. Otherwise, how will we face Jue'er when he comes back?"

The First Lady naturally didn't disagree, and when her son was mentioned, she couldn't help but smile: "By the time he returns, he'll be a father. I can only imagine how happy he'll be."

Just as if she had come in response to their words, Yulan entered with a troubled expression, barely shaking off the snow from her body. Clearing her throat, she said with some difficulty, "Old Lady, Lady, I just heard the news—it's been more than half a month since we last heard from the young master... The old master is currently sending people to look for him..."

The First Lady's bowl clattered against the table, and she stood up in a panic, feeling at a loss as a wave of bad premonitions washed over her. Song Jue was always very prudent in his actions; there should have been at least a letter every half month to prevent the family from worrying. But now the letters had stopped. Could something have happened?

Old Lady Song was also taken aback. She put down her chopsticks and glanced at the First Lady, too concerned to reprimand her for losing her composure. Instead, she immediately asked, "Does the old master know? What did he say?"

"The old master has already gone to the county magistrate of Deyang to ask for help in finding him," Yulan replied softly. "I don't know if there will be any news."

The last time Song Jue wrote home, he did say he was almost in Deyang. But half a month has passed; he might not still be there.

Seeing that the First Lady was in such a state of panic, Old Lady Song sighed and told her to go back and rest: "Don't think too much. There are so many people in the family; it's not like we can't find Jue'er. It's possible that his letter just got lost along the way; he might already be on his way back to the capital. Besides, your husband and the old master are both trying to figure things out, so you should worry less. If you're so flustered, how will that look to your daughter-in-law?"

The First Lady absently responded, her mind only returning when she heard that Li Qingzi was mentioned. This was Jue'er's first child; it absolutely must not go wrong. She forced herself to suppress her anxiety and nodded, then turned to Jin Ling: "Go see where the master is and quickly ask him to come see me."

Old Lady Song turned to ask Song Chuyi, "Xiao Yi, what do you think?"

"Eldest brother always acts with a method; there's no reason for the letter to be delayed," Song Chuyi replied straightforwardly, sharing her thoughts. "But Grandmother and Grandfather don't need to worry too much... perhaps the letter will arrive in a few days."

Old Lady Song sensed that Song Chuyi had more to say. After pausing to watch as the dishes were cleared away, she nodded and said, "Why do you seem like you've anticipated this?"

"It's not that I've anticipated it..." Song Chuyi looked at Old Lady Song sincerely and shook her head. "It's just that I've always had some concerns. In my dreams, all the misfortunes in our family started with the Eldest Brother's death... and there's also the Eighth Sister outside who knows the future. I'm not worried about Eldest Brother himself; I'm worried that someone is deliberately trying to harm him...."

Old Lady Song nodded solemnly. Yes, Song Chuyi had mentioned that all the misfortunes in the family began with Song Jue's death. And Song Chuning, who harbored deep resentment toward the Song family, might indeed target Song Jue.

Given Song Chuning's capabilities, it was entirely possible she could incite the Li family or even bribe bandits to do her bidding.

Once again, Old Lady Song felt that this was truly a terrifying snake, and her resolve to bring her back through the hand of INoble Consort Song grew stronger.

"So you all have been prepared for this?" Old Lady Song still felt a bit uneasy. "But how can we be sure about this matter?"

Song Chuyi smiled and shook her head. "It's not that we can't be cautious. Even if they're capable, they're still thousands of miles away. Whenever Eldest Brother departs from Shuzhong and arrives at a location, they can only rely on estimates and inquiries. But if the information they gather is wrong... with such a vast world, where can they go to ambush or harm him?"

No wonder that when Song Jue chose people before leaving, he selected and selected again, ultimately choosing Qin Chuan and a group of trusted confidants. It turned out he was trying to prevent any leaks of information.

Song Chuyi's reasoning was sound. As long as Song Jue didn't follow conventional routes—such as traveling at night and resting during the day or setting off a few days earlier—this vast world would make it nearly impossible for anyone to know where he had gone. Even if someone wanted to take action against him, it wouldn't be that simple.

"You really are..." Old Lady Song sighed in exclamation, "Incredible!"

Song Chuyi smiled with a hint of pride. "I was terrified by Eighth Sister in my dreams, so I'm keeping a few eyes open to prevent any unforeseen circumstances..."