Madam Zhu despised seeing servants in such a flustered state, and her face immediately darkened. “What is the matter?”
The maid cast a hurried glance at Jiang Yi before responding, her voice still trembling with panic: “The father-in-law from First Madam’s maternal family has arrived, and also…”
“And what?” Madam Zhu grew increasingly displeased, thinking to herself that they should never have formed marriage ties with the undisciplined family of Earl Dongping—who would show up without even sending a visiting card first?
“He brought the First Young Master and a woman with him, claiming that the First Young Master has been having an affair with her!” The maid finally managed to explain clearly.
Madam Zhu shot to her feet, demanding sharply: “Where are they?”
The maid responded tearfully: “Many onlookers followed them here. The steward, fearing the situation would get out of hand, invited them inside. They’re waiting in the front hall…”
Before the maid could finish, Madam Zhu had already strode out.
Jiang Yi stood motionless as if frozen by divine magic.
The maid gave Jiang Yi a long look before turning to follow Madam Zhu.
Jiang Yi’s eyelashes trembled as tears rolled down her cheeks.
Those tears were cold as ice beads, much like this early winter day.
After what seemed like an eternity, she stumbled forward and ran out.
While Madam Zhu sent someone to summon Zhu Shaoqing from the magistrate’s office, she hurried to the front reception hall.
Though the reception hall was elegantly decorated, Jiang Ancheng felt nauseated sitting there.
Beautiful on the outside but rotten within—today he truly understood the meaning of this saying.
Upon entering, Madam Zhu first noticed her son’s pale face, then Jiang Ancheng.
“What exactly has happened?”
Jiang Ancheng glanced at Madam Zhu coldly, saying: “You’ve sent for Zhu Deming, haven’t you? Let’s wait for him to return before discussing this. It’ll save us from having to repeat ourselves.”
“Ziyu, you tell me!” Madam Zhu turned to Zhu Ziyu.
Now that others had brought trouble to their doorstep, they couldn’t afford to remain passive—they needed to understand what had happened.
From his heart to his fingertips, Zhu Ziyu felt completely cold.
Perhaps the winter chill had frozen his thoughts, for even now he felt as if in a dream.
How did this happen?
The place where he met Mingyue was as secluded as could be, so how did a group of women manage to burst in and catch them together?
If it had been a simple misunderstanding, it wouldn’t have mattered—since neither he nor Mingyue were recognized, it would have been easy to brush off. But how did his father-in-law end up there?
As these questions swirled in Zhu Ziyu’s mind, Madam Zhu’s demands seemed to come from beyond the clouds, carrying an air of unreality.
To his parents, he was the filial and obedient eldest son; to others, he was the young scholar praised as a “future minister”; to his wife, he was the attentive and caring husband…
Would all of this vanish because of today’s incident?
No, no, this couldn’t happen!
Zhu Ziyu’s face gradually contorted as his body began to tremble.
Jiang Si watched Zhu Ziyu’s reaction with cold contempt, a sneer playing at his lips.
Men like Zhu Ziyu were the most disgusting—maintaining a dignified facade while harboring deep schemes, desperately trying to present their most perfect side to others. Yet once that mask was torn away, their cowardice became revoltingly apparent.
Madam Zhu’s gaze shifted to Cui Mingyue, and her eyes suddenly narrowed as she exclaimed, “Miss Cui?”
Cui Mingyue appeared far more composed than Zhu Ziyu, keeping her eyes lowered in silence.
She was waiting.
While she would later settle accounts with Jiang Zhan for recognizing her and dragging her to the Zhu residence to be humiliated, right now she was waiting for her mother.
For Cui Mingyue, shame outweighed fear at this moment.
What did it matter if she had been meeting with Zhu Ziyu? At least Jiang Zhan hadn’t revealed her identity outside. As long as her mother intervened to suppress this incident, any rumors would remain mere speculation.
Her mother would certainly be angry, but that was a matter for behind closed doors—she knew how to placate her mother. For now, silence was the best strategy.
After recognizing Cui Mingyue, Madam Zhu felt somewhat relieved.
“Earl, there must be some misunderstanding. This young lady is the beloved daughter of General Cui and Princess Rongyang. She couldn’t possibly—”
Jiang Ancheng’s cold laugh cut off Madam Zhu’s words. “Zhu Ziyu and Miss Cui were caught together in a room by a crowd, and this worthy son-in-law of mine declared Miss Cui to be his lover!”
“This must be just a rumor—”
“I heard it with my ears in that courtyard,” Jiang Ancheng pointed outside. “If Madam Zhu doesn’t believe me, feel free to ask any of the onlookers outside—plenty of people heard it.”
Madam Zhu struggled to maintain her composure. “Ziyu, tell Mother what happened.”
During Zhu Ziyu’s prolonged silence, Zhu Shaoqing arrived.
As Zhu Shaoqing was about to speak, Jiang Ancheng waved his hand dismissively. “Let’s skip the pleasantries. Zhan, tell Master Zhu what transpired.”
Jiang Zhan cast a cold glare at Zhu Ziyu and said angrily, “Heaven must have wanted to reveal the truth. Today, I invited Father and Sister to have congee at Ma Po’s Pickled Vegetable Shop, and we witnessed quite a scene…”
After hearing the account, Zhu Shaoqing approached Zhu Ziyu with a dark expression and struck him across the face.
The sharp sound of the slap was followed by complete silence throughout the room.
An elderly servant hurried in: “Master, Madam, Princess Rongyang has arrived.”
Soon after, a beautiful woman with long, graceful eyebrows entered.
Princess Rongyang had entered through the Zhu family’s back door—the first time she had ever had to slip into someone’s home so ignominiously.
Upon seeing Princess Rongyang, Cui Mingyue spoke for the first time: “Mother—”
Princess Rongyang’s phoenix eyes gleamed as she surveyed the room, finally settling on Zhu Ziyu.
She had already heard about today’s events from her maid.
So this was the young man involved with her daughter?
Under Princess Rongyang’s scrutinizing gaze, Zhu Ziyu felt the slapped side of his face burning even more intensely. This burning sensation filled him with deep shame and desperate resolve.
Zhu Ziyu straightened his back slightly and bowed deeply to Princess Rongyang and the Zhu couple. “I have failed to live up to my parents’ expectations. I never intended for things to turn out this way…”
He paused, giving Cui Mingyue a deep look, his expression determined. “However, Mingyue and I are truly in love with each other. I beg Princess Rongyang and my parents to give us their blessing!”
At this point, hoping to emerge from this scandal completely unscathed and divorce his wife for another was impossible. If he couldn’t marry Mingyue, today’s events would be enough to destroy his official career.
He couldn’t lose everything!
Princess Rongyang raised her eyebrows slightly and said coldly, “How absurd for a man with a wife and daughter to ask for my blessing.”
Zhu Ziyu suddenly turned to Jiang Ancheng and bowed. “Father-in-law, I have disappointed you. I never wanted to wrong anyone, but one’s feelings cannot be controlled…”
The door curtain rustled as someone stumbled in.
“Elder Sister!” Jiang Si rushed forward.
Jiang Yi steadied herself against the wall, staring directly at Zhu Ziyu.