Crowned by the Treacherous Big Shot
Chapter 166 - 155: Returning Home

Chapter 166: Chapter 155: Returning Home

After Meng Qianqian left, Shangguan Ling sneaked into the room. Slouching onto a stool, he grabbed the medicine bottle on the table and sighed, "Your wife is just too cautious... All for nothing, I pricked myself for no reason."

Lu Yuan said nothing.

Shangguan Ling clicked his tongue, saying, "How long has it been? Your wife has already managed to injure you, the Grand Commander. Her progress is astonishing, improving by leaps and bounds every day."

Lu Yuan asked, "Are you done talking?"

"Done." Shangguan Ling fished out a sealed missive from his chest pocket. "Just arrived."

Lu Yuan unfurled the missive. It contained only four words: Tai Bai Returns to Court.

By the time Meng Qianqian freshened up, the night had grown late.

She left a lamp lit and lay quietly on the marriage bed.

She wasn’t afraid of the dark, just purely disliked the night.

Earlier, she had intentionally delivered the antidote to Lu Yuan. Chatting with him was merely an attempt to find something to say, and the question about whether the Crown Prince’s death was his doing came out of nowhere.

Unexpectedly, it brought their conversation to an abrupt halt.

Tonight wasn’t the first time Lu Yuan had warned her that staying by his side would be dangerous.

"To belong to me, the Grand Commander, is inherently a perilous affair. Before you involve yourself with me, you better understand if you can bear such risks."

He had said this to her before leaving for the border.

He was so contradictory.

On one hand, he made deals with her; on the other, he kept warning her to avoid aligning herself with him.

But upon deeper thought, she realized she didn’t truly understand Lu Yuan.

In fact, the entire Capital City probably didn’t understand him.

His origins remained a mystery. He never mentioned his family, and everyone assumed he was an orphan without parents.

One winter ten years ago, the Crown Prince found the young Lu Yuan nearly frozen to death by the roadside. The Prince rescued him, brought him back to the Crown Prince Mansion, and, seeing his potential, retained him as an adviser.

The Crown Prince was Princess Wanping’s brother, which explained how Princess Wanping came to know Lu Yuan.

Through the Crown Prince’s influence, Lu Yuan entered the court. Despite having no official titles, he outmaneuvered scholars ranked highly on the imperial examination lists, steadily rising to power.

Many assumed he would assist the Crown Prince in ascending the throne, creating a tale of exemplary monarch and minister. But to everyone’s shock, he was accused of killing the Crown Prince, forcing the Supreme Emperor to abdicate, and placing the nine-year-old Zong Zhengxi on the throne as a puppet emperor.

Those were the rumors circulating in the Capital City about him.

But are rumors necessarily true?

For starters, the claim about his origins was entirely false—he wasn’t an orphan.

So, did he truly kill the Crown Prince? Was he the one who forced the Supreme Emperor to abdicate? Did he elevate the nine-year-old Zong Zhengxi to the throne because of ambition, or because Zong Zhengxi was his cousin?

Sadly, Nanny Li had departed for Miaojiang the day before their wedding. Otherwise, she might’ve been able to subtly gather some information.

"Sister."

Tan’er’s drowsy voice came from outside the door. "I want to come in."

Meng Qianqian paused her thoughts and said gently, "Come in."

Tan’er pushed open the door, climbed onto Meng Qianqian’s bed with her pillow in hand, and said, "I want to sleep with Sister tonight."

Meng Qianqian smiled, "Inside or outside?"

"Inside."

Tan’er climbed over her, pulled the quilt aside, and burrowed into Meng Qianqian’s arms, clinging tightly to her.

Meng Qianqian patted her head. "Feeling homesick?"

Tan’er mumbled, still half-asleep, "I miss mother."

Meng Qianqian asked softly, "Do you want to go back?"

Tan’er yawned, "I can’t go back..."

Meng Qianqian had asked about Tan’er’s origins before, but Tan’er never shared.

What she never told Tan’er was that from the moment they met, Meng Qianqian sensed a deep connection of fate between them.

"Sister, I called you so many times before you heard me. What were you thinking about?"

Tan’er asked.

Meng Qianqian softly smoothed her hair and replied, "I was thinking about Lu Yuan."

Outside, Lu Yuan’s footsteps subtly paused.

Tan’er nuzzled into Meng Qianqian’s embrace, yawned, and asked drowsily, "What are you thinking about him for?"

Speaking quietly, Meng Qianqian said, "I’m wondering what kind of man he is."

Tan’er hugged Meng Qianqian tightly, murmuring sleepily, "Mother said not to know a man too well if you want to live with him."

"Live with him, huh..." Staring at the crimson bed canopy above, Meng Qianqian said calmly, "I don’t even know if I have the fate to live with him."

Lu Yuan always said he was dangerous. But wasn’t the path she was walking just as dangerous?

Tan’er’s voice grew faint, like a sleepy whisper: "If you had the fate, would you want to live with him?"

Without waiting for an answer, Lu Yuan turned silently and walked away into the gallery.

-

The next day was the Three-Day Homecoming visitation, a tradition. Though they couldn’t return to the Meng Family in You State, they still had to visit Fengshui Alley.

Nanny Li had prepared the homecoming gifts early. Though Steward Cen had entrusted her with the arrangements, she didn’t dare finalize the accounts without his approval.

When she presented the list to Steward Cen, his expression turned somber. "Aren’t these homecoming gifts... a bit inappropriate?"

Nanny Li was taken aback. "Ah, yes, yes, they might be a bit much. I’ll rely on your adjustments, Steward Cen."

With a grand wave of his hand, Steward Cen doubled the homecoming gifts.

Nanny Li was dumbfounded.

Lu Yuan attended court early that morning. When he returned to the mansion, Meng Qianqian had just finished breakfast with Bao Shu and the elderly matron.

Meng Qianqian looked surprised to see him. "Aren’t you reviewing memorials today?"

Lu Yuan replied, "I’ll do it later."

Meng Qianqian glanced at the abundance of homecoming gifts, thinking he might have prepared such generosity because he couldn’t accompany her.

As fate would have it, that day, the Lu Family was also delivering their betrothal gifts to the Duke Mansion.

The two groups crossed paths on the road.

The contrast was staggering—and embarrassing. The Lu Family’s betrothal gifts paled in comparison to Lu Yuan’s homecoming gifts.

The two elder representatives from the Lu Family turned crimson with shame, wishing they could bury their faces. Had they known it would be like this, they wouldn’t have agreed to intervene.

Neither Meng Qianqian nor Lu Yuan even cast a glance at the Lu Family members.

Once they arrived at Fengshui Alley, Treasure Piggy greeted her grandfather and great-grandfather, then crossed to the neighboring house to call on her great-grandmother, before running off to find Big Hatchet.

Tan’er and Ban Xia followed her.

Meng Qianqian and Lu Yuan paid respects to Meng Tianlan and Seventh Granduncle, offering tea as juniors.

The two elders drank in satisfaction.

Suddenly, Meng Tianlan’s expression turned grave. "Third Girl, I need to discuss something with you and your husband."

Meng Qianqian asked, "What is it?"

Meng Tianlan said, "Your Seventh Granduncle and I have decided to return to You State."

Meng Qianqian was stunned. "So soon? Didn’t you plan to stay a while longer? Initially, only Seventh Granduncle was supposed to return, while Third Uncle stayed in the Capital. Aren’t you afraid Grandfather will beat you to death?"

Meng Tianlan awkwardly cleared his throat. "Ahem, can we at least maintain some dignity in front of your husband?"

Meng Qianqian pondered before replying, "If you don’t leave, your dignity will be intact."

Meng Tianlan sighed, "If I stay any longer, your Grandfather really will beat me to death."

The old man was terrifyingly strict.

Meng Qianqian didn’t try to dissuade Meng Tianlan and Seventh Granduncle from leaving.

What she was about to do next was dangerous. It was safer for them to return to You State than to remain in the Capital.

For a moment, she seemed to understand Lu Yuan a little better.

After finishing their meal, Meng Tianlan and Seventh Granduncle set off, with Lu Yuan arranging a Jinyi Guard escort for the journey.

Uncle Lei wasn’t home that day. Grandma Feng said he hadn’t returned for quite some time.

Ji Li had yet to reappear. Who knew where that fellow had gone?

Grandma Feng said with some guilt, "I’m not one for liveliness, so I didn’t attend your wedding feast. Let me give you a gift as compensation."

Meng Qianqian’s brow twitched. "It’s not... another skull, is it?"

"What are you imagining? Where would I find so many treasures for you?"

Grandma Feng pulled a mystic iron box from a cabinet. "This is my late husband’s bone. I don’t give such things to just anyone."

Meng Qianqian, who had no desire for the gift: "..."

Meng Qianqian and Lu Yuan stayed in Fengshui Alley until dusk before returning.

As soon as they alighted from their carriage, a richly dressed elderly woman approached them with a beaming smile. "Young Mistress! Sir Lu!"

"And you are—"

Meng Qianqian didn’t recognize her, but the woman had addressed her as "Young Mistress" and Lu Yuan as her husband.

Smiling, the woman replied, "I am Lu, from the Marquis Mansion of Anyuan."

Of course—

Meng Qianqian’s gaze passed over her to the carriage parked by the roadside. She said, "You’ve mistaken me for someone else. I am not the eldest daughter of the Marquis of Anyuan."

With that, she climbed the steps, cradling a sleeping Bao Shu.

Lu Yuan followed suit, ignoring the old lady completely as he walked inside with his wife and child.

The old lady, frantic, called out anxiously, "Wait—Young Mistress! Don’t go—Sir—"

But given Lu Yuan’s fearsome reputation, she dared not risk calling out to him again.

Watching the couple disappear into the estate, she hurried up the steps, only to be blocked by two doormen.

She turned fretfully, occasionally glancing toward the carriage silhouetted in the night.

Finally, the carriage stirred.

A well-dressed matron stepped down, brow furrowed, and called sharply after Meng Qianqian’s retreating figure, "Must you treat me this way?"

It was Madam Yu.

Meng Qianqian’s steps faltered.

Lu Yuan looked at her. "Should I have her thrown out?"

In the distance, soft whispers began. Curious passersby, drawn by the commotion, paused nearby, eager for a spectacle.

In the past, commoners wouldn’t have dared to linger, but as Lu Yuan’s reputation improved, he was no longer seen as a monster to be feared.

Expelling Madam Yu would be easy, but if it tarnished Lu Yuan’s hard-earned public image, it would hardly be worth the cost.

Meng Qianqian said to Lu Yuan, "No need. I’ll deal with this."

She handed Bao Shu over to Ban Xia.

"Young Mistress..." Ban Xia eyed her with concern.

Meng Qianqian reassured her, "It’s fine. You all go inside."

Lu Yuan entered.

He was a decisive man who never lingered unnecessarily.

After some hesitation, Ban Xia followed him.

Only Tan’er stayed. Sitting on the doorstep, holding a skewer of candied hawthorn bought earlier, she glared fiercely at the people from the Marquis Mansion of Anyuan.

Meng Qianqian descended the steps and strode up to Madam Yu. Her tone was cold and distant as she asked, "Madam Xie, visiting so late at night, may I ask what pressing matter brings you here?"