bookrebus Chapter 91: The Dramatic Plot of the Couple
Chapter 91: The Dramatic Plot of the Couple
Madam Zhou listened quietly to Zhou Liang's words, unsure how to respond for a moment. In fact, her father had mentioned this incident to her before her marriage.
With the General of the State's Mansion holding 200,000 troops—the Zhou Family Army—which emperor in the world would be so unconcerned about this?
Even though these soldiers had fought alongside the late emperor through thick and thin, achieving great feats, in the late emperor's eyes, their high merits posed a constant threat. Therefore, the late emperor showed no mercy to those founding heroes, either killing or demoting them!
If the Marquis of Xuanhua's family hadn't raised a son like Shen Hanjiang, who knows what their situation would be like? Speaking of which, could that old Marquis have done it on purpose?
However, their family were the most loyal supporters and royalists of the late emperor. The biggest reason she chose to marry into this general's mansion was her father's unwavering loyalty and patriotism towards the late emperor.
She was fully aware of this. If it had been any of the other sisters in the household, the outcome would probably have been the same. Zhou Liang had done nothing wrong to her.
However, the thought of Jingyao's background filled Madam Zhou with anger. She questioned Zhou Liang with dissatisfaction, "But even so, how could you hide Jingyao's true background from me? And keep it a secret for more than ten years?"
Madam Zhou's voice was sharp and piercing, striking straight at Zhou Liang's heart.
Zhou Liang couldn't help but sigh deeply, then slowly explained, "Madam, please don't be angry. Listen to me, it wasn't that I intentionally wanted to hide it from you; there was simply a reason."
If I hadn't publicly declared that Jingyao was my biological daughter, my parents would never have allowed her to set foot in our General's Mansion. Back then, there was a huge conflict between my elder brother and my parents.
To avenge their parents, the eldest brother was willing to endanger the lives of so many people in the entire mansion. Later, after the eldest brother and his wife, Bai Rui, passed away, their parents were saddened but resolutely refused to allow their remains to be buried in the ancestral graveyard.
Under these circumstances, how could I possibly dare to tell them that Jingyao is actually my eldest brother's daughter?
After hearing Zhou Liang's words, Madam Zhou was stunned. She never expected that her kind-looking in-laws would not allow their eldest son and his wife to be buried in the ancestral graves. It seemed that they were extremely resentful.
No wonder that even though more than a decade has passed since she married into the Zhou family, her in-laws have never mentioned a single word about their eldest son in front of her.
Even among the many servants in this vast Lian mansion, none of them dared to mention him, as if he had become an unspeakable taboo within the entire mansion.
At this moment, Madam Zhou frowned and asked again, "Then what exactly is the story about Jiang Mianmian admitting her mistake and saving my life?"
Zhou Liang touched his nose somewhat awkwardly, then stammered and slowly admitted his mistake:
"Madam, it's really my eyesight that's so bad! When I woke up from my coma that day, the first thing I saw was Fang Liuzhu standing guard beside me."
So I naturally assumed that she was my savior. That's why I developed a little bit of affection for her.
However, Madam, you must be discerning! At that time, I only had a slight liking for Bai Rui, and I didn't really like her yet.
Who could have predicted that after she met my elder brother, she would so readily choose to be with him? As for what happened afterward, I'm sure you, Madam, are well aware of it; that's roughly how it went.”
"Madam, was it you who saved me back then?" Zhou Liang asked with hope in his eyes.
Madam Zhou rolled her eyes at him: "How was I supposed to know that the person I saved was you? Your face was all black at the time, how could I recognize you? I just settled you in a nearby farmhouse, hired a doctor for you, and left some money for that family to take care of you."
Since I was in a hurry to get back home, I left immediately. How could I possibly know what happened after that?
At this point, Madam Zhou suddenly changed her tone and abruptly asked a question: "More than ten years ago, wasn't it you who saved a servant in that alley behind Yunxian Tower?"
As soon as she finished speaking, Madam Zhou's sharp eyes were fixed on Zhou Liang, as if she wanted to see the truth through his eyes.
Faced with Madam Zhou's sudden questioning, Zhou Liang was clearly caught off guard, muttering repeatedly, "Yun...Yunxianlou back alley."
After he finished speaking, a look of bewilderment appeared on his face.
Zhou Liang scratched his head, trying hard to recall what his wife had said. Suddenly, as if struck by a flash of inspiration, he exclaimed "Oh!" and then raised his voice to say loudly:
"Oh my gosh! I finally remember! Well, here's what happened: back then, several of my buddies insisted on dragging me along to go drinking and carousing."
As you know, I'm a very loyal and sentimental person, and I couldn't refuse their enthusiastic invitation, so I went along. As a result, everyone was in a great mood that day, and before we knew it, we had drunk a bit too much.
When I finally staggered out of the brothel and was about to find a place to sober up, I encountered something outrageous in a small alley.
Several burly men with menacing faces were surrounding a handsome young servant, and it seemed they were about to do something indecent to the poor servant!
The servant was terrified, his face turned deathly pale, and he cried his heart out. Although I was already quite drunk, seeing this situation, my sense of justice surged within me, and I couldn't help but rush forward to save him.
Later, after chasing those bad guys away, I realized I had gotten myself into trouble. After all, if my parents found out I had secretly gone to a brothel, I would definitely get a severe scolding.
Just as I was racking my brains trying to figure out how to deal with it, a sudden idea struck me, and I thought of my older brother. He had just returned home, and my parents felt guilty towards him.
So I figured if I pinned the blame on my older brother, my parents definitely wouldn't be able to bear blaming him. Therefore, I didn't hesitate to say my older brother's name..."
Zhou Liang was recounting the events of that year in a great deal of detail, completely oblivious to the changing expression on Madam Zhou's face, who sat beside him as if she were holding a blade of grass in her hand.
At this moment, Madam Zhou felt exhausted and in pain, and even had an urge to look up to the sky and howl to vent her frustration.
Years ago, she disguised herself as a man and was tricked by her best friend into going to a brothel. She thought it was just a normal outing, but who would have thought that she would be ambushed.
At her most helpless and fearful moment, it was Zhou Liang, who seemed unreliable, who stepped forward and saved her life. Not only that, Zhou Liang also generously told her his name.
But to her utter surprise, the name Zhou Liang mentioned was not his own, but that of his elder brother!
And so, by a twist of fate, her heart was forever bound to the wrong person.
So when her father proposed the marriage, her eldest and youngest sisters both looked reluctant and shook their heads, indicating their unwillingness to marry. However, she alone happily agreed to the marriage.
At that time, she naively thought that in this way, she could both marry the man she had longed for and relieve her father's worries, which was the best of both worlds.
Unexpectedly, on the wedding day, when the red veil was lifted, she learned that the groom who appeared before her was not the man she loved, but his twin brother.
At that moment, the anger and sorrow in her heart surged forth. And the indescribable disappointment, resentment and despair intertwined, causing her unbearable pain.
But as time went by, her broken heart gradually cooled and died, and in the end, she had no choice but to accept this cruel reality.
But more than ten years have passed, and just when she thought life would continue in this mundane way, fate played another cruel joke on her—she accidentally learned of a completely different truth.
It turns out that all these years, she had been loving the wrong person! For more than a decade, the person who had treated her with the utmost respect and courtesy was actually the one she should have loved.
Recalling the past, she couldn't help but laugh at herself: "No wonder Jiang Mianmian said our story was like a melodramatic soap opera, haha... that description couldn't be more apt!"
At this moment, she was at a loss, completely unsure how to face this sudden change.
I realized I had loved the wrong person for over a decade. It turns out that my respectful and loving husband was the one I should have loved.
Haha... How could such a thing happen? This is... simply the greatest irony! Does fate enjoy playing such cruel tricks on people?
"Madam, I really didn't know you were my savior! All this time, I mistakenly thought... Bai Rui... she... sigh!" Zhou Liang said, his face full of regret and self-blame, his voice trembling.
"I was wrong, madam..."
However, by this time, Madam Zhou was utterly despondent. She waved her hand weakly and said listlessly:
"Alright, you can go now! I just need some peace and quiet. My mind is a complete mess. Get out of here!"
As soon as she finished speaking, Madam Zhou turned away, leaving Zhou Liang with a forlorn figure. But her finger still pointed firmly to the door, signaling Zhou Liang to leave the room immediately.
Zhou Liang watched Madam Zhou's retreating figure, his heart filled with guilt and helplessness. He sighed softly, then slowly moved towards the door.
With each step he took, he couldn't help but look back at Madam Zhou, but he never received any response. And so, like a walking corpse, Zhou Liang walked to the door, turning back every few steps.
Only after confirming that he could no longer hear Madam Zhou's voice did he finally steel himself, step out the door, and leave the room with a sigh.