Chapter 6: 6. Chapter 6: Absolutely No Losing Everything

Chapter 6: Must Not Lose Both the Chicken and the Egg

Qiuniang recalled, "It was led by a thin, tall man in his thirties. He had a mole here—" She pointed to her left temple, "—and a short beard. They called him 'Master Guo'."

Upon hearing this, Lu Jia sneered and returned to her seat. "It really is him."

Since they had tracked her all the way to Tanzhou, how could she not settle this old score?

Before being abandoned by the Jiang woman, Lu Jia was the high-and-mighty eldest daughter of the Lu family, cherished by all.

She lost her mother while still in swaddling clothes, and subsequently, her father, Lu Jie, refused his own mother’s request to take the child, choosing instead to raise her by his side.

When she was three, Lu Jie was promoted to Vice Minister of the Ministry of Rites. Not long after, the Senior Grand Secretary of the Cabinet played matchmaker between his foster daughter, the Jiang woman, and Lu Jie.

The Lu family were officials for generations; Lu Jie’s grandfather had been a famous minister. Lu Jie had made a name for himself in his youth, rising from a compiler in the Hanlin Academy to a director in the Ministry of Rites by twenty. At twenty-three, his exceptional literary talent caught the Emperor’s eye, and he was personally appointed as Vice Minister of the Ministry of Rites.

No matter how one looked at it, Lu Jie had a brilliant future ahead of him without needing to rely on anyone. No one expected him to gladly agree to marry the Jiang woman, become part of Yan Song’s faction, and calmly evolve into what the world saw as a "petty treacherous official."

When Lu Jia was a child, her relationship with her treacherous official father was actually quite harmonious.

Back then, she didn't know what "treacherous" meant; she only knew her father was very busy, loved to read, and was skilled at changing his expression. When he wasn't busy, he would mostly hold her on his lap and read poetry to her.

If she was naughty, he would anxiously snap a tree branch and glare at her to scare her. But the moment he heard a guest arrive, the man who had been glaring at her a second ago would immediately put on a face full of wrinkles from smiling to greet them.

It was just that he didn't spend much time at home.

He was either off inspecting the canal transport for months or supervising the construction progress of the imperial mausoleum for weeks at a time. During the days he was away, the Jiang woman naturally took charge of Lu Jia.

At first, Lu Jia and the Jiang woman left each other alone. The Jiang woman had her own affairs to attend to after giving birth to Lu Ying, and with Lu Jie away on business for years, the couple saw little of each other, and she didn't conceive again for several years.

The abandonment of Lu Jia occurred just as Lu Jie was ordered to Luoyang to investigate a case.

Master Guo, whose name was Guo Lu, was a major lackey of the Jiang woman.

After returning to the capital, it was this man surnamed Guo whom the Jiang woman sent to monitor her day and night under the guise of "protecting her safety."

Come to think of it, since the Jiang woman had sent people to accurately track her to Tanzhou, it meant that even after abandoning Lu Jia, the Jiang woman must have held onto some clues.

But Lu Jia never expected that after ten years, the Jiang woman would still be secretly looking for her.

In her previous life, the Lu family had come to her doorstep on their own; she had no idea this was happening!

So, why was the Jiang woman looking for her?

Just to have her act as a substitute bride for Lu Ying?

Thinking of this, she said decisively once more, "I am not going back."

Qiuniang grew anxious. "Why?"

"It’s not the right time."

She would go back, of course. She was the dignified eldest daughter of the Lu family; why should she yield her home to others?

The debt of her abandonment by the Jiang woman had yet to be settled in this lifetime.

Now that this new development had emerged, how could Lu Jia not be cautious?

"If now is not the time, when will it be?" Zhang Qiuniang stood up in a panic. "The Zhang family is wealthier and more powerful than us, and that He woman is capable of anything!

"She holds that promissory note. When the time comes and she makes a scene at the county office, we won't be able to argue our way out of those three hundred taels of silver.

"And since they are determined to scheme against you, if they can't do it openly, they will do it in the shadows. If their plot succeeds, even if your family receives the news, it will be too late to save you!"

"Wait until I am prepared."

Lu Jia wiped her hands with a handkerchief and glanced at Qiuniang.

Since the Jiang woman hadn't sent people directly to her door, it meant they didn't yet know Lu Jia's exact whereabouts.

Crucially, Lu Jie was not in the capital at the moment. In her previous life, after Lu Jia’s two-month journey and another two months after returning to the manor, Lu Jie had finally returned.

Regarding her treacherous official father, Lu Jia found it hard to pass judgment.

In any case, it was he who married the Jiang woman and ultimately harmed Lu Jia, and it was he who failed to prevent the Jiang woman from forcing Lu Jia into the substitute marriage after she returned.

Yet, it was also he who had secretly looked after Qiuniang and Xie Yi for three years, and later allowed Lu Jia to resume correspondence with them.

"Sister? Sister!"

Just as the mother and daughter were speaking, Xie Yi’s shouts came from outside.

Lu Jia looked at Qiuniang and walked out.

Xie Yi had just run to the courtyard gate, holding a set of coarse cloth clothes. Behind him followed a thirteen or fourteen-year-old boy, who was none other than Xie Yi’s childhood friend, Li Chang.

The two were panting. "I’ve finished the task you gave me. I was afraid Li Er had seen me and would notice something, so I had Li Chang wear these clothes to deliver the message.

"We found Li Er on the street. That bastard’s eyes lit up the moment he heard you had woken up!

"When Li Chang told him the Zhang family wanted him to come to the Xie house secretly tonight to meet, he nearly jumped three feet high!

"It’s clear this bastard is still harboring thoughts of bullying you. If I didn't know I couldn't be impulsive, I would have gone up and beaten him to death!"

Xie Yi was so angry he kicked over the neatly stacked pile of firewood.

Li Chang called out "Sister" and then said, "I turned down my work at the wharf today to come help you! Li Er always brings lackeys with him, and I was afraid Brother Yi wouldn't be able to handle it alone."

"That would be perfect!"

Lu Jia knew the two were close friends, especially since Li Chang was two years older and physically stronger than Xie Yi. With Li Chang’s help, wouldn't it be like adding wings to a tiger?

"But if you don't go to the wharf, won't your father scold you?"

"It's fine! I already told him."

Lu Jia thought for a moment. "Then I’ll trouble Uncle Li with one more thing. Please go back and pass on a message for me."

After she finished speaking, she whispered a few words to Li Chang.

As soon as Li Chang left, Zhang Qiuniang caught up, completely bewildered. "What are you two plotting?"

Lu Jia said, "Beating a dog."

After saying this, she took Qiuniang’s arm. "I have things to explain to you, Mother, and you have a task as well. Yi-ge, you go move the haystacks in the courtyard first..."

The events that occurred after Lu Jia woke up had changed only in that she had woken up a day earlier than in her previous life, allowing Xie Yi to prevent Qiuniang from being injured in time.

Everything else—the Zhang family’s and Li Er’s intentions toward Lu Jia and the Xie family—had not changed in the slightest.

Since the He woman had made threats against Zhang Qiuniang, would she just sit there foolishly waiting?

It was raining, so there wasn't much work to be done, and since half the day had already passed, Xie Yi, who usually carried rice at the wharf, stayed home. Qiuniang had taken on a job applying tung oil to the ribs of oil-paper umbrellas, which she could do at home, so she didn't need to go out. The mother and daughter focused on "taking care" of Lu Jia, who was recovering from a long illness.

Around noon, as the sun began to slant, Dr. Chen was invited by Xie Yi to the house to check Lu Jia’s pulse, followed by Qiuniang going to the pharmacy near the vegetable market to fill a prescription.

With all this coming and going, the neighbors all knew that the Xie girl had finally come back to life. Everyone was happy for Qiuniang and came by one after another to visit.

The slap mark on the He woman’s face from Zhang Qiuniang had not faded after a long time. Returning to her room and seeing her appearance in the mirror, she pointed toward the west and cursed for a while.

Suddenly hearing that Lu Jia had woken up at this moment, half of her anger subsided, and she couldn't help but send someone to peek over the west wall to investigate the truth.

"Mistress, the cousin is really awake! This servant saw her walking under the eaves with her own eyes!"

The maid rushed into the room, breathless, to report the news.

The He woman hurriedly asked, "Did you see clearly? Can she really walk?"

"I saw it clearly! Although she has to rest after taking two steps, she looks fine. Dr. Chen said the same, saying she’ll be fully recovered after a day or two of rest."

"Excellent!" The He woman gritted her teeth and slapped the table as she stood up. "As long as she’s awake, marrying her off won't be a problem! If I can't handle you, I’m not worthy of being the mistress of the Zhang family!"

The maid spat, "The aunt relies on being the elder, but she doesn't put you, the mistress, in her eyes at all. Why did you only ask for three hundred taels just now? That was too cheap for them."

The He woman scolded, "What do you know? If I asked for more, could they afford it? They might haggle over three hundred taels, but if I asked for one or two thousand, they would just play the rogue completely!"

The maid shrank her neck and retreated.

She returned to the corridor and turned back. "The Master is here."

Zhang Qi strode in, lifting the curtain. Seeing the bright red slap mark on the He woman’s face, he blurted out, "Why did you get into a fight with the eldest sister? Why did you show her the promissory note that Father left behind? How could you bring this up at a time like this?

"She knows we have leverage over her. What if Jia-jie escapes?"

"Escape? Escape to where?" The He woman stood up, slapping the table. "This Shawan County is our Zhang family’s territory; how could I let her escape? If she dares to run, I’ll tie her to the bridal sedan and stuff her into Li Er’s bed myself!"

"You are confused!" Zhang Qi pounded the table. "In all these years, when have you ever seen her yield for the sake of the child? If she were so easy to handle, would she have come to your door to fight you?

"Just now, while she was out getting medicine, she bought several pairs of shoes in one go—all in Jia-jie’s size—and went to the county office to inquire about travel permits!

"You tell me, if she isn't planning to escape, why would she buy shoes and ask about travel permits?!"

The He woman’s hand, which was smoothing her hair, froze. "When did this happen?"

"Just now!" Zhang Qi was so anxious his voice rose. "If we really let them succeed, we’ll lose both the chicken and the egg!"

The He woman panicked too. "Then I’ll go have someone watch them right now?"

"Why are you still asking? Go!" Zhang Qi urged her toward the door. "Watch her closely, especially at night. Do not let there be the slightest mistake!"