Upon entering the Canglang Pavilion, Lu Zhuo finally saw Li Guiren's true appearance.
She was a beauty in her early thirties who looked like a bride just past twenty. If she were to sit with Shou An Jun and Wei Rao, anyone could tell they were three generations of a family—like three peonies on the same stem: one nearly wilted, one in full bloom, and one with only a petal or two unfurled, shyly awaiting its moment.
Shou An Jun had aged, Wei Rao still appeared youthful and inexperienced—even if called a fox spirit, her craft fell far short. Li Guiren's beauty alone could truly enchant all beings and topple cities.
Lu Zhuo lowered his gaze after just one glance.
He could somewhat understand why Emperor Yuanjia doted so deeply on Little Zhou, yet in his heart, he refused to believe a wise ruler would be swayed solely by beauty. He himself hadn't fallen head over heels for Wei Rao despite her loveliness, let alone an emperor in his forties with sons and grandsons.
Two banquet tables were arranged in the Canglang Pavilion. Little Zhou sat with the Fourth Prince on the eastern side, while Wei Rao and Lu Zhuo, the married couple, took their seats opposite.
"I've long heard of the young master's reputation, but only today do I see how refined and graceful you are—no wonder Raorao says you treat her with such tenderness." Little Zhou smiled as she studied her son-in-law across from her, growing fonder the more she looked. The military officers she recalled were all broad-shouldered and imposing—while majestic, they often had minor habits women disliked. Her daughter was a delicate blossom who ought to marry someone who cherished and protected beauty.
Hearing this, Lu Zhuo glanced at Wei Rao beside him and modestly replied, "Your praise is too generous, Your Highness. I still fall short in how I treat Raorao."
Wei Rao wore a bashful smile, toying with a cup of floral tea, watching the petals rise and fall within.
As Lu Zhuo observed her feigned smile, he recalled how she had sobbed uncontrollably in his embrace earlier that day.
At that moment, she was simply a young girl who, after years apart from her mother, could finally see her again.
This girl—who flouted propriety before him, acted willfully, and stormed off in a huff—was so spoiled. Yet when she met Shou An Jun and her noble mother, situations where she could pour out his offenses and beg her elders to intervene, she did none of it. Shou An Jun was elderly—she couldn't bear to worry her grandmother. And since Li Guiren lived so comfortably in the traveling palace, why did she still choose to conceal the truth?
Reporting only good news, hiding sorrows—was she afraid that after she left, Li Guiren would fret over her daughter?
Call her sensible, yet in many ways she followed her own rules.
Call her spoiled, yet she'd rather swallow grievances than trouble her elders.
Li Guiren's clear satisfaction with him surely stemmed from Wei Rao's abundant praise. But what must she have felt, lying like that to the mother she missed most?
Lu Zhuo hadn't been gentle with her; Li Guiren's compliments shamed him.
Yet this performance had to go on.
Palace attendants served wine and dishes. Lu Zhuo occasionally placed food for Wei Rao. Given their height difference, he unavoidably noticed the fullness accentuated by her collar and the fair skin revealed at her neckline. The setting sun cast a golden-red glow from behind, tinting one side of her neck and earlobe with a blend of radiance and delicate charm.
Beside Li Guiren, she was but a little fox—yet alone before men, she too could wreak havoc.
Lu Zhuo deliberately avoided looking at her face.
Little Zhou thought the young couple seemed somewhat restrained—perhaps the youth felt uneasy in her presence.As the banquet concluded and they rose to leave, Lu Zhuo gently supported Wei Rao's arm, deliberately glancing at her skirt to ensure it wasn't caught on anything.
Little Zhou had originally intended to have her daughter sleep with her all three nights. But witnessing the young couple's affection, she couldn't bear to leave her son-in-law lonely on his first night at the retreat palace. She said to Wei Rao, "You've traveled all day—return early to rest. Tomorrow morning I'll take you both to tour the retreat palace."
Two nights remained. For those two nights, she vowed to keep her daughter close day and night.
Since her mother insisted she accompany Lu Zhuo, Wei Rao stood beside him, watching her mother and younger brother board the carriage.
"Sister, I'll come find you first thing tomorrow!" The Fourth Prince leaned out the carriage window, his small frame brimming with reluctance as he gazed at Wei Rao.
Wei Rao smiled at him. "Understood. Now sit properly."
A pair of jade-like hands pulled the Fourth Prince back inside.
Wei Rao felt a pang of loss.
The young eunuch assigned to serve the couple approached with a bow. "Young Master, Young Madam, the Canglang Pavilion is quite a distance from the villa. Shall I prepare a carriage?"
Lu Zhuo looked to Wei Rao.
She shook her head. "Every corner of the retreat palace holds beauty. You may return to the villa first. The Young Master and I will stroll back while enjoying the scenery."
Her mother, as a noble consort, could ride in a carriage, but she and Lu Zhuo must not breach etiquette.
The eunuch handed his lantern to Lu Zhuo, bowed, and withdrew.
Wei Rao gazed at the lake, waiting until the eunuch had disappeared before walking along the cobblestone path he had taken.
Night had just fallen, and the mountain breeze was refreshingly cool—truly an ideal summer retreat. Yet since Li Guiren had been sent here, the palace nobles hadn't visited for three years. Without them, the vast retreat palace lay in profound silence, broken only by wind-carried waves lapping at the shore.
Wei Rao walked briskly. Lu Zhuo, carrying the lantern, kept pace on her left.
"Slow down. It may take three quarters of an hour," he murmured, observing her aloof expression.
Not wanting to work up a sweat, Wei Rao eased her pace.
Lu Zhuo scanned their surroundings—the palace attendants had long vanished. After a moment's thought, he ventured, "Seeing Her Ladyship's demeanor here, the Emperor's favor toward her hasn't waned. Once she returns to the palace, she will surely regain her former prominence. You've endured much hardship because of me. Why not ask Her Ladyship to intervene on your behalf?"
Wei Rao remained silent.
When the Emperor had granted Lu Zhuo's request with an imperial decree, she'd assumed it was out of respect for the Duke of Yingguo's household. But after seeing her mother today, she realized the Emperor had actually intended to reunite mother and daughter.
So Lu Zhuo was right—once her mother returned to the palace, she would likely resume her status as the famously favored Li Guiren.
But what of it? Should she weep to her mother about Lu Zhuo's coldness, only for her mother to then plead her case before Emperor Yuanjia?
Who was Lu Zhuo? However much the Emperor doted on her mother, would he punish a deputy general of the Divine Martial Army for her sake?
Besides, Lu Zhuo merely didn't love her. Setting that aside, he was a benevolent nobleman and a loyal general defending the realm. She and her mother were no seductresses—they wouldn't sabotage ruler-subject relations over personal grievances.
"How could Mother intervene? Lodge a complaint against you before the Emperor? Demand punishment for a loyal official because her daughter feels wronged? In your eyes, are we mother and daughter such petty individuals?" Wei Rao tilted her head away, refusing to even glance at him.When Lu Zhuo heard her call him a loyal subject, an inexplicable ripple stirred in his heart. Could it be that in her eyes, he was not entirely worthless?
He promptly explained, "You misunderstand me, Miss. I know you don’t wish to worry Her Ladyship. What I meant was, since you are filial toward Her Ladyship, you should also consider the elderly lady in the capital and Shou An Jun. If we return to the capital and immediately dissolve our marriage, Her Ladyship may be too far away to hear the news, but what about the elderly lady and Shou An Jun? Shou An Jun is broad-minded and unrestrained, but the elderly lady has always hoped for a happy marriage for you. If she were to suffer because of our sudden separation, I would carry guilt for life, and my grandparents, who arranged this marriage, would also feel ashamed before her."
Lu Zhuo did not want to dissolve the marriage with her.
Before coming to Jin City, he had already resolved to make Wei Rao his true wife. In early April, they had clashed over her involvement in business, and Wei Rao proposed dissolving the marriage immediately upon their return to the capital. At the time, Lu Zhuo was unwilling, but her sarcastic remarks provoked him, and in a moment of impulsiveness, he agreed to her wishes.
But how could marriage be treated so lightly? Setting aside his and Wei Rao’s feelings, what would the elders on both sides think? How would the commoners in the capital gossip? What excuse could Wei Rao use to dissolve the marriage? Neither casting blame on her nor on him would be appropriate. The only suitable reason would be incompatibility of temperament, but would the commoners accept that? They would not suspect any fault on his part as the heir of the Duke of Yingguo; instead, they would only intensify their slander against Wei Rao.
Lu Zhuo did not want things to unfold that way. From the moment Wei Rao was half-forced by his grandparents to agree to the marriage to ward off misfortune, he had owed her a debt. Initially, he thought Wei Rao did not want to marry him and only sought to use the marriage for self-protection. In that case, providing her with protection and five years of dignity would have been sufficient compensation. But his grandmother told him that Wei Rao had once intended to be his true wife, only to be hurt by him time and again...
By this reckoning, Lu Zhuo’s debt to Wei Rao was no longer trivial.
Before, he did not understand Wei Rao, thinking she was merely a spoiled, willful girl indulged by Shou An Jun. Now, Lu Zhuo knew that she had never truly been pampered by her elders since childhood—losing her father early, abandoned by her mother, persecuted by the Empress Dowager, targeted by assassins, slandered by rumors, and even scorned and offended by the husband she married to ward off misfortune. How unjustly she had suffered!
"Fourth Miss, I was once blinded by rumors and gossip. Now I know you are a good woman. I do not wish to dissolve our marriage or honor the five-year contract. I want to be your true husband." Lu Zhuo stepped in front of Wei Rao, looking into her eyes as he spoke. "Please give me another chance. I promise I will never hurt you again."
The night sky was dotted with stars, the evening breeze carried the fragrance of flowers, and the gently swaying lantern cast a soft glow on Lu Zhuo’s handsome face.
His voice was gentle, his gaze sincere—Wei Rao almost believed him.
Yet, he had just reprimanded her for entering and leaving taverns with merchants, nearly making him the subject of ridicule as a cuckold. He had just accused her of lacking self-respect for changing clothes in the mountains. How could he now think she was a good woman, not only unwilling to dissolve their marriage but even wanting to be her true husband?
Was it because he had witnessed her mother’s carefree life at the resort and realized that Emperor Yuanjia still cared for her mother?
Wei Rao felt like laughing, and she did indeed laugh. Taking two steps back, she scrutinized Lu Zhuo and said, "Is the heir afraid that if we dissolve our marriage, my mother will eventually learn the reason and whisper criticisms of you into the Emperor’s ear?"
The sincerity in Lu Zhuo’s eyes was instantly replaced by anger.But looking at Wei Rao's stunning face that still managed to mock him, Lu Zhuo had to admit his words had indeed come too late. Given the circumstances and timing, along with his past behavior toward her, her misunderstanding was understandable.
Lu Zhuo couldn't even clarify this misunderstanding.
"Even if I truly thought that way, becoming real husband and wife wouldn't bring you any harm, would it?"
Holding the lantern, Lu Zhuo approached Wei Rao, revealing the gentle smile she was familiar with: "If we respect each other like honored guests, both our families would be pleased. When Her Highness and the young master return to the capital, with the support of the Duke of Yingguo's manor, anyone who might scheme against them would have to think twice. Miss must not forget that even after the Empress Dowager passes, the Empress remains in the palace, along with three adult princes watching closely. My Lu family won't involve itself in the princes' conflicts, but we are more than capable of protecting one young prince until he comes of age."
Wei Rao stared at Lu Zhuo in shock. Had he really considered matters so far ahead?
"A prominent tree attracts the wind. Though Her Highness enjoys great favor, this also makes her vulnerable to countless dangers." Lu Zhuo looked down at Wei Rao and chuckled softly: "Miss is intelligent enough to understand this principle."
His words were like a stone thrown into still water, disturbing the calm in Wei Rao's heart.
In truth, it wasn't just her mother and younger brother. Even her grandmother could live leisurely at the Secluded Manor only because of Emperor Yuanjia's courtesy. If anything happened to Emperor Yuanjia, the best they could hope for from the successor was not being pushed down the well—certainly not continued protection for their entire family. Both her grandmothers wanted her to marry into a powerful family precisely to gain influential connections and support for their relatives.
Previously, Wei Rao had thought their troubles would end with the Empress Dowager's death, but beneath the Empress Dowager were the Empress and imperial consorts. Would they be pleased about her mother receiving imperial favor?
Her mother indeed needed strong support.
The question was, what benefit would Lu Zhuo gain by having the Duke of Yingguo's manor support her mother?
"You're afraid now that Her Highness might speak against you in the Emperor's ear, so you're willing to become real husband and wife with me. But how can I trust that after the Emperor passes, you won't settle old scores with me and my mother? Your Lu family has served loyally for generations. As long as you cut ties with us and switch sides, no emperor would punish your family."
Wei Rao looked up, meeting Lu Zhuo's gaze directly.
Lu Zhuo felt both anger and amusement. What kind of villain did she take him for?
"The Emperor is in good health. The situation you describe won't occur for at least another ten or twenty years. By then, we would already have children of our own. Even vicious tigers don't eat their cubs—how could I, Lu Zhuo, abandon you all?"
Only then did Wei Rao realize what Lu Zhuo would do to her if she agreed to become real husband and wife.
Looking at Lu Zhuo's smiling face again, Wei Rao found him lewd and vulgar. Perhaps his proposal of becoming real husband and wife also stemmed from lust for her beauty—otherwise, why would he so quickly mention having many children?
"This matter is significant. Please allow me a few days to consider, Young Master." Wei Rao took several steps away, putting distance between them.
Lu Zhuo said gently: "No hurry. Whenever you've reached a decision, you can give me your answer."
With that, he approached Wei Rao again, bringing the lantern closer to her: "It's getting dark. Miss, watch your step."
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