Rebirth: After Becoming the Villainess-Chapter 130: The Lord Said, No One Is More Troublesome Than You
Song Lianhe wasn’t sleeping well; she was constantly having nightmares.
Huai Xu had given her a calming medicine, but she still couldn’t sleep soundly. Her dreams were filled with the sounds of arguments and beatings—from Xin Haiyun, to the family of the child who died under her care, and then to her own parents...
A perfectly fine family was shattered because of her mistake.
Her parents remarried, and she became the unwanted, superfluous one. They didn’t even want to see her afterward.
When she found them, they just said painfully that whenever they saw her, they were reminded of the life she had taken. It was as if they themselves had become murderers, and they were tormented by it.
It was only after they each remarried, formed new, happy families, and had lively, adorable younger children that their lives seemed to move on.
During that time, Song Lianhe went through life like a walking corpse, indifferent to everything. She even came to believe they were right—that she didn’t deserve a family, didn’t deserve happiness! So, she went to college alone, worked part-time jobs alone, and lived alone. Her life was hard, but it felt right.
No matter what, she was alone. That way, no one would ever have to suffer because of her again.
In her sleep, she vaguely sensed someone approaching.
She couldn’t see the person’s face, only feel the cool pad of a finger first touch her brow, then the corner of her eye, gently wiping away a tear.
A low murmur sounded by her ear. "No one will dare to hurt you again. Sleep now."
Those few words were like an invisible giant hand, yanking her out of the nightmare.
Song Lianhe subconsciously raised a hand and grabbed the one still wiping her tears, clutching it to her chest like a lifeline. She turned over, nuzzled it with her cheek like a cat, buried her face in the palm, and, resting on its warmth, fell into a deep sleep...
A rooster crowed outside the window.
Song Lianhe opened her eyes and stretched.
’That Young Master Huai really knows his stuff.’ The medicine he gave her was the best; just one night had eased the pain all over her body. Only her hands still needed time to recover.
These superficial wounds were no big deal for Song Lianhe. She wasn’t worried.
Shuang Ye came in to help her wash up. The two of them had stayed in King Qing’s mansion for a while, so they were fairly familiar with everything here.
"Where’s Ah Jun?" Song Lianhe asked curiously. "I haven’t seen him since last night."
Shuang Ye shook her head. "I don’t know. He’s been acting a bit mysterious lately."
Song Lianhe wasn’t concerned. "A boy his age is bound to be curious about new things outside. Let him be."
Just then, the door was thrown open. "Lianhe! Something terrible has happened at your family’s home!"
Cao Ying rushed in, flustered, and sat down across from Song Lianhe. "This morning, Mrs. Liu’s maternal family went to your home to cause a scene! A whole horde of them—who knows where these relatives came from—carrying a corpse. Guess who?"
Song Lianhe’s heart skipped a beat. "...Xin Haiyun?"
"Exactly!" Cao Ying took a sip of water and continued, "They accidentally dropped the corpse while carrying it. When it hit the ground... my god... it scared everyone half to death!"
Shuang Ye was timid and asked with a trembling voice, "The corpse... what was wrong with it?"
"The corpse was dripping with blood. It had been skinned—flayed in pieces..." Cao Ying couldn’t go on, fighting back the nausea in her stomach. "To do something so cruel, it seems only..."
She trailed off, her eyes looking at Song Lianhe probingly.
’Could it be any more obvious?’
’Besides the villain, who else could do something so brutal?’
’No, who else would even *dare*?’
’This is the Imperial City, right under the Emperor’s nose!’
Shuang Ye had clearly guessed it too. Her face was deathly pale. "Miss, if it’s really... what are we going to do!" 𝙛𝒓𝒆𝙚𝒘𝒆𝓫𝙣𝓸𝙫𝓮𝒍.𝒄𝒐𝓶
The young maid’s thinking was simple: Song Lianhe was undoubtedly tied to this matter. The bigger the scene King Qing made, the worse it would be for her!
Cao Ying was also watching Song Lianhe, choosing her words carefully. "I asked my brother. He said this is very tricky. No matter how wicked Xin Haiyun was, she was still part of an official’s family recognized by the Court. No one is allowed to carry out a private execution. Especially... His Highness’s status is unique. This action was truly improper. Isn’t this just handing his enemies leverage on a silver platter?"
The news of Zhou Cangyan storming the General Mansion to seize someone last night had already spread throughout Ling’an City by this morning!
He made no effort to hide it, either. He marched Mrs. Liu straight to the Ministry of Justice. It’s said the Ministry of Justice’s lights were on all night.
In fact, Cao Ying had overheard a conversation between Cao Jin and their father in the study.
Zhou Cangyan’s return had seemed peaceful on the surface, but it was the calm before the storm.
He had spent over a decade garrisoning the border, a region that was his maternal clan’s sphere of influence. In recent years, they had grown increasingly powerful, and with a strong army at his command, it was feared he might harbor thoughts of treason.
That’s why Emperor Cheng Xiao was eager to reclaim his military authority and had kept him in Ling’an. But he remained a major threat.
Cao Ying didn’t understand the Court’s affairs, but she understood this much: Zhou Cangyan had landed himself in a world of trouble. If he were to be investigated, how could Song Lianhe escape unscathed?
That was why she had rushed over, hoping to discuss a countermeasure and prepare a response as soon as possible.
Looking at Song Lianhe again, she saw her staring blankly at the jade pendant hanging from her neck.
’In the original novel, there wasn’t a scene where Zhou Cangyan clashed with the Zhou family. In fact, after he became interested in the female lead at the hairpin banquet, he had intentionally or unintentionally been very protective of the Song Family.’
’So, comparing the two, his actions last night were so pointed. How could she not understand?’
’He was getting revenge for her.’
’What others saw as cruel methods was just his usual style; he just couldn’t be bothered to hide it anymore.’
Her feelings right now were rather complicated.
For the first time, someone had stood up for her so recklessly, with such forceful methods, not even caring who was right or wrong.
She didn’t dislike this forceful, domineering approach. She even felt... a secret sense of happiness.
She allowed herself the thought for a moment before regaining her senses.
’She had discovered while reading the book that although Zhou Cangyan acted ruthlessly, he wasn’t brainless.’
’No matter how much he wanted to get revenge for her, he wouldn’t go so far as to kill someone. Besides, from what she knew of him, wasn’t making someone’s life a living hell more interesting than just killing them?’
’So...’
’Someone was framing him.’
Song Lianhe could no longer sit still. This had all started because of her; she couldn’t just stand by and watch.
’Besides, Zhou Cangyan had even dared to forge an imperial edict for her. It would be incredibly disloyal of her to just hide in her shell now!’
"Sister Cao, I’ll have to entrust the clinic to you for the next few days."
She turned and called to Shuang Ye, "Help me change."
But as soon as she stepped outside, she was blocked by someone.
"Benefactor, the Master has ordered that you are not to wander off."
The man outside scratched his head sheepishly, looking quite troubled.
Recognizing it was Shen Fu, Song Lianhe said urgently, "Your master is in serious trouble! I have to go clear his name!"
"That won’t do." Shen Fu shook his head. "The Master said no one is more trouble than you, so I have to watch you. Everything else is just a trivial matter."
"..."
’What does that mean?’
’Is he playing favorites?’
