Rebirth: After Becoming the Villainess-Chapter 173: He Left All His Men for You

To be called away to war on your wedding night—anyone would be furious.

That was why Marquis Xuan Chang and the Marchioness arrived at the Prince Qing Mansion first thing in the morning. Shen Fu, who was guarding the entrance, saw the two and respectfully welcomed them inside.

"My dear granddaughter~"

Marquis Xuan Chang couldn’t contain his anger. He truly believed his granddaughter had suffered a tremendous injustice. As soon as he entered, he snapped, "Have all the Military Generals in the court died? Did they really have to send my grandson-in-law?!"

Though the Marchioness was also angry, she remained rational.

"I’m afraid the Holy Emperor can no longer tolerate Prince Qing."

"He sent Prince Qing under the pretext of quelling a rebellion. If Prince Qing wants to succeed, he’ll have no choice but to rely on Sui Bei’s forces. But who knows what ’accidents’ might happen on the way back?"

"If he shows any signs of dissent, Song Xingfeng will act immediately. Sui Bei is too far away to help in a sudden crisis."

"But if Prince Qing does nothing, the suppression will surely fail, and he’ll be held accountable upon his return. When that time comes, I’m afraid Song Xingfeng will pin all the blame on him."

"Therefore, Emperor Xiaocheng isn’t using this paltry thirty thousand-man army to deal with Prince Yongdong, but with Zhou Cangyan."

Song Lianhe asked, "Isn’t he afraid that Sui Bei and Yu State will join forces?"

If something happened to Zhou Cangyan, would Old Master Luo just let it go? It would be a miracle if he didn’t charge all the way to the Capital!

Marquis Xuan Chang frowned and shook his head. "Sui Bei had a poor harvest this year, and they’ve suffered from border conflicts for years on end. The people in the city are struggling just to get enough to eat, so where would they find the surplus provisions to march an army south? On top of that, winter came early this year. The mountains in Sui Bei are already sealed by heavy snow, so the common folk can’t even go into them to dig for wild vegetables or hunt game. Regardless of whether Prince Qing mobilizes Sui Bei’s fifty thousand troops, they’re already trapped by a natural disaster. The Holy Emperor saw this opportunity, and that’s why he dared to issue such a decree."

Song Lianhe couldn’t help but curse, "How despicable!"

’If I’d known, I would’ve extorted more silver from him back then!’

But she was still puzzled. "No, that’s not right. With a mind like Zhou Cangyan’s, he must have seen through the Holy Emperor’s intentions long ago! And with his skills, leaving Ling’an without anyone noticing should have been no problem at all!"

Hearing this, the Marchioness looked at her steadily. "Yes, you’re right. For someone with Prince Qing’s skills, it would have been effortless. But once a man has something to care for, his hands and feet are tied."

Song Lianhe suddenly felt a pang of guilt and didn’t dare to look at her grandmother.

"Since you have married him, you are now Princess Qing, your life and fortune bound to his. And it’s not just you, but also the General Mansion and our Xuan Chang Marquis Mansion. It would be simple for him to escape alone, but what about you? What about the family behind you?"

After speaking, the Marchioness glanced toward the gates. "The fact that he left all of his men for you says everything."

To this, Marquis Xuan Chang gave a noncommittal grunt, though he was growing more and more satisfied with this grandson-in-law.

But the Holy Emperor wouldn’t even give him the chance to enjoy this domestic bliss.

The more Marquis Xuan Chang thought about it, the angrier he became.

"Grandmother, please don’t say any more..."

Song Lianhe felt guilty to her very core.

She knew Zhou Cangyan had treated her well, but who would have thought he’d be *this* devoted!

’But what did I do?’

’On their wedding night, I actually told my new husband that I wasn’t a virgin, that he’d been cuckolded long ago...’

Thinking about it now, Song Lianhe desperately wanted to go back in time and shake her past self awake.

’Look at what you said! Couldn’t you have just let the man leave in peace?’

’And then look at Zhou Cangyan, repaying my malice with kindness!’

But no matter what she said, he wasn’t coming back soon...

She quickly asked, "Grandfather, Grandmother, what can I do to help him?"

The Marchioness sighed and shook her head. "Wait. There is nothing you can do but wait."

She paused, then said, "In fact, the moment you hear even the slightest rumor about Prince Qing, you must sever all ties with him immediately."

"Grandmother!!"

Song Lianhe shot to her feet, asking in disbelief, "Is this the principle of how to be a good person that you’ve always taught me?"

Marquis Xuan Chang clicked his tongue. "Sit down. Let your grandmother finish."

The Marchioness stared at Song Lianhe for a long moment, then suddenly let out a soft chuckle. "I must say, I didn’t expect you to be so concerned about Prince Qing’s safety."

"He’s my husband!"

The words had left her lips without a second thought, and she herself was stunned for a moment.

Marquis Xuan Chang roared with laughter. "That’s right! That’s a daughter of our Lin family!"

Song Lianhe gave a few awkward laughs and silently lowered her head.

’It’s purely a matter of loyalty,’ she thought. ’I’m not really playing out some drama about a couple sharing thick and thin.’

Just then, the Marchioness lowered her gaze. Changing the subject, she said slowly, "The Da Cheng dynasty was founded a mere thirteen years ago. Its foundations are unstable, and the national treasury is empty..."

Song Lianhe suddenly spoke up, "With money, you have a voice."

The Marchioness looked at her granddaughter and smiled faintly. "You don’t need to worry about Prince Qing quelling the rebellion on imperial orders this time. With his abilities, escaping unscathed won’t be difficult. Otherwise, he wouldn’t be worthy of being the grandson-in-law of our Marquis Mansion."

"Then what I need to do is..."

’Plan for his future.’

Song Lianhe was startled and immediately looked at her grandmother.

’Did she see through me?’

The Marchioness knew what she was thinking and said softly, "He is not one to remain subordinate to others for long."

That was why she had repeatedly confirmed her granddaughter’s feelings back then, already prepared to accept any outcome.

Now that the Holy Emperor had made his move, they certainly weren’t going to stand by and do nothing!

"Grandmother..." Song Lianhe bit her lip and said in a small voice, "You have always been loyal and virtuous subjects. You shouldn’t be branded with infamy for our sake."

Marquis Xuan Chang laughed heartily and declared with bravado, "Da Cheng belongs to the people, not to that Zhou Yang!"

The Marchioness nodded. "That’s right. The realm our Lin family protects also belongs to the people, not to the Zhou family."

Moved, Song Lianhe went over and hugged the old couple. "I’m so lucky."

She truly felt lucky from the bottom of her heart. She had come from the modern world to this strange one, and though the Song Family was rotten, she had met Zhou Cangyan, had a good friend like Cao Ying, and had such wonderful grandparents!

The Marchioness lovingly stroked her cheek. "Silly girl. You just focus on being a good Princess Qing and protecting his Prince Mansion for him. Leave the rest to your grandfather and me."

"Mhm~"

"Exactly! I’d like to see who dares to touch my precious grandson-in-law!"

The Marchioness teased, "So he’s your ’precious grandson-in-law’ now? I wonder who it was that cursed him all night yesterday, saying he’d stolen your dear granddaughter~"

Marquis Xuan Chang said righteously, "He’s one of us now, so I can scold him if I want! Hmph, who do others think they are?"

It was clear her grandfather was truly furious.

However, seeing that both her grandfather and grandmother had accepted Zhou Cangyan and approved of him so highly, a secret happiness, along with a little bit of pride, quietly bloomed in Song Lianhe’s heart.

Before they left, the Marchioness mentioned Song Xilan. According to servants in the Ling Prince Mansion, Zhou Junlin had gotten dead drunk last night and still hadn’t woken up this morning.

’The implication is that he and Song Xilan didn’t consummate their marriage either?’ 𝒻𝑟ℯℯ𝑤𝑒𝑏𝑛𝘰𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝒸𝑜𝘮

The Marchioness looked at her granddaughter and said suddenly, "This Prince Ling really doesn’t know how to manage his servants, letting such private bedroom matters spread. It’s truly improper."

Song Lianhe wasn’t paying much attention and replied casually, "You have a point. He’s always been the best at training his subordinates."

Seeing her say this, the Marchioness gave a knowing smile. "Isn’t that the truth."