Chapter Thirty-Two: Mother’s Misunderstanding, Father’s Delight

"Yun'er, Shui'er, are you feeling any better?" Lady Lu Chang sat in her chair, looking at the two pale-faced women who had been retching, and asked with a sigh of helplessness.

"After drinking the hawthorn tea, I feel much better," Lady Lu Yun managed to say after catching her breath.

Lady Lu Chang was the daughter of the Chang merchant family of Nanyun County, married to Lu Jinhe. Both Lady Lu Yun and Lady Lu Shui had been her personal maids, and later, when Lady Lu Chang became pregnant, she had personally arranged for Lu Jinhe to take them as concubines.

Their relationship was a mix of mistress-servant and sisterhood. Over the years, the three of them had forged an ironclad hold on the Lu household's inner courtyard, ensuring no other woman could ever gain a foothold there.

"Mistress, to think that Wu'er would surround himself with such... such—" Lady Lu Yun struggled to find the right words, eventually just slapping the soft couch in frustration.

She had always known that these five girls were tall and strong. At the time, she had only thought that these girls could not only look after her son but also handle strenuous chores, truly getting multiple uses out of one person. Moreover, because they were so large, she didn't have to worry about her son harboring any impure thoughts that might damage his constitution—Lady Lu Yun’s aesthetic values were much like those of most people in this world, believing that a woman who was overly tall was inherently ugly.

"Mistress, I must find some other maids for Wu'er to use. My Wu'er cannot handle such 'handmaidens'—Mistress, look at their armor and weapons; who knows how they have been bullying and extorting Wu'er in private," Lady Lu Yun said indignantly.

In her mind, her precious son must be bullied and threatened by these fierce women every day, washing his face with tears—perhaps even having his monthly allowance snatched away by them. Otherwise, where would they get such armor and weapons? Those items could not be bought with the meager monthly allowance of mere maids. Not to mention the amount of meat required to fuel such strength—even if Lady Lu Yun didn't practice martial arts herself, she understood the basic common sense that "the poor study, the rich practice martial arts."

Hearing this, Lady Lu Chang’s expression became rather peculiar. Although the women had been hidden in a secret room when Lu Wu broke through the streets to lift the siege on the Lu mansion, after they emerged, her husband Lu Jinhe had arranged for everyone to board carriages and flee to Wutong Manor. He had spoken of the awe-inspiring sight of Lu Wu, alone on horseback, shattering the military formation. At the time, Lady Lu Chang had found it hard to accept her husband's account.

Who could believe that right under her nose, this boy Wu'er had been hiding so much? If one were to say that the boy had been deep and calculating since childhood, Lady Lu Chang would be the first to disagree—there had to be a reason to hide one's true nature, right? Their home had always been harmonious; what could possibly have prevented him from showing his skills? Furthermore, Wu'er had been notoriously lazy since he was young, failing at academics and practicing martial arts for less than an hour a day—not to mention sleeping until the sun was high in the sky every morning.

The family generals and martial arts masters practiced for at least two hours daily, yet they never dared claim they were diligent, only that they were barely maintaining their state. If Wu'er could learn martial arts with his method, they would all be willing to write their surnames backward—at the time, she and her husband had been quite disappointed.

Now, looking at these five handmaidens, they killed as easily as slicing through melons and vegetables. Lady Lu Yun saw only their ferocity, but Lady Lu Chang saw that they were veteran killers accustomed to taking lives. Such practiced, efficient killing methods were definitely not the marks of someone doing it for the first time—no matter how high one's martial skill, the first kill is always somewhat clumsy.

Combined with what her husband had said—that Wu'er had held his halberd and ridden his horse, walking through the enemy lines as if strolling in a garden, killing and dismembering with the ease of eating or drinking—it was clear that this boy had been up to things behind her back of which she knew nothing. No wonder he had been clamoring to move out of the Lu mansion.

"Yun'er, you know the situation of the Lu household now. We are in dire need of capable people. These five girls are rare warriors; we should be looking to recruit them, not push them away."

"But, Mistress—"

"Do you think Wu'er is a pushover? How do you think the siege on the Lu mansion was lifted?" Lady Lu Chang sneered.

"Was it not someone who came to our rescue?" Lady Lu Yun was confused. When the mansion was surrounded yesterday, she had felt as though the sky were collapsing, hiding in the secret room in a daze. Less than an hour later, she was told the siege was broken and everyone should flee to Wutong Manor.

"It was Wu'er. He charged in, broke through the military formation alone, and killed a hundred or two people to save us—otherwise, who do you think would be kind enough to risk their lives for the Lu family?"

"Ah!" Lady Lu Yun was stunned.

"The relationship between these five girls and Wu'er is likely not so simple. When we see him, we must interrogate him properly," Lady Lu Chang said through gritted teeth.

The sound of iron armor clashing caused the floor to tremble slightly. Lu Jinhe looked toward the entrance and saw four heavily armored 'handmaidens' escorting his son as he strode into the hall. The generals and guards on either side did not dare to block their path, and even the fifth-rank martial arts masters stepped aside.

"Lu Wu pays his respects to Father," Lu Wu said, bowing.

Behind him, the four handmaidens stood in a line. Clad in full armor, who would ever guess they were women if they didn't know better? Jin Lian hurriedly stood with them, and the five 'handmaidens' stood in a row, resembling a city wall; the light in the room seemed to dim.

"Father, Uncle Lin is safe, and brother-in-law Lin Zhong is also unharmed. Prince Jiu is dead, his son has gone missing, and Prince Yuan's son, Prince Ke Tu, will ascend to the throne tomorrow. Tomorrow, I will escort you back to the Lu mansion to settle down," Lu Wu said.

"What!" Upon hearing this, Lu Jinhe stood up abruptly. In his excitement, his arm accidentally knocked over his teacup, spilling the tea.

Lu Wu gestured with his hand. The teacup flew back, landing on the table, and the spilled tea swirled, returning into the cup. Not a single drop was lost.

Ignoring the display of his son's prowess, Lu Jinhe hurriedly asked, "Is this news reliable?" As the head of the Lu family, with the clan on the verge of destruction, the fear he had endured over the past two days was indescribable, all while having to feign composure. Now, hearing of such a earth-shattering reversal, it was a testament to his heart health that he remained standing.

"It is certainly reliable," Lu Wu promised.

"Wu'er, this is no joke—if this news is false, our entire family of hundreds will be left without a burial place!" Lu Jinhe stared at his son, his tone exceptionally grave.

"It is definitely true. I stayed at the Yuan residence yesterday, and it was Lady Ming Ji herself who told me," Lu Wu replied.

Lu Jinhe was overjoyed, then new questions flooded his mind. You stayed at the Yuan residence? Is that the Yuan residence? And who exactly is Lady Ming Ji?