As long as he gave her the dignity of being a wife, he wouldn't have done such disgraceful acts with her personal maid in her courtyard.
Lu Ziyuan wasn't unaware of how deep her feelings were with Er Xia and Er Qing.
Leaving her family and marrying into the Wuyuan Marquis Mansion, those two personal maids were the closest to her.
Yet he feared he hadn't hurt her enough, taking Er Xia into the rear courtyard and beating Er Qing to death.
Upon thinking of this, Xie Wanqing even regretted her soft words and kind demeanor towards Lu Ziyuan during the day.
Calling him Brother Ziyan, did he even deserve it?
Perhaps that gentle and considerate little childhood friend had long vanished, only to become a rotten person, yet she refused to believe it.
The mistress's gaze lingered a bit too long on her, and Er Xia had already noticed. Having been left at home all day feeling somewhat confused and wronged, she deeply bowed towards the dressing table after making the bed, "Did I make a mistake that upset you, miss?"
Xie Wanqing was gentle and easy-going; the two personal maids always spoke freely before her, never treading cautiously as if on thin ice.
Upon hearing this, she paused slightly before saying, "It's nothing."
In such a moment, she had already decided how to deal with this maid who had betrayed her in the dream.
Even though she was determined never to marry Lu Ziyuan and repeat past mistakes, she could not dare keep Er Xia by her side for long.
She vaguely remembered that after Er Xia was promoted to concubine in the dream, it had troubled Liu Manrou for a long time.
Both were of maid origin, but when looked into, Er Xia, as the maid accompanying the main wife, had an even higher status than Liu Manrou, who was once an outsider, never backing down and full of fighting spirit in front of her.
Thinking of this, a smile appeared on Xie Wanqing's face; they had served each other as master and servant, and she was willing to fulfill her intentions.
Find an opportunity to send her to Lu Ziyuan. As long as it displeased Liu Manrou, how delightful would it be to watch them bite each other like dogs?
Seeing her mistress smile, Er Xia relaxed a little, thinking she was being overly sensitive.
It wasn't until the next morning when Xie Wanqing went to pay respects to Mrs. Zheng and left her alone in the courtyard that Er Xia finally confirmed she had somehow become taboo and was cast aside by the always close mistress.
...
With the cousin's coming-of-age ceremony approaching, the family had to prepare for guests. Xie Wanqing did not go out these past two days but helped her mother and aunt organize the banquet and send out invitations widely to guests.
On the fourth day after Lu Ziyuan's return, rumors of him keeping a mistress finally spread in the Capital City.
Just like in her dream, the rumors were vivid and detailed, even clearly stating which street and house Liu Manrou was kept in, easy to verify upon inquiry.
The news was reported by Nanny Li personally. At that time, Xie Wanqing was busy writing invitations by hand, inviting her close friends to her cousin's coming-of-age ceremony.
Upon hearing the news, she merely paused her pen slightly, not even a drop of ink fell, and she continued her action.
Four days were enough to convince her parents of her determination to call off the engagement, and this news came just in time to urge her father and mother to quickly annul the marriage with the Lu Family.
In the evening, as Xie Wen and his son returned from their duties, they heard the news and their expressions showed no significant change.
In a few days, they had learned much about it, after all Lu Ziyuan did not specifically hide Liu Manrou's existence.
Mrs. Zheng's brows were full of worry as she looked at her delicate daughter and asked, "Wanwan, are you sure?"
Betrothed since childhood like paired butterflies, there were less than two months until the wedding, and now at the last minute, it was going to be called off.
Xie Wanqing nodded slightly, firmly saying, "Daughter will never marry Lu Ziyuan in this life."
"Good! If my daughter truly doesn't wish to marry, then this engagement is not worth regretting," Xie Wen put down the teacup in his hand, speaking, "Tomorrow, father will go to the Lu Mansion and call off this engagement; there's no reason for our family's daughter to suffer and marry."
Xie YanYu said, "I will accompany you."
"With such news just out, if our family shows up to break the engagement, the Lu Family likely won't agree," Mrs. Zheng said dejectedly, "There will inevitably be some entanglements yet to come."
"In my daughter's opinion, it's not certain," Xie Wanqing didn't think so. Her tone was slightly sarcastic, "Lu Ziyuan has deep feelings for that mistress, probably can't wait to break off the engagement with me."
...However, it might indeed be true that several ladies of the Lu Family wouldn't easily agree.
After the family decided on the details of the engagement annulment, after dinner, Xie Wanqing walked out of her parents' courtyard with her brother.
The night gradually fell; under the sunset, brother and sister walked side by side for a while and were about to part when Xie YanYu looked down at his sister's expression. Seeing that she was not upset, he relaxed a bit and reminded her, "Lu Ziyuan was blind not to see your worth. Breaking off the engagement with him is the best decision, and since you have already made up your mind, you must not let him affect you anymore."
"Got it," Xie Wanqing smiled slightly, "Brother, don't worry. I won't do anything to make myself regret again."
The pain and anger in the dream that made her vomit blood was something she never wanted to experience again.
...
Early the next morning, Xie's family father and son personally went to the Wuyuan Marquis Mansion.
Inside the Brocade Hall.
Xie Wanqing raised her hand to pour tea for Mrs. Zheng, looking at the dark circles under her eyes, feeling endlessly guilty: "Daughter is unfilial, causing mother to worry."
"Nonsense," Mrs. Zheng affectionately smoothed her hair. "Don't let your thoughts run wild."
She understood her daughter. For Wanwan to be so sensible and well-behaved since childhood and with her long-standing relationship with the gentleman from the Lu Family, unless truly hurt, if there were another way, she would never insist on breaking off the engagement.
As mother and daughter were speaking, Mrs. Liu came in with her daughter.
The Marquis Xuanping Mansion now had three households in total. Being a Miss Xie, calling off the engagement was not just about the main family; Xie Wen must have discussed it with his brother before going to the Lu Mansion, so Mrs. Liu and Xie Ruyu must be aware by now.
Upon entering and seeing Xie Wanqing, Mrs. Liu kept a calm demeanor, raising her eyebrows slightly and complimenting, "Wanwan, this smoky dress looks great on you today, which embroidery shop custom-made it?"
Xie Wanqing felt warmth in her heart, stood up to greet politely, answered her, but her eyes turned to the cousin behind her.
In these past days, Xie Ruyu had hidden away in her own courtyard, and she wasn't very close to this cousin. Even with her protective actions in the dream, she hadn't gone out of her way to bond.
So, this was the first time Xie Wanqing saw her after waking from the dream.
Xie Ruyu, clad in a scarlet cloud-patterned skirt, followed her mother closely. From the moment she entered, her eyes found the seated cousin on the soft chair, lips slightly pursed, wanting to speak yet holding back.
When the sisters' gaze met, seeing her cousin in this manner, Xie Wanqing smiled slightly, "Do you have something you want to say to me, Ayu?"
"I never thought you two didn't seem to get along usually, but she actually stands up for you. After all, you're blood sisters." Mrs. Liu chuckled from the side.
When mentioning the engagement annulment, her tone was completely ordinary, with not a hint of peculiarity.
Mrs. Zheng naturally appreciated the sentiment, a smile appearing on her face, and she said to her daughter, "I have some things to discuss with your aunt, you girls go play."