Chapter 488 — Springing the Trap

Lu Ming smiled and nodded at him, signaling that he should keep watching a while longer.

Inside the warm chamber, Song Cen had already roared: "Shut your mouth! What 'trysting'? Who says the Second Master was trysting with anyone?"

Only then did Du Ruo realize she had misspoken.

She stared at Song Cen in terror.

Song Yan gave a snort of laughter and said to the Prince of Liao: "Quite so—how could Song Han possibly tryst with his own father's chambermaid? It must be that Song Han drank too much and went into the wrong room. It is entirely a misunderstanding!"

The Prince of Liao's manner had by now recovered its former heartiness, and at these words he laughed aloud: "Yan Tang sees it clear enough. Song Han was merely drunk and went astray." Then, to Song Cen: "Let us be off! It was all a misunderstanding!"

Song Cen forced a smile onto his face, bent slightly, and invited the Prince of Liao to go first: "Just so, just so. Let us return to our wine!"

The three of them walked out.

Song Han opened his mouth as if to speak, then thought better of it.

But Liu Hong, hidden in the corner, sprang up and flung herself at Song Zhi's legs.

Song Yan deftly sidestepped and dodged it.

Liu Hong crashed to the ground, her lip split and bleeding, yet heedless of it all she crawled toward Song Yan. "Young Master, save me! This slave was forced into it by the Second Master—if I had refused, he would have sold me off to a brothel. I beg you, Young Master, spare this slave's life, and I will tell you everything..."

Eyes blazing, Song Han strode forward and kicked Liu Hong twice, hard, until she was coughing up blood.

But Liu Hong knew that if she could not turn Song Yan back, what awaited her was a fate more wretched than death.

She shrieked without restraint, "Young Master, it was the Second Master who made this slave drug the Second Madam, and who had me lure you into the warm chamber while the Second Madam lay unconscious, so that others would mistake you and the Second Madam for illicit lovers..."

This Song Han—how did he handle matters?

Since the scheme had been exposed, he ought to have crushed the wretch to death at once. How could he have let her prattle on to Hu Yan?

He turned and glared at Song Han, as though he wished to devour him whole.

As for Song Han, his face went white with rage, and he planted his foot on Liu Hong's chest.

With a shrill cry, Liu Hong's eyes flew wide; clutching her chest, she collapsed to the floor, life or death unknown.

Du Ruo screamed in terror.

Song Han lunged forward and seized Du Ruo by the throat.

Song Yan frowned slightly.

Suddenly from beyond the door came a voice of some authority: "What is going on here? Even if the maids have done something wrong, there is no need for such beating and shouting. Our Yingzhen Ducal Estate is no newly rich household—if word of this got out, would it not stir up gossip?"

The Prince of Liao could not help turning, and saw a woman enter, her hands hovering supportively beside a beautiful lady of seventeen or eighteen.

She was rather tall, with long brows sweeping to her temples, glances that sparkled with life, and a heroic, dashing air about her—like the warrior women of the storybooks.

It was Madam Dou!

His eyes narrowed.

He had long heard that Song Yan held this first wife of his, a year his senior, in the highest respect. The last time he saw her he had thought her pretty, but not like this—head high, strides bold, bearing incomparable.

Then he looked at the woman beside her, dressed in a jade-green jacket patterned with double gourds, a gold hairpin in her hair and lantern earrings of gold set with jade dangling from her ears. She was not tall, yet possessed a certain beauty, and her manner toward Madam Dou was most deferential. This must be Song Han's wife, Madam Miao.

The Prince of Liao smiled bitterly to himself.

By the look of it, the scheme had failed utterly!

He beat a timely retreat.

"This is a family matter of yours, so I shall take my leave first!" The Prince of Liao nodded with a smile to Song Yan and Song Cen, then swept away with his people.

A dead silence fell over the warm chamber.

Song Han stepped forward and dealt Miao Zhi a slap across the face. "Where did you run off to? Letting that little bitch Liu Hong spout such nonsense..."

Song Chu seized Song Han's hand and fixed him with a cold, silent stare.

His gaze flickered; he tried to wrench free of Song Chu's hand.

But Song Chu's hand was like iron pincers, and he could not move.

"Enough!" Song Cen barked. "Have you not disgraced us enough? Let go of him this instant!"