Rebirth: After Becoming the Villainess-Chapter 66: She’s an Expert at Putting on an Act

Chapter 66: Chapter 66: She’s an Expert at Putting on an Act

Chun De feigned annoyance. "Are you just like your Imperial Uncle? Must I personally come and invite you myself?"

Zhou Junlin chuckled. "Mother, I was wrong."

Chun De had a seat brought for him, placing him directly across from Song Xilan. She raised her eyes to steal a glance at her beloved, her face flushing in spite of herself.

"Speaking of which, I should have held a welcome reception for you long ago, after your return from quelling the rebellion in Qi Guan City."

Chun De was still magnanimous toward Zhou Junlin. She knew he was the Prince whom Emperor Cheng Xiao valued most, and very likely the future Emperor. Treating him well today was a way to secure a future for her own disappointing son.

"It is I who should have come to the palace to pay my respects to you sooner, Mother. Oh, speaking of which, where is Brother Wei? I don’t see him."

The mention of him filled Chun De with frustration. "Why bring him up out of the blue? For me, it’s out of sight, out of mind!"

Zhou Junlin let out a laugh. "Mother, Brother Wei is still young. Let’s not be too hard on him."

"Sixteen, and you call that young? When Biwu was sixteen, he was already leading troops into battle on the border! And him? All he does is fool around!"

Empress Chun De was an astute woman. She knew that even though her son was the sole legitimate heir, he was not fit to rule. Even if she managed to place him on the dragon throne, he would not be able to hold the empire securely. If he were to destroy the foundations of the Da Cheng dynasty, she and her son would be condemned throughout history. For this reason, her only wish in life was for her foolish son to live his days in peace. That in itself would be a blessing from their ancestors.

This was why she treated the other princes and princesses with kindness—all to ensure her son’s safety in the future.

Hearing the Empress mention his Imperial Uncle, Zhou Cangyan, Zhou Junlin’s brow twitched. He smiled and asked, "And Imperial Uncle? I don’t see him either."

"I’ve already sent for him. If he tries to give me the runaround again, he can forget about ever setting foot in Kunyi Palace again!"

Zhou Junlin smiled. "Imperial Uncle rarely attends such banquets. It is a testament to your influence, Mother, that he might come at all."

These words were pleasing to the ear. Chun De smiled, her gaze sweeping over to Song Xilan on her left. She said slowly, "He has worked hard on the border all these years. I see that he is getting on in years, yet he has not considered marriage. Both His Majesty and I are anxious on his behalf."

Hearing this, Song Xilan’s heart skipped a beat, and she instinctively looked up at Zhou Junlin.

’She never expected the Empress to have such intentions!’

’She had tried so hard to impress the Empress, not only to secure a powerful backer, but also in the hopes that the Empress would speak on her behalf when Zhou Junlin called off their engagement.’

’Who would have thought she was actually trying to arrange a match for Zhou Cangyan!’

’She had already experienced his inhumanity at the Prince Qing Mansion the other day. There was no way she would marry that cold-blooded, heartless man who killed without a second thought!’

Sensing the Empress’s keen interest in Xilan, Zhou Junlin secretly frowned.

Just then, Aunt Fang Xiu returned.

She leaned in and whispered into the Empress’s ear. Chun De looked puzzled. "I didn’t invite her."

"She is already waiting outside the Imperial Garden."

"...Very well, show her in."

Chun De was magnanimous by nature. No matter how much she disliked someone, it wasn’t right to turn them away after they had already come all this way.

Soon, Song Lianhe was brought into the Imperial Garden.

Before entering, she had met with Cao Ying.

The latter had readily admitted to ordering her kidnapping. Her brother was the head of the Imperial Guards, so requisitioning a few men was a simple matter. She also warned Song Lianhe not to even think about complaining to the Empress, because no one would believe her. After all, Zhou Lianhe’s reputation preceded her. Everyone knew that after Cao Ying herself, Zhou Lianhe was the most infatuated with Zhou Junlin. It wouldn’t be out of character for her to bribe palace staff to crash the Empress’s banquet.

Song Lianhe was at a loss for words.

’Well, she wasn’t wrong.’

’According to the original story’s tropes, she really did crash the banquet.’

"Why would you do this?" she asked.

"The enemy of my enemy is my friend. I may not like you, but I despise Song Xilan even more!" Cao Ying said viciously. "She’s a master of pretense, acting like she wants to seduce every man in the world just to use them! How is someone like that worthy of Prince Ling?"

Song Lianhe had to agree with the first part.

’As for the second half... it wasn’t so bad for the male and female leads to be fated for each other. At least that way, they couldn’t bring disaster to anyone else.’

’Take Cao Ying, for instance. Once she was forced to face reality, she could get married like she was supposed to. That was far better than stupidly waiting for a man who would never love her back.’

’Back when I read the novel, it seemed like Cao Ying was just shamelessly clinging to the male lead. But stepping outside of the character dynamics now, I can see that while Zhou Junlin never accepted her, he also never rejected her outright to her face!’

’I remember a part in the book where Su Huaqing asked him about it. He claimed that a woman’s dignity was paramount and that he didn’t want to cause her any embarrassment.’

’What a load of bullshit!’

’So Cao Ying isn’t humiliated now? It’s precisely because he never said anything cruel to her directly that her faint hopes solidified into a desperate obsession. She waited until she was past her prime before marrying a widower, only to end up being horribly abused. Even if Mr. Cao knew, he could only turn a blind eye. If she were to be divorced, she would probably have nothing but a lonely life in a temple to look forward to.’

’And Zhou Junlin? He managed to pull Mr. Cao onto his side.’

’The result was certainly interesting. I couldn’t tell if he was being intentionally manipulative or if it was just his main-character plot armor doing its thing.’

Seeing that she didn’t say anything, Cao Ying said disdainfully, "Are you still the Song Lianhe I know? What a wimp!"

In the past, the old Song Lianhe would have jumped at the chance to enter the palace with Cao Ying. That was precisely why Cao Ying had dared to take matters into her own hands, using a few imperial guards to abduct her and bring her here.

Song Lianhe gave her a helpless look. "If you put half the energy you use to chase men into mastering the arts, would Song Xilan even stand a chance? Or, failing that, if you’d gone into business, you’d have mountains of gold for a dowry by now! But no, you just had to fall for that heartless man!"

Just as she finished speaking, the Empress’s summons came.

Cao Ying found her behavior today odd. Worried she might speak recklessly, she quickly lowered her voice to issue a threat. "You opened a shop on East Street, didn’t you? If I can have you brought here from there, I can certainly make it impossible for you to do business there! So you’d better watch your mouth in a minute!"

Song Lianhe despised being threatened. She sneered, "I do what I want. It’s useless no matter what anyone else says. And Cao Ying, this is the last time."

"You..."

Cao Ying was startled by the chill in her eyes, and by something else—a faint trace of... pity.

In her long pursuit of love, she had endured her parents’ disappointment, even their rebukes, but none of it had ever swayed her.

She could endure any amount of fury, but she couldn’t stand the slightest bit of pity from others.

It felt as though she were crawling through an endless desert, where only one outcome awaited her, and hope was nowhere to be found.

Cao Ying’s anger flared. She silently cursed at Song Lianhe’s retreating back. ’Who the hell do you think you are to pity me?! I... I don’t need your pity!’ By the end, she had covered her face and squatted down, breaking into heartbroken sobs.