Madam, don't do this!

Chapter 319 Fang Lingyu (2)

In fact, Lin Xiangwan was not the first person to say this to Song Yan; the last one was Yang Miaoqing.

On the night she and Song Zhen died, Yang Miaoqing witnessed Song Zhen's execution and, in a moment of mental breakdown, revealed a secret she had kept hidden for many years: Song Yan's mother was already pregnant when Song Hongtao took her back to the Duke's mansion, a fact that Song Hongtao was unaware of.

Song Yan was skeptical of Yang Miaoqing's words.

Such matters cannot be judged based solely on Yang Miaoqing's words, especially since Yang Miaoqing was near death at the time and likely harbored ulterior motives, perhaps even intending to use him to eliminate Song Hongtao. Her credibility is questionable. Afterwards, Song Yan also conducted an investigation, but unfortunately, too much time had passed, making it difficult to gather useful information, and ultimately, the matter had to be shelved.

What truly surprised Song Yan was how Song An knew this secret.

Could it be that Yang Miaoqing told him?
That's impossible. In Yang Miaoqing's heart, only Song Zhen is her biological son. The others are all bastards with Song family blood. Their existence is just a constant reminder to Yang Miaoqing how filthy she is.

With this mindset, Yang Miaoqing could not possibly tell Song An the real secret.

Lin Xiangwan was smart; seeing Song Yan's expression, she knew he needed to process what he was going to say, so she kept quiet.

Song Yan fell into deep thought.

Things suddenly seem to have become more complicated.

He took a deep breath, trying to sort out the jumbled information in his mind, thread by thread.

First, Song Hongtao.

I underestimated this person. He already knew that I was not his biological son, yet he could still pretend that nothing had happened. Even when he was with me, he was no different from before, maintaining a slightly awkward distance.

Sure enough, none of these old foxes are simple.

As for Song An's request to obtain the formula, Song Hongtao didn't mention it at all, which Song Yan could understand.

After all, Song An wasn't his child. Song Hongtao probably hoped to see Song Yan, Song An, Song Huai, and the others fight to the death, until they were all bloodied and battered.

That's incredibly insidious.

Song Hongtao learned the truth through Song An.

So, where did Song An learn these secrets from?

Speaking of which, the note Song An left behind, Dongling, could it be hinting that the answer to his background might be found in Dongling?

But why would Song An remind himself of this?

What exactly is Song An's position in the Song family?
What was his purpose? Song Yan had a feeling that Song An seemed to know a lot of things.

Even with the clues sorted out, it's still difficult to find the truth... To take the imperial examination, one must go to Dongling; to report on one's duties, one must go to Dongling; and now, to find out about one's origins, one must also go to Dongling.

Suddenly, Dongling became the most important turning point in his life.

After a long silence, Song Yan slowly exhaled before looking up at Lin Xiangwan: "I am not Song Hongtao's son. Do you have any proof?"

“There is no concrete evidence, only inferences. First of all, you and Song Hongtao do not look alike at all,” Lin Xiangwan said.

Song Yan thought about Song Hongtao's appearance, then thought about his own, and it seemed that it really was like that.

"Secondly, from the time your mother entered the Duke's mansion to the time she gave birth to you, only nine months had passed. The mansion doctor said you were premature, so Song Hongtao had no doubts."

Song Yan nodded. As expected of a man who has been cuckolded countless times, he didn't even suspect anything. Judging from this, there is a very high probability that he is not Song Hongtao's son.

After confirming this, Song Yan felt a wave of relief wash over him.

This is truly a good thing.

After all, before, when Song Yan wanted to kill Song Hongtao, he had to consider the consequences of patricide, but now he has no such concerns at all.

Song Yan didn't ask about his biological father. Lin Xiangwan probably didn't know these things, and Song Yan wasn't very interested in finding his biological father. Who would be so bored as to find another father for themselves?
If that person is still alive, Song Yan wishes him good health.

If he were to confront Song Yan, Song Yan would likely not be very affectionate towards him.

Having never spent time together, there would naturally be no feelings involved.

However, Song Hongtao is truly pitiful. All of his biological sons born out of wedlock were killed by Yang Miaoqing; half of his biological daughters born out of wedlock have disappeared, and the other half married off early, so their lives are probably miserable now.

And none of the children that survived were his, including the one Lin Xiangwan was carrying.

Song Yan seriously suspected that if he told Song Hongtao the truth now, he might be so angry that he would become paralyzed.

"So, what is Song An's plan?" Song Yan pursed his lips and asked in a deep voice.

Lin Xiangwan thought about it carefully for a moment: "Probably, it's about taking advantage of the fact that you, Ninth Young Master, don't know the truth, and because of your experiences growing up, you crave family affection, so that Song Hongtao will treat you better, and that way you will be willing to spit out the formula."

laugh.

Song Yan laughed out loud. Just how much did Song An look down on him?

"Is there anything else?"

"It's gone for now."

“You did a good job.” Song Yan nodded. “Keep an eye on the other sons of the Song family, especially Song An. If there is anything urgent, you can inform Luo Tianshu first, and he will arrange for someone to send a message to me. Be a good boy and I guarantee that your secret will never be known for the rest of your life, and your children can inherit the Song family’s title and enjoy prosperity for generations to come.”

Lin Xiangwan quickly lowered her head: "Young Master, rest assured, I have no ulterior motives."

"That's good. Go back early, lest Song Hongtao become suspicious."

Lin Xiangwan bowed to Song Yan again, then braved the cold night wind and headed towards the Duke's mansion.

As for Song Yan, he returned to his own carriage. Even Nakhtoya, a girl with a carefree personality, could tell that Song Yan was in a good mood, and seemed to be able to fly, feeling much lighter.

……

Songzhou Prefecture.

Fang family.

Although he was the governor, Fang Hai did not live in the governor's mansion very often.

As one of the most powerful families in Ningguo, building a mansion for himself was naturally not a problem. No matter how luxurious it was, the censors and officials would not impeach him, since they all knew that the Fang family had such wealth.

The Fang family mansion, though still luxurious, has lost some of its liveliness and appears unusually deserted. At the main entrance, two white lanterns sway in the night breeze, their candlelight flickering and casting an eerie glow.

This year was a mixed blessing for the governor's office.

That year, thanks to Song Yan's influence, Fang Hai gained a lot of military merits and was even granted the title of marquis.

In the same year, Fang Hai's eldest son, Fang Jun, was assassinated and died.

Fang Hai's daughter-in-law, Princess Gaoyang, disappeared late at night. Fang Hai's legal wife, Jiang Miaojun, unable to bear the blow of her son's death, hanged herself.

This led to a farcical situation involving the eldest daughter, Fang Lingyue, and a scholar. To maintain the family's reputation, Fang Hai had no choice but to expel Fang Lingyue from the family register. Unexpectedly, Fang Lingyue, unable to cope with the situation, hanged herself.

This autumn has truly been a turbulent one.

Because of these many disasters, there was not a trace of joy or laughter in the Fang family during the New Year. Everyone knew that their master was in a bad mood recently and would not want to bring bad luck at this time.

It is now midnight.

The lights were still on in the study.

Fang Hai frowned, a blank memorial lying open in front of him, a brush in his hand, yet he hesitated to write.

for a long time.

Puff.

A drop of ink fell from the tip of the pen, shattered on the memorial, and spread, turning into a blob of black stain.

Fang Hai, somewhat annoyed, put down his brush and tossed the memorial aside. There were already quite a few similar memorials in that direction. He was a seasoned official, and naturally understood that the so-called "reporting on duties" mainly involved describing one's achievements in governing a region for a year before the emperor. For the original Fang Hai, this was no difficult task; achievements were something that could be made up as many as one wanted, and if one didn't have any, one could fabricate them—there was always a way.

But now, Fang Hai is in a dilemma.

The main reason is that his achievements this year are too dazzling.

He twice annihilated Japanese pirates, twice achieving victory against overwhelming odds and beheading tens of thousands—a feat even more remarkable than many famous generals. However, those within his own ranks knew very well who was primarily behind the annihilation of the pirates. The first time, he had absolutely nothing to do with it; the second time, he simply stood by, exclaiming a few words of praise, "Great job, amazing..."

Such merits, after some embellishment, would naturally be fine written in a memorial... but the problem is that once it's written, it's only for the last two months of the year, with the other ten months being uneventful, which seems somewhat abnormal. It's a pity that if Song Yan had stayed in Songzhou, or if Fang Hai had transferred him to Liaodong with Song Yan, Fang Hai believed that with Song Yan's abilities, the memorial would be filled with a dense list of achievements.

Suddenly, Fang Hai remembered Princess Luo Yuheng's relief efforts for the disaster victims. The princess resided in Ningping, which was under the jurisdiction of Songzhou Prefecture. This could be considered a merit on his part, right? He had, after all, sent a large amount of grain there, so he deserved some credit. As for the two months before the new year, he had lost his wife, his son, his daughter-in-law, and his eldest daughter had hanged herself. It was understandable that he was filled with grief and had no interest in official duties.

With this thought in mind, a smile slowly appeared on Fang Hai's face. He quickly took out another blank memorial and prepared to start writing.

at this time……

Bang bang bang!
A knock on the door suddenly sounded.

Fang Hai looked up and saw a familiar face standing in front of him.

"Uncle Fang, it's getting late, and I have nowhere to stay. May I come to your residence for a drink?"

Fang Hai's face instantly lit up with a smile: "Song Yan?"

The joy in that exclamation was impossible to conceal.

He jumped to his feet and asked, "When did you get back?"

"I returned to Ningping yesterday, and spent the whole day there. I was planning to come and visit Uncle Fang tonight to invite you to come to the capital with me," Song Yan replied with a smile. When he arrived at the Fang residence, he had hoped that the gatekeeper would come in to announce his arrival, but to his surprise, the gatekeeper led him directly to the study. Fang Hai had probably given him some instructions beforehand.

Fang Hai was overjoyed and quickly summoned the steward to properly settle the people Song Yan had brought. He then went to the guest hall with Song Yan. As a true heir of a wealthy family, Fang Hai naturally paid great attention to appearances. However, Song Yan was an old acquaintance, so he was a little more relaxed. There was a large charcoal stove in the guest hall, and the two of them sat on either side of it. A pot of wine was warming on the copper stove, and the warm heat swept over them, driving away the chill.

Song Yan had a good impression of Fang Hai.

He might not be a good official, or even a good person, but at least their interactions were pleasant, and the two cooperated quite well. Song Yan could tell that Fang Hai hadn't had a good time these past few months; deep fatigue was visible in his eyes, especially around his eyes, which were dark and gloomy, indicating that he hadn't had a proper rest in a long time.

Fang Hai may not care much about his wife Jiang Miaojun, or his daughter Fang Lingyue, and there is even a high possibility that they will die at Fang Hai's hands. But Fang Hai really cares about Fang Jun.

The death of the eldest son was a great blow to Fang Hai.

Thinking that Gao Yang was still in Pingyang Prefecture, Song Yan opened her mouth, but in the end, she could only sigh and remain silent. Fang Hai might not care much about that daughter-in-law, and telling him now that Gao Yang was still alive would probably not bring him any comfort; it might even intensify his grief over his son's death.

There are still many things Song Yan hasn't figured out, and telling Fang Hai now might not be a good thing.

Fang Hai temporarily forgot his depression and sadness, and happily asked Song Yan what he had been through during this period. When he heard that Song Yan and Jiao Junze had joined forces to enter the Jurchen territory and kill tens of thousands of Jurchens, Fang Hai's eyes were full of envy.

hateful.

He was the one who met Song Yan first.

It's such a waste that such a great achievement has been given away to that slutty and despicable Jiao Junze.

That would be a horde trampling of the royal court! If we could kill the Jurchen Great Khan, even being granted a dukedom wouldn't be out of the question. After all, Ning Kingdom hasn't seen such a feat of destroying a country in a long time.

Fang Hai sighed repeatedly: "Then when do you plan to set off for Dongling?"

"Let's do it tomorrow," Song Yan said. "It's already the twelfth, and if we delay any longer, we might miss the appointed time."

In fact, time is already quite tight.

If traveling by horse-drawn carriage, it should take three days, which is the evening of the fourteenth, to reach the Eastern Tombs.

If one were to ride a fast horse, the time could be halved, but Fang Hai's physique might not be able to withstand it.

Fang Hai nodded: "That's good. I've packed my things and I'm ready to leave anytime."

"Also, if you don't have a place to stay when you get to Dongling, you can come to my house. The Fang family also has quite a few properties in Dongling."

"A rich bastard," Song Yan muttered.

"what for?"

"I'm telling you you're very rich."

Fang Hai then said smugly, "That's true. Also, I have a niece in Dongling. You'll get to know her then."

Song Yan sighed helplessly. Fang Hai was still so determined to stuff women into his life.

Do they really want a marriage alliance that badly?

“Uncle Fang, is there really no need for this?” Song Yan rubbed his forehead, then casually picked up a candied fruit from the plate on the bronze stove and popped it into his mouth. It was sour and sweet, and tasted quite good. “Uncle Fang taught me a lot about the rules and principles of the court. These are mostly experiences that you can only understand after you’ve been through a lot.”

“The young man is not the kind of person who is ungrateful. Even without the marriage alliance, our relationship will not become distant.”

Now he has more and more women around him, and Song Yan even feels a little overwhelmed.

Fang Hai chuckled and said, "Nephew, don't refuse yet. My niece Lingyu is very outstanding and absolutely a beauty. You will definitely like her when you see her."

Lingyu?

Fang Lingyu?
Song Yan suddenly frowned.

For some reason, the name Fang Lingyu gave Song Yan a strange sense of familiarity.

(End of this chapter)