The abstinent and powerful minister is cold and aloof during the day, but he adores her in his dream

Chapter 67 Innocence Gone
Before long, they arrived at the Duke of Dingguo's residence.

Zhiwan secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

Seeing that the rain outside had subsided considerably, she stood up and curtsied to Lu Zhan, saying, "Thanks to you, cousin, otherwise we would still be stuck in the teahouse and unable to get back."

"It's just something that happens to be on the way," Lu Zhan said casually.

Back at Yaoguang Pavilion, Shuang'er, worried that Zhiwan might catch a cold, quickly prepared hot water for her to bathe and also brewed ginger tea for her.

Zhiwan nestled in the quilt, holding a bowl, sipping ginger tea slowly. Her body, which had been a little chilly, finally warmed up.

"Miss, the Fourth Miss has sent someone to invite you to come and sit down." At this moment, Dongxiang reported from outside the door.

Lu Lan?

Zhiwan was taken aback, somewhat surprised.

She didn't have much of a relationship with Lu Lan, although they had never been enemies. This sudden invitation reminded her of the last time Lu Xin had also invited her over for a chat.

She didn't go that day, but Lu Lan had an accident that day.

She didn't want to have anything to do with either of the sisters.

After all, people's hearts are unpredictable, and she didn't want to gamble with people's hearts.

Thinking it over, she said, "I got caught in the rain and caught a bit of a chill. The Third Miss is getting married tomorrow and can't afford any mishaps, so I won't go. I'll go see the Fourth Miss another day when I feel better."

"Yes," Dongxiang replied, then told the maid Lu Lan had sent, and the maid left dejectedly.

"Miss, would you like to lie down for a while?" Shuang'er asked.

"Mm." Zhiwan nodded.

She was very tired in the carriage, and now that there was nothing else to do, she decided to rest for a while.

However, she had only been lying down for a short while when Lu Lan came over on her own.

Zhiwan was about to fall asleep and didn't want to get up, but since the person had already arrived, she couldn't very well turn them away. So, while getting dressed, she asked Shuang'er to invite the person to sit in the outer room.

When Zhiwan finished getting ready and went out, Shuang'er had already served tea.

Lu Lan sat on the soft couch, holding a teacup, but didn't drink a drop. She kept her head down, seemingly lost in thought.

Seeing that Lu Lan had lost a lot of weight, Zhi Wan called out to her softly, "Lu Lan."

"Sister Zhiwan," Lu Lan called out with a smile as she put down her cup.

“Lu Lan, I just came back from outside and got caught in the rain, so I caught a bit of a chill and didn’t come to see you,” Zhi Wan said, sitting down next to her.

“I heard it from the maid,” Lu Lan said. “I didn’t want to disturb your rest, but I’m really anxious, so I wanted to talk to someone.”

Looking at her pale face, Zhiwan didn't know what to say to comfort her.

Since it hasn't happened to her personally, anything she says now will sound like she's talking from a position of privilege and doesn't understand the situation.

So she simply didn't say anything, but just shook Lu Lan's hand.

Lu Lan didn't seem to want to listen to her; she continued talking to herself.

"That day, my second brother asked me to go to my third sister's room to keep her company. So I went. My third sister, who always looked down on me, was very attentive to me that day. She poured me tea and gave me snacks."

I originally thought that she had finally calmed down after being confined by her mother for so long, but I never expected that she would put drugs in her tea.

Before I lost consciousness, I saw a man go into the house.

"When I woke up, I had already lost my virginity..." As she said this, tears streamed down her face. Zhiwan felt sorry for her and quickly took out a handkerchief to wipe away her tears.

Lu Lanqiang smiled and said, "My third sister made a huge fuss, saying that I had seduced my future brother-in-law and refused to marry him. So my father and mother decided to let me take my place in the marriage."

Although I didn't know anything about the Chen family or what kind of person Chen Hongwen was, I knew that the Chen family was not a good place to go because my third sister had schemed against me to avoid marrying into the family.

But I had already had a relationship with Chen Hongwen, and my father and mother insisted that I take my place in my third sister's marriage. I had no other choice, so I threw myself into the lake.

"It's a pity I didn't die..."

Zhiwan remained silent, listening to her slowly recount her story.

"...It was my aunt who invited a doctor to examine me and found out that I had a drug in my body. My aunt seized on this and made a big fuss, which made my father and mother change their minds and stop letting me marry in place of my third sister."

My aunt found out that Chen Hongwen's two previous wives had died mysteriously, both within a year of their marriage. My aunt guessed that Chen Hongwen must have done it.

That's why Lu Xin refused to marry him.

If I were to marry into that family, I would be doomed.

Fortunately, my aunt had a doctor examine me. Despite all her scheming, Lu Xin ultimately decided to marry him herself.

At this point, Lu Lan smiled, looking rather pleased.

Zhi Wanxin thought to herself: From beginning to end, Lu Xin brought this upon herself.

“Although I don’t have to marry him, I’ve lost my innocence,” Lu Lan said sadly. “Sister Zhiwan, I heard from Lu Xin that she originally invited you over to talk that day, but you didn’t go, so she came to me instead.”

Zhiwan frowned slightly. "She did ask Second Brother Lu to invite me over that day, but I wasn't feeling well, so I didn't go."

"If only you had gone there," Lu Lan said softly.

"What did you say?" Zhiwan didn't hear clearly and couldn't help but ask.

"It's nothing." Lu Lan shook her head, staring at her beautiful face, and said enviously, "Actually, Sister Zhiwan, the person I envy the most is you."

"Envious of me?" Zhiwan asked, puzzled.

What is there to envy about a lonely orphan girl living under someone else's roof?
“Although you have no father or mother, your aunt treats you like her own daughter and loves you dearly. As for me, although I have parents, I live on the edge in this mansion, and I am not even as good as a servant.” Lu Lan said with a bitter expression.

"Lu Lan, everything will be alright, don't be sad," Zhi Wan still tried to comfort her.

“But my body is no longer clean, how can it get better? No one will want to marry me unless I marry an old widower,” Lu Lan said sadly.

“Don’t be so pessimistic. When the old lady returns to the manor, you can ask her to make the decision for you. After all, you are a young lady of the Lu family. It shouldn’t be difficult for you to find a good marriage,” Zhiwan said.

Lu Lan shook her head with a smile. "Grandmother doesn't have time to pay attention to me. Although I am her granddaughter, I can't compare to Aunt Jinglan. Grandmother's thoughts are all on Aunt Jinglan. Speaking of which, I really envy you and Aunt Jinglan. Even though you have no blood relation to the Lu family, one of you has received Aunt's care, and the other has occupied Grandmother's heart."

Zhiwan was taken aback, her heart filled with complex emotions.

She lost her parents at a young age and had no relatives. If it weren't for her aunt taking her in, she would probably have starved to death, frozen to death, or been sold by someone.

She was grateful to her aunt, but the feeling of living under someone else's roof was not pleasant.

She wanted a home of her own, so she wouldn't have to suffer other people's disdain anymore.

However, Lu Lan envied her situation.

In fact, Lu Jinglan, whom Lu Lan mentioned, was different from her. Lu Jinglan was picked up by the old lady Lu. She entered the mansion before Lu Lan and was raised by the old lady Lu as her goddaughter. She was cheerful and lively, and also eloquent, which made her very popular with the old lady Lu.

Almost everyone in the household disliked her.

(End of this chapter)