How could I possibly be confined in a cage?

Chapter 141: Conspiracy (2)

Who knew that Master Song would happen to be in the corridor at that moment, and bump right into him. Song Yuanliang had something on his mind, so he could only pretend to be calm and turn around to block Du Juan's figure.

"It's nothing, I just made an appointment with a friend and am on my way to a banquet."

Master Song looked at Song Yuanliang, who dared not look him in the eye, but the leather suitcase he was carrying looked very familiar.

"Oh? Who is it?"

"It's the Financial Secretary's youngest son. School is about to start, and he asked me to go out and have some fun."

What's that box in your hand?

Song Yuanliang tensed up, gripping the box tightly in his hand. Fortunately, Quan had thought of everything and put another box over Yan Ru's box.

"The box is full of books he wanted. You know he doesn't like to study, and the director always dislikes him. Now that school is about to start, he's cramming at the last minute."

Master Song didn't believe it. He could tell from Song Yuanliang's appearance that he was clearly dodging, and what was wrong with the servant next to him? He was trembling and had no manners at all.

"open to take a look."

Song Yuanliang's heart skipped a beat, and Du Juan was even more frightened, her face turning pale. "Father...don't you believe me? I'm such a grown-up, I still have to ask permission three times before I go out."

Master Song had a gut feeling that Song Yuanliang was going to find Yan Ru. Now that everyone knew the Lü family had been exonerated, there was no reason why his son wouldn't know.

"Who did you bring, Quan?"

Song Yuanliang broke out in a cold sweat, fearing that Master Song would drag Dujuan over to examine her. Dujuan, on the other hand, dared not move an inch.

"No, it's just a servant in my courtyard. Please don't ask any more questions. He's waiting for me, and I'm in a hurry, so I'll be going now."

After saying this, Song Yuanliang pulled Dujuan away in a hurry, not daring to pass by Master Song, and quickly passed through the garden next to them.

Master Song simply didn't say it aloud, but he had already recognized who the person next to Song Yuanliang was. He noticed the unusual way she walked, head down and neck hunched, as if afraid of being recognized. A fragrant breeze wafted through the air where she passed; he recognized the scent—it was the scented candle Yan Ru usually used.

This is interesting. How did Dujuan get involved with Yuanliang, and how did she cause him to disobey his own father and take away the criminal slave?

When did they meet, and is it related to Yan Ru?

Yuanliang's excuse was too far-fetched. Master Song beckoned, and Song Yi immediately followed. "Go, secretly follow them and see where my good son went and what he did."

"Yes." Song Yi accepted the order and left.

Just then, the steward came to report, "Master, Song Fu has returned."

Upon hearing the name, Master Song was momentarily stunned before he realized what was happening and said, "Bring him to the study."

In the Song family's study, Song Fu was reporting the news to Master Song. "Master, please forgive me. I only learned of this news two days later. As soon as I heard it, I came back to report to you."

Song Fu was very annoyed. He had been undercover in the home of the prison warden Cheng Ping for a long time, but he had never gained Cheng Ping's trust. He even heard the news of Lü Peijun's release from prison from someone else. He could only hope that the master would not be angry with him.

Master Song was truly furious. He had sent Song Fu to get close to the warden to gather information, though he had later forgotten about it. But that was no excuse for his lack of diligence. Now, he only learned that Lü Peijun had been released when the warden came knocking on his door.

"You deserve to die!" Master Song angrily slammed the teacup down on him. "Tell me, what have you been doing? Why are you so out of touch?"

Scalding hot tea splashed on him, but Song Fu didn’t dare to dodge. He explained, “Although Cheng Ping is a gambler by nature, he is very cautious. For more than half a year, he has never treated me like a human being, but like a servant. I have been ordered around by his family to gather information.”

"Oh? You couldn't even get a single piece of information out of the box? So you've been working as someone's slave for the past six months?"

"I wouldn't dare. Although I haven't found out about this matter, I have heard another piece of news."

Master Song's gaze was icy, and one look from him was enough to frighten Song Fu into not daring to move.

He immediately said, "Cheng Ping is a gambler, losing more than he wins, but his wife is strict, so he doesn't usually spend much money at the gambling den. But recently, he's been throwing away several times more money than before, and he's suddenly become very wealthy. I found this suspicious, so I secretly started following him..."

At this point, Song Fu paused, carefully choosing his words before continuing, "He's been in contact with several tomb raiders lately, I don't know why?"

Master Song asked, "Why are you saying all this?"

"I think Cheng Ping has been acting suspiciously lately. Maybe he's discovered some big tomb and is up to some petty theft. Sir, why don't you... follow him secretly and reap the benefits?"

"You scoundrel! I'm not so poor that I have to dig up graves. I asked you to keep an eye on Cheng Ping so that you could find an opportunity to rescue Lü Peijun. Have you forgotten all about that?"

Master Song's anger flared, growing angrier with each word. If it weren't for his inaction, such crucial information wouldn't have been missed. And now he was being told to go pick up the scraps from a few tomb raiders? They were utterly disregarding his status as the richest man in Sifang City.

Master Song slapped Song Fu hard across the face, turning half of Song Fu's face crooked. The steward was terrified and quickly protected Song Fu, saying, "Master, you mustn't!"

Master Song was furious and ignored the butler's suggestive glances. He then kicked Song Fu hard, and Song Fu vomited blood on the spot.

"How could you say that? It's crude and despicable, truly something you're born with."

Song Fu glanced over discreetly, his eyes flashing with resentment and a hint of doubt in his heart. His parents had died for the Song family, and yet Master Song dismissed it all with such crude and despicable words? It was truly unworthy.

The housekeeper was busy trying to calm Master Song down. Ever since the day the sixth concubine was forcibly taken away, Master Song's temper had gotten worse every day, and he even forbade anyone to mention her.

Song Fu is really something. He didn't bring such important news on the same day, but instead waited two days. He's definitely not competent.

It took Master Song a long time to calm down. Song Fu knelt on the ground without moving, the blood dripping from the corner of his mouth itching terribly, but he dared not scratch it.

After taking a sip of the tea the butler handed him, Master Song said, "Alright, let's not mention this matter again. To make amends, I'll assign you another task. Are you willing to accept it?"

Song Fu naturally had no objection. "Please speak, sir. I will do my utmost to fulfill my duty."

"You don't need to do anything. Since Cheng Ping's family hasn't discovered your identity for so long, you must have some crooked talents. You don't need to go to his house anymore. Disguise yourself and go to the Lü family, that is, Lü Peijun's house. You can be a cook or a cleaner, just stay quietly. You don't need to do anything, just report their situation to me in detail."

Song Fu's eyes flickered for a moment, then he immediately agreed, "Yes."

"Go down."

Master Song was exhausted and closed his eyes, unwilling to speak any more. The butler understood and led Song Fu out, quietly closing the door behind him.

As soon as he stepped out of the hospital, Song Fu dared to straighten up and rubbed his swollen and painful cheeks. "Uncle Butler, is my information really worthless?"

The butler glared at him, then looked around. “Don’t hold a grudge. The master wasn’t wrong about you. First of all, you haven’t managed to get into prison after all this time. Secondly, as the warden, he should be the first to know about Lü Peijun’s release. You were at his house, and he only found out two days later. Tell me, if you were in his shoes, wouldn’t you be angry?”

Song Fu opened his mouth, unable to refute, "I did make a mistake, so is the subsequent message useless?"

The butler sighed, "You're young and don't know that what the master hates most is grave robbing. Besides, is the mission the master sent you out the same as what you're inquiring about?"

The butler straightened his back and said arrogantly, "Our Song family is the richest family in Sifang City. Would we care about such small fry? Don't underestimate the Song family."

Song Fu was now completely convinced. "Yes, you're right. I actually became dumber after going out like this."

"Sigh," the butler patted his head affectionately, "You, I thought you were going to do great things because of your cleverness. Couldn't you see that Cheng Ping was on guard against you? You should be more careful."

Song Fu thought about how he had been humble and subservient for the past six months, and had even lived and eaten with the Cheng family. Could it be that they had never believed him at all?

The butler understood when he saw him like this: "You're still young, how can you compete with an old fox like Cheng Ping?"

"Why is he being wary of me? Is it because I'm the original homeowner's only relative?"

"I wouldn't know that. You'd better do a good job with the new task the master gave you, and don't mess it up again."

"Hmm." Song Fu agreed in a muffled voice, and the butler turned around to go back to serve Master Song.

As Song Fu was leaving the hospital, a fleeting image of her holding a breath at the bottom of the Mi River flashed through his mind.

I'm coming to your house soon, what secrets do you have?