Chapter 62: What You Care About Is Yourself

He gave many instructions, all of which Father Song and the others memorized completely.

Song Shiwei had not expected her physical condition to be like this. Before losing consciousness, she had felt that her body was quite well, not even afflicted by a common cold.

"Thank you for your trouble, Doctor."

Weariness and fatigue lingered between her brows. "Doctor, how are the members of my family? Have they all been completely detoxified?"

"Didn't I tell you not to worry?" Father Song put on a stern face, feigning anger. "Just by looking at how well we are, you should know the poison has been cleared."

"Be a good girl and recuperate. Leave the rest to us."

Song Shiwei gave a bitter smile. "Father, you have all worked hard."

She truly never imagined her body could be in such poor shape.

Father Song lightly flicked her forehead and chided, "We are a family. When you say such things, it means you don't regard us as family."

"Besides, you have done so much for the family. What is wrong with us doing a little something for you now?"

His words won the approval of Song Mingting and the others.

"Father is right. Eldest Sister has done so much for us, so it is only right that we do something for her in return."

"Eldest Miss, just rest at ease and leave everything to us. We guarantee it will be handled impeccably."

Since her family had put it this way, Song Shiwei had no choice but to temporarily set aside all matters to focus on her recovery. Given her current physical state, even if she wanted to handle things, she simply could not.

"Seeing that the eldest Miss Song has woken up, I can finally set my mind at ease," Bai Bohan spoke up after remaining silent for quite a while.

Song Shiwei nodded toward him and apologized, "Please forgive me, Prince Ding, as I am unable to..."

Bai Bohan waved his hand to interrupt her, offering a warm and gentle smile. "Eldest Miss Song, I do not care for such empty formalities."

"Besides, given your and my relationship, there is even less need to mind these things."

Song Shiwei did not think much of it, but Song Mingxuan and the others repeatedly exchanged glances as they observed Bai Bohan. Why did they get the feeling that this man harbored ulterior motives toward their eldest sister?

"Shiwei!" Lady Li suddenly lunged forward in front of Song Shiwei.

Clinging to the donkey cart, she wailed miserably, "Please plead with your father for me, do not divorce me, please?"

Upon hearing this, Song Shiwei was stunned for a moment before she understood why her mother had been cast aside.

Her expression turned slightly cold, and her tone carried not a single ripple of emotion. "Mother, before this, Father had already warned you numerous times, but you clearly never took it to heart."

"I am your biological daughter. Disregarding my thoughts and my current condition, you were single-mindedly bent on forcing me into marriage."

"You didn't care whether the man was good or bad, nor did you care if he already had wives and concubines. You only cared about whether I could be married off."

Lady Li stammered in defense, "Shiwei, it is not as you say."

"I did it for you and the family..."

"Mother, that excuse is terribly flimsy," Song Shiwei interrupted her coldly. "If you truly had me and the family in mind, you would not have forced me into marriage on Liufang Road."

Father Song and the others stared at Lady Li with hatred and fury in their eyes, causing her to curl up in a ball, too cowed to utter another word.

She knew very well that insisting on Shiwei's marriage was not entirely for her or the family's well-being, but largely for her own reputation and pride. She did not want others to mock her in the future on the grounds that Shiwei was getting on in years and still unmarried, or had made a poor match.

"Mother, you have changed," Song Shiwei said in a low voice. "I do not know if this has always been your true nature, or if you have simply changed."

"Even when I broke off my engagement, you never forced me to do a single thing; you only comforted me."

With that, having no strength left to speak, she closed her eyes and lay back on the donkey cart to rest.

Seeing this, Song Mingting grabbed Lady Li, hauled her up, and tossed her aside. "Get lost! Stop disturbing my eldest sister's rest here!"

He threw a few punches into the air. "If you dare come and bother my eldest sister again, see how I beat you."

Knowing that he was entirely capable of doing so, Lady Li scrambled away in a panic, terrified of being beaten.

She sat huddled on the ground, her eyes gradually losing focus. She could not comprehend how things had come to this pass. Clearly, before all of this, everything had been fine, and she could still enjoy the care and support of her family.

"You wretched woman!" Song Shilan rushed in front of her without warning, pinned her head down, and began slamming it against the ground.

"Why must you usurp my mother's position as the legal wife? Why didn't you die sooner?"

"If you hadn't usurped my mother's position as the legal wife, how could I have become a concubine-born daughter... No, no, it should be you who registered me under your name."

Alternating between clarity and madness, she muttered, "Mother, I am your biological daughter. Why did you let someone as base and cheap as Concubine Qin raise me?"

Simply seeing her in this state terrified Lady Li so much that she dared not offer any resistance. "No, Song Shilan, listen to me... Ah, my hair!"

Song Shilan viciously tore out a handful of her hair, the roots stained with blood and flesh, presenting a horrifying sight.

Song Shilan giggled foolishly. "I am the legitimate daughter, I am the legitimate daughter now..."

"No one will ever dare call me a concubine-born daughter again... No, I am not a base concubine-born daughter. That wretch Song Shiwei is the base concubine-born daughter; she is inferior to me in every way."

"Mother, let us mother and daughter join forces to deal with those wretches and see if they dare disrespect us ever again. What do you say?"

Terrified that Song Shilan would go mad again and rip out more of her hair, Lady Li agreed repeatedly. Protecting herself with both hands, she inched away cautiously, praying that the Song family members would come to her rescue.

Father Song and the others merely glanced at this farce and went back to whatever they were doing.

Concubine Chun and Song Shiyue brewed medicine for Song Shiwei.

Concubine Liu and the others lit fires on the spot to cook food and boil water.

Song Mingxuan and his two brothers set about building a simple shed to block the scorching sunlight.

Since it was inappropriate for Bai Bohan to stay long, he took his leave after bidding farewell to Father Song.

Father Song glanced at Zhang Huai and the other bailiffs, then sat down on the ground to ponder their next route. Considering all the current circumstances, he felt it necessary to make a detour.

Taking a suitable detour might yield unexpected developments and gains.

"Captain Zhang." He cheerfully beckoned to Zhang Huai.

Zhang Huai felt his scalp tingle and immediately walked over to him.

"Official Song." He offered a proper bow.

Father Song invited him to sit down before speaking, "Captain Zhang, I am thinking of taking a detour."

Failing to understand, Zhang Huai looked utterly bewildered. "Huh?"

Father Song stated directly, "Given the current circumstances, taking a slight detour might be for the best."

"Once we reach the next town to resupply, instead of following the original route, we will take a detour. That way, we can maximize our chances of keeping our lives."

Zhang Huai roughly understood and scratched his head. "Official Song, if we leave the imperial highway and take a detour, we will only have minor paths to walk on."

"Those paths are difficult to traverse and might even have wild beasts. They are not necessarily safe."