V2: Chapter 97: Love-Brained Fools
Liang Di took out a handkerchief, dampened it with water, and wiped the dust off Carol's face.
She gently cupped Carol's face and carefully wiped away the dust with the damp handkerchief. Her movements were gentle and meticulous, as if afraid of hurting Carol. Carol nestled in Liang Lin's arms, feeling the warmth of another mother's embrace and the gentle wiping, and gradually, she became sleepy, her eyelids drooping, and a relieved smile appeared on her face.
Watching Liang Di wipe Carol's cheeks, Liang Lin couldn't help but fall into deep thought.
She remembered how Carol looked when she was first born. She was so small then, a tiny tentacle, looking so soft and fragile, needing her meticulous care. And now, Carol had grown into a lively and adorable child, able to play and explore the world on her own.
Liang Lin felt an immense sense of relief, like when she was a child playing house with other kids. It was all so surreal; such a big child had actually come from her womb. Liang Lin gently shook Carol twice, a smile gradually appearing on her face.
Only after wiping the dust off Carol's face did Liang Di turn her head to the other side, looking at the woman her sister Liang Lin had mentioned.
She squinted her eyes.
"Hmm, this person seems to be..."
"Ah..."
Just then, Carol let out a big yawn, interrupting Liang Di's thoughts and memories. She subconsciously turned back to look at her daughter.
As drowsiness gradually crept in, Carol's eyelids began to grow heavy. Her little head tilted back slightly, and the corners of her mouth involuntarily parted, forming a cute, horizontal parenthesis.
Her eyes, driven by the yawn, became somewhat hazy, as if shrouded in a thin layer of mist. At this moment, Carol's eyes no longer held their usual liveliness and curiosity, but were filled with sleepiness. This change in her gaze made her look even smaller and cuter, filling both of her mothers with tenderness.
"Ah..."
Carol yawned again.
Unlike the heavy, drawn-out yawn of an adult, it was short and crisp.
Her shoulders shrugged slightly, and her fingers unconsciously curled up, as if searching for a warm corner to lean on. These small movements were noticed by Liang Lin and Liang Di, and Liang Lin hugged her even tighter.
"She's probably sleepy. Let her sleep. Children are always sleepy," Liang Lin whispered to Liang Di. "Don't worry about her. Let's keep our voices down; we won't disturb her. Go check on that woman now."
Liang Lin's sixth sense told her that this woman's identity was important.
Because her thoughts had been interrupted, when Liang Di looked at the woman again, her mind went blank; she couldn't remember anything.
She pondered for a moment, finally connecting the dots with her earlier memories.
"Oh! I remember!"
Liang Di slapped her thigh. "It's Hedy Cromwell, the Cromwell family's daughter!"
"Oh?"
Although Liang Lin didn't listen to gossip much, she had heard a little about this woman; after all, she was incredibly famous in aristocratic circles.
Hedy Cromwell, that girl, was known in those circles as a hopeless romantic.
She'd eloped with a commoner boy at least a dozen times, each time being caught by her family, but she remained unrepentant, determined to live a miserable life of foraging for wild vegetables with that boy.
"Giving up a perfectly good noble life to elope with a man? And I heard that man isn't very good to her, apparently... he has some kind of fiancée?"
"Yeah, I don't know what tricks that guy has up his sleeve, he's got Miss Cromwell completely infatuated, and she just won't let go."
"I think she's just had enough of the good life and wants to experience the life of a commoner."
These were the other young ladies' opinions of Hedy, which Liang Lin had heard at least ten times at the few tea parties she attended. It was safe to say that Hedy was not only a notorious woman figure in aristocratic circles, but also a notorious laughingstock. Her affairs were always brought up for ridicule and mockery.
"Oh... so it's her. That's pointless then."
Liang Lin lost interest in this woman. She had initially thought this woman might be of some help to the Langwendi family, but it turned out she was just a love-brained idiot. It seemed even her sixth sense could be wrong.
“No, she's very significant.”
Liang Di looked at Hedy with interest. She, who had been squatting on the ground, stood up.
“Sister Liang Lin, you probably don't know, but ever since her thirteenth failed attempt to elope with that man, she's been locked in her room by her family, practically under house arrest.”
Liang Di smiled. “Now, I don't know how, she's actually able to come out and admire the flowers. I've wanted to find her for a long time, but I haven't had the chance. I can't very well say I'm going to Cromwell's mansion to pay a special visit to this useless young lady, can I? Telling anyone would arouse suspicion.”
Liang Lin frowned, puzzled. “Isn't she just a foolish young lady who wants to elope with a commoner? What good would that do? What she says will help us?”
As time passed, the rain gradually subsided, eventually turning into a light drizzle. The nobles put on their cloaks and capes, preparing to leave the castle.
People around them gradually left, and the rain gradually subsided. Seeing Hedy grab her coat, about to get up and leave, Liang Di didn't have time to answer Liang Lin's question or explain. She hurriedly left behind a sentence: "Wait a minute, Sister Liang Lin, I'll explain when I get back. I can't let her go!" After saying that, she immediately ran off to Hedy's side.
"Miss Hedy!"
Hedy had just stood up when she heard a voice, a rather loud one, like a thunderclap.
Liang Di couldn't reach Hedy in time, so she could only shout to stop her. By the time Hedy stopped and looked towards the source of the voice, Liang Di had already run up to her.
"Miss Hedy."
Liang Di's face was filled with an innocent smile, like other noble ladies, untouched by the corruption of society. She bowed to Hedy.
“Miss Hedy, if I’m not mistaken, is it you?”
Hedy looked at the other woman with a puzzled expression.
“I don’t think I recognize you. Miss, where have we met before? I have no recollection of it.”
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