Chapter 1017 - A Couple’s Plan Made on the Bed
Chapter 1017 A Couple’s Plan Made on the Bed
Shao Wanru had a hunch: more dark secrets in Marquis Xing’s Mansion would be exposed this time. As for Wang Shengxue in the Ministry of Justice, she didn’t care whether he was dead or alive.
A person like Wang Shengxue should have died long before!
In her previous life, Shao Wanru had even sympathized with him. Even though her reputation had been ruined because of him, she didn’t blame him for that. Now that she thought about it, it was simply ridiculous. Such a scheming and ambitious person had done many dirty jobs for Madam Jiang. Again and again, he dragged her back into a genuinely tragic fate. How could he be innocent?
He acted as a deadly weapon for the Marquis Xing’s Mansion, which would soon be abandoned…
“So what if she has an honorary title?” A similar question sounded in the Marquis Xing’s Mansion. There was no one else in the room except for the young couple talking under the candlelight.
However, their private conversations were not sweet at all. One reclined on the bed, and the other sat on the chair, both frowning slightly.
Zhao Xiran exhaled deeply and said, “Just now, Princess Chen sent some items here and also delivered some mean words to me. I knew our mother didn’t get along well with her, so I didn’t take it seriously. But later on, I thought that given her unpleasant character, Concubine Jiang must have offended many people. Now that she lost power and influence, I’m afraid something bad might happen to her. So I hurriedly sent my trusted old maid there to protect her.”
Zhao Xiran told him the cause and effect. The meaning behind it made Shao Hua’an frown more deeply. Though she seemed to say Princess Chen was harsh towards them, her main point here was not about Shao Wanru. Suddenly, Shao Hua’an remembered something and the veins between his eyebrows twitched violently.
“I suppose no one in our mansion would hurt her, but I’m still worried…” Zhao Xiran said silkily, trying to sound out his intention.
Shao Hua’an interrupted her, “You did the right thing. Concubine Jiang had offended many others, so it’s better to guarantee her safety first. One old maid is not enough, and we should send a few more to her place. Although she is now a concubine, she is my biological mother, after all, and has been sick recently. Ask some people to take good care of her, and don’t let these servants insult her.”
Zhao Xiran looked up at her husband in great surprise. He had been indifferent to his mother’s suffering and was even annoyed with her. However, this time, he acted completely different from before.
Zhao Xiran pinched her handkerchief and ventured, “In our mansion, only Third Aunt is hostile to her so that she might dock her living allowances. But I don’t think Third Aunt will do something more serious to her!”
Shao Hua’an bowed his head in silence. After a long while, he got to his feet and walked to the window, glancing discreetly around. Then he reached out to put down the curtains. Finally, he turned back to the bed and sat down on the bed beside Zhao Xiran, reaching out to take Zhao Xiran into his arms. “My father has a mistress outside!”
“Ah…” Zhao Xiran was slightly taken aback, for she didn’t know about this. Shao Jing usually looked very kind and didn’t look like a person who would do such an immoral thing. “You… you must have made a mistake, right?”
“It can’t be wrong. Concubine Jiang told me that… he had kept a woman outside our mansion. If my father wants to get rid of her at this time, Concubine Jiang will indeed be in danger.”
Shao Hua’an said with some embarrassment and annoyance on his face.
It must be tough for a son to handle such a touchy situation. Everything happened in a short time. He never considered it this way, but Zhao Xiran’s words reminded him.
For the time being, considering the conflicts of their interests, his father might not be on the same side as him.
Previously, with their shared interests, he was sure that Shao Jing would not marry another noble lady. But now, he was uncertain about that.
“Since she is a mistress, her status should not be high. Father won’t marry her, will he?” Zhao Xiran asked.
“Who knows? Maybe he will take her in. According to my mother, they had been together for a long time,” Shao Hua’an said, feeling unaccountably agitated. He shouldn’t have worried about this kind of thing, but at such a critical moment, he had to take tremendous energy to settle it.
The longer he considered it, the angrier he was with Madam Jiang. How could she end up in a helpless situation like this? Even the Empress Dowager was disturbed.
“No, he won’t. Don’t worry about it.” Zhao Xiran, though in great trepidation, tried to stay calm. “Have you forgotten what I just said? Concubine Jiang still has a title. Maybe the Empress Dowager forgot to deprive her of the honor, or the Empress didn’t remember to do it.”
Generally speaking, the Empress was the one in charge of noble madams’ honorary titles, but the Empress Dowager had the right to interfere if she wanted to do it.
Somehow, due to the negligence of either the Empress Dowager or the Empress, Madam Jiang became a fish out of the net.
“Concubine Jiang is a mandated concubine. In this respect, if our father wants to marry someone else, the woman must have a high status. Otherwise, how could she suppress a concubine with a title?” Zhao Xiran analyzed.
“But now, it’s just that people in the Palace have forgotten this matter. At any time, another imperial edict may come from the Palace to abolish the title!” Shao Hua’an was terribly upset.
“It won’t happen!” Zhao Xiran shook her head with certainty.
“Why?” Shao Hua’an didn’t understand.
Zhao Xiran thought for a moment and explained, “There is a principle: a person shall never be punished twice for the same offense! Even noble people in the Palace have to play by the rules!”
Madam Jiang had been degraded from a legal wife to a concubine for her wrongdoings. According to this principle, no one was allowed to punish her once again for the same thing. Therefore, it was not right to deprive her of the title at this time.
Back then, the Empress Dowager could issue an imperial edict to remove her noble title and pull her down from the position of legal wife. But since Madam Jiang had already born the consequence, it would be against the rules if anyone tried to punish her again.
It wasn’t that Shao Hua’an didn’t understand the Ministry of Rites. He was just too concerned about the matter to remember it. When he heard Zhao Xiran’s explanation, his eyes immediately lit up and he said, repeatedly nodding, “That’s right. Concubine Jiang’s honorary title is still there. It won’t be easy for any other woman to marry into the Marquis Xing’s Mansion.”
“Apart from this matter, you have to take care of her case in the Ministry of Justice. Since Concubine Jiang is a mandated lady, she can choose not to go to court. Dear, send someone to the Ministry of Justice to explain this matter. Concubine Jiang hasn’t yet fully recovered and is not quite right in the head. From time to time, she will faint, so she is unfit to stand trial. Besides, with her honorary title, it’s not suitable for her to go there!”
Zhao Xiran reminded him.
Within the manor, they should obey domestic disciplines, so there was a big difference between a legal wife and a concubine. However, in the world outside the mansion, everyone’s conduct should conform to the state’s etiquette system. The treatment a titled woman received was way better than that of a commoner.
Hearing this, Shao Hua’an nodded vigorously in approval, feeling what she said made sense. But on sober reflection, he had new doubts. “Anyway, we have to deal with the case in the Ministry of Justice, don’t we? That debauchee, Wang Shengxue, is still in jail. Also, Qiu Yu made such a scene for this case.”
Thinking of this, he felt terribly perturbed, too spiritless to do other things. Then he got on his feet and went around in two circles with a headache. In his heart, he secretly blamed his mother for being useless. “How could she choose such a playboy like Wang Shengxue? He is unable to help accomplish anything but liable to spoil everything!”
“Sweetheart, who do you think Wang Shengxue framed Childe Yan for?” Zhao Xiran asked, leaning against the head of a bed. She looked much more peaceful than her husband.
Since she had played a part in managing the Marquis Xing’s Mansion, she knew Childe Yan, who stayed in their outer court.
“Not Concubine Jiang again!” Shao Hua’an said snappishly in a bad mood.
“Well, no matter whom Wang Shengxue worked for this time, it couldn’t be Concubine Jiang. She lived in the Yuhui Nunnery during this period so that Wang Shengxue wouldn’t be at her beck and call. Besides, Childe Yan, the victim of this case, had nothing to do with her.” Zhao Xiran shook her head. “Who else in our mansion can order Wang Shengxue about…”
At the end of her words, Zhao Xiran ceased talking abruptly and looked at Shao Hua’an in a frenzy of fright. Meanwhile, Shao Hua’an also gazed at her in horror. The two of them immediately got the same answer in each other’s eyes.
Zhao Xiran gasped, and her face turned gloomy. She couldn’t be the wife of a concubine’s son, and the child she gave birth to couldn’t belong to a branch under a concubine.
“Father…” With a gasp of pure horror, Shao Hua’an turned pale with fright。
The smart couple quickly came up with the only answer.
“Father… why, why would he do that?” Shao Hua’an muttered in a low voice. In his eyes, Yan Xi was a talent with a gentle nature. When he lived in the mansion, Shao Hua’an would occasionally go to see him. Because he thought Yan Xi would pass the imperial exam, he felt like making friends with him. However, for fear of influencing his performance in the exam, he didn’t visit him frequently.
“Don’t worry about why father did this. At present, Wang Shengxue is the key to solving all the doubts. Whether it was our father or mother who directed him behind the scenes, if this person…” Zhao Xiran’s voice sank to a whisper, and she even paused on purpose. Although she didn’t say all of this clearly, she made it very clear.
“Wang Shengxue should die!” Shao Hua’an’s eyes were shining with vicious intentions.
“As for the matter of the Ministry of Justice, Concubine Jiang can refuse to go in the name of her honorable title. Wang Shengxue has been locked up in prison. If something happens to him, Concubine Jiang can be clear from suspicion. As for the pair of undesirable sisters, we can bribe them!” Zhao Xiran suggested.
Shao Hua’an understood everything now. Delightedly, he sat back on the bed and held Zhao Xiran in his arms. While patting her gently, he praised her to her face. “Xiran, you are my lucky star. This way, we solve all our problems in one fell swoop!”
“When I’m slightly better, I’ll ask Old Madam to take me to call on the Empress Dowager in the Palace. I’ll tell her I was careless yesterday, and the miscarriage was not my mother-in-law’s fault!” Zhao Xiran gritted her teeth with determination and added her misfortune as bargaining chips.
Madam Jiang was demoted to a concubine, which slaked her hatred. However, a little neglect may breed great mischief. She would never abandon herself to emotions; When Madam Jiang was degraded to Concubine Jiang, Shao Hua’an became a concubine’s son.
Moreover, her father-in-law seemed to be a canting hypocrite. She could not give him any opportunity to stir trouble.
Even if Madam Jiang had to die, she should die as the legal wife.
“Xiran, I’m the most fortunate to marry you!” Shao Hua’an understood what Zhao Xiran meant. She was quite accommodating and cared for their overall interests. Without waiting for him to say anything, she took all the responsibility on herself. How could he not be touched? He hugged Zhao Xiran tightly, and a thoughtful look flashed in his eyes.
“That would free my mother from almost all guilts.”
“The Empress Dowager punished my mother for two reasons: plotting against Princess Chen and causing Zhao Xiran’s miscarriage. If these two things are proved to be false accusations, plus her honorary title, it’s possible for her to return to her high position as the legal wife.
“Even if she couldn’t return to her original status, she could still be the secondary legal wife.”
Shao Hua’an catered to Zhao Xiran’s wishes and addressed Madam Jiang as Concubine Jiang, which satisfied Zhao Xiran. Finally, she relented on her initiative. This matter could be considered settled. As for how to deal with Wang Shengxue in the Ministry of Justice, there were many ways…