lcionline Chapter 382
Chapter 382
Luo Shuiyao hadn't expected her to bring this up so suddenly, and she froze in her place, feeling somewhat bewildered. Facing the Marquis's hopeful gaze, she closed her eyes before finding her voice again: "I understand your good intentions, Auntie, but there's a huge gap between me and my eldest brother, and we're not a good match. He's young and promising, and handsome; he's sure to have no shortage of suitable women... So, I'm sorry, I can't agree."
To say she had no feelings for Ye Yunzhou would be a lie, and as time went on, she could sense the bond between them growing deeper. But she knew in her heart that there was a huge gap between them, and since she had already announced her intention to marry a man, she naturally didn't want to backtrack. Therefore, even though Ye Yunzhou had suddenly disappeared in recent days, she felt a sense of emptiness within her heart, yet she also secretly breathed a sigh of relief. Even if she was timid or cowardly, she wouldn't force anything she wasn't sure of.
"What? You...you would actually reject me?"
The Marquis' wife had previously feared that Luo Shuiyao might reject the marriage proposal out of resentment for her past. Now that she knew she didn't bear any grudge, and because of her confidence in her son, she hadn't considered Luo Shuiyao's refusal. She had been so sure of it, but she hadn't expected the girl to refuse without even a second thought.
Seeing her expression was too incredible, Luo Shuiyao sneered inwardly, but remained humble on the surface. She stood up and bowed to the Marquis's wife before saying softly, "This is what I truly think. My status is indeed far different from my eldest brother's, and I don't want to hinder him from marrying a noble lady in the future. I hope my aunt won't blame me."
"But don't you have feelings for each other? Now that you have the chance to be together openly, you still reject me like this. Won't you feel regretful in the future?" If the Marquis's wife had suspected that she had heard it wrong before, but now seeing her mention it again and seeing the sincere smile on her face, she couldn't help but ask unwillingly.
Luo Shuiyao had no doubt that the Marquis' wife knew about her affair with Ye Yunzhou. Though she didn't know how, she already suspected it. Otherwise, why would the Marquis' wife, knowing that the incident that day was full of doubts, still use Lu Zhaozhao to try to drive her out of the Marquis' mansion? Thinking back to what the Right Prime Minister had revealed, she gradually understood - the Marquis' wife was worried that her son would have an affair with another man, thus ending the family line. That was why she was so anxious, even willing to accept someone she disliked.
But she also felt strange: with Ye Yunzhou's appearance, character, and status, even if the Marquis wanted her son to stop having an affair with a man and continue the family line, there were plenty of other candidates, why did she choose her? Could it be because she was now the goddaughter of the Prime Minister's Mansion?
Thinking about this, she rejected the idea. Her reputation as the "Goddaughter of the Right Prime Minister" was pretentious. The Right Prime Minister was a civil servant, with no political connections to the likes of the Loyal and Brave Marquis Ye Yunzhou. Furthermore, he lacked a successor, so this wouldn't be helpful to his career. Given the Marquis's personality, if she were to choose a daughter-in-law for her son, she'd look for someone who could actually help Ye Yunzhou.
Thinking of this, she secretly laughed at herself: None of this mattered anymore, why bother with it? Ever since she decided to separate from Ye Yunzhou, she had no intention of having anything to do with him anymore. So what if there were regrets? Life is full of regrets, so why would she let them hold her back?
After blurting out what was in her mind, the Marquis's wife looked at her nervously. Seeing that she lowered her eyes and did not respond, she could not help but step forward and stand up, her attitude no longer as arrogant as before. She thought of her eldest son and was really worried - he was stubborn by nature. If this setback made him like a man, it would be better for him to choose a woman, at least to continue the family line. She once again secretly hated herself for being so stubborn to break them up. Now the situation was getting worse and worse, and she had no power to force her eldest son to marry against his will. Now that Luo Shuiyao was no longer willing, what could she do?
"Good Yaoyao, Auntie was really wrong. I shouldn't have been blinded and done those things to break you up."
Seeing that Luo Shuiyao only looked up at her without saying anything, she gritted her teeth and said, "Could it be that you still hold a grudge against your aunt for what she did in the past, and that's why you're doing this?"
She didn't believe that anyone would dislike such an outstanding son of hers, but Luo Shuiyao's rejection didn't seem fake. For the sake of her eldest son's future happiness, the Marquis' wife had to put aside her dignity and tried to force Luo Shuiyao to submit by using moral principles.
It had to be said that the Marquis' wife wasn't stupid, just pure-hearted. Her words effectively shut down Luo Shuiyao's refusal, as if she truly resented the Marquis' wife for her past actions if she refused. Even if she still harbored resentment, the Marquis's kindness to her was genuine; how could she bring herself to say it?
But she had a rebellious nature. If she was forced like this, she would become even more unwilling to accept it, and she felt even more suspicious. Suddenly, an idea flashed through her mind, and she remembered her previous refusal to speak with Ye Yunzhou. She spoke with embarrassment, "It's not that I bear a grudge against my aunt. It's just that I once made a vow in front of my father's tablet: to marry into the Luo family and continue the bloodline. As an official of the imperial court, how could you...?"
She did not finish the rest of her words, but just looked at the Marquis's wife with an apologetic look.
How could the Marquis' wife not understand what she hadn't finished saying? It was true. Her son, at such a young age, was already beloved by the Emperor and held great power, his future was limitless. Ordinary peasant men marrying into the Emperor's family were looked down upon, let alone her own son? But Luo Shuiyao said she had made a vow in front of her father's tablet to marry into his family. She still had the dignity to say nothing about going against her late father's wish, and she froze in place, stunned. After a long while, she finally came to her senses, let go of Luo Shuiyao, and walked out in a daze. Seeing this, Madam Sang hurriedly bowed and apologized to Luo Shuiyao, then told the maid to follow Madam.
Luo Shuiyao went out to see him off and did not return to the yard until the carriage from the Marquis' Mansion disappeared.
.........
At the market, Chun Xing came out of Qingyue Tower and passed by a sugar painting stall. She faintly heard a few vendors gathered together and discussing something in private. She couldn't help but slow down her pace and listen carefully.
"Hey, have you heard? He's been seriously ill for the past two days, and I'm afraid he can't hold on any longer."
"How come I haven't heard about it? This matter has spread privately throughout the capital! They say that all the people from the Imperial Hospital have gathered in the palace. I'm afraid that the person is really dying."
Another person came forward and said, "Maybe it really has come to that, otherwise how could the whole city know about it?"
Someone else spoke up, "There are many talented people in the palace. If we can't even save them, what else can we do?"
The man who had come up earlier sighed, "That being said, I'm truly afraid. Life has finally gotten better these past few years, but if we have a new ruler... remembering the hard times of the previous dynasty, we'll suffer all over again."
"That's enough!" the candy painting stall owner interrupted hastily, looking around and saying in a low voice, "Just listen and don't talk nonsense! If someone overhears and reports it to the authorities, it's a crime of treason! Let's be careful these few days. If something really happens, we might have to prepare to flee..."
"That shouldn't be the case, right?" someone muttered. "Even if that person dies, there's still a prince to take the throne. The Great Zhou is still the Great Zhou. How bad can it get?"
The sugar painting stall owner glared at him and scolded him, "What do you know? A new emperor appoints new ministers! When the officials fight for power and profit, how can we ordinary people have an easy life? We better keep our heads down and behave ourselves!"