Chapter 1 Chapter 1 "I'm just a concubine, how can I be qualified to be...

Nanfu Street, one of the four main roads leading from Daqi to the imperial city, is now crowded with people.

Those who were shopping stopped, those who were selling goods stopped, and everyone stretched their necks to look in one direction, just to welcome the triumphant return of Duke Yan.

"Why hasn't Duke Yan come yet?"

"Didn't they say they were already outside the city? They must be there soon."

"When I escorted Duke Yan out of the city, I was only 28, and now I'm already a mother of two. If I had known Duke Yan would come back, I would have waited for him no matter what."

"You can't wait, but I can. I've heard that Duke Yan is a chaste man. Yuguo has offered beautiful girls to him several times, but Duke Yan has always refused them outright. Furthermore, if his soldiers visit prostitutes, Duke Yan will punish them. I've already fallen in love with a man like him, and I'd be happy to accept him even as a concubine."

"Come on, Duke Yan returned to the capital this time because His Majesty took into consideration his age and allowed him to come back and get married. See that mother and daughter standing at the door of the Duke's Mansion? I heard that the younger one is the Duke's fiancée."

"It's not like I'm a concubine, so why can't I be a concubine?"

"Who is Duke Yan? He's already twenty-six, and he doesn't have a woman by his side. Back when he was only fourteen, his wife was afraid he wouldn't be able to come back, so she told him to take two concubines to look after him. Duke Yan refused immediately, saying, 'A good man should devote himself to serving his country, how can he tolerate being disturbed?' As for marrying a wife now, given Duke Yan's character, it's absolutely impossible for him to take a concubine, at least not within the next year or two!"

"He's a victorious general with courage and strategy, handsome and extraordinary, loyal to his wife, and of good character. Such a good man is not mine!"

When one girl cries, countless girls with lost hearts will follow.

The wailing and wailing spread throughout Nanfu Street.

Duke Yan, who also heard the crying, raised his hand to signal the army to stop. After a moment, seeing nothing unusual, he waved his hand again to signal them to move forward.

Deputy General Zuo He asked cautiously, "General, are you sure nothing happened?"

Duke Yan, sitting steadily on his horse, said in a deep voice, "Nothing."

Those two resounding words put everyone's heart at ease.

Duke Yan turned his head to look at the carriage behind him. Zuo He asked again, "General, would you like me to go and give you my regards?"

Duke Yan paused and said, "No need."

The gates of Kyoto were wide open, and Duke Yan finally led his army into the city amid the cheers of the people!

...

"Madam, the eldest, third, fourth, and Duke are right behind us!"

The servant who had gone out on horseback to investigate handed the horse to another servant, ran quickly to the gate of the Duke's Mansion, and kowtowed to the nobleman standing on the steps to report.

The old lady's eyes were red with excitement. She first pulled the hands of her sons on her left and said, "Did you hear that? Your brothers are back!"

Upon hearing this, several gentlemen nodded repeatedly, agreeing with the old lady, but the exaggerated smiles on their faces seemed a bit deliberate.

The old lady looked to her right again and extended her hand to the mother and daughter dressed elegantly in royal blue and bright red. "You're back! You're back! These past two years of waiting weren't in vain. You are both blessed!"

The elderly woman in a royal blue silk dress and with her hair covered in pearls and emeralds quickly grabbed the old Duke's wife's hand when she was halfway out, and said excitedly: "This is all thanks to the old lady for not despising our Ming'er. Of so many girls from powerful families, you chose Ming'er. From now on, I..."

The old lady patted the older woman's hand and said, "We are all family. Don't say such things in the future."

The old lady smiled brightly as she gazed at the young girl behind the older woman. "Ming'er, you have to watch carefully. This Duke of our mansion is not very good at certain things, so you'll have to take more care of him."

The Luo family lady lowered her head, her face almost bleeding. She looked even more gorgeous than the dress she was wearing.

She bowed and said, "Yes."

"Madam, there she is!"

Since entering the city, the Duke has been raising his hand to express his gratitude to the people who saluted him.

In a blink of an eye, Duke Yan, dressed in military uniform, arrived at the gate of the Duke's Mansion. He dismounted, walked steadily to the old lady with his long legs, and knelt in greeting.

"Mother, my son is back."

The old lady wiped her tears and hurried forward to support him: "It's good that you're back, it's good that you're back."

The Duke rose and said to the old lady, "I will go to the palace to report to His Majesty immediately. I will return later to pay my respects to mother."

"Okay, reporting back is important. Go quickly."

The Duke turned and left.

At the gate of the mansion, except for the old lady, everyone else had different expressions.

The old man thought to himself, "Second brother really still thinks I, the eldest brother, am useless."

The Third Master thought to himself, "Is he pretending not to see me?"

The Fourth Master thought to himself, "He did it on purpose, didn't he?"

Mrs. Luo's smile was awkward, and she thought to herself, "Did the Duke not see her? That shouldn't be the case. She's dressed so festively today. Or is it..."

Mrs. Luo's heart sank. He hadn't even glanced at her. Did he think she wasn't pretty enough? Or did he think she, the daughter of a cavalry official, wasn't good enough for him?

Suddenly, Duke Yan stopped, turned on his toes, and returned.

Anticipation reignited on everyone's faces.

Duke Yan returned to the place where he had saluted earlier and bowed to the old lady, saying, "Mother, my son and his family are in the carriage. I hope you will take good care of them."

The old lady exclaimed "Ah", knowing that she could not be rude in front of others, she immediately forced a smile and nodded repeatedly.

After receiving the guarantee, the Duke turned around, mounted his horse, and rode towards the gate of the imperial city with his subordinates who were also conferred titles. He disappeared in the blink of an eye.

"Family? Did I hear it wrong?" the old lady asked the uncles and their wives.

The grandfather and his wife were also confused.

The three carriages brought back by the Duke were right in front of them. The Third and Fourth Young Masters' wives hurriedly helped the old lady down the stairs. The First Young Master's wife then pushed aside the Fourth Young Master's wife and grabbed the old lady's arm, "Mother, no."

The old lady turned to look at her.

The eldest young lady's wife whispered something in her ear, and a look of realization crossed the old lady's pale face. She then stepped back and stood back on the steps, looking down with a dignified and kind demeanor.

"Madam, the old lady seems to be waiting for us. Why don't you get off the car?"

Jasmine thought the carriage would be taken directly to the alley behind the mansion gate, and the general did not remind her. To avoid being rude, she certainly would not get off the carriage on her own initiative.

At this moment, after hearing Shancha's words, Jasmine no longer hesitated and lifted the curtain to get out of the car.

When Shancha saw that she had opened the curtain herself, she withdrew her hand and did not help the person get out of the carriage until he got out.

The moment her feet touched the ground, Jasmine heard the people around her gasp.

But she was sure it wasn't because he was captivated by her beauty. But what else could it be? Jasmine couldn't figure it out for the time being.

She held up the hem of her skirt, walked quickly forward and saluted the old lady.

"Your servant Jasmine greets the old lady. I hope she is well."

It turned out to be a young girl! The old lady almost dropped her jaw in shock.

The old lady knew she wasn't the only one with her jaw dropping. To avoid giving anyone a chance to see her perform, she said, "Get up. You must be tired from the journey. Let's go inside and talk."

"I will obey the old lady."

Several masters and young ladies followed behind the old lady and Jasmine, their expressions varied. Behind them came Mrs. Luo and her daughter.

The Luo family's wife tugged at her mother's sleeve and said, "Everyone says the Duke never takes concubines. What does he mean? He knew he was going to marry a wife, but he brought a concubine home openly. Isn't this a slap in our faces?"

Mrs. Luo couldn't help but worry: "I hope it's not a pampered one."

Luo Ming'er was about to jump up and down. Fortunately, she still had some common sense and understood the situation. "What if?"

Mrs. Luo thought for a moment and said, "Don't be afraid. Even if she's a favored concubine, she's still a concubine. Ming'er, you're the legal wife, and she'll have to be subservient to you from now on."

"Do you believe this, mother?"

The mother and daughter stared at each other at the door, their expressions growing increasingly sad.

Everyone knows that it is popular in the Da Qi Kingdom to favor concubines and neglect wives. If there is a leader in the palace, the harems of all the men in Dai Viet are probably now unsightly.

Only when the steward of the Duke's Mansion came to urge them did the mother and daughter hurriedly step through the gate and run all the way to catch up with the old lady.

Outside the Duke's Mansion, the people were also sighing.

"That woman looks very young. Family? She can't be a adopted sister, right? If not, she must be a concubine."

"Is Duke Yan going to follow in His Majesty's footsteps?"

"What nonsense are you all talking about? The Duke has just returned from the war. Maybe these are refugees that the Duke has kindly saved."

"You're right. I think that girl is just average looking. I don't even like her, let alone the Duke."

"That's right, I'll definitely bring her back to be a servant..."

...

When the Duke returned from the Imperial City, Jasmine had already spent the entire afternoon chatting with the ladies of the Duke's Mansion.

It was said to be a chat, but in fact Jasmine was being interrogated.

For example, her relationship with the Duke, how she met the Duke, how long they had known each other, and who were her parents and family members.

Jasmine knows everything.

Then the old lady and the others all knew that this was indeed the Duke's concubine.

This concubine had no father or mother and was almost sold to a brothel by a heartless pimp. She was rescued by the Duke when she was trying to escape in a panic.

What everyone wanted to know most was the position this woman held in the Duke's heart. Jasmine dared not speak a word of falsehood, and told him everything. Jasmine then trapped her and the Duke in a cave. The Duke, aware of the damage to his reputation, offered her as a concubine. She was left homeless, grateful for the Duke's rescue, and offered her life in return.

When the Duke entered, Jasmine was just getting to the point: "...I am a homeless, pitiful person. Thanks to the general's help, I was able to save my life. From now on, I will be the general's servant. When the general marries, I will serve his mistress as I would the general."

"The Duke is back!"

Like everyone else, Jasmine turned to look at the living room door, and Yan Guogong stepped through the threshold.

Jasmine was nervous. She probably didn't say anything she shouldn't have just said, right?

After thinking about it, she was sure that she didn't. Jasmine felt relieved.

Although the concubine said that she was just an insignificant concubine of Duke Yan, and Duke Yan only took her in out of necessity, the old lady and the others were still not very reassured.

So, as soon as the Duke returned, before he had even finished his tea, the old lady asked him with a smile, "Why did you come back so soon, Duke? Did His Majesty discuss something important with you?"

The Duke paused holding the cup, then turned his head to look at the old lady seriously. "Thank you for your concern, mother. However, important matters at court are not for others to discuss. I hope you will understand."

The old lady was stunned for a moment. If she didn't know her stepson's nature, she would have lost her temper.

The old lady thought to herself that she was too lazy to ask about such matters, and was just thinking of exchanging pleasantries to lead to the key questions.

The old lady nodded tiredly, and said with a stiff smile, "It was mother who overstepped the bounds."

The old lady looked at the eldest young lady's wife, and she smiled and said, "Congratulations, Duke, on finding your beautiful wife!"

It was clearly the eldest young lady's voice, but the Duke felt as if a thousand troops were running through his mind.

The Duke looked at his sister-in-law.

The eldest young lady's wife smiled brightly and said, "The Duke was away just now, so you don't know how lovely Jasmine is and how much she is loved by mother. Where on earth did the Duke find such a wonderful person? I believe the Duke regards Jasmine as a treasure in his heart, right?"

The Duke turned to look at his concubine Jasmine, only to see her sitting obediently in the armchair at the very end, dressed in plain clothes, with her eyes lowered and her head bowed.

He nodded. "Yeah. She's always like that."

These words made everyone present feel anxious, especially Mrs. Luo and her daughter.

The old lady thought this was going to be bad. Was he going to refuse this marriage for the sake of a concubine? How could this be possible?

The old lady pondered for a moment, then spoke slowly, "The Duke left in a hurry, so Mother didn't have time to introduce him to you."

The old lady smiled at Madam Luo, then said with a smile, "This is Madam Luo and her daughter Luo Ming'er. Mother mentioned them in her letter and even sent you a portrait. Remember?"

Following the old lady's instructions, the Duke looked at Mrs. Luo, then turned to look at Luo Ming'er.

If any other man looked at her like this, he would definitely be considered a lecher. But Duke Yan was different.

Everyone knows that Duke Yan went to guard the border at a young age. Before that, while the three uncles were shopping and walking their birds, Duke Yan was detained at home by the old duke to practice various military strategies and martial arts.

The most important thing was that the Duke's eyes were clear. He looked at Luo Ming'er just like he looked at the deputy general beside him.

People will naturally be more tolerant towards such a person.

Only Luo Ming'er noticed someone observing her, feeling quite uncomfortable. She and Madam Luo stood up and saluted, "My daughter Ming'er greets the Duke."

The Duke said, "Stand up, no need to be so polite."

The old lady looked at the Duke and smiled, "Ming'er is the eldest daughter of the Minister of the Imperial Household. Although Lord Luo is only a third-rank official, he has a good reputation and a good family tradition. Look how well-behaved and polite Ming'er is. Ming'er is also a talented woman. The piece she played for everyone that day was breathtaking!"

After the old lady finished speaking, Jasmine couldn't help but look up at the Duke. Seeing that the Duke was normal, she lowered her eyes again.

The Duke nodded: "Yes, Lord Luo is a good official."

Everyone was waiting for the Duke to continue speaking, but he just stared at them.

The eldest young lady's wife asked, "Are you dissatisfied with Madam Luo by what the Duke said?"

Upon hearing this, Madam Luo became anxious, fearing that Duke Yan would reject her daughter immediately. She quickly stood up and said with a smile, "My Lord, don't worry. My daughter Ming'er is a sensible person and will never interfere with you and my concubine. If you don't want my concubine to suffer any injustice, then... maybe you can make her your equal wife?"

The old lady frowned, showing her disdain. Then she turned and looked at Yan Ke calmly, curious about what their Duke would say.

The Duke also frowned, looking at Madam Luo, his face solemn, and said, "Madam Luo, please be careful with your words. Jasmine is only a concubine, how can she be qualified to be my wife?"

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