Chapter 155: Marry a Concubine to Watch the Fun

"We're going back to the city, are you guys leaving?" Shen Anan asked.

Shen Changhe's face turned serious, "I'll stay for two more days, and then go back when things are clear."

"That's good. If the people you sent out get any information, you can immediately follow the clues and find Gu Tan."

Shen Changhe nodded, "Even if those people find the source of instigation, it can only be used as evidence that Lin Hengsheng worked for Gu Tan. The key is Gu Tan, who must be controlled as soon as possible."

Xiao Yuan placed a plate of crystal shrimp in front of Shen Anan, and then said, "I sent someone there last night. Gu Tan is not in East City, and is not even near the capital."

If we can't catch the person, there will be no evidence to exonerate the Lin family, and this is the most troublesome thing.

Lin Yurou secretly glared at her eldest brother. It was already this time, and everyone was working hard for their Lin family, but he was still fussing about such trivial matters.

Lin Ye also became more serious, "I will stay with Brother Shen, so that I can have a helper if something happens."

Xiao Yuan nodded, "Okay then. If you need anything, send someone back to Beijing to let me know."

"master."

Qing An hurried in, his face solemn, "I found out, but... the person is dead."

"Speak in detail." Xiao Yuan put down his chopsticks, and everyone looked at Qing An.

Qing An cupped his hands and lowered his voice, "I led people to investigate last night. I found out something and followed the clues to that family. But I was a step too late. When I arrived, the family... were all dead."

"How did he die?" Shen Changhe asked.

"On the surface, it looked like suicide, but after some research, I found out that he was probably killed by some hidden weapon, and then disguised as suicide."

"It seems that Gu Tan should be nearby." Lin Ye said.

"Not necessarily." Shen Anan shook his head. "He can let Lin Hengsheng do things for him, so he must have other people under him. If he is a smart person, he would have left Dongcheng by now and would not wait for us to catch him."

Shen Changhe lost his appetite for the rice in his bowl, "You guys eat first, I'll go take a look."

"I'll go too." Lin Yurou stood up. Lin Ye didn't say anything, but Shen Changhe shook his head and refused.

"You are a girl, how can you watch such a scene? Your brother and I will go, and you and An An will go back to Beijing together later. Don't stay here."

Lin Yurou didn't want to leave, but she knew that as a girl, she couldn't help much. If she really pushed those people into a corner, she would become a burden to them.

"Then be careful, safety first, don't fight hard."

"Okay." Shen Changhe smiled at her, and Lin Ye stood up and left together.

Shen Anan was a little worried.

Things seemed to be more complicated than they had expected, especially at this critical juncture. Could it be that the marriage between the eldest brother and Miss Lin would encounter another setback?

"Don't worry, I'm here." Xiao Yuan served her a bowl of porridge and placed it in front of her. "Eat quickly. It will take me a while to go back. Don't delay the banquet."

Shen Anan nodded. She still had to go back to attend the Second Prince's concubine ceremony.

It is always faster to travel during the day than at night. They returned to the capital at 9:00 p.m. Lin Yurou was absent-minded as she had something on her mind.

Shen Anan invited her to go to the Second Prince's Mansion, but she refused. Shen Anan then asked the coachman to take her back to the Lin family first.

When they arrived at the Second Prince's Mansion, the entrance was already filled with carriages. The sounds of greetings and congratulations were mixed together. Xiao Ze had a hypocritical smile on his face as he talked with the officials.

This is not the ceremony of taking a concubine, it is clearly an attempt to win over ministers and form a clique for personal gain.

Shen Anan glanced at the red silk hanging on the plaque and said to Xiao Yuan, "Marrying a concubine is so grand that they even use red. Wouldn't the Second Prince's wife have any objections?"

"I have an opinion." Xiao Yuan curled his lips sarcastically, "She made a scene at first, but now she must be used to it and is no longer surprised."

She couldn't control Xiao Ze and might even suffer physical pain. In addition, she had no children, so she felt less powerful in front of Xiao Ze and could be said to be angry but not able to speak out.

"Does he always make such a grand ceremony every time he takes a concubine?"

"Well," Xiao Yuan said as he led her inside, "Not everyone is as good as me, you must cherish me."

“…”

"We seem to have forgotten to bring a gift."

As they were talking, the two of them had already entered the Second Prince's palace.

Xiao Ze was talking to a minister. When he saw the two, he immediately left the minister and walked over. "Fourth brother, what a rare guest."

He has taken in several concubines this year, and this is Xiao Yuan's first time.

"The gift is on the way and will be here soon."

Xiao Ze waved his hand, "Your coming here is the greatest gift you can give me."

He turned to look at Shen Anan, "As soon as my sister-in-law came in, my fourth brother was different. He looked much more energetic than before."

Shen Anan smiled and said nothing, not wanting to get involved in the fight between their brothers.

But what Xiao Ze said was really unpleasant to hear.

"I've said it before, you can't live without a woman by your side. People who know you say you don't like women, and people who don't know you think there's something wrong with your health. Sister-in-law, if there's anything wrong with me, don't be embarrassed to tell me. I have a familiar doctor who is the best at this."

He is still brooding over the fact that Xiao Yuan said he was incompetent three or four times, and today, when he got the chance, he wanted to humiliate him severely in front of Shen Anan.

Shen Anan's eyelids twitched, and he felt very disgusted with Xiao Ze in his heart. For an older uncle to say these things to his newly married sister-in-law was really despicable and disgusting, even if the brothers were not on good terms.

She pressed down Xiao Yuan's arm and chuckled, "Second brother, you are joking. My husband is a chaste man and in good health. But second brother, with so many beauties in the backyard, it is only right to have a doctor on hand. It is better to have a familiar one, so that you don't have to go out and talk nonsense and damage your reputation."

"..." Xiao Ze didn't expect that Shen Anan, a woman, would discuss such obscure things without blushing or breathing heavily.

Yes, they are husband and wife, so naturally they have the same moral character.

He was so angry that his forehead was throbbing, and he couldn't think of anything to say in reply. In his life, the thing that was farthest from Xiao Yuan was his cunning and deceitful mouth.

At this moment, the servant came quickly and reported, "Second Prince, it's almost time to perform the ceremony."

A concubine cannot perform the kowtow ceremony, but she can offer tea to the principal wife, so a simple ceremony is acceptable.

Xiao Ze nodded with a serious face.

Shen Anan smiled and said, "I haven't congratulated my second brother yet. He is able to marry a girl from the Duan family as his concubine. The Duan family has produced the third girl, the girl of destiny. The other girls will definitely not be ordinary."

Xiao Ze's expression eased a little, he pursed his lips but said nothing.

Duan Yingying is just the beginning, and the girl of destiny will eventually be his.

Many guests arrived today to observe the ceremony. Although the decoration in the mansion exceeded the regulations, fortunately Duan Yingying's clothes were decent and did not offend the queen, otherwise Zhou, who was sitting in the upper seat, would have looked even uglier.

Everyone had long been accustomed to it and automatically ignored the Second Prince's wife's expression, waiting for the process to be completed, the banquet to begin, and then leaving.

The eldest princess sat below Zhou, watching with boredom as Duan Yingying knelt down to pay respect to the second prince and his wife at the command of the ceremonial officer.

She was originally thinking that Xiao Yuan was also going to marry a concubine today, otherwise Ling Chenyi would have told her in advance that Xiao Yuan would not marry one, and she might have made a wasted trip.

Looking at Xiao Ze's happy face, the princess sighed. They are all brothers, so why is there such a big gap between them?

The ceremony for becoming a concubine was very simple. Duan Yingying, wearing a light pink palace dress, knelt on the ground and respectfully served tea to Zhou.

"After you get married, you must serve the Second Prince well and have less contact with those messy people, so as not to embarrass the Second Prince."

Zhou warned with gnashing teeth, cursing in her heart that none of the Duan sisters were good people, they were all vixens. If she had known that she would climb into Xiao Ze's bed, she would have destroyed her that day at the Minister of Personnel's residence.

Duan Mengmeng made Xiao Ze worry day and night, and now there is another shameless Duan Yingying. Zhou felt like her lungs were about to explode.

Duan Yingying knew that Zhou was secretly cursing her family, so she said nothing and responded obediently.

She usually appears gentle and soft. Although her appearance cannot be described as absolutely beautiful, she is fragile and lovable.

When Zhou looked at her, she automatically imagined the scene of her having sex with Xiao Ze in the carriage, and her nails dug into her flesh.

"You must be dignified and virtuous, observe the chastity of a woman, and abide by the law. You must not behave in a seductive and seductive way, or seduce others to commit adultery in broad daylight."

Duan Yingying's face turned pale for a moment.

In front of a room full of guests, Zhou said this, tearing her face off and telling everyone the reason why she entered the Second Prince's house.

After all, she is a concubine. How will she gain a foothold in the capital in the future?

Duan Yingying looked up at Xiao Ze with tears in her eyes. Xiao Ze frowned, but looked away without saying anything.

People from the Zhou family are here today, and he is not in the right to begin with, so he can't create any more trouble.

It's just a few words, there's nothing wrong with listening to them. After Zhou has vented his anger, he will not complain to the Zhou family anymore and cause trouble for him.

Duan Yingying choked up, and her hands on her knees tightly grasped the material of her dress, saying, "My Duan family is also a well-educated and scholarly family, not a small family like that. The prince's wife is worried too much."

If we talk about family background, when Old Master Duan was alive, he was the leader among the literati, no worse than the Zhou family.

Zhou's face darkened, and the nanny beside her immediately stepped forward, swung her arm and slapped Duan Yingying hard in the face.

In front of all the guests, the slap was so loud and crisp that it directly slapped Duan Yingying's face to the side, leaving the corner of her mouth red.

The lobby was very quiet, and everyone even slowed down their breathing as they looked at the scene in front of them.

Duan Yingying's body was trembling slightly. She slowly raised her head and stared at Zhou with sinister hatred in her eyes.

She thought Zhou would give her a warning, but she never thought she would be so disrespectful.

Zhou met her gaze with a condescending look, "This slap is to teach you the rules. After entering the house today, you are no longer a girl from the Duan family. You must be careful with your words and actions, serve this imperial concubine and the second prince well, and you must not call yourself me anymore."

So what if she was a concubine? In front of her, she still had to perform the duties of a concubine.

Duan Yingying dug her nails deep into her palms. She glanced at Xiao Ze, who was silent and had flickering eyes. She gritted her teeth and bowed her head, "Yes, I will follow the instructions of the prince's wife."

Zhou finally let go of some of the anger in her heart.

She just wanted Duan Yingying to see clearly who was the mistress in charge of the Second Prince's mansion. How could Xiao Ze's favor be comparable to the help given to him by her Zhou family?

"What are you all standing there for? Help the concubine back to the courtyard." Xiao Ze waved his hand and ordered.

Half of Duan Yingying's face quickly became red and swollen, and she cried pitifully with her head slightly lowered, but he did not feel any sympathy in his heart, only annoyance.

It would be better for him to go to Concubine Liu's place tonight. Facing such a face, he really couldn't bring himself to do it and felt a little disgusted.

He treated Duan Yingying no differently than he treated those prostitutes he had one-night stands with, the only difference was that she was Duan Mengmeng's sister and could be useful to him.

Shen Anan watched coldly as Duan Yingying was helped away by the servants. There was not a trace of sympathy in her eyes. She reaped the fruits of her own actions and was not even worthy of sympathy.

The guests who came to attend the event watched a good show today. If they don’t tell others about it now, once they leave the Second Prince’s Mansion, I’m afraid everyone in the capital will know about it.

After the newlyweds left, they also dispersed and went to the banquet hall to sit down and leave after dinner.

Even if Xiao Ze had no feelings for Duan Yingying, Zhou's actions today were indeed too much. It was a slap in his face. He stood up, glared at Zhou with a gloomy face, and left with a flick of his sleeves.

The eldest princess seemed to be used to it, so she walked towards Shen Anan who was about to go out, "Are you shocked?"

Shen Anan blinked and smiled without saying anything.

The eldest princess sighed,... "Not all men are as good as Yuan'er." Whenever she got the chance, she would praise Xiao Yuan.

"There have been five or six concubine ceremonies this year, and none of them went smoothly. I'm not surprised at all. However, it's the first time I've seen something as... spectacular as today's. The Second Prince's wife seems to be extremely displeased with this concubine. I'm afraid she will have a hard time in the future."

“Personal karma, good or bad, is the choice of Concubine Duan.” Shen Anan said calmly.

She hated Zhou to the core, and Zhou also hated the Duan family. Before she chose Xiao Ze, she should have thought that life would not be easy.

"You're right." The eldest princess just sighed and did not feel any sympathy for Duan Yingying.

Zhou was still sitting in the main hall covered with red silk, her eyes gradually turning red, she was shaking with anger, and her expression was filled with sadness.

"Princess, there are guests outside." The maid reminded in a low voice.

Zhou sniffed, wiped away her tears, and stood up, "Let's go."

She is the principal wife. No matter how many women come in, she is the only one who is qualified to stand beside Xiao Ze.

As long as her Zhou family does not fall, no one can replace him.

The eldest princess was called by another lady to talk, and Shen Anan was pestered by Xiao Yuan and refused to leave.

Many people came towards Xiao Yuan and wanted to say a few words, but they were all scared away by his cold glance.

"It's time for the banquet to start. Do you want me to go to the men's table with you?"

"Let Xiao Ze prepare a separate table for us," Xiao Yuan said shamelessly.

Shen Anan's mouth twitched, "Aren't you afraid that he will poison you?"

"He doesn't dare." Xiao Yuan said confidently.

Shen Anan twitched the corners of his lips. He was afraid that he would strangle you to death even in his dreams.