Jiao'er rested her chin on He Tian's shoulder.

They couldn't see each other's eyes.

"My dear, I will take you as my concubine. You know I can't disobey my mother. She raised me all by herself, which has been very difficult for her. Will you listen to me? As long as you stay by my side, isn't that enough? You know I love you. I promise you, I will sleep in your room more often from now on and I will never let my wife mistreat you, okay?"

Jiao'er's eyes flickered slightly.

Even in the darkness, it exudes a hint of ruthlessness.

It disappeared in an instant.

She cried again.

Tears soaked He Tian's shoulder.

The clothes I just changed are soaked again.

"Brother Xiaotian, if I had known, I shouldn't have given myself to you. I know I'm just a lowly maid, unworthy of you, but... but I really love you so much, Brother Xiaotian. From the first day Madam bought me, I loved you. Back then, you sat here reading a book, your voice as beautiful as a bird flying in the trees. Three years ago that night, you held me and said I was beautiful. Do you know how happy I was? I thought I would marry you, have our children, and live happily ever after..."

Jiao'er sniffed.

He left He Tian's arms.

Under the moonlight, the two looked into each other's eyes.

"I don't blame you, Brother Tian. I know Madam looks down on me and despises me for being a slave. I shouldn't have had any hope. If I could go back to the past, I would rather Madam had never bought me. I'm in so much pain, Brother Tian. What hurts me isn't being a concubine, but the thought that another woman will have you. Just thinking about you sleeping in the same bed with her feels like my heart is being pierced by needles. Brother Tian, ​​I wish I could, I wish I could die with my child—"

He Tian was heartbroken.

He hugged his beloved child again.

"Don't talk nonsense. Be careful the child doesn't hear you. Our son will be upset. Don't worry, once I have her under control, I won't go to her room anymore. I'm yours, for life. My heart will always be with you. I won't let her get pregnant with my child. In the future, all the He family's property will belong to our son. This is my guarantee to you. Trust me."

After saying that, he left a kiss on his daughter's forehead.

The depth of feeling in one's eyes can be as profound as possible.

"Brother Xiaotian, do you think our child will be sad if he finds out he is an illegitimate son? Will he blame me, blame me for being useless and becoming someone's concubine? I'm so scared, Brother Xiaotian."

"It's alright, my darling. Whether he's a legitimate son or a son born out of wedlock, he's still my son. My child will only come out of your womb. What difference does it make whether he's legitimate or not? I will cherish him like a precious treasure. Don't cry, my darling. It'll look ugly if you cry anymore. It's getting late, go back to sleep. I have to go propose marriage early tomorrow morning. Be good, okay?"

He Tian stroked his daughter's face.

Extremely patient.

"Okay, I won't cry anymore. I don't want Brother Xiaotian to worry. Brother Xiaotian, promise me you won't like her, okay?"

"good!"

The two hugged and kissed again.

A corner not far away.

A figure was standing there.

It was the Song family.

Her eyes blazed with fury, and she wished she could rush out and tear her beloved child to pieces.

But this would make her precious son hate her.

She heard every word of their conversation.

The clenched fist finally loosened.

Unable to bear the sight any longer, Madam Song turned and went back inside.

She gave her the name Jiao'er.

The fact that she gave her the surname Song shows how much she liked this little maid back then. Jiao'er is now 17 years old. She bought her from a group of people fleeing famine six years ago. At that time, Jiao'er was so thin that she was just a skeleton, but her big eyes were staring straight at Song Shi.

One sentence: "Auntie, you look just like my mother."

It completely softened her heart.

She then made a decision and took out two taels of silver to buy Jiao'er.

Disliking that the name Chongdi was too unpleasant, she renamed him Song Jiao instead.

It implies that she will be cherished like a precious treasure for the rest of her life.

Originally, Madam Song planned to help her regain her slave status when she turned twenty, and give her two taels of silver as dowry to marry her off to a good family.

But who would have thought that three years ago, Jiao'er's heart had grown up.

She actually climbed into bed.

He climbed for three years straight, keeping it a secret from her for three years as well.

It wasn't until last month when Jiao'er collapsed at home that she asked a doctor to examine her pulse and learned that Jiao'er was already more than a month pregnant.

That day, her obedient son defied her for the first time, saying he wanted to marry Jiao'er, otherwise he would never get married. She was so angry that she almost hanged herself.

Her son.

I absolutely must not marry a maid!

From that day on, Mrs. Song regarded her beloved son as a thorn in her side.

He scolded her every day.

In about half a month, Jiao'er will be three months pregnant. It's summer, and the clothes are thin, so if she's showing, it will be obvious at a glance. She must hurry up and get her son married and bring Jiao'er into the family. That way, seven months later, she can tell everyone that the child was born prematurely.

We absolutely cannot allow our son to have a child born to a concubine before he is even married.

This will be a stain on his life.

If I become an official in the future.

If someone reports you, your life is over.

Official hats must be removed.

It must be said that the Song family had a lot on their minds.

He Tian couldn't even pass the preliminary examination for the lowest level of the imperial examinations...

Fuming with anger, Ms. Song struggled to fall asleep.

In her dream, she caught her beloved son cheating on her in bed and beat him to death.

His expression relaxed a little.

As soon as it was light, Song set off with her son, renting a carriage to go to Baihua Village.

Zou Huahua was among them.

Just outside the city gate, they met the carriage carrying Jin Yu, and left Shuangqiao Town one after the other.

One is heading left, the other is moving forward.

There are actually several roads leading from Shuangqiao Town to Baihua Village. Some roads are wide, and some are narrow. The wide roads are official roads built by the imperial court, while the narrow roads are small paths left by nearby villagers over a long period of time.

The natural distances are also different.

The scenery is also different in each place.

When Yan Xia wasn't in a hurry, she liked to take the official road that was a little further away, because it had the best scenery and offered views of mountains, rivers, and waterfalls.

Absolutely beautiful.

Today, Song took a narrower path and arrived at Baihua Village in about half an hour.

Since the horse-drawn carriage didn't stop at the village entrance, it naturally stopped directly in front of Bai Lizheng's house since they were about to propose marriage.

Because they were in a hurry, they agreed on the dowry and other arrangements on the day of the marriage proposal.

"Bai Lizheng, I've come to propose marriage!"

Zou Huahua's voice is like a gong.

The shout reached not only Bai Lizheng's family, but also several neighboring households.

I didn't bring a gift when I came yesterday.

We mustn't forget today.

Ms. Song carried two bags of pastries in each hand.

He Tian then took a pot of wine.

Compared to the farmers in the village, this gift was quite valuable.

"You're here, why bring anything?"

"Oh, Bai Lizheng, today is different. I've come to propose marriage on behalf of Xiaotian. Come, come, let's go to the main room to discuss this in detail—"

Just like yesterday, the group sat down in the main room.

Zou Huahua spoke for half an hour.

Only then did they hand over the home field to the Song family.