Chapter 86 There are other ways to solve things, aren't there?

Jiang Yu left the hall and headed towards the Duke of Chu's study. Upon arrival, she recounted to the Duke of Chu the events of receiving Wu Ruzhou. The Duke of Chu gave a casual "hmm."

What was a momentous matter in Wu Ruzhou's eyes could only elicit a casual "hmm" from the Duke of Chu. He then said, "The next step is to immediately sever ties with the Marquis of Jiangling."

After a moment of silence, Jiang Yu said, "The news of Jiang Jiarong's death has been sent out. Marquis Jiangling should have received it and knows that there is no room for maneuver. He should be here soon."

The Duke of Chu nodded. "If Zhang Xiangling chooses to stay, her treatment will remain the same as before. If she chooses to return to the Marquis of Jiangling's residence, Jiang Yuan must stay."

Although Jiang Yuan is a girl, she is a descendant of the Duke of Chu's family, and she will not be allowed to wander outside unless absolutely necessary.

“I’ve discussed it with my mother,” Jiang Yu said. “If Brother Jiamu and the others don’t mind, Jiang Yuan will stay with my mother. If they do mind, Jiang Yuan will stay with me.”

Hearing her words, the Duke of Chu felt a surge of comfort. This incident showed that Jiang Yu was kind. As the head of a family, it's true that decisiveness and the ability to make choices are essential, but the most fundamental requirement is kindness. Only kind people truly care about their family and clan.

"Let's do it your way," he said.

At this moment, Li Zhong's voice came from outside, "My lord, the Marquis of Jiangling and his wife have arrived."

Upon hearing this, the Duke of Chu said, "Bring the man to the hall; I will be there shortly."

Li Zhong left, and Jiang Yu helped the Duke of Chu to his feet. The two walked together towards the hall. Upon arrival, they found the Marquis of Jiangling and his wife, as well as Zhang Xiangling. The three of them naturally looked displeased.

"Duke of Chu, what do you mean by this?" As soon as Duke of Chu and Jiang Yu entered the hall, Marquis Jiangling stood up and looked at them unfriendly, saying, "Jiang Jiarong is buried as a son of a concubine, so what is our Xiangling? A daughter-in-law of a son of a concubine in your Duke of Chu's mansion?"

The Duke of Chu glanced at him but said nothing. After being helped to sit down in the main seat by Jiang Yu, he said, "I made it clear to you before that the distinction between legitimate and illegitimate children cannot be confused. Humph, and you still went to the Wu family."

The three members of the Marquis of Jiangling looked somewhat embarrassed. The Marquis's wife said, "We had no choice. You were the ones who were wrong. Besides, it wasn't a glorious thing to begin with, so why make a big fuss about it?"

"If you want to compensate Jiang Jiamu, just register him under the name of the Crown Prince's wife. Why insist on making Jiang Jiarong a son of a concubine? You're forcing our two families to break ties!"

"Since you've said so, Madam Hou, let's get this straight," Jiang Yu said to the Marquis of Jiangling and his wife. "Jiang Jiarong is an illegitimate son, and there's no room for negotiation. Our two families have disagreements and conflicts on this matter, so let's not have any dealings with each other anymore."

These words were so direct that the Marquis of Jiangling and his wife were so shocked that they didn't know what to say.

Jiang Yu looked at Zhang Xiangling, "Sister-in-law, I still call you sister-in-law because I hope you can stay. If you stay, things will remain the same as before. However, you must not have any dealings with the Jiangling Marquis's mansion in the future, and you must sever ties with them."

"How dare you!" Marquis Jiangling roared, pointing at Jiang Yu.

“Marquis of Jiangling,” Jiang Yu said calmly, showing no fear of him, “from today onwards, my Chu State Duke’s Mansion will have no further dealings with your Jiangling Marquis’s Mansion.”

"You're too arrogant. Do you, a junior, have the right to speak here?" Marquis Jiangling looked at Duke of Chu. "Duke of Chu, aren't you going to do anything about this?"

However, the Duke of Chu said, "Jiang Yu's words are my meaning. From now on, my Duke of Chu's mansion will have no further dealings with your Marquis of Jiangling's mansion. From now on, our two families will be strangers."

"On what grounds?" Lady Jiangling shouted. "You are the ones who did wrong, and it is our young lady who has been wronged. How dare you say such things? Is there no justice in this world?"

"Who we associate with and who we don't associate with is up to us. The Lady of the Marquis has no right to interfere." Jiang Yu then looked at Zhang Xiangling, "Sister-in-law, now you make your choice, the Duke of Chu's mansion or the Marquis of Jiangling's mansion."

Zhang Xiangling looked at the Duke of Chu in disbelief. "I believe I have never done anything out of line since I married into the Duke of Chu's mansion. Why are you treating me like this? What have I done to wrong you?"

Since Zhang Xiangling and her family were indeed in the wrong, Jiang Yu said gently, "Sister-in-law, you are not wrong, but this is a matter between two families. I'll say it again: if you choose to stay in the Duke of Chu's mansion, your life will be the same as before."

"The same?" Zhang Xiangling said with tears in her eyes, "How can it be the same? My husband is dead, and everyone in the capital knows that he was an illegitimate son. If I go out to attend banquets in the future, people will point and whisper about me. How can it be the same as before? Tell me, how can it be the same as before?"

Jiang Yu was silent for a moment, then said, "Life isn't always smooth sailing. Sister-in-law, look ahead. As long as you don't care, what can other people's gossip do to you?"

"Hehe!" Zhang Xiangling laughed, tears streaming down her face. "I don't have your abilities. After the divorce, you prevented your ex-husband's family from taking the imperial examinations for three generations, and you still managed to gain the Duke's favor. I'm just a weak woman. I can't help but care about what others think."

Jiang Yu knew that further persuasion was useless, so she stopped trying and said, "Then you choose, sister-in-law."

"Why should we choose? You're the ones who did wrong!" Lady Jiangling pointed at Jiang Yu and roared, "It's all because of you, you troublemaker! Since you came back, there hasn't been a single day of peace in the Chu State Duke's mansion..."

"Smack!"

The Duke of Chu smashed the teacup beside him on the ground, then glared at the Lady of Jiangling and said, "If I hear those words you just said again, I will not let this go."

Lady Jiangling was so frightened that she took a step back, but then realized that she didn't need to be afraid of them, so she raised her chin high.

Then the Duke of Chu said, "If you don't choose, you can return to the Marquis of Jiangling's residence. Jiang Yuan will remain in the Duke of Chu's residence, and you will have no further relationship with her. Show her out!"

He strode out, Jiang Yu following behind him. The Jiangling Marquis and his family of three stood there, filled with anger and shock. They never expected that the Chu Kingdom would choose to sever ties with them, after all, they had maintained relations for decades!

"Jiang Yu," Zhang Xiangling called out after taking a few quick steps.

Jiang Yu stopped and turned around. Zhang Xiangling walked over. She looked at Jiang Yu and asked, "Tell me, why? Why did it suddenly turn out like this? Aren't there other ways to resolve this?"

“Sister-in-law,” Jiang Yu said sincerely, looking at her, “we really hope you can stay. As long as you don’t have any dealings with the Jiangling Marquis’s mansion in the future, we will still be family. Any difficulties you encounter in the future will also be our difficulties.”

Zhang Xiangling still looked puzzled, but Jiang Yu couldn't answer her. If she were smart, she should be able to figure it out. However, her mind wasn't on the safety of the Jiangling Marquis's residence at all.