Chapter 1096 Internal Strife

This girl from the Liu family was the eldest daughter of the main branch. Unfortunately, her birth mother passed away two years ago, and her stepmother, Lady Dong, was a sweet-faced but bitter-hearted person.

Unfortunately, this Ms. Dong was young and beautiful, and was very much liked by Ms. Liu's father, Master Liu.

She said she would find a marriage partner for Miss Liu, and Master Liu entrusted her with the entire task.

For some reason, Madam Gong developed a relationship with this stepmother, and she wanted her son to marry this Miss Liu.

Although Miss Liu's life in the Duke's mansion is not easy now, her mother passed away two years ago. At least two years ago, Miss Liu was raised to be the mistress of the house. Her every move was that of a well-bred lady. Her knowledge and character were impeccable.

Madam Gong felt that only a girl like this was worthy of Gong Chang.

However, Miss Liu's stepmother had one condition.

This woman surnamed Dong has a half-brother, a fact unknown to outsiders. She was originally given away to be raised by someone else. However, at the end of last year, this half-brother came to the capital and sought out Ms. Dong.

Fearing his identity would be exposed, Madam Dong secretly tried to appease him, hoping to find an opportunity to send him back.

Who knew that his elder brother recently made a request: he wanted to get married, and he wanted to marry the daughter of a high-ranking official.

Madam Dong was in a real bind. What good girl would marry a penniless, powerless commoner who also beat women? She hadn't considered forcing Miss Liu onto him. First, Duke Liu wouldn't agree, and it might even get her into trouble. Second, Miss Liu was clever; if she really married her brother, she could probably extract their identities from him in no time.

At that time, Miss Liu might use this as leverage to kill her.

So Dong turned her attention to the daughters of other officials. Originally, she thought she could find a girl from the family of a sixth or seventh-rank official and, with a little maneuvering, perhaps succeed.

Who knew that at this time, Madam Gong would approach her and want Miss Liu to marry her son.

After thinking about it, Mr. Dong realized that this was a good thing.

That young master Gong is sickly and incapable of taking the imperial examinations; he'll never amount to anything. His stepdaughter will marry him, and her life will likely remain the same. Who knows, maybe the young master Gong will die unexpectedly, leaving his stepdaughter a widow.

That'll make me feel better.

More importantly, the Gong family has a girl of marriageable age.

Madam Gong has asked him for a favor, and she has gone to great lengths for the sake of the Second Young Master Gong. He should be able to agree to such a request, right?

Shu Yu was stunned when she heard this. "Isn't this... a marriage exchange?"

“It’s not just a marriage exchange,” Meng Yunzheng said. “Even if Gong Qiu doesn’t manage things and Gong Ya is not favored, she is still a daughter of the Gong family. Moreover, Gong Qiu’s ambitions go beyond that; he would never let his daughter marry someone like that.”

Even if a daughter of a concubine is from the Gong family, she must still be married to a son of an official.

Both Madam Gong and Madam Dong were aware of this.

So the two of them came up with a despicable plan: to make Gong Ya lose her virginity to Dong's brother, thus making it a fait accompli, and then, with a little manipulation, she would have no choice but to marry him.

Unfortunately, Aunt Chen found out about it.

Aunt Chen was completely flustered and went to tell Gong Ya, who was furious after hearing the news.

She's not one to take things lying down. If someone schemes against her like this, her whole life is ruined. She's not going to let it go.

However, she couldn't dispel Madam Gong's idea in a short time. Just as she was becoming more and more anxious, Meng Yunzheng returned to the capital.

When Gong Ya saw him, besides being surprised and shocked, she suddenly had a plan.

(End of this chapter)