Chapter 125 A First Marriage is Better Than a First Marriage

Xuanwu Continent is a mid-level world.

There are several countries on the continent, but wars rarely break out between them because each country is busy defending against external enemies.

The external enemy is not a person, but a beast.

A large number of ferocious beasts.

These ferocious beasts feed on humans and live in forests or nest underground according to their habits. They come out to feed from time to time, and there are also beast tides every once in a while, which has caused the population of Xuanwu Continent to keep declining. Various countries have issued decrees to encourage widows to remarry. Each woman must have three children to meet the standard, otherwise she will be fined silver.

In addition, the imperial court would conscript soldiers from time to time. If there were men in the family, the men would go to serve in the army; if there were no men, the women would be conscripted. Except for the elderly over seventy years old and children under fourteen years old, adult men and women could go to the battlefield at any time.

Therefore, many people get married and have children early in order to prevent themselves from being dragged to the battlefield and dying without leaving any descendants.

The women in this world are also very strong in combat, mainly because of the meat of those ferocious beasts.

The flesh of ferocious beasts contains energy. The ferocious beasts killed by soldiers on the front lines are transported back to various parts of the country for sale. No one in the Xuanwu Continent raises livestock because there is simply not enough to eat. The ferocious beasts are too cheap, cheaper than the cost of raising them themselves.

The people of Xuanwu Continent grow up eating the flesh of ferocious beasts, giving them extraordinary strength. In addition, with the cultivation techniques popularized by the imperial court, an ordinary adult woman can possess the strength of five cauldrons simply by cultivating according to these techniques.

With a little serious training, reaching the level of 8 cauldrons is quite easy; a woman reaching the level of 10 cauldrons is ready for the battlefield.

Men are naturally stronger than women, and their martial arts strength is twice as high. If a man cultivates advanced techniques, his martial arts strength can reach 30 or 40 ding (a unit of weight in ancient China). The current emperor has 42 ding strength.

Therefore, regardless of gender, everyone had to undergo six months of training before going to the battlefield. Those who did not meet the standards were basically sent to their deaths.

Because ferocious beasts are really hard to deal with.

The original owner was the daughter of a merchant. Her family business was quite successful. Her mother had four sons and one daughter. Her three older brothers had joined the army, while the fourth son stayed at home temporarily to help his father with business.

The original owner was the youngest child in her family. Her second uncle's cousin was the same age as her, only two months younger. She was jealous of her because the original owner had a good marriage prospect.

Because the original owner's biological father had saved Prefect Fu, the prefect, in gratitude, arranged a marriage between his son and the original owner.

Ning Wanrong was extremely jealous because the original owner of this body was able to marry into an official family.

So, after the original owner and Fu Qing were about to get married, she took the opportunity to seduce her brother-in-law under the pretext of visiting her cousin.

This world is particularly open about male-female relationships because of its sparse population. People living in towns still pay attention to marriage, but those who join the army don't care about such things at all in order to have children. Women will just snatch any man they like, and if they give birth to a child, that child will be their own, and they don't have to worry about the man's family taking the child back.

Even in towns, you can't guarantee that a child born to your wife is your own, but as long as it's born on your own bed, it's considered your biological child.

Many widows, after returning home, simply find a man to use temporarily, and once they have children, they discard the man, since the children will definitely be their own.

Because of these reasons, although Fu Qing had a relationship with Ning Wanrong, he did not intend to marry his sister-in-law.

But a month later, the sister-in-law came to visit again.

She is pregnant.

When Fu Qing heard that she had her own child, his mind immediately became active, and he wanted to marry her.

What could the original owner say? After Fu Qing persuaded her, she naturally agreed.

But her cousin was audacious; she only wanted to be a wife, not a concubine.

Then Fu Qing married a concubine.

Life could have continued like this, but Ning Wanrong was too cruel. She poisoned the original owner's food, and the original owner died before her child was even born.

Ning Yan arrived just as Ning Wanrong announced her pregnancy and her intention to become the official wife.

“My lady, I do value you, but she is carrying my child. I have no choice but to marry her. Besides, if you can’t conceive, I won’t even have a son after I go to the army.”

Once you join the army, you have to stay in the military for at least thirty years before you can retire, unless you die.

During this period, there is only one day off per year, which lasts for three months.

Who can guarantee that they will survive three years on the battlefield?

Fu Qing longed to have an heir with his wife. His wife was beautiful, gentle, and completely different from his sisters-in-law. He loved her dearly and truly wanted to spend his life with her.

The original owner had been in the manor for more than seven months. In theory, that wasn't a long time, but according to the policies of Xuan Kingdom, it was very dangerous. She was the only woman in seven months and she hadn't gotten pregnant. So who could guarantee that she would get pregnant in the future?

Therefore, Ning Wanrong's child came at the perfect time. As long as the child is born, he will have an heir, and he won't have to worry about going to the battlefield.

But Ning Yan was unwilling to share a husband with her cousin, especially since her cousin was determined to kill her.

A woman should never compromise herself, so she didn't want to get involved with Fu Qing anymore.

"Young Master Fu intends to marry her as his principal wife, is that right?"

Fu Qing frowned. His wife had always called him "husband" before.

"Not the principal wife, but a concubine."

"The result is the same."

Ning Yan lowered her head and skimmed the tea foam from the teacup, but lost all interest in tasting the tea.

"So, let's get a divorce."

Fu Qing's expression changed drastically. He never expected to hear those two words from his wife. "Ning Yan, why?"

Ning Yan looked at him, her eyes calm and expressionless, and even her words were devoid of any emotion, "I'm afraid I'll throw up."

"You...you're upset that I had a relationship with someone else? But isn't that a normal thing?"

These days, no one, male or female, knows when they might be dragged into the battlefield. If the men in a family die in battle, the remaining family members are left to shoulder the burden of supporting two or three other members. He only had an accident with his cousin, so why can't she tolerate it?

"If one day I become pregnant with Zhang Zhixing's child, can you accept being the child's father?"

Zhang Zhixing is the eldest son of the General of the Fierce Cavalry. He has been at odds with Fu Qing since childhood. He wants Fu Qing to be the father of his son. No, the thought that Ning Yan might have some interaction with Zhang Zhixing makes him want to kill someone!

"Xiangling, go and get the brush, ink, paper, and inkstone."

Fu Qing never imagined that he and Ning Yan would come to this point. He originally came to Ning Yan to discuss taking a concubine as a secondary wife, so why did it turn into a divorce?

Xiangling quickly brought over the inkstone and other items. Fu Qing's eyes were full of disbelief. "I can't write it, Ning Yan, please stop messing around."

"Whatever you want. I'll find a chance to seduce Zhang Zhixing. If he's willing, I might even have two more children for him."

Half an hour later, Fu Qing left dejectedly with a divorce agreement in his hand.

Ning Yan, however, happily packed her dowry and even sent her maid back to the Ning residence.

(End of this chapter)