Chapter 29 Chapter 29 Chu Yuanhe also fell in love with his sister-in-law...
The onlookers gradually dispersed. Luo couldn't bear it anymore and wanted to vent her anger on Zhao Manyi who had fainted, and take her back to the Li family.
Aunt Fang was heartbroken. She knew that Luo had bad intentions and refused to agree. Finally, the news reached the Zhao family. The second master, Zhao Huailiang, sent someone to take Zhao Manyi home first, and then rushed to the Li family overnight to apologize to Zhao Qingyi.
Seeing the elders bowing and scraping before her, Zhao Qingyi dared not accept such courtesy. Besides, leaving Zhao Manyi aside, her second uncle had been taking care of her all these years since her father went to Shanxi.
Zhao Qingyi will seek revenge, but she will never forget those who are good to her.
But the matter has been settled, and it is almost impossible for her to forgive Zhao Manyi.
But she wouldn't force anyone to die.
Because what she wanted was never for them to die quickly and painfully.
Zhao Huailiang felt ashamed when he saw his dignified and sensible niece, so he decided to keep the wedding simple as a punishment for Zhao Manyi.
It happened to be near the Mid-Autumn Festival, so the two families chose this day to get married. No one dared to make it public, and they didn't even dare to put up couplets of "囍" characters in the house. Instead, they used a sedan chair carried by two people to quietly carry Zhao Manyi into the Li family at dusk.
Even though Zhao Manyi felt wronged, she did not dare to resist her father.
Doing so also saved money for the Luo family, because even if Zhao Manyi was not brought home, they would still hold a family dinner on this day. Now the wedding was just a casual event, and no guests were invited. Apart from the Li family themselves, only the second branch of the Zhao family came.
The summer heat in the capital had not yet subsided, but the banquet was set up in the center of the courtyard. Zhao Manyi, a lowly concubine, was naturally not qualified to sit at the table, so she was sent to Liulizhai and was not allowed to see anyone.
Luo looked at Zhao Huailiang and Aunt Fang, and unconsciously put on a condescending attitude.
The person she respected and feared was only the elder master who was a cabinet minister. As for a man of similar rank to her son, Luo Shi thought she was capable of being on equal terms with him.
She raised her glass and gave a false toast to the Second Master, Zhao Huailiang, with a smug smile, "After today, we are considered relatives. I'll drink this glass of wine first as a token of my respect."
Zhao Huailiang looked down on such a vulgar woman like Luo from the bottom of his heart, but he had no choice but to raise his glass in response because his daughter was still living under her.
Aunt Fang had no intention of taking advantage of the situation. She knew exactly who Mrs. Luo was as early as when she was in the teahouse.
She snorted coldly, "Now that my Man'er has married into your family, if I ever find out she's been wronged, I'll fight you to the death!"
Aunt Fang knew that what Mrs. Luo was after was nothing but money. Although she was unwilling, in order to let her daughter live a decent life in her husband's family, she still put together a dowry of nearly ten thousand taels for Zhao Manyi, hoping that one day she would become successful as Mrs. Luo said.
Mrs. Luo knew it very well, and when she thought of the dowry money, she laughed so hard that her eyes became blind.
At this moment, the doorman came in to report, of course, to Zhao Qingyi, the mistress of the house, "Grandma, the prince has come to give a gift."
When they heard that the prince had arrived, everyone stood up to greet him.
Chu Yuanhe was in high spirits today, and Fugui behind him was also smiling, holding a jar of wine in one hand and a basket of crabs in the other, with large and small bags hanging from his body with hemp ropes.
If you don’t know, you would think that they are the ones who are happy today.
Zhao Qingyi was still respectful and polite on the surface, so Luo, Zhao Huailiang and others quickly gave up their seats.
"No need to be so polite, I can do whatever I want." Chu Yuanhe said casually, but he sat down on the empty seat next to Zhao Qingyi.
That position was originally reserved for Li Che.
Li Che had just sent the newlyweds into the bridal chamber and had not yet arrived, but Chu Yuanhe had already sat down and no one dared to ask him to stand up and give up his seat.
Chu Yuanhe also told Fugui to take the crabs away and steam them, and had someone open the wine jars and fill them up one by one. It was obvious that this was his first time visiting the Li family, but he felt as comfortable as if he were at home.
The Luo family members looked at each other, and no one dared to say a word.
Among all the people present, Zhao Lanyan was probably the happiest. He was originally talking to Li Heng, but when he saw him, he rushed over and hugged him.
"Prince, are you here to teach me how to use the sword? I've been studying and practicing diligently every day!" His tone was as familiar as if he were a family member.
"Today is your brother-in-law's wedding day. It's not proper to wield swords." Chu Yuanhe did not hesitate to draw out a dagger inlaid with various gemstones from his waist. "I came here to give you this."
Zhao Lanyan was still a young man at heart, and he couldn't wait to pull out the dagger. Suddenly, a cold light flashed everywhere, and it was obvious that it was a sharp weapon that could cut through iron like mud. He felt like he had found a treasure and immediately demonstrated a few moves.
It was rare for his brother to be happy, so Zhao Qingyi also smiled, "Why don't you thank the prince quickly?"
Li Heng felt very jealous. He had been coaxing Zhao Lanyan these days, taking out all kinds of rare and valuable books from his collection, but Zhao Lanyan was not so warm to him.
Then she couldn't help but say sourly, "This dagger is too sharp. Brother Lan Yan should be careful, so as not to hurt yourself and make your sister sad."
Zhao Lanyan was completely clueless and subconsciously said, "It's okay. I'm a man, so I have thick skin and flesh."
Chu Yuanhe could hear the bitterness in his words. He glanced at him, just a glance, and concluded that Li Heng was no match for him, so he looked at Li Jiao beside him.
Li Jiao was a well-behaved child who knew when to advance and when to retreat. He understood what Chu Yuanhe meant and made a circle to stand beside him.
"My proud son pays his respects to the prince." He bowed in a proper manner.
Chu Yuanhe took out a red silk brocade box from Fugui and said, "My dear, this is for you. I hope you will pass the imperial examinations and achieve great success. I hope you will not bring shame to your mentor, Mr. Kong."
Li Jiao took it and opened it, his hand almost unable to hold it steady.
Li Heng couldn't help but lean over to look out of curiosity, and his expression changed when he saw it.
Hu brush, Duan inkstone, Xuan paper and Hui ink are a set of the four treasures of the study.
Even if Zhao Qingyi treated Li Jiao well, he would not provide him with such luxurious things at this stage. Chu Yuanhe provided him with a complete set.
No matter how Li Jiao pretended to be calm, he could not hide the ecstasy in his eyes. He thanked Chu Yuanhe repeatedly and stepped forward to salute with Yuxiu.
"..." Li Heng looked even more sour.
The man's intuition told him that the Prince of Pingxi must have ulterior motives since he was trying so hard to please Zhao Lanyan and Li Jiao, and the person who had the closest connection with these two people was only Zhao Qingyi.
Chu Yuanhe also fell in love with his sister-in-law?
Li Heng pursed his lips in silence.
Zhao Huailiang happened to praise Li Jiao's studies at this time. Li Jiao had been studying in the Zhao family for some time, and his talent and hard work were obvious to all. However, when it came to studying, he naturally asked about Li Heng.
"I heard that my nephew also took part in this year's Autumn Examination. I wonder how you did?" The Autumn Examination was held during the time when Zhao Qingyi returned home.
Li Heng came back to his senses and replied respectfully, "It's fine. Thank you for your concern, Lord Zhao."
Luo was not happy about this. After all, Li Heng was a bastard's son, and she didn't want the bastard's fame to overshadow her biological son.
Zhao Huailiang said in a kind tone, "If you have this confidence, you will definitely pass the imperial examination. When you enter the officialdom, brothers can help each other."
Li Che originally had a chance, but unfortunately the Zhao Manyi incident happened. The Li family's future hopes might fall on this illegitimate son, and Zhao Huailiang would not miss the opportunity to make friends with him.
"After the results of the Autumn Examination are announced, it's time for you to start planning your own lifelong event. Do you have someone you like?"
Li Heng seemed a little embarrassed, "No, no." He quickly glanced in the direction of Zhao Qingyi.
Zhao Lanyan had become addicted to playing with the dagger, and the people around him were so scared that they kept a distance from him. Zhao Qingyi had no choice but to confiscate it, saying righteously, "You are a child, you are not allowed to play with it anymore."
Zhao Lanyan immediately became dejected. Normally, he dared to disobey his parents at home, but he obeyed his sister and had to sit down and eat obediently.
Chu Yuanhe couldn't help laughing.
Li Heng wanted to go over, but Zhao Huailiang kept on nagging him, "I have a nice girl at home, my niece, Fang Ru. She's coming of age this year. Why don't you two meet her some other day..."
Li Heng's attention was all on Zhao Qingyi. He didn't listen carefully to what he said, but just nodded in agreement.
However, Zhao Qingyi had sharp ears and heard clearly what his second uncle said.
The niece he was talking about was most likely the girl brought by Aunt Fang. It was said that her parents died early, so she came to live with her aunt Aunt Fang. However, no matter how favored Aunt Fang was, her niece could not be the same as the proper young ladies in the mansion.
Fang Ru knew that she was living under someone else's roof, so she was always well-behaved and docile, never causing trouble, just to have a place to stay. Because of her low-key and introverted personality, her marriage was delayed until the fifteenth day and there was still no settlement. Finally, Aunt Fang said that she would find a good family for Fang Ru to marry into.
In the end, the person Fang Ru married was Li Heng.
In his previous life, Li Heng passed the imperial examination in the autumn of this year and ranked seventh in the joint examination the following year. His status rose instantly and countless families wanted to marry Li Heng. Even the usually mean Luo family became more friendly to this illegitimate son and held a celebration banquet at home.
In addition to Li Heng's classmates, people from the Zhao family also came to accept the invitation.
At that time, the eldest wife's family had no heir, so the guests came instead: the second uncle, the second aunt, and Concubine Fang and Fang Ru. However, on the day of the celebration banquet, Li Heng was tricked by Concubine Fang and had to marry Fang Ru.
From then on, the two successful Jinshi in the Li family were won over to Aunt Fang's side. Later, as Li Che and Li Heng's careers rose step by step, the second branch gradually rose and had the momentum of the first branch.
The more Zhao Qingyi thought about it, the more lost in thought he became.
Until Zhao Lanyan's pleading voice sounded, "Sister..."
He took Zhao Qingyi's hand and started to act coquettishly, "Brother has to go back tonight, and I don't know when I can see my sister again. Please give me this dagger first..."
Li Heng was being questioned by Zhao Huailiang. He didn't want to see Miss Fang at all, so he said, "Brother Lan Yan is going back? Why don't I take you there..."
"Don't bother, Mr. Li."
Chu Yuanhe glanced at him with a carefree smile on his face, "It's on the way anyway, I'll let Taxue take him there later."
Li Heng had long disliked him and wanted to seek help from Zhao Lanyan himself.
Then Zhao Lanyan excitedly shouted, "Treading Snow? Is it the Treading Snow Divine Horse that once accompanied His Majesty in the campaign against the Northwest?"
Chu Yuanhe knew that this boy admired him, and he couldn't suppress the smile on his face. He raised his eyebrows mysteriously, "This prince has a close relationship with His Majesty, so he kept Taxue in my palace. Taxue is right at the door now."
Zhao Lanyan cheered again, "I want to walk on the snow, I want to walk on the snow!" After that, he stopped eating, pushed Li Heng away, and ran to the door to watch the snow.
Li Heng: “…”
Zhao Qingyi had a severe headache and stood up helplessly. "Taixue belongs to Your Majesty. If my brother really rides it back, I'm afraid he will be charged with presumptuous behavior."
Chu Yuanhe was about to say it was okay, but Li Heng used the excuse of helping out and followed Zhao Qingyi out.
Chu Yuanhe didn't even think twice and took Li Jiao with him, "Let's go and see your uncle off."
Fugui watched his master go out and followed him happily. Only Luo Shi and Zhao Huailiang and a few other elders were left in the courtyard. The family banquet had just begun, so it was not easy for them to leave.
This also satisfied Li Heng.
When they arrived at the street gate, all the families gathered together to celebrate the reunion night. There was no outsiders around, so Li Heng took out a folded handkerchief from his arms - it was the one that Zhao Qingyi gave him in Lanyue Pavilion that day.
Under the moonlight, Li Heng blushed. He held the handkerchief in both hands and handed it over, "Sister-in-law, you lent me your handkerchief to wipe my sweat that day, and I have forgotten to return it to you."
Chu Yuanhe came out and saw this scene, and the smile on his face suddenly disappeared.
Li Jiao pretended to call his mother, but was dragged into the shadow under the wall.
Zhao Qingyi didn't notice anyone coming. She looked at the handkerchief that Li Heng handed over and said in a distant tone, "Uncle, you are too polite. This handkerchief is owned by every maid in the mansion. It is not a rare item. After you use it, you can just throw it away."
A woman's handkerchief is a personal item, and she would not give her own things to others casually.
Li Heng tightened his grip on the handkerchief, looking increasingly embarrassed.
Zhao Qingyi nodded slightly at him, turned to Zhao Lanyan, and reminded him not to make trouble.
Li Heng knew that she was saving his face, so he quickly withdrew his hand and left in a hurry.
After everyone left, Zhao Qingyi sighed silently.
No matter what Li Heng was thinking, he should be stopped.
In the dark, Chu Yuanhe breathed a sigh of relief, and then took Li Jiao over, saying that he wanted to send Zhao Lanyan back home.
It happened that Luo sent someone over to ask Zhao Qingyi to return to the table, so she said goodbye to them and walked back with Li Jiao.
At the family dinner, Li Che, the only one who could come out for the social event, was pestered by Zhao Manyi, so the dinner did not last too long. Zhao Huailiang and Aunt Fang found an excuse to leave first.
Mrs. Luo was in a good mood tonight and drank too much. She was drunk and unconscious. She was supported by Mrs. Luo and sent back to Qionghua Hall. Zhao Qingyi asked the servants to clean up the mess and went back to her room to rest.
At the same time, in the left wing of Liulizhai, Zhao Manyi had a big tantrum.
Her dream of a grand sedan chair carried by eight people and a formal marriage was all in vain. She was even placed in a small side room and lived in submission to the jade sleeves. How could she not be angry?
On her wedding night, there were only a pair of bright red dragon and phoenix candles placed in the room, and even the bed was not changed.
It was clearly a happy occasion, but there was not a trace of joy in it. Zhao Manyi only felt that it was perfunctory.
She smashed everything in the house, then ran to the bedside, looked at the indifferent Li Che, and screamed at the top of her lungs, "You Li family treated me so badly, my aunt will not let you go!"
"Now that things have come to this, what else do you want?"
Li Che was exhausted after seeing her going crazy all night. The impeachment memorials from the censors in recent days were enough to give him a headache, and he didn't want to waste any more energy to coax an unreasonable woman.
Zhao Manyi was just venting her anger, grabbing his shoulders and shaking him vigorously, "I want to be the legal wife! I want to be the legal wife! I don't want to live in this shabby, tiny Liulizhai!"
"Stop it." Li Che pushed her away, pinching his furrowed brows, with an unprecedented indifference, "You ran away to be a concubine, everyone knows it, and now you want to be the wife, it's simply wishful thinking!"
"Isn't all this planned by you and your mother?"
Zhao Manyi burst into tears and fell to her knees, "You hurt me, you ruined my life!"
Li Che really couldn't stand it. After all, she was already married, so there was no need for him to coax her and flatter her like before.
"Go ahead and make a scene if you want. You can sleep alone tonight."
Zhao Manyi's mind buzzed, and before she could react, Li Che had already walked out.
“Li Che…Li Che!”
Zhao Manyi was shocked and crawled out to chase him, but was stopped by the servant at the door. She could only watch Li Che enter the main house where Yuxiu was, and tears welled up in her eyes again.
"You can't do this to me!"
She is the daughter of the Zhao family, the woman who has been with him for four years and gave birth to Jun Ge'er for him!
But Li Che turned a deaf ear and slammed the door shut, blocking out her crying.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
