Chapter 102 Chapter 102 The Duke of Guo, whose reputation is unprecedented...
Jasmine explained the reason, and Yan Ke knew that what she said made sense, but the look in his eyes was still full of helplessness.
"Don't cause trouble in the future." It was a mild reprimand.
Jasmine nodded naturally: "As you wish!"
Yan Ke shook his head helplessly and asked how she persuaded the fourth brother and how she talked to the old lady.
Jasmine told him everything she knew and answered them one by one.
After all, they had been living under the same roof for a long time. Jasmine saw the fourth young master's wife out.
Seeing that the Fourth Young Master's wife hadn't loaded much onto the carriage, Jasmine kindly reminded him, "Fourth... Madam Wu will probably need a lot of things when she moves to her new home. You can take them all with you. When the Fourth Master returns and marries a new wife, you won't be able to use them for her."
The Fourth Young Master's wife was startled, then shook her head. "No. I'm already embarrassed that I haven't returned the betrothal gifts."
Knowing that she was shy, Jasmine said no more.
Jasmine did not ask where the Fourth Young Master's wife lived, or the whereabouts of the maids she brought back from the Wu Mansion.
After all, she and the Fourth Young Master's wife weren't close enough to talk about anything. Strictly speaking, there was still some rift between them.
But a few days later, when Jasmine followed her grandfather to the western suburbs on business, she happened to meet the fourth young master's wife and Ting'er selling flowers on the street.
Of the four maids, only one is left. But I really can't support her.
Shancha whispered to Jasmine, "I was right. Ting'er is the most loyal of the four. She just isn't as lucky as me."
Shancha glanced at Jasmine as she spoke, and Jasmine happened to see her too. They smiled at each other with pride.
"She looks quite happy."
Shancha: "It's temporary. When they run out of money to eat, do you think they'll regret leaving the Duke's Mansion?"
Jasmine nodded in agreement, "I think so too. A good death is worse than a miserable life. If it were me, even if they chased me away, I would stay in the mansion until the very end."
"Who died in the mansion?"
Yan Ke came up and asked with clear eyes.
Jasmine asked, "By the way, Master, what are you going to do with the prostitutes of Marquis Wu of Liang?"
The third nobleman to be killed as an example to warn the others was Marquis Wu of Liang. They had just left his mansion.
Both Marquis Wu of Liang and his wife refused to cooperate. Jasmine always felt that his wife was not a good person. After asking around, she heard many rumors that the wife had beaten and killed maids.
Jasmine didn't think this was just a rumor, it was very likely true.
After Yan Ke learned about this, he thoroughly investigated the Marquis's wife.
As a result, several bloody incidents were involved.
It was all the work of the wife of Marquis Wu of Liang and several of her trusted maids who were in cahoots with each other. Marquis Wu of Liang had the leverage in his wife's hands, so he turned a blind eye.
As a result, more than ten prostitutes and maids were buried in the back mountain of the marquis's mansion.
In short, the couple of Marquis Wu of Liang were so arrogant just now, but then the Jingzhao Yin brought people to seal off the Marquis's mansion.
In addition to the Zuo Mansion, the Wu Mansion, and the Liang Wuhou Mansion, the Duke also investigated several other civilians' homes.
They all have concubines and despise their wives. In the houses of the rich and powerful, concubines are no match for the legitimate wives, and the rich and powerful have to weigh the pros and cons.
But it is different for ordinary families. The man and his family treat his wife as a servant, and the wife has to serve the concubines food and drink in return.
In one family, the wife couldn't stand it and ran away from home. In another family, the wife simply killed the concubine and the husband at home.
In short, because of the disaster of favoring concubines and killing wives, several families eventually ended up with wives and children separated and their fortunes fell into decline.
I would like to ask you, do you still dare to treat women as nothing and favor concubines over wives?
First, the news spread throughout Kyoto that the imperial court was cracking down on palaces that had too many concubines or had disputes between wives and concubines, and everyone in Kyoto felt insecure.
Two months later, all the states in Qi State were busy with the investigation, and the governors of each state began to assist Duke Yan in investigating the family that favored concubines and killed wives within their own areas.
From officials to ordinary people, no one was spared.
Officials who go too far can have their property confiscated and be dismissed from office, but it is not feasible to hold the people accountable.
Therefore, everywhere there is loud thunder but little rain, which serves as a deterrent.
In short, after this incident, the practice of favoring concubines over wives in Qi State was restrained, and the number of families taking concubines decreased.
The Duke and His Majesty both know that some things cannot be completely contained. For now, being able to alert everyone is enough to achieve our goal.
The Duke was summoned to the palace by His Majesty to be rewarded. His Majesty heard that the Duchess had also been busy running around for him, so he prepared a separate gift for her.
His Majesty said, "I heard that your wife has made great contributions in assisting you this time. These are a reward for your wife."
"I thank Your Majesty on behalf of my wife." After paying his respects, the Duke continued, "I have a question for Your Majesty. Is that permissible?"
His Majesty smiled and said, "Between you and me, Duke, please feel free to speak freely."
The Duke asked: "Why does Your Majesty dislike the Empress and prefer the Imperial Concubine?"
His Majesty was smiling warmly just a moment ago, but the smile disappeared completely in the next moment.
The Duke continued, "If you have a preference, I wouldn't ask. But Your Majesty has never stayed in the Imperial Palace since ascending the throne. The Empress is dignified and generous. Although her beauty isn't as great as the Imperial Concubine's, she's still acceptable. Why can't Your Majesty consider the interests of the country and cooperate?"
His Majesty's face was terribly gloomy.
The Duke stepped up to the challenge and looked His Majesty in the eye with neither arrogance nor humility.
After a moment, His Majesty asked, "Why has the Duke refused marriage proposals so many times?"
The Duke: "The situation is hopeless."
"Duke, please tell me what the situation is."
"The daughter of the Luo family is narrow-minded, the daughter of the Duan family is hypocritical and cruel, and as for the daughter of the Wan family, I had no choice but to do so."
His Majesty said in a resounding voice, "I only know that the Duke did it all three times for the Qin family!"
The Duke was stunned for a moment and remained silent for a long time.
His Majesty asked, "I would like to ask the Duke, if I forced you to marry a noblewoman as your equal wife today, would you marry her or not?"
The Duke replied with a stiff upper lip: "I already have a wife, why should I marry?"
His Majesty sneered, without hesitation, and said firmly: "The reason you are unwilling is simply because you have discovered that Qin is not an easy person to get along with. This woman is thoughtful and even more jealous. The Duke is afraid of her."
When Yan Ke walked out of the palace, His Majesty's last words were still lingering in his mind.
Is he afraid of Jasmine? Is he afraid of his wife?
But it was Jasmine who was obviously afraid of him.
Yan Ke recalled his time with Jasmine and confirmed that it was Jasmine who was afraid of him. How could a grown man like him be afraid of a little woman?
Your Majesty is talking nonsense.
When he returned to the mansion and had not yet entered the main courtyard, Jasmine ran towards him happily.
Yan Ke stood still as the mother and daughter approached. When they reached him, he took the child from her.
"It's so tiring to hold her. Just wait in the yard."
Jasmine: "But we heard Master's footsteps and couldn't wait to come out to greet him. Is that not allowed?"
Yan Ke smiled helplessly, but in her heart she was happy: "Okay."
"Master, you don't look happy? Is there something wrong?"
Yan Ke hadn't expected her to see through him. His wife was indeed a thoughtful person.
Yan Ke did not hide it from her: "There were some disagreements with His Majesty."
Jasmine looked at him curiously: "Master, can you tell me?"
Yan Ke looked at her for a moment before slowly saying, "His Majesty said he wants to give me a noblewoman as his second wife. Do you agree?"
Jasmine hadn't anticipated this. She didn't react for a moment. After a long moment, she bit her lip and spoke, "Your Majesty has granted me the marriage. What's the point of me saying yes or no?"
Yan Ke: "You don't want to, right?"
Jasmine swallowed her saliva and asked, "If Jian'er says he doesn't want to, will Master agree?"
Yan Ke looked at his wife, with doubt, puzzlement, and relief in his eyes, and then he said, "I promise you."
Hearing the answer she wanted, Jasmine jumped for joy, and she and Manxi leaned on her grandfather's chest, one on each side.
Yan Ke looked around and couldn't help but curl the corners of her lips. He really had changed.
No wonder His Majesty saw it.
Thinking of His Majesty, the Duke sighed in his heart again.
That's all. He'll just stop interfering in other people's business. After all, he's no different.
...
Jasmine received a lot of rewards, not only from His Majesty, but also from the Imperial Concubine, who gave her a generous gift on the pretext of Manxi accompanying the Second Prince.
Only the two of them knew that it was just an unspoken deal.
The news that Jasmine helped the Duke with his errands and was rewarded by His Majesty had spread throughout Kyoto.
As a result, her current fame is unprecedentedly high.
Some people even said that she and the Duke were a rare and virtuous couple in the world.
Jasmine was so happy when she heard this that she wanted to pack two boxes of copper coins and throw them out on the street.
Jasmine didn't spend any money, but she did something similar. The East City Charity Granary was evacuated two years ago after the imperial court settled the refugees.
But I heard that there was famine again in Qianzhou area, and the Dongcheng Charity Granary was going to open again.
While she was still happy and not too distressed, Jasmine decided to take some money out of her own pocket to support the court.
Of course, in order to avoid meeting He Congde, Jasmine did not go, but instead selected more than ten servants from the Duke's Mansion and took money and food to East City.
In short, after the people knew about this, the Duke's wife became even more famous.
"Doing good things is easier and more joyful than doing bad things." Shancha sighed.
These words touched Jasmine's heart. "How about we just do good things from now on?"
"Yeah!" Shancha was so excited that she wiped her tears. "My wife used to laugh at herself for not being a good person, but I knew from the beginning that I was a good wife. My wife!" Shancha hugged her.
Jasmine recalled something from a very long time ago, so long ago that it seemed like it happened in a previous life.
"But no one ever said anything good about me before. All I heard was, 'stinky girl, bitch,' 'evil-hearted,' 'rotten-hearted,' 'motherless, bastard beggar.' The more I heard, the more resentful I became. Then, either one family's grain was stolen or another family's well was filled with manure."
Jasmine was very proud and smiled as she continued, "Back then, when they said I was mean, I would tell them they were worthless. No one in Mita Village could say anything better than me."
Jasmine gazed toward Mita Village, her face calm as she continued, "It's hard to think about other people's difficulties when we're angry. But ever since I followed my grandfather, especially since returning from border patrol, I often think of my childhood. I stole food from this family, and their children must have cried with hunger. I poured manure into that family's well, and they had no water for at least several days, and I had to clean up. If I accidentally fell into the well, I'd have claimed another life. But it's too late to regret now."
Shancha asked in fear, "Madam, are you also planning to give alms to the people of Mita Village?"
"You're overthinking it."
Shancha patted her chest and said, "That's good. Those people weren't worth it. Madam, what you did to me is far less than the harm they did to you. At most, it's a draw."
"I think so too," Jasmine sighed. "You two really hit it off. It's worth all my efforts to please and win you over."
"Then we'll be together forever. Shancha will be Madam's lifelong follower."
Jasmine suddenly came to her senses: "Are you really not planning on getting married?"
Shancha: "I'm not getting married."
Jasmine thought of something and decided to tell her after some thought. "There's something I think you must know."
Shancha is not stupid: "If you want to talk about someone, don't say it."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
