Chapter 55 She wanted to marry into the Duke of England's family, and he helped her achieve that...
"What difference does it make whether I want to or not?" Lou Yanxu turned her head, glanced over, her hand clenched tightly in her sleeve, but her face remained expressionless.
Xu Congjing took two steps at a time and stood firmly in front of her. Finally, he made a difficult decision: "The Duke and Duchess of England will not let you marry easily. If you wish, I will help you achieve your wish."
He seemed to return to his childhood, to the bright moon and the ever-shining Big Dipper, where they sat side by side on the rooftop, and he solemnly promised her: whatever she wanted, he would do everything in his power to give it to her. Including now, that she was to marry someone else, he would make the marriage happen.
But she didn't appreciate it, saying, "You should mind your own business."
As he turned and lifted his foot, he frantically grabbed her slender wrist, his fingers gripping her tightly, as if letting go would mean losing her.
Just then, the autumn wind whistled past their ears, followed by hurried footsteps. Lou Yunbing called out loudly, "Sister, why aren't you here yet?"
Yes, Yun Bing had just sent someone to invite her over, but on the way he heard that Wan Qing'an was having a conflict at the gate, so he rushed over. He wanted to send him back first, but as soon as he saw Xu Congjing entangled with him, he immediately rushed over and punched Xu Congjing in the face.
He forcefully pried open those hands, which were covered in bulging veins, and roared, "Let her go!"
Xu Congjing was stunned. She took a few steps back, wiped the blood from the corner of her mouth, and asked incredulously, "Sister?"
Lou Yanxu had no intention of hiding anything from him. Her eyes were bright, clearly saying, "I never said he was my lover." She said calmly, "He is Yun Bing."
Yunli and Yunbing.
Upon closer inspection, Xu Congjing realized that the two people in front of him had almost identical features. He took a deep breath, his eyes wide with astonishment, completely overwhelmed by shock. He knew that the Lou family had a younger son, a twin of Wanwan, but he had disappeared years ago and his whereabouts were unknown. He never expected to find him again.
"He is your twin brother." He bowed his head and murmured to himself, recalling those days of jealousy and resentment. His face flushed with embarrassment, but he suddenly smiled self-deprecatingly, realizing that he had misunderstood.
After a long pause, he straightened up and said, "May I speak with you in private?"
Lou Yanxu's gaze lingered for a moment, a hint of suspicion in it, "What is it between you and him that you can't tell me in front of me?" But what could he possibly do to Yun Bing?
But he kept looking at Yun Bing, as if he were determined to fight to the death, and finally promised, "I'll leave after I finish speaking."
Since Yun Bing had agreed, and this persistent, stubborn person was impossible to get rid of, he figured he might as well see what the man wanted to say. He didn't believe the man could cause any trouble here, so he found a secluded corner to settle down and asked, "What do you want to say?"
Xu Congjing looked behind him and saw Lou Yanxu watching from afar. He covered her mouth and whispered, "The Duke of Ying's mansion is not that simple. They will not easily agree to this marriage. No matter what they say, you just need to keep an eye on her and remember to protect her safety." Over the years, he had dealt with the Duke of Ying's mansion quite a bit and knew the couple well. If they only opposed it, that would be fine, but he was afraid they would say one thing to his face and another behind his back.
Yun Bing asked suspiciously, "Why didn't you say that to her?"
“She’s caught up in the situation, so it’s understandable that she can’t see things clearly. You’re her brother, and you’re always by her side, so it will be easier for you to act.” He glanced back again, but the graceful figure was no longer there. Now that Wanwan trusts Lu Hengzhi, if he were to speak frankly to her face, she might take it as an attempt to sow discord. It would be better to have Yun Bing handle it; that would be just right.
This matter concerns his elder sister, and Lou Yunbing pondered it briefly, finding it quite reasonable. She had already suffered greatly after marrying into the Chenghua Marquis's household; the Duke of Ying's mansion was even more powerful, so it was always better to be cautious.
However, he certainly wouldn't agree with Xu Congjing to his face. He just glanced at him sideways and snorted loudly through his nose, "And what about you? Weren't you going to beg for her forgiveness, but now you're doing nothing?"
"Why should I tell you what I'm doing?" Xu Congjing's face was handsome and cold, but his smile didn't reach his eyes. He joked, "If you acknowledge me as your brother-in-law, I might consider it."
"You wish!" Yun Bing retorted immediately, his dark eyes filled with hostility. Everyone wanted to be his brother-in-law, but being his brother-in-law wasn't so easy. "Pah!"
Taking advantage of his unpreparedness, he kicked that solid calf, yelling, "Who cares!" Then he picked up a broom and swept it away, sending dust flying everywhere in the moonlight.
He was furious. After chasing the person away, he stood under a tree with his hands on his hips to calm himself down before slowly walking inside. When he reached the moon gate, he saw that graceful figure, so he jogged over and obediently called out, "Sister!"
"What did he say to you?" Lou Yanxu asked.
Lou Yunbing hesitated. The attitude of the Duke of Ying's mansion was unclear at the moment. Perhaps Xu Congjing was overthinking things. It was better to keep it a secret for the time being so as not to worry his sister. He would just pay more attention and wait until the matchmaker came to present the betrothal gifts tomorrow. So he gave a perfunctory answer, "It's just something like asking me to take good care of you."
"Really?" Lou Yanxu didn't believe it. There was no need to avoid her with such questions. However, Yun Bing was stubborn and wouldn't listen to reason once he made up his mind. So she didn't ask any further questions, thinking that she should keep an eye on him and not let this silly boy be fooled.
Seeing that she didn't say anything, Yun Bing pulled her into the house. "Come here." He mysteriously pushed out a large box and asked her to open it.
"What is this?" The box was opened, revealing a dense array of land deeds and house deeds, all the proceeds from the money he earned with the neon pearls.
He stared intently at her, his gaze sharp and intense. "The dowry I've prepared for you."
“Why so much…” Lou Yanxu took a deep breath, about to refuse, but when she looked up, she met those magnificent eyes. His voice was soft but very firm, “My sister, we can’t let people see her clearly.” His sister deserves the best in the world.
As night deepened and the evening breeze grew cool, it rattled against the windowpane. She looked away, her eyelids drooping, trying to hide the stinging in her eyes, but she couldn't help but let a tear fall silently.
Outside the Lou mansion, Xu Congjing lingered. He stood alone in the brisk wind, his gaze fixed intently on the gate. A chill seeped into his bones, and he sneezed, clutching his chest as he felt a sharp pain in his heart.
Yunlu came over and draped a cloak over his shoulders. "My lord, the carriage is ready. Are you really going to go yourself?"
He coughed and said, "Chen Qian is a cautious man. We've finally managed to get him out of the capital, so we must ensure that nothing goes wrong."
Chen Qian was a former Grand Tutor. After promoting Meng Shicheng, he was betrayed and forced to resign in order to save his life. He was a man of deep cunning and extreme caution, always accompanied by secret guards, and his whereabouts were impossible to discern.
A few days ago, Wen Jie discovered that the handwriting in that old secret letter was identical to Chen Qian's. He then found Chen Qian in Lingzhou, and Xu Congjing decided to go there in person to find out what was going on.
This person is no ordinary person, not to mention that Lingzhou was once his stronghold. Yun Lu frowned for a long time without relaxing, and then volunteered, "This subordinate will go with you."
"You have other tasks." The wind whistled past, carrying these words to Yunlu's ears.
"Send this letter to the Duke of England immediately." Xu Congjing glanced back at the Lou residence, his gaze heavy, a buzzing in his ears. "While I am away, you must take good care of Lady Lou."
She was his greatest worry, and arranging everything to send her into someone else's arms felt like tearing his own flesh out. But as long as he lived, he would never let anyone hurt her.
Finally, he forced himself to look away and get into the car.
"Your subordinate obeys." Yun Lu's voice came from outside the carriage. After a while, he lifted the curtain and peeked out, then hesitated for a moment before asking, "Shouldn't we inform Lord Wen about this?"
"No need," Xu Congjing said coldly. This trip is fraught with danger, and Wen Jie will certainly not agree. It's better to act first and inform him later.
The coachman urged the horses on, and the carriage moved slowly as he carried the crown prince's credentials straight to the city gate.
The next day, a refreshing autumn breeze blew, fallen leaves covered the path, and many maids and servants were seen sweeping and cleaning the courtyard.
The Duke of Ying's mansion invited Lady Fan, the wife of the Minister of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices in the north of the city, to come and present gifts as a form of betrothal.
Madam Fan was a talkative and noisy person who loved matchmaking all her life. But now she seemed to be forced to go to the execution ground. She was unwilling to do so. As soon as she entered the door, she shouted, "Hey, you servant! Don't you have eyes?" It turned out that after entering the door, she looked around and accidentally stepped on the broom in the maid's hand. She immediately turned the tables on her.
The maid, feeling wronged, retorted in a low voice, "It was clearly you who stepped on it..."
Upon hearing this, she immediately slapped the maid on the head, yelling, "How dare you talk back! You have no manners!"
Disciplining servants in someone else's home—what kind of rules are these? Lou Yunbing watched from afar, his face already darkening.
"If this were in the Duke's mansion, I would be punished with a beating!" The woman seemed oblivious, raising her chin arrogantly and showing off her nose. "But in this merchant family, it's normal not to be too formal."
The implication, both overt and covert, was that she was implying that the merchant family had no manners, implying that she was unworthy of Lu Hengzhi. Lou Yanxu would be a fool if she didn't understand. She had been eagerly anticipating the betrothal ceremony today, but instead received such humiliation. It was no wonder she felt uncomfortable.
However, not wanting to put Lu Hengzhi in a difficult position, she did not lash out and still respectfully addressed him as "Madam Fan".
However, this move only makes people think that they are easy to bully and that the other side is going to take advantage of them.
Madam Fan first instructed the servants to put down the betrothal gifts and open the chests. They found exquisite silks, gold, silver and jewels, all of which were of great value, indicating that a large sum of money had been spent on the betrothal.
The woman noticed that Lou Yanxu's eyes were shining, and she glanced at her with her seemingly smiling eyes, which were filled with undisguised mockery and sarcasm.
"If you ask me, not many women in Chang'an are as fortunate as Lady Lou. Other women and divorced women either live lonely lives or remarry, unlike Lady Lou who was able to climb into the high-class family of the Duke of Ying.
Having spoken her mind, she immediately muttered to herself that the Duke of Ying's family had originally decided not to propose marriage, intending to make her a laughingstock in the eyes of the entire Chang'an city. However, this morning, the Duchess of Ying's face was unusually grim, and she urgently summoned her. She wondered what underhanded methods the Duchess had used; she already looked down on them, and now naturally, the Duchess was full of resentment and wanted to put her in a good position, simply trying to control her.
Lou Yanxu was unaware of these ventriloquies, but her eyes were already filled with anger. This marriage was not something she had asked for, so how could it be said as if it was all her wishful thinking? Therefore, she did not reply.
"Young Master Lu has a good reputation, and I wonder how many vixens are eyeing him!" Madam Fan didn't seem to notice the gloomy face of the person in front of her, and continued to speak to herself, "The Duchess of Yingguo was originally engaged to the Second Lady Ning from the Crown Prince's Grand Tutor's family, and was planning to propose marriage at the end of the year, but unexpectedly..." Unexpectedly, a Cheng Yaojin appeared out of nowhere.
After saying that, she paused, glanced at him meaningfully, and her contempt and sarcasm were obvious in her eyes.
Lou Yanxu almost tore her sleeve to shreds. Yes, she was the daughter of a merchant, a divorced woman, unworthy of Lu Hengzhi, and not worthy of the Duke's mansion. But she hadn't asked for any of this, so she shouldn't have to suffer such humiliation.
At this moment, Lou Yunbing finally understood what Xu Congjing meant. The Duke of Ying's mansion had openly agreed to the marriage, but on the day of the betrothal ceremony, they had insulted him in every way. Wasn't that just because they thought the Lou family had no one else to rely on? He could no longer bear it. Before Lou Yanxu could react, he strode over, his voice low and cold, "Then you can go to the Ning family. What are you doing at my house!"
He then snatched the broom from the servant's hand and shoved it at that ugly face, shouting sternly, "Get out of here!"
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