After leaving Ning Ze’s courtyard, the Madam Marquis went to Ning Yao’s courtyard.
Ning Yao had already seen a doctor and was having a prescription for an abortion made.
When the Madam Marquis arrived, the doctor had already written the prescription. After looking it over, she instructed the doctor, "Stay here for the day. After you leave this residence today, regardless of who asks you, even if it’s the Emperor himself, remember to say that you were here to help the young lady preserve her pregnancy, but couldn’t due to her poor health from her travels. Understand? Otherwise, if word gets out and we’re implicated, you’ll be held responsible too."
Even though the Emperor had demoted Ning Yao and the child in her to commoners, they were still of royal blood.
The doctor, pale-faced, nodded, "Madam, rest assured, even if I die, I won’t reveal this secret. I’ll take it to my grave."
The Madam Marquis spoke warmly, "I trust you, and Yao trusts you too, otherwise we wouldn’t have asked for you. Go on, let someone take you to find a place to rest."
The doctor nodded and was escorted away by the attendants.
The Madam Marquis instructed her maid to prepare the medicine, then sat down next to Ning Yao and spoke, "I went to Ze’s courtyard just now. He has gone out to tour the city with Master Feng and Lady Su Qi, saying that your older brother is busy with work and he is standing in." 𝒻𝓇𝑒𝘦𝘸𝑒𝒷𝓃ℴ𝑣𝘦𝑙.𝒸ℴ𝘮
Ning Yao nodded, "My big brother is busy, my little brother isn’t, so it’s fitting that he accompanies them."
The Madam Marquis sighed, "Your little brother can no longer participate in the civil service exam, nor will he have any title in the future. He lost three fingers, so arranging a marriage for him won’t be easy either. I regret not arranging his marriage earlier before he went to the Capital City. If we hadn’t been so ambitious, trying to find a noblewoman for him in the Capital City, we wouldn’t be having to lower our standards for his marriage now. After all, a physically handicapped man can’t marry a girl from a high-class family. And that’s not all, he needs something to do. He can’t idle for the rest of his life. Your father and I can still support him, but after we’re gone, when the inheritance is split, he won’t get more than 30% without a title. Even though 30% is not less, if he uses it all up, I’m afraid of what he will do in his old age. I see that your big brother, although not a petty man, probably won’t treat him like a true brother. Part of it is my fault, all these years, I pushed him to strive for a title, and now they’re not close, I’m contented that his big brother would spare his life and not expect anything other than that."
Ning Yao said, "Mother, my brother has been frightened out of his wits by his trip to the Capital City. It’s already good that he has returned in one piece. As for the future, we can plan slowly! Although he can’t become an official, there are still other paths."
"What other paths, his only marginally acceptable talent is in literature." Madam Marquis sighed, "He may be somewhat timid and lack backbone, but if he were to become an official, he would definitely be a smooth operator who knows when to push and pull back. He wouldn’t lose his position. He’s my son, your brother, you should know too that his biggest fault is his lack of experience. Now that he’s gone through a life-or-death situation, I think, after a while, he won’t be scared anymore. Your father isn’t a coward, I’m not, neither are you, and your older brother definitely isn’t either. Our family cannot produce such a coward."
Ning Yao couldn’t help but laugh, "Mother, what plans do you have in mind for my brother?"
The Madam Marquis nodded, hesitant, "I do have a plan, but I’m not sure if it’s feasible."
"Just say it, I’ll listen."
The Madam Marquis leaned in and whispered, "Your little brother has only been prohibited from taking part in civil service examinations by the Daliang imperial court. If he goes to Nanchu, a different country, it won’t matter to them. Daliang’s laws surely won’t apply to Nanchu."
Ning Yao gasped in surprise, "Mother, are you suggesting..."
The Madam Marquis held her hand, "Lady Su Qi is the Nanchu Princess. Sooner or later, she will have to return to Nanchu. It’s only a matter of time. I observed her yesterday and although she seemed careless and casual, she is actually quite formidable. Her words and actions are clear and assertive, and she has a knack for both strategy and manipulation. After dinner yesterday, your father remarked privately that he felt old. He said that today’s young people are incredibly capable, especially the younger woman. She is definitely a student of Xie Yuan. He said that such a person, with ability, courage, and means, might well be able to carve a path for herself in Nanchu’s complex political landscape and ascend to the throne. I also heard about your journey back to Nanping. Weren’t you ambushed by over a dozen assassins? Wasn’t one of the ambushes even set up by the Governor of Heyun County with two to three thousand soldiers? But she detected it before getting close to the ambush site and changed the route? She even made you and your brother climb a mountainous cliff of several kilometers. Isn’t such a person capable of accomplishing anything, even in Nanchu?"
She looked at Ning Yao, "The entire Marquis Nanping Residence will belong to your eldest brother in the future. Living under his roof, even if you are siblings of the same mother, there will be difficulties in the long run, let alone their relationship which isn’t amicable at all. That’s why I thought, why not ask Lady Su Qi to take your little brother with her when she goes to Nanchu."
Ning Yao reminded her, "Mother, the situation in Nanchu is extremely complicated and very dangerous. Are you sure about this? If anything happens to my little brother..."
The Madam Marquis was silent for a moment before responding, "We can’t chain him at home simply because we fear that something might happen to him. He can’t sit idle all his life, marry a bad wife or a bad concubine, and spend his life under the thumb of others, at their mercy, relying on others for scraps."
She paused, "It is said, ’Those who love their children deeply should plan for their future.’"
She sighed, "If he spends the next few decades in ignorance and confusion, bowing and scraping before your eldest brother all his life, pandering and begging for mercy, and pleasing and flattering, he will be looked down upon by everyone in Nanping, and be ridiculed, I would rather he goes to Nanchu with Lady Su Qi and make something of himself."
She whispered, "At first, I thought about it all night, I wasn’t sure if it would work. However, just now, when I visited your little brother’s courtyard, I happened to see him and Feng Ling laughing and walking out of his room, arm in arm, and they seemed to get along well, I thought, maybe it’s possible."
Ning Yao was silent for a moment, recalling how the three broken fingers on Ning Ze’s hand were cut off by Feng Ling, but they had both intentionally concealed this fact and blamed it on Xie Lin. From the journey from the Capital City to Nanping, although Feng Ling disliked Ning Ze, he still looked after him all the way, and Ning Ze seemed to be less afraid of Feng Ling, even admiring him.
After some thought, she spoke softly, "First, ask my little brother what he thinks. If he agrees, let him ask Lady Su Qi himself."
She then reminded her mother, "On the way back, my little brother thought about following Feng Ling, but Feng Ling rejected him. He said that my little brother was a burden and not useful."
Upon hearing this, the Madam Marquis was surprised and nodded, "Understood, I’ll keep that in mind."
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