Qin Ruo sat in the chair, a sense of daze swamping over him.
Appraised as talented by the Crown Prince, respected by Zhou Gu to the extent of forming a friendship, during the time when he had to stay low-key at the Duke Residence, his mere plea had motivated Zhou Gu to fight Xie Lin. Zhou had borne the punishment of dozens of military circle lashes, losing a skin layer. His sister had been admitted to the Eastern Palace under the Emperor’s favour, and Zhou had further persuaded the Crown Prince to appoint his sister as a lady-in-waiting. Not only that but despite being thousands of miles away, he managed to send a message to ensure the Duke would look after Qin Ruo without neglect.
In the dire state that Qin’s family found themselves in, countless people had evaded them out of fear of being implicated. But Zhou Gu had accomplished these two tasks, undetected by the factions of the First and Second Prince, right under the Emperor’s nose. This testified to his shrewdness - others would have probably opted to stay on the sidelines.
The fact that he interjected himself into these two matters indicated the depth of Zhou Gu’s affection for him, demonstrating that he was worth Zhou’s effort.
Although Su Rong had never heard Zhou Gu talk about his friendship with Qin Ruo, she could glean some insight from these two cases.
Qin Ruo, being a clever man, was well aware that his family’s plunge into adversity was not unfounded. His father had been used as a pawn, and since he couldn’t dissuade him, it was impossible for the Qin family to clear their name while the Emperor was alive. This could change only when the Crown Prince took over the throne. However, even though the Emperor’s health had lately been poor, the duration couldn’t be determined since he was still in the prime of his life.
Perhaps one or two years, or perhaps three to five years.
If Qin Ruo didn’t leave, just as Su Rong told him, he might someday be crippled or lose his life. After all, there was a strong chance that a simple ailment could be lethal, especially since prisoners couldn’t afford to pay a doctor. Zhou Gu’s concern and goodwill may not be effective in the long run.
Offending even a minor person here could result in an easy death.
The spell of daze on Qin Ruo broke sooner rather than later as he asked Su Rong something irrelevant. "May I ask Mistress Su, why did you call off your engagement with Brother Zhou?"
Su Rong raised her eyebrow, "Does this issue matter much to whether you’ll follow me to Nanchu, Qin?"
"It does."
Su Rong smiled, "I’m all ears."
Qin Ruo pursed his lips, "Brother Zhou and I are friends, and you left him without marrying, causing him to lose face. After calling off your engagement, you became engaged to the Second Young Master Ye from Nanchu, which put him in a bad light. You made him appear inferior to the Second Young Master Ye. Even if you’re destined to be an honorable figure given that you’re a Nanchu Princess, even if following you will rescue me from my current predicament and ensure care for my family, or even aid in my prospering future. But in spite of that, you’ve let a man like Brother Zhou take such a fall, which is quite vexing, so I cannot follow you."
Su Rong laughed abruptly at this. "I see."
She looked at Qin Ruo, "I had my reasons for calling off the engagement. It was for my own good, but it was also for his good.", she explained. "Being a Princess of Nanchu and him being the son of Duke’s Residence, given that we are friends, you probably know that the old Duke, along with the Crown Prince, planned a path for him to be an Auxiliary Minister of Daliang, an eternal meritorious minister. Simultaneously, I was bound to go to Nanchu and inherit the throne, our paths are different. Hence, breaking off the engagement was only logical, wasn’t it?"
She continued, "Afterwards, I chose the Second Young Master Ye from the Ye Xiang Residence because he had been chosen as my husband by the Nanchu king five years ago. With the support of Ye Xiang Residence and him being my husband, I can become more accomplished. Isn’t he more suitable as compared to Zhou Gu?"
Qin Ruo kept his lips pursed, "But what about Brother Zhou himself?"
Qin Ruo stared at Su Rong, his eyes clear as a brook, locking onto her gaze, "Considered from Brother Zhou’s perspective, he must be unwilling and resentful about you canceling the engagement, right? Allowing him to be questioned by others and leading him to doubt himself due to comparison with the infamous Second Young Master Ye, have you, Miss Su, ever thought about the consequences he might have to bear, excluding the path that was laid out for him?"
In response, Su Rong nodded honestly, "I’ve thought about it, but not too much. At that time, I thought, who cares about a little bit of conscience, it might as well have been eaten by a dog by now. For the sake of important things, little love and affection can be easily overlooked, right?"
Qin Ruo nodded as well, "Miss Su is free to think this way, there’s nothing wrong with that. But it seems to be too cruel for Brother Zhou. He has a sincere heart, once he gives his heart to someone, I fear it would be difficult for him to go back to being his old self."
He stood up while looking at Su Rong, giving her a deep bow, "Miss Su, thank you for your consideration. I’m naturally uncouth, you and I are on diverging paths."
After touching her nose lightly, Su Rong asked, "Why are you in such a hurry to reject me, Mister Qin? It’s not yet time. Why don’t you hear me out, and then make up your mind?"
She coughed lightly, "What if I tell you that you’re lagging in news? You only know that I called off the engagement with Zhou Gu, and then chose Ye Guixue, causing Zhou Gu to be unjustly criticized. But, you don’t know that your Brother Zhou, after I called off the engagement, spent his days in gloom. He was quite adamant and insisted on continuing our relationship at all odds. Even if it meant giving up the well-laid path, even though I was engaged, he didn’t care. So, in fear that I was leading him astray or that he might become too infatuated and unable to withdraw, I called off my engagement with Ye Guixue and chose him again."
Qin Ruo was taken aback.
With a tone of helplessness, Su Rong added, "He is indeed stubborn. Just as you said, once he gives his heart to someone, it’s hard for him to revert back to his previous self. When I met him in Jiangning County, he was such a proud and arrogant young man. But after calling off our engagement, he was in complete despair. He eventually recovered but then became obsessed with me. Even though it was against his upbringing, he sought me out. I had no other choice but to give him another marriage letter."
Qin Ruo was flabbergasted.
Su Rong had no qualms about what she’d just said and emphasized, "It’s the marriage letter, meant for the future husband of the Nanchu Princess."
She sighed, "A marriage letter delighted him beyond words. He showed it off to everyone he met to the point that he showed it off to the old Duke. He was scolded by the Duke, but still kept flaunting it unabashedly, taking pride in it instead of feeling ashamed."
Qin Ruo stayed petrified.
Seeing his expression, Su Rong was amused, "So, Mister Qin, your Brother Zhou is now my husband in Nanchu. He will stay with me to rule over the Nanchu land. With my hand-written marriage letter, he has already rushed to Nanchu to meet my father first."
She sighed heavily, "So, now, would you change your mind?"
Qin Ruo was flooded with mixed feelings. After a long period of silence, he nodded, "I have changed my mind, Miss Su."
He paused for a moment, lowering his back to offer her a deep bow, "I apologize, Miss Su. I was presumptuous. Thank you for your patience, I, Qin Ruo, am willing to follow you to Nanchu."
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