Chapter 124 Compromising with Fate
When Xie Ning'an heard Xie Yun talk about his marriage, his hands clenched tightly under his sleeves, feeling a strange sense of resistance. But he knew very well that this marriage was suitable for him, suitable for the current Xie family, and suitable for him as well.
But he said, "Would the Prince of Yong agree?"
“If it were before, Prince Yong would naturally have no objections,” Xie Yun said, “but what happened last time might make him hesitate. However, Princess Yalin is fond of you, so if we show our sincerity again, I think there shouldn’t be any problem.”
Xie Ning'an gripped his hand tighter. He knew he had no reason to refuse, but he still wanted to. Just then, he heard Xie Yun say again, "Pay more attention to Princess Yalin. Women are always soft-hearted."
Xie Ning'an suppressed her emotions and said, "Yes."
Xie Yun patted his shoulder, "Princess Yalin has a noble status. After marriage, you may not be able to have too many concubines, but..."
“Grandfather,” Xie Ning’an interrupted him, “I have no lust for women.”
Xie Yun smiled, with pride, "Okay."
"We'll arrange for you to bump into Princess Yalin later, and you'll have to perform better," Xie Yun said.
"Yes," Xie Ning'an said expressionlessly.
Xie Yun waved for him to go back and rest, and Xie Ning'an bowed to him before leaving the study. He looked up at the moon in the sky; the moon wasn't very full tonight, but it was very bright, while his heart was somewhat gloomy.
Back in his dorm room, he took out a small box from a hidden compartment in his bookshelf. Inside was a simple and elegant hairpin, but in his mind, he saw Jiang Yu's sharp face.
After examining the hairpin for a while, he gave a bitter laugh, then resolutely threw it into the trash can on the table, and nonchalantly got up to undress and prepare for a bath.
But the moment he turned around, he suddenly turned back, bent down and rummaged through the slag bin for the hairpin. When he found it and took it out, it was stained with ink.
"Moss, moss!"
He shouted at the door, and the servant Qingtai rushed in, "Young master, what's wrong?"
"Why is there ink in the slag bin?" Xie Ning'an asked coldly.
Qingtai was stumped by the question. After thinking for a moment, she said, "After you went to the old master's place, I tidied up the desk and saw that the ink in the inkstone was almost dry, so... I washed the inkstone."
He thought it was a perfectly normal little thing, but Xie Ning'an angrily questioned, "Why not replace the scumbag?"
Green Moss: "...This servant knows he was wrong."
Xie Ning'an looked at the moss with its head bowed, then at the ink stains on the hairpin in his hand. He couldn't suppress the anger in his heart. Finally, he closed his eyes and said, "You don't need to serve me anymore. You can leave."
Qingtai never expected that simply not changing the slag bin would cost him such a good job. He knelt down with a thud, "Young master, I know I was wrong, I know I was wrong, I will never dare to be lazy again."
"roll!"
Xie Ning'an yelled at him, and Qingtai trembled in fright, staggering as he ran outside. Xie Ning'an's attendants heard the commotion and rushed over to see what was wrong.
"Get out, all of you get out!" Xie Ning'an roared again, and her attendants hurriedly left, carefully guarding outside.
Xie Ning'an stood there in the room, panting heavily, his expression grim and terrifying. He had been intelligent since childhood, the pride of his parents and family. Having enjoyed a smooth and successful life for over twenty years, he never imagined that one day he, Xie Ning'an, would have to compromise with fate.
However, after a short while, the expression on his face gradually calmed down, and finally became expressionless. He sat down in the chair in front of the table and gently wiped the ink stains off the hairpin, but he couldn't get them clean no matter what he did.
"Bring me a basin of water." His voice rang out, the anger from before gone. The attendant hurriedly had water prepared, then carefully carried it to Xie Ning'an.
"Just put it there," Xie Ning'an said.
The attendant gently put down the basin of water and watched as Xie Ning'an wet a towel and carefully wiped a hairpin, but no matter how he wiped, the ink stains on the hairpin could not be cleaned.
“Young Master, soapberry might be useful,” the attendant said softly.
Xie Ning'an turned to look at him and asked, "Won't the soapberry damage the hairpin?"
Attendant: "...This...I really don't know, I'll go ask right away."
"Okay, hurry up and go, don't make a sound." Xie Ning'an said, then lowered his head to wipe the hairpin. His attendant glanced at him carefully, then quickly went out.
He had served the eldest son for so many years and had never seen him lose his temper with a servant like this before. He also didn't know whose hairpin it was.
He jogged away, and Xie Ning'an continued to gently wipe the hairpin. In his mind was the scene of his only contact with Jiang Yu. He himself did not expect that after so long, the scene could still appear clearly in his mind, and even Jiang Yu's expression was particularly clear.
He was twenty years old, and even though he had been studying hard, he knew he had fallen for Jiang Yu. He smiled bitterly again, realizing he had only troubled himself. Between the Xie family and the Duke of Chu's mansion, it was a fight to the death; there was absolutely no possibility between him and Jiang Yu.
"This is insane," he muttered, but his hand remained gentle as he wiped the hairpin.
At this moment, the attendant arrived, bent over, and whispered, "I asked, and they said that washing with rice flour is sufficient."
As he spoke, he took out a small jar, opened it, and placed it in front of Xie Ning'an. Xie Ning'an reached into the jar, grabbed some rice flour, sprinkled it on the hairpin, and gently rubbed it. Sure enough, the ink stains on the hairpin gradually disappeared, and the beads returned to their previous warm and lustrous state.
Seeing him wipe the hairpin clean and gently place it in the wooden box, the attendant immediately handed him a towel. Xie Ning'an took the towel and wiped his hands, saying, "Go and tell Qingtai that not a single word of what happened today can be leaked, otherwise..."
"Yes, I understand," the attendant replied immediately.
Having served Xie Ning'an for many years, he naturally knew that this young master was not as good-tempered as he appeared, and could be exceptionally ruthless when he took action.
Xie Ning'an wiped his hands and waved for his attendant to leave. He picked up the wooden box containing the hairpin, walked to the bookshelf, opened the hidden compartment, and put the box back inside. Then he picked up a book from the bookshelf, sat down at the table, and began to read, as if nothing had happened.
........
Even in a small courtyard in the eastern part of the capital, things were far from peaceful.
Qi Yuanhong was leaning against the narrow couch in his study, reading a book, when the door was suddenly pushed open, and Su Yuezhen stepped in. Seeing the book in his hand, she smiled mockingly, "Husband, congratulations!"
Qi Yuanhong glanced at him but didn't say anything, continuing to read his book. Su Yuezhen, however, wasn't going to let him off the hook, and said, "Your ex-wife, Jiang Yu, the eldest daughter of the Duke of Chu's mansion, passed the Ministry of Personnel's examination today. The Emperor personally bestowed upon her an official position, and she is now a sixth-rank censor under the Ministry of Revenue's investigation."
Qi Yuanhong tightened his grip on the book, but his face remained expressionless. "My relationship with Yu Niang is in the past. You don't need to tell me about her anymore."
"Yu Niang, hahaha... You call her so affectionately, but would you dare to call her that in front of her?" Su Yuezhen pointed at Qi Yuanhong and said, "You won't share a room with me after we're married. What, do you think I've lost my virginity? But you're only good enough for someone like me who has lost her virginity. Let me tell you, Qi Yuanhong, I don't even look at you. I have plenty of men to choose from, why would I need you?"
After saying that, she turned and left. Qi Yuanhong heard her voice outside, "Find me a male prostitute tomorrow, a strong one."
"puff!"
Qi Yuanhong spat out a mouthful of blood, but he ate, lived, and used all of Su Yuezhen's dowry. He had a falling out with Su Yuezhen and had no servants around, so naturally no one noticed that he was spitting blood.
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