Chapter 134: There are men like Su Jianrong in this world, so attractive
Rong was very pleased to see her niece unraveling the mystery bit by bit under her guidance, so she further told her questions.
"Su Jianrong and the Lin family betrothed you to that fifty-year-old wealthy businessman. Naturally, they had a vested interest in each other. What you just said has already confirmed my suspicions. However, I'm wondering, besides money, did your grandparents give Su Jianrong any other unspoken benefits?"
"If it's just like before, giving away the dowry and giving money, what's there to be said?"
Rong sighed, as if she had made up her mind, and said, "I think it's time to tell you everything about Su Jianrong."
"We have two major families in Yueqing, one is the Yuan family and the other is the Su family. Although Su Jianrong is from the Su family, he is only the most insignificant branch among the side branches."
"Your grandfather died of illness when he was still an infant. Your grandmother raised him single-handedly. At that time, the family had no one to rely on, and could only survive by relying on the small amount of land and the small amount of silver distributed by the clan."
If we were to ask what's good about Su Jianrong, his appearance would be the most noteworthy.
However, he seemed uninterested in romantic relationships. Besides studying diligently at the clan school, he would chop wood for his widowed mother after school. One year, a hurricane struck Yueqing, flooding many homes and fields. After carrying his mother out of the waist-deep water, Su Jianrong, regardless of the danger, carried out the homes of the elderly widows and widowers in his neighborhood.
This action impressed the elders of the clan, who personally funded his study. Because of this, Su Ying's grandfather made a rare exception and enrolled Su Jianrong in Yandang Academy.
How could a young man with a good appearance, good character, and no fascination for sex not attract the heart of the young lady of the Rong family, who was just beginning to fall in love? It was unknown when Su Jianrong and Rong Zhilan began to exchange letters, and finally promised to spend their lives together.
"After he got engaged to your mother, a lot of ridiculous things happened inexplicably."
If Rong had not seen it with her own eyes that year, she still would not believe that there was a man in this world who was so attractive.
"As soon as the news of your engagement spread, for several days straight, women kept knocking on the door of the academy, saying they were looking for your mother, my eldest sister."
"Everyone said that your father had a relationship with them, and that your mother used her power to force Su Jianrong to agree to the marriage."
Back then, the eldest sister of the Rong family was shocked by the behavior of those girls. She had thought that the girls of their Rong family, because they had never read "Nujie" or "Nei Xun", were not boudoir-like. She never expected that those so-called boudoir-like girls would do such an outrageous thing.
When the eldest sister was surrounded, it was Su Jianrong who walked out of the academy gate, reached out to pull the eldest sister out, and protected her behind him.
"Miss, I don't even know your name, how can you say so confidently that I have feelings for you?"
After hearing this, one of the young ladies couldn't help but take out her handkerchief and wipe away the tears from her eyes: "Mr. Su, have you forgotten? A while ago, the carriage I was riding in was frightened, and it was you who rescued me. It was also you who invited me to share an umbrella with you when it rained heavily that day."
Su Jianrong laughed when he heard this, bowed to the young lady and said: "No matter who is in the car, how can I stand by and watch someone die in such an emergency? It was raining heavily that day, and I only had an umbrella, so,
Su Jianrong sighed, his face full of helplessness: "It's my fault. I should have given the umbrella to the young lady, then there wouldn't be such a misunderstanding today."
"Mr. Su, there is a misunderstanding between you and this young lady, but not between you and me."
Then another young lady stepped forward and said, "On the day of the Lantern Festival, I was separated from my family. It was Master Su who stayed with me to wait for them and protected me. Who would have thought that several months later, on the Tomb-Sweeping Day, I would meet Master Su again in a resting pavilion. Master Su picked up the handkerchief I had deliberately dropped and hid it in his sleeve. Could it be that you have forgotten?"
Unexpectedly, Su Jianrong looked stunned and then cried out in injustice: "Miss, women and children often get lost during the Lantern Festival. Even if I hadn't encountered them, someone else would have protected you as I did. This is human nature."
"As for the Qingming incident, I truly don't recall it happening. I do, however, find lost items before, but I always place them in a conspicuous place, hoping the owner will find them. I would never keep lost items privately. I'm sure you've misunderstood."
In short, all the seemingly absurd things were resolved into misunderstandings under Su Jianrong's righteous words.
"Since this is all a misunderstanding, please leave the academy immediately and do not disturb my fiancée any further. If helping out of kindness is wrong, then I will simply be a cold and indifferent person from now on!"
With just one sentence, the eldest daughter of the Rong family, who was heartbroken because she had misjudged someone, fell in love with Su Jianrong again and could no longer extricate herself.
Now that I think about it, everyone says that Su Jianrong has a good appearance, but Rong feels that Su Jianrong also has a silver tongue and is a natural romantic. He can easily arouse women's hearts with his appearance and words, and he can control himself freely.
But at that time, no one noticed it and thought he was just a gentleman who was misunderstood because of his kindness.
"After your mother married him, his true nature gradually revealed itself. Especially after he gave up literature to pursue business, he used business as an excuse to be away from home frequently. Until one day, a young lady came looking for him."
Thinking of this, Rong was furious. Su Jianrong never associated with servants, but he loved to curry favor with young ladies. The eldest sister didn't believe it at first, until the young lady actually took out a handkerchief that the eldest sister had bought for Su Jianrong.
"Perhaps by then, Su Jianrong had made some progress in the tea business thanks to your mother's dowry, becoming known as Master Su or Boss Su. He no longer held back from your grandfather, and his true colors were revealed. Your mother cried, and even the usually gentle mother tried to make a scene and argue, but Su Jianrong's face seemed steeled and unyielding."
"Plus, you were born not long ago, and your mother's qi and blood were already deficient. Over time, she became plagued by illnesses, and it was impossible to control her even if she wanted to."
"Your mother was dying when your father was at his most outrageous. She chose Su Jianrong herself, and after marrying him, she felt ashamed. So she never said a single bad thing about him to your grandparents, not even mentioning her own illness. Later, it was your mother's personal maid, Fengxian, who sent a letter through someone else to find us."
"But by the time we got there, it was already too late."
Rong still can't forget the scene of her elder sister lying on the couch with a pale and lifeless face, while Fengxian knelt on the ground beside her and presented the account book she had secretly recorded of Su Jianrong's misappropriation of the dowry.
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