Chapter 24: Being the mistress of the house is also possible
"Why?"
"Because I told my eldest and second brothers about Zhao Aniu's family, my second brother was very scared. I know my second brother, and he will resist this kind of thing in the future." Ming Zhouhe straightened up.
Shi Jianli nodded.
The Duke's Mansion didn't necessarily need to marry into the Yuan family again. Under these circumstances, anyone with a clear mind wouldn't dare take the plunge. As the saying goes, even cousins are still cousins even if they're five degrees apart. Some cousins aren't actually close by blood, but they can still be considered cousins. Not all cousins marrying each other are actually cousins.
Ming Zhouhe asked again: "Are you hungry?"
"I'm not hungry. I ate a lot and don't want to have dinner."
"Then go back and rest. I thought if you said you were hungry, I would go with you to your mother's house for dinner." After saying that, Ming Zhouhe turned into another road and left.
The next evening, when Yuan Wan came, Mrs. Yuan took her daughter's hand and sat on the edge of the bed, and dismissed the servants.
Seeing her mother's cautious demeanor, Yuan Wan was a little puzzled. "Mother, what do you want to tell me? And you're being so secretive."
"What do you mean by sneaking around? You're speaking so harshly." Madam Yuan poked her head and asked, "What do you think of your second cousin?"
"I'm fine. What's wrong?" Yuan Wan replied subconsciously. Seeing her mother's serious expression, she suddenly had an idea and blushed. "Mom, do you mean whether I like my second cousin?"
"That's what I mean. What do you think? I came to the capital with you because I wanted to discuss your marriage with your second cousin with your aunt. If you are both interested, then we can make it a closer relationship."
"I don't like my second cousin." Yuan Wan shook her head. Thinking of the tall figure she saw from the carriage on the day she arrived, her face turned even redder. She said in a whisper, "I like...my eldest cousin."
"This..." Madam Yuan paused, "I'll ask your aunt tomorrow."
Given their family background, it's not impossible for Wan'er to become the future mistress of the Duke's Mansion. It's just that she was previously engaged, so Madam Yuan has never thought about it.
"good."
Madam Yuan looked at her daughter's delicate expression, held her hand tightly, and said earnestly, "We're just discussing this matter privately; nothing has been decided yet. Wan'er, as women, especially those raised in a prominent family, we must respect ourselves."
"If your cousin doesn't like you, don't be too persistent, lest you hurt the relationship between the two families. Your cousin isn't the only good man, understand?"
Just as her heart was burning with excitement, a bucket of cold water was poured on her. Yuan Wan bit her lip and said nothing.
Madam Yuan patted her shoulder and stood up: "Mother is out, think about it carefully."
At the Minghua Courtyard in the East Palace, Yuan Yuhe called her two sons to the courtyard to have dinner together, and asked the head maid Yuye to go find Ming Zhouqing earlier than Jinzhi.
Seeing the servants being dismissed, Ming Zhouqing felt strange, "Mother, do you have any secrets that need to be told when no one is around?"
Yuan Yuhe sat upright with a serious expression, "Qing'er, what do you think of your cousin?"
Seeing his mother like this, Ming Zhouqing also sat up straight and listened to her words. It didn't take long for him to react. He asked cautiously, "You mean you want me to marry my cousin?"
"That's what I mean, but not necessarily."
Ming Zhouqing was horrified and shook his head hurriedly: "No, no!"
"Why are you reacting so strongly? Is your cousin some kind of monster?" Yuan Yuhe saw her second son terrified and glared at him.
"Cousins cannot get married!" Ming Zhouqing said firmly using Ming Zhouhe's words.
It didn't sound like he disliked his niece, so Yuan Yuhe was puzzled. "Where did you hear that? Wouldn't it be better to make the relationship closer?"
Ming Zhouqing spoke quickly, "My third brother said that cousins often give birth to deformed children when they marry. What if my cousin and I have a child with three legs, two eyes, and a tumor on its face? Would you have the heart to drown it or keep it out of your heart?"
"Why are you saying such creepy things?" Yuan Yuhe glared at him. "How did your third brother know about this? There have been many cases of cousins getting married since ancient times."
"I'm not trying to scare you, it's true." Ming Zhouqing pulled a chair over and, to dissuade his mother from thinking so, he spoke slowly, "My third brother went to visit the farm owned by my second uncle and saw a family that had three children. The eldest son had shriveled arms..."
"Really?" Yuan Yuhe was stunned and felt uneasy.
"Really? We don't know about it among the rich and powerful, but if we ask around among the poor peasant families, we'll find examples of this. If you don't believe me, you can go and find out for yourself."
"Look how good Third Brother is to Cousin Li. Second Aunt loves Cousin Li so much, wouldn't it be great if she could marry Cousin Li to Third Brother to take care of her? Why is she trying to find marriages for them separately? It's all because of this."
"Mother, we don't necessarily have to marry into my uncle's family, right?"
After a long moment, Yuan Yuhe nodded and said, "Just pretend that I didn't ask you about this today."
Seeing that she had given up the idea, Ming Zhouqing breathed a sigh of relief, "Okay, then I'll be out first. Father should be back soon."
"Wait, does your second aunt know about this?"
"As if you don't know? I only mentioned the matter between Third Brother and Cousin Li to dispel your thoughts. I'm a big mouth."
Yuan Yuhe waved her hand and said, "Go ahead."
She sat there and thought for a while, then straightened her sleeves and walked out.
Alas, my eldest son’s marriage has not been settled yet, and I have to worry about which lady to find as a daughter-in-law for my second son.
Since her son was so sure about what he said, Yuan Yuhe couldn't help but take it to heart. Her second son had never lied to her.
She has a good relationship with her mother's family, but offspring are also important. If she really gives birth to a grandchild who is the same as the one described by her son, no matter how kind-hearted she is, she will still feel uneasy. In that case, the child will suffer from strange looks from others, even from her.
Therefore, let’s stop this practice of intimacy between relatives and prevent it from happening at the root.
Ming Weisu walked in and saw that his wife was in a bad mood. He asked in confusion, "Madam, what's wrong? You don't seem very happy."
Yuan Yuhe sighed, "I'm worried about my two sons' marriages. They're both unresolved. How can I be happy?"
She looked at her husband's burly figure, muttered, and walked out: "I can't count on you to give me any advice. Let's go have dinner. Are Zhao and Lin'er here yet?"
Ming Weisu really couldn't give her any advice on his son's marriage, so he simply replied to her last question: "It's all here."
After dinner, the two brothers went back together, and Ming Zhouqing followed them directly to Ming Zhaohuan's yard.
"Brother, mother really wants me to marry my cousin."
Mingzhao took off his armband and looked at him: "Did you refuse?"
"Of course I refused. After what my third brother said, I would never have the guts to marry my cousin."
Mingzhao nodded and said with a smile, "Then I'm safe too."
"What's the meaning?"
Mingzhao didn't answer his question, but urged him to go back: "Rest early, you have to go to the military camp early tomorrow morning."
Ming Zhouqing reacted on his own and walked over. "You mean, if my cousin doesn't like me, the candidate might be you?"
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