"You'll have to ask the Prince about that," Su Wanyan said with a smile.
“…” Lu Chao was stunned for a moment.
Ask Yu Nanqing?
How could she dare?
Even if you ask, so what? Since ancient times, hasn't it been the duty of the head of the household to arrange for her husband to take concubines?
Yu Nanqing doesn't take a concubine, isn't it because Su Wanyan won't allow it?
As if she could read Lu Chao's mind, Su Wanyan chuckled softly: "Miss Lu is probably mistaken. I have never stopped the Prince from taking a concubine."
At least not openly.
She had only said that if Yu Nanqing fell in love with someone else, or if he really took a concubine, then she would leave.
Lu Chao's eyes brightened slightly: "So... Her Highness agrees to the Prince taking a concubine?"
"Why wouldn't you agree?" Su Wanyan chuckled. "If Your Highness truly loves them, why would I stand in their way?"
Whether Yu Nanqing agrees or not is not her concern.
Lu Chao couldn't help but grip the armrest of the armchair tightly: "Previously, the people in the city said that Prince Gong's mansion had few heirs and only had the princess consort in the mansion. They were afraid that the princess consort was jealous and did not allow the prince to take a concubine. Today, I learned the truth and I was very surprised."
She looked at Su Wanyan with a smile in her eyes: "From now on, if anyone speaks of Your Highness in this way again, I will definitely stand up for Your Highness."
It seems that Bai Jiaojiao's plan is not impossible.
Su Wanyan waved her hand: "The prince and I never care about these irrelevant things."
If they really cared about these things, they could have drowned them with a single spit from each person back in the capital.
Since they were already chatting, Su Wanyan asked, "Oh right, I remember Miss Lu saying before that you and the Bai family's daughter have known each other since childhood?"
"I am ashamed to say this," Lu Chao said with an apologetic look on his face. "Jiaojiao has a bad temper, and I have been trying to persuade her since she was little, but the effect has been minimal. I hope Your Majesty will not blame me for this incident."
Lu Chao positioned himself as a good person, which made Su Wanyan raise an eyebrow.
This Lu Chao didn't really consider Bai Jiaojiao a close friend.
Bai Jiaojiao has a bad temper, and Lu Chao may have been pushing her along from childhood.
It makes sense when you think about it. The traditional social hierarchy is scholars, farmers, artisans, and merchants. Even in a place like Fucheng, where wealthy merchants abound, merchants are ranked last. However, unlike other places, merchant families here have been passed down for generations and have controlled most of Fuzhou's economic lifeline.
Even so, merchants might still not be considered important by these official families.
However, due to various factors, officials and businessmen reached an agreement to coexist peacefully.
Thinking this to himself, he smiled and said, "These are just rumors. I've said it before, the prince and I don't care about these things."
"Your Majesty and the Prince are magnanimous, a quality I can only dream of."
Having obtained the information he wanted, Lu Chao chatted with Su Wanyan about other things. When it was almost time, he used the excuse that it was getting late to say goodbye to Su Wanyan.
Watching Lu Chao's figure walk further and further away until he disappeared from sight, Su Wanyan's back slumped, and she slumped into a chair.
Seeing this, Qiuye smiled and said, "Is Your Highness already tired?"
"It's more tiring than spending the whole day holed up in the pharmacy."
"I used to think Miss Lu was a nice person, but I never expected that she was one of them."
Su Wanyan smiled upon hearing this.
Seeing that Su Wanyan didn't seem surprised at all, Qiu Ye asked curiously, "Your Majesty, did you already know?"
Su Wanyan shook her head: "No, I really didn't know at first. It was only when she came to me at this time that I immediately started thinking in that direction."
We haven't met many times and don't know each other well, so how could we become close friends in just a few words?
It's normal to be wary of her.
"Then what is her purpose?" Qiu Ye asked in confusion. "This servant does not understand."
Su Wanyan swung her crossed legs while resting her chin on her hand: "I can probably... guess a thing or two."
Just then, Huang Ye returned from seeing Lu Chao off. Hearing Su Wanyan say this, she chimed in, "This servant would like to know too."
"Since that's the case, it's fine to say something, but I can't guarantee it's accurate."
Autumn Leaves and Yellow Leaves both nodded, their ears perked up and their expressions serious.
"The matter of Bai Jiaojiao is nothing more than entering the Prince's Mansion. Entering the Prince's Mansion means that Yu Nanqing has to take her as a concubine. Just now, Lu Chao tried to test my words several times, just to know what the attitude of the Prince Gong's Mansion is towards taking Bai Jiaojiao into the mansion. If they disagree, why don't they come forward to clarify the rumors? Letting the rumors develop, is it because Yu Nanqing really wants to take Bai Jiaojiao into the mansion?"
“I don’t think Lu Chao really cares about Bai Jiaojiao. After all, she is the daughter of an official. Her father is the educational commissioner of Fucheng. The official-business ties between the Lu family and the Bai family must be very close. So I guess the Lu family wants to use the Bai family to test the attitude of Prince Gong’s family.”
"So the idea of using betrothal gifts to coerce Yu Nanqing into taking Bai Jiaojiao may have been suggested by the Lu family to the Bai family. Otherwise, Lu Chao and Bai Jiaojiao alone would not have dared to create such a big fuss."
After Su Wanyan's explanation, Qiu Ye was still confused, but Huang Ye understood most of it: "The Bai family was pushed out by the Lu family to test the waters?"
Su Wanyan gave Huang Ye a thumbs up: "Great!"
They probably didn't even think of this plan at first, but with Bai Jiaojiao's series of actions and Yu Nanqing's deliberate guidance, it has evolved into the situation we see now.
"Your Highness, I still don't quite understand." Qiu Ye frowned slightly. "What good would spreading such rumors do for the Lu family? Isn't it completely irrelevant?"
Su Wanyan chuckled: "Didn't you hear the question Lu Chao asked me just now?"
Qiu Ye paused, then thought for a while: "Ask Her Majesty if she agrees to allow the Prince to take a concubine?"
His brows furrowed even more: "What does it matter?"
Huang Ye couldn't help but laugh and chime in: "If Your Highness can take Bai Jiaojiao into the manor, it means that Miss Lu can also enter the manor. Have you forgotten that when Your Highness and the Empress first arrived in Fucheng, didn't many people come to propose marriage? At that time, the noble families in the city almost wore down the threshold of Prince Gong's manor, but Your Highness didn't give in at all."
"Now that they suddenly say they want to take Bai Jiaojiao as a concubine, isn't that just telling the whole city that Prince Gong's mansion isn't as bad as people think, that they can't even take a concubine?"
Marrying a concubine or taking a mistress is equivalent to establishing a connection with the royal family.
Whether it's getting a promotion or making a fortune, it's a great help.
Moreover, there's the matter of the new tax law. If Yu Nanqing really agrees to take a concubine, the issue of the new tax law might be resolved easily. This would be a good thing for both Yu Nanqing and the wealthy merchants and officials in the city.
After hearing Huang Ye's explanation, Qiu Ye appeared indignant: "What do they take our prince for? Do they think we're easy to bully!"
She paused, still feeling unconvinced: "So it turns out Lu Chao is also eyeing the Prince. Who else besides the Empress is worthy of our Prince? He doesn't even know what he looks like!"
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