Chapter 529 The Heartless Top Scholar 3
"Bang!" The Emperor slammed his hand on the table, causing the chess pieces to jump. "So, you're rejecting this marriage proposal?"
Ning Yan quickly replied, "Your Majesty, I dare not. But, I truly cannot bear to part with my first wife..."
"Ah, my dear minister, you are truly devoted! Rest assured, I am not a wicked mother-in-law who would break up a loving couple."
But women are entitled to have multiple husbands and servants. I will betroth you to the Third Prince. Are you willing?
Now that things have come to this point, if Ning Yanruo still refuses, she'll really lose her head.
"If Your Majesty is truly willing to marry the Third Prince to me, I promise that I will treat him with utmost sincerity for the rest of my life."
There's nothing else that can be guaranteed, and to be honest, this is unfair to her original spouse.
The Emperor snorted again, not quite satisfied with the answer, but he couldn't say anything, since his third daughter was so disappointing.
Soon the imperial edict was issued, and the marriage between the Third Prince and Scholar Ning caused a sensation throughout the capital.
After all, everyone knows that Ning Zhuangyuan already has a legal husband. Although the Third Prince will also be a legal husband after marrying into the family, which prince would share a wife with another man?
What is it about this top scholar Ning that made the Third Prince willing to marry her?
Regardless of what people outside were saying, Ning Yan went about her business as usual. The wedding date was set for two months from now. The Third Prince probably felt that the wedding was about to take place, so he never contacted Ning Yan privately again.
A month later, her first husband arrived.
Yuan Huaxi's expression was not good.
Even though Yuan's parents kept giving him meaningful glances, he just wouldn't give Ning Yan the slightest bit of kindness.
Ning Yan could only coax the person back to their courtyard and close the door. What anger couldn't be resolved?
"Father, Mother-in-law, Father-in-law, you must be tired from your long journey. Let the servants take you back to your rooms to wash up first, and then we'll have a family reunion dinner together."
Ning Yan's biological father happily followed the servants back to his courtyard.
His daughter is successful; she even bought such a large house in the capital, and now she's going to marry a prince. He's just heartlessly happy.
The feelings of Yuan's parents are different from those three years ago.
They were genuinely afraid, afraid that their son would be divorced.
That's a prince! The emperor himself bestowed the marriage upon them. Their family is just a merchant family. How could they be worthy of being on equal footing with him?
Moreover, their son is rather unattractive. Even if the other party didn't have the status of the Third Prince, their son probably wouldn't be able to compete with him.
Ever since they learned of the arranged marriage on the way, they had made the worst-case scenario plan. If the Third Prince was too powerful, their family would take the initiative to divorce, which would at least preserve their dignity, better than losing their lives in the end.
But from what I just saw, it seems that Ning Yan still has some affection for her son, which makes me wonder whether it's a good thing or a bad thing.
Once Ning Yan brought Yuan Xihua to their courtyard, she immediately dismissed the servants.
He then closed the door behind him.
Ning Yan urged him, "Hurry up."
Yuan Xihua stood there angrily, not even glancing at Ning Yan. What's so fast about that?
Ning Yan then pulled him into the inner room.
What are you doing?
Ning Yan tugged at his clothes, "What do you think I'm going to do? I'm going to do you!"
Yuan Xihua was furious, annoyed, and somewhat ashamed. He desperately tried to protect his clothes, but it was no use. "My lady, you..."
"What do you mean 'what do you mean'? How long have we been apart? A full year and six months!"
I refuse to believe you don't miss me.
I miss you!
Hurry up, there's still an hour until lunch, don't let them find out..."
What problem between husband and wife can't be solved by sleeping together?
If you have any, take a couple of naps!
The original owner was a strong-willed woman and rigid in bed; she didn't care about others once she was comfortable.
Ning Yan is different. She's going to have children for her, so she has to take good care of her. At the very least, when she suffers during childbirth, she'll say that she at least enjoyed the experience.
A full two hours, except for half an hour spent washing up, were spent entirely in bed.
Ning Yan spoke as if sweet words were free.
What do you mean by "my medal of honor"? It's half mine and half yours.
Is it my achievement that I became the top scorer in the exam?
No, all the credit is yours!
Without you, Yuan Xihua, what am I, Ning Yan? I'd probably still be barefoot in the village planting rice right now.
What? You can't live without a man in the house? I don't even dare to buy a house without you, for fear of not being able to manage the household properly.
I feel relieved now that you're here.
At first, Yuan Xihua was angry and didn't speak. Later, she was so tormented that she couldn't speak. Then, she smiled and finally obediently went to the main courtyard with Ning Yan to have dinner with her family.
As for any questions he wanted to ask, he held them all back.
Forget about the Third Prince, we're all husbands. If his wife demands him, what is there for him to be afraid of?
At the dinner table, the topic of marriage with the Third Prince inevitably came up.
Ning Yan winked at the elders and squeezed her husband's hand tightly under the table. "The imperial decree for marriage is a great favor from the emperor. The fact that the Third Prince is willing to be on equal footing with Xi Hua is a huge honor for our family."
Walls have ears, and she couldn't guarantee that the Emperor hadn't planted spies in her mansion. She certainly had the ability to tell whether her servants were loyal.
But if her residence is too clean, even the Emperor can't get involved, isn't that obviously a problem?
"Let's not talk about this anymore. It's not easy living in the capital. Mother-in-law, you should think about how to get our family business going."
The merchant was immediately excited when he heard about business, and Madam Yuan's eyes lit up. "I've settled all our business in Jiangzhou this time. If you say so, I'll buy a few more shops so that you and Xihua's child can earn more money."
“Mother-in-law, I was just about to tell you about this. I got a recipe before. Do you think it’s possible to make these dishes?”
Ning Yan took out an ancient book from her bosom.
It was found in the Divine Palace. Whether it's ancient or not, the characters are the same. I don't know which life she collected it from before she lost her memory, but as long as it works, that's fine.
Many of the recipes listed here don't exist in this world yet. If they could all be replicated, the novelty alone would be enough to make a fortune.
The Yuan family head carefully took the book, and after flipping through a few pages, he was overjoyed, as his family had run a restaurant in Jiangzhou.
Business is doing alright, but the profits are limited, after all, the competition is fierce.
Small county towns have a limited number of customers.
But his vision is limitless; this cookbook might just be the key to his success in building a renowned restaurant in the Phoenix Feather Kingdom.
"You'll get a 30% stake in the restaurant."
Ning Yan quickly refused: "I can't accept this dividend. Without your help, I wouldn't be where I am today. It's just a recipe book. Please keep it."
Ning's father: ...What kind of talk is that? Which woman doesn't need money to maintain appearances?
So, everyone loves their own child. Hearing Ning Yan say that, Yuan's mother and father were happy, but Ning's father was depressed. He wished he could take all the money from his daughter and put it in his own pocket.
But Ning Yan couldn't go along with her father.
The Yue family has already done a great job supporting her through the imperial examinations, so she should naturally repay them if she has the ability. She doesn't need this share of the profits.
(End of this chapter)
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