Jiang Si dried his hair and drank the ginger sugar water that Aqiao offered him. He felt warm all over and lay down on the bed. Not long after, he fell into a deep sleep.
Going into the water to save people is too physically demanding, and she was already exhausted.
The Dongping Marquis's Mansion was shrouded in silent darkness, but the Anguo Duke's Mansion, two streets away, was bustling with people and brightly lit.
Lady Wei, the wife of Duke Anguo, was leaning against the head of the bed, clutching Duke Anguo's hand and crying hysterically.
Duke Anguo's face was gloomy. He was upset by Wei's crying and tried to comfort her: "Don't cry. Dalang has passed away. Sanlang will be fine."
Previously, the mansion was in a turmoil because of Sanlang's disappearance. When he suddenly heard that Sanlang had fallen into the water at night, he only cared to ask if he was okay and quickly ordered Dalang to go over. Now he didn't even know how Sanlang drowned.
Duke Anguo was in a state of panic. At this moment, a servant came in and reported: "Duke, Madam, the Crown Prince has returned with the Third Young Master."
"Let them in quickly!" Before An Guogong could speak, Wei suddenly sat up.
Soon, footsteps were heard outside the door. A maid lifted the pearl curtain and three people walked in.
Wei looked past her eldest son Ji Chongli and immediately saw her third son Ji Chongyi, who looked pale. She stood up and rushed over to him: "Sanlang, what happened to you? Let me check if you are okay!"
"Mom, I'm fine." Ji Chongyi gave a weak smile.
"How come he's okay?" Wei stroked Ji Chongyi's cheek, tears streaming down her face. "Your hair is all wet. How could he fall into the water?"
“Ahem.”
When a cough was heard, Wei couldn't help but look at Duke Anguo.
Duke Anguo's gaze fell behind Ji Chongyi.
A petite girl stood about half a meter away from Ji Chongyi. She was lowering her head and touching the hem of her clothes, unable to hide her uneasiness.
Wei's expression changed immediately, and she couldn't help but raise her voice: "Who is she?"
Seeing this, Ji Chongyi reached out and pulled Qiao Niang to his side, looking directly into Wei's eyes: "Mother, she is the one my son loves, her name is Qiao Niang."
Wei's face froze, and she stared at Qiao Niang with unfathomable eyes: "So you are Qiao Niang, I heard earlier that you saved our San Lang, and I haven't thanked you yet."
Qiao Niang looked up at Wei in surprise, then lowered her head and said nervously: "No, I don't dare to thank you as the lady--"
"Hanfang, take Miss Qiaoniang downstairs to have a good rest." Wei interrupted Qiaoniang indifferently.
Hanfang, the maidservant beside Wei, walked up to Qiaoniang and said with a smile, "Miss Qiaoniang, please follow me."
Qiao Niang couldn't help but glance at Ji Chongyi.
Ji Chongyi thought about it and nodded gently to Qiao Niang: "Go and have a rest. I will visit you tomorrow."
Only then did Qiao Niang feel relieved and followed the maid out.
A cold light flashed in Wei's eyes.
She is such a wild girl who doesn't know any etiquette. Not to mention that a girl is associating with her son, the fact that she didn't even know how to greet the people present when she left just now shows how poorly she has been brought up.
"Shuanrui, quickly bring the ginger tea to the Third Young Master."
Soon, a maid dressed the same as Hanfang came forward with a cup of ginger tea.
Duke Anguo watched his son finish the ginger tea with cold eyes, and then asked, "What happened?"
These words were asked while looking at Ji Chongli, the prince of Anguo.
Ji Chongli quickly glanced at Ji Chongyi, knowing that he couldn't hide this matter, so he said with a stiff upper lip: "Third brother... Third brother jumped into the lake with that woman..."
"Asshole!" Duke Anguo kicked over a chair.
Ji Chongyi fell to his knees.
Wei gave Duke Anguo a reproachful look and said, "Why are you so angry, old man? Sanlang has fallen into the water, so you should ask a doctor to come and take a look and prescribe some medicine to drive away the cold."
"Why ask a doctor? Who can stop him if he wants to die?" Duke Anguo became more and more angry when he saw Ji Chongyi kneeling on the ground. He pointed at him and cursed, "What a capable little beast! He is willing to die for a woman!"
Ji Chongyi kowtowed and said, "Father, Mother, please grant my son's wish."
Hey, it seems like I hit the jackpot!
Duke Anguo was furious: "Don't even think about it! As long as I'm alive, you'd better give up this idea and marry the fourth daughter of the Duke of Dongping!"
Wei stopped trying to persuade him, and her expression remained unsightly.
She originally looked down on the Dongping Marquis's Mansion. When the Duke of Anguo insisted on arranging a marriage with his family in order to repay the Dongping Marquis' brothers for saving his life, she made a fuss several times.
But no matter how poor the Dongping Marquis's mansion is, it is still better than that of ordinary people.
Ji Chongyi knelt upright, saying in a firm tone: "Father, I only like Qiao Niang, not the fourth lady from the Dongping Marquis's mansion. I have never even met her, so I cannot marry her!"
"Sanlang, your father has inquired about it. The fourth daughter of the Duke of Dongping's mansion is a famous beauty among the noble ladies in the capital." The Duke of Anguo advised patiently.
"Yes, your stepmother also found a chance to see your fiancé, and your father didn't try to coax you." Wei followed.
"In my eyes, Qiao Niang is the most beautiful!" Ji Chongyi looked up at the Duke of Anguo, "Father, you can marry into the Dongping Marquis's Mansion to repay your gratitude, why can't you understand me? If it weren't for Qiao Niang, I'm afraid I would have been gone long ago--"
"Shut up! You can't do whatever you want with marriage. If you continue to be stubborn, I'll have people kick Qiaoniang out!"
"If father wants to drive Qiao Niang away, then he should drive me away as well." Ji Chongyi stood up decisively.
"You——" Duke Anguo was so angry that he was shaking. He turned around and shouted at the old woman standing at the door, "Take some people to beat that Qiao Niang out with a stick!"
"No!" Seeing that the old woman was about to go out, Ji Chongyi stepped up to chase her.
Duke Anguo shouted, "Da Lang, hold on to your third brother!"
Ji Chongli grabbed Ji Chongyi's arm and advised, "Third brother, don't make father angry."
"Brother, get out of the way!" Ji Chongyi wanted to push Ji Chongli away but couldn't. Seeing that the old woman was about to leave, he was so anxious and angry that he spat out a mouthful of blood and then fell on Ji Chongli.
Wei was terrified and screamed, "Call a doctor quickly..."
Soon the doctor examined Ji Chongyi and said that the vomiting blood and coma were due to anger attacking his heart, coupled with the cold air entering his body. From now on, he must take good care of himself and avoid extreme joy or sorrow.
When the doctor went out to write the prescription, Wei couldn't help but complain to the Duke of Anguo: "The old man has such a bad temper, is he going to drive Sanlang to death?"
"I forced him to death? Isn't it your habit that makes him so ignorant?" Although Duke Anguo said this, he couldn't help but feel a little scared when he thought of Ji Chongyi vomiting blood.
Wei wiped her tears with a handkerchief: "What's the point of saying all this now? Don't you and Dalang love Sanlang? In my opinion, you should think about what to do."
"No matter what, the marriage with the Dongping Marquis's Mansion cannot be cancelled!"
"But if the old man forcibly separates Sanlang and Qiaoniang, Sanlang will probably not survive."
Seeing the Duke of Anguo sneer, Wei cried, "Master, think about it, Sanlang and Qiaoniang both died for love once. If there is a first time, there will be a second time. If Sanlang really gets hurt, it will be too late for us to regret."
"So what do you say we should do?"
Wei stopped sobbing, glanced at the inner room, and said, "How about this, our marriage with the Dongping Marquis's Mansion will remain unchanged, and as for Qiao Niang, let Sanlang take her as a concubine."