Chapter 293: Heart as Clear as a Mirror

"Then I'll leave it to Uncle Lu."

Lu Mingchao made another move.

Neither she nor Lu Minghua were able to find Nanny Wang, so now they can only rely on Marquis Yongning.

Marquis Yongning ate one of his pieces, and the jade chess pieces collided, like clear spring water flowing over stones.

"Chao Chao, after much thought, I still feel that there is something hidden behind the Qushui Liushang Banquet at Grand Tutor Qin's residence. You must be careful and be on guard."

"If enemies come, we will stop them; if floods come, we will block them with earth." Lu Mingchao remained calm.

"The only thing I have that is worthy of Grand Master Qin's attention is the Chaofu Qizhen Pavilion."

"Don't worry, Uncle Lu. I have a plan for dealing with it."

Yongning Hou raised his eyebrows slightly and said with a smile, "You have never made your father worry."

"Grand Tutor Qin favors Qin Wu's aunt. As a father, I think Qin Wu seems to be somewhat sincere towards Ming Hua. If you encounter an emergency, you may seek help from Qin Wu."

"If we delay a little longer, we may be able to turn the crisis into safety."

Lu Mingchao frowned and said nothing.

Lu Minghua has no feelings for Qin Wanrou at all.

It remains to be seen whether a marriage contract can become a reality.

If she accepted Qin Wanrou's favor, she would be adding weight to Qin Wanrou's situation and making Lu Minghua even more embarrassed.

"Chao Chao, you are distracted."

"It's your turn now."

Marquis Yongning tapped the chessboard with his fingers.

Lu Mingchao scanned the increasingly tense chess game, considering his next move, and then tentatively asked, "Uncle Lu, is there any room for maneuver in my eldest brother's marriage?"

Yongning Hou exclaimed, "Chao Chao, you made a bad move."

Lu Mingchao was stunned.

She didn't know whether Marquis Yongning was talking about chess or about her and Lu Minghua's true feelings.

"You also dislike Qin Wu's background?"

"It's not that I think Miss Qin Wu's background is not good enough for big brother."

Lu Mingchao's fingertips unconsciously stroked the chess piece. "But I think this marriage is a humiliation to my brother. It's unfair to him."

Yongning Hou threw the chess piece in his hand back into the chess box, sighed faintly, and looked at Chao Chao with scrutiny, "When did you become so naive?"

"Minghua was not on guard against others, and his move was a step behind. This is an indisputable fact."

"As the old saying goes, a beautiful lady is the ideal match for a gentleman."

“But the same is true in reverse.”

"As the son of a marquis, he enjoys a reputation as a noble and outstanding person. He is also a disciple of the same junior fellow disciple of Master Yu. He is at the age of marriage, so naturally he is coveted by countless people."

"As the saying goes, a gentleman seeks a beautiful lady."

“The same applies in reverse.”

"He is the son of a marquis, and has a reputation as a beautiful and graceful man. He is a student of the same school as Master Yu, and is of marriageable age, so many people are coveting him."

"He thinks he is a gentleman and everyone in the world is a gentleman."

"He was not alert when he should have been alert, and he was not decisive when he should have been decisive."

"humiliation?"

"unfair?"

"You saw the selection of a son-in-law from the list when you were young."

"Not all students who study hard are willing to take shortcuts, but what happens to those who are chosen and have strong character?"

"He was suppressed and unable to get ahead, depriving him of the official job opportunities that should have belonged to him."

"It gradually crushed his integrity and self-esteem, forcing him to watch helplessly as his peers who had passed the imperial examinations at the same time prospered while he himself was trapped, depressed and frustrated."

"Now you come forward and give him back something that originally belonged to him and that he could have gotten with his own talent, but you still ask him to be grateful and make a promise to you."

"Tell me, is this humiliating?"

"Do you think this is fair?"

"Students are inferior to others, so they can either die with honor or live in disgrace. The official career is the bait for students, but also the cage that imprisons them."

"For Yu Minghua, reputation is a cage."

"The Yongning Marquisate is no match for the Qin family, which has gained power overnight."

"No one in the officialdom or aristocratic family is clean."

"Minghua is naive, and you are naive too."

Lu Mingchao felt a chill all over his body and his blood was flowing backwards.

Marquis Yongning calmly and bluntly pointed out the tyranny of power and the ugliness of human nature.

Marquis Yongning continued, "If he could insist that he was framed at the plum blossom viewing banquet, Qin Wu would at most be a concubine if he entered the mansion."

"There is another possibility. Grand Master Qin felt that Qin Wu was embarrassing and sent him back to his ancestral home."

"He was tricked first and lost the opportunity later."

"How to turn things around?"

"You can only accept the marriage."

Lu Mingchao's eyelashes trembled slightly, and his mood was complicated.

There is no fairness when one is less powerful than others.

"Before, I always thought that Uncle Lu fell in love with Prince Yi because of my eldest brother's marriage." Lu Mingchao laughed at himself.

Not just her.

Mrs. Hou and Lu Minghua also thought so.

"The official career is a road that good people cannot go far." Marquis Yongning picked up a chess piece at some point and dropped it heavily.

"A gentle and decent good man cannot reproduce the glory of the ancestors of the Marquisate."

"Minghua is a man of great talent and a mediocre character."

"As soon as the engagement was signed, I was in a state of depression and could not recover. For dozens of days, I was like a ghost, doing nothing, complaining to myself and drinking to drown my sorrows."

"How can Minghua, who thinks like this, support the Marquis' Mansion?"

"Does the concubine's son meet Uncle Lu's expectations?" Lu Mingchao asked in a deep voice.

Yongning Hou's expression froze. "He and Minghua are very different."

"Lively and bold."

Lu Mingchao "Why is Uncle Lu hesitating?"

Yongning Hou pursed his lips and said, "Too much is not enough."

"He is very courageous. As a father, I am worried that he will bring the Yongning Marquisate to ruin in one day."

"Chao Chao, don't test your father again."

"After Minghua cleared up the gloom and cheered up, I, your father, have already given up on Prince Yi's idea."

Lu Mingchao smiled, seeming a little embarrassed.

These words really brightened Lu Mingchao's eyes.

She never knew that the heart of the cold, selfish, fawning Marquis Yongning was as clear as a mirror.

How could such a clear-headed person be blinded by Madam Hou and Lu Minghui?

"Chao Chao, when will your husband enter the capital?"

"He actually left you alone in the capital, which shows that you are unreliable."

"If the incident of the real and fake daughter had not happened in the early winter of last year, you and Gu Huai would have been at loggerheads."

When talking about the past, Marquis Yongning's voice was still filled with regret.

Well, it’s a pity to miss the great wealth of the Marquis’ Mansion.

Unlike the Yongning Marquisate which is just a nominal title, the Zhenguo Duke actually has troops at his disposal.

With soldiers and horses, you will be able to stand firm.

In a moment of confusion, he chose Minghui between Chaochao and Minghui.

He always thought that his biological daughter was related by blood, so she would be closer to him and more willing to help the Marquis's Mansion.

Who would have thought that, in the end, the bamboo basket would be used to fetch water in vain and the bamboo basket would become broken and tattered.

Anyone who is not blind can see that Gu Huai still has feelings for Chao Chao.

He really played a very bad game of chess!

Lu Mingchao said solemnly, "Uncle Lu, I have nothing to do with Prince Gu anymore."

"I have no one else in my heart."

"People's words are terrible, they can destroy your bones."

Marquis Yongning smiled bitterly.

He is a bad talker.

Just now, the atmosphere was warm and the morning was gentle, and I almost forgot that time had passed.

"Play chess, play chess."

After two games of chess, Lu Mingchao stood up and prepared to leave.

"Uncle Lu, please pay attention to Nanny Wang's whereabouts."

“Maybe there will be unexpected gains.”

A letter from home is worth a thousand pieces of gold.