Chapter 370 Only Marrying Down
Madam Liu clung to Prime Minister Liu's arm, crying sadly, "My lord, you must do justice for our daughter! How can she ever face anyone again? I have no face to live on."
Prime Minister Liu's face was ashen. Although he felt sorry for his daughter, he still maintained his rationality: "Tell me clearly what exactly happened. I don't believe anyone would be so bold as to scheme against my daughter."
Madam Liu said fiercely, "It must be Jiang Mi. She should have been the one in the room, and Ziju's maid Wan'er also saw her go into that room. Why is it that when I came, the person in the room has been changed to Ziju?"
As she spoke, she glanced at Wan'er again: "This has nothing to do with you, does it?"
Wan'er knelt down with a thud and cried out, "I'm innocent, Madam! I've always been loyal to Miss. I've served Miss for many years. I would never do such a treacherous thing."
Prime Minister Liu kicked her: "Alright, stop wailing here, get out."
Wan'er was kicked so hard she spat out blood, but she still didn't dare to stay there. She quickly scrambled out, otherwise she might lose her life if she waited any longer.
"Master, this maid is indeed loyal to Zijun, so there shouldn't be any problem. It must be Jiang Mi's fault. But I clearly saw her drink that cup of water. There shouldn't be any problem. How could this happen?"
Prime Minister Liu snorted: "You, instead of harming others, you've harmed our own daughter. If you're incompetent, don't come up with such terrible ideas. I don't know how Jiang Mi came to be, but you've made a mistake. Besides, the Empress has already told you not to act on your own. Why didn't you listen?"
Madam Liu was speechless: "I...I was also anxious. Seeing my daughter being bullied made me feel bad, so I wanted to teach that woman a lesson. Her Majesty knows to speak up, but she doesn't take action. We still have to rely on ourselves."
"Are you confused!" Prime Minister Liu said angrily. "The Empress has her reasons for saying that. She has been in the palace for so many years and is very clear about these things. If you don't listen to her and cause trouble, I can't help you."
Madam Liu burst into tears: "My lord, I was too hasty. It is indeed my fault, but I did it for my daughter. Please think of a way to save our daughter, otherwise my daughter and I will really have no way to survive."
Prime Minister Liu sighed: "Now that so many people have seen it, how can we salvage the situation? The only thing we can do is to get her married off as soon as possible."
Madam Liu's heart skipped a beat. Although she knew this would be the outcome, she still couldn't accept it. Her daughter was a precious daughter of heaven; how could she marry just any man?
Previously, Consort Jing had warned them, but they refused to listen. Prime Minister Liu usually liked to listen to Consort Jing, so he didn't take what she said to heart. Madam Liu had always been very uncomfortable and had always been jealous of Consort Jing. That's why she took action after Consort Jing left. One reason was to vent her anger for her daughter, and the other was to prove that she was no less than Consort Jing. In the end, she harmed her own daughter.
Hearing Prime Minister Liu's words from inside, Liu Zijun broke down and cried out, "No, I won't marry him! I'd rather die than marry him!"
Upon hearing this, Madam Liu was heartbroken and burst into tears. She knelt down and begged Prime Minister Liu, "My lord, my daughter cannot marry such a good-for-nothing! You must save our daughter and think of a way!"
Prime Minister Liu was at his wits' end: "Find a solution? What solution? Things have already come to this, what can you expect me to do? Even if this matter were placed on the Emperor's head, he would have no choice but to marry her off. Fortunately, the Minister of Personnel has always been on our side, so he shouldn't treat Zijun too badly."
Madam Liu wiped away her tears and said, "They dare not treat my daughter well. They would be laughing in their dreams if they could marry her. But I am not willing to accept this. How about this? My daughter likes Huo Ran. Let's ask him privately. If he really likes Jiang Mi, we will give her to him. Jiang Mi can't be the main wife because of her status. As long as he gives our daughter the position of the main wife, that will be enough. Besides, our Ziju is still a virgin. He is a reasonable person. He should accept it, right?"
Prime Minister Liu snorted coldly: "Even if today's events hadn't happened, he wouldn't have agreed to marry Ziju. Let alone after what happened. Stop dreaming and prepare to marry the Minister of Personnel's son. If you want a better life in the future, then be happy to marry him. This is your fate."
After saying this, Prime Minister Liu sighed and left. He couldn't bear to hear his wife and daughter crying anymore; no matter how much they cried, it couldn't change the fact.
After he left, Liu Zijun smashed everything in the house and shouted that she would rather die than get married.
The commotion in the backyard was so great that it could be heard even in the front yard. Zhao Zhilan peered through the gate and saw the housekeeper approaching, forcing a smile.
"I'm sorry, everyone. Our young lady and madam are not feeling well, so they are unable to continue entertaining you. I will have to see you off. However, please keep your mouths shut about our young lady's illness today. Do not spread rumors outside, or it will not be good if it reaches the ears of the Prime Minister."
These words carried a hint of threat. Of course, these people knew why the butler said that. They were all smart people, so they just listened quietly. As for what was actually said outside, the Liu family couldn't possibly find out.
Jiang Mi left the Liu residence with Su Yindi and Liang Lan. Huo Ran had just stepped out the gate, intending to take Jiang Mi back, when the steward stopped him.
"Young Master Huo, our master would like to invite you over for a chat."
Huo Ran glanced at Jiang Mi. He was about to refuse, but it was difficult to do so at this point, so he could only reluctantly go back with the butler.
Inside the carriage, Su Yindi was still excitedly saying, "Oh my, this is truly catching them in the act! I never thought that Liu Zijun, who looks so arrogant, could do such a thing. You really can't judge a book by its cover. Don't you think Liu Zijun has always liked Young Master Huo? Why would she get involved with the son of the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel?"
Jiang Mi knew the reason, of course. Liang Lan looked at Jiang Mi with some doubt. This room was originally used by Jiang Mi. Why did it suddenly become Liu Zijun's room, while Jiang Mi was completely unaffected?
Jiang Mi didn't plan to tell Su Yindi, fearing that if Su Yindi accidentally revealed it one day, it would bring trouble to the Jiang family. She could only say perfunctorily, "Maybe it was caused. I was in the next room, and Miss Liu came here to rest. I didn't know. I was sleeping soundly when I heard the commotion over there, so my second sister-in-law and I came to check. Right, second sister-in-law?"
"Ah...yes, that's it." Liang Lan stammered. She guessed that Jiang Mi didn't want to tell Su Yindi the truth, so even though she felt something was wrong, she didn't say it.
Su Yindi believed it to be true and sneered, "This is what they call karmic retribution. Liu Zijun has done a lot of bad things, and even God couldn't stand it anymore and wanted to punish her. I knew that nothing could happen to Honey. These people are really something."
Upon arriving home, Jiang Mi spoke a few words to her mother before going to Liang Lan's room. As soon as Liang Lan saw her, she immediately closed the doors and windows tightly.
"Honey, what exactly happened?" Liang Lan asked hurriedly. She had been holding it in all the way home, her mind filled with questions, but she couldn't bring herself to ask them.
Jiang Mi said with a serious expression, "This Liu family mother and daughter were planning to harm me, but they didn't expect that I didn't even drink that cup of water, otherwise they would have already succeeded."
"What?" Liang Lan was shocked. "They drugged your drink? That's too vicious! How did you find out?"
Jiang Mi was really grateful to the system, but she couldn't say that. She could only say, "I noticed that my water was a little different from yours, and the Liu family mother and daughter kept watching me drink water. I felt that there was something wrong, so I kept an eye on it and didn't drink that water."
Liang Lan was very clever. Following Jiang Mi's words, she said, "Then you started to play along, pretended to faint, and went to the back room."
"That's right, I just wanted to see what they were up to. I didn't expect them to have such evil intentions. So how could I let them off so easily? Of course, I'll retaliate in kind."
Liang Lan nodded: "You're amazing, honey. If it were me, I would be Liu Zijun now."
Jiang Mi smiled and said, "You're always scheming against others, but you never thought you'd be the one being schemed against, did you? The Liu family mother and daughter have suffered a big setback, and they certainly won't let it go. Even if they don't find evidence that I did it, they'll probably pin it on me. So our Jiang family needs to be more vigilant, which is why I didn't dare tell my third sister-in-law."
Liang Lan nodded, indicating that she fully understood.
"She talks too fast. Let her know that if she tells anyone one day, it'll be all over."
Liang Lan looked at Jiang Mi and asked in confusion, "Why did Prime Minister Liu keep Young Master Huo here? He can't possibly expect Young Master Huo to marry his daughter, can he?"
Jiang Mi shook her head: "I don't know either."
She wasn't worried about Huo Ran's feelings for her, but she was very worried that some external factors might prevent them from being together.
Huo Ran entered Prime Minister Liu's study. Prime Minister Liu did not turn around, but sighed and said, "My dear nephew, it is your uncle who has wronged you."
Huo Ran was puzzled as to why he said that, and asked in confusion, "What makes you say that, Your Excellency?"
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