Lv Luo still lowered her head and said nothing.
Yang Mengchen sighed, "Actually, the problem isn’t with Jiang Zhongxun at all, but entirely with you. You lack self-confidence and believe you aren’t worthy of Jiang Zhongxun, right?"
The Jiang family was an aristocratic family from Dong Chu, though Jiang Zhongxun’s branch was a side lineage.
At the age of five, Jiang Zhongxun’s family perished in a fire. He was the only survivor because he happened not to be home, and he was subsequently neglected by his family and maternal relatives. They let him scrounge for food in the village or beg for alms.
It wasn’t until Jiang Zhongxun followed Wende to the frontier and defeated the Three Kingdoms Allied Army that the Emperor exceptionally appointed him as a Seventh-Grade Official of Court of Imperial Stud, also decreeing that he follow Long Xuanmo. He was not yet fourteen years old and had not gone through the imperial examination.
Only then did the members of the Jiang family and his maternal relatives begin to show ’concern’ for Jiang Zhongxun, but he ignored them all.
Once, the Jiang family’s Clan Leader and Jiang Zhongxun’s paternal uncle by blood wrote to him, criticizing him for not respecting his elders. How would his elders support him and help him in the future?
Jiang Zhongxun simply burned the letter.
After several such instances, Jiang Zhongxun responded with a letter of his own, mocking the attitudes of his family and maternal relatives. Where were they when he was a child in need of help and support? Now, he needed neither their help nor anyone else’s backing.
The Jiang family and maternal relatives cursed him for being ungrateful but still tried every means to win him over. Unfortunately, he stayed at the frontier and did not return to the capital, sending back all the women they sent to him. After reaching adulthood, he even declared publicly that any wife of his who did not have his approval would not be acknowledged, which finally made them give up.
Last year, when Jiang Zhongxun returned to the capital, he hid in one of Long Xuanmo’s residences and did not appear in public, so that even his family and maternal relatives did not know of his return.
This time, during the rebellion led by Prince Hui and other rebels, Jiang Zhongxun made great contributions, and the Emperor bestowed upon him the title of Fifth Rank Junior Minister of Glorious Monastery.
As soon as the Jiang family and maternal relatives heard the news, they tried all means to corner Jiang Zhongxun, using the guise of concern and lineage continuity (since Jiang Zhongxun had no woman by his side), bringing a pile of portraits of women, urging him to choose two to be his principal wife and secondary wife, and another dozen or so to be concubines, hoping to secure his loyalty. After all, he was quite close to the Crown Prince, and his future seemed boundless.
The fight over the positions of principal and secondary wife among the Jiang family and maternal relatives became so intense they even came to blows.
Jiang Zhongxun ignored them completely. Eventually, he simply moved into the Crown Prince Mansion, where he followed Long Xuanmo to and from the Imperial Court daily, and rarely left the residence otherwise. The Jiang family and maternal relatives dared not approach the Crown Prince Mansion, and that put an end to the disturbance.
Yang Mengchen had not only met Jiang Zhongxun but had also played chess with him. Character is often reflected in one’s style of play, and through his chess, she could see his open-mindedness, unconcerned with worldly conventions. Especially considering his childhood experiences and the life-and-death trials at the frontier, he naturally differed fundamentally from most men who rigidly adhered to antiquated norms. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have sought to marry Lv Luo, let alone be willing to live in the Crown Prince Mansion in his old age for Lv Luo’s sake. After all, Lv Luo had slave status.
Having said this, Lv Luo didn’t hide her feelings either. "Replying to the Crown Princess Consort, I truly don’t understand why he would be attracted to me? Nor do I understand why he would want to marry me?"
Jiang Zhongxun was nearly thirty, a handsome man with a promising career as an Imperial Court Official, whereas she was a servant. She truly lacked the confidence to believe that Jiang Zhongxun could like her and go to great lengths to marry her.
Yang Mengchen did not answer Lv Luo. She speculated that Jiang Zhongxun’s desire to marry Lv Luo was partly due to genuine affection, and partly because Lv Luo was someone close to her. By marrying Lv Luo, the Jiang family and maternal relatives would not dare to cause trouble, given that Long Xuanmo was the future Emperor, and everyone knew how protective she was of her own people.
However, Yang Mengchen had no intention of revealing the second reason to Lv Luo and gazed down at the engagement ring on her right ring finger, her expression ethereal and distanced.
"Back then, I insisted on not accepting Wende’s affections. Certainly, part of the reason was my desire to avoid complicated troubles, but most importantly, I couldn’t understand why Wende could possibly like me. Keep in mind that I was just a young girl from a farming background with plain and unremarkable looks. How could Wende be so infatuated with me, and now spoil me without any limits? Honestly, I never felt that I was so special; I’ve always thought I was unworthy of Wende."
These were the heartfelt words of Yang Mengchen, who had resolved when she arrived in this time to find a simple and honest man to live a quiet life with. Yet, she ended up meeting Wende, a wealthy, handsome man. To decline Wende’s advances, she had gone through quite a bit of trouble. Had it not been for Wende’s perseverance and tolerance, she and Wende would definitely not have ended up together, nor would she enjoy the happy and blissful life she has today.
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