Chapter 33 Fu'er has a mother, she doesn't need a stepmother.
Jiang Shiyao looked at the violent look in his eyes.
My heart is already ice-cold.
A bleak smile curled at the corners of her lips. "Is that so? If I become a corpse, will the prince still want me?"
Zhou Congxian looked at her suddenly changed expression, and a fierce glint flashed in his eyes!
He suddenly exerted force, pinning her wrists above her head with his other hand and gripping her waist.
"You will never leave me."
The wind whipped up raindrops, which pelted her face with a fine spray.
The face was cold, the neck was burning.
Jiang Shiyao slowly closed her eyes.
Zhou Congxian felt the person in his arms go limp, so he used his arms to hold her lower back and put her on the ground.
The carriage suddenly stopped.
Then, Wei Xun's anxious voice came from outside the carriage, "Your Highness, a corpse from an enemy country has been retrieved from Jinming Lake in the North City!"
Zhou Congxian paused.
His eyes cleared instantly. "I understand."
He looked at Jiang Shiyao, whose hair was now loose and whose lips were red and swollen, and a flicker of emotion crossed his eyes.
He reached out and covered her face with the cloak.
Zhou Congxian climbed out of the carriage and mounted the horse that Wei Xun had brought.
He glanced at the carriage and said, "Send Lady Jiang back. From now on, Lady Jiang is not allowed to use the carriage without my permission."
"yes."
Back at the mansion.
Jiang Shiyao, wrapped in Zhou Congxian's cloak, returned to the small courtyard like a walking corpse.
Her hair was disheveled, and her eyes were vacant.
All the servants on the road kept their distance from her.
After she left, they quietly pointed and whispered among themselves.
"My wife!"
Shuangjiang was the first to greet her at the door, and she lovingly embraced Jiang Niangzi.
What kind of place is the carriage? Where does that leave the lady's reputation and honor?
The prince doesn't treat his wife like a human being at all!
Mrs. He sighed softly.
She's easygoing; the prince's concern for his wife stems from his deep affection for her.
"Mother..."
Fu'er stood at the door, still half asleep.
Shuangjiang quickly stepped forward and picked up Fu'er, saying, "My dear girl, Mother is tired. Let's let Mother rest properly, okay?"
Fu'er clasped her little hands in front of her stomach, and after a while shook her head, "I want to go write."
“Mother said that Father likes Fu’er’s writing. Fu’er wrote to Father, begging Father not to hurt Mother.”
Frostfall was surprised by Fu'er's keen senses, "Sister, how did you know it was the Crown Prince..."
Fu'er pointed to the corner of her mouth, "When Father stayed here last time, Mother was also injured and couldn't eat."
Shuangjiang sighed and hugged Fu'er tightly, "Your mother will be alright."
The inner room.
Jiang Shiyao's fingers stroked the box where she kept her money.
Her money, travel permit, and books were among them.
It will be soon.
Those days will come soon.
Until then.
Her lips trembled as she shed tears of humiliation.
She was a concubine.
It turns out that from beginning to end, she was just an object in Zhou Congxian's eyes.
He was able to give Song Jiyun the respect she deserved.
But he would only humiliate her to the extreme in the carriage.
Her fingers slowly tightened, her nails digging into the carved patterns on the box.
The nails turn white, and eventually blood vessels appear.
She never let go!
For several days in a row.
Zhou Congxian did not return home.
It seems that life in the courtyard has returned to what it used to be.
Only Jiang Shiyao silently counted the days on her fingers.
The Empress Dowager's birthday is approaching.
Her day is fast approaching.
"Little bone, roll over!"
Jiang Shiyao was in the courtyard, squatting with Fu'er, playing with Xiao Gutou.
"In a few days, on the Empress Dowager's birthday, Kongming lanterns will be released at the altar in the south of the city."
“I remember you said that Chuzhou releases Kongming lanterns every year to celebrate the harvest. We’ll have Wei Xun come and pick you up then, and we’ll release a Kongming lantern together.”
Zhou Congxian, who hadn't been seen for several days, stepped into the courtyard with a smile in his eyes.
It seems so.
The events of the past few days seem as if they never happened.
Looking at the serious expression on his face, Jiang Shiyao couldn't help but recall the past.
Was he this patient in his previous life?
Did he make such a thoughtful arrangement?
It seemed as if she and her daughter were merely dispensable figures in the Duke's mansion.
On the day Zhou Congxian and Song Jiyun got married, everyone in the mansion went to the front yard.
Only she and Fu'er were left alone in the courtyard, unnoticed.
No one invited them to the family dinner that evening.
That day, the mother and daughter went hungry for an entire day.
Finally, after dark, Mrs. He brought back two steamed buns.
She'd had enough of this life of waiting to die.
Fu'er should grow up, instead of living in constant fear under the mistress's care.
"You don't want to see Kongming lanterns?"
Zhou Congxian assumed that she didn't like it because she didn't respond.
"Fireworks and iron flowers also appear on the Fengshui River."
"I'm afraid there will be even more people than during the last Shangsi Festival."
He pondered for a moment, "I remember there is a house by the Feng River with a superb view from the attic. It belongs to Prince Xiao. I will ask him to lend it to me."
Jiang Shiyao pursed her lips. "Thank you for your concern, Your Highness. There must have been many things to do that day. You don't need to be so distracted. Besides, Fu'er is still young. I'm afraid that something might happen, so I won't go out to join in the fun."
Zhou Congxian knew that she still harbored resentment, and his lips trembled slightly.
He tried to explain, but after circling his words in his mouth, he swallowed them all in the end.
He sighed almost imperceptibly and decided not to try to persuade him any further.
Over the years, the Empress Dowager has suppressed the princes, stripped them of their hereditary privileges, and confiscated their fiefdoms.
Now, the only remaining princes in the vassal states are the two elder brothers of the late emperor.
When the princes arrive in the capital, the Empress Dowager's people will inevitably take action, and the princes' people will also try to win over officials in the court.
Whether it was the empress dowager who controlled the court or the vassal kings who held military power in their fiefdoms.
When two sides fight, one will inevitably be injured.
At this critical juncture, it's best to stay safely at home to avoid being accidentally injured or losing your life.
"That's fine too. I'll get some fireworks from the Imperial Household Department and watch them in the mansion. It'll be just as festive."
Jiang Shiyao lowered her eyes slightly and sneered inwardly.
In the previous life, the old lady, the Duke and his wife, and the young ladies and gentlemen of the mansion all went to the palace to celebrate the Empress Dowager's birthday.
The mansion was deserted and quiet. There was no way to watch fireworks, and even the meals were leftovers from lunch.
But she didn't show it on her face, and just said softly.
"The Crown Prince is indeed very thoughtful."
The next day.
Just as Zhou Congxian said, he really did get fireworks from the Internal Affairs Department.
The front yard was piled up.
When Wei Xun led Jiang Shiyao and Fu'er to the front yard.
The masters of all the courtyards in the front yard are watching.
Zhou Wanqing covered her mouth and chuckled, "Big brother, is this for Sister Jiyun?"
"There are still several days until Sister Jiyun's birthday, big brother, isn't this a bit too early!"
Zhou Congxian stood on the steps with his hands behind his back. He did not respond to Zhou Wanqing's words, but his gaze seemed to drift towards Jiang Shiyao, who had just arrived.
Wei Xun walked in and said, "Young Master, someone from the Capital Garrison has arrived."
Zhou Congxian glanced at Jiang Shiyao one last time; she hadn't looked at him once from beginning to end.
"Your Highness?"
Wei Xun urged again, for the young master had never neglected official business.
Zhou Congxian grunted in acknowledgment and then turned and walked out.
Zhou Wanhui breathed a sigh of relief after watching her eldest brother leave, then tugged at Zhou Wanqing's sleeve, "Third sister, be careful what you say. Miss Song isn't even married yet..."
Zhou Wanqing patted Zhou Wanhui, who was tugging at her sleeve, and said, "What difference does it make? There's only a little over a month left."
"Sister Jiyun told me before that her birthday is too close to the Empress Dowager's birthday, so she probably won't be able to celebrate her birthday this year."
"I didn't expect my brother to have secretly prepared so many fireworks! Sister Jiyun will definitely be very happy!"
Jiang Shiyao looked at the rows of fireworks and pursed her lips into a thin line.
Fu'er leaned against her mother's leg and asked, "Mother, what is this?"
Jiang Shiyao lowered her head and touched her daughter's little face. "This is a flower that can fly to the sky."
Fu'er still remembers watching fireworks on the Feng River during the Shangsi Festival. "Is Mother the flower that blooms in the sky?"
"Did Father buy this for Fu'er?"
Just as Jiang Shiyao was about to speak in response to her daughter's words, Zhou Wanqing walked over.
She squatted down in front of Fu'er, "Fu'er, these are all prepared by your father for your future stepmother."
Fu'er was frightened by Zhou Wanqing's somewhat oppressive aura, and she retreated and hid behind her mother.
Then a soft voice came from behind, "Fu'er has a mother, she doesn't need a stepmother."
Zhou Wanqing frowned. "Fu'er, how can you be so rude!"
Jiang Shiyao turned around and picked up her daughter. "Third Miss, Fu'er is still young. Why are you speaking so harshly?"
"I spoke harshly?" Zhou Wanqing stood up.
"How could a child say such things? If you hadn't intentionally taught her, how would Fu'er have known that she only wanted you and didn't want her stepmother!"
Jiang Shiyao frowned. "Third Miss, you can't just say things like that!"
With Song Jiyun about to enter, if this were to get out, the old lady might just take Fu'er away from her!
Zhou Wanqing sneered, "Don't I know what you're thinking?"
"Last time you deliberately got lost during the Shangsi Festival, causing your elder brother to abandon his fiancée. This time you've taught Fu'er to say such things. If Sister Jiyun has her own child in the future, are you going to teach Fu'er to frame her younger brother's wife again?!"
"Third Miss!" Jiang Shiyao hugged her daughter, her eyes red with anger.
"Could it be—ah!—"
Zhou Wanqing was slapped to the ground. She turned around angrily and saw her older brother standing next to Jiang Shiyao.
"Brother! You hit me for the sake of the Jiang family?"
Zhou Congxian's jaw clenched tightly. "Someone, take the Third Miss back!"
"A young woman speaking such foul language! If word gets out, people will think my Zhou family has no manners!"
"The Third Miss shall remain in confinement for three days and shall not leave her room even for a moment!"
"Big brother!" Zhou Wanqing's eyes were filled with disbelief.
Zhou Wanhui looked at her elder brother and Jiang Shi thoughtfully.
It seems like my older brother is a little different now.
The Jiang family is different now.
The fact that Zhou Congxian slapped the Third Miss because of Jiang Shi spread like wildfire throughout the entire mansion.
It also reached Song Jiyun's ears.
"ah!!!"
Enraged, Song Jiyun smashed everything she could in her boudoir.
Song Yitang was so busy every day that he barely had time to rest, but he still managed to find time to comfort his younger sister.
"Yun'er, have you forgotten what I told you so quickly?"
"Your mother is still recovering from what happened because of you, can't you just give her a break!"
Song Jiyun suddenly stood up, "He said it himself, that she was just a dispensable concubine!"
A ruthless glint flashed in her eyes. "She must die."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com