Chapter 100: The Emperor's Order to Divorce Her Husband and the People's Reactions
Regardless of whether Sun Tu and the other three wanted to or not, Jiang Cheng drove the carriage directly out of the city and headed towards Sun Tu's hometown.
Outside, however, the situation was as chaotic as Sun Tu had imagined. Not only were the officials and their families there, but even those in the palace were incredulous. The Emperor had actually decreed that the daughter of the Marquis of Wu'an should divorce her husband, and not only that, he had even allowed her to marry. Was this Zhao Lingmeng really the daughter of the Marquis of Wu'an, not just some princess left behind by the Emperor among the common people?
Everyone in the palace was trying to figure out how important Marquis Wu'an was in the emperor's heart, especially the third prince, who was in love with Zhao Lingyun. He was now discussing this matter in the palace of his mother, Concubine Rong.
"My son, have you heard that person talk about her elder sister?" Concubine Rong asked the third prince seriously.
The Third Prince did not immediately answer Concubine Rong's question. Instead, he was eager to get Concubine Rong's approval: "Mother, her name is Zhao Lingyun, not that so-and-so. She is now a legitimate daughter. I am attracted to her and want her to be my principal wife."
"Mother knows. Have you heard Zhao Lingyun talk about her elder sister?"
Concubine Rong evaded the point. She didn't want Zhao Lingyun to be her son's principal wife. She preferred her eldest brother's legitimate daughter to be the principal wife. Zhao Lingyun was originally a concubine, so even if she was registered under her mother's name, it would be a cover-up. Making her a concubine would be the best she could do. Most importantly, the emperor repeatedly contradicted her on her behalf, and she didn't like it.
The Third Prince thought Rong Fei had agreed, so he thought seriously about what Yun Er had often told him about their family. "Yes, Zhao Lingyunzhi said that Marquis Wu'an doted on his eldest daughter very much. She basically grew up in his presence, and her temperament is also arrogant. He usually ignores us, his illegitimate children, but he also doesn't make things difficult for us. That's about it, nothing else."
Rong Fei nodded. This didn't reveal anything. Who doesn't know that Wu An Hou dotes on Princess Funing? But Rong Fei still said with a smile: "Mother knows!"
While others in the palace might have been willing to speculate, the Empress had directly questioned the Emperor upon his arrival. The Empress and the Emperor were a young couple, and her mother's family was in decline. She only had one child, the frail Princess Fushou. She had no desire to get involved in the harem's chaos. Therefore, the Emperor held her in high esteem.
"Why does Your Majesty suddenly value the daughter of Marquis Wu'an so much?" The Queen didn't believe it was because of Marquis Wu'an. If it was really because of Marquis Wu'an, Zhao Lingmeng would not have married down in the first place.
The emperor was stunned for a moment, but he decided to reveal something to the queen in a subtle way. After all, Fu Ning would still need the queen's protection most of the time when she entered the palace, and he would be unable to do anything in front of her.
"A new weapon has been released recently, designed by Funing. Queen, you must keep it a secret. When Funing enters the palace, you must protect her. Generally speaking, she is now working for me, so she cannot be left behind in the palace. And Queen, you must remember to keep it a secret. You cannot even tell Fushou. Currently, Funing's identity is only known to me, you, and Marquis Wu'an. You know the seriousness of this matter, right?"
When the Empress heard the Emperor say this, she regretted asking. She vaguely knew that the new weapon was said to be dozens of times more powerful than the previous one and was a formidable weapon for attacking walls. The fact that it was designed by Funing showed just how important she was. But now that she knew everything, she could only bow respectfully. "I know the importance of this, Your Majesty. Don't worry."
The Emperor patted the Empress's hand upon seeing this. He was still very confident in her. But the Empress was thinking that she could ask Fushou to take care of Princess Funing more in the future. If they could develop some feelings, Fushou would not be so lonely in the future.
The Queen felt that Princess Funing was so powerful and would not take advantage of Fushou, so she was quite relieved.
Those who served in the same court as Wu'an Hou were so envious that they gnashed their teeth. They were all working for the emperor, so why did Wu'an Hou get so many times more benefits than them? In their opinion, the emperor gave Wu'an Hou whatever he wanted. If Wu'an Hou was not a man, the censor would have written to him.
The Marquis of Wu'an, who was envied by those people, was also cursing in his mansion at this time. As soon as he heard the news, he went to the Marquis's wife's backyard.
Seeing Marquis Wu'an rushing in, his wife immediately asked, "What happened? Why are you rushing in so hastily? Is the sky falling?"
Marquis Wu'an ignored his wife's question and directly ordered: "Hurry up and pack up, and let's go to Meng'er's mansion to take a look."
"What's wrong with Meng'er? Why are you so anxious? Why are you still packing? Just go!" Seeing her husband so anxious, the wife of the Marquis of Wu'an thought something serious had happened to her daughter. She was so worried that she had no mood to pack. While asking, she took the lead and walked towards where the carriage was parked.
Wu Anhou immediately followed his wife, and the two of them hurried out. After they were both seated in the carriage, Wu Anhou's wife spoke anxiously, "Tell me quickly! What happened to Meng'er? I need to be mentally prepared."
Marquis Wu'an looked at his wife's anxious expression and touched his nose embarrassedly. "It's not a big deal. The emperor just issued an imperial decree for Meng'er to divorce her husband. He also allowed her to open the clan sacrifices and take in a son-in-law or not marry."
After hearing this, the wife of Marquis Wu'an collapsed straight down, and she even reached out and hit Marquis Wu'an a few times, "You old man, you don't even know how to explain things clearly. I thought it was a big deal! Just divorce me, and you can even open an ancestral temple to worship me. This is a great thing."
After muttering, the wife of the Marquis of Wu'an relaxed on the carriage's headrest, looking relaxed. When the other people in the Marquis of Wu'an's mansion heard the news and rushed to her courtyard to inquire about what had happened, they were told that she and the Marquis of Wu'an had gone to the Funing County Princess's residence. They could only return to their respective courtyards to wait for news.
As Zhao Lingyun and her maid were on their way back to the courtyard, her maid Ruhuan whispered, "The Marquis is really partial!"
This time, Zhao Lingyun only scolded softly, "Ruhuan." Seeing this, Ruhuan said nothing more and made a gesture to keep quiet.
Seeing this, Zhao Lingyun said nothing more, which showed that she was also feeling aggrieved. She also felt that this time her father had asked the emperor for help. She was still her father's daughter, so how could she remain calm?
Zhao Lingmeng, meanwhile, was already enjoying a snack with the two little ones in Yixinyuan. She felt vaguely that she'd overlooked something. But after a moment's thought, she couldn't recall what she'd done, so she continued to fight with the two little ones for the snack. Zhao Lingmeng felt that snacks tasted better when snatched from them. She had no intention of bullying the children.
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