Chapter 815 The Trade Between Second Branch and Third Branch
“Second Sister, what’s the matter?” Shao Wanru looked at Shao Jie’er with her calm eyes. Yujie came over to pull Shao Jie’er’s sleeves and said anxiously, “Second Miss, what happened? Did you hit something? Please stand up first and talk to our Miss nicely.”
She was so strong that Shao Jie’er had to stand up. Seeing that things were not going well, the servant girl beside Shao Jie’er also helped Shao Jie’er.
Shao Jie’er couldn’t kneel anymore since she stood up. She only covered her face with a handkerchief and just cried.
There was a trace of deepness flashing through Shao Wanru’s eyes.
“Second Sister, what do you mean? Did you especially ask me to come here just to see you cry?” At this time, she was also a little angry. Shao Jie’er helped Shao Yanru plot against her. In the past, Shao Jie’er did not have good intentions whenever she saw her. At this time, Shao Wanru did not expect that Shao Jie’er would pretend to be bullied and even kneel down to her just now.
If others saw this, they would think that he had done something to this girl.
“Fifth Sister, please help me, please help me. I can’t find anyone else except you!” Shao Jie’er cried, wiping her tears with a handkerchief while grieving.
“Second Sister, if you can’t explain it, then I’ll leave first. We can talk about it after you think it over!” Shao Wanru’s face darkened and she was about to leave.
“Fifth Sister, father is going to give my fiance to Third Sister,” Shao Jie’er cried and said.
Shao Wanru paused for a moment. She had just returned to Duke Xing’s Mansion and really didn’t understand what Shao Jie’er meant at the moment.
Seeing Shao Wanru stop walking, Shao Jie’er said again, “Fifth Sister, that man is my betrothed. Even if Third Sister’s face is ruined, it’s still my marriage. Why should I give him to Third Sister!?”
“Third Sister wants your fiance? Commandery Prince Qing’s?” Shao Wanru asked in surprise, almost unable to believe those words, “Did Second Uncle tell you about it?”
“No, he didn’t tell me. I overheard it secretly. I heard my father and Third Uncle say that my Third Sister’s face is disfigured. So it will be hard for her in the future. They say that I’m fine at least, and there will be a good marriage for me in the future. But how can there be a good marriage for me? I… I’m 17 years old, and I’m a concubine’s daughter…”
Shao Jie’er complained tearfully.
Shao Wanru’s eyes darkened and blinked silently. Her long eyelashes covered the suspicion in them. Would her Second Uncle really give his daughter’s fiance to her Third Uncle?
Speaking of her Third Uncle, Shao Wanru had only seen him once or twice. This Third Uncle was very low-key and not very promising. He held a nominal post in the government office and had a lot of contact with his evil companions. Old Madam did not like him very much, but he was her biological son after all, so she could not ignore him.
It was also because he didn’t work hard. Hence, the third branch declined in the mansion. She didn’t expect that this man would speak about this marriage in front of her second uncle.
“Did Third Uncle ask for it or did Second Uncle take the initiative to mention it?” Despite her doubts, she asked calmly.
“Third Uncle came to ask for it. I… I happened to be picking flowers behind my father’s study. I heard that Third Uncle came to ask for this marriage. He said… said that Third Sister’s face got ruined because she entered the palace. He said for the sake of the mansion, Third Sister should get married to my fiance!”
Shao Jie’er wiped her tears hard.
“Is her face really ruined?” Shao Wanru frowned slightly and asked.
“Yes, I heard that she’s not in good condition. Although she has recovered now, I’m afraid that there will be scars on her face. Several imperial physicians have come to the palace, and all of them said that the poison is very toxic… and her face will remain damaged in the future,” Shao Jie’er said with anger and hatred. She now wished that Shao Caihuan would die in the palace.
A dead person would not take away her fiance.
“Did Second Uncle and Third Uncle say anything else?” Shao Wanru said. She had no sympathy for Shao Caihuan at all. If she had not been smart at that time, she would have been the one that got poisoned.
Although Shao Caihuan didn’t do it directly, she knew it but she pretended that she knew nothing about it and secretly set up a trap for Shao Wanru. She deserved what happened to her and she couldn’t blame others.
The poison was so toxic that Shao Caihuan had no chance to recover, and she even intended to steal Shao Jie’er’s fiance. It could be said that Shao Jie’er’s face had been disfigured extremely.
Since she returned to the mansion, she had been busy here and had not seen Shao Caihuan to know how her face was.
“I can’t hear the rest clearly. They seemed to have talked about something else. I think that my father didn’t agree at first, but later, they talked so softly that I didn’t dare to get too close to them. I only heard something about decades ago and about their big brother… I want to go over there, but I saw my father’s two guards turn around so I ran away in a hurry.”
Shao Jie’er said.
Shao Wanru’s heart bumped. She was now particularly concerned about what had happened more than ten years ago. When thinking about it, she wondered if it was not only her Second Uncle but also her Third Uncle who had intervened in the matter of her father.
Or it could be said that her Second Uncle directly intervened in it, and her Third Uncle merely had knowledge of it. Just like what happened in the palace that day, Shao Yanru should have intervened directly, and Shao Caihuan stood there and watched and this woman even took advantage of the opportunity to help them at the right time? A surge of anger burst out in her heart, and she clenched the handkerchief in her hand tightly. She almost couldn’t help wanting to ask these people how they could be so evil!
Therefore, the so-called kinship was the tool of their calculation. This time, they used what they knew to threaten the other in exchange for their daughter’s marriage. He was a kind and righteous father, but not a good brother.
She bit the corner of her mouth hard, and her eyes were almost burning with flames. She wanted to burn down the entire Duke Xing’s Mansion. This was really the dirtiest place she had ever seen.
“Miss, Miss!” Seeing Shao Wanru’s fierce and bloodthirsty eyes, Yujie was shocked and hurriedly called out.
Shao Jie’er was also shocked. She took a step back and looked at Shao Wanru blankly. At this time, Shao Wanru looked overwhelmed with hatred, as if she was going to devour people.
“Fifth… Fifth Sister…” Shao Jie’er was so scared that she couldn’t even cry out.
Shao Wanru took a deep breath to suppress the smell of blood in her heart. The red faded from Shao Wanru’s eyes and she seemed sane again. “Second Sister, you also think that this marriage is not good?”
Chu Qing had been silent for so long because he didn’t want Shao Jie’er to dwell in the mansion, and it was impossible for him to make Shao Jie’er his legal wife.
“I know, I know… but that’s my marriage…” Shao Jie’er cried out. She had thought about it a lot recently and did not dare to think about the position of someone’s legal wife, but at least she thought she should be a concubine. Since she was from Duke Xing’s Mansion, Commandery Prince Qing would accept her.
Especially when she thought that this marriage was about to be canceled, she felt more and more strongly that this was a good marriage. If she lost this marriage, who would make a good marriage for her? Madam of Duke Xing was locked up in the Yuhui Nunnery and Old Madam didn’t care about her.
No matter how bad Commandery Prince Qing was, he was still a member of the royal family. He had the royal blood in his veins. If she married him and got pregnant, her future would still be promising.
But now, Shao Caihuan had seized this opportunity. How could she not hate this woman?
“Second Sister, are you willing to be a concubine?” Shao Wanru looked at her and knew that she understood what she meant, so she didn’t hide it and asked directly.
“I’m willing to be a concubine of Commandery Prince Qing!” Shao Jie’er cried again with a grievance.
“Has Second Uncle told Second Sister about it?” Shao Wanru asked again. It seemed that these two had not discussed it.
“No. I just heard it not long ago!” Shao Jie’er shook her head hard.
“When did you hear that?”
“Yesterday. I heard it yesterday. Fifth Sister, go and tell father that it’s good for you if I marry Commandery Prince Qing’s. If you say so, father will definitely listen to you,” Shao Jie’er said in a daze and her words were a little incoherent.
She didn’t want to deal with Old Madam, and she didn’t want to talk to Third Madam either. She and her aunt had been discussing for the whole night, but Shao Wanru was the only one who seemed to be reliable. Now Shao Wanru’s marriage brought honor to the whole Duke Xing’s Mansion. Her words must weigh heavier than others’ now.
Shao Jie’er had to ask her father to change his mind before the matter was officially settled! This was also the reason why she deliberately came to see Shao Wanru today.
“Fifth Sister, help me. I will definitely repay you in the future!” Shao Jie’er was willing to do anything Shao Wanru said at this time, only hoping that Shao Wanru could help her.
“I heard that Second Sister is going to accompany me to meet Second Aunt?” Shao Wanru changed the topic, raised the corners of her mouth slightly, and said unhurriedly.
“There is such a thing. Old Madam asked me to accompany you to the Yuhui Nunnery to look for Madam and ask for the dowry left by Infanta Qinghua.”
Shao Jie’er nodded. Thinking of this, she couldn’t help feeling jealous. As a Miss who had been raised in Duke Xing’s Mansion for more than ten years, she couldn’t compare with a Miss who had been wandering outside. She was brought up by the servants who taught her the courtesies of the nobles and was the most well-behaved girl. Why didn’t such a good thing happen to her?
With the Empress Dowager’s decree, she would also rise to power even if she was just the daughter of a concubine?
Although Prince Chen was a little sick and weak, his future was still bright. She wished if only he had chosen her!
“Old Madam said that? When did she say that?” Shao Wanru asked again.
“Just now. Before you went over, I heard from Old Madam that someone asked you to come over, so I waited here. I saw someone leading you here with my elder brother next to you, so I didn’t come out to stop you. I stayed here to wait for you to come back!” Shao Jie’er explained. She now still needed Shao Wanru’s help, so she told the truth.
“In addition to this, did Old Madam tell you anything else?” Shao Wanru said after thinking for a while. If that was the case, it seemed that she should not have specially summoned Shao Jie’er. In the past, when Shao Jie’er was needed, Madam of Duke Xing or Old Madam, or Shao Yanru would not especially tell Shao Jie’er the reason why she was summoned.
Then why did Old Madam tell her the reason this time?
Shao Jie’er blinked her eyes and couldn’t remember anything for a moment. After a long while, she said hesitantly, “She said that some men will escort us. Is that worth mentioning?”