Chapter 629 - Sibling Confrontation
CONTENT WARNING: Physical abuse
You can be the Crown Prince Consort of whoever you’d like, just not Prince Yi. Each word slammed into Ji Muqing with an almost audible thud. Her eyes widened and she froze in shock. “Why?”
Just why? On what basis was this decided? Once she became Prince Yi’s Consort, she would become Mother of the Country; accordingly, the Ji family would be renowned and they would gain both fame and fortune. Just what was that obstinate fellow Ji Li thinking?
Ji Li snorted and wrenched his wrist out of Ji Huan’s grasp as he warned yet again, “In short, you’re not allowed to do it.” His attitude was extremely unyielding, allowing no room for negotiation.
Ji Muqing’s eyes turned red. “You don’t get to make the decision on my marriage. I only need Imperial Concubine Xiao to agree and the Emperor to issue an edict, and I would be Prince Yi’s Consort. Even Father would not be able to stop it unless you want our whole family to be killed for defying an imperial edict.”
“You…”
“Anyways, I’ve decided that I want the position of Prince Yi’s Consort.”
“Do you know what exactly you are saying?”
“Of course I do! Anyway, there’s no use trying to obstruct it. If Father were here today, he definitely would not try to obstruct me like you two!”
That’s right! Who was Ji Shuhan? The most snobbish person in a thousand years! He wouldn’t hesitate to be unscrupulous in order to achieve his goals; if his clan could just produce an Empress, he would still be able to walk with his head held high even if he were banished into the Underworld.
Ji Li’s eyes seemed to turn into blazing balls of fire that shot savagely towards Ji Muqing, and the veins in his forehead all popped out in his fury, “Ji Muqing, you better listen carefully. I don’t care even if Father were here today - you’d better stay in the mansion obediently and not go anywhere or I’ll immediately have someone send you back to Jinjiang.”
“You dare!” The two siblings confronted each other head-on.
The siblings truly were cut from the same mold; their tempers were exactly as stubborn as the other, neither willing to give way.
Looking at them from the side, Ji Huan felt slightly awkward, but in this matter, he was entirely on Ji Li’s side. He hurried forward to try and mediate between them. “Alright, both of you, stop arguing.” He turned to Ji Muqing, “Big Brother is just doing this for your own good.”
Hah! Ji Muqing scoffed. “For my own good? If you really cared for me, you wouldn’t prevent me from marrying Prince Yi,” she spat out before she ran off.
Behind her, Ji Li was so angry his hands were clenched into tight fists. Logically speaking, If Ji Muqing were to marry Jing Yi and become Empress, it was a cause for celebration and an honor for the Ji family that many people would envy.
However… Ji Li thought otherwise. His face was flushed with fury that had yet to dissipate.
Ji Heng, who had taken on the role of ‘good cop’, came up to him. “Big brother, don’t be angry anymore.”
How could he not be angry? “Nobody knows better than we do just what kind of person Jing Yi is. We were originally of the First Prince’s faction; now that he is dead, Jing Yi clearly wants to gain our support in his bid for the throne by marrying Muqing. However, the minute he is in power, the two of us would be worth less than a stalk of mustard and casually discarded.”
His position as the Secretary in the Ministry of War truly wasn’t just for show. He thought more deeply and saw more clearly than most.
Although Ji Huan was mostly an uncouth fellow, he wasn’t stupid either. He understood his older brother’s concerns. “Big brother, Muqing would not understand all of what you had just said. Moreover, now that Concubine Xiao has mentioned it, we can do nothing but follow orders once the Emperor agrees. Otherwise, would you really put the lives of our whole family at risk? Besides, the Emperor has yet to send the edict to confer marriage, so nothing has been decided.”
“It’ll be too late if we wait for the Emperor to issue the marriage edict. No, I must make a trip to the palace right now.”
Ji Li was blocked by Ji Huan just as he was about to take a step. “Big Brother, you frequently advise me to not be too impulsive, but now you’re having difficulty controlling yourself. What if the Emperor doesn’t agree to the marriage to begin with? If you went to see him now, you would create trouble instead.”
Ji Huan’s words immediately made Ji Li sober up. He suppressed his impulsive nature and carefully thought about it again. “You’re right. I really shouldn’t go see the Emperor at this time.”
“Just wait patiently, at ease.” Ji Huan analysed, “Actually, what we envisioned was just the worst case scenario. Both of us know what kind of person Prince Yi is; but since we know, we naturally won’t fall for his petty tricks.”
“You’re absolutely right, but we should still make preparations. On no account should we ever be relegated to merely a chess piece in his hands.” Ji Li’s heart felt as if it weighed a ton. It had been a very long time since he had felt so restless and apprehensive. He heaved a long sigh and turned his gaze outwards with a grave expression.
…
On the other side, Ji Muqing had run back to her own courtyard, crying the entire way. The minute she got back, she started smashing things left and right. Practically everything breakable in the room was taken up and shattered on the ground.
This wasn’t the first time she had done this; her maid Cailan was already used to it. She merely stood silently at the side, neither making any noise nor stepping forward to avoid creating unnecessary trouble for herself.
The destruction only ended when Ji Muqing had grown tired of smashing things. “Cailan!” She yelled.
“Your servant is here.” Cailan stepped forward, trembling, her face full of fear.
“Tell me, were you a blabbermouth and secretly said something to my brothers?”
“Huh? Your servant didn’t do it.”
“You still dare to say you didn’t? If it wasn’t you who said some nonsense to them, why would Big Brother suddenly treat me like this?”
“Your… servant doesn’t know.”
What could she know? How could she have known what happened during the Crown Prince Consort Selection? If she had known, her tongue would have long been cut off and she wouldn’t be alive to this day!
However, Ji Muqing is an extremely paranoid person. She always felt that someone was out to harm herself. After being lectured by Ji Li, she naturally vented all her anger on her maid. She seized a handful of Cailan’s hair, “You damned brat, you must have said some nonsense in front of Big Brother. See how I’ll discipline you today!”
Smack! A slap landed on Cailan’s face. It immediately bloomed into a red handprint.
“Who allowed you to talk nonsense?” Smack! That was another slap. Cailan didn’t dare to dodge either, and merely stood there and let Ji Muqing hit her as she pleased.
A dozen slaps later, her face was red and swollen while the corner of her lips had split and was bleeding. Cailan kneeled on the floor sobbing uncontrollably.
Even if the other maids in the courtyard saw and heard what was happening, none of them dared to step forward to dissuade her. All of them pretended that they were deaf and blind, hoping to avoid being the next target.
“Scram!” Ji Muqing kicked her in her chest.
Cailan lay half-sprawled on the ground, sobbing as she crawled away.
“Damned brat. If you dare to blabber nonsense again, I’ll just cut your tongue immediately! See if you dare to make trouble again.” Ji Muqing cradled her hand that felt slightly numb after slapping Cailan, glaring fiercely as she looked at her crawling out.
However, she still wasn’t done venting her anger. So she started smashing things in her room again. Merely the sound of shattering objects was enough to send a chill down one’s spine. Naturally, no one dared to approach that room again.