Chapter 8

"Young Master Xue, would it be beneath you to be my concubine?"

"Young Master Xue, is it too much of a disservice for you to be my concubine?" Jiang He sneered, lifting Xue Lingyu's chin with her hand and scrutinizing every part of his face with a critical gaze, as if she were assessing his value as a commodity.

If he were truly a commodity to be appraised, that would be one thing. However, Xue Jiazi carries the reputation of the prestigious Xue family. If he were to become a concubine for a merchant family, the family's century-old reputation would be ruined in his hands. If his mother found out, she would surely be furious, given her temperament.

Xue Lingyu knew that Jiang He was determined to make him her concubine. She was not an easy person to talk to to begin with, and she had a bad reputation in the capital. She had a bad temper and had only carefully concealed her despicable traits because she liked him.

Xue Lingyu had nowhere to go, and his mother was suffering in prison. His delicate hands were clenched so tightly that red marks appeared, and his lips were bitten until they bled. Tears welled up in his eyes, but he stubbornly held on. He let out a soft sigh, sniffed, and reached out to undo his cloak.

The cloak slowly fell to the ground. The clothes he wore underneath were not thick, and the wind in the courtyard made him shiver.

He gritted his teeth and began to unbuckle his belt right under Jiang He's eyes.

"Miss Jiang... I have wronged you in the past, causing you to lose face. Today... I beg you to save my mother." Tears streamed down his cheeks onto his snow-white neck. He looked both frail and pitiful.

Jiang He reached out to touch his tears as if possessed, but her fingertips trembled, and she withdrew her hand as if she suddenly remembered something.

She looked down at Xue Lingyu, watching his humble appearance before her, but felt no pleasure whatsoever.

If she wanted him, she had the chance to spend the whole night in the study that day, but she didn't.

Perhaps in Xue Lingyu's eyes, she was a thorough businesswoman, and bartering was the nature of a businessman.

Jiang He ignored him and turned to walk past him, but Xue Lingyu hurriedly tried to stop her.

She paused, her voice cold and hard: "Xue Lingyu, don't let me see you again."

Xue Lingyu lowered her eyes and reached out her hand, her eyes filled with loneliness.

Watching Jiang He's departing figure, he suddenly said defiantly, "Then I'll go and beg someone else, Jiang He, then I'll go and beg someone else."

Xue Lingyu repeated it several times, but Jiang He showed no sign of stopping. The gate of the house opened and closed again, leaving him alone in the huge mansion.

Yuange had only been guarding the carriage for a short while when she saw Jiang He emerge from Jinghua Street. However, Jiang He looked unwell and walked with a brisk pace. After getting into the carriage, she remained silent.

They remained silent all the way until the gate plaque of the Jiang residence was clearly visible. With only a few steps left to go home, the guards finally brought news, and only then did Yuange dare to speak to Jiang He.

"Miss, as you instructed, the guards reported that the young master went straight back to the Xue residence after leaving and did not go anywhere else."

"I see."

With just four words, Jiang He in the carriage finally loosened her grip on the teacup that she had almost crushed.

Xue Lingyu just said he was going to find someone else; it seems he really doesn't have the guts.

She won't be a mistress, nor will she be a concubine. Does she expect him to offer her the position of the principal wife to her and beg him to marry her again, just like he did three years ago?

That's wishful thinking.

Jiang He's strange behavior has been going on for more than a day or two, and Yuan Ge is also getting anxious. She was rescued by Jiang He in Wudu City three years ago and has been following her ever since. Although she is not completely ignorant of what happened before, she knows very little about it.

However, after returning to the capital, she heard from others that her mistress seemed to have a past with the eldest son of the Xue family. Apparently, her marriage proposal was rejected, and she lost face, which is why she left.

This was different from what she had seen with her own eyes.

Yuan Ge couldn't help but ask Ji Xue, "Ji Xue, have you ever met the legendary, dashing young master Xue?"

Ji Xue shook his head, rolled his eyes a few times, and then nodded.

“I forgot that you only came to serve Miss when you were in Fog City. But your name... I think Miss still misses that young master of the Xue family. Otherwise, why would she be unwilling to marry or take concubines, and instead give you this new name?”

Yuan Ge nodded whenever she said something. His hands were full of freshly baked pastries, which Jiang He had specially given him. Although he was already a teenager, he was still a child at heart. Yuan Ge was somewhat envious of Ji Xue's carefree nature.

Seeing Xue wolfing down his food, she laughed and said, "Miss is raising you like a son."

Footsteps suddenly came from behind her. Yuan Ge turned around and saw who it was. She immediately stopped smiling and bowed respectfully, "Greetings, my lord."

Ji Xue stuffed all the pastries into her mouth at once, and bowed her head in greeting along with Yuan Ge.

Jiang's father was not a harsh master to his servants. Before Jiang He returned to the mansion, he had told him that he had taken in a male guard with mental disabilities. Now that he saw him, he was quite good-looking.

However, his attention remained focused on the first few sentences.

Yuange didn't know how much Jiang's father had overheard, but gossiping about their master in private was never a pleasant thing.

Father Jiang walked past Yuan Ge and stood in front of Ji Xue, smiling as he looked at him. "You're Ji Xue? Can you write your own name?"

When Jiang He first found him, she gave him this name and even taught him to write it herself. Although Xue could not recognize all the characters and could not hold a pen steadily, these two characters were engraved in his mind.

Knowing that the still charming man before him was the young lady's father, Ji Xue dared not act rashly and obediently nodded.

"Can you write it down for me to see?" Father Jiang's voice was very gentle.

Upon hearing the commotion, the servants beside him fetched a brush, ink, paper, and inkstone, placing them on a stone table not far away. Father Jiang then personally handed the brush to Ji Xue.

Ji Xue held the pen and, relying on his body's instinct, wrote his name crookedly on the paper.

When Jiang's father took a look, it was indeed the character "Xue".

Remember Xue, remember Xue, it's the name Jiang He gave him in Wudu City, clearly she still can't forget that young master of the Xue family.

Father Jiang noted this down without revealing his thoughts, and then led his men back to his own courtyard.

Originally, I wanted to talk to Jiang He about the engagement, but now that I know the source, I can start solving the problem from the source.

Yuan Ge held her breath the whole time until Jiang's father left, at which point she finally breathed a sigh of relief.

She didn't know why her lord had written her name down; she felt something was off.

Ji Xue obviously didn't know either. He took out another pastry from his pocket and ate it with relish, clearly showing his carefree attitude.

Jiang He slept very restlessly that night, and only stopped after summoning several trusted confidants and giving them instructions.

The next morning, an imperial edict summoning her to the palace to meet the emperor reached the Jiang family.

"Although I don't know why His Majesty summoned you, your brother is deeply favored by the Emperor. With him in the palace, you will certainly be safe. Just pay attention to the etiquette before the Emperor." Father Jiang instructed earnestly, "This is your first audience with the Emperor since you returned, so you must take it to heart."

“I know, Father,” Jiang He reassured her father.

Under her father's worried gaze, Jiang He boarded the carriage that had come from the palace.

The eunuch who delivered the imperial decree was very respectful to her. Consort Jiang was at the height of her power in the palace and was deeply favored by the emperor. If she were not frail, she would probably have princes and princesses by her side long ago.

His Majesty is nearly thirty years old and has only one son. There is no princess who can inherit the throne for the time being. The concubines in the harem were all appointed when he first ascended the throne. In all these years, only the eldest son of the Jiang family has entered the palace and been appointed.

In the harem, no one could rival this young and beautiful eldest son of the Jiang family; he was the apple of His Majesty's eye.

Leading them to the Imperial Study, Jiang He attempted to kneel upon seeing the Emperor, saying, "This humble subject greets Your Majesty, long live the Emperor!"

The Emperor smiled and ordered the eunuch to help her up. "Minister Jiang, you may rise. You are Wan Yi's younger sister. The reason I summoned you today is because Wan Yi misses you. This is a family matter, so there is no need for you to kneel before me."

"Thank you, Your Majesty."

"I remember that some time ago, Imperial Censor Feng accused you of fighting in the capital and injuring her beloved daughter. She is still in the Jingzhao prison." The Emperor said casually, his expression gentle.

After a moment's hesitation, Jiang He prepared to speak: "Your Majesty, regarding this matter..."

The Emperor waved his hand: "I know you are innocent in this matter. It was just a minor squabble between young people. Imperial Censor Feng was too serious about it. I reprimanded her afterward. You don't need to take it to heart."

Since the Emperor has said so, this matter is now completely over. Jiang He smiled and said, "Thank you, Your Majesty."

A eunuch reported: "Your Majesty, the Fifth Prince requests an audience."

The Emperor first looked at Jiang He, concealing some of his deliberate intentions, but his purpose was obvious. "You probably haven't met the Fifth Prince yet. He is my younger brother, and he is sixteen years old this year, which is the age for marriage. If you, Minister Jiang, have any suitable candidates for a husband, you may recommend them to me."

Jiang He cupped his hands and said modestly, "Your Majesty, I am but a commoner, and the people around me are all merchants. If the Fifth Prince were to marry a merchant, it would be a disgrace to his noble birth and would also lower his status. Besides, my own marriage is not yet settled."

The emperor nodded at her and said helplessly, "You are right. It's getting late. You should go to Wanyi's place. He's been thinking about you these past few days, so I had no choice but to invite you here."

"Yes." Jiang He stepped back.

Upon entering the palace, before she even had a chance to drink some water to moisten her throat, Jiang Wanyi pulled Jiang He aside and asked, "Did you meet the Fifth Prince in the Imperial Study? Did you see what he looks like?"

Jiang He slowly finished her water before replying, "I just met her, and she certainly exudes an air of nobility. She's clearly a member of the royal family."

"Your father must have already told you to settle your marriage soon, otherwise His Majesty might really bestow a marriage upon you if he can't find anyone else," Jiang Wanyi sighed and tapped Jiang He's forehead.

“With my brother here, His Majesty probably wouldn’t dare,” Jiang He said lightly.

Jiang Wanyi looked at her with doting eyes, but then, remembering the troubles of the past few days, her mood couldn't help but sink down again.

Jiang He knew that her brother must have something to say about summoning her to the palace by the Emperor, so she asked, "Brother, has something happened in the palace again?"

Jiang Wanyi frowned. "We just received news that Imperial Physician Xue is probably going to become a living dead. The imperial physician said that it is almost impossible for him to wake up. His Majesty has also issued an edict to deal with the Xue family."

"The women were exiled, and the men were enslaved and sent to the palace as maids."

A note from the author:

I'd love to ask you all to add this to your favorites! Also, there are several other female-centric or GB novels available for pre-order in my column; feel free to add them to your favorites if you're interested!

Pre-order: [Curing the Infertile Husband (Female-Dominated World)]

Aman could never have imagined that because of a casual remark about having many children, he would be forced to marry the eldest princess of the Great Qi Kingdom by imperial decree.

The eldest princess had a bad reputation; it was rumored that she kept countless beautiful husbands and concubines in her residence, and that she even demanded that her future husband must have two children within three years.

Aman backed down.

He made the bravest decision of his life—to elope.

But before he could get very far, he was captured and brought back by a beautiful woman dressed in silver armor.

The Wei emperor treated this woman with utmost deference, and all the civil and military officials in the court dared not utter a sound.

Aman cast a questioning look at him.

A look of amazement flashed in Liang Yuan's eyes as he smiled at him: "I can't wait any longer, I've come to personally welcome the future emperor."

Princess Liang Yuan of the Great Qi Dynasty was not only extravagant and arrogant, but also an invincible war god of the Great Qi.

Her arrival further solidified her reputation for being lustful and impatient.

Aman's life in the Wei Palace was not easy. He came from a humble background and was not favored, so he was always the one who was ignored.

Moreover, he has been physically weak since childhood and may not be able to have children.

After marrying the princess, he repeatedly found excuses to refuse to consummate the marriage, fearing that the affair would be exposed.

But this isn't a solution either. So many men like Liang Yuan, and apart from his face, he doesn't have anything particularly outstanding about him.

Otherwise, he could take in a few beautiful concubines to quell her anger, but he already couldn't stand just watching Liang Yuan talk to other men.

Finally reaching the edge of restraint, Liang Yuan, who had been a vegetarian for so many years, narrowed his eyes, looked at Aman who was avoiding his gaze, and asked, "Do you not believe in me, or do you doubt my abilities?"

"I..." Before Aman could explain, she was forced into a sexual encounter.

Later, the Princess's family fulfilled their wish of having two children in three years. The legitimate heir, Prince Wei Heman of the Wei Kingdom, was deeply favored by the Princess and received the envious glances of countless people.

◎Latest Comments:

[Want to see the heroine chase after her husband and suffer at the hands of the female lead? No motivation to write? Have a bottle of nutrient solution! No inspiration for your writing? Have a bottle of nutrient solution! Nutrient solution—your deepest love for the author~]

[So funny... When your family was imprisoned for selling smuggled salt, didn't you feel ashamed? Becoming a concubine ruins a century of honor? If you're so shameless, why are you so shameless when you run to the mistress's house in the middle of the night to offer yourself to her? ...Do you think you're worth a lot of money for one night?]

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I love this kind of slightly angsty yet incredibly compelling female and male lead storyline, hahaha!

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[I suddenly have a question: Where did the author place the virginity mark? The synopsis says it's on the forehead, but the previous chapter said it's on the arm, so I'm a little curious, haha.]

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