“I want the engagement nullified. This wasn’t my idea. Big Sister talked me into it. She couldn’t take it when I backed out of her plan at the last minute, so she had Nanny Fang attack me with a pair of scissors! Is she trying to force me to marry him no matter what?” Qin Wanru asked. She pushed Qin Yuru’s hang away and ran into Qing Yue’s arms where she could hide her cold eyes.
Hearing that, all the people watching felt the blood drain from their faces. Qin Wanru was still at the age where she spoke her thoughts openly, so it felt reasonable for her to say something so bold. They all turned to look at Qin Yuru.
Qin Yuru stepped back, face falling.
“W-what did you say, Second Sister?” Qin Yuru blurted, pointing at her sister with a trembling hand. She felt her panic rising.
“What are you saying, Wanru? You forced your sister to let you marry him. How can you say she forced you into it? As for the injury, it’s just an accident! You never change. You always blame your sister when something goes wrong,” scolded Madam Di. She was sitting beside Old Grandma Qin, who was frowning at her.
Madam Di was not Qin Wanru’s real mother. Qin Wanru was merely her legal daughter for protection, though the original Qin Wanru hadn’t known that at age eleven.
“I… why would I be unwilling to marry Brother Tianyu?” asked Qin Yuru. She twisted the handkerchief around her fingers, trying to look like a heartbroken victim. Her eyes were red and Qi Tianyu felt like his heart would break.
Qi Tianyu would never believe what Qin Wanru had to say. He and Qin Yuru had always gotten along well. Growing up, they’d known they would marry, so Qin Yuru had always treated him with kindness. They had secretly kept in touch for years, talking and exchanging gifts.
“Didn’t Grandma Di send men to ask for Big Sister’s hand in marriage to Duke Yong’s son ten days ago? Mother, did you reject the proposal then?” Qin Wanru spoke each word carefully, holding tight onto Qing Yue’s hand. There was a slightly mocking curl to her lip.
The crowd was stunned again.
Even Grandma Qin hadn’t heard about Duke Yong’s offer. Her brows knitted and her chest tightened.
Qi Tianyu was not a dull young man. He was stunned for a moment, then recovered, looking at Qin Wanru sharply.
“Is that true?”
He’d thought it sounded unbelievable. How could Qin Yuru not want to marry him? They’d met just last night, and she’d cried in his arms. She’d told him that she’d wanted to marry him, but Qin Wanru had refused to back down. Their grandmother always played favorites with Qin Wanru, and Qin Yuru’s pleas had been ignored.
She’d claimed that she’d even jumped into the river, hoping to die, but had been pulled back to shore. After that, she’d fallen ill and been kept under close watch. She’d had to distract the maid watching her and sneak out to see him.
Her words had been so sincere and earnest, but she’d never mentioned a proposal from the capital city. That made Qin Yuru’s betrayal a lot more believable. Qi Tianyu was, after all, a scholar.
“I… I haven’t heard of anything of the sort!” Qin Yuru cried. She was pale, still backing away, but she reacted quickly. She lowered her head and wiped her eyes with her handkerchief. “How would I know about that?”
Inside, she tried to figure out how Qin Wanru had known about the proposal. Who had leaked the information?
Still, she couldn’t deny it outright. After all, she really would be engaged to the son of Duke Yong.
“So it’s true?” asked Qi Tianyu, shooting a killer look at Qin Yuru. He clenched his fists.
“Big sister didn’t know? Even mother didn’t know? Mother, are you sure big sister won’t marry Cousin Yong?” Qin Wanru looked up, fixing her eyes on Madam Di.
How could Madam Di respond. It wasn’t as if she could keep the engagement a secret forever.
“I… I’m not aware of any letters from the capital. Where did you hear of such a thing? Or are you just trying to get Yuru in trouble again?”
Now everyone’s attention was on Qin Wanru. Madam Di was certain no one had access to the letter.
“Brother Qi, how could you still have doubts about me?” Qin Yuru asked. With tears in her eyes, she looked to Qi Tianyu imploringly, then turned to leave.
Qin Yuru and Madam Di made a convincing pair. Everything that had happened today seemed so unbelievable. First, Nanny Fang had stabbed Qin Yuru with scissors. Then she’d brought up the engagement to Di Yan. Madam Di’s defense and Qin Yuru’s heartfelt display had helped put people at ease, but she still worried about the letter hidden in her room. She had to check on it to be sure.
Seeing the love of his life distraught, Qi Tianyu’s anger faded, turning to guilt.
“Sister Yuru, I… I will definitely break this engagement. I will never marry just a spoiled and stubborn girl. She’s trying to hide that she’d in a secret relationship with Second Brother Qi.”
Before, this was the casual statement had made the world think Qin Wanru was no longer a virgin. It was another push that had brought her close to that horrible fate, being left vivisected at the gates of the capital, a scapegoat for someone else’s sin.
“Please be reminded, Master Qi,” Qin Wanru said coldly, “of your status as a respected scholar. What you say must be backed up with evidence. Do not pass your casual judgement as fact. You may have only seen what other people wanted you to.”
She looked so frail, about to fall, but her voice was confident and sharp.
As Qin Wanru scanned the crowd who followed Qi Tianyu here, her lips curled into a sinister smile. She knew Qi Tianyu had brought these men as witnesses to her humiliation. However, it seemed that these witnesses were not just his anymore.
"Follow me and I'll show you the evidence!"
The young girl scanned her eyes across the faces of the spectators until she faced Qi Tianyu. She smiled so spitefully. The hatred in her eyes was far too great for a child. It hurt the people around to see a girl so young so angry.
"What nonsense are you spouting now, Wanru?" roared Madam Di. She walked briskly towards Qin Wanru, intending to grab her.
"Will Grandma please ask Mother to step aside," said Qin Wanru as she stepped back to dodge Madam Di’s hand. She lifted her eyes to look at her grandmother expectantly. She was the only one here who could keep her mother at bay.
Old grandma looked at Qin Wanru, who was still struggling to stay upright, her gritted teeth, the bloodstain on her bandages.
It was a painful sight. She sighed and instructed a nearby maid to hold back Madam Di.
"Since the Qi's have falsely incriminated Wanru, you should at least give Wanru a chance to explain herself. I'm sure justice will prevail."
She tried to sound as equivocal as possible, but she’d reached out to protect Qin Wanru from Madam Di.
The Qin Mansion was relatively small, so it did not take long for Qin Wanru to lead the group to Qin Yuru's room. When she saw Qin Wanru about to let them through the door, Qin Yuru lost her nerve. Casting her other concerns aside, she walked up to Qin Wanru and put out her arms out to block her."What do you plan to do in my room, Second Sister?" said Qin Yuru and she glared fiercely at Qin Wanru, her face drained of color."Not much. I just want to look at the letters our cousin wrote you!" replied Qin Wanru calmly, staring back at Qin Yuru."Letters... what letter?" Qin Yuru was so terrified that she almost bit her tongue. She had no idea how Qin Wanru had found out about the letter.When Madam Di had first begun trying to set up the match with Duke Yong’s family, Qin Yuru had started corresponding with Di Yan. Their letters expressed their mutual commitment to make their relationship work. It was, in fact, Di Yan who had urged his mother to agree to their
Inside, Qin Yuru sat paralyzed on the floor, overcome by shock. She stared blankly at Qi Tianyu, who forced his way in by kicking down the door, shaking like a leaf. She looked so frail and pathetic.On any other day, Qi Tianyu would be pained to see Qin Yuru in such a state. At this moment, however, Qi Tianyu's eyes were filled with violence.He snatched the rosewood box from Qin Yuru's hand, opening it without hesitation. He pulled out the letter and a quick glance told him what Qin Wanru had said was true."Alright, the Qi family is not worthy of you. If we are not worthy, you could have just broken off the engagement amicably..." Qi Tianyu scoffed. He looked ready to slash the delicate Qin Yuru into a thousand pieces."Brother Tianyu, it's not what you think..." Qin Yuru said, panicked. She reached out her hand to touch his leg and began to weep.Consumed with rage, Qi Tianyu kicked Qin Yuru away. He thought of the years he’d spent dreaming of their
The engagement between the two families was broken. The eldest daughter of the Ningyuan army general did not guard her chastity. She had such a malicious heart that, pregnant with another man’s child, she devised an evil plan for her younger sister to take her place in marriage.The news snowballed as it spread.Within half a day's time, the entire city of Jiangzhou was talking about it. In a matter of hours, the eldest Miss Qin despised, universally agreed to be the most shameful girl they’d ever heard of. Some even weaved her story into a ballads. When the news reached Qin Huaiyong, he quickly sent men to suppress the rumor, but it was impossible to completely stop people from talking. The Qi family was secretly protecting and spreading the story. By now, the news had even spread far beyond Jiangzhou...The Ningyuan army general was furious. Qin Yuru wailed and cried and even tried to commit suicide. She had shaken the foundation of her entire household.
Chu Liuchen was the crown prince when the late emperor was still alive. He was only a few months old when his uncle usurped the throne and scraped his status as the crown prince. He became Prince Chen, half locked up under house arrest in the South Court in the palace. This was why he was also known as the Crown Prince of South Court.She remembered hearing about him in her previous life. Some said he was a handsome, distinguished gentleman. Other claimed he was a sly and bloodthirsty man. Either way, Qin Wanru didn’t see it as any of her business who he was. She’d only seen him once from far off.Back then, he was the high and mighty crown prince, looking down at her like she was some kind of lowly creature.Right now, on the other hand, she had no choice but to face up to this younger version of Prince Chen.She wanted to keep her distance from him as much as possible, but she couldn’t help but perk at the chance to be recognized by somebody so powerful.
By the time Qin Wanru regained consciousness, it was evening. An old woman bent over the lamp, holding scissors to cut the wick.This was her grandmother, the only member of her family who doted on her. The bandages on her arm had been rewrapped."Are you feeling better, Grandma?" she said, almost in a whisper. Old grandma looked up and saw that Qin Wanru had opened her eyes, her face brightened immediately and she got up to walk toward Wanru, and with a gentle voice, she said, “Zhuozhuo, you're finally awake. Quick, will someone prepare her dinner?"Qing Yue emerged from behind the screen and came up to Qin Wanru help her sit up on her bed and slipped a cushion behind her for support. Her injured arm seemed to have been re-bandaged and so she could not see any blood soaking through the gauze, and it was not hurting as much as before.Another maid came into the room to place a bowl of porridge and some dishes in front of Qin Wanru.Qin Wanru was indeed
"Don't meddle with this affair, you're just a kid..." Qin Huaiyong said as he frowned and waved his hand as if to dismiss what Qin Wanru said. "Asking a kid not to meddle with this affair. How about me? Am I too old to meddle with this?" Old grandma cut in. Qin Wanru indicated for Qing Yue to help old grandma to the chair to sit down. "Mother, something did not add up here..." Qin Huaiyong tried to explain when he heard old grandma's angry tone of voice. "What are you doubting? As a father, would you rather believe the words of an old maid or your own daughter?" said Qin Wanru as she looked up at Qin Huaiyong with a pair of bright eyes. Mammy Fang followed Mrs. Qin when she married into the Qin family. Qin Wanru would like Mammy Fang's arm to be severed by Mrs. Qin personally. She wanted to see how many maids would remain faithful to their mistress if the mistress could not even protect her own henchmen.
Aunt Shui was none other than Shui Ruolan, Qin Huaiyong's cousin, the daughter of old grandma's younger sister. She had come to take shelter under the Qins from a young age when old grandma's younger sister passed away. When she came of age, she got married, but her husband passed away later on before they bore any children. For this reason, old grandma brought her back to the Ningyuan Army General's house to be with her. Shui Ruolan was a woman with a gentle spirit who had never said a word of complaint even though she had a sad life. Qin Huaiyong had always had a soft spot for this cousin of his. Unfortunately, they each had their prearranged marriages respectively since young for this reason, they kept their distance in honor of their commitments. When Shui Ruolan returned to Qin Huaiyong's house as a widow, they continued to treat each other honorably. In fact, they did not see each other much within the manor grounds. Even when the need arose, they a
"You want that Fenghua glass light?" marveled Mrs. Qin. "Yes!" Qin Wan blinked and nodded. "You really want it?" Mrs. Qin asked again. "I really want it!" Qin Wanru said with resignation. Actually, it was not what she wanted, but Prince Chen who wanted it. Even if she did not ride on his coattail, she dared to offend him. Since a Fenghua glass light could satisfy him, why not giving it to him! "Why does Prince Chen want the Fenghua glass light? His role is so extravagant. He must have seen all the good products, so why does he want my Fenghua glass light? There must be something to do with it." "Fenghua glass light is certainly precious. As a prince, what treasures cannot he own?" Now look at grandmother's behavior, Qin Wanru gained a deep understanding that this Fenghua glass light was probably not simple. But she did not want to ask! "Grandmother did not have the Fenghua