LGHTNOVELBOOK Chapter 102 - 103: I Choose My Wife
Chapter 102: Chapter 103: I Choose My Wife
“Speak!” Luo Jiner’s voice was ice-cold, frightening several maids into trembling.
“Yes, it’s about the matter with the concubines.”
Enraged, she stormed over to the maids and forcefully slapped them across the face, causing their cheeks to swell instantly.
“Wicked slaves, who gave you the nerve to spout such nonsense!”
The two maids were stunned by the slap; after regaining their senses, they immediately began crying and begging, “Miss Luo, spare our lives, Miss Luo, spare our lives! We were wrong… we won’t dare do so again…”
“If I hear you discussing this matter again, I will have you all thrown out of the Marquis’s Mansion!” Luo Jiner hissed through clenched teeth, her eyes filled with murderous intent.
The maids, unable to think of anything else, promptly kneeled and knocked their heads on the ground in gratitude.
After they left, the fury in Luo Jiner’s heart still did not subside, especially the part about the concubines being pregnant, which gnawed at her.
“Go administer sterilization drugs to the two concubines. I absolutely cannot allow them to bear the Marquis’s children. The legitimate eldest son of the Marquis must come from my womb!” Luo Jiner said venomously.
Qiu Zhu hesitated slightly, knowing well that if the Old Madam and the Marquis found out about this, she would undoubtedly die.
Luo Jiner, noticing her apprehension, glared at her fiercely, threatening, “We are now in this together; if I fall from grace, you’ll have no good days ahead!”
“Yes, I understand,” Qiu Zhu quickly acknowledged and withdrew.
Luo Jiner broke off a willow branch and held it in her hand. The Marquis’s affections for her were growing colder by the day; this could not continue, she needed to regain his favor.
Source: Webnovel.com, updated on ɴονǤᴑ.сᴑ
Moreover, she had heard that the Old Madam had visited Shao He again recently, which greatly increased her sense of crisis. With two concubines in the house, and yet another Shao He outside, what should she do?
The black night was speckled with stars.
Chu Yu returned home a bit late today. As soon as he entered, he saw Luo Jiner approaching from a distance.
“Marquis, you’re back.” Luo Jiner smiled as she walked up to him, attempting to link her arm through his but was avoided.
“Why are you out here so late?” Chu Yu’s gaze was very cold, showing not a hint of pleasure at her presence but rather a trace of disgust.
“Seeing that the Marquis had not yet returned, I was waiting here in the courtyard for you,” Luo Jiner said, biting her lower lip, looking pitiful.
Chu Yu furrowed his brows and said, “You should go back and rest early.”
Luo Jiner’s face stiffened; she hadn’t expected the Marquis to say such a thing.
Only after Chu Yu walked past her did Luo Jiner snap out of it, anger rushing to her head.
Back in her room, Luo Jiner suddenly went mad, smashing everything inside to pieces.
Turning towards Qiu Zhu, she raised her hand and viciously pinched her arm, cursing, “It’s all because you, a worthless slave, didn’t dress me well. Otherwise, why would the Marquis ignore me!”
“With a Shao He already causing me headaches outside, and now two concubines popping up, it’s infuriating!”
Qiu Zhu groaned in pain but dared not make a sound, seeing Luo Jiner’s state. To protect herself, she suggested, “Perhaps, Miss, you could have the Shao Family deal with Shao He.”
Luo Jiner, hearing this, stopped her actions while Qiu Zhu rubbed her bruised arm, both purple and blue.
After thinking for a moment, Luo Jiner decided the suggestion was unfeasible, “No, if the Shao Family realizes the Old Madam’s attitude towards Shao He, they might take her seriously again. I can’t take that risk.”
She needed to think of another plan.
In the Pei Mansion.
Pei Huaian held a tea cup, contemplating the floating leaves, lost in thought.
The room door was suddenly opened, and Ah Mo, dressed in a black night suit, entered and bowed, “Master.”
“How did the investigation you were conducting go?” Pei Huaian’s tone, though not as gentle as usual, subtly carried authority.
“I found out that Imperial Doctor Lu opened a medicine shop, selling frostbite ointment and cold effervescent powder, and even deliberately spread rumors that these were his family’s secret recipes and had been given to the Imperial Medical Bureau, truly shameless.”
Pei Huaian tapped his fingers continuously on his wheelchair, “Ha, the Imperial Medical Bureau? These people really want a share of everything.”
“Master, what should we do next?” Ah Mo asked, looking up slightly.
“Keep watching him, see what he’s really up to,” Pei Huaian, thinking of Shao He’s words, knew there must be something amiss with the recipes, fearing that in desperation, Imperial Doctor Lu might bite back.
“Yes.”
Ah Mo, recalling the news from the imperial palace, reported, “Master, Princess Consort Jing has suggested to the Empress the idea of marrying Commandery Princess Ninghe to you.”
Pei Huaian snapped back to reality, took a sip of tea, and set down the cup, “As if they can decide my matters.”
Ah Mo bowed his head and continued, “Indeed, the Empress used the excuse of it being entirely up to you and didn’t agree.”
Pei Huaian’s eyes narrowed slightly, a hint of menace flashing through them, a cold smile forming on his lips, “As if that woman could decide my marital matters.”
Ah Mo continued, “The Emperor too intends to grant marriages to several princes; I fear you may not be able to avoid it much longer.”
Pei Huaian, fiddling with a half mask in his hands, involuntarily thought of Shao He, feeling an unusual emotion surge within him.
“Since there’s no escaping it, then I might as well accept it strategically.”
“But, Master…” Ah Mo hesitated momentarily, ultimately holding his tongue.
Pei Huaian waved his hand, signaling him to leave. He leaned back in his chair, closed his eyes, wondering about something.
Ah Mo turned and exited the room, standing guard outside.
Pei Huaian pushed his wheelchair to the window and looked up at the moon hanging in the sky, murmuring darkly: My wife must be chosen by me personally!