flstandardbreds Chapter 125 Passionate Love
Chapter 125 Passionate Love
The person who was happiest when Prince Duan ran away from home without saying goodbye was none other than Lady Lu.
Lady Lu was a concubine of the late Prince Duan, who doted on her greatly during his lifetime. Her lifestyle rivaled that of Xiao Fan's mother, the Dowager Consort Qin. Lady Lu had two sons and a daughter; her eldest son was already twenty-three years old, older than Prince Duan.
When the late Prince Duan took Lady Lu as his concubine, his fiancée, Consort Qin, was only thirteen years old and had not yet married into the Prince's household. Lady Lu was the late Prince Duan's first woman and the woman he loved dearly. Lady Lu's family background was slightly lower, but she was far superior to Consort Qin in both appearance and personality. Less than a year after entering the Prince's household, she gave birth to a very healthy and adorable son. Therefore, she was deeply loved by the late Prince Duan.
Lu's eldest son, Xiao Xiang, married a daughter from the Tong family.
The Tong family was one of the ten great families of the Western Liang Kingdom.
Xiao Xiang's wife is the second legitimate daughter of the third branch of the Tong family, and her backing is very powerful. Now, Madam Tong has given birth to a son and a daughter, and has thus established herself firmly in the Duan Prince's mansion.
Lu's second son, Xiao Ming, is twenty years old this year. He has become a captain in the Imperial Guard and is living a relatively smooth life. Xiao Ming's wife is the eldest daughter of Yu Ling, the Left Censor-in-Chief. They have already given birth to a son and a daughter.
Lu's daughter, Xiao Rufeng, is eighteen years old and married to Chao Jin, the eldest son of Chao Cheng, the Commander of the Nine Gates. Now, she has given birth to two sons and has established herself firmly in the Chao family.
In contrast, Consort Qin only gave birth to one son and one daughter.
The eldest son, Prince Duan, is twenty-one years old and still unmarried, with no children. The daughter, Xiao Rufang, is nineteen years old and married to the eldest son of Princess Fu'an. Four years into the marriage, she has only given birth to one daughter, while her husband has several concubines and a large number of illegitimate children.
Now, Prince Duan has run away from home and his whereabouts are unknown. Perhaps soon, his fate will be "unknown".
In short, Madam Lu was overjoyed. If Prince Duan were to meet with misfortune outside and never return, the Prince's mansion would fall into her son's hands. She wondered if, at that time, Madam Qin would still be as arrogant and domineering as before, constantly finding ways to harass and torment her, her son and daughter-in-law, and even their child under three years old.
Song family.
The parents of the Fifth Miss Song were furious. The Third Madam Song cried and wailed to her husband, "Father, let's just call off this marriage! The man has disappeared. If our daughter goes to the Prince's mansion at this time, wouldn't she be jumping into a fire pit?"
The Third Master glared at her and scolded, "What are you saying? You're all talk and no action! Who is Prince Duan? He's the Emperor's most beloved nephew and the Crown Prince's most trusted elder brother. When the Crown Prince ascends the throne, Prince Duan will definitely be made regent! You'd be hard-pressed to find a family like that even with a lantern. And you actually want to break off the engagement? Besides, Prince Duan is just out for a stroll to clear his head. He'll be back in a while!"
Madam Song said, "What if he doesn't come back? Or what if he doesn't come back for many years? If that happens, wouldn't my daughter be left to live as a widow? I don't agree. I can't sacrifice my own daughter just so that my uncle can get promoted and make money!"
Just then, Miss Song rushed in from outside and knelt before the Third Madam: "Mother, I am willing, I am willing! Even if I have to wait a lifetime, I am willing! I have long loved Prince Duan, and now that I have the opportunity to marry him, even if I have to wait a lifetime, I am willing! I will not marry anyone else but him. If Mother wants to break off the engagement, I will go to the temple to become a nun! Or, I will simply kill myself!"
Upon hearing her daughter's words, the third wife burst into tears: "What a tragedy! What a tragedy! How could I have given birth to such a worthless thing like you? For a man who doesn't want you, you want to become a nun and even try to kill yourself! Who do you think you are to live with? Your parents raised you all these years, and this is how you repay your parents? If I had known it would be like this, I should have strangled you the moment you were born!"
Fifth Miss Song remained kneeling, her attitude extremely firm: "Mother, please forgive your unfilial daughter. Without Prince Duan, I cannot live! Even if Prince Duan is not at home, I have hope now that I have married into the Prince's mansion. As long as I wait for the Prince to return in the mansion, I will not despair, I will feel that there is something to look forward to, and I will have the strength to live! If the marriage is broken off, I cannot live for even a day!"
"What a tragedy! What a tragedy!" The Third Madam collapsed to the ground in anger, pounding her fists on the ground and crying her heart out.
The third master sighed deeply, helped his wife up, and comforted her, "Alright, stop crying. This marriage was bestowed by the Emperor; we can't break it off. Otherwise, it would be disobeying the imperial decree, which would mean the confiscation of our property and the extermination of our entire clan!"
Upon hearing the words "confiscation of property and extermination of the clan," the Third Madam's sobs abruptly ceased. Yes, how could she have forgotten? This was a marriage bestowed by the Emperor himself; there was no room for reneging!
What should she do? Her poor daughter, what should she do now? Her poor daughter, she's about to jump into a fire pit!
The Third Madam's heart felt like it was being fried in oil, filled with unbearable anxiety and pain. If she could, she would gladly shorten her lifespan by ten years to gain her daughter's freedom!
Upon hearing her father's words, Song Wu Guniang's lips curled into a look of wild joy, her heart filled with a sweet, honey-like feeling.
The third master took in the changes in his daughter's expression and felt a chill run down his spine. He sighed deeply in his heart: What's the use of raising children? Children are just here to collect debts. His mother was so sad and desperate, yet her daughter still had the mind to be overjoyed.
What a tragedy! What a tragedy!
The third master frowned and said coldly to his daughter, who was immersed in ecstasy, "Go back to your room and let your mother get some rest!"
"Alright, Father, I'm off!" Miss Song said happily, turning around and leaving her parents' bedroom without even looking back.
The third master sighed again, "What's the use of raising sons and daughters? They're utterly useless; they only bring trouble to their parents. Before they're even married, they can already disregard their parents like this for a man who doesn't want them. If they were married, wouldn't they be even more single-mindedly devoted to their man and even more indifferent to their parents?"
Sigh, what's the point of raising sons and daughters?!
The Third Master couldn't help but sigh again and again.
No matter how unwilling the Third Madam was, her daughter still sat in the bright red bridal sedan chair and was welcomed into the Prince Duan's residence. The Prince Duan was not there, and the person who came to greet the bride in his place was none other than the Prince Duan's half-brother, Xiao Ming.
According to the custom of the Western Liang Kingdom, concubines also have weddings and can ride in a large red sedan chair. However, they cannot enter through the main gate but must use the side gate. Moreover, there is no wedding hall, meaning there is no formal wedding ceremony. Nevertheless, a simple wedding banquet is still held.
The bride's family, on the other hand, is allowed to hold a grand celebration.
Zisu returned to Wuliping.
Upon hearing her plan to transform the manor and boost the economy of Wuliping, the old clan chief was moved to tears.
He waited his whole life, and now the Shangguan family has finally produced a great man, a big figure who can lead the villagers to prosperity.
Although Zisu is young, she has ambition regardless of age. The old clan chief has reason to believe that this child can lead the whole village to prosperity.
Zisu said to the old clan chief, "Sixth Grandfather, we can use these three manors and the hot springs in the mountains as a foundation to develop Wuliping into an ecological agricultural tourism park."
"What is an ecological agricultural tourism park?" the old clan chief asked curiously.
"An ecological agricultural tourism park, you know, it's..." Zisu tried her best to explain based on her understanding, although she spoke haltingly, it still aroused great interest from the old clan chief.
Zisu: "I originally planned to build an inn at the Sunflower Manor. Now that Sixth Grandfather is interested, why don't I cooperate with him? I'll pay for the land, build the inn, and provide the initial funding, while Sixth Grandfather's family will be responsible for its operation and management. We'll split the profits 50/50, how about that?"
The old patriarch said, "No, let's split it 40/60, I get 40% and you get 60%. Otherwise, I won't cooperate with you!"
Zisu nodded in satisfaction: "Alright, it's settled then! However, this inn can't just be an inn. I plan to build it into a large leisure resort, with inns, a department store, a chess and card room, a fishing area, a ball game area, a strawberry picking area..." The old clan chief's attitude was so resolute that Zisu knew he was sincere, so she didn't argue with him. She would simply look after the old clan chief's family in the future.
As the old clan chief listened to her detailed explanation, a surge of joy welled up in his heart. The more he listened, the more excited he became, nodding approvingly: "Good, we'll listen to you. You've said it very well, I believe you! However, the resort is such a big place, our family can't manage it all. You'll have to send a few more capable managers over here!"
Zisu: "Sixth Grandfather, please rest assured. Shugen, Luo Jianming, and Xiangli are all capable managers. They are all educated and skilled in martial arts. When the time comes, just send a few of them over!"
Luo Jianming and Xiangli were in love, and Zisu intended to let them be together; otherwise, she couldn't bear to see Xiangli leave her. Xiangli was a loyal and clever girl, impeccable in every way. To be honest, she was very reluctant to let her go.
Upon hearing that it was these three people, the old clan chief visibly breathed a sigh of relief: "Oh, they're acquaintances. It's good that they're acquaintances; I feel much more at ease!" He had been genuinely worried that Zisu would send some strangers, unsure if they were easy to get along with. What if they were arrogant and haughty? Since they were acquaintances, he was completely at ease. He knew all three of them well; they were all very easy to get along with.
----Today, this novel made it onto the new book monthly ticket ranking list. This update is to thank everyone for casting their monthly tickets. Thank you, thank you so much! Three updates today. Please continue to cast your monthly tickets, otherwise, it will be off the rankings tomorrow.