Chapter 187: Reasons

Tang Shoude mentioned that his hometown was also in Sanqing County and that his family had some distant relationship with the Zhao family. He invited Chen Shiying to stay at the Tang family’s residence. Studying at the Tang family was much better than staying at an inn, offering peace and dedicated service.

Chen Shiying had no prior association with Tang Shoude and naturally could not accept his family’s money or lodge at the Tang residence. He expressed his gratitude for the offer. However, he never imagined that the Tang family would approach his mother, forcing Mrs. Wang out in their attempt to marry their daughter to him.

Having been close to Wang Juan for many years, Chen Shiying had always considered her gentle, cultured, and well-mannered. Their relationship was extremely close, akin to siblings, even more intimate than ordinary siblings.

Thus, he simply couldn’t believe his mother’s words. It seemed impossible that Wang Juan would have caused a scene and left without waiting for his return to clarify the situation. She must have been coerced into leaving.

Infuriated, Chen Shiying went to the Wang family to find Wang Juan. To his surprise, he discovered that she had married just a few days prior.

Distraught, Chen Shiying returned home. He knew Wang Juan had been coerced, even in her marriage. He couldn’t bring himself to blame his mother and directed all his anger at Zhao and the Tang family.

He staunchly refused to marry the Tang family’s daughter. However, his mother not only exchanged gifts with the Tang family but also accepted two thousand taels of silver and a valuable mansion in Sanqing County as part of the marriage agreement. His mother, through her actions, was forcing him to marry the Tang family’s daughter!

If he were to return everything his mother received to the Tang family and the matter were to be exposed, he, a successful scholar, would become a laughingstock. Worse yet, he could even lose his status as a scholar.

At a loss, the Prefectural Magistrate Jiang and his wife arrived at his home to propose a marriage alliance for their second daughter.

He agreed to the proposal, as did his mother. After careful consideration, he also accepted the Tang family’s daughter into his household, but only as a concubine.

Recognizing that they couldn’t compete with the Jiang family and sensing Chen Shiying’s animosity, the Tang family refrained from making further demands and settled for securing a position as a noble concubine for their daughter.

With the Tang family holding a significant leverage over his mother, Chen Shiying ultimately had no choice but to consent to the Tang family’s daughter becoming a concubine.

The following year, he was appointed as the top scholar in the palace examination by the Emperor, which would have allowed him direct entry into the Hanlin Academy. However, he relinquished this golden opportunity and instead requested to serve as a magistrate in any county in Jiangnan.

He had no choice. He couldn’t dare to hold a position in the capital. At that time, he was just a sixteen-year-old with nothing to his name. The family’s money belonged to the Tang family, and the family members belonged to the Jiang family. He had no idea whether the newly hired servants had any connections to the Tang family…

Sanqing County was only over 200 miles from the capital, while Shizhou Prefecture was just over 500 miles away. His mother was dominant, and he feared she wouldn’t listen, and that she would be troubled by the Zhao family or Tang family, leading to further trouble.

Jiang was a good-looking woman, and he didn’t dare to openly oppose her.

He thought that by first serving in Jiangnan, hundreds of miles away, he could allow Jiang to manage the household, train some people he could use, and, most importantly, keep his mother in check…

Chen Shiying’s thoughts were interrupted, leaving him both angry and embarrassed, his face flushed. He said, “The Tang family is despicable! At that time, I had never even been to the Tang family. How could I have had any dealings with their daughter?” He continued, “Sister, I was the one you raised. You should know my character. Why didn’t you think of waiting for me to return? Just a few more days…”

Mrs. Wang sobbed, “At that time, I felt like everything was falling apart. I had nothing left—no younger brother, no… dignity. But I just couldn’t bring myself to say it. I just felt, ‘What’s the point of living? It’s better to die.’ I planned to go back to my mother’s house, close the door, and hang myself. But fate had it that my father discovered me and rescued me…”

The doctor who came to treat her was related to her deceased mother. When Mrs. Ding and Old man Wang were not around, the doctor quietly informed Mrs. Wang that she was pregnant.

Upon hearing this shocking news, Mrs. Wang was both stunned and afraid. Unsure of what to do, she sought her father’s advice. However, when she went to her father’s house, she overheard Mrs. Ding and her farther’s conversation outside the door.

Old man Wang said that since she is his biological daughter, even if she had been sold once before, they should find a slightly more agreeable man for her, even if it was her second marriage.

But Mrs. Ding mentioned that Zhao had insisted that Wang Juan must marry a man from a distant place within two weeks. In such a short time, even girls from good families couldn’t find a good match, let alone someone who had been previously married as a child bride. Mrs. Ding also told old man Wang not to interfere, as she had a plan to marry Wang Juan off to a distant place.

Old man Wang then mentioned that he knew Mrs. Ding had accepted gifts from Zhao and the Tang family and was attempting to sell Wang Juan to make more money. However, she shouldn’t go too far, Wang Juan had already attempted suicide once, and if she were pushed too hard, she might try again.

Mrs. Ding, feeling apprehensive, feared that if Wang Juan did attempt suicide again, she wouldn’t make any money. She agreed to release the news that Wang Juan was to be married. If within two weeks, a good family sought to marry her, she would go. If not, they would leave her be.

Mrs. Wang’s legs turned weak after hearing this, and she barely managed to support herself against the wall as she made her way back to her room. Lying on the bed, she contemplated everything and came to a conclusion.

Her younger brother was not the sort of person to recklessly lodge at the Tang family’s residence, let alone engage in drunken behavior.

Thinking about her mother-in-law, no, she should say old lady Chen now, the old lady had never treated her kindly over the years, her words and demeanor were always disdainful. After her younger brother expressed his displeasure with his mother a few times, old lady Chen had become even more malicious behind his back, using even harsher language and even physically assaulting her, telling her not to charm her son and that a rural woman like her couldn’t be of any help to her son and questioned why she occupied that position.

It turned out that once old lady Chen had climbed the social ladder, she was anxious to drive her away.

Touching her stomach, she wondered if she should hide somewhere and wait for her younger brother to take her back to the Chen family? She was confident that as soon as her younger brother returned, he would take her back.

However, she also believed that if she returned to the Chen family, Zhao would find a way to harm her unborn child and then expel her, or worse, take her life.

Her own survival was no longer important, but she couldn’t bear to lose the child in her womb, she couldn’t let this unborn child perish. She was certain that Mrs. Ding intended to sell her off.

Remaining composed, she contemplated how to escape from this household and how to give birth in a place where no one knew her, allowing them to rely on each other for survival.

A few days later, a family came to propose marriage. Their son was critically ill, and they wanted to marry Mrs. Wang to bring good fortune.

But Mrs. Ding made an exorbitant demand, asking for ten taels as the dowry. Many respectable maidens wouldn’t ask for such a high dowry. Mrs. Ding was deliberately making things difficult for the Chen family, hoping to dissuade them. Then, she could sell Mrs. Wang to a distant place…