Chapter 30: Absolutely Preposterous!

Qin Yanshu returned home with a dark expression, exuding an intimidatingly cold aura. The servants and maids he passed bowed to him, but he paid them no heed, heading straight for the main courtyard.

“Mother.” Qin Yanshu entered the main room and saw his mother speaking with his sister in the inner chamber. He spoke coldly, “I don’t want to marry the Princess of Pingyao.”

Madam Qin looked up at him: “What did you say?”

“Brother, what’s wrong?” A young girl in the room stood up, looking at Qin Yanshu with confusion, “What happened?”

“I don’t want to marry the Princess of Pingyao.” Qin Yanshu took a deep breath, his tone heavy with melancholy, “She is not a virtuous wife, and our temperaments don’t match.”

Madam Qin was shocked and rose to her feet: “Yanshu, this marriage was the Empress Dowager’s idea!”

“So what?” Qin Yanshu looked at her angrily, “Mother, do you know what absurd demand the Princess made of me?”

Madam Qin frowned: “What demand?”

Qin Yanshu’s face showed anger: “She wants both the legitimate son and the concubine-born son of the Qin family to share her as a wife.”

At these words, Madam Qin’s face stiffened, and then she became furious: “That’s nonsense! Has the Princess lost her mind? Two brothers sharing a wife? Preposterous, absolutely preposterous!”

Qin Yanshu closed his eyes, sat down dejectedly in a chair, and covered his face, feeling waves of regret and pain: “The one I love is Shen Ning, she’s the only one I love. If not for Mother’s interference, she would have been my wife, not forced to marry the Regent—”

“Yanshu!” Madam Qin shouted angrily, “Don’t ever say such things again.”

Qin Yanshu fell silent, the look in his eyes both tragic and ironic.

He had personally pushed the woman he loved into someone else’s arms, what right did he have now to say he loved her?

“This matter is difficult to handle.” Madam Qin waved her hand, signaling the maids in the room to withdraw, and then sat down in a chair, “The Regent’s power is immense, and the Empress Dowager was too anxious, which is why she resorted to such a desperate measure. Now, it’s not about whether you want to marry, it’s about the Empress Dowager commanding you to marry. Are you going to defy her edict?”

Qin Yanshu’s face showed bitterness: “Princess Pingyao is licentious and absurd, openly keeping male concubines and indulging in drinking and merrymaking in her estate. For the sake of the Golden Armored Guards she may or may not control, must we sacrifice my happiness for life?”

Madam Qin’s brows furrowed tightly as she remained silent.

She was well aware of how much it would grieve her son to marry Princess Pingyao, but at present, the Emperor was about to take direct control of the government, yet the Regent refused to relinquish his power. The combined forces of the Empress Dowager and the Emperor were less than a tenth of the Regent’s.

Moreover, the Regent had placed too many of his men in the court.

The situation for the Empress Dowager and the Emperor was precarious. If the Regent were to have a falling out with the Emperor, the Emperor’s chances of victory would be so slim as to be almost negligible.

If the Emperor became a puppet, how much better off would the Imperial Uncle’s estate be, given its familial ties to the Empress Dowager?

Madam Qin remained silent for a while before speaking: “Try to get along well with Princess Pingyao, coax her. Once she’s married into our family, we’ll have ways to coax her into handing over the Golden Armored Guards. If coaxing doesn’t work, we can resort to threats or bribes. As long as the Emperor’s rule is stable, won’t the Princess be at our mercy in the future?”

“Eldest Brother, Mother is right.” Qin Zhilan, the legitimate daughter of the Qin family, approached and gently advised, “When the nest is overturned, no egg remains intact. If the Emperor lacks real power, even the Empress Dowager becomes a mere figurehead, and how can the Qin family expect any good outcomes? We would just be an empty-named Imperial Uncle’s estate. The sons of officials aligned with the Regent can already disregard us. But if we help the Emperor seize great power, the Qin family will not only be imperial relatives but also have the merit of aiding the dragon. Our future glory will be unparalleled, and Eldest Brother will be able to marry whomever he wishes.”

Qin Yanshu had never known that his younger sister could be so considerate of the bigger picture.

He sneered coldly, so to help the Emperor seize great power and stabilize the throne, his own marriage had to be sacrificed?

The only person he wanted was Shen Ning, but she had already married someone else. How could he ever achieve his wish to marry whomever he wanted in the future?

The scene he had witnessed at the Princess Pingyao’s estate earlier flashed through his mind, and he felt that if he truly married her, what difference would there be between him and those young men who accompanied her in drinking and laughter?

“Yanshu, endure a moment of grievance for a century of glory.” Madam Qin appealed to his emotions and reason, “Once the Emperor’s throne is secure and the Regent is dealt with, if you still want Shen Ning…”

Qin Yanshu was taken aback, a glimmer of hope slowly emerging in his heart.

Yes, once the Regent was removed, Shen Ning would still be his.

“If you still love Shen Ning by then, I am willing to facilitate your marriage.” Madam Qin made a promise, “Once she loses the Regent’s protection, won’t Shen Ning be within your grasp?”

Qin Yanshu’s heart was stirred by great waves.

He spoke with difficulty: “Let me think it over.”

“Yanshu, Mother believes you are rational and will make the best choice.” Madam Qin patted his shoulder, “I know you are proud and cannot tolerate disgraceful things, but you can view Princess Pingyao as a tool, without needing to develop feelings for her. It’s just for playing the part.”

Qin Yanshu acknowledged with a sound and stood up, saying, “Mother, please rest. I’ll take my leave.”

With that, he turned and left without looking back.

His steps were already in disarray.

Qin Zhilan frowned, staring at Qin Yanshu’s departing figure: “If we had known Eldest Brother was so infatuated, Mother shouldn’t have been in such a hurry to call off the engagement that day.”

“A real man should focus on achieving great deeds, what good is infatuation?” Madam Qin’s expression was one of disdain, “That legitimate daughter of the Shen family is a jinx! Forget being a main wife, even as a concubine, I wouldn’t agree to let her into our home.”

Thinking of the humiliation she had suffered at the Duke of the State’s residence, she wished she could tear Shen Ning limb from limb.

Shen Ning would never set foot in the Imperial Uncle’s estate in this lifetime.