Chapter 36: The End

Since Lu Songli exposed the truth about her body, breaking off the engagement between the Xie and Lu families, and arranging the marriage between Xie and Zhao, has become a hot potato. If it were anyone else, they would find an excuse to get rid of the hot potato.

Nanny Rongqiu understood the Empress Dowager. The Empress Dowager was stubborn and would not do such a thing. The more difficult the matter, the more she wanted to accomplish it!

Coincidentally, Lu Songli also thought the same way. After all, she had truly experienced the Empress Dowager’s stubbornness.

Nanny Rongqiu had been the Empress Dowager’s maid since she was married, and they had been together for decades, with a deep understanding between them.

When the Empress Dowager was silent, Nanny Rongqiu spoke, “Miss Lu, you should be more gentle in your approach. The Empress Dowager summoned you all to resolve the conflicts between you, with good intentions.”

“Now, you can no longer bear children, which is an unchangeable fact. Miss Zhao’s situation involves a life, as the saying goes, saving one life is better than building a seven-story pagoda. Why not give in a little?”

There is a saying that Lu Songli didn’t know whether to say or not, she didn’t expect that the sacrifice made by the original owner to save Xie Zhan would become a reason for her unworthiness! She knew the Empress Dowager would not let this go, but she didn’t expect her to be so shameless.

Lu Songli gritted her teeth, but her face remained calm, “According to the Empress Dowager’s wishes, how should I give in?”

“In fact, the best way to deal with the rumors between you is to have the Empress Dowager arrange marriages for Zhao Yutan and Xie Zhan, you, and Qin Sheng separately. However, if you disagree, Zhao Yutan can be a concubine.”

A tear fell from Zhao Yutan’s eyes and soaked into the bedding, disappearing.

It seems being a concubine is also a hardship for Zhao Yutan, right?

“Since you cannot bear children, and Xie Zhan is the eldest son and grandson of the Xie family, you cannot let him have no legitimate son, right?”

Lu Songli thought, if it weren’t for the original owner sacrificing herself to save Xie Zhan back then, he wouldn’t even have a legitimate son, let alone a life. No, the grass on the grave would be three zhang high.

“Two choices, it’s up to you.”

She was given two choices, quite generous.

Lu Songli smiled again. Can the Empress Dowager be so unreasonable? Can she act so recklessly?

Seeing her fleeting smile, Qin Sheng couldn’t bear to look at her.

The fleeting smile on her face was very short-lived, but the Empress Dowager saw it clearly and found it extremely annoying and displeasing.

Lu Songli was about to express her stance: she didn’t want to choose either option. At this point, she was willing to give the Empress Dowager face and break off the engagement with the Xie family, but this matter had to be discussed by both families.

Lu Songli felt that her decision would be unexpected by everyone. They all thought she would cling to Xie Zhan, her fiancé, right? But they were all wrong.

Everything she had done was to turn the tide, regain the moral high ground, and disrupt the Zhao family’s plan to escape death, all under the premise of Zhao Yutan’s second suicide, which had garnered much sympathy. For this, she had even gone so far as to expose her own shortcomings.

Zhao Yutan wanted to marry Xie Zhan, fine, she would grant them their wish, but don’t think about marrying him without any stain on her name, bearing the lifelong burden of stealing someone else’s fiancé.

And the Xie family, to get out of the engagement and satisfy the Empress Dowager, they had to show enough sincerity. After all, with enough sincerity, the Lu family would agree, wouldn’t they? The Empress Dowager was also waiting for the outcome.

She thought that when she expressed her willingness to break off the engagement, but insisted on both parents sitting down to discuss the matter, the Empress Dowager would have no words to say.

At that moment, a small eunuch with a worried expression appeared at the door.

When the Empress Dowager looked over, he was about to cry. The Empress Dowager felt a pang in her heart, and Nanny Rongqiu quickly went out.

Everyone present could see that the Empress Dowager was absentminded after Nanny Rongqiu left. No one spoke, and the scene became silent for a moment.

The sudden change left everyone at a loss.

Nanny Rongqiu almost immediately returned after going out. Her steps were very fast, almost a run, and as soon as she came back, she whispered a few words in the Empress Dowager’s ear.

Then, after hearing what Nanny Rongqiu said, the Empress Dowager suddenly stood up.

Everyone present couldn’t help but wonder what had happened.

The Empress Dowager: “Prepare the carriage, we are going to the Imperial Palace!”

Xie Zhan, Qin Sheng, Zhao Yutan, Lu Songli, and the princess consorts were all stunned. What about them?

Before leaving, the Empress Dowager passed by Lu Songli and gave her a deep look, her eyes filled with a chilling coldness.

Nanny Rongqiu knew that the Empress Dowager would not have the time to deal with these young people at this moment. After instructing a few palace maids to follow the Empress Dowager, she said to Lu Songli and the others, “Disperse, all of you go back.”

So abrupt? Lu Songli couldn’t help but laugh.

The person who was most unable to accept this was the unconscious Zhao Yutan.

Lu Songli felt a sense of regret. She had laid the groundwork for so long, thinking that she would finally reap the rewards. Who would have thought that it would abruptly end? Oh well, man proposes, God disposes. Fortune and misfortune are always unpredictable. Compared to the Zhao family, who suffered heavy losses, her situation wasn’t so bad. There’s happiness in comparison, right?

The princess consorts also felt a bit uncomfortable. This was a play with a great beginning but a disappointing ending! Without a conclusion, it felt particularly unsatisfactory.

Lu Songli’s heart moved. She didn’t know if her father was still with the Emperor, and thinking about it, she began to worry. With the Empress Dowager’s dislike for her and her father, if they met in the Imperial Palace, her father might be in trouble.

The princess consorts quickly turned their thoughts back to the Empress Dowager. The Empress Dowager’s reaction was so strong, and she immediately went to the Imperial Palace. It was likely that something had happened to the Emperor. The princess consorts’ hearts skipped a beat at the thought.

If Lu Songli knew what they were thinking, she would tell them they were overthinking. The Empress Dowager’s expression was only filled with urgency and anger, not worry. It was clear that it wasn’t the Emperor’s health that was the problem, but something else.

Qin Sheng’s brows were tightly furrowed. The entanglement of their four families’ marriages had been going on for a while, and they thought there would be a conclusion today. Thinking that there was still no resolution, he felt annoyed.

Xie Zhan couldn’t say what he was feeling at the moment. Was it regret that there was no result, or relief? Lu Songli’s performance today was truly impressive. He felt that the engagement between their two families could be maintained.

She possessed a kind of courage that not everyone dared to show in front of the Empress Dowager. And this courage wasn’t reckless, it was intelligent.

Despite the difference in status, she had negotiated with them for so long. Although the final outcome was interrupted by an unexpected event, he always felt that no matter how Lu Songli chose in the end, she wouldn’t let herself suffer any losses.