Jiang Si wrung out her wet hair and drank the ginger tea A-Qiao brought her. Feeling warmth spread through her body, she lay down on the bed and quickly fell into a deep sleep. Rescuing someone from the water had exhausted her completely.
While the Duke of Dongping’s mansion was enveloped in quiet darkness, the Duke of Anguo’s residence two streets away was bustling with activity and brightly lit.
Madam Wei, the wife of the Duke of Anguo, was leaning against the bedhead, clutching her husband’s hand and crying hysterically. The Duke’s face was gloomy as he tried to comfort her despite his irritation: “Stop crying. The eldest son has already gone over there. The third son will be fine.”
Earlier, the household had been thrown into chaos over the third son’s disappearance. When news came at night that he had fallen into the water, the Duke had only managed to ask if he was alright before hastily sending his eldest son to handle the situation. He still didn’t know exactly how his third son had ended up in the water.
As the Duke’s mind raced with worry, a servant hurriedly entered to report: “My Lord, My Lady, the heir has returned with the Third Young Master.”
“Bring them in quickly!” Madam Wei sat up abruptly before the Duke could speak.
Soon, footsteps were heard outside. A maid lifted the pearl curtain, and three people entered.
Madam Wei looked past her eldest son, Ji Chongli, and immediately spotted her third son, Ju Chongyi, who was pale as a sheet. She rushed over to him: “Third son, what happened to you? Let mother see if you’re alright!”
“Mother, I’m fine,” Ji Chongyi managed a weak smile.
“How can you be fine?” Madam Wei stroked Ji Chongyi’s cheeks as tears streamed down her face. “Your hair is still wet. How did you end up in the water?”
“Ahem.”
At the sound of coughing, Madam Wei glanced at the Duke.
The Duke’s gaze, however, had fallen on someone standing behind Ji Chongyi.
Half a zhang away from Ji Chongyi stood a petite young woman, her head lowered as she fidgeted with her clothes, unable to hide her unease.
Madam Wei’s expression immediately changed, her voice rising: “Who is she?”
Seeing this, Ji Chongyi pulled Qiao Niang to his side and looked directly into Madam Wei’s eyes: “Mother, this is the woman I love. Her name is Qiao Niang.”
Madam Wei’s face froze as she stared at Qiao Niang with unfathomable eyes: “So you’re Qiao Niang. I heard you saved our third son earlier. I haven’t had the chance to thank you yet.”
Qiao Niang looked up at Madam Wei in surprise, then quickly lowered her head again, nervously replying: “I-I don’t deserve your thanks, Madam—”
“Han-fang, take Miss Qiao Niang to rest,” Madam Wei interrupted coldly.
Han-fang, Madam Wei’s chief maid, approached Qiao Niang with a smile: “Miss Qiao Niang, please follow me.”
Qiao Niang glanced uncertainly at Ji Chongyi.
Ji Chongyi thought for a moment, then nodded slightly to Qiao Niang: “Go and rest. I’ll come see you tomorrow.”
Only then did Qiao Niang relax and follow the maid out.
A cold light flashed in Madam Wei’s eyes.
This uncouth girl had no manners. Not only was she, an unmarried woman, associating with her son, but she had also left without bowing to those present. Her upbringing was evident.
“Zhan-rui, quickly bring some ginger tea for the Third Young Master.”
Soon, another maid with the same attire as Han-fang came forward with a cup of ginger tea.
The Duke watched coldly as his youngest son finished the ginger tea, then asked: “What exactly happened?”
This question was directed at Ji Chongli, the heir.
Ji Chongli glanced at Ji Chongyi, knowing he couldn’t hide the truth, and reluctantly said: “Third brother… The third brother jumped into the lake with that girl…”
“Absurd!” The Duke kicked over a chair in anger.
Ji Chongyi fell to his knees with a thud.
Madam Wei shot a reproachful look at the Duke: “My lord, why are you so angry? Our son has fallen into the water. We should quickly summon a physician to examine him and prescribe some medicine to ward off the cold.”
“Why bother with a physician? If he wants to die, who can stop him?” The Duke glared at Ji Chongyi kneeling on the ground, his anger rising. Pointing at him, he scolded, “You insolent child! You dare to risk your life for a woman!”
Ji Chongyi kowtowed once: “Father, Mother, please grant your son’s wish.”
Oh, it seemed he had accidentally hit the mark!
The Duke flew into a rage: “Absolutely not! As long as I’m alive, you can forget about it. You will marry the Fourth Miss of the Duke of Dongping’s family as planned!”
Madam Wei didn’t try to mediate this time, her face equally displeased.
She had originally looked down on the Duke of Dongping’s family. When the Duke of Anguo insisted on arranging the marriage to repay the Duke of Dongping brothers for saving his life, she even caused a few scenes.
But the Duke of Dongping’s family, no matter how lacking, was still better than commoners.
Ji Chongyi remained kneeling, his tone resolute: “Father, I only love Qiao Niang. I don’t like the Fourth Miss of the Duke of Dongping’s family. I’ve never even met her. I really can’t marry her!”
“Third son, I’ve inquired about the Fourth Miss of the Duke of Dongping’s family. She’s known as a great beauty among the noble ladies in the capital,” the Duke tried to persuade patiently.
“Yes, after your engagement, I also found an opportunity to see her. Your father isn’t deceiving you,” Madam Wei added.
“In my eyes, Qiao Niang is the most beautiful!” Ji Chongyi looked up at the Duke. “Father, you can arrange a marriage with the Duke of Dongping’s family to repay a debt of gratitude. Why can’t you understand your son? If it weren’t for Qiao Niang, I might not even be alive—”
“Shut up! Marriage is not something you can decide on a whim. If you continue to be so obstinate, I’ll have Qiao Niang thrown out right now!”
“If Father throws Qiao Niang out, you might as well throw me out too.” Ji Chongyi stood up defiantly.
“You—” The Duke trembled with anger. He turned to the old woman standing at the door and shouted, “Take some men and beat that Qiao Niang out of here!”
“No!” Seeing the old woman about to leave, Ji Chongyi moved to chase after her.
The Duke shouted, “Eldest son, stop your third brother!”
Ji Chongli grabbed Ji Chongyi’s arm and tried to reason with him: “Third brother, please don’t anger Father anymore.”
“Big brother, let go of me!” Ji Chongyi tried to push Ji Chongli away but couldn’t break free. Seeing the old woman about to exit the door, he became frantic with anxiety and anger. Suddenly, he coughed up a mouthful of blood and collapsed onto Ji Chongli.
Madam Wei’s face turned pale with fright, and she cried out shrilly: “Quickly summon the physician—”
Soon, the physician examined Ji Chongyi and stated that his blood-spitting and fainting were due to extreme anger and cold invading his body. He advised that Ji Chongyi needed proper care and should avoid strong emotions in the future.
After the physician left to prepare the prescription, Madam Wei couldn’t help but blame the Duke: “My lord, why are you so quick-tempered? Do you want to drive our third son to his death?”
“I’m driving him to his death? It’s your indulgence that has made him so unreasonable!” Although the Duke said this, he couldn’t help but feel frightened when he thought of Ji Chongyi coughing up blood.
Madam Wei dabbed at her tears with a handkerchief: “What’s the use of saying this now? Don’t you and the eldest son care about the third son? We should think about how to handle this situation properly.”
“No matter what, we cannot cancel the engagement with the Duke of Dongping’s family!”
“But my lord, if you forcibly separate the third son from Qiao Niang, he might truly not be able to live on.”
Seeing the Duke’s cold smile, Madam Wei cried, “My lord, think about it. Our third son Qiao Niang has already attempted to die for love once. Where there’s a first time, there could be a second. If something truly happens to our third son, it will be too late for regrets.”
“Then what do you suggest?”
Madam Wei stopped sobbing and glanced at the inner room, choosing her words carefully: “How about this: we keep the engagement with the Duke of Dongping’s family unchanged, and as for Qiao Niang, let’s have our third son take her as a worthy concubine.”