When Chen Ran returned to the residence, he went to seek out the Lady of Taining and told her about his desire to marry Yuxi.
The Lady of Taining's eyes were about to pop out. "What did you say? Have you taken a liking to that Miss Han?" The thing she feared most had finally happened.
Chen Ran responded frankly, "Yes!" It would be a shame to miss out on such a woman with a steadfast heart and broad-mindedness.
The Lady of Taining spoke without even thinking, "No, that girl has a bad fate. No one can marry her." She could not let that girl bring trouble to her son.
Chen Ran sneered as he said, "Didn't the State Residence already release the words that, based on the Board of Astronomy's calculation on Fourth Miss Han's eight characters that her fortune lacked water, but everything else was good? I remember that my fortune is lacking gold, so it just complements each other." What was up with this Master Liao Tong? Such a nonsense Great Master. In the beginning, he said that the scourge Heshou had opened her all-knowing mind, but looked at what had happened? As a result, she had run off in disgrace to eat just like a monk on Wutai Mountain.
The Lady of Taining said, "I'd rather believe in such things than not." If Han Yuxi were to get her son involved, there would be no place for them to cry.
Chen Ran sneered, "If you are worried about her getting you guys involved, it's quite manageable. When I marry her, we will live separately. If we don't live together, we naturally won't be able to involve you." He did not care about parents who would sacrifice their children's lives for the sake of benefits.
The Lady of Taining was furious. "Was I afraid she would drag me down with her? I am afraid she will bring you down with her. She has a bad fate. Won't she affect your future luck?"
Chen Ran carelessly said, "This matter about one having a bad date or not is just someone's evil trick to fool people. I don't believe in these words at all."
The Lady of Taining still uttered the same word, "No."
Chen Ran stated expressionlessly, "I have already said the things I want to say. If Mother is unwilling to do things that I've spoken about, then, at that time, I will personally ask the official matchmaker to propose marriage to the Han family."
The blue veins on the Lady of Taining completely burst.
Upon seeing this situation, the old lady servant next to the Lady of Taining saw that something was wrong and said, "Second Master, the Eldest Miss has just passed away. If you have to talk about marriage now and if word about this gets out, it will not be good for your reputation, Second Master." She felt that it was better to calm Chen Ran first. If not, according to this Master's nature, he might immediately ask a matchmaker to go to the State Residence to ask for a marriage. If that happened, then they would be the greatest laughing stock.
The Lady of Tai Ning quickly joined in, "Even if you want me to talk about marriage, you have to give me time. Your Jiejie's seventh seven has not even passed yet, so if you want to talk about marriage, you should at least wait until her seventh seven has passed."
Chen Ran sneered. He only said that he wanted to marry Han Yuxi. He did not say that he was going to propose marriage right now. However, he did not bother to argue about this minor point and said, "Then we will send the matchmaker to their house after the seventh seven." After a pause, Chen Ran added, "I hope mother won't do any devious trick." Chen Ran knew very well what his mother's nature was, and she had many tricks up her sleeve which she would do behind his back.
Hearing the words that followed, the Lady of Taining almost fell over in anger. "What kind of sin have I done to give birth to such an unfilial thing?"
Chen Ran did not even bother to look at the grief-stricken look of the Lady of Taining as he lifted his feet and walked out. After walking out of the courtyard, Chen Ran looked up at the sky, suppressing all the grief and bitterness in his heart, and after regaining his composure, he took his page back to his own courtyard. [+]
It was natural for the Lady of Taining to tell her husband about such a significant matter. She said, "My Lord, what should we do? We can't let Ran-er marry that girl from the Han family!"
Marquis Taining asked with a straight face, "How did Old Second fall for that girl from the Han family?" Chen Ran could not have rushed to marry her just because she let him borrow a carriage.
At this time, the Lady of Taining didn't dare to hide it from the Marquis Taining, so she immediately told him what she had found out before, "I have seen the Fourth Miss Han. She is average looking and has a bad temperament. She is also a person with a bad fate. How can such a person marry into our family?" If Han Yuxi were as beautiful as Han Yuchen, she would have understood if her son had taken a liking to her. But this girl had no looks and no talent, so how could her son have fallen for her? [T/N]
The Marquis Taining questioned, "Did Old Second fall for her himself? Not the Han girl who seduced him?"
The Lady of Taining really couldn't say that Han Yuxi seduced him. That girl had been so cold to her son, and to say that she seduced him was too shameful for the Lady of Taining to say. "No, it was Ran-er himself who fell for her." She didn't know why her son's eyes were this frustrating. She had helped him choose so many good girls in the past two years, but he couldn't even see any of them. The one he did take a liking to was not outstanding in any way and also had a bad fate.
Hearing that it was Chen Ran who had taken a fancy to that girl, the Marquis Taining pondered for a moment before requesting, "Tell me about this Fourth Miss Han."
After hearing what his wife said, the Marquis Taining ordered a maid, "Hold on to this first." His wife's words were too one-sided to be comprehensive. He had to inquire more about this Fourth Miss Han.
A day later, both father and son were in the study, and the atmosphere in the study was oppressive. The Marquis Taining spoke first, "So, it is true that you want to marry the Fourth Miss Han."
Chen Ran said expressionlessly, "It's true."
The Marquis Taining questioned, "Must you marry? Even if your mother and I object, you still want to marry her?" For this son, the Marquis Taining had very low expectations. As long as he did not do anything to harm the family's interests, he would obey him in everything else. Rather than guilt, it was better to say that he had no expectations for him. For a son with a great deal of resentment in his heart, he did not dare to nurture him. He was afraid this son of his would bury the whole family alive with him in the future.
Chen Ran did not say anything, but the look on his face was clear that he would not change his mind just because others disagreed.
Knowing what Chen Ran meant, the Marquis Taining said very directly, "If you can win the title jieyuan in this autumn examination, I will let your mother go to the Han family to propose a marriage." The goal was for Chen Ran to win the first prize in the examination. This was a challenging goal, as there were thousands of candidates in the capital, and it was not easy to get the first place. But with Chen Ran's qualifications, as long as he had the will, getting the jieyuan was still very possible.
Chen Ran did not respond.
The Marquis Taining added, "Marriage is an important event where it is made from parents' orders and matchmakers' words. If you ask your mother to propose to the Han family, the marriage will definitely be successful. If you ask someone to propose the marriage yourself, the Han family will most likely refuse the marriage."
Chen Ran's face was a little ugly. In his heart, he knew that if he did not let his mother go to propose the marriage, even if the Han family agreed, Han Yuxi would not agree. Although Han Jingyan did not like Han Yuxi, he believed Han Yuxi could ruin the marriage herself.
The Marquis Taining looked at his son's expression and continued, "Since you value that girl, you should give her the respect she deserves."
Chen Ran was silent for half a second before he said, "The top three." Even if he was gifted and learned well, he was not sure that he would win first place. This was because it didn't solely depend on the essay, but one also had to have luck. If it were the top three, he would be 100 per cent sure.
When the Marquis Taining saw his son backing down, joy flashed across his face. It was the first time in years that his son had given in before him. "Fine. As long as you win the top three places, I will let your mother go to Duke Han's residence to propose a marriage." If his son could back down once for the Han girl, he could back down a second and third time. This was a good start for him as his father.
Chen Ran walked out of the Marquis Taining's study with a loathsome expression. [+]
A smile appeared on the Marquis of Taining's face. It was good to have a breakthrough. For so many years, he had scolded his son, but he had never taken his words to heart, so much so that he eventually gave up. He had never thought a woman would be the mountain road that twisted around each new peak that changed his son's attitude.
When the Lady of Taining heard that her husband had agreed to the marriage, she could feel there was thunder from a clear sky. "My Lord, how can you agree with him? That girl has a bad fate. If my son marries her, won't he be unlucky for the rest of his life?" Even if her son was cold-hearted and heartless, he was her own flesh. How could she bear to let her son marry such a wife?
The Marquis Taining said, "Regarding her bad fate, it is nothing more but a malicious slander."
The Lady of Taining was stunned. "My Lord, where did this information come from?"
Marquis Taining replied, "If she truly had a bad fate, she would have had a bad life, and no one around her would have been living well. But the Fourth Miss Han family has been well-clothed and well-fed all these years, and she has a high position in the State Residence. Plus, Han Jianye, who is closest to her, has a good official career." If Han Yuxi really had a bad fate, where would she be treated so well? Even though rumours about her were springing up from everywhere, she was still living a good life in her hamlet.
After hearing what Marquis Taining had said, the Lady of Taining calmed down and felt some truth to it. "When my Lord said that, I did remember that the Third Lady Han seems to have been in bad luck since she entered the capital." To be precise, the Third Lady Han family had been having bad luck ever since she entered the capital.
The Marquis Taining did not speak. Through the information he had found out, he was sure of one thing. The Fourth Miss Han was a very intelligent person.
The Lady of Taining hesitated. "You can't help but believe what the Great Master Liao Tong said."
Hearing this, the Marquis Taining sneered as he said, "The real eminent monk who has attained salvation of the Huangzhi Temple is Great Master Huineng." While that nonsense Great Master Liao Tong was just a nasty person who loved to smooth somebody's beard and pat his horse's hindquarters as he pandered to the rich and powerful.
The head of Marquis Taining Residence was Marquis Taining. Therefore, when the Marquis Taining had made his decision, even if the Lady of Taining was torn, she could only comply with it.
The people on Marquis Taining's side were tight-lipped, and not a word had gotten out. However, the same could not be said for Yuxi's side. The people around Yuxi could be relied upon, but with the size of Red Jujube Hamlet, and for it to happen outside that day, it was normal for people to pay much more attention.
Wu Shi knew that Chen Ran had gone to the mountain villa to look for Yuxi and a cold smile crossed her face; this time, she would make sure that Han Yuxi would be sent to hell and never have a room for her to turn around. [T/N]
Soon, rumours spread in the capital that the Fourth Miss Han had an affair with the Second Master Chen. Even the story of the two had a date at the Red Jujube Hamlet was told like they had their noses and eyes on the matter, making it hard for people not to believe. The Marquis Taining Residence had moulded Chen Ran's image as a very good person. So when this rumour came out, it was almost lopsided with all words scolding Yuxi.
Wu Shi's purpose in putting out this rumour was Han Jingyan. Having been husband and wife for so many years, she asked herself if she still knew Han Jingyan. With such a scandal, Han Jingyan would surely not spare Han Yuxi.
Noob Translator's Musing
Thank you, Wu Shi, for building a path for Yuxi to change her fate. Thank you very much.
To those who celebrated Eidul Adha:
Tags:
The Rebirth of Han Yuxi