si-mexico Chapter 198 Does he truly have ambitions, or does he have ulterior motives?
Chapter 198 Does he truly have ambitions, or does he have ulterior motives?
Marquis Anyang sat steadily in the grand chair, his fingers tapping the armrest rhythmically, the subtle sound breaking the brief silence around him.
“Madam Feng has been kneeling outside for quite some time now. This stalemate can’t go on any longer. Let’s just let her off the hook.”
Chu Ruohan didn't rush to respond, but instead changed the subject: "Father, my third brother hasn't been in the manor for the past two days. Where did he go?"
Marquis Anyang remained calm, as if discussing a trivial matter: "The imperial examinations are coming soon, and he has found a quiet place to study in seclusion. As for where he went, I don't know."
He answered too quickly...
Chu Ruohan withdrew her gaze, a faint smile appearing on her lips, but it didn't reach her eyes. She simply said softly, "It's time to go into seclusion."
She was now certain that the experts around Gu Chengyan must have been secretly arranged by the Marquis of Anyang.
When Marquis Anyang was young, he was just an unloved illegitimate son in his family, but he managed to get close to the eldest princess and rise step by step from the prince consort to the position of marquis.
How could it be something confined to a pond...?
A hint of impatience flashed quickly in the eyes of the Marquis of Anyang. "The most urgent matter is to resolve Madam Feng's matter first."
He sat up slightly. "After all, she is the only daughter of the Duke of Shan. Although she has made a mistake, we cannot make her kneel down forever. What will outsiders think of our Marquis's mansion?"
Upon hearing this, Chu Ruohan couldn't help but sneer, retorting without backing down, "Father's words are truly unreasonable. Your daughter-in-law is the one who suffered the most in this matter, yet you always side with outsiders. Are you perhaps afraid of the Duke of Shan's mansion?"
Marquis Anyang was instantly enraged. He slammed his hand heavily on the table with a loud "bang," causing the teacups on the table to shake.
He stood up, pointing at Chu Ruohan, "Is this how you talk to your elders? It's utterly disobedient and unfilial! Is this the Chu family's upbringing?"
Chu Ruohan's face also turned cold. This was the first time she had been criticized for her lack of manners, and it had even affected her family...
Gu Junze shielded Chu Ruohan behind him, his eyes turning cold as he looked at Marquis Anyang. "Elders need to be kind so that younger generations can be filial. How can a father-in-law who criticizes his daughter-in-law without distinguishing right from wrong be considered a true father-in-law?"
His chest heaved slightly as he suppressed his anger, his voice low yet resounding.
Marquis Anyang was speechless for a moment after being choked by Gu Junze's words, his face turning pale and then red.
His outstretched hand froze in mid-air. After a long while, he gritted his teeth and said, "You...do you even consider me your father anymore!"
The atmosphere inside was tense, with Gu Junze remaining resolute and unyielding.
A moment later, Marquis Anyang was defeated. He took a few heavy breaths and suppressed his anger.
"So, according to you two, what exactly do you want in order to let Madam Feng go?"
Gu Junze sat down unhurriedly, slightly raising his eyes, "Have Madam Feng kowtow to Han'er in front of everyone and apologize for her mistake..."
The Feng family's attempt to cover up the truth and preserve their reputation through misunderstanding is a pipe dream!
"In addition, we will compensate you with another 100,000 taels of silver."
Just as Marquis Anyang was about to scold him for asking for an exorbitant price, Gu Junze said, "My leg has fully recovered. I don't want to waste my days doing nothing anymore. I plan to go to the Eastern Camp for training... firstly to serve the court, and secondly to secure a future for myself."
Marquis Anyang's eyes narrowed instantly; this bastard was becoming increasingly incomprehensible.
Does he truly have ambitions, or does he have ulterior motives?
In the end, the Marquis of Anyang agreed...
After Marquis Anyang left, Chu Ruohan hurriedly closed the door.
"What are you thinking? Dongying is Feng's territory. If you go there, won't you be like a lamb entering a tiger's den?"
Gu Junze explained, "Don't rush, let me explain slowly. Before my mother passed away, the Shadow Guard was not in the capital. She only had a personal guard by her side, and that personal guard is now the Feng family army."
"Think about it, Feng Shaoyu was just a common soldier back then, how did he suddenly become a general and marry the only daughter of the Duke of Shan?"
His gaze hardened and became resolute. "There are too many suspicious points here. I must find out the truth."
“Even so, you don’t need to be imprisoned like this,” Chu Ruohan frowned. “Previously, in order to quell the usury issue, Marquis Anyang sold off a lot of the Princess’s properties, and I secretly ordered people to buy them all up…”
“In the manor on the outskirts of Beijing, there are still old people who used to serve the Princess. We can investigate from that angle; there’s no need to put ourselves in danger…”
Gu Junze stood up, interrupting her incessant chatter: "Didn't you ever suspect why he would poison his own son?"
Chu Ruohan took two steps back and plopped down in the chair. How could she not have thought of that? She just hadn't dared to think about it too deeply.
Gu Junze was not the biological son of the Marquis of Anyang, which is why he...
Then everything makes sense.
Gu Junze told her a secret: back then, the dashing and heroic Princess was the most dazzling presence in the capital, and the object of pursuit for many noble young men.
For some reason, she took a fancy to an insignificant illegitimate son in the Marquis's mansion.
The late emperor and empress dowager strongly opposed the marriage, given the vast difference in their social statuses, but the eldest princess was determined to marry him, and no one could dissuade her...
Just over a month after their marriage, news broke that the princess was pregnant.
Eight months later, the princess gave birth prematurely and had a difficult delivery of a son, who was weak and sickly from a young age.
Poisonous pregnancy-stabilizing drugs, the Rebellion of the Five Princes, the tragic death of the eldest princess... all of this seems like a huge conspiracy with one link after another.
There is an invisible hand controlling things.
Chu Ruohan couldn't help but wonder, if Gu Junze hadn't been premature but had been born full-term, then he really wouldn't have been the Marquis of Anyang's biological son.
Who was the man who got the princess pregnant back then?
Why be so irresponsible, leaving the princess to face it all alone?
Gu Junze noticed her confusion, squatted down, looked up at her, and his eyes showed helplessness.
“I asked the Shadow Guards, but they all refused to talk about it. I suppose my mother gave them a strict order back then, not to reveal a single word.”
He sighed softly, taking Chu Ruohan's hand, "Han'er, I once thought I would spend the rest of my life in a wheelchair. It was God who took pity on me and brought you back to my side, giving me hope to live on."
"But as a son, I cannot rest easy if I do not avenge my mother. I must find out the truth of what happened back then myself."
Chu Ruohan said regretfully, "If I had known, I wouldn't have made Madam Feng kneel outside."
Gu Junze smiled lightly and stood up. "The Marquis of Anyang has long been in cahoots with them. Whether or not I deal with the Feng family, they will not let me go."
Chu Ruohan was still full of worry, "I really can't rest easy about you going to Dongying."
Gu Junze gently stroked her cheek and comforted her, "Han'er, don't worry. Since I dare to venture into the tiger's den, I have naturally made thorough preparations."
"I won't let anything happen to myself. I want to come back and stay with you forever, to see all the wonders of this world together."