Chapter 42
Chapter 42 Young Master Xu, Please Break off the Engagement!
“Since Mr. Yue is already here to discuss the matter, please take a seat first. I do want to hear your opinion on this,” the Old Lady finally uttered something. She smiled at the young man as Granny Wu sent someone to serve him tea.
“Thank you, Mrs. Qu!” Yue Wenhan still had much respect for the Old Lady. Her words softened the stern look on his face, and he bowed to her politely, “I was too worried about my cousin. Please forgive me for my rudeness, Mrs. Qu!”
The young man turned back to his usual gracious look, leaving a good impression on the Old Lady. She smiled back again, saying that he didn’t need to worry about it.
Everyone sat down on their seats in order. Yu Chun helped Yu Dong up, and both of them stood back behind Qu Moying.
Yu still tried to say something, but then she noticed Yue Wenhan’s cold gaze falling on her. She held Qu Qiuyan’s hand and shook her head quietly, signaling her to stay silent.
However, Qu Qiuyan didn’t even think about defending her family after Yue Wenhan entered their mansion. She was in silence the whole time, lowering her head. Compared to everyone else, a good reputation was even more important to her. If Yu Qingmeng became the wife of Young Master Yongning, it could be beneficial for her; if she became a concubine, Qu Qiuyan thought that Lady Yu had no value to her anymore.
She’d rather not have a cousin who was a concubine.
“Young Master Yongning wants to marry Lady Yu as his concubine?” After sitting down, Yue Wenhan adjusted his clothes, took a sip of the tea, and asked.
Qu Zhizhen couldn’t be more exasperated. He frowned, “I will ask Young Master Yongning to give me a proper explanation.”
“That would be perfect. If Mr. Qu doesn’t have time for it, I can ask him as well.” Yue Wenhan kept adding the pressure.
“You don’t need to be bothered for this, Mr. Yue! I can handle it myself,” Qu Zhizhen said coldly.
“I appreciate it, Mr. Qu!” The young man curled up his lips, the look on his face softened. Then he turned around and look at the Old Lady, “I apologize for my sudden visit, Mrs. Qu. I heard that my cousin moved back to the mansion from the village. I’m worried about her, and this is why I’m here. Please forgive me if I’ve bothered you.”
“We should’ve invited you earlier, Mr. Yue. Since Ying just came back to the mansion, she needs some time to get accustomed first. We didn’t expect that you would visit us so soon, and I appreciate your concern for her,” said the Old Lady smilingly.
The two’s casual conversation brought some relief to everyone in the room.
After they chatted for a while, Yue Wenhan stood up and excused himself. He was here to support his cousin, and it was about time for him to leave.
After getting permission from the Old Lady, Qu Moying stood up as well to walk him out.
“Cousin, you don’t like Xu Lipeng?” After they walked out of the Old Lady’s yard, Yue Wenhan asked Qu Moying, who was walking beside him. His initial impression of Xu Lipeng was pretty good since the young master neither broke off the engagement agreed by his aunt nor did he show any disrespect to his cousin.
It turned out things were not as simple as they looked!
“Young Master Xu liked Lady Yu, and the person he wants to marry is Lady Yu. She once even asked me to break off the engagement or be his first wife in name only. I don’t want any of it, but Father forces me to marry him. He said Lady Yu can help me stabilize the relationship between the two families, and I should be grateful that Lady Yu is willing to be the second wife after me.”
Qu Moying explained the whole situation to him calmly.
The young girl’s face was expressionless when she talked about the engagement, showing she didn’t have any expectations. The only daughter of his aunt almost relived the same tragedy as her mother, and Yue Wenhan felt very sorry for her.
“Don’t worry. I will never allow them to force you. Since Xu Lipeng has an affair with the lady from the Yu’s Family, I’m sure evidence can be found. If they still hold onto the engagement by then, I won’t go easy on the young master,” Yue Wenhan said coldly, with a stern look on his face.
His words sent some warmth to Qu Moying’s heart. Yue Wenhan was also her cousin when she used to be Ji Hanyue in her past life and treated her well. However, they were not close either because they had to obey the rules of etiquette, and the Crown Prince was never fond of him.
She didn’t expect they could be cousins again after she had reborn. They were only remotely related this time, but he still spared no effort to support her!
She invited Yue Wenhan here today to show him the scene when she was scolded by Qu Zhizhen because she knew it would give her father some pressure.
“I really appreciate it, cousin!” Qu Moying thanked him faithfully.
The engagement was almost confirmed to be broken off since Yue Wenhan already pushed Qu Zhizhen to step back. It was only a matter of time now.
When Xu Lipeng arrived at the Qu’s Mansion, Qu Zhizhen was already waiting for him in the study. The look on his face was stern as the young master entered.
Xu Lipeng stepped closer and bowed to him, “I’m glad to see you, Mr. Qu. I heard that you came back, and please forgive me for the disturbance. I want to talk to you about something.”
He also prepared some gifts for Qu Zhizhen to welcome him back.
Qu Zhizhen’s cold gaze fell on him. He used to regard Xu Lipeng as a promising young man, but he completely changed his mind right now. The unexpected visit of Yue Wenhan was all thanks to him and Yu Qingmeng.
For this matter, Qu Zhizhen immediately sent the butler to ask around after coming back from the Old Lady’s yard. It turned out that everything Qu Moying said was true.
Moreover, those two had acted intimately in front of all his servants, never trying to hide from anyone. Qu Zhizhen couldn’t be angrier after hearing it. It was not that he was worried about Qu Moying, but Xu Lipeng made him lose face in front of all the servants!
He used to trust Xu Lipeng so much, taking him as his son-in-law. He even felt a bit guilty for the young man marrying his terrible daughter. After their wedding, if Xu Lipeng wanted to marry other women, he wouldn’t say anything about it. He’d even be happy for him if the young man really found someone he liked later.
But Qu Zhizhen never thought that Xu Lipeng would betray his trust, and he even did it in his own mansion, making all the servants take him as a foolish master.
“Young Master, are you here to break off the engagement?” Losing all his patience, Qu Zhizhen asked directly.
“What makes you say that, Mr. Qu? I thought you’re always aware of my feelings for the Fourth Lady.” Xu Lipeng was surprised. Before, Yu Qingmeng told him that Qu Moying wouldn’t make any trouble after her father returned home. After the wedding date was confirmed, he could start to arrange the marriage between Yu Qingmeng and him.
Anything could be delayed, but the baby in her womb couldn’t.
“Young Master Xu, since you want to marry the daughter of the Yu’s Family, you don’t need to lie about my daughter anymore. The engagement will be broken off, and we will return all the betrothal gifts given by the Xu’s Family. Everything will go back to where it came,” said Qu Zhizhen with a displeased look on his face. After being threatened by Yue Wenhan, a flame of rage had been burning in him. No one could sit tight in this situation.
“Mr. Qu, who told you that? My first wife is meant to be Fourth Lady Qu, and there’s nothing to be worried about,” Xu Lipeng said in a righteous tone, thinking that Qu Zhizhen was just trying to sound him out.
Qu Zhizhen’s face twitched with rage, and he said more firmly, “Our family can’t afford this engagement with the Xu’s Family anymore. Since you have affection for Lady Yu, and you two apparently have developed a close relationship in my mansion, you can just marry her. My family doesn’t want to be involved in this. I know my daughter might not be a good choice for you, but I don’t want her to be the cover of someone else’s love affair.”
Xu Lipeng was stunned with his mouth open. He didn’t know what to say, and his face turned red because of embarrassment. He never thought Qu Zhizhen would point it out so straightforward and break the friendship between the two families.
“Young Master, I’ve known everything between you and Yu Qingmeng. It’s over. The engagement has to be broken off!” Qu Zhizhen rubbed his forehead and said clearly.
“Mr. Qu, isn’t it normal that a man has a confidante that is not his wife? Why do we have to break off the engagement? It will be bad for both families’ reputation,” Xu Lipeng defended himself hurriedly as his face turned redder.
He didn’t think there was anything wrong with Yu Qingmeng and his relationship. Both of them accepted it by their own free will, not to mention he hinted Yu Qingmeng many times that he would marry Qu Moying, and Yu Qingmeng could be his second wife. Both of them would be his wives, and there wouldn’t be any differences. But why was everyone displeased about it? Well, maybe once or twice, he indeed promised Yu Qingmeng that he would only marry her. But wouldn’t every man say something like that in some specific situation?!
Who would take it seriously?!
Even if the engagement would really be broken off, it had to be because of Qu Moying’s bad reputation. He definitely could not be the reason for it.
“Young Master Xu, please break off the engagement!” Qu Zhizhen said firmly.
It was not his fault that he changed his mind. The Old Lady disagreed; Qu Moying disagreed; more importantly, Yue Wenhan threatened to interfere. It would be too late if they didn’t break off the engagement early and waited until Yue Wenhan found the evidence. Then not only Xu Lipeng’s name would be ruined but also his. Xu Lipeng should be the one to blame because it was Yu Qingmeng and him who disobeyed the rules of etiquette, and they even let it happen in the Qu’s Mansion, which could be easily confirmed.
“Mr. Qu…”
“Someone, show Young Master Xu the door!” Qu Zhizhen waved his hand, losing all his patience. He didn’t want to waste one more second on this young man. He used to regard him as a promising son-in-law, but actuality, Xu Lipeng was just a useless playboy blinded by his own desire.
A young servant walked up and smirked at Xu Lipeng, “Young Master, this way!”
Xu Lipeng was furious about being driven out by Qu Zhizhen. His face turned red and then pale, and it became even redder later. He had never been cold-shouldered like this before, and he couldn’t bear the embarrassment of standing in this place for one more second.
He hurriedly strode outside, but Qu Zhizhen’s voice rang again behind him when he was at the door, “Young Master Xu, please send the engagement card back immediately once you’re home. Yue Wenhan said if the engagement is not broken off, he will conduct a thorough investigation. You are a smart man. I’m sure you can understand what he means!”
With a dull, heavy sound, Xu Lipeng’s forehead hit the door frame hard, and it got red and swollen at once.
Feeling the pain, Xu Lipeng touched his forehead subconsciously, but then his face turned pale all of a sudden as something crossed his mind. Yue Wenhan was involved as well?
As the young vice minister of the Dali Temple, Yue Wenhan’s status was always something that Xu Lipeng aimed for. No matter in the Imperial Examination years ago or in terms of the current power level, there had been a huge gap between them.
As Young Master Yongning, Xu Lipeng indeed had a powerful family. However, Marquis Yongning was not a competent person, and he didn’t have any actual power in his position. Xu Lipeng was the only hope to make the Xu’s Family prosper, but even so, Xu Lipeng still thought his family background was better than Yue Wenhan’s.
Yue Wenhan was born in a scholarly family in the South. His family was wealthy, but the Yues only chased after the peace of life. They were well-reputed in the literary world, but not many chose the political path. Some of them ended up being officials, but those positions were just in name only. They knew well how to enjoy life but didn’t have the competence to climb up.
However, Yue Wenhan was an outlier in this bloodline. He was a student with top performance and then became a competent official in the political field. He climbed up smoothly, winning recognition from the emperor. Everyone considered him a young man with a bright future. His intervention meant Yu Qingmeng and Xu Lipeng’s affair could be easily revealed. For the first time in a long period, the young master of the Xu’s Family panicked.
He gritted his teeth with annoyance. It seemed that he had to break off the engagement with Qu Moying, but he still couldn’t accept that he was rejected by an ugly, blind woman. Where did she get the courage to do that?
Xu Lipeng covered his forehead with his hand, standing in the yard with a pale face.
At the same time, an old maid sneaked close to him, looking around to see if anyone noticed her. She hurriedly handed a letter to Xu Lipeng and then left with caution…
