The Female Cannon Fodder With Boundless Merits
Chapter 290 - 294: The Struggle of the Inner House (20

Chapter 290: Chapter 294: The Struggle of the Inner House (20

"Ah Yin, the Second Prince has deep feelings for you," pleaded her mother. "Listen to me, now is not the time to hold onto your past ambitions. You should rid yourself of those thoughts as soon as possible."

Zhu Liusha thought Su Ying insisted on not marrying the Second Prince because she still harbored ambitions of climbing higher in status.

If the incident of Gai Yinyin gaining the Holy Emperor’s favor had not occurred, Lord Duke Ying would still be in His Majesty’s good graces, and she wouldn’t have stopped her daughter from harboring such aspirations.

But now...

Being merely a name in front of the Holy Emperor at Duke Ying Mansion, it would be better for Su Ying to erase those thoughts sooner rather than later.

Zhu Liusha felt as bitter as bitter wormwood in her heart.

It was her own burden that had dragged her child down, otherwise, Su Ying would not have been so disheartened.

Apart from the Second Prince, there truly wasn’t another suitor in the Capital who wouldn’t mind her background.

Su Ying’s last hope had been her mother, but all she heard was her mother coming to advise her otherwise.

She was close to breaking down.

"Murong Ya, he is a madman, a terrifying madman."

"Mother, do you want to watch me be sent to my death?"

Zhu Liusha was startled at first, but quickly reacted, scolding sharply, "Su Ying, do not spout nonsense."

"Seems you didn’t wish to marry me after all..." Murong Ya stood at the door, holding a box containing a pearl hairpin, his face covered with frost.

Step by step he walked in, "I thought, Ah Yin, that you had come to share feelings as I do, that just as I like you, you liked me too."

"Otherwise, how do you explain blushing shyly every time you see me and not rejecting my advances?"

When Zhu Liusha saw the Second Prince suddenly appear, she fell to her knees in fright, begging continuously for forgiveness, "Your Highness, please forgive her. Su Ying doesn’t truly think like that..."

Murong Ya didn’t even glance at Zhu Liusha; he let her kneel on the cold stone floor.

He leaned in close to Su Ying, whispering softly in her ear as if to caress a lover, "Little Cutie, you’ve uncovered my true nature. Tell me, how should I punish you?"

Su Ying’s eyes widened in terror.

The Second Prince’s madness lingered only for a moment, then disappeared, unnoticed by anyone else present except for Su Ying, who trembled with fear.

"The wedding will be moved up by three months. It would be wise for the Duchess of Duke Mansion to make arrangements sooner, lest I become angry."

"Your Mansion has another young lady and a young master, doesn’t it..."

Before Murong Ya could finish his threat, Zhu Liusha, nearly fainting, was quickly filled with dread and nodded hastily in agreement, "Yes, Your Highness, rest assured the Mansion will handle everything properly."

At this moment, Zhu Liusha could no longer afford to pity Su Ying, as her other two children also weighed heavily on her heart.

After the Second Prince left with a sweep of his robe, Zhu Liusha quickly followed suit.

During this time, she could not bear to look at Su Ying’s blood-drained face, nor dare to face her accusatory, heartbroken, disbelieving gaze—a complex mix of emotions.

Having arrived in a hurry, she also left in a hurry.

Soon, the small courtyard returned to its quiet and tranquil state, save for Su Ying, who remained slumped on the ground, unable to rise for a long time, while others were still methodically busy with their tasks.

No matter how unwilling Su Ying was, the wedding proceeded as normal.

The wedding date was moved up, so many things had to be prepared in a hurry and ended up quite rough.

According to the customs of the Jin Dynasty, the bride had to hand-sew some personal items for the groom, but seeing Su Ying’s demeanor, it was absolutely impossible for her to do it herself.

Zhu Liusha had no choice but to look for top-notch embroidery ladies and then pass them off as Su Ying’s work, thinking that the Second Prince probably wouldn’t mind.

What need was there for a Princess Consort to do the work herself? Even girls from prestigious households who were not adept at needlework would symbolically stitch a couple of threads.

As the wedding date approached, Zhu Liusha gave instructions to the household and then left the house with a pair of dragon and phoenix twins.

Before they encountered the most famous Embroidery Pavilion in the city, they first paid a visit to the pawnshop.

Previously, before leaving home, the housekeeper wept about the household’s poverty, claiming there wasn’t a single extra Silver Coin to be extracted from the account.

Was it not the intention of Lord Duke Mansion that their own Su Xue should embroider a purse on behalf of her sister, which would also count as hand-made and be more sincere than one made by an outside embroidery lady?

But Zhu Liusha didn’t see it that way. How could it be appropriate for a younger aunt to embroider personal items for her brother-in-law?

Since the household had no Silver Tael to spare, she could only take out a few precious pearl hairpins from her own box, with the intention of pawning some of them in exchange for cash. The rest she planned to take to Jinyu Building, where they would be melted down to create fashionable styles suitable for young girls in the Capital.

The household’s finances were now thin, and they still had to provide a dowry for Su Ying; everything else was simplified as much as possible, out of necessity.

However, Zhu Liusha was a woman, and a mother at that, and naturally understood how important a woman’s once-in-a-lifetime wedding is.

She already felt somewhat indebted to Su Ying and certainly didn’t want her daughter’s wedding to be any more humble.

The entourage from Duke Ying Mansion quickly exited the Embroidery Pavilion and then headed toward Jinyu Building.

Zhu Liusha’s expression was not a good one, and the twins, seeing their mother like this, didn’t dare to be noisy.

No wonder Zhu Liusha didn’t wish to go out; the chatter from people outside was just too much to bear, with countless strange glances shot her way unabashedly.

What they considered low whispers made it impossible for her to even force a smile.

Zhu Liusha felt increasingly unwell, her body seemed on the verge of collapse, and she truly wished to faint and have done with it all.

Although the head of the Embroidery Pavilion showed no difference in demeanor, from her evasive speech, Zhu Liusha knew that the person before her looked down on her as well.

It was only after gritting her teeth and adding another layer of Silver Taels that the manager reluctantly took on the business.

Since when had it become so difficult for people from Duke Ying Mansion to carry out their business outside the household?

The sense of grievance in Zhu Liusha’s heart surged with each passing moment.

Outsiders only saw her existence, which had caused Dowager An significant distress, but why didn’t they consider the hardships of a young widow like her, struggling to survive alone in this perilous Mortal World with her daughter?

The arrival of Su Shi was like a savior lifting her from misery, and any woman in her place would have made the same decision.

She had never intended to harm Dowager An, but circumstances were so unpredictable.

Over the years, she had always harbored a sense of guilt; wasn’t that enough?

Now, because of Dowager An, Duke Ying Mansion, her husband, and her children were already suffering greatly. Why couldn’t those outside let them be?

Zhu Liusha was sullen throughout the journey, and only when they reached Jinyu Building did she manage to muster some energy.

The attitude of Jinyu Building’s shopkeeper towards them was normal, at least on the surface, which made Zhu Liusha feel a bit better.