Chapter 15 015 Known Throughout the City

Chapter 15: Known Throughout the City

Just waking up, her mind was a bit foggy, her face flushed a delicate pink, making her skin look even more translucent and flawless. Qiao Wanyue hummed in acknowledgment, nodding while eating, and after eating until half full, her mind was completely clear, and she started thinking.

Mother came to see her yesterday, surely worried she would go to the Qin residence and cause trouble, afraid she would take it too hard. Why would she take it so hard? Now she understood everything—marrying Qin Yan would be wonderful.

Wealthy, powerful, from a good family, incredibly handsome, and even a little considerate—what a great husband; she'd marry him. Even though he was a bit reserved, that didn't matter; after marriage, if she got bored, she could go play with Su Su, or go out shopping.

Thinking about married life, Qiao Wanyue was so happy she couldn't stop grinning, as if a beautiful life was beckoning her. Hehe, the young girl happily ate an extra half bowl, her belly round and full, her skirt pulled a bit uncomfortably tight.

She sighed in frustration, having accidentally given in to her appetite again. She shouldn't eat too much, but in her joy, she forgot.

"My foot isn't convenient for walking—let Mother come to me."

Zhu Qing went to fetch Mrs. Wang, while Hong Mei cleared the table. The room was filled with the smell of food, so she quickly opened the windows to air it out. Qiao Wanyue was in a good mood and, seeing Hong Mei bustling about, said, "Hong Mei, light the pear-fragrance incense."

She usually didn't like burning incense in the room, but today, for some reason, she really wanted to smell the sweet, refreshing scent. Hong Mei asked her about it with a smile, and she bit her lip, thinking, then said, "I'm in a good mood, but I want to feel even better."

Hong Mei was puzzled but followed her instructions and lit the incense. Soon, the room was filled with a sweet fragrance that lifted everyone's spirits.

Qiao Wanyue lay half-reclined on the daybed, her injured foot carefully placed and kept still. The young girl closed her eyes contentedly, her mind full of joy.

Before long, Zhu Qing brought Mrs. Wang. As soon as Mrs. Wang entered, they withdrew. Qiao Wanyue sat up, beaming at Mrs. Wang.

"Where did you go yesterday? Did you really go see Qin Yan?"

"Yes, I went, and I sprained my ankle."

She pointed to her foot. Mrs. Wang frowned deeper, lifted the hem of Qiao Wanyue's skirt to take a look, saw it seemed fine, and moved on. Then she turned to ask about things between her and Qin Yan.

"You saw him? What did you say to him?"

There was too much to ask; Mrs. Wang asked everything in one breath, not giving her a chance to speak.

For the first time, she found her mother a bit noisy. Qiao Wanyue helplessly covered her ears, but Mrs. Wang noticed and pulled her hands down.

"Listen whether you want to or not. Mother is doing this for your own good. Since the marriage is already settled, you might as well go through with it. I think the Marquis's residence is excellent, and the Marquis himself is steady and reserved—a man worth entrusting your life to."

Mrs. Wang praised Qin Yan's virtues and the benefits of the Marquis's residence. Qiao Wanyue reluctantly listened to a couple of sentences, then couldn't help but laugh, because Mrs. Wang was almost repeating what Qin Yan had told her.

Qiao Wanyue's eyes twinkled mischievously, and she wanted to tease her, so she said in a pitiful tone, "They say outside that he's cursed to lose his wives and that he's impotent. Mother, aren't you worried?"

"How can you take rumors seriously?"

As a woman who's been through it, Mrs. Wang analyzed for her daughter: "Qin Yan is tall, strong, and walks with powerful strides. His waist looks strong and sturdy—how could he be incompetent? I think he's very capable."

Qiao Wanyue was embarrassed. If she had known her mother would analyze it in such detail, she wouldn't have teased her. Now she was blushing with heat, too shy to face anyone.

She quickly said, "Mother, stop talking."

Her mother was also a flexible person. Seeing that the engagement couldn't be called off, she quickly accepted it and was now even acting as a persuader. Well, she would learn from her mother.

"You were worried, weren't you? Mother has observed for you, so rest assured, it won't be wrong."

The young girl's neck was red, and she asked, breathing a little heavily, "When did you observe?"

"Last time when they came to present the betrothal gifts."

"..."

Qiao Wanyue was utterly speechless—she had been observing everything so early, and she hadn't noticed a thing. Last time Qin Yan came to the Qiao residence to propose, and now he had to do it again.

Seeing her daughter blush, Wang Shi tactfully stopped talking and only reassured her, saying Qin Yan could protect her. Whether Qin Yan could protect her or not, Qiao Wanyue didn't know, but she did know that Wang Shi had fully accepted Qin Yan as her future son-in-law and was quite satisfied with him.

"His first wife wasn't 'cursed' to death; it was an accident. I heard that when Qin Yan was posted to Yuzhou back then, Lin Aizhen was searching for him and encountered bandits along the way, leading to the tragedy. So don't believe everything you hear outside."

Regarding Lin Aizhen's death, she had also heard it from Su Su, and it was indeed true. Su Su still hadn't gotten over it and missed her sister very much.

Qiao Wanyue lowered her gaze and sighed. She also felt it was a pity. Su Su said her sister had been a virtuous woman—heaven must have been blind.

After finishing the topic of Qin Yan, Wang Shi brought up her dowry again: "I've reorganized your dowry. Your father added quite a bit; we can't tarnish the Qiao family's reputation."

She fidgeted with her handkerchief, rolling it back and forth, bored, and not really caring about the dowry.

"You all decide—whatever you give, I'll take." She had no demands.

She slouched back against the couch, boneless, not even interested in her own dowry. Wang Shi was annoyed—at this point, how could she still be so lazy? What would she do once she married into the Marquis Mansion?

On the surface, Wang Shi seemed completely at ease, but in truth, she was full of worry. She sighed inwardly.

"I'll bring you the dowry list another day. You can take a look yourself."

Wang Shi glanced outside and lowered her voice significantly. "Your father said he'll give you Qinghe Manor as part of your dowry, along with the orchard in the outskirts—all to you."

"Mother, you must have misheard."

Qiao Wanyue was very surprised, sitting upright and looking at Wang Shi seriously. Giving her the orchard was already generous enough, but now the manor? Previously, it was agreed that Qinghe Manor would be given to her elder sister as a dowry. If it went to her now, her sister would definitely cause a scene.

"No."

She refused. "That's elder sister's. I don't want it. If she finds out, she'll say I stole her dowry, and that would sound terrible. Mother, tell Father I don't need it."

"I already told him."

Wang Shi knew it was inappropriate too. She had advised Qiao Zhuofan as soon as he mentioned it, but once Qiao Zhuofan made a decision, no one could talk him out of it. He didn't want the Marquis Mansion to look down on them, Wang Shi understood clearly.

"The Qin family is a prestigious household. Your father is afraid they'll look down on the Qiao family, so he wants to pad the dowry."

Qiao Wanyue understood, but let out a disdainful 'tch' sound. "If they look down on us, don't marry me. It's simple—just don't be in-laws. Since the engagement is set, why talk about being looked down upon? You're overthinking."

"Sweetie, it's not Qin Yan who might, but other people in the Qin family might. You'll need to be more cautious in the future."

She said nothing, feeling that Wang Shi was right. Qin Yan was fine, but the other members of the Qin residence were another matter. As her mother said, she really did need to be more careful.

Qiao Wanyue leaned back again and said, "As for the manor, I'll talk to Father myself when he returns."

"Alright."

Wang Shi couldn't persuade Qiao Zhuofan, so she'd see if her daughter could. She couldn't manage much; the dowry list was personally reviewed by Qiao Zhuofan, with her assisting. It was clear that Qiao Zhuofan placed great importance on this marriage, even more than on Qiao Yingxin's marriage.

After Wang Shi left, Qiao Wanyue lowered her eyes, lost in thought. After a long while, she looked up and said to Hongmei, "Let me know when Father returns."

"Yes, I understand, Miss."

-

Just as Qiao Wanyue was troubled by the dowry, rumors about the marriage were spreading all over the city, making the whole city buzz.

The townspeople were saying, why did Qin Yan choose not to marry Qiao Yingxin but instead the second Miss Qiao? Even though her surname was Qiao, she was not Qiao Zhuofan's own blood but another man's child. Is Qiao Zhuofan out of his mind?

But those in the know shook their heads and whispered, "I heard that Qiao Yingxin was caught sneaking around with another man, and the Marquis caught them red-handed. He got angry and wanted to break off the engagement. Qiao Zhuofan wouldn't allow it—he'd finally landed a marriage into the Marquis Mansion, so why would he give up such a powerful in-law? So he came up with this plan: marry the second daughter off to Marquis Qin instead. Same thing—he'd still be Qin Yan's father-in-law."

"You think Qin Yan's an idiot? He can see right through the Qiao family's schemes."

Another person waved his hand and said, "No, no, it was Qin Yan who fell in love with the second young lady at first sight, which is why they swapped the brides."

"What do you know? Qiao Yingxin didn't want to marry into the Qin family, so she passed it on to the second young lady."

A group of people were drinking tea in a tea house, gathered together chatting about this matter, the stories getting more and more absurd. Not just them, but the nearby stalls and taverns were all talking about it, chatting with great excitement.

The nanny beside Grand Madame Qin heard this and turned pale with anger. She quickly bought her things and returned to the Qin Mansion, telling the Grand Madame about the gossip among the commoners.

The more Madam Yang listened, the darker her face got. She slammed the table in anger, "You didn't listen to me back then, and now everyone knows. We've brought so much shame on the Qin family."

"Where is the Marquis? Has he returned yet?"

The steward nearby replied, "We just sent someone to invite him. The Marquis said he is busy now and will come later."

Madam Yang had been ill for several days due to anger over Qin Yan and Qiao Wanyue's marriage. Today she was feeling a little better, but upon hearing the rumors again, her headache returned.

"What is he busy with? Something more important than the marriage?"

The steward glanced at her and replied cautiously, "According to the servants in the courtyard, the Marquis is writing the betrothal gift list."

"Humph," Madam Yang snorted coldly. "He's really putting in the effort now. I didn't see him put such effort into marrying Lin Aizhen back then."

Madam Yang waved her hand, dismissing the steward. Only she and her trusted nanny, Nanny Liu, remained in the room. After a moment of silence, Nanny Liu suddenly chuckled softly and whispered in her ear, "Grand Madame, there's no need to worry. The Marquis marrying Qiao Wanyue is a good thing. She has no family background, she's timid and quiet – easy to handle. You'll still be in charge of the household. If you want to do something, she won't suspect a thing."

The silent Madam Yang suddenly let out a cold laugh, a scheming look in her eyes. She glanced at Nanny Liu and said, "You're as sharp as ever – you read my mind."

The Qin Mansion was a great clan. The Marquis taking a wife was naturally a major event. The clan elders didn't approve. If she agreed, wouldn't people talk? By pretending to be ill, those stubborn old fogeys couldn't say a thing against her. If Qiao Wanyue ever messes up down the road, it would have nothing to do with her. All she had to do was go through the motions to show everyone she was against the wedding.

"Grand Madame, what should we do next?" Nanny Liu asked.

Madam Yang rubbed her temples. "Play along with his wishes. Just wait for them to tie the knot."

"Yes."

-

Meanwhile, back at the Qiao mansion, before Qiao Wanyue could go talk to Qiao Zhuofan about the dowry, Qiao Yingxin threw a fit. First she raised a ruckus in her own courtyard, then stormed into the main hall and started breaking things, leaving shards everywhere. The maids dared not even clean up.

That is, until Qiao Zhuofan came back.