12dz Chapter 145 This is the second time.
Chapter 145 This is the second time.
As evening fell, the sunset glowed brilliantly, and every inch of light fell on the ground, filling the courtyard with light.
When Wang Xianrong was helped to the door by her maid, Cheng Yan was standing under the eaves, looking at a row of green bamboo in the courtyard, lost in thought.
Hearing footsteps, he turned around and saw that Wang Xianrong was pale. He gestured to the maid to help her to sit down on the balustrade under the eaves.
"My lord..." Wang Xianrong barely opened her mouth before tears welled up in her eyes.
The beauty was thin and pale, her face haggard, on the verge of tears yet stubbornly holding them back. Even women would feel pity for her, let alone men.
However, Cheng Yan only glanced at her, as if she were an ordinary guard or maid.
He is a man with clear goals and a firm mind. He is not easily moved or pitied by just any woman. Moreover, he is somewhat annoyed by Wang Xianrong's entanglement, which has caused a great stir in the city.
Cheng Yan immediately said, "Do you want to go back to the Wang family, or should I send you a house to move out to? Or perhaps you can move to a remote corner of the Pingxi Marquis's residence and never appear before me and the princess again?"
Wang Xianrong was initially pleased to see him visit, thinking that she would be happy if he cared about her in any way, even out of pity.
But to his surprise, she immediately wanted to deal with him.
Wang Xianrong's hands trembled, her mind a jumble of thoughts, yet she knew not how to resolve them. Her body felt as if she were in the depths of autumn, with an increasingly cold wind blowing by, offering no warmth whatsoever.
My heart felt as if it had been thrown into a vat of vinegar, overflowing with sourness and bitterness.
She clutched her chest, unwilling to accept it: "Is this how much the Marquis dislikes me? Can he no longer tolerate me? I no longer beg for the Marquis's pity, nor do I compete with the Princess. Why can't he still accept me?"
“This is the second time,” Cheng Yan said.
"What?" Wang Xianrong didn't understand.
“This is the second time you’ve angered the princess,” Cheng Yan said, looking at her.
The first time was because of a white flower, which touched a nerve with Qin Yizhen and made her furious. The second time was this time, when she ruined Qin Yizhen's plans and angered her.
Wang Xianrong was stunned for a while, then she burst out laughing. As she laughed, tears streamed down her face: "Did you come here today, Lord Marquis, just because I displeased the princess, and now you've come to punish me?"
"Is the Marquis so biased in his favor towards the princess?"
“Favoritism and bias certainly play a large part.” Cheng Yan’s tone was flat and indifferent, like the wind at dusk, wiping away the warmth of humanity inch by inch. “But your causing trouble is another part.”
"When you entered the gate, the princess told you to behave yourself, and I also told you not to cause trouble. The first time, I gave Xie Qu face and didn't hold it against you, but this time you are determined to cause trouble, and I will not tolerate you."
"In the end, the Marquis just can't tolerate me." Wang Xianrong twisted her handkerchief tightly. "The Marquis says I'm causing trouble, but has the Princess caused enough trouble? Putting aside everything else, even though she knows the Marquis doesn't like her, she still brought back one concubine after another for him."
"The Marquis is biased and doting on her, and he is tolerant and protective of her. Even when she makes a mistake, he forgives her again and again, and even cleans up her messes. But what about me? I only made a small mistake, and the Marquis can't tolerate it."
"But I am also the Marquis's woman. I dare not compete with the princess, but can't the Marquis show me some mercy?"
Cheng Yan suddenly looked at her.
Wang Xianrong's heart skipped a beat, and she stopped crying.
Cheng Yan's eyes and brows already showed coldness, indicating his impatience.
He was always busy, and when he came home each day, he only wanted to spend more time with his wife. He had no interest in arguing with her about love and affection.
"Don't forget one thing: I and the princess are husband and wife, and it is only right that I favor and love her. Even if she is immature or makes mistakes, I will naturally take full responsibility."
Cherishing one's wife is a matter of course; favoring a concubine over one's wife is truly absurd.
"As for you... ever since you willingly became a concubine, you have not deserved any pity." Cheng Yan closed his eyes. "Since you have chosen this path, how can you expect others to show favoritism, love, or respect?"
A concubine is a half-slave; she is the mistress of the servants in the household, and also a servant of the master and mistress.
When the master and queen need you, they will give you some face; when they don't need you, it's not impossible that they will give you away.
By willingly degrading herself, she was destined to be looked down upon.
"Go back to the Wang family. I will have them come to fetch you." Cheng Yan decided her fate with a single sentence.
"No, even if I don't leave, the Wang family won't agree to my return. Yes, the Wang family, even if the Marquis wants to divorce me, he'll have to see if the Wang family agrees!"
"The court is currently unstable. Even if Xie Qu was involved in the rebellion, the court would not dare to touch the Xie family. If we were to antagonize the Wang family for the sake of a woman like me, it would not be good for the Marquis, or even for the Empress Dowager and His Majesty."
"You can rest assured about that," Cheng Yan said calmly. "I know what you're up to with the Wang family. Isn't it precisely to use my influence to send the Wang family's daughter into the palace?"
"You became my concubine, waiting for the day when the royal family's daughter becomes empress, so that you will have the right to rival the princess. If I show you even more favoritism, the princess's situation will become awkward. At that time, I will not only force her to her death, but also force her to divorce me. It will not be difficult for you to make her the empress then."
Although the princess's status was noble, Emperor Taizong had passed away, and Qin Yizhen and Emperor Jing'an were not from the same mother. How much honor she could receive depended on the influence of Empress Dowager Cheng and Emperor Jing'an.
But who is Cheng Yan? He is Empress Dowager Cheng's younger brother. If he favors Wang Xianrong, Empress Dowager Cheng will most likely prioritize his preferences and will definitely favor him.
Wang Xianrong was not willing to remain a concubine forever!
That's exactly what they're planning.
Especially since Wang Xianrong is so devoted to him, and she has lowered herself so much for him, even the hardest steel would melt into his tenderness.
Unfortunately, Cheng Yan wasn't buying it.
Cheng Yan was in love with Qin Yizhen, and even resorted to underhanded tactics to steal her away in order to marry her, so naturally he cherished her dearly.
Moreover, because the Marquis of Chengen divorced his wife and remarried, his mother, Lady Mingguo, died tragically. He and Empress Dowager Cheng depended on each other for survival. He suffered hardships in his childhood, so he dared not have any other thoughts and only wanted to stay with his wife.
Therefore, all the schemes and plans of the Wang family and Wang Xianrong were ultimately in vain.
Wang Xianrong's expression froze.
Cheng Yan continued, "If I were to tell the Wang family that as long as you remain in the Pingxi Marquis's residence, no Wang family daughter will ever be allowed to enter the palace, do you think the Wang family would take you back?"
Wang Xianrong's expression changed drastically, her body went limp, and she slid off the balustrade.
Fortunately, a maid nearby caught her quickly, preventing her from falling to the ground.