Chapter 295: Paying Him Off, Forceful Means
The sun shone brightly outside.
Ji Qingwu sat backlit by the doorway, her girlish innocence faded and her eyes now filled with an intoxicating gentleness.
"Mother, what did you want to ask?"
The lines on Mrs. Qiao’s brow deepened. Having borne two daughters and a son, she was no fool.
The change in Xiao Wu’s demeanor.
What else could it be but the afterglow of a passionate encounter?
Ji Qingwu saw that her mother wasn’t speaking. She seemed both furious and heartbroken for her.
She spoke softly, "Mother, you..."
"Who is that animal?" Mrs. Qiao hissed, her voice low.
Mrs. Qiao knew Xiao Wu wasn’t a promiscuous girl. She was obedient at home and discreet in public, never one to stir up trouble. She must have been forced.
’Who in the Wei Family would be so brazen? To dare commit such a despicable act against Xiao Wu while Wei Ting is away on his campaign!’
Mrs. Qiao’s voice grew stern. "Tell me who it was! Are you still trying to protect that monster?"
Ji Qingwu pressed her lips together. She hadn’t expected her mother to realize what had happened the moment they met.
She was both shocked and uneasy, unsure how to explain.
She had actually planned to reveal some of the truth to Mrs. Qiao today, just not all at once. She was afraid her mother wouldn’t be able to handle so many "surprises."
Besides, the Emperor was still officially "unconscious and critically injured," and no public announcement had been made. If Mrs. Qiao found out that the little prince was her son, given how much she doted on Jiu Jiu, she would only worry herself sick, unable to eat or sleep.
That wasn’t something Qingwu wanted.
Ji Qingwu hesitated for a moment before meeting Mrs. Qiao’s gaze directly.
"Mother, I came back because there’s something I need to tell you."
Mrs. Qiao asked, "Is it about the man who took advantage of you?"
Ji Qingwu nodded, her fingers tightening on the carved pearwood table.
Mrs. Qiao spoke earnestly. "I know you didn’t want to marry Wei Ting, and I don’t wish to interfere in your life. You’re a grown woman now, and you must take responsibility for the choices you make."
"But as long as you are a wife of the Wei Family, you are under their authority. Do you have any idea what your fate will be if this gets out?"
"Let’s not even talk about how Wei Ting might react. That stern Old Mrs. Wei alone would not spare you if she found out."
In that short time, Mrs. Qiao, as the matriarch of the Ji Family, had already thought through many possibilities.
"Even if I were to swallow my pride and bring you home from the Wei Family, could you endure the hardship of being scorned by thousands? And even if you could, what would happen to Jiu Jiu?"
Ji Qingwu lowered her head, blushing with shame at her mother’s analysis.
Regardless of the reasons, her actions were indeed improper. Outsiders had no idea about the true nature of her relationship with Wei Ting.
Ji Qingwu’s eyes flickered. "Couldn’t I just divorce him?"
Mrs. Qiao said worriedly, "Wei Ting is at the Northern Border. How could you possibly divorce him? Besides, he went to such lengths to marry you. Would he really let you go so easily?"
’Xiao Wu is still thinking too simplistically,’ Mrs. Qiao thought, her eyes darting about as she formulated a plan.
Ji Qingwu, too, was carefully sorting through her thoughts.
She had only agreed to the marriage because Wei Ting had promised to loyally support Yuan Heng. She had been desperate, with no better way to protect him.
But as it turned out, Emperor Wu Su had deceived everyone, including her.
’As for his physical condition now... she had personally confirmed he was perfectly fine.’
The crisis of his imminent death from the misused medicine had been averted. The Emperor should be presiding over the court again soon, and everything would return to normal.
She no longer needed Wei Ting to do anything for Yuan Heng.
However, war between the Northern Border and Xijin could break out at any moment. She didn’t want to provoke Wei Ting with this news and risk affecting the war effort.
But Mrs. Qiao’s worries shouldn’t be too difficult to resolve.
Last night, Emperor Wu Su had handwritten an imperial edict. Wei Ting would not dare defy a royal command.
Mrs. Qiao had already made up her mind. "You can’t protect the man who did this to you any longer," she said decisively.
"While no one else knows, we must get him to leave Lin’an immediately. We can give him money, whatever he wants. If he refuses, then we’ll have to use more forceful means."
’Pay him off? Forceful means...?’
Ji Qingwu interjected weakly, "Mother, I’m afraid that’s not going to work."
Mrs. Qiao saw Xiao Wu’s meekness, as if she were putty in this man’s hands, completely unwilling to fight back.
She burst out in exasperation, "How can you still be thinking of him at a time like this? Listen to me. Few men can be trusted. You have to stand on your own two feet. Don’t let his sweet nothings cloud your mind."
Ji Qingwu couldn’t agree more with her mother. Her words would hold true for any other man in the world.
But against the Emperor, even if she stood her ground, she would still be crushed by the weight of imperial power.
Ji Qingwu opened her mouth to speak.
Just then, a knock sounded at the door, followed by Chunhua’s trembling voice.
"M-M-Madam, someone is here to see you."
Chunhua had been with Mrs. Qiao for years and had witnessed her share of grand occasions, but she had never been this frightened.
Mrs. Qiao was seated facing the door. "I am speaking with my daughter," she said sternly. "I’m not seeing anyone!"
"B-but..."
Chunhua was so terrified she could barely form a sentence, her lips trembling uncontrollably.
The man before her was Duan Mingfeng of the Imperial City Department. His face was so grim it looked like it could drip water. A sheltered manor maid like Chunhua would start trembling at the mere sight of him.
Mrs. Qiao noticed her maid’s strange behavior, and the conversation between mother and daughter came to a halt.
Ji Qingwu tried to stand and see what was happening, but Mrs. Qiao held her back by the hand.
"You stay seated and don’t move. I’ll deal with whoever is at the door. We still have things to discuss."
When Mrs. Qiao’s tone turned stern, Ji Qingwu didn’t dare disobey. She sat up straight and watched her mother go to the door.
The door opened.
Mrs. Qiao first saw Duan Mingfeng and froze in astonishment.
Duan Mingfeng bowed with his hands clasped. "Madam Ji."
But Mrs. Qiao quickly recovered.
’He wouldn’t be here without a reason.’ Duan Mingfeng had specifically chosen the day of Xiao Wu’s bridal homecoming to visit the Ji Family, and had even entered Anju Garden unannounced.
Mrs. Qiao’s expression shifted.
’If the man who took advantage of Xiao Wu was the notoriously ruthless Mr. Duan from the Imperial City Department, then it would all make sense. No wonder she’s so scared.’
Mrs. Qiao asked, her face darkening, "Are you here for Qingwu? Or for me?"
Duan Mingfeng lowered his head. "Madam Ji, I am not the one who has come to see you."
As he spoke, he stepped aside to reveal a man standing behind him, dressed in a pale cyan robe embroidered with an ink-splatter vine pattern.
The light fell upon his divinely handsome face, which seemed to absorb all the surrounding brilliance.
All expression vanished from Mrs. Qiao’s face. She felt her heart flutter in panic, her breath catching in her throat.
Zhao Mingyan, who had been listening to the conversation inside with a straight face, now looked at the woman who had just been planning to buy him off with money.
A slight smile touched the corner of his lips. "Madam Ji, it has been a while. Are you well?"
’The Emperor, who was supposed to be lying unconscious in the palace, was standing at her front door, asking after her health.’
Though reeling from shock and with a thousand questions swirling in her mind, Mrs. Qiao knew the doorway was no place to talk.