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墨書 Inktalez
The day after the wedding, sunlight poured into the garden.
Yue Huan squatted in the garden, bored, counting ants and muttering to herself. The marriage was merely a temporary measure; she planned to wait until he either died or found true love, and then she would be free.
But now, her innocence was lost, and she felt she had suffered a great loss!
As Yue Huan sighed in frustration, a man's voice came from behind her. "Madam, why are you here so early? Where is the young master?"
This man was Fan Zecheng, the manager of the Jiang family's shop—young and capable! Yue Huan preferred such ambitious young men over the despicable Jiang Duo. She disdainfully replied, "With his sickly condition, he’s probably still asleep."
"The young master has trouble with his legs; please be more considerate, Madam."
Fan Zecheng wore a feigned smile as he took out several pieces of jewelry and said flatteringly, "These were brought back by the staff. I picked out some good ones to present to you."
Yue Huan's eyes lit up at the sight of the jewels; she quickly reached out to gather them all. As she fondled the jewelry with delight, she casually remarked, "Jiang Duo's legs are probably beyond saving."
After wandering outside for quite some time, Yue Huan finally felt it was time to return to her room. Upon entering, she saw Jiang Duo sitting there with a sullen expression. Unable to resist teasing him, she asked with a hint of mockery, "Are you gravely ill?"
It wasn’t that she wished ill upon him; rather, everyone in the household believed he was on his last legs… After all, he had always maintained this sickly facade himself.
Unable to contain her curiosity, Yue Huan pressed further, "Why hide your true condition?"
Jiang Duo did not answer her question. Instead, his expression darkened as he retorted, "Have you seen Fan Zecheng?"
His face twisted into a scowl that was far from his usual mocking demeanor; it was filled with disgust.
Meanwhile, Madam Jiang was in another room, fuming as she scolded, "I never wanted a daughter-in-law like her!"
With her hands on her hips and a face full of discontent, she continued, "She married you solely for money! If it weren't for that ten thousand taels of silver, she wouldn't have come here to bring you good fortune!"
"Now look at this; it's barely been long since the wedding, and she's already trying to put a green hat on you!"
It turned out that Fan Zecheng had been frequently courting Yue Huan, presenting her with various precious jewels and artifacts every few days. Yue Huan accepted everything without hesitation, which sparked quite a bit of gossip within the household.
Jiang Duo leaned back on the soft couch and sighed weakly, "I knew all along that she was greedy."
He forced a bitter smile, a hint of helplessness on his face. "With my broken body, who would still want to marry me? Even if they did, it would only bring them suffering."
"Who says no one wants to? Liu Meng would be more than happy! It's you who won't agree!" Madam Jiang stomped her foot in anger, her emotions growing more intense.
Six months ago, Jiang Duo and Liu Meng were an enviable couple, with their wedding date approaching.
However, while Jiang Duo was out conducting business, he encountered robbers on his way back. He was severely injured and fell into a coma for a full half month. By the time he woke up, the the Liu Family had already canceled the engagement.
He was shocked by how quickly Liu Meng had called off their betrothal. Perhaps he didn't have deep feelings for her, but his pride wouldn't allow such a thing to happen.
"Mother, since you know she's a good girl, please don't let me ruin her," he pleaded.
He had grown tired of hearing these words; every time Madam Jiang brought it up, he could only respond with helplessness.
As she spoke, Yue Huan carefully walked in holding the medicine.
Madam Jiang had intended to say something more, but upon seeing Yue Huan enter, she swallowed her words and huffily turned to leave.
"Uh, is Mother angry?" Yue Huan asked awkwardly. Deep down, she knew she wasn't favored by the Jiang family, but she hadn't expected Madam Jiang to dislike her this much.
"Who told you to take that ten thousand taels?" Jiang Duo shot her a glare. "Couldn't you have just asked me for it?"
"Are you going to give it to me?" Yue Huan's eyes lit up, and she immediately extended her hand with a flattering smile plastered on her face. "Then how about you give me ten thousand taels right now?"
"I'll give you twenty thousand taels, but you have to agree to one condition," Jiang Duo said slowly, pulling out two banknotes of ten thousand taels each and waving them in front of Yue Huan.
Yue Huan's eyes widened as she stared intently at the banknotes, eagerly waiting for him to finish his sentence.
Jiang Duo deliberately paused for a moment before continuing, "Once you take this money, you'll be bound to stay here for the rest of your life."
Upon hearing this, Yue Huan recoiled as if scalded and quickly withdrew her hand.
To tie herself down for twenty thousand taels? That was out of the question.
Yet, she couldn't bear to part with the money. After hesitating for a long while, she finally couldn't resist and snatched the banknotes from him. "Let me think it over; I'll take this money for now."
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