Raising a wife? The mistress of the Hou family divorced and remarried her younger uncle

Chapter 287 Brothers
Lu Jing was dealing with an urgent official matter when Lu Feng's voice disturbed him. He frowned, thinking to himself that Li An was becoming more and more inconsiderate, not even stopping him. When he was busy with important matters, he didn't want to pay attention to his personal affairs at all.

Lu Feng barged into his study without any hindrance. Lu Jing put down the official documents and patiently got up. "Brother, what's all this commotion?"

"The Princess of Huainan is Xie Zhaolan, isn't she?" Lu Feng cut to the chase, his eyes red with anger, and looked at Lu Jing with a very unfamiliar gaze, even with a hint of disgust and disdain. Even when he suspected Lu Jing of having an affair with Su Qingwan in the ancestral hall and the two fought, he had never looked at Lu Jing with such a gaze.

Lu Jing was slightly taken aback. His elder brother had seen him?
"No!" Lu Jing thought to himself, he wasn't exactly lying. Su Qingwan was Su Qingwan, and his elder sister-in-law was his elder sister-in-law. "She is Princess Su Qingwan of Huainan, she just looks very much like my elder sister-in-law."

"You're talking nonsense!" Lu Feng was furious. "Ziyu, your brother has always protected you since you were a child. How have I ever wronged you? You won't even tell me the truth. I shared a bed with Zhaolan for three years. I would recognize her even if she were ashes. She is Zhaolan. What Princess of Huainan? Do you think I'm blind?"

Lu Jing's voice was indifferent, "Brother, if your sister-in-law were the Princess of Huainan, would you still dare to marry Li Xueying? If she were humiliated, wouldn't she fight back? Back then, you and Li Xueying caused her to fall off the cliff. Although Li Xueying was the murderer, you tacitly approved of it. An accomplice is also a murderer. If she were your sister-in-law, you wouldn't be alive. The spies and guards around her are far more capable than the Embroidered Uniform Guard. Would she let you go? People in this world can look alike. She just happens to look like your sister-in-law. Don't be so paranoid."

Lu Feng laughed in anger. She was clearly lying through her teeth. "You've been secretly having an affair with her for a long time! You said you liked the Southwest Princess and asked the Emperor to grant you a marriage. Why did you break off the engagement after the late Emperor died? You were clearly only marrying the Southwest Princess to climb the Regent's throne and curry favor with the Southwest Prince. And what a coincidence! The nine clans of Huainan were wiped out, and no one has been heard of alive in all these years. Yet, right after the late Emperor's death, the Huainan Princess appeared in Huainan, and after my divorce from Zhaolan, there were traces of her there. It's all too coincidental. If you resemble someone, fine, I'll send someone to Jiangnan to find the Xie family and bring Xie Zhaolan to the capital. If the two of you stand before me looking exactly alike, then I'll believe you. Otherwise, she is Xie Zhaolan, and you can't marry her."

Lu Jing was furious. If his elder brother hadn't made a mistake, hadn't soured with his sister-in-law, and hadn't insisted on marrying Li Xueying, he and his sister-in-law had once shared a passionate and loving relationship. They were a loving couple, and he and Su Qingwan wouldn't have had to go through such a long and winding road. Twin sisters marrying their brothers would have been a beautiful story, but his elder brother was too ambitious and insisted on climbing the social ladder, squandering a golden opportunity.

“Brother, you and your sister-in-law are divorced. Whether she remarries or not is none of your business. You shouldn’t go to Jiangnan to bother her. The identity of the Princess of Huainan was personally recognized by the Princess and the Marquis of Ningyuan. There are also princes’ direct descendants in the entire Huainan fiefdom. They couldn’t possibly be lying. If there isn’t solid evidence, no one would dare to confirm her identity. And not just anyone can impersonate the Princess of Huainan.” Lu Jing said calmly, “I’ll pretend I didn’t hear your nonsense. Please leave, brother.”

"Ziyu, don't deceive yourself. You know what I'm worried about. No matter how much you deny it, you know the truth. She was married to me for three years, and after the divorce, she married you. How can your reputation be good? How could the clan allow her to enter the family? Do you want to anger the clan elders to death? She used to be your sister-in-law. Are you confused? If you marry her, won't that confirm the crime of you and your sister-in-law having an affair? Before we were divorced, the rumors about you were known throughout the city. Now, if others know the truth, who knows what they will say? At least have some sense of face! The entire Lu family will be disgraced because of you. Ziyu, don't be confused!" Lu Feng pleaded earnestly, more conscientious than a censor, determined to pull Lu Jing back to the right path.

Lu Jing sneered, losing his patience. "I've explained to you before, she's not the eldest sister-in-law. You insist on believing she is, yet you can't provide any evidence. Even if she is, so what? She's divorced from you, and she's free to marry. Just because we're brothers, does that mean she can't marry me? That's unreasonable. I don't have much reputation left; let others say whatever they want. As for your claim that the clan elders don't agree to our marriage, brother, you've got it backwards. Wherever I am, that's where the clan belongs. The Lu family of the Grand Secretary's line has fallen, and we are the legitimate line, but everyone knows it's because I'm the Regent that the Lu family is legitimate. My opinion is the clan's opinion; the clan elders can't control me unless they want to sever ties. If they really want to sever ties, then my line is the legitimate one."

He spoke bluntly, leaving Lu Feng speechless. This time, he was so angry that he couldn't utter a single word and couldn't believe that the person in front of him was his once closest brother.

"Are you crazy? The clan is your strongest support. Are you going to abandon your own family for her?" Lu Feng's eyes reddened. "Ziyu, you are now the regent, the most successful and powerful person in our family. Is it really necessary for you to give up everything for a woman? The infamy of coveting your elder sister-in-law will follow you for life. They will not only curse you, but also Xie Zhaolan."

“If that’s the case, why won’t you listen when I say she’s not Xie Zhaolan? If you insist on being prejudiced, no matter how I explain, it’s useless.” Lu Jing said in a deep voice, “Brother, my marriage to the Princess of Huainan is already arranged. Whether you accept it or not, that’s the fact. Let me say this: she’s not my sister-in-law. Her name is Su Qingwan. After the Huainan family was wiped out twelve years ago, she was raised by the Prince of the Southwest. After my marriage to the Princess of Huainan was arranged, the Prince of Huainan couldn’t bear to see his own daughter marry far away, so he discussed it with me and we swapped marriages. The resemblance is just a coincidence. Don’t overthink it or be prejudiced.”

How could Lu Feng possibly believe Lu Jing's words? But Lu Jing had no patience to argue with him. He asked Li An to see the guest out and gave Li An a warning look. Li An felt a chill run down his spine. Oh no, his master was angry. He hadn't stopped the eldest young master, which was indeed somewhat intentional. This matter couldn't be kept secret for long. He would find out sooner or later. The sooner he found out, the sooner he could resolve it, so as not to affect his master's and the princess's wedding.

Lu Feng stormed off. He was determined not to let this go. Since his attempts to persuade her had failed, someone else would. Lu Feng said, “Send someone to tell Second Aunt that Xie Zhaolan has suddenly become the Princess of Huainan. Also, spread the rumors that Ziyu is after his sister-in-law.”

"Young Master, are we really going to do this?"

"Do as I say, Ziyu. If you're unwilling to distance yourself, I'll show you the truth: no one will allow Xie Zhaolan into the family. Don't even think about it!"