Forcing me to become a concubine? Remarrying the Ninth Prince, she'll be pregnant all over the

"People's hearts are fickle, and true sincerity is hard to find."

Lin Wantang spoke again, without even looking at Wei Wujiu, but she sensed that his fingers trembled almost imperceptibly. She took the opportunity to move away, deliberately keeping some distance from him.

"Governor, perhaps what I said was inappropriate, but put yourself in my shoes. If I were a man, I might not be able to guarantee that I would only be devoted to one person for the rest of my life. Life is long, beauty fades in an instant, and there are affairs of state, family matters, children... everything is wasted. Promises and vows are the least reliable things to take seriously."

Lin Wantang thought very freely and openly. She never understood why Madam Chen was always wary of the concubines in the Grand Tutor's mansion. A few of the concubines were indeed bold and unruly.

But these women, openly and secretly vying for the same man, wasting their precious youth, don't they find it pointless and a disservice to themselves?

Lin Wantang also tried to comfort Chen, saying that her mother was the principal wife and her position was secure and difficult to change. She should just relax, manage the household harmony, take care of her health, and enjoy her retirement. Why bother with the concubines?

Unfortunately, Madam Chen wouldn't listen and scolded her quite a bit.

Looking back now, Lin Wantang thinks Chen's actions were absurd, and many women couldn't understand it either.

"What you say makes sense." Wei Wujiu scrutinized her for a long time, and when he spoke again, he didn't look away. "But I'm different from you. If I could, I would still prefer to be with only one person for life."

"Oh?" Lin Wantang's heart sank. She slightly raised her eyes to look at him, gazing into his deep, narrow phoenix eyes, unable to discern much, and tentatively asked, "But since the Emperor has bestowed this marriage upon us, and the Commander has not disobeyed the decree, should the marriage still proceed?"

Wei Wujiu frowned, almost in bewilderment: "What do you mean?"

"Didn't the Governor want to be with only one person for life? If you marry me, I will be your legal wife. A legal wife cannot be dishonored, much less abolished or divorced. If the Governor finds someone else he loves, how can you... be with only one person for life?"

Are you suggesting that Lin Wantang should be made a concubine in the end?

Absurd! She doesn't mind a divorce, but if Wei Wujiu dares to treat her with such contempt, she will definitely make a scene in the Golden Palace. She would rather die by crashing into the palace and splatter blood everywhere than let everyone see clearly that she, Lin Wantang, is someone who would rather die than be humiliated!

Wei Wujiu narrowed his eyes, meeting her clear, questioning gaze without blinking. After finding no trace of pretense, he couldn't help but look away, rubbing his forehead with one hand, and chuckled in exasperation.

She didn't follow his words at all, nor did she ever connect them to her own situation!

I always felt that he would take a concubine in the future and would have someone he liked. If Wei Wujiu really had such intentions, then what was he doing all these years? Hua Ershisan was concerned about his marriage and had looked for many noble ladies. The Emperor took pity on him as he got older and wanted to bestow a marriage upon him several times. Even the Empress had mentioned it many times.

Not to mention the ministers who wanted to curry favor with him, Jiang Fulu had sent countless beautiful girls to Jingyuan.

But he didn't want any of them, nor did he get close to any of them. He made Jiang Fulu find excuses to marry them off to other families.

It's hard for anyone to enter Wei Wujiu's long-dormant heart. If someone does eventually do, that person is most likely to be...

Forget it.

Since she's clueless, why should he waste his breath?

Let's not talk about that anymore.

Wei Wujiu's curt remark left him with no appetite. He finished his drink and was about to get up when Lin Wantang's still-questioning gaze followed him: "No, Commander, weren't we having a good chat? Or does the Commander already have someone he likes? Then I..."

Wei Wujiu paused slightly as he was about to leave, lowering his eyes: "Then what about you? Go on."

"Should I break off the engagement now? But this is a marriage bestowed by the Emperor. The Governor doesn't want to disobey the decree, and neither do I." Lin Wantang spoke sincerely, and was truly troubled and in a dilemma.

Wei Wujiu closed his eyes tightly in bewilderment, and sure enough, she couldn't utter a single word he wanted to hear!

He asked for it again and left.

Lin Wantang stood up, asking, "Commander, where are you going? Aren't you staying here tonight?"

"We're not even married yet, do you think I would treat you so disrespectfully? The order is my rule. If I can't set a good example by respecting you, how can I control others? Would I gain any glory by causing you to lose face and reputation?"

Wei Wujiu rarely spoke so openly all at once; his cold, deep voice was neither loud nor soft, and there was no trace of emotion in it.

But when Lin Wantang heard it, while she felt comforted and relieved, she also sensed some anger.

"Commander, are you angry?"

"No, you can rest now."

The door opened and closed, and Wei Wujiu left with a gloomy expression.

Extremely resentful and cold-hearted.

Lin Wantang blinked in surprise, sat down again, and carefully considered what she had just said. She didn't think that her words were wrong or harsh, or that they could make him angry.

Aren't all men fickle and promiscuous, wanting multiple wives and concubines?

Is it wrong for her to be generous, courteous, and tolerant? Does she have to act jealous and resentful, seeing every woman as a thorn in her side, in order to please Wei Wujiu?

"Are you sick?"

Lin Wantang murmured to herself, sighed slightly, and shook her head. She thought that she should take some time to have Wei Wujiu's brain checked in the future. If there was a problem, she would adjust the prescription in time.

"Saying one thing and meaning another!"

In the next room, Li Jinzhi watched as Wei Wujiu pushed open the door and entered. Unlike Zhang Qian, who was busy bowing, he slammed his hand on the table and burst into laughter: "The soundproofing is terrible, I heard everything, Senior Brother. You, you are..."

Before he could finish speaking, Zhang Qian grabbed a steamed bun from the table and stuffed it into his mouth.

This was exactly what Wei Wujiu wanted. After Li Jinzhi spat out the steamed bun, he coldly retorted, "Shut up."

Li Jinzhi pursed his lips, then leaned closer and whispered, "But senior brother, girls with thoughts like Miss Lin are truly rare. Isn't that great? She won't interfere with you anymore, so you can just go and see whichever woman you fancy..."

"I told you to shut up." Wei Wujiu sat down and poured himself a drink, glancing warily at Li Jinzhi out of the corner of his eye: "Don't be rude to her."

His words were not harsh, but they carried an imposing presence without anger.

Li Jinzhi pursed his lips, thinking to himself that it was not only rare for his senior brother to value a woman so much, but it was practically unprecedented. However, he did not dare to tease her too much, so he nodded and stopped talking about it.

Wei Wujiu drank several cups of wine to dispel his gloom. Because he had a high tolerance for alcohol, this little bit had no effect on him. He then looked at Zhang Qian and asked, "Let's get down to business. How are those two doing?"

Zhang Qian was about to say this when he heard his conversation with the spies. He whispered, "Sir, I had my men investigate Wang Hu and Liu Yuniang's background again, and they found quite a bit."

"It's hard to say what kind of people these two are, but they've certainly done a lot of bad things, especially Wang Hu..."