It was easy to look into Chen Peizhu's life before her elopement. She had grown up in the Marquis Mansion, and Chen Xuan had treated her like a younger sister. However...
"Chen Peizhu was not the old marquis's biological daughter," Lady Bai suddenly said. Looking at the stunned Chen Tingfeng, she calmly continued, "I'm sure you've guessed this already."
Chen Tingfeng nodded. He had indeed guessed it. On the day he knelt in the ancestral hall, Lady Bai had evaded his questions. From then on, he knew there was something fishy about Chen Peizhu's background.
"She was originally the daughter of a vice-general under the old marquis," Lady Bai said.
The old marquis had spent his whole life on the battlefield. One could say that most of the fortune of the Marquis Mansion was earned by him.
However, on the battlefield, swords and arrows were merciless. Even though he was an experienced warrior, he still had a moment of carelessness and almost lost his life.
"The Huns in the north are our sworn enemies. The father of the current khan was killed by your grandfather. But the current khan is indeed quite capable. That spring, the Huns had sufficient supplies and captured four border cities. If it weren't for your grandfather's desperate resistance, we might not even know which dynasty would be ruling now," Lady Bai recalled what she had seen and heard in her childhood and sighed. "Your grandfather was given a crucial mission and marched north to reclaim the lost land..."
At that time, the new emperor had only been on the throne for a few years. Compared with his predecessor, he was far less strategic and capable. He was eager to retake the cities and issued one imperial edict after another, as if he were urging the old marquis to death. He only demanded supplies from him but was slow to provide them, and instead, he would often lose his temper in the court.
In war, supplies always come before troops. At that time, the national treasury was empty, and there were no supplies or clothing to be distributed. If it weren't for the old marquis's excellent military skills and his early preparations, those four cities might have already belonged to others.
However, the situation was urgent, and the supplies they managed to scrape together were still insufficient. As a result, the old marquis almost lost his life in the last battle.
"That knife was blocked by your grandfather's vice-general," Lady Bai said. "The vice-general had been following your grandfather since he was young and was extremely loyal. He was willing to die for the old marquis without any complaint. The only thing he was worried about was his three-year-old daughter."
Hearing this, Chen Tingfeng already understood that Chen Peizhu was the vice-general's daughter.
"The vice-general's wife died during childbirth. There were only his old mother and daughter in the family. When the news of his death reached the capital, his old mother couldn't bear the blow and fell seriously ill. She passed away soon after. He was from a humble background, and his relatives had long been estranged. Now, there was no one left in the family except his daughter. After some thought, your grandfather took his daughter into the mansion and only announced to the outside world that your aunt was his illegitimate daughter born on the border."
Chen Tingfeng frowned slowly. "Why did grandfather do this?"
The vice-general's only descendant was this daughter. By announcing that Chen Peizhu was his illegitimate daughter, the old marquis not only changed her surname but also her ancestors. The vice-general's bloodline would be completely cut off. Was he willing to do this?
"It was the vice-general's own request," Lady Bai seemed to have anticipated his question and calmly replied. "After his death, his daughter would be an orphan. Even though your grandfather would take good care of her because of the life-saving grace, outsiders were still outsiders, and there were many things they couldn't do. The vice-general was afraid that his daughter would be deceived in the future without someone to support her. So, he simply asked the old marquis to register his daughter under his own name. With this relationship, his daughter would be safe and sound for the rest of her life."
However, this wasn't exactly what he said. As a military general, he spoke very straightforwardly. He said, "My ancestors only left some broken copper and iron. My relatives and elders are all heartless. For generations, I'm the only one who has achieved something. In that case, what's the point of worshiping such ancestors? It's better for my daughter to follow the marquis so that she can enjoy a good life and be worry-free for the rest of her life."
A parent's love for their child is far - reaching.
The vice-general's deep love for his daughter was truly touching.
However, he never expected that Chen Peizhu would fall in love at first sight with someone after she came of age and even eloped with him without hesitation.
Chen Peizhu's elopement happened a few years after Lady Bai married into the Marquis Mansion. At that time, Chen Tingfeng had just been born, so he had no impression of her.
He looked at his mother. "What kind of person was aunt?"
Hearing this, Lady Bai's expression softened, showing a bit of tenderness. "She was a very good person."
Chen Peizhu was gentle and kind - hearted. The Marquis Mansion had raised her as a noble lady, and she was proficient in all kinds of arts such as music, chess, calligraphy, and painting. She was quite famous in the capital at that time.
However, the Marquis Mansion was originally from a military family, and they doted on their daughters. She could get whatever she wanted. They taught her the Four Books and the Five Classics and raised her to be extremely pure and kind, without the arrogance of the noble families in the capital.
But it was precisely because of her simple nature that she fell in love with a poor scholar from the countryside at that time. For some unknown reason, she eloped with him without saying a word.
When Lady Bai mentioned this, she couldn't help getting angry. Even though many years had passed, she still felt indignant whenever she thought about it.
"I really don't know what kind of spell that man cast on that stupid girl Chen Peizhu. How could she do such a stupid thing!" She angrily slapped the table, and the tea splashed all over most of the table.
Chen Tingfeng had already investigated the elopement, but this was also what puzzled him. When his people went to the countryside to inquire about Fu Mingde, those who knew him all shook their heads and sighed in disgust. Some straightforward people even scolded him directly.
A man with such a bad reputation in the countryside, could he have been a gentleman with good conduct when he was young?
"Mother, you've met Fu Mingde, right?" he suddenly asked.
Lady Bai was stunned. "Of course I have. Why do you ask?"
When Fu Mingde came to pester Fu Zhen back then, although he was taken away by Chen Tingfeng, Lady Bai still went to see him.
After all, Chen Tingfeng's attitude towards Fu Zhen back then was not very good. Lady Bai was afraid that Chen Tingfeng would let him go easily, so she secretly met Fu Mingde. Only after he promised to handle the matter properly did Lady Bai not take direct action.
"So, was it really him who seduced aunt and eloped with her back then?" Chen Tingfeng frowned.
Lady Bai then realized what he was asking. "It was him. I won't mistake his face."
Fu Mingde was quite good - looking when he was young. Although he wasn't extremely handsome, his appearance was still decent. Moreover, as a scholar, he had a bit of the elegance of a literati after years of studying.
It was easy for him to seduce a young girl who rarely went out and had little contact with men.
However, Chen Tingfeng still felt something was wrong. In his opinion, even if a person was frustrated and degenerated, the cultivation in his bones would never disappear.
He had seen the down - and - out Fu Mingde. He was clearly a despicable person, and there was no sign of the influence of books on him.
He lowered his eyes and thought. There was a vague guess in his mind... There must be something fishy about Fu Mingde.
He couldn't help but feel a bit regretful. He had let Fu Mingde die too easily back then. If he had known this, he should have locked him in the dungeon and tortured him to death slowly.