Meanwhile, pages kept coming to pass on messages.
"The Marquis of Pingning and his wife have rushed to the bridal chamber of the eldest son - in - law!"
"The eldest son - in - law and the second young lady have blown out the wedding candles. It seems they have already spent the wedding night together..."
One piece of news after another came in, making Lady Lu anxious and pacing back and forth.
"What shall we do? How could such a wedding bestowed by the emperor turn into such a mess?"
"With such a mishap, I don't even know how to explain it when the in - laws come!"
Jiang Fuying observed Lady Lu, her future mother - in - law, without showing her emotions.
Compared with the wife of the Marquis of Pingning, her mother - in - law in her previous life, although they were sisters, Lady Lu was much gentler and more delicate.
It was a pity that Jiang Fuyue thought Lady Lu was weak and easy to bully. She even scolded her mother - in - law and often acted arrogantly on Lady Lu's head.
Lu Huaizhou comforted in a soft voice, "Mother, don't be so anxious. Since things have come to this, you might as well take a rest and gather your strength."
"How can I rest!" Lady Lu covered her face and wept, "How can I still have the face to see the in - laws..."
After getting a clear understanding of Lady Lu's character, Jiang Fuying stood up gracefully.
"Mother, Husband, I have something to say."
Lu Huaizhou blushed visibly, "Don't, don't call me like that!"
However, Lady Lu grasped her hand as if grabbing a life - saving straw, "Miss Jiang, you are a good girl. You've been wronged tonight. Just say what you want. We'll all listen to you."
"Mother, it's okay for you to listen to her, but why do I have to..."
Jiang Fuying gave him a cold look, and Lu Huaizhou immediately fell silent.
In an instant, the large bridal chamber was so quiet that only everyone's breathing could be heard.
Meeting Lady Lu's expectant eyes as if seeing a savior, Jiang Fuying spoke softly.
"Sister has already consummated the marriage with her husband, and Husband and I have already paid respects to Heaven, Earth, and our parents. Mother, how about inviting the wife of the Marquis of Pingning to our mansion so that our two families can sit down and discuss this properly?"
Lu Huaizhou couldn't help muttering, "What's there to discuss? We can just break off the engagement."
Jiang Fuying stared at him with a half - smile and retorted, "Does Husband want to disobey the imperial edict?"
Lu Huaizhou stiffened his neck and argued, "It's not disobeying the imperial edict. I'm clearly doing it for..."
Jiang Fuying shouted coldly, "Husband, you're being presumptuous!"
"A marriage bestowed by the emperor is no child's play!"
Lu Huaizhou was so shocked that his eyes widened.
What the hell?
Who could tell him why Miss Jiang had two different personalities?
Although he had a lot of complaints in his heart, when he really met Jiang Fuying's gaze, he immediately backed down.
Lady Lu tightly grasped Jiang Fuying's hand and trembled, "Good girl, we mustn't disobey the imperial edict. But in this situation..."
"Mother, don't be afraid. I have a way."
"Sister was born only half a quarter of an hour later than me, but she is ranked before me in the family genealogy."
"The emperor only mentioned the eldest and second legitimate daughters of the Jiang family in the imperial edict, without specifying our names. Then why don't we..."
A sly look flashed through her autumn - water - like eyes.
"You want to reverse our identities and directly switch brides?!" Lu Huaizhou guessed her intention and exclaimed.
"Husband is really smart." Jiang Fuying gave a faint smile.
This smile, in Lu Huaizhou's eyes, was as shocking as when the strict master in the school praised him for his talent in reading - it was simply earth - shattering!
"We can't deceive the emperor. After our two families have discussed it, we might as well first explain the reason to the emperor and then make the best of this mistake.
"Let sister marry the heir of the Marquis of Pingning, and I..."
Jiang Fuying paused for a moment. Her autumn - water - like eyes rested on Lu Huaizhou for half a moment, then she shyly lowered her head, "I will marry Husband and accompany him for the rest of my life, respecting and loving each other."
Lu Huaizhou immediately shivered.
He vaguely felt something was wrong. He always had a feeling that he was being set up.
Otherwise, why would Miss Jiang give up the heir of the Marquis of Pingning and choose to marry a playboy like him?
With her words, Lady Lu, who was at a loss, seemed to have found a backbone and nodded repeatedly, "Good girl, what you said is really a good idea."
Jiang Fuying noticed the hesitation and uneasiness on Lady Lu's face, and then said, "Mother, I know Father - in - law is not in the mansion. Husband and I will handle this matter."
After saying that, she gave Lu Huaizhou a light look. Lu Huaizhou, who originally wanted to refuse, immediately trembled all over and swallowed back his words of objection.
Lady Lu was originally hesitating. Seeing that Jiang Fuying was decisive and could control her son, she gritted her teeth and said, "Okay!"
Jiang Fuying smiled gently.
After tonight, those two lovebirds would have consummated their marriage, and she had spent a night in the bridal chamber of the heir of the Duke of Zhennan. For the sake of their own reputations, both families would surely let this matter go lightly.
As for the emperor, the Duke of Zhennan's mansion had military merits and titles, the Marquis of Pingning's mansion was related to the imperial concubine, and her good father, the Minister of Rites, was a trusted official of the emperor. The backgrounds of the three families were all extraordinary. How could the emperor bear to punish them?
Of course, there was an even more important point -
When dawn came, she could go after those two lovebirds to settle the score!
What they owed her in her previous life, she would make them pay back a hundredfold in this life!
After the discussion, Lady Lu led the people back to their rooms to rest, and the maids and servants guarding the bridal chamber also left one by one.
Seeing the others filing out, Jiang Fuying yawned and lazily leaned on the couch, "It's already late at night. We'll have a tough battle tomorrow. Your Highness, go to bed quickly."
Lu Huaizhou was so shocked by her bold words that he didn't know what to do. He could only hold his robe tightly, "I, I won't sleep on the same couch with you!"
"I didn't say Your Highness should sleep on the same couch with me."
As she said, Jiang Fuying moved a set of bedding from the couch and thoughtfully placed it on the floor.
"Here, I'll sleep on the couch, and Your Highness can sleep on the floor."
Lu Huaizhou held the bedding and said unhappily, "Miss Jiang, this is my bedroom. Why should I sleep on the floor?"
Jiang Fuying smiled slightly and deliberately flattered him, "Because Your Highness has the grace of a gentleman and is willing to yield to me, a girl."
She had already figured out the character of this playboy heir: he seemed unruly and dissolute on the surface, but in fact, he was shy, soft - hearted, and easy to talk to.
After she said this, a faint look of pride appeared on Lu Huaizhou's face, "You're right. Who made me a good man in the new era and always respect women? I'll sleep on the floor tonight."
After saying that, he quickly made up the bedding.
Jiang Fuying lay down fully dressed, and he slept on the floor.
However, the wedding candles flickered on and off, making it hard for him to fall asleep for a long time.
Marriages bestowed by the emperor were always blind and arranged. He had originally prepared to marry a woman he didn't love under the authority of the imperial power, respect and honor her, and live a separate life from her for the rest of his life.
But this Miss Jiang from the Jiang family was really different from other young ladies of noble families.
He suddenly thought: Maybe it wasn't so bad to marry the wrong person.