Chapter 43

Meanwhile, Meng Qingyue was being driven to distraction by Meng Xingzhou's endless pestering.

"Do you not have your own matters to attend to every single day? Why must you keep tangling yourself up with me?"

Seeing that Meng Xingzhou had already lingered in her room for a full three hours, Meng Qingyue finally reached her breaking point.

Meng Xingzhou replied with a mild temperament, "I have no matters of my own."

His most pressing concern at the moment was to seize the window of opportunity while Meng Qingyue was unattached and persuade her to consent to marrying him as his wife.

Yet, how could Meng Qingyue possibly agree to such a thing?

"Meng Xingzhou, I have made certain things abundantly clear to you. The fundamental bounds of human relations cannot be violated; you had best give up this hopeless notion!" She looked at him coldly.

A flash of hurt crossed Meng Xingzhou's eyes, yet he persisted with stubborn determination, "You are not my biological younger sister; what bounds of human relations exist between us?"

"If you do not marry me, who else would ever have you? Which man would be willing to take a woman whose body has been laid bare for others to see as his wife?"

.........

As Madam Qiao and her entourage walked toward the main gates of the Meng estate, a fleeting figure flashed past right ahead of them.

She asked in confusion, "Who is that?"

The guiding page-boy of the Meng residence bowed respectfully and answered, "Reporting to Madam, that is our Second Young Miss."

Meng Qingyue?

Hearing this name, Madam Qiao instinctively furrowed her brows.

What a strange twist of fate; this young woman whom she had once held in the utmost contempt was now to become her daughter-in-law.

At this thought, she raised a hand, and the page-boy immediately understood, calling out in a loud voice, "Second Young Miss Meng!"

Meng Qingyue had deliberately slipped away to seek some peace and quiet because Meng Xingzhou had been running to her quarters three times a day ever since his confession.

Hearing the cry, her expression remained somewhat dull, as if she were still immersed in Meng Xingzhou's words about her "body being laid bare," and her brow remained tightly furrowed in an involuntary frown.

Dragging her feet sluggishly, Meng Qingyue skirted the long corridor and approached them. At the same time, Madam Qiao fixed an unblinking gaze upon her.

Her steps were steady, and the hair ornaments at her temples did not sway as she walked; she appeared reasonably decorous. Only.....

With a slight frown between her brows, Madam Qiao grew somewhat displeased upon seeing Meng Qingyue's deeply disgruntled expression.

Why was it that every time she saw Meng Qingyue, the girl wore such a long, bitter face?

So young, yet wearing a sour expression all day long—making even joyful days seem bitter. If she were truly to marry into the Qiao family, would she expect their entire household to endure her sullen looks day in and day out?

Madam Qiao heaved a low sigh, feeling that had it not been for this unexpected calamity, she would never have consented to such a woman crossing her threshold.

"Greetings to my Lord Duke, greetings to the Duchess, and greetings, Cousin Qiao."

Meng Qingyue curtsied, executing the ritual by the book. Madam Qiao gazed at her with cold eyes, having no intention of telling her to rise.

Instead, she turned her head and asked the Duke in a bewildered tone, "Do you think we should send her to the Imperial Noble Consort's quarters to learn court etiquette as well?"

......

With her head lowered, Meng Qingyue felt a wave of confusion.

Why send her to the Imperial Noble Consort? And why learn etiquette? Wasn't that what Meng Changle was currently studying?

Noticing her blank expression, Madam Qiao offered no further explanation, saying only in a flat tone, "Since you are now awaiting marriage and we will soon be living under the same roof, I have no desire to make things difficult for you, but the proper etiquette cannot be lacking."

These words left Meng Qingyue even more baffled, yet sensing Madam Qiao's unfriendly demeanor, she knew deep down it boded no good.

Lowering her gaze, she retorted, "I do not understand what Madam means, but the house I currently inhabit is the Meng residence, not the Qiao estate. Whether my manners are polished or not is none of Madam's concern. You are neither my birth mother nor have you ever provided me with a single grain of rice; by what right do you stand in my home and lecture me thus?"

Meng Qingyue was already brimming with irritation over the incident with Meng Xingzhou, and now, having been subjected to an unprovoked dressing-down by Madam Qiao from the very start, she could no longer hold back and snapped back with a couple of defiant remarks.

Madam Qiao was so enraged she nearly choked for breath.

This wretched girl! How could she speak in such a manner! How could she behave so!

She was merely offering out of the goodness of her heart to have the Imperial Noble Consort instruct her in etiquette. Not only was the girl ungrateful, but she actually threw it in her face that she wasn't her real mother and had no right to discipline her!

If she truly were her birth mother, she would likely have been driven to an early grave by such an unfilial daughter!

Sensing the thick, stifling wave of anger radiating from his mother, Qiao Xian, who had remained silent behind her, finally spoke up, "Mother, it is getting late. Why linger here? Let us return earlier."

How could Madam Qiao fail to hear that Qiao Xian was deliberately smoothing things over?

Though still deeply vexed, she ultimately chose not to disregard her son's face. On second thought, she reflected that while this Meng Qingyue was utterly devoid of merits, it was quite unexpected that she had managed to win Qiao Xian's affection.

Since the young couple was on harmonious terms, she, as a mother, could set her mind somewhat at ease.

Therefore, she let out a resentful huff and turned to leave.

Meng Qingyue had been left boiling with anger, made even more restless by Madam Qiao's senseless remarks.

Just as Madam Qiao was departing, Qiao Xian suddenly turned his head back and cast a meaningful, lingering look in her direction.

Meng Qingyue only then belatedly realized that something was amiss.

Yet Qiao Xian's glance was so fleeting, so swift, that before she could catch its meaning, he had already withdrawn his gaze.

She pressed her lips together, turned, and headed toward the main hall.

The Marquis of Huainan and his wife, along with Meng Changle, were chatting and laughing merrily, as if some tremendously fortunate event had occurred. All of them wore radiant smiles, and their moods appeared exceptionally bright.

Unwilling to entangle herself further with them, Meng Qingyue went straight to the point and asked, "The Duke of Zhenguo's family was just here. What did they say to you?"

The Marquis of Huainan and his wife exchanged glances.

Both wore expressions as deeply meaningful as Qiao Xian's had been. After a moment of hesitation, the Marquis of Huainan stepped forward slightly and said, "Qingyue, do not blame us for not discussing this with you beforehand.... It is simply that the Qiao family is of such illustrious standing. If you truly marry into it, you will naturally enjoy blessings for a lifetime."

Following this line of reasoning, Meng Qingyue finally pieced together the cause and effect.

"So, you want me to marry into the Duke of Zhenguo's estate? To marry Qiao Xian?"

The Marquis and his wife looked at her with a degree of tension, terrified that Meng Qingyue would fly into a rage over the matter.

To their complete surprise, she simply nodded lightly and said, "Alright."

Perhaps she agreed with such effortless readiness that the lengthy array of persuasive arguments the Marquis and his wife had prepared went entirely unused.

Meeting their stunned expressions, Meng Qingyue smiled and said, "Marrying anyone is just marrying."

Marrying anyone was just marrying; besides, ever since Meng Changle had returned to the household, the Marquis's family had long since ceased to treat her with any former warmth.

Even if she did not marry Qiao Xian today, there was no telling which doddering old fool she might be pawned off to tomorrow.

Furthermore..... Meng Qingyue paused for a moment as the memory involuntarily surfaced in her mind of the day she fell off the cliff, when Qiao Xian had been moved by a shred of compassion and tried to pull her up to safety.

Meng Qingyue reasoned that no matter how boorish the man might be..... surely he was not a bad person at heart?

That being the case, she had no particular reluctance.

Seeing her yield so easily, the Marquis of Huainan and his wife both let out a heavy sigh of relief, their worries thoroughly put to rest.

With this, all parties had given their consent, and the matter was fully settled without a hitch.

When word spread that Meng Qingyue was to marry Qiao Xian, Meng Xingzhou very nearly went mad.