Blood trickled down Xu Zeyuan's face. He seemed oblivious to it, lowering his head slightly. "Yutang has a gentle nature. Nephew was afraid that she would suffer if she married someone else, so he betrothed her to Chen Liang."
"Although Chen Liang has a humble background, he has good looks and is quite obedient. Nephew thinks they are well - matched."
Xu Zeyuan spoke earnestly, and his tone seemed sincere.
Prime Minister Sima gave a soft laugh. "Xu Zeyuan, do you think you can fool me like a fool?"
"If I didn't have full confidence, would I have summoned you here?"
"For the sake of your father's friendship with me, I'll give you one last chance. Call off the engagement between Xu Yutang and Chen Liang, and don't interfere in Yutang's marriage in the future."
Xu Zeyuan's eyes flickered slightly. Prime Minister Sima was so certain. Maybe he had investigated secretly. But how did a mere Xu Yutang and Chen Liang catch the Prime Minister's attention?
Hiding his inner doubts, Xu Zeyuan leaned forward and bowed. "Chen Liang is honest and upright, and Yutang is innocent. They are a good match. It may not be appropriate to break off the engagement rashly."
Prime Minister Sima was amused by these words. Just from the description of the little immortal boy, he could tell that Chen Liang was lazy and unambitious. If Chen Liang had a kind nature, it wouldn't be a big deal. At most, Xu Yutang would support him with her dowry.
But Chen Liang was heartless.
They were both coveting Xu Yutang's dowry. Compared with Chen Liang, an outsider, the Xu family was at least Yutang's blood relatives. But Chen Liang compared the Xu family to jackals and tigers, downplaying his own evil.
A person like Chen Liang would spend all of Xu Yutang's dowry, then sell her, and finally claim that he was helping her.
Prime Minister Sima picked up the teacup on the table and threw it at Xu Zeyuan. "Your father was an excellent man. How could he have given birth to a wretch like you who harms your own blood relatives!"
Hearing such harsh words, Xu Zeyuan's pupils shrank suddenly. He looked up instinctively and saw the teacup flying towards him.
Xu Zeyuan resisted his body's natural reaction and stood still, allowing the teacup to hit him.
Thinking that his official career relied on Prime Minister Sima, Xu Zeyuan said half - truthfully, "Nephew does have selfish motives, but I've never harmed Yutang."
"Chen Liang is the son of my old friend. When I saw him, I thought of my old friend, so I arranged the marriage between him and Yutang. Is this little bit of selfishness so unforgivable?"
Seeing that Xu Zeyuan was so unwise, Prime Minister Sima didn't beat around the bush with him. "Xu Zeyuan, do you think I don't know your dirty deeds?"
"You seduced someone to be with you, then abandoned them for the wealth of the Xu family. You even cut off their livelihood, forcing their restaurant to close... Now, decades have passed, and you still talk about it so brazenly. Aren't you ashamed?"
With his disguise removed by Prime Minister Sima, Xu Zeyuan was completely flustered. He stood there stunned, unable to face this matter.
Xu Zeyuan had always brainwashed himself that he was forced to give up that relationship. Now that the truth was revealed by Prime Minister Sima, he couldn't accept it.
"No, it's not like this. It was my father. My father forced me to break up..."
Hearing Xu Zeyuan shifting the blame onto his old friend, Prime Minister Sima was furious. "Beast! Do you think that just because your father is no longer alive, no one will know the truth of that year?"
"To tell you the truth, the idea of choosing one of the two was mine!"
Back then, Xu Zeyuan had made such a big fuss at home for love that his father, Prime Minister Sima's old friend, had no choice but to come to him for help.
Prime Minister Sima gave his friend an idea, asking Xu Zeyuan to choose between love and the position of the eldest son of the Xu family.
If he chose love, Xu Zeyuan would fake his death and completely give up his identity as the eldest son of the Xu family. If he chose the latter, he would have to end this relationship.
Before Xu Zeyuan made his choice, Prime Minister Sima also asked his friend to send Xu Zeyuan to the countryside for a while.
In less than a month, Xu Zeyuan came back on his own, giving up love.
This was all Xu Zeyuan's own choice.
Now, decades had passed, but Xu Zeyuan was still lying and shifting the blame.
Prime Minister Sima's last bit of affection for him was completely exhausted. He said helplessly, "Leave."
Ignoring Xu Zeyuan's attempts to explain, the servants of the Prime Minister's mansion forcibly "invited" him out.
Prime Minister Sima sat at the table for a long time. Finally, he called the butler. "Carry out the plan as scheduled. Move Xu Yutang's household register to the Sima family. Her identity will be the daughter of the second son... No, that won't do. I remember the fifth daughter said she wanted to adopt a child. Put her under the name of the fifth daughter."
This was a plan that Prime Minister Sima had already decided on. Move Xu Yutang's household register out of the Xu family, find a good husband for her, and add some dowry to give Shen Baozhu an answer.
If Xu Zeyuan had sincerely admitted his mistake, it could be said that he was reluctant to part with his granddaughter and wanted her to marry closer. It was just a momentary mistake.
But unfortunately, Xu Zeyuan was stubborn, and Prime Minister Sima didn't want to save him anymore.
The fifth daughter Prime Minister Sima mentioned was his youngest child, the fifth miss of the Prime Minister's mansion. She had been married for decades and only had a sickly only son.
The fifth miss wanted to adopt a daughter to accompany her son.
Prime Minister Sima waved his hand and decided Xu Yutang's future. He would let her be the adopted daughter of the fifth miss.
The butler whispered a reminder. "Sir, don't you want to discuss it?"
Originally, Xu Yutang was supposed to be the adopted daughter of the second branch of the Prime Minister's mansion. The second branch had many descendants, with more than a dozen legitimate and illegitimate children. They didn't care about one more or less. The butler had heard that the fifth miss wanted to find a younger sister for her son, so he asked carefully, hoping that Prime Minister Sima would ask the fifth miss's opinion.
But in Prime Minister Sima's ears, it meant something else.
Prime Minister Sima hesitated. "We really should discuss it with Xu Yutang. Let her choose a pair of parents in the mansion."
"Although I can't guarantee that the parents will be good, I, as her grandfather, will definitely be more reliable than Xu Zeyuan."
...
The Princess Mansion.
Hearing that Shen Baozhu wanted to go out and play with her, Xu Yutang was flattered. "Really? Baozhu is willing to go out and play with me?"
During the few days in the Princess Mansion, Xu Yutang had fully realized how popular Shen Baozhu was.
From the maids and servants in the mansion to Chen Miaochun and Yan Mingli, everyone liked Shen Baozhu.
She was like a beloved treasure. Wherever she went, there were admiring looks.
Xu Yutang also keenly noticed that some people in the mansion didn't like her. They even tried to prevent Shen Baozhu from being alone with her.
At first, Xu Yutang didn't know the reason. It wasn't until she saw how Chen Miaochun and Yan Mingli got along that she understood. Her perception over the years had been so absurd.
The collapse of her long - held beliefs made Xu Yutang feel inferior. She couldn't figure out why Shen Baozhu was so close to her.
Shen Baozhu handed the silver note to Xu Yutang and then pulled her hand and coquettishly said, "Sister Yutang, take Baozhu out. Baozhu has never gone out and played with you."
It was the first time that someone had pulled her hand and acted coquettishly, and it was such a cute girl like Shen Baozhu. Xu Yutang was so excited that she couldn't speak for a moment.
Standing beside them, Yan Mingli secretly thought it was a bad idea. He wished that Xu Yutang would spend more time with Yuan Qingxi. It would be best if they got together and she dumped Chen Liang, who always borrowed money to go to the Nantian Pavilion.
If Xu Yutang took Baozhu with her, how could she develop a relationship with Yuan Qingxi? No, this definitely wouldn't do.
Yan Mingli quickly tried to stop Shen Baozhu. "Baozhu, be good. Yutang is inviting Young Master Yuan to dinner. How can you go with them..."
"Okay! Then I'll go out and play with Baozhu first. I'll invite Yuan Qingxi next time." Xu Yutang was also anxious. She quickly pushed Yan Mingli away and expressed her thoughts.