Seeing that Jian Ruoshui had been tricked into revealing herself and that the child was truly Du Yunqian's, a glint of cruelty flashed in Jian Ruobing's eyes.
She hadn't lied to Jian Ruoshui. It was an unspoken truth within the family that Du Yunqian had difficulty having offspring. No matter whether she divorced or not, Jian Ruoshui's child must not be allowed to be born.
Doctor Qian finished preparing the medicine, and Jian Ruobing took the medicine packet to decoct it.
The Prince of Rui watched Jian Ruobing's actions, then glanced at Qiuqiu, whose wound was being re - bandaged by Doctor Qian. Unable to contain his curiosity, he ran to the backyard to gossip with Jian Ruobing.
When Jian Ruobing was decocting the medicine in the backyard, she also saw the mess on the ground. She knew clearly that the Prince of Rui hadn't lied, and all this was done by Jian Ruoshui.
Leaning against the wall in the backyard, the Prince of Rui asked, "Is what your sister said true? Is the child her's and your husband's, my brother - in - law?"
"You were protecting her just now. How come you've changed your attitude as soon as you heard who the father is?"
Jian Ruobing gave the Prince of Rui a sidelong glance. Seeing his gossiping face, she just lowered her head to look at the medicine and ignored him.
The Prince of Rui sensed Jian Ruobing's coldness, but for the sake of the gossip, or rather, to stand up for the children, he wasn't discouraged. "If you don't protect your sister, I'll send her to the government. We need to talk about the fact that she beat my children."
"Go ahead. I'll send her to the government after I get rid of the child in her belly." Jian Ruobing was very clear - cut. She wouldn't protect Jian Ruoshui, but the child in her belly must be aborted.
Seeing this, the Prince of Rui became even more curious. He had also seen many women betrayed by their husbands. Some of them cried and shouted, some cursed crazily, and some calmly withdrew. But none of them was like the woman in front of him, who only focused on the child and didn't care about anything else.
The Dragon King: [Old Man Gu is stupid. She said that her husband has difficulty having offspring. Getting rid of the child will be painful enough for that husband.]
The Dragon King: [That younger sister is not innocent either. She bullies the weak by relying on her power. She is protected by her elder sister but has an affair with her brother - in - law and gets pregnant.]
The Dragon King: [The brother - in - law wants a child, and the younger sister wants to gain a higher status through this. As long as the child is gone, both of them will be in pain. It's really a good way of revenge!]
Lin Yu: [So that's how it is. But isn't it too cruel to directly abort the child?]
The Dragon King: [If you're not ruthless, you won't gain a stable position.]
The Prince of Rui cleared his throat and directly asked, "Aren't you sad? Or do you have no feelings for your husband? Actually, I have some connections in the capital and can help you."
"I have connections in both civil and military fields. I know people related to the Marquis of Yong'an, the Princess of Jingning, General Mu, and the city - guarding soldiers."
Hearing the name of the Princess of Jingning, Jian Ruobing finally responded to the Prince of Rui. She asked eagerly, "Is it the daughter of General Mu, the Princess of Jingning?"
The Prince of Rui didn't say a word but gave Jian Ruobing a look that seemed to say "You guess".
Just then, Doctor Qian finished bandaging Qiuqiu. She skipped over and said, "Baozhu, when are we going back? Mother told me to go back to the marquis's mansion today to pick a gift for Sister Yutang."
Shen Baozhu asked in confusion, "What gift? Is it almost Sister Yutang's birthday?"
"No. Mother said that Sister Yutang has escaped from the bitter sea and found Xiaotao. This is a great thing. She told me to go back these two days and pick a gift for Sister Yutang with her." Qiuqiu felt a bit guilty. On the day Xu Yutang came back, Mrs. Chen had told her to go back, but she had been too busy and forgotten about it.
Their conversation fell into Jian Ruobing's ears. After a long time, Jian Ruobing met the curious gaze of the Prince of Rui. "I'm sad, but I want to take revenge on those two more."
"When I married my husband, he was just a scholar. With my financial support, he barely passed the imperial examination and got the position of a county magistrate." Jian Ruobing smiled bitterly. When Du Yunqian passed the imperial examination, he was not yet thirty and was a brilliant person. She married him at that time and accompanied him to a poor small county.
"Don't laugh at me. My father was a juren and had some property in the city, but his character was really questionable."
The Prince of Rui's eyes lit up. He heard the sound of gossip. "What was wrong with his character?"
The Dragon King: [Could it be that he killed his wife?]
Jian Ruobing smiled bitterly. "He tricked my mother into following him home without a proper status. By chance, my mother met a brother of my maternal grandfather. Because this elder was powerful, my father married my mother."
"My father thought that this elder was my mother's backer. It was only after a few years that he learned from my mother that this elder was just a chance acquaintance."
"This made my father very angry. He had given the precious position of his first wife to my mother, a woman without any power or influence."
The Prince of Rui casually picked up some hawthorns from the pharmacy, distributed some, and listened while eating. "The precious position of the first wife? What's so precious about it?"
The Prince of Rui, who was as noble as a prince, couldn't understand. The position of the principal wife was precious, but what was so special about the first wife? Wasn't it just a matter of ranking?
"He disliked my mother. When my mother was sick, he had a new lover and silently agreed with my grandmother's actions. He didn't invite a doctor or buy medicine, and my mother died slowly. The new lover was my younger sister's mother."
The Prince of Rui nodded and summarized, "Your father had a new lover, gave birth to your younger sister, and your mother died."
"Not long after the new lover married into the family, my father fell in love with the new lover's younger sister. He had an affair with her and gave birth to a son. In order for the son to enter the family openly, my father used the same method to let the new lover die."
"He announced to the outside world that the new lover's younger sister had died of an incurable disease, and that his wife in the family had given birth to twins."
The Dragon King: [Is it just my illusion, or does this sound a bit familiar?]
Lin Yu: [The younger sister's aunt had an affair with her brother - in - law and killed her own sister. Now the younger sister is also having an affair with her brother - in - law and is pregnant...]
Lin Yu: [It's too much of a coincidence. Is this a family inheritance?]
The Dragon King: [It's more like a family tradition. It's really amazing.]
The Prince of Rui also thought it was amazing. He took a bite of the hawthorn and commented, "His character is indeed questionable. According to the speed at which your father changed women, did the new lover's younger sister also die?"
Thinking of her step - mother at home, Jian Ruobing shook her head. "No. She gave birth to a son, and my father values her very much. He just has fun outside and doesn't bring women home. She later gave birth to a daughter."
The Dragon King: [I understand. I know why this woman wants to have an abortion.]
The Dragon King: [She was scared by her father. Daughters are treated casually and can be killed at will, while sons are valued. If her younger sister gives birth to a son, she will have to repeat her mother's tragic fate!]
Lin Yu: [Makes sense.]
Because her younger sister had the same sad experience as herself, Jian Ruobing took good care of her. Knowing her younger sister's personality, she still chose to protect her, trying to make up for her own misfortune through her.
But making up for it was one thing. Jian Ruobing would never allow herself to repeat the tragedy.
The Prince of Rui asked one more question. "So what are you going to do now? Divorce? Can you bear it?"
It wasn't that the Prince of Rui deliberately wanted to make Jian Ruobing unhappy. He had seen too many people who couldn't bear to part, and he was afraid that Jian Ruobing would be the same.
The Prince of Rui knew that both he and Yan Mingli were vengeful. The three children had been bullied, and as parents, they had to stand up for the children. If Jian Ruobing couldn't be ruthless and chose not to divorce, then he would have to be ruthless and treat everyone equally.