“How do you know it was her doing? How would a woman dare to touch snakes?” Xie Zhengyang found it hard to believe.
“She has both an elder brother and a younger brother—why wouldn’t she dare?” Having lived with the Huo Family for eight years, Jiang Ning understood the bond between the three siblings all too well.
It drove her mad with jealousy.
If her father were still alive, she would have had younger siblings too.
Instead, she and her mother were left to rely on each other as orphans and widows.
Seeing Huo Pengcheng’s official rank rise higher and higher, her mother had once tried to seduce him, but her efforts came to nothing. Instead, she was warned that if she didn’t know her place, she would no longer be allowed to live with the Huo Family.
Realizing he was impervious to her advances, her mother had no choice but to give up. From then on, the mother and daughter lived quietly, with her mother placing all her hopes on her.
Since then, their hatred for the Huo Family had deepened even further.
“Outrageous! Playing such childish tricks. It must be that brat Huo Mingchang behind this. I’ll make sure to humiliate him at the first opportunity and get revenge for you.” Xie Zhengyang gritted his teeth in anger.
“Mmm, Zhengyang cares for me the most. Are your injuries serious?” Jiang Ning stopped her soft weeping and turned her concern to his condition.
Thirty strokes—if delivered without restraint—could cripple a person.
“They’re no longer a problem. The Emperor only wanted to teach me a lesson. After all, I am the son of the Loyal Earl’s residence, so he didn’t order them to strike too hard. The medicine you gave me worked very well.” Xie Zhengyang felt warmth in his heart at that moment.
Ninger had also been beaten, yet she still remembered him and gave him such effective medicine.
“That’s good then. Zhengyang, what will we do now? You’ve lost your position as Shizi.” The worry in Jiang Ning’s eyes made Xie Zhengyang forget everything else as he pulled her into his embrace.
“Don’t worry. My Xie Family are military officials. Although I serve in the City Patrol Division, my father commands five thousand troops in the Jingji Camp and is one of the four deputy generals.
My father will find a way for me to go to the battlefield and earn a future. Once I achieve military merits, the Shizi position will be restored to me. I’ll beg him then, and he’s sure to agree to let me bring you into the residence.”
Xie Zhengyang had already thought it through.
The Xie Family also needed such an opportunity to improve their standing in the Emperor’s eyes.
“Zhengyang, but that’s too dangerous. I’m worried.” Jiang Ning feared he might not return.
What if he died on the battlefield? Who else could she marry?
All of Jing Cheng knew she had been intimate with Xie Zhengyang.
“Ninger, as the eldest son of the Xie Family, if I don’t achieve merits and establish a career, our Xie Family will have no status left in the capital.
The Xie Family’s nobility title is already precarious. If I don’t strive hard, the Emperor might revoke it one day, and you won’t become the Earl’s wife either.
For your sake, I must work hard.” Xie Zhengyang gazed deeply at the woman in his arms.
His words moved Jiang Ning, but they also stirred hidden anxieties within her.
“Zhengyang, I want to marry you as your wife, but I’ve already left the Huo Family. They won’t acknowledge me as their adopted daughter anymore.
With my status, I won’t meet the standards of the Earl and his wife. They won’t agree to let me enter the Xie Family as your legitimate wife.” As she spoke of this, Jiang Ning’s eyes filled with tears once more.
This was a problem Xie Zhengyang couldn’t immediately find a good solution for either.
All he could do was love her with his whole heart.
All their plans had been disrupted because they were caught in bed together.
“There will be a way.” Xie Zhengyang could only hold the person in his arms tightly.
Jiang Ning could feel his genuine feelings and his helplessness.
This man might not be the most outstanding, but he was currently the only one she could hold onto.
If she lost him, her chances of becoming a noble lady from a prestigious family would be almost nonexistent.
Currently, both of them were at a low point, but she would not give up any opportunity.
It was better to plan ahead.
“Zhengyang, there’s something I’ve never told you.” Jiang Ning lifted her tear-filled eyes and nudged Xie Zhengyang.
“What is it?” Xie Zhengyang was taken aback.
Was Ninger still keeping something from him?
“My mother… my mother actually has a remarkable background.” Jiang Ning said softly.
“What background?” Xie Zhengyang asked in shock.
“My mother was originally from Donglin Kingdom. My maternal grandfather was the most skilled Imperial Physician in the Imperial Hospital at that time.
Due to royal conflicts, he was implicated. Learning of this in advance, he fled with his family, but the pursuers came too quickly. Only my grandfather managed to escape with my mother; the rest were captured.
From then on, my grandfather lived in hiding, eventually settling in Nan Chu Kingdom.
Coincidentally, he ended up in the same small town as my father.
My father came from a humble background but was a good scholar. My grandmother was frail and sickly, and my grandfather saved her multiple times.
The two families grew close because of this, and my grandfather married my mother to my father. Having no more attachments, he then returned to Donglin.
My grandfather passed all his skills to my mother.
But since my mother was a woman, she couldn’t practice medicine openly and always kept her abilities hidden.
Now that we’ve been driven out of the Huo Family, we have no one to rely on.
So, my mother and I discussed using her medical skills to secure a status for us, one worthy of you.
Do you think this plan is feasible?” Jiang Ning recounted everything calmly and explained their plan.
After hearing this, Xie Zhengyang was so stunned he didn’t know how to process it.
Ninger actually had such a background.
It took him a long while to regain his composure.
“Ninger, there are many who know medicine.” Xie Zhengyang didn’t think a woman skilled in medicine could make much of a difference.
“Zhengyang, what if my mother can raise the dead and restore flesh to bones?” Jiang Ning smiled faintly.
“Aunt Yang has such great skill?” Xie Zhengyang widened his eyes.
If she possessed such ability, then there would be no worry about their future prospects.
“I understand what you mean. After I start my duties, I’ll inquire about families with someone on the verge of death.” Xie Zhengyang immediately thought of how to utilize this.
“No, we need to choose the right family. We must see which one is most suitable and grant them a great favor to obtain what we want.” Jiang Ning didn’t want her mother to be looked down upon.
Saving everyone would devalue her skills.
It would be best to align with someone who has both power and influence.
“You’re right.” Xie Zhengyang felt relieved by Jiang Ning’s cleverness.
With such a woman by his side, why worry about their future prospects?
Although it’s traditionally said that a husband’s glory brings honor to his wife, if the wife could become his greatest asset, it would be the icing on the cake.
“Zhengyang, the Emperor is already fifty-two, and the Crown Prince is frail. Both likely won’t live long.
Once the Emperor and Crown Prince pass away, the struggle for the throne will undoubtedly be extremely fierce.
To secure a better future, supporting the rightful successor is undoubtedly the greatest merit. What do you think?” Jiang Ning guided him step by step.
She was more well-read than Huo Ningyu and saw things more clearly.
If not for her privileged background, Huo Ningyu wouldn’t be one-tenth as capable as her.
“You want Aunt Yang to save the Crown Prince?” Xie Zhengyang asked in surprise.
“No, the Crown Prince should not be saved. The Empress is a stepmother, and her maternal family is insignificant, without any influence.
If not for the fact that the Crown Prince once took an arrow for the Emperor, earning merit for saving him, the Emperor wouldn’t protect him so much—otherwise, he would have died long ago.
Moreover, the Crown Prince’s son is only six years old. If the Crown Prince outlives the Emperor and ascends the throne, then passes it to his young son, the kingdom would be unstable. I believe the Emperor, on his deathbed, is unlikely to pass the throne to the Crown Prince.”
“The Crown Prince, due to his frail health, isn’t favored by many court officials, so he cannot protect his position,” Jiang Ning continued her analysis.
Her words, however, caused Xie Zhengyang’s gaze to linger on her face for a long time.
Suddenly, he embraced Jiang Ning tightly.
It was rare for a young woman from an inner chamber to possess such keen insight.
“Ninger is the most intelligent woman in the world,” Xie Zhengyang exclaimed with immense excitement at that moment.
Their damnable social status stood as a barrier to their marriage.
“Zhengyang, for your sake, and for the chance to become your wife, let us strive together. Return and discuss matters thoroughly with your father, then we shall make a decision. This matter is not urgent. And we must proceed with utmost caution.
The Emperor has the Imperial City Guard at his disposal, and many things cannot escape his notice.”
“Alright. Wait for my news,” Xie Zhengyang replied with unusual excitement.
“There is one more thing,” Jiang Ning added.