Su Yuling’s grip tightened.
She looked neither at Lu Yuan nor Shen Hanqiu. Instead, she stared at the floor, her expression so tense that it seemed as though she were grinding her teeth to pieces and swallowing them.
“The Han family!”
Su Yuling forced those words through clenched teeth, her voice heavy with resentment.
“My Fifth Brother died in battle in the southwest. His body hadn’t even been brought back to the Royal Capital when Han Gou of the Han family came to propose marriage.”
When she raised her head, her eyes were filled with hatred.
“The Han family belongs to the same clan as Han Zheng, the Minister of War. They aren’t considered a particularly prominent family in the Royal Capital.”
“But after Fifth Brother died, the Earl of Yongning Residence lost what little influence it had left. Grandfather is already old, and there are no other men in the family to support the noble household.”
“Those who once called each other brothers at court now keep their distance from us.”
Shen Hanqiu lowered her head without saying anything. Her fingers twisted anxiously around the edge of her sleeve until they had turned bluish.
Hearing this, a face immediately appeared in Lu Yuan’s mind.
A round, chubby face. Tiny eyes. A nose that was perpetually red. Whenever he smiled, the flesh on his face bunched together unpleasantly.
Han Gou.
Lu Yuan knew him.
They had even visited brothels together several times in the past.
Whenever that bastard got drunk, he would start boasting about how influential his father was at court and how he himself would become a great general someday.
In reality, he could not even ride a horse properly. Once, he had fallen off his horse and knocked out two of his front teeth.
‘Someone like that thinks he’s worthy of Shen Hanqiu?’
Lu Yuan glanced at Shen Hanqiu.
She had delicate features and a pure, graceful appearance. Marrying a girl like her to someone like Han Gou would be no different from throwing an orchid onto a pile of manure.
Lu Yuan asked, “What’s Official Shen’s attitude toward this?”
Su Yuling sneered. “What attitude could he possibly have? He wishes he could marry his daughter off immediately so he can cling to the Han family’s influence.”
Shen Hanqiu’s shoulders trembled. Her lips moved slightly, but no words came out.
Su Tan slammed his walking stick against the floor so hard that the teacups on the table jumped.
“Hanqiu, you’ll stay here at the Earl of Yongning Residence. You’re not going anywhere!”
The old man’s voice boomed through the room, his bearing still vigorous despite his age. “I’d like to see who has the guts to come here and force you! If the Han family isn’t afraid of death, let them come! This old man’s saber hasn’t rusted yet!”
Shen Hanqiu raised her head. Her eyes were red as she greeted Su Tan respectfully. “Grandfather, I appreciate your kindness.”
Her voice was quiet and slightly nasal from crying.
“But the Han family isn’t easy to deal with. Han Zheng controls the Ministry of War. If he directs his anger toward the Earl of Yongning Residence, the Su family won’t be able to withstand another storm.”
After hearing those words, Su Tan’s expression turned grim.
He opened his mouth to argue, but the words caught in his throat.
The Su family truly could not withstand another storm.
Nine lives had been exchanged for this noble residence, yet among the powerful families of the Royal Capital, the Earl of Yongning Residence no longer even possessed the prestige of a third-rank marquis’s household. This chapter was copied from novelping dot com without permission.
Shen Hanqiu turned to leave.
“Leave this matter to me.”
Lu Yuan’s voice came from beside the doorframe.
Everyone immediately looked at him.
Su Tan frowned. Su Yuling pursed her lips, while Shen Hanqiu looked completely bewildered.
Lu Yuan pushed himself away from the doorframe and clapped his hands together. “Leave the Han family to me. I guarantee they won’t bother Miss Shen again.”
The room instantly fell silent.
Su Tan remained motionless with his teacup in hand. Madam Zhao and Madam Li exchanged glances, while the corners of Su Yuling’s lips turned downward slightly.
Shen Hanqiu took a deep breath before saying softly, “Your Highness the Ninth Prince, Hanqiu is grateful for your kindness. But this matter can’t be solved by fighting…”
What she really meant was obvious.
As a prince without power or status, how could Lu Yuan possibly contend with the family of the Minister of War?
Su Tan put down his cup and looked at Lu Yuan. He seemed to want to say something, but ultimately held back.
In the end, he merely said, “This old man thanks Your Highness the Ninth Prince for your intentions on Hanqiu’s behalf. However, the Han family’s situation is complicated. It isn’t something that can be resolved in a day or two.”
Even Su Yuling did not speak up for him.
She lowered her eyes and unconsciously traced a scar on her wrist with her fingertips. Clearly, she did not believe Lu Yuan could accomplish such a thing either.
Lu Yuan stood there, unsure whether to laugh or cry.
Just earlier in Qianyuan Hall, he had even managed to intimidate the Emperor.
Now, when it came to his future wife, not a single person believed him.
‘Fine.’
He did not bother explaining further and merely grinned at Shen Hanqiu. “Don’t worry, Miss Shen. I know what I’m doing.”
Shen Hanqiu said nothing. She greeted Su Tan once more and prepared to leave.
Su Tan tried to stop her once but failed. In the end, he simply ordered Su Fu to prepare a clean guest room in the rear courtyard. He then declared that the old hen was already stewing and the jar of osmanthus wine had already been opened, so no one was allowed to leave.
Those words were meant for Shen Hanqiu, but they were also directed at Lu Yuan.
The meal was served in the rear hall.
Calling it a rear hall was somewhat generous. The dining table was merely several wooden planks joined together into a long table, and more than half of the lacquer on its surface had peeled away.
However, the food was hearty and substantial. There was a whole stewed hen, two plates of vegetables, a plate of braised beef, and a pot of osmanthus wine.
Su Tan sat in the seat of honor. Lu Yuan was seated to his right, while Su Yuling sat opposite him, with Shen Hanqiu beside her.
Madam Zhao and Madam Li busied themselves serving rice and arranging the dishes. Once they finished, they simply stood nearby and refused to join the table.
Su Tan raised his wine bowl and looked at Lu Yuan. “Your Highness the Ninth Prince, this old man doesn’t know how to say pretty words. I’ll remember what you said for Yuling today. This bowl is a toast to you.”
Lu Yuan raised his bowl and clinked it against Su Tan’s before draining it in one gulp.
The osmanthus wine tasted slightly sweet as it went down. It was not particularly strong, but it warmed his stomach pleasantly.
Su Tan also drained his bowl in one gulp, wiped his mouth, and immediately reached for a second serving.
Lu Yuan held the wine jar down, filled the old man’s bowl himself, and then poured another for himself.
“Your Highness the Ninth Prince, you said you don’t want to compete for that position?”
“I don’t.”
Lu Yuan gnawed on a chicken leg as he answered indistinctly, “Being Emperor means working like a donkey from dawn until late at night, while constantly worrying that your own sons might stab you in the back. Why would I want that?”
Su Tan stared at him twice before suddenly slapping the table.
“Well said!”
The old earl’s tongue was already beginning to slur, and his face had turned red.
“This old man has lived through the reigns of three Emperors, and not one of them had an easy life.”
“When your father was fighting to conquer the realm, he once went 3 days and 3 nights without closing his eyes. His armor was crawling with lice. And after he finally sat on the dragon throne? He became even busier.”
“Every day, he reviews memorials until late at night. Every day, he has to argue endlessly with those ministers.”
Su Tan suddenly threw an arm around Lu Yuan’s shoulders. His arm was thick and powerful, pulling Lu Yuan’s entire body sideways.
“Little Ninth, you and this old man really see eye to eye!”
Lu Yuan did not struggle. Still trapped beneath Su Tan’s arm, he raised his wine bowl and clinked it against the old man’s.
“Earl Su, since we see eye to eye, stop calling me Your Highness the Ninth Prince. Call me Little Brother!”
The moment Su Yuling heard that, she panicked so badly that she nearly dropped her chopsticks.
“The seniority is all wrong!”
Lu Yuan looked at her innocently. “What’s wrong with it? Earl Su and I get along well. What’s wrong with me calling him Big Brother?”
Su Yuling opened her mouth to argue, but Lu Yuan had already turned toward Su Tan with a grin.
“Earl Su, I’ll call you Big Brother, and you can call me your grandson-in-law. We’ll each go by our own seniority. Neither gets in the other’s way.”
Fueled by the alcohol, Su Tan needed several seconds before his mind finally caught up.
“Hahaha! No… no problem!”
With that, Su Tan drained another bowl of wine.
Then he began patting Lu Yuan on the shoulder while recounting stories from the battles of his youth.
As he talked, the stories gradually turned into boasts about how many enemy soldiers he had personally beheaded back then.
Lu Yuan listened while nodding along, occasionally throwing in a hearty, “Big Brother, you were mighty indeed!”
Every compliment made Su Tan beam from ear to ear.
Just then, hurried footsteps came from outside.
Su Fu rushed in from the courtyard entrance, panting so heavily that he could barely breathe. He had even lost one of his shoes along the way.
“My Lord! Something’s wrong!”
Su Tan stopped with the wine bowl halfway to his mouth. “What are you panicking about?”
Su Fu bent over and gasped for breath several times. His face was completely drained of color.
“The… the residence entrance has been surrounded! More than a dozen people are outside. The man leading them says he’s the Young Master of the Han family, and… and Official Shen is with him!”