“Y-you…!” Jiang Wenxiang pointed a trembling finger at her, so angry he could barely speak.
But Jiang Qingran didn’t give him a chance to interrupt. “The Emperor showed great mercy by arranging a marriage between the Seventh Prince and me? Please. Forget His Majesty. Among all the neighbors around us, who even remembers that the Jiang family has a Fifth Miss?”
“You clearly wanted to exploit a loophole in the imperial decree and make me marry in Jiang Qingyue’s place. Why bother lying about it? Falsifying an imperial edict is a capital offense!”
Jiang Wenxiang was shaking all over. This calamity of a girl was determined to pin one charge after another on him, each severe enough to brand him a traitor.
With a playful curl of her lips, Jiang Qingran continued, “If you want me to marry him, fine. As the only legitimate daughter of the Prime Minister’s Residence, and since I’m marrying a prince, I want a dowry of 188 bridal loads and 100,000 taels of silver. That’s not excessive, is it?”
“You unfilial wretch! You unfilial wretch!” Old Madam Jiang beat her chest in fury. “Why don’t you just rob us outright? Jiang Qingran, you’re nothing more than the Jiang family’s discarded daughter. Forget one hundred thousand taels. You’re not even worth ten taels!”
Lifting her chin slightly, Jiang Qingran sneered. “Maybe I’m not worth much, but Jiang Qingyue certainly is. Didn’t you all claim that auspicious signs filled the heavens when she was born and that a phoenix soared across the sky? Didn’t you say she was a blessed daughter destined to become the mother of the nation? If she marries the Seventh Prince, she’ll probably spend her whole life as nothing more than a barnyard chicken.”
She chuckled softly. “Unless, of course, the rumors are true. Unless she really inherited the divine physician Songhe’s medical expertise and can cure the Seventh Prince’s crippled leg. If that happens, perhaps he might even have a chance to compete for the position of Crown Prince in the future.”
Yet even if the Seventh Prince were perfectly healthy, his mother had been nothing more than a palace maid. The imperial throne would never be his. As the Prime Minister of the realm, Jiang Wenxiang understood this better than anyone. The Third Prince, however, was different. He was the Empress’s own son, legitimate. He had a ninety percent chance of being named Crown Prince in the future. His precious Yue’er had to become the Third Prince’s principal wife.
With that thought, Jiang Wenxiang hardened his resolve. “Fine. I agree to your terms.”
Once he became the Emperor’s father-in-law, crushing Jiang Qingran would be as easy as stepping on an ant.
But Jiang Qingran was not so easily fooled. “I don’t trust Prime Minister Jiang’s word. I want those one hundred thousand taels of silver right now.”
Jiang Wenxiang clenched his fists. “Don’t push your luck! One hundred thousand taels is no small amount. Where am I supposed to get that much money right now?”
“Heh…” Jiang Qingran let out a mocking laugh. “If any other official said that, I might actually believe it. But you? Even three hundred thousand taels would be easy for you to produce. Jiang Wenxiang, I’m no longer the helpless child from ten years ago who could only endure your beatings and insults. Don’t try to play tricks with me. If I don’t see those banknotes before the end of today, then Jiang Qingyue can go right ahead and become the Seventh Prince’s Consort.”
Suppressing the hatred in her heart, Shen Ruoliu quickly forced a smile. “Ranran, don’t be angry. Your father and I will gather the money and give it to you today.”
“How dare you!” Jiang Qingran shot her a cold, piercing glare. “Since when does a lowly concubine like you have the right to call me by name?”
“Jiang Qingran!” Third Young Master Jiang Yuanrui could not bear to see his mother humiliated. He strode forward and reached out to shove Jiang Qingran.
Remaining seated and completely unruffled, Jiang Qingran caught his arm. With a sharp twist and a crisp crack, she dislocated it on the spot.
“Aaah!” His agonized scream echoed throughout the entire residence.
Cold sweat poured down Jiang Yuanrui’s face from the excruciating pain.
“Oh, heavens! Oh, heavens! This is unbearable!” Old Madam Jiang stamped her feet and burst into tears. “Jiang Qingran! Jiang Qingran! We’ve already agreed to everything you demanded. Why would you be so vicious toward your own brother?”
Jiang Qingran smiled faintly, looking utterly innocent. “He’s merely the son of a concubine. Strictly speaking, he should greet me respectfully whenever he sees me. Instead, he rushed forward and tried to strike me. Why is it, Old Madam Jiang, that you don’t accuse him of being vicious toward me?”
It felt as though a huge boulder had lodged itself in Old Madam Jiang’s chest, making it difficult for her to breathe.
“We’re all family. There’s no need to keep bringing up legitimacy and concubine birth in every sentence.”
“Oh?” Jiang Qingran deliberately drew out the word. “So the laws of Dongque, upheld for thousands of years, have been abolished by a single remark from you? It seems you’ve already decided that your Prime Minister son will one day rebel against the throne, and that his rebellion will succeed.”