My husband, who abandoned his father and kept his son, actually wants me to be his concubine.

Chapter 10 Using Sincerity
Mu Yan agreed, "Junior Sister Lu, please go if you have something to do. There are still half a year until the autumn examination, so there's no rush."

Lu Jinshi bowed to Mu Yan and then turned and left the school.

After seeing Lu Jinshi leave, Rong Yi said to Mu Yan, "Senior Brother Mu, I also have something to do, so I'll take my leave first."

After Rong Yi finished speaking, he caught up with Lu Jinshi's carriage and got into the carriage with Lu Jinshi.

Lu Jinshi frowned and looked at Rong Yi, saying, "Don't you have your own carriage? Why are you getting into mine?"

Rong Yi looked at Lu Jinshi and said, "Now that you know my identity, you should know that it was not that I wronged you by making you my concubine, but that you used my true feelings by having a child through surrogacy."

Lu Jinshi scoffed and said, "Love between a man and a woman is consensual; how is that taking advantage of your sincerity?"

Rong Yi reached out and grasped Lu Jinshi's chin, saying, "What is borrowed must be returned. You lent me a son, so you have to return Zhang'er to me."

Lu Jinshi pushed Rong Yi's hand away and said, "How can I return the child I carried for ten months to you?"

Rong Yi said, "Do you think you can compete with the Marquis of Changping's family for a son?"

Lu Jinshi frowned and looked at Rong Yi, saying, "I really can snatch it."

Seeing the arrogance on Lu Jinshi's face, Rong Yi frowned slightly, "Lu Jinshi, you really have a big mouth."

“I can’t compare to your boastful tone.” Lu Jinshi looked at Rong Yi and said, “You want me to be your concubine right off the bat, and you still dare to say that I took advantage of your sincerity? Fortunately, I didn’t give my sincerity to the wrong person.”

Rong Yi frowned and said, "Since we met, you've never given me your true feelings?"

Lu Jinshi found it quite ridiculous. Rong Yi probably had the intention of making her his concubine from the very beginning, yet he still cared about so-called sincerity.

"So what if I didn't give you my true heart..."

Rong Yi reached out and pulled Lu Jinshi into his arms, biting her lips as if to punish her.

Lu Jinshi winced in pain and forcefully pushed Rong Yi away, raising her hand to slap him on the cheek. "Rong Yi! When you offered to make me your concubine, did you ever show me any sincerity?"

Rong Yi took the slap from Lu Jinshi, then gripped Lu Jinshi's wrist tightly and said, "If I hadn't given you my true heart, would I have allowed you to give birth to my eldest son? Do you know what the eldest son means to me?"

Lu Jinshi said, "You are just a mere heir of a marquis's mansion. What does your eldest son mean?"

Rong Yi frowned and said, "My identity is actually..."

Just as Rong Yi was about to speak, a guard's voice came from outside again, "Master, His Majesty has ordered you to go to Zichen Palace immediately."

Rong Yi frowned slightly and said to Lu Jinshi in a low voice, "I will explain my identity to you later, but my sincerity towards you has never been fake."

After Rong Yi finished speaking, he left the carriage, mounted his horse, and returned to the Zichen Palace.

After Rong Yi left, Lu Jinshi wiped the corner of his lips with the back of his hand, feeling extremely annoyed.

If I had known this would happen, I should have hit his palms a few more times with the ruler to vent my anger.
-
At the He family mansion of the Marquis of Yongxing, the lanterns at the main gate were taken down and replaced with white lanterns, and the whole house was covered with white silk.

Everyone inside the house was crying.

Madam He wiped away her tears and cried, "My lord, you've left me all alone. How am I supposed to live? And your granddaughter is so unfilial, she wouldn't even agree to a marriage to bring you good fortune... If Jinshi had been willing to do so today, you would surely have been happy and lived a little longer, instead of leaving us today..."

"Poor Lord Marquis, you died with your eyes wide open, never seeing the joyous occasion of your grandchildren!"

Madam He cried bitterly.

Liu Xiuxiu, standing to the side, silently shed tears and said, "Mother-in-law."

Overwhelmed with grief, Madam He said, "Where is that unfilial daughter? Before her grandfather passed away, he was concerned about her marriage. So, before her grandfather's funeral, she was married off, and only then could the old Marquis be laid to rest in peace."

Liu Xiuxiu said, "Mother-in-law, don't worry, I'll send someone to find the eldest daughter right away."

He Jinlan said from the side, "He Jinshi has come to Chang'an, but he doesn't stay in the Marquis's mansion. He's simply disgracing the He family's daughters." Liu Xiuxiu gestured for He Jinlan to say less.

Liu Xiuxiu said to the weeping Madam He, "Mother-in-law, please don't be angry. The old Marquis has passed away. Please take good care of yourself."

Old Madam He, panting heavily, said, "That unfilial granddaughter He Jinshi refused to marry a man to bring good fortune, causing her grandfather to die with resentment. She's trying to drive me to my death too..."

Lu Jinshi listened to the crying and accusations against her from outside the house, sneered, put the handkerchief in the fish pond next to him, wet the handkerchief, and went inside.

As soon as she entered, Lu Jinshi burst into tears, "Grandfather, your granddaughter is late."

Looking at Lu Jinshi who was crying as she entered, Old Madam He coldly rebuked her, "Didn't I tell you yesterday that you should marry the second son of the Marquis of Anping today to bring good luck to your grandfather? Why haven't you been around all day? You've caused your grandfather to die with resentment. Your grandfather's last wish was for you to get married so that he could be laid to rest in peace!"

"The news of your grandfather's death has been sent out, so your wedding will be kept simple. You will be married in a bridal sedan chair, so that your grandfather can rest in peace without any regrets."

Lu Jinshi wept and said, "Grandmother, did Grandfather really say that he could only be laid to rest after I got married?"

Madam He looked at Lu Jinshi and said, "Could it be that it's fake?"

Lu Jinshi said in a low voice, "Granddaughter understands. I will go to the palace later to ask His Majesty to let the Seventh Prince and I get married as soon as possible."

Upon hearing Lu Jinshi's words, He Jinlan frowned and said, "What do you mean by marrying the Seventh Prince? How could it be you marrying the Seventh Prince? Grandfather wants you to marry Huang Teng, not the Seventh Prince."

Lu Jinshi looked up at He Tan, who was standing to the side with a sad expression, and said, "Father, didn't His Majesty issue an imperial decree to bestow a marriage upon the Marquis's family? Although I want to be filial to my grandfather and follow his last wishes, I have no choice but to obey the Emperor's decree."

He Jinlan chimed in, "The imperial decree bestowed upon the Marquis's residence by His Majesty was for me!"

Lu Jinshi looked at He Tan and said, "Father, why don't you go and fetch the imperial decree of marriage and read it aloud again? Who exactly is this decree for?"

He Jinlan said, "The imperial decree of marriage was naturally for me. You are two years older than the Seventh Prince, so how can you be the Seventh Prince's consort?"

Lu Jinshi said, "How come I heard that the imperial edict mentions the eldest daughter of the Yongxing Marquis's family... Is there anyone else besides me who is the eldest daughter?"

Liu Xiuxiu chuckled and said, "It's the Marquis's fault, really. You left the Marquis's mansion with the princess when you were young. After Lan'er was born, since you weren't in Chang'an, everyone in Chang'an treated Lan'er as the eldest daughter of the Marquis's mansion."

"You grew up in the countryside and are two years older than the Seventh Prince, so everyone in the Marquis's mansion and even in Chang'an assumed the imperial decree of marriage was for your sister."

Lu Jinshi pretended to shed tears and said, "So there are two eldest daughters in one household? In that case, I'll go to the palace and ask His Majesty whether this imperial decree of marriage is for me or my sister..."

"There's no need to ask! And you don't need to get married." Old Madam He interrupted Lu Jinshi. "Your grandfather just passed away. It would be a laughing stock to hold a wedding during the mourning period. There's no need to ask His Majesty about this."

Lu Jinshi pretended to be serious and said, "But didn't you just say that if I don't get married today, my grandfather won't be able to rest in peace, and you will be so angry that you die? My grandfather has already passed away. If you pass away too, my grandmother... I will be heartbroken."

Lu Jinshi gently wiped the corners of his eyes with a damp handkerchief and then burst into tears in front of Madam He.

Hearing Lu Jinshi's mournful cries, Madam He felt extremely unlucky and frowned, saying, "You don't need to get married yet. Your grandfather's funeral is the most important thing. How can you trouble His Majesty with such a trivial matter?"

Lu Jinshi truly admired the He family's audacity; they even dared to deceive the imperial decree bestowing a marriage upon them.

They not only treated her like a fool, but also His Majesty and the Seventh Prince.

After wiping away her tears with a handkerchief, Lu Jinshi looked at He Tan and said, "Father, what my sister said earlier is true. As a daughter of the He family, it would be really inappropriate for me to return to Chang'an and not stay at the Marquis's residence. So I want to move back to my Jinyuan."

He Jinlan frowned and said, "How could Jinyuan be yours? This Jinyuan has long been where my mother and I lived. It's true that you've been living in the countryside for too long and you've become short-sighted. As soon as you come back, you want to compete with my mother for the best courtyard in the Marquis's mansion. Don't you even care about filial piety?"

Lu Jinshi only looked at He Tan and said, "So Jinyuan isn't mine? Father, you can even let other people live in the courtyard that my mother specially built for me?"

He Tan lowered his head and remained silent.

Madam He, who was standing to the side, said, "Jinyuan is the residence of the Marquis. How did it become yours? Jinlan is also the legitimate daughter of the Marquis. What's wrong with her living in Jinyuan? If you want to move back to the Marquis's residence, you can only live in the west wing."

Lu Jinshi found it ridiculous that the west wing was being treated poorly, even if it were a guest room, yet they were letting her move back to the west wing.

How could the He family think she would be so easily bullied?
(End of this chapter)