Marrying a Wife and Concubine Together: After Rebirth, I Remarried the Scumbag's Father on the

Zhan Miao whispered, "But Mother is doing this for your own good!"

Zhan Mu shook his head with difficulty: "No, she's not. She's after the Marquis's mansion. In her heart, I've never been her son!"

Zhan Miao froze, she hadn't expected Zhan Mu to say such a thing.

Lin Yiwan stared wide-eyed in shock. Had Zhan Mu lost his mind?

How could he say that about her?

She couldn't help but speak up: "Do you really think she's innocent? There are so many noble young men in the capital, why would she go to such lengths to get close to you? Why would she pretend to be so gentle and sensible in front of you, without a single fault to be found? Zhan Mu, you've seen the backstabbing in the court, why are you so confused when it comes to matters of the heart!"

Zhan Mu stared blankly at Lin Yiwan, his lips moving, but he couldn't utter a single word.

He recalled Rong Zhiyu's smile, her gentleness as she played the zither, and the look in her eyes when she told him, "I wish to stay with you forever, never to leave you." But those images became blurry in his mind at that moment.

But his inherent stubbornness prevented him from giving up easily.

He took a deep breath, straightened his back, and said, word by word, "Mother, I know you have many concerns, but I still want to ask you to grant my request. If Zhiyu really has a problem, I am willing to guarantee with my position as heir that I will never let her harm the Marquis's Mansion or the Sheng Dynasty! If she is innocent, I will be with her for life and never betray her."

After saying this, he bent down and kowtowed heavily. His forehead hit the blue bricks with a dull thud.

"Please grant my request, Mother!"

Lin Yiwan stood there, watching him with his forehead pressed against the ground, his shoulders trembling slightly.

She knew that Zhan Mu had been stubborn since childhood; once he made up his mind, nothing could change it. But she was his mother, and she couldn't just watch him jump into a fire pit.

The snow fell heavier and heavier, and the lanterns outside the window were being battered precariously by the wind and snow, their light flickering on and off. The charcoal fire in the warm room burned brightly, but it couldn't dispel the chill in Lin Yiwan's heart.

She remained silent for a long time, so long that Zhan Mu's knees began to go numb, so long that Zhan Miao was wringing his hands anxiously beside her, before slowly speaking: "Do you know that by kneeling here today, you are forcing me?"

Zhan Mu stiffened. He raised his head, his face full of guilt, yet still resolute: "I dare not force you, Mother, but my mind is made up."

Lin Yiwan looked at him, a resolute glint in her eyes. "Fine, you can marry her if you want. From this day forward, you are no longer the heir of the Marquis of Zhanyi's mansion. Everything about the Zhan family is none of your business! You will take her, leave the capital, and go to a place where no one knows you, to live out your lives in anonymity. Are you willing?"

These words struck Zhan Mu like a thunderbolt.

He stared blankly at Lin Yiwan, his eyes filled with shock.

He never imagined his mother would say such a thing.

His status as the heir of the Marquis of Zhanyi's family was an innate honor, the foundation upon which he would inherit the title. How could he possibly give it up?

"Mother..." His voice was hoarse, tinged with confusion, "Why did you have to do this?"

Lin Yiwan laughed, but there was a hint of sorrow in her laughter. "Because I can't let the Zhan family's century-old foundation be destroyed by a woman of unknown origin! Zhan Mu, think carefully, is your love for your children more important, or the honor of the Zhan family, or the lives of hundreds of people in the Marquis's mansion!"

Zhan Mu lowered his head and looked at his hands. These hands had once held the books of sages, practiced riding and archery, and held Rong Zhiyu's hand, feeling the tenderness of her fingertips.

Torn between the glory of the Marquis's mansion and the tender feelings of his children, what choice should he make?

The wind and snow howled, pounding against the windowpanes with a mournful sound, like someone weeping softly.

The warm room was deathly silent, with only the crackling of the burning charcoal fire.

Zhan Miao looked at Zhan Mu kneeling on the ground, then at Lin Yiwan with a cold expression, and couldn't help but persuade her, "Mother, my brother has traveled a long way back and is almost frozen. Please let him get up and talk things out."

Lin Yiwan ignored Zhan Miao and stared intently at Zhan Mu.

Zhan Mu's knees were numb; the icy chill seeped into his bones from the blue bricks, yet he seemed oblivious to it. Lin Yiwan's words echoed repeatedly in his mind, words like sharp knives piercing his heart with excruciating pain.

He recalled that day under the peach tree, Rong Zhiyu, dressed in a plain white dress, smiling gently at him: "Brother Mu, I don't ask you to achieve great success, I only ask that you be safe and well."

He remembered how she had shielded him from an arrow without hesitation; she was originally such a girl who was afraid of pain.

He took a deep breath, raised his head again, and the confusion in his eyes faded, leaving only a stubborn light.

He looked at Lin Yiwan and said, word by word, "Mother, I will protect the honor of the Zhan family; I will protect the lives of everyone in the Marquis's mansion; and I will protect Zhiyu as well. I will not abandon any of these three."

After saying that, he bent down and kowtowed heavily again.

"Please believe your child, Mother!"

His forehead struck the blue brick, and this time, a trickle of blood seeped out, staining the cold blue brick red.

Zhan Miao exclaimed in surprise and rushed forward to support him: "Brother! Why did you do this!"

Lin Yiwan's pupils contracted sharply as she stared at the glaring red. Her heart felt as if it had been violently clenched, the pain almost suffocating her.

She turned around, her back to Zhan Mu, her voice trembling with a barely perceptible sob: "You actually bullied me for another woman. If your father knew, he would be furious!"

Zhan Mu was filled with remorse, but he had no choice but to do it.

His stubborn voice, hoarse, rang out: "I will not get up for a day without my mother's permission."

The snow is still falling, and it's getting heavier and heavier.

The world outside the window had turned into a vast expanse of white. The icicles under the eaves grew longer and longer, like sharp swords hanging in mid-air.

No matter how brightly the charcoal fire burned in the warm room, it couldn't warm away the biting cold.

Lin Yiwan stood by the window, watching the swirling snow, remaining silent for a long time. Her figure appeared exceptionally lonely in the dim candlelight.

Zhan Mu knelt on the ground, the blood on his forehead already congealed, blending into the color of the blue bricks.

His knees had long since lost all feeling, yet he still stood tall, like an unyielding statue.

Time passed slowly, the snow gradually subsided, and a hint of dawn appeared on the horizon.

As dawn broke, the first rays of sunlight pierced through the clouds and fell on the roof of the Marquis of Zhanyi's mansion, turning the snow a golden hue.

Lin Yiwan slowly turned around, looking at Zhan Mu kneeling on the ground. The coldness in her eyes finally faded, leaving only deep helplessness.

She sighed, her voice hoarse: "Get up."

Zhan Mu suddenly raised his head, a glint of light flashing in his eyes: "Mother, you..."

“I can agree to your request, but I have conditions.” Lin Yiwan looked at him, her tone solemn.