The cannon fodder heiress trembled with fear after being recognized as a member of her family.

Last night at midnight, after Lu Cheng sent out the message, his whole family was taken away.

The Lu family was thrown into chaos that very night.

Marquis Kaiming has not yet established an heir. The old Marquis is still in good health and has no intention of asking for an heir. In addition, he is torn between two equally beloved sons and does not know how to choose.

Marquis Kaiming's career was not smooth. He held a sinecure for decades and never thought of making any political achievements.

However, they are fortunate in having children.

The Lu family consists entirely of legitimate children; there are no illegitimate children.

However, these legitimate children were not born of the same mother.

Lu Cheng glanced at the Marquis of Kaiming sitting above, watching them make a scene, and gritted his teeth, "Father, are you just going to watch the second son speak so disrespectfully to me? My sister is pregnant in the palace. What if she finds out I'm being bullied like this at home? What about the royal child in her womb?!"

Not having finished speaking, Marquis Kaiming stood up and glanced at Lu Chong, the Second Master of the Lu Clan, saying, "You're supposed to be the Vice Minister of Rites, and this is how you treat your eldest brother at home?"

Lu Chong was also annoyed. "Father, you're just taking his side! What did you promise my mother back then? You've forgotten the old one now that you have a new one. Aren't you afraid my mother will haunt your dreams at night?"

After saying this, he turned and left.

Marquis Kaiming stood there, his expression changing several times.

“Father, I have been away from home for the past few years. I never expected my second brother to be so disrespectful and arrogant.”

After saying this, Lu Cheng left with his men.

Marquis Kaiming slowly sat down, somewhat helpless.

“My lord, how can those two brothers not fight when they meet! If you ask me, you should decide on the position of heir as soon as possible to avoid hurting their relationship.”

Lady Hou, dressed in her finest attire, came from the inner room and pressed her hands against the temples of Marquis Kaiming.

"Madam, who do you think should be chosen? Neither of them is easy to deal with."

Marquis Kaiming closed his eyes and gradually relaxed.

Lady Hou's eyes darkened for a moment, then she smiled again. The change in her expression was so quick that Marquis Kaiming did not notice it.

"My two elder sisters died young, and in principle, the Marquis should treat them equally. However, our Great Ye Dynasty follows the principle of primogeniture, and the Marquis cannot make a mistake. If the brothers quarrel, others will laugh at our Marquis's mansion."

If the eldest son is chosen as the heir, then Lu Cheng is naturally the best choice.

Lu Cheng is the eldest son of the first wife. His younger sister, who shares the same mother, is still a concubine in the palace. She already has a princess, and the one in her belly might be a prince.

A few days ago, Consort Xu gave birth to a princess. The Emperor only rewarded her with some gold and silver, but did not promote her rank.

If Consort Rui's pregnancy results in a prince, her rank will definitely be promoted.

Lady Hou then truthfully expressed what was on her mind.

“What you say makes some sense! It’s just that you’ve been wronged. These two children have been disrespectful to you all these years, and you still think of them.”

Lady Hou lowered her head, feigning shyness, so that Marquis Kaiming would not see her expression.

Although her son was not good at studying, he had mastered martial arts and was no less skilled than his two older brothers.

Let them fight it out first; Yong'er will eventually have a chance.

She was the third Lady Hou.

The previous two wives were legitimate daughters from very good families, but she was the only one whose family was in decline.

If it weren't for a stroke of luck, she wouldn't have been able to marry into this family and enjoy such a life.

When Marquis Kaiming was young, he was handsome, even more so than Han Zhen.

The Kaiming Marquis's mansion had already declined by then; it was all gold and jade on the outside, but there were few valuable things inside.

The current splendor of the Marquis's mansion is inseparable from the Marquis Kaiming's appearance.

The first wife of the Marquis of Kaiming fell in love with him at first sight, lost her appetite, and almost fell seriously ill.

Seeing this, her family had no choice but to go to the palace to request an imperial decree to grant them the marriage.

Otherwise, given her status, she could have married into the royal family as a concubine.

Marquis Kaiming thus stumbled upon this opportunity, and by marrying a capable wife from his maternal family, the Marquis Kaiming's family turned their fortunes around.

However, a few years later, his first wife died in childbirth after giving birth to their daughter.

However, there are rumors that the first wife was killed by the second wife.

His second wife was his first wife's best friend, and she lived at home as a widow.

The wife invited her to come and relax.

Without the knowledge of the first wife, the confidante quietly became acquainted with the Marquis of Kaiming.

When his first wife had a difficult childbirth, his best friend came to visit.

After the woman passed away, her close friend entered the household within a month, and everyone said that Marquis Kaiming was heartless.

Seven months later, the handkerchief gave birth to the second master, Lu Chong, and was subsequently made the official wife.

Although everyone says Lu Chong was a premature baby, only they know the truth.

"Seven lives, eight lives," according to the old folks of the Marquis's mansion. When Lu Chong was born, he was fair-skinned and plump, showing no signs of weakness.

If there wasn't something fishy going on here, probably no one would believe it.

Later, for some reason, less than three years later, the second wife of the Marquis also passed away.

Thanks to these two marriages, the Kaiming Marquis's family completely reversed its decline and became a wealthy family in the capital.

At this time, rumors also began to circulate that the enlightened Marquis was a wife-killer.

Therefore, for the first few years, Marquis Kaiming was unable to remarry.

In the capital, some wealthy or powerful families don't want to marry their daughters into this family; to do so would mean losing both their daughter and their money.

If it weren't for the elders in the family using some tricks that day, she probably wouldn't have been able to marry into the family.

Marquis Kaiming was also someone who judged by appearances; both of his previous wives were elegant and beautiful.

As for her, she could only be described as pretty.

Just as Lady Hou was reminiscing about the past, Marquis Kaiming suddenly opened his eyes and said, "Let's put this matter off for now and talk about it after Rui'er gives birth. That person is neither the eldest son nor the legitimate heir."

Marquis Kaiming pointed meaningfully to the sky, thus ending the matter.

"It was I who failed to consider this. Your Excellency is truly meticulous and cautious. No wonder our Marquis's mansion has reached this point."

Lady Hou's words seemed to be coated with honey, and she uttered flattering phrases as if they were free.

"We should get going. Han Zhen isn't even as good-looking as I was back then. How come he's so lucky? He's rich, powerful, and influential now!"

Marquis Kaiming was somewhat dejected.

His first wife came from a good family, but unfortunately she refused to help him in his career.

As a result, he wasted half his life and still held a sinecure.

Han Zhen's appearance was praised by everyone in the capital, even more so than that of the Marquis of Kaiming back then.

If he hadn't married early and deliberately kept his distance from those noble ladies, countless young women would have fought tooth and nail for him back then.

"It seems that a person can't just have a good appearance; if he has nothing inside, he will always miss many opportunities."

Lady Hou was momentarily at a loss for words.

It turns out that this person also knew he was a good-for-nothing, and that he only had a leisurely job today because his first wife's family had helped him back then.

"Yong'er has a good appearance, but she still needs to work hard on her studies. If she has the same good fortune as Han Zhen, our Lu family's ancestral graves will be emitting auspicious smoke."

Marquis Kaiming longed for that kind of situation.

If it weren't for marrying a wife and defying fate, I wouldn't have the life I have now.

Her son, however, had no such ambitions.

The people from the Marquis's residence didn't respond, and just said a few words to brush it off.

She didn't need to worry about her son's future; someone would naturally help him.

The husband and wife had different thoughts.

Little did they know that the eldest son of the Kaiming Marquis's family had caused them a huge mess that day.