She mistakenly got into the bridal sedan chair and married a sickly but powerful minister, becoming

Seeing that Zhao Jue was utterly irresponsible and even now wanted to shift the blame onto Shen Qingtan, the old lady realized that Zhao Jue was trying to shift the responsibility onto Shen Qingtan.

She was so angry that her chest felt tight, and she sneered, "Although Qingtan got into the wrong wedding sedan chair, she married the right man. From now on, she will be the eldest daughter-in-law of our Duke's Mansion."

The old lady made the decision immediately, patted Zhao Yi's arm reassuringly, and then left the study with her cane.

The second master's expression changed. The old lady of the Duke's mansion was definitely not an ordinary person.

The old lady's words likely came from the fact that she saw through their tricks.

Zhao Jue didn't miss the old lady's disappointed look, but things had come to this point, and he had no other choice.

He glanced at Zhao Yi with a cryptic look, then pushed open the door and left the study.

The second master followed Zhao Jue away.

Only the master and Zhao Yi remained in the study.

The old man never imagined that such an absurd thing would happen to his own son.

He wanted to say something comforting, but he had never comforted anyone in his life, and after a long time he couldn't think of a single word. Finally, he said dryly, "Yi'er, you've been wronged."

"I'm not wronged at all; my son has actually benefited from this misfortune." Zhao Yi was glad he hadn't married the restless Shen Mingzhu. Thinking of his mother's temperament, he worried that she would take her anger out on Shen Qingtan, so he deliberately said, "Tell your mother about this; she is the one I love."

The old man stared wide-eyed. His eldest son was actually coveting his own brother's wife. No wonder it was said that misfortune had turned into blessing.

His feelings were complicated; he didn't know whether he should feel sorry for his son or be glad that he had gotten lucky and his wish had come true.

-

Zhao Yi was in poor health, so his brothers entertained the guests on his behalf, and he only needed to go through the motions.

The more angry the old lady was about the foolish things the second branch of the family did, the more she felt sorry for the first branch.

To avoid being laughed at by the guests, she canceled the wedding night pranks, citing Zhao Yi's poor health.

After leaving the banquet, Zhao Yi went straight back to the bridal chamber.

He saw Shen Qingtan sitting gracefully on the wedding bed. Her heavy makeup had been removed, and her fair face resembled a peony in full bloom, glistening with dew, charming and beautiful.

Shen Qingtan stood up: "Second Master."

She didn't know how Zhao Yi handled it, or what his plans were.

Zhao Yi waved away the maidservants who were serving Shen Qingtan and closed the door: "The second branch of the family, considering the reputations of you two sisters, has decided to go along with the mistake."

Shen Qingtan lowered her eyes; it was exactly what she had expected.

It would be strange if the second wife were willing to switch.

Zhao Yi said gently, "The man you originally wanted to marry was not me. My health is poor and my lifespan is short. If you have other plans, you can tell me and I will make arrangements for you."

“My previous marriage to Zhao Jue was merely an arranged marriage by my parents. Now that I have married you, Second Master, I will be your wife.” As Shen Qingtan spoke, she raised her eyes and looked at him with tender eyes: “Or… is it that Second Master is unwilling?”

Zhao Yi noticed the unease flashing in her watery eyes. She had maintained her composure all night, but now there was a crack in her expression, as if she was worried that he was unwilling to accept the marriage.

Her departure from the Duke of Zhao's mansion foreshadowed her fate.

Zhao Yi sighed softly and said helplessly, "No, go wash up and rest."

Shen Qingtan did not move, her gaze drifting to the two wine glasses on the table.

Zhao Yi followed her gaze and realized that she had missed the part about drinking the nuptial wine.

He strolled to the table, poured two glasses of wine, and handed one to Shen Qingtan.

Shen Qingtan took the wine glass with her bare hand and linked arms with Zhao Yi. She felt his arm was stiff, as if he didn't like being touched.

She hesitated, about to let go.

Zhao Yi drank the nuptial wine first.

Shen Qingtan was taken aback, pursed her red lips, and then tilted her head back to drink.

Zhao Yi calmly withdrew his hand and put down his wine glass: "I'm going to the study to wash up."

Shen Qingtan nodded slightly: "Okay."

Before leaving, Zhao Yi, fearing she might overthink things, said, "Grandmother already knows about today's events. She's convinced you're my wife, so you don't need to worry."

Shen Qingtan was taken aback and looked at Zhao Yi in surprise, only to see his tall figure disappear through the doorway.

Although Zhao Yi was frail and sickly, many young ladies in the capital were willing to marry him, but he had no intention of taking a wife.

Later, for reasons unknown, he agreed to marry, but he never met Shen Mingzhu.

Shen Mingzhu was recognized as a member of the Marquis's family. The Marquis's mansion hired a matron to teach her etiquette and manners. Before her wedding, Shen Mingzhu never appeared in public.

It's normal that Zhao Yi didn't recognize the bride. Even if he noticed something strange when he returned from the wedding procession, he couldn't have guessed that Zhao Jue would be so bold as to switch brides.

Faced with this unexpected turn of events, did Zhao Yi accept it calmly and even defend her to the old lady?

Shen Qingtan recalled the moment the two of them touched; Zhao Yi's instinctive reaction was probably to reject her.

Her thoughts were in disarray. She took a bath with the help of Qiu Chan and changed into a bright red undergarment.

Chun Jiao cleaned up the longan, red dates, and peanuts on the bed.

Sitting on the wedding bed, Shen Qingtan said, "You are my second sister's dowry, and now you can go back to her side."

Qiu Chan and Chun Jiao were overjoyed, not expecting Shen Qingtan to let them go so easily.

The two men then bowed and hurriedly left the main house to find their master.

Shen Qingtan lifted the quilt and lay down on the inside of the wedding bed, smoothing out the creases on the quilt, when she heard the sound of the door being pushed open.

She subconsciously turned her head to look at the doorway, where she saw Zhao Yi wearing a red brocade robe with wide sleeves, which made his features look like a painting, noble and elegant.

Perhaps due to his poor health, he was thin and frail. Although his eyes were calm and gentle, they exuded a cold and aloofness that made him difficult to approach.

Shen Qingtan remembered that Zhao Yi had resisted her approach before, so she did not get out of bed to undress him.

Zhao Yi glanced at Shen Qingtan lying in bed, her bright red breasts highlighting a hint of allure on her radiant face.

Perhaps his gaze was too direct, making her a little nervous, and she shrank her head back slightly.

His gaze paused, he lowered his eyes, took off his outer robe and hung it on the clothes rack, then lifted a corner of the quilt and lay down on the outside of the bed.

Shen Qingtan smelled the cold plum fragrance on his clothes, but couldn't hide the faint, bitter medicinal smell.

Her body tensed instantly, and her heart pounded.

In her previous life, she died before she was eighteen years old.

Her relationship with Zhao Jue was nominal, and she had never been this close to a man before. It was impossible for her not to be nervous.

"Go to sleep." Zhao Yi noticed Shen Qingtan's emotional fluctuations and explained in a calm tone, "My body is unable to engage in sexual intercourse, as all the elders in the manor know."

Shen Qingtan pulled the blanket over half of her flushed face: "...Oh."