Reborn as a concubine's daughter and entering a noble family: Xie Lang, don't be too seduc

Huo Sanghua hurried into the room and turned to look. Xie Lin was leaning against the edge of the bed, leisurely straightening the creases on his sleeves.

Unperturbed... He heard everything that was happening in the courtyard clearly, but showed no intention of getting involved.

"Why aren't you moving?" Huo Sanghua was getting impatient. He had only been out for a short while, and yet he hadn't paid any attention to the commotion in the courtyard. "I even argued with the old lady and the Duchess of Maoguo for a long time to prevent them from shoving people into this courtyard. And you, you didn't even say a word, just stood by and watched them shove people in?"

"The Duchess of Maoguo?"

Upon hearing this person's name, Xie Lin immediately perked up, as if he hadn't expected her to come.

He sat up abruptly, pondered for a moment... and then it dawned on him. "Oh—I see, the Duchess of Maoguo is probably here again because of her youngest daughter, isn't she? But why did the Old Madam call you over? Does she want you to persuade my elder brother?"

"You know about this?" Hawthorne was taken aback.

After seeing Xie Lin's reaction, she immediately understood what was going on.

So this isn't the first time that Lady Maoguo has brought Nie Huayuan here to try and matchmake the eldest son of the Xie family.

"Of course I know." Xie Lin spread his hands, this matter was no secret in the Xie family. "The fourth daughter of the Duke of Maoguo's family, Miss Nie, has been infatuated with my eldest brother ever since she was twelve years old. The whole of Shengjing knows that she is still unmarried at this age because she is waiting for the unapproachable and aloof young master Xie to nod his head."

He gets all excited when talking about his older brother's "funny stories".

I could probably talk about it for a long time without repeating myself.

Nie Huayuan, the fourth daughter of the Nie family, is known throughout Shengjing for her long and arduous "torturous love affair" with the eldest son of the Xie family.

To be precise, it was a one-sided abuse.

At the age of twelve, she met Xie Shu by chance and fell in love at first sight, remaining devoted to him ever since.

Speaking of the prestigious Duke Maoguo Mansion of the Nie family, she was the fourth child in her family, and her eldest sister was the principal wife of the Third Prince.

The Third Prince is the current Emperor's younger brother. Logically speaking, even Consort Qi should be polite to Nie Huayuan and address her as "Sister Huayuan." Thanks to her eldest sister, she is considered to be of the same generation as the Emperor and Consort Qi, and Li Lang is even considered her junior. Yet, she has taken a fancy to the eldest son of the Xie family.

Her second and third brothers were both officials in the imperial court, and all four of them were born to the Duchess of Maoguo.

I've heard that Duke Maoguo has several beautiful concubines, but none of them have borne him children, which shows that Nie Huayuan's mother is no ordinary person. "... ...Let's not even talk about whether my elder brother has taken a liking to Miss Nie, even if he did, considering her family situation, he would definitely not marry her."

"What do you mean?" Huo Sanghua was a little confused. What was the situation with the Nie family?

"Think about it, her father had so many concubines, yet none of them bore him children. This shows just how ruthless this Lady of Maoguo is. If my elder brother marries this Fourth Miss Nie, and she listens to her mother and learns some underhanded methods to mistreat the concubines and illegitimate children in the family... wouldn't the inner quarters be in complete chaos?"

Xie Lin didn't take it to heart; it's natural for a military officer's family to live in harmony in their backyard.

Nie Huayuan's mother had that kind of personality, and she would definitely follow suit in the future. Her eldest sister was the principal wife of the Third Prince, her father was the dignified Duke of Maoguo, and her two older brothers also had some ability to navigate the officialdom.

If she were to cause trouble in her own backyard, and if she were to kill someone, such as the pregnant concubine, and then use her family's power to suppress her...

Who can get justice?

Just on this point alone...

Xie Lin was convinced that his older brother would never marry this woman.

“A concubine… …born out of wedlock… …” Hawthorne murmured to herself.

It was truly unexpected that the heir of the Marquis of Anding would have such thoughts, even considering how his concubines and illegitimate children would find a place to live.

As expected, he was carefully raised by Madam Xie and is the most suitable person to inherit the title of Marquis of Anding.

Thinking of this, Hawthorne felt a slight pang of sadness.

Fortunately, she died on her wedding night in her previous life. If she had actually lived that life, she would have had to endure a lot of grievances.

Regardless of how difficult things might be for Madam Xie, it's likely that this heir of the Marquis's mansion will eventually take a concubine. In the aristocratic families of Shengjing, there are probably no families without a group of women in their harems. Inevitably, some people will harbor ulterior motives and deliberately cause trouble.

Who can truly remain unaffected?

In time, it will be like the palace, where women vie for favor and children plot to rise in rank, turning a perfectly good life into one of intrigue and backstabbing.

It's really pitiful.

"What are you thinking about!" Xie Lin noticed that she had been lost in thought for a while, so he snapped his fingers in front of her, startling her. "Don't worry, even the old lady can't force my brother to agree if he doesn't give his consent."

They had approached him using the same methods before, subtly and overtly hinting that he should speak well of him to his elder brother.

But he fooled them, claiming he couldn't persuade his older brother, and they still couldn't do anything about it.

In other words, he was just putting on a brave face. There was really no other way, and he couldn't force his elder brother to marry that Miss Nie!

Force him to marry her? ... ...Huo Sanghua recalled that in her previous life, wasn't it Li Lang and Consort Qi who forced Xie Shu to agree to marry her? How come now Old Madam Xie can't force him to marry that Fourth Miss Nie? "That being said... ...By the way, what about those in the courtyard?"

"It was sent by my elder brother, so let him have it," Xie Lin said nonchalantly. "Perhaps my elder brother also feels that Consort Qi's influence is overreaching, and sending some people over will keep an eye on them, lest..."

As she spoke, she glanced at Hawthorne, seemingly casually.

Otherwise, they might follow Consort Qi and the Fourth Prince's wishes and torture her to death in the Xie family.

Previously, there weren't many maids serving in this courtyard, and they couldn't keep an eye on the few sent by Consort Qi, especially Granny Guo, who was a real shrewd person.

They were afraid that she would secretly send messages to the palace, informing Consort Qi of all the affairs of the Marquis of Anding's residence.

With more people, there are more eyes to watch out for.

Huo Sanghua's worries weren't limited to Consort Qi. "But... are the people the eldest young master sent really alright? Could it be...? They're all so young and beautiful..."

I always felt that Xie Shu had sent these maids with ulterior motives.

Just as Xie Lin said, his elder brother didn't care about taking concubines or establishing secondary wives. He had even considered the status of secondary wives and illegitimate children long ago. These young maids in the courtyard, who are just as beautiful as flowers, were probably personally chosen by him for Xie Lin.

"Young and beautiful? How beautiful?" Xie Lin hadn't even had a chance to look at them, letting them make a ruckus in the courtyard, but upon hearing this, he perked up and immediately peeked out, "... ...you're not worried... ...that they'll steal your thunder, are you?"

"Nonsense! I'm not worried about any of that." Huo Sanghua was a little embarrassed. She just felt that, after all, she wasn't Xie Lin's real wife, and she was afraid that if the maids in this courtyard won his favor, she wouldn't be able to control them...

How can one spend a whole year peacefully in this courtyard?

"Pfft—" Xie Lin couldn't help but laugh. "Don't worry, if Big Brother wants to use these people to test me... then he's really underestimating me."