Chapter 48: How Dare She Hope for Offspring

Qin He was speechless, feeling a pang of unease.

This was a difficult question to answer; by what right could she care about this matter?

In ancient times, no status would be appropriate.

If she cared about He Yan's marriage as the Princess Consort of Xue, she would be seen as unruly; in ancient times, such a stance was untenable. She and He Yan were already impossible, and Qin He had no intention of divorcing the Prince of Xue.

Whether by appearance or family background, Xue Qing ranked second only to He Yan and Rong Juan in every aspect.

If she acted as He Yan's white moonlight? It wasn't impossible, but as she had said, if Xue Qing found out, he would certainly demand a divorce. Thinking of this, Qin He grew anxious; she should not have acted so impulsively.

She did not want a divorce, nor did she wish to tarnish the perfect image Xue Qing held of her.

Her true purpose in visiting the Hou Fu of Qin Yan today could not be revealed to Xue Qing.

"Mother-in-law," Qin He immediately dropped her fierce demeanor, adopting a slightly obedient tone as she weakly defended herself: "I wasn't arguing about anything; I was just too angry and asked out of curiosity. I thought their marriage was merely a formality."

From her position, Qin He felt there was nothing wrong with asking.

"Qin Bi never thought it was a formality," Cui Shi stared at Qin He. This concubine-born daughter had grown accustomed to smooth sailing and was far too self-important: "She made such a fuss back then to break the engagement; why didn't you do anything earlier?!"

Even Qin Bi understood it wasn't a formality, yet Qin He entertained such wild fantasies, always viewing things from her own self-serving perspective. Furthermore, Qin He was capable and appeared sharp; how could she be less sensible than Qin Bi on this matter?

As she spoke, Cui Shi's cultivated restraint from her noble upbringing nearly broke, though she managed to hold it back.

Qin He did not believe she was wrong, but faced with Cui Shi's question, she was left speechless and had no retort, so she said: "Given her status and the repeated delays in her marriage, she might have longed to marry into the Guogong Prefecture of Yan. If I had blocked it, I might not have gained any favor, and the Fourth Branch might later blame me for ruining their chance to form an alliance with the Guogong Prefecture of Yan."

Cui Shi could no longer hold back; whether argued for or against, everything seemed to favor Qin He.

Who stood to gain? It was a perfectly clear matter!

"If you go to the Fourth Branch and say exactly that to your Fourth Uncle and Fourth Aunt," Cui Shi stood up, pointing toward the door, "if you dare say it, I dare bet the entire Fourth Branch family will come and fight us in the Second Branch."

As a concubine-born daughter, Qin Di and his wife had no direct dealings with Qin He; they would certainly come to confront the couple. Blaming the Second Branch couple for failing to raise a concubine-born daughter properly was justified; it simply depended on whether Qin He dared to go.

Qin He felt a moment of fear but immediately straightened her back: "Except for Cousin Qin Tang and Fourth Aunt, no one in the Fourth Branch is accomplished; why should I fear them?"

The He family was connected to the Guogong Prefecture of Yan, and Qin Tang was capable himself; Qin He paid no attention to the others.

"Why should I fear them?" Cui Shi was thoroughly angered by this concubine-born daughter. A maid stepped forward to help Cui Shi sit, and Cui Shi slapped the table: "Your Fourth Uncle calls your father 'Second Brother'; that alone is enough."

The family was speaking as if they were two separate households. Today, Qin He's questioning was not about trivial matters; if a woman was unruly, the entire family would suffer. Once married, one must speak only of matters concerning one's own household.

Xue Qing was willing to associate with He Yan and trusted Qin He because she had no faults and had been well-behaved since their marriage.

Today's questioning by Qin He revealed a somewhat unruly mindset.

Qin He felt indignant, but she knew the rules of this ancient cultivation world she had transmigrated into; if she went too far, someone would punish her. Her wings were not yet strong, and she still needed to bide her time.

Qin He said nothing more. Cui Shi glanced at her, knowing the concubine-born daughter remained unconvinced.

"Do you know? Qin Bi is not as capable as you. She had no say in her marriage to the Guogong Prefecture of Yan, nor even the slightest room to offer an opinion." Cui Shi was no longer impatient and spoke calmly: "Therefore, compared to your smooth sailing, it is difficult for Qin Bi to change anything. Yet, upon learning that He Yan intended to marry you as a secondary wife, she still made a scene. In the end, your Fourth Uncle had to ask your Grandfather and Eldest Uncle to visit the Guogong Prefecture of Yan and propose a divorce."

At this, Cui Shi let out a "heh," glanced at Qin He, and said: "Setting aside Qin Bi, if the Fourth Branch had truly aspired to marry into the Guogong Prefecture of Yan at that time, there would have been no divorce. All the benefits were yours, yet you have the audacity to speculate that others were desperate to marry He, the Prince of Xue?!"

Qin He was startled, worried that her mother-in-law thought her too malicious.

"Mother," Qin He lost all her temper and said grievously: "I was just too angry and spoke without thinking. I am not that malicious. Besides, I gained no benefits."

She did not believe Qin Bi had no desire to marry He Yan, but Qin He dared not say so. Her impression on her mother-in-law today was already too poor; speaking more would only lead to more mistakes, so Qin He dared not say another word.

Cui Shi glanced at Qin He; this was called gaining no benefits? She had truly opened her eyes.

However, there was nothing to be done; some people simply had good fate and fortune.

"Let the past be the past," Cui Shi, having seen that Qin He was troublesome, warned: "Do not mention this again. You are married, and your sisters in the Hou Fu are not yet married; they have all reached the age for marriage negotiations."

Qin He felt unhappy; she had done nothing wrong! Was it necessary to speak to her like this?

After sitting for a while longer, Qin He found an excuse and left.

Her legitimate sister took her hand: "Stay for dinner; we haven't had a chance to talk since you arrived."

Qin He's eyes flickered; since her mother-in-law was displeased with her, she needed to make amends to restore her image. Qin He smiled and said: "Let's go. Come with me back to the Wang Fu of Xue; I have something to give you."

Qin He possessed many resources, and her legitimate sister was delighted: "Really? Great."

Her legitimate sister followed Qin He to the Wang Fu of Xue. Qin Yan heard about it and went along as well. The brothers and sisters in the Hou Fu all knew Qin He was a wealthy woman and all hoped to get closer to her.

Several ministers in the court heard that the young Prince Rong had visited the Guogong Prefecture of Yan. Several Ministers were surprised, thinking the Prince Rong intended to associate with the Prince He.

After all, both were powerful princes of the Great Yan Kingdom, and their relationship had previously been good.

Both princes had stakes in the business of the Princess Consort of Xue, so they inevitably had to interact. In the imperial court, the two princes discussed only state affairs, while in daily life they remained distant, leaving the Emperor of Great Yan in a difficult position.

The ministers were too lazy to interfere; let them do as they pleased.

Upon hearing from the guards that a child had called He Yan "father," the Lady of the Guogong Prefecture did not pay much attention. He Yan was fated to be a widower with no children; his wife was not yet settled, so how could she dare to hope for offspring?

The child was young and likely called him incorrectly.

Although she said so, the Lady of the Guogong Prefecture was not in a good mood.

Upon receiving the news, Qin He immediately sent Fu Bao over.

"Grandmother!" the little girl called out.

"Fu Bao has arrived." The Lady of the Guogong Prefecture's mood improved slightly. She smiled and pulled the little girl into conversation: "It's been several days since I saw Fu Bao. Come, Grandmother has some delicious treats for you."

The Lady of the Guogong Prefecture ordered rare delicacies from the estate to be brought for Fu Bao. The little girl happily said: "Thank you, Grandmother."

The little girl kept the Lady of the Guogong Prefecture company while talking, and when she left, she packed up quite a few good things to take back.