Chapter 80: Pick a Good Day, Get Married as Soon as Possible

Chapter 80: Chapter 80: Pick a Good Day, Get Married as Soon as Possible

The sun had not yet set, but the stuffy, airless room was already dim.

The heavy scent of medicine filled the air.

Mrs. Shen was half-reclined in the arms of her mother, Mrs. Li, her sorrowful gaze fixed on the door.

Finally, the door was pushed open.

Mrs. Shen’s eyes suddenly lit up. Her face was abnormally flushed, no longer the sickly white of before.

She had been clinging to life, waiting for the person she needed to see. This was the final burst of energy before the end.

The bustling household doctors exchanged a look, bowed to Mrs. Li, and filed out of the room together.

Only the three of them remained in the room.

Mrs. Li looked at her granddaughter, her expression icy. "Kneel!" she demanded in a hoarse voice.

Cui Lingyao walked to the bedside and knelt without hesitation.

"Yaoyao..."

Mrs. Shen reached for her daughter.

Her fingers were withered and frail.

Tears streamed down Cui Lingyao’s face the moment she took her mother’s hand.

"Don’t cry,"

Mustering strength from nowhere, Mrs. Shen sat up and raised her other hand to wipe her daughter’s tears. "Yaoyao, you’re a good girl. If your father were still alive, you would never have suffered such injustices."

She was only living under their roof, yet she had fallen for her cousin, a young man of otherworldly grace.

In the eyes of others, this was a case of ambition far exceeding her station.

She recalled what her sister-in-law had said—that her daughter had shamelessly offered herself as a concubine, inviting him to her bed, even disrobing for him, only to be rejected in disgust...

A pang of pain shot through Mrs. Shen’s heart. "It’s my fault. I didn’t realize what was in your heart, and I let you become a laughingstock for three years."

’If I had known, I would have moved out with you, rather than let you fall into such a predicament.’

"No, it’s not like that," Cui Lingyao gasped, struggling to breathe as she choked out an explanation. "Please, don’t listen to my aunt. I didn’t..."

Mrs. Shen gently shook her head, cutting off her defense. "There’s no need to hide it from me any longer."

She already knew everything.

Her daughter’s foolish actions over the past three years, and her nephew’s current insistence on making her his legitimate wife.

She knew it all.

Mrs. Shen stroked her daughter’s head and said gently, "Your cousin is of noble birth. One day he will inherit the title of Duke. His wife must be the eldest legitimate daughter of a great and powerful family. You are not a suitable match. Listen to me, let him go."

"Alright," Cui Lingyao nodded without a second thought. "I’ll listen to whatever you say."

Mrs. Shen nodded, tears in her eyes. "You cannot be a concubine, either. Once a concubine, always a step below everyone else for the rest of your life."

Her own mother had been a concubine, so she knew the bitterness of that life.

What did it matter how much favor they received?

A concubine was no better than a servant.

Whether it was a private family dinner or a grand banquet for guests, a concubine had no right to a seat at the main table.

Without the first wife’s permission, she couldn’t even leave the estate.

She could never associate with others as an equal.

Even her own children would not be allowed to call her "Mother."

Once a woman became a concubine, she was confined to the back courtyard, day after day, simply waiting for the master’s arrival.

She was no different from any other decoration in the courtyard.

If he favored her, he might glance her way more often.

If he didn’t, she would be left to fend for herself, to live or die alone.

How could her treasured daughter, her precious pearl, become someone’s concubine?

Not even for her own nephew.

Mrs. Shen’s heart ached with worry. She gripped her daughter’s hand. "Promise me. Promise me you will never be a concubine."

"I will!" Cui Lingyao agreed without hesitation, nodding again and again. "I will never be a concubine in this life."

Her throat was so tight she could barely speak, the few words coming out as broken sounds.

’I’ve inhabited three different bodies, but this is the first time I’ve ever experienced the pain of losing a mother.’

’Even though my bond with Mrs. Shen as mother and daughter has only lasted a few days.’

’But I inherited all the memories of this body’s original owner.’

’This body belonged to her, and her lingering feelings are now running rampant within me.’

Cui Lingyao felt the grief in her heart swell like a tidal wave, each crest higher than the last.

Tears streamed down her face. "Mother, don’t leave me."

"My child..." Mrs. Shen embraced her daughter, her voice breaking into sobs. "It is I who have failed you."

If she had known that coming to the Capital City would lead to her daughter wanting to become her nephew’s concubine, she would have stayed in Pingzhou.

At the very least, her daughter wouldn’t have been ridiculed by the entire household.

And she certainly would never have entertained the thought of becoming a concubine.

Mrs. Shen’s raw grief was enough to make anyone who witnessed it weep.

Mrs. Li stopped trying to console her and simply wept alongside her.

She had only borne one son and one daughter in her entire life.

The pain of a parent burying their child is something no one can understand without experiencing it firsthand.

It was at this moment that Shen Tingyu entered.

He strode to the bedside, knelt next to Cui Lingyao, and kowtowed deeply to Mrs. Shen. "Aunt, rest assured," he said. "I will never let Yaoyao be without support for the rest of her life."

Mrs. Shen’s crying ceased for a moment. "Who let you in?" she asked.

"Grandfather," Shen Tingyu answered honestly.

’What could the Lord Duke mean by allowing his grandson to enter at a time like this?’

Even Mrs. Li was taken aback.

Shen Tingyu said, "I have already obtained Grandfather’s approval. As long as my cousin is willing, we can begin the wedding preparations at once."

’The position of primary wife to the heir of the Dukedom... given so easily to his granddaughter, a girl with no father or brothers, no family backing, and nothing to her name.’

Mrs. Shen’s expression went slack, and hot tears streamed down her cheeks.

’She knew her father was doing this because he pitied her.’

Overwhelmed by these emotional upheavals, Mrs. Shen’s already weak body gave out. Her face suddenly turned ashen, and she coughed up a mouthful of blood.

"Mother!" Cui Lingyao cried, rising to support her.

Shen Tingyu reacted faster. He grasped Mrs. Shen’s shoulders and gently helped her lie back down. "You must take care of yourself. You still have to watch your daughter get married."

The door was opened once more.

The Lord Duke and the Duchess, having heard the urgent cries from within, entered the room.

"Father..." Mrs. Shen’s breath hitched. Her eyes reddened, and tears flowed uncontrollably.

Her gaze, fixed on her father, was filled with childlike love and admiration.

It was as if she were once again that pampered, precious little girl, running to her father to complain after being wronged.

Duke Shen sat on the edge of the bed. He took the handkerchief from Mrs. Li’s hand and gently wiped the blood from his daughter’s lips. "It’s my fault," he said. "I chose the wrong husband for you."

’A woman’s greatest fear is marrying the wrong man.’

The fine son-in-law he had chosen had ruined his daughter’s life.

Mrs. Shen could no longer speak; she could only shake her head.

The tragic scene left everyone in the room weeping uncontrollably.

Even the Duchess pressed a handkerchief to the corner of her eyes.

She had no daughters of her own, and Mrs. Shen had been registered under her name since childhood, raised as if she were her own.

While the bond wasn’t the same as with a child of her own blood, she had still invested a great deal of affection in her.

Duke Shen said, "Rest easy. I will not oppose the marriage between these two children. We will choose an auspicious day and have them wed as soon as possible."

He had chosen the wrong husband for his daughter, and now he was suffering the pain of a parent burying his child.

As for his grandson’s marriage, since the boy was so insistent, he would let him decide for himself.

Hearing his words, the focus in Mrs. Shen’s eyes seemed to waver for a moment, as if a great weight had been lifted. Then, she reached a hand toward Shen Tingyu, who was still kneeling by the bed.

Knowing she still had lingering worries, Shen Tingyu quickly took her hand and promised solemnly, "In this life, I will never fail Yaoyao."

’A true gentleman honors his word.’

’And her nephew was the noblest of gentlemen.’

Mrs. Shen’s gaze softened. She looked back to her daughter and struggled to speak her final instructions. "After I die, send my body back to Pingzhou to be buried in the Pei Family’s ancestral tomb. You need only mourn for one year. After that year, you must marry your cousin. Do not delay for the full three years."

She spoke the words in fits and starts.

Outside in the courtyard, the sound of urgent footsteps arose.

And at the exact moment Mrs. Shen’s words faded, several figures appeared in the open doorway, having heard every last word.