Song Wan learned that the Chen family came to cancel the engagement and made a huge fuss, so he had to come forward to negotiate.
Although she didn't want to get involved in the affairs of the Marquis Mansion, a woman who had her husband's family break off her engagement had absolutely no other choice, let alone a girl's family that had a stigma like Jiang Jing's.
Asking people to welcome the mother-in-law and the official media who came to cancel the engagement into the house, Song Wan said with a cold face: "Reconciling the engagement is a major matter for both houses. You are messing around with my girl from the Hou Mansion and ruining the reputation of the Hou Mansion. I don't know if you can do it well." Are you ready to quarrel with the Marquis Mansion?"
The official media who came to cancel the engagement said with a smile: "What do you mean, madam? Now this is not spreading in Beijing..."
"You also know that it is a rumor. It is a rumor but there is no real evidence. You have so hastily convicted the third lady in the house. In this case, can I also say that Mrs. Chen's hands are broken and the Chen family is full of wanton evil and immorality? ?”
"Ouch, this is because your Marquis Mansion is being unreasonable."
Mrs. Chen drooped her eyelids and did not dare to look at Song Wan.
"Why are you saying that your Marquis is involving me? What kind of tricks... Isn't that what Aunt Lin said herself? She is a stinker at home and will not marry me as the wife of the Chen family?"
"She was the one who backed off the marriage first. Aunt Lin herself admitted that the third young lady of the Hou Mansion was unruly and read those miscellaneous books. What are you trying to do with me now? Could it be that the Hou Mansion still wants to take advantage of its high position to overwhelm us? Can’t do it?”
“……”
Although Song Wan prided himself on being sharp-tongued, now that he heard that Lin Jiayue admitted that Jiang Jing had read those miscellaneous books, he was speechless for a moment.
"This marriage is not something our Chen family wants to cancel."
Seeing that Song Wan was speechless, Mrs. Chen stroked the hairpin on her head and said, "Since the Marquis Mansion looks down on our Chen family, there is no need to have a grudge between the two. It would be best for everyone to break off the engagement as soon as possible."
Song Wan frowned: "The Hou Mansion does not accept the Chen family's reason for renouncing the engagement."
Jiang Jing must not bear the reputation of being unruly.
What will happen in the future for a girl who has not yet left the court and has such a reputation?
Song Wan glanced back at Jiang Xingjian, who nodded towards her with a gloomy expression.
"The marriage has been decided. The Chen family will only wait for the fifteenth day of next month to welcome the bride. If the Chen family regrets the marriage, our Marquis Mansion will pursue it to the end."
"Mrs. Chen is so self-satisfied..."
Before Song Wan finished speaking, he saw Aunt Zhou coming from the inner courtyard crying. She was crying so hard that everyone was slightly in a daze.
"Master Hou, please save my Jing'er quickly. Jing'er fell into a well..."
Jiang Xingjian stood up quickly. He asked Song Wan to wait here, while he summoned a few rough ladies from the outer courtyard to help. Aunt Zhou followed her crying all the way. When Mrs. Chen saw this, she said sarcastically: "I never thought that the third girl from the Hou Mansion was actually a fierce person. I thought those were all rumors."
"Since such a big thing happened in the Marquis' Mansion, I can't bother you here. I'm going back to the Mansion first."
Mrs. Chen pulled the official media and wanted to leave, but she heard Song Wan yelling coldly: "Stop me."
"You'd better pray that the three girls in my house are unscathed today. If anything happens to the three girls, our house and the Chen family will fight to the death."
A group of rough ladies came forward to stop Mrs. Chen. Mrs. Chen shouted: "You bastard! My husband is also an important minister in the court. How dare you treat me like this?"
Song Wan clenched his fists, his heart pounding.
What comes to mind is the scene of Aunt Zhou taking Jiang Jing to the Lan courtyard to pay her respects that day. The little girl smiled shyly, with a pair of pear dimples dotting her cheeks, looking playful and lovely.
At that time, she was not tainted with worldly things, and her round eyes were full of the innocence of a girl.
But now...
Song Wan's palms were filled with sweat, and his eyes were slightly hot.
She held back tears and said coldly: "If the three girls are safe, everything will be easy. If Jiang Jing dies today because of the Chen family's aggression, the Chen family will wait for a white wedding in seven days."
"you dare!"
"Just see if I dare or not!"
Picking up the teacup in his hand, Song Wan looked at his slightly trembling hand and put it back again.
Not long after, a burst of mourning erupted from the inner courtyard, and the sound of Zhui Xin sobbing made her heart tremble.
Soon the rough lady came out silently carrying a bamboo pole, covered with a thin white cloth, which highlighted her slim figure.
"River……"
With sobs in his throat, Song Wan's eyes turned red and he staggered. He couldn't believe that the lively little girl he had seen a few days ago actually died today.
Aunt Zhou was stopped in Yu'an Courtyard by the mother-in-law of the mansion, while Jiang Jing's body was sent to Jixiangyuan in the mansion.
Jiang Xingjian's face was as cold as frost, and he was gloomy and unspeakable.
The mother-in-law carried Jiang Jing's corpse in front of everyone. The bamboo frame shook slightly, and a slender hand slipped under the white cloth. Holding tightly in his hand was a lambskin rattle with a white jade handle. Occasionally, it would make a crisp sound when bumped.
Lin Jiayue sat slumped in front of the screen wall, watching helplessly as the people carried the bamboo frame away, looking completely distraught.
Jiang Jing was an unmarried girl. There was no mourning hall or ancestral graves, so she could only be mourned in Jixiang Garden. Song Wan couldn't bear for her to end up like this. He lowered his eyes and said to the mother-in-law beside him: "Find ten servants to escort Mrs. Chen back to the house. In seven days, we will hold a wedding for the third young lady and the Chen family's young master."
Jiang Xingjian nodded, and the mother-in-law beside her went to look for someone.
Mrs. Chen shouted that Lin Jiayue had canceled the marriage and had nothing to do with the Chen family, but no one responded to her.
Song Wan returned to Lan Courtyard with the support of Heng Zhi Heng Wu. Jiang Xingjian walked to the screen wall, and Lin Jiayue burst into tears.
"How could someone be so stupid as to throw themselves into a well for the sake of Lao Shizi's illusory reputation? How can reading a few love novels in one's own room count as losing one's virginity? Jumping into a well for such a reason...how could it be so ridiculous?"
"They are all a group of lunatics, a group of lunatics..."
Lin Jiayue's mind was filled with Jiang Jing's extremely pale hands, and the clear and crisp sound of leather drums could be heard in her ears.
Her face was full of tears, her eyes were depressed and empty, and she was leaning against the screen wall.
Jiang Xingjian passed by her, but didn't even stop and left.
The entire Hou Mansion was quiet. Although a girl left, there was not a trace of white in the house. Only a nanmu coffin was set up in Jixiang Garden, and a few copper basins for burning paper money were placed. A few scattered servants threw a few numbly from time to time. A piece of yellow paper.
Song Wan sat in front of the desk, his eyes red but not crying.
"Find two wives and maids to go to Yu'an Courtyard to accompany Aunt Zhou. In addition, I will use five hundred taels of silver from my dowry to purchase a dowry for Jiang Jing."
"The chaos in the mansion is serious. Find someone to protect Jiang Jing's coffin. Don't let anyone open it and disturb the things buried with it."
"I'm looking for someone to ask Mr. Hou how to handle the marriage between the Chen family and Jiang Jing. If the Chen family refuses to comply, will the Hou family give in and to what extent they will back down."
Heng Wu wiped away his tears and went to look for Jiang Jing's bamboo slips. After receiving a sentence saying that Jiang Jing must be buried in the Chen family's ancestral grave at any cost, Song Wan nodded and sighed quietly: "It's not as bad as I imagined. His bones are completely soft."
"Miss, do you want to inform the madam and the old lady about the third girl?"
"Send someone to inform Madam. As for whether it is the same or not, Madam said, let Madam decide by herself."
Xiangxiang went to the courtyard to find the maid who had delivered the message, and Jiang Xingjian also sent a servant to inform the rest of the family.
While Jiang Yan was not at home, he was discussing business with Xiao Jiye at the wine shop.
