Chapter 5: The Secrets Behind the Marriage
“Liu Li, how can you be so reckless? It’s one thing if you hurt the Crown Prince, but if you leave him unable to have heirs for life, when Emperor Huanlan finds out, even nine lives wouldn’t be enough to atone for it! And you’ll drag down the entire Mo family—over two hundred people—with you to the grave! You’re simply acting absurdly! It’s getting more and more outrageous!”
Mo Yuan swept his sleeves angrily. After seeing off the Crown Prince, still unsettled, he closed the door and began scolding Mo Liuli. Mo Zichuan was sent back to the Martial Academy by him.
“Drag me to the grave? Hmph, do you want me dead? Where is the father who once doted on Mo Liuli? Today, not only did you whip my mother, but now you scold me without reason! Even a tiger won’t eat its own cub!”
Mo Liuli found Mo Yuan’s anguish and frustration amusing, especially when he mentioned dragging the entire Mo family down with her—it made her heart tighten with bitterness.
“If you want to marry me off to a lecherous, heartless beast, I won’t say a word. But understand this: I am still unmarried! That beast tried to assault your daughter today, and you not only refused to protect me but expect me to silently endure it? Mo Yuan, have you been kicked in the head by a donkey? How can someone so unjust and heartless be worthy of being the head of the Mo family and my father?”
Every word from Mo Liuli struck deep, leaving Mo Yuan speechless. Even when she called him by his name, he had no retort.
The physician He You coughed discreetly at the right moment, glancing at the sullen-faced Mo Yuan standing silently to the side, then at Mo Liuli’s bare feet on the floor, his eyes shifting thoughtfully.
At this moment, Mo Liuli had already bathed and changed into clean clothes—a simple, elegant gown that gave her a transcendent aura. Green Bud had even arranged her hair into a neat, tasteful style. He You found her graceful composure strikingly fresh and refined.
As for Madam Leng’s whip wounds, he had prescribed several remedies—tonics to nourish her body, medicines to heal her heart, and even an herbal bath to fade her scars. He had also prepared a remedy for the bump on Green Bud’s forehead.
He You was well aware of the Crown Prince’s notorious reputation and was opposed when he learned Mo Yuan intended to betroth Mo Liuli to him.
“Yuan, Liuli is such a fine girl. Are you really willing to give her to that scoundrel, the Crown Prince of Huanlan? Is there some misunderstanding here?” He You asked, trying to dissuade him.
He had always admired Liuli since she was a child, and after today’s events, he saw her in a new light. In the years apart, she had grown more enchanting and poised. If she were truly promised to that lecherous Crown Prince, it would be like casting precious cabbage before a pig.
Outsiders thought it was the head of the Mo family who sought this imperial alliance, but they did not know it was the Emperor himself who decreed it. If Mo Yuan refused, the Mo family’s prestigious standing on the Huanlan continent would be in serious jeopardy.
“You don’t understand, He. This marriage is the Emperor’s decree. How could a fallen noble family like ours refuse? The once-prosperous Mo family under the protection of our ancestor’s summoner aura is no more. Now... sigh, I don’t know why the Emperor chose our Liuli, but he insists on making her Crown Prince’s bride. A month ago, the imperial physician even came to assess her health…”
Mo Yuan hesitated, glancing at his composed daughter, then gritted his teeth and resolved to share this troubling news with He You.
“The imperial physician’s diagnosis revealed that Liuli is pregnant. You see? An unwed girl with child—if this gets out, it’s unforgivable. Forget the Crown Prince; even marrying a commoner afterward would be impossible!”