Chapter 344

“Miss, you haven’t had your evening meal yet. I’ll go to the kitchen to fetch it.”

Two young maids came out of the door and closed it behind them, planning to return shortly.

Tonight, the masters of the mansion were all attending the New Year’s banquet at the palace, and most of the capable servants had left as well. Some had taken the New Year’s Eve holiday to spend time with their families. The staff in Miss Jiang’s courtyard was already sparse to begin with.

“Creak…”

“I’m not hungry. You don’t need to bother. Just go back. I don’t need anyone to serve me here.”

“Yunxia…”

At the sound of the voice, Jiang Yunxia opened her eyes and quickly turned around, sitting up on the bed: “Changlin Gege!”

The young lady was slender, wearing only a white undergarment. The delicate figure beneath it made Su Changlin blush, and he turned his head away, not daring to look at her: “Yunxia, you should… put your clothes on first.”

Jiang Yunxia also realized her impropriety and quickly grabbed some clothes from the screen to cover herself, dressing quickly: “Changlin Gege, how did you get in? What are you doing here? If my parents see you, they’ll break your legs.”

Su Changlin turned back and hugged her tightly: “Yunxia, I’m sorry. It’s all my fault. I couldn’t stop my mother from coming to cancel the engagement.”

He had resisted, protested, even gone on a hunger strike…

But his mother was determined to cancel the engagement, and no matter what he tried, he failed.

So…

Su Changlin took Jiang Yunxia’s hand, his eyes filled with determination, looking at her nervously: “Let’s… let’s elope, okay?”

“Elope?”

Jiang Yunxia exclaimed in shock, quickly pulling her hand out of his grasp: “No! An engagement is made through proper channels, but eloping makes one a concubine. If I go with you, my reputation will be ruined, that’s minor. I can’t drag the entire Jiang family down, nor can I let the Sixth Prince be criticized for his lineage.”

She took two steps back: “Su Erlang, please leave. Consider tonight as if you never came.”

What did he take her for?

He kept saying he loved her, that he couldn’t live without her, yet all he could come up with was this ridiculous plan to elope? Did he expect her, a well-bred young lady, to just run away with him?

“Yunxia, listen to me. Let’s think long-term…”

Su Changlin tried to explain: “What I mean is, let’s pretend to elope, just hide in the capital for a few days. My parents and brother care about me, and if they can’t find me after a few days, they’ll be worried. Then I’ll write a letter home. If they agree to our marriage, we’ll return home and prepare for the wedding, okay?”

He really liked Jiang Yunxia and didn’t want to marry any other woman. But his mother had already started looking at girls from the Pei family.

Among the Pei daughters, only Pei Wu, who had married the Prince of Ruyang’s heir, was somewhat normal. The others were arrogant and domineering, looking down on everyone.

What he wanted was a gentle, virtuous woman like Jiang Yunxia, not a tigress to bring home.

“Have you considered how others will talk about me? About the Jiang family? The Emperor intends to ennoble the Imperial Noble Consort as Empress. If our elopement becomes a scandal, do you think those ministers will use it as an excuse to object? Did you even consider my position before doing this?”

She didn’t want to drag her family into trouble for the sake of a man. She didn’t want to let her personal feelings ruin everything and become the eternal sinner of the Jiang family.

“I…”

Su ​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​​​‌‌​​​‌​​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​​​​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌‌​​‌‍Changlin blushed, at a loss: “I… I just want to be with you. I didn’t think that far. And no matter what others say, I’ll stand by you. I won’t let their words affect how I feel about you.”

“That’s all in the future. No one can predict it.”

Many passionate lovers ended up estranged because of gossip. She didn’t believe Su Changlin could withstand all the rumors for her sake.

After all, just because his mother opposed the engagement, he sneaked into her room to elope with her.

And what did he mean, “I won’t let others’ words affect how I feel about you”?

What had she done wrong that needed his forgiveness?

Her trembling hand steadied, and Jiang Yunxia sighed: “I won’t elope with you. Give up on that idea. There are only two outcomes for us: either you convince your parents to marry me with a grand procession, or… from today on, we have no relationship. Don’t ever do something like tonight again, or I’ll report you to the authorities.”

“But…”

“Bang!”

Before Su Changlin could argue further, a guard jumped in through the window and knocked Jiang Yunxia unconscious with a single blow.

“Ada, what are you doing?”

“Second Master, if you keep hesitating, those maids will be back. It’s getting late. If you truly like Miss Jiang, take her to the estate we prepared beforehand. After a few days, send a letter back to the Su residence. Second Master, you’re doing all this for a lifelong union with her. You’re not wrong.”

Su Changlin held Jiang Yunxia, torn between two voices in his mind.

One voice said: “You can’t take her. If she disappears, her reputation will be ruined. Even if she marries you later, she’ll be criticized and never be able to hold her head high. Are you going to ruin her?”

The other voice rebutted: “But if you don’t elope, you can’t win against your mother. She won’t compromise, and then you’ll have to marry a Pei girl. Your life will be ruined. Besides, you truly love Jiang Yunxia. Whether her reputation is good or bad doesn’t affect how much you love her, so what does it matter? Just love her!”

Hexi Palace—

Jiang Xinyue spread out portraits of several young men of good character and talent for Lady Sun to see: “These are young men the Emperor has personally vetted for their character and scholarly achievements. They’re all better than the Su family in every way. They were originally considered as potential suitors for princesses, but since Lady Yu and the eldest princess don’t want someone from a too prominent family, you can take note, Lady Sun. Go home and discuss with your eldest daughter. Tell her that I intend to arrange a marriage for her, ensuring she marries with great fanfare.”

The Su family had canceled the engagement, and while Jiang Xinyue understood their reasoning, she didn’t accept it.

She had no reason to use this as an excuse to retaliate against the Su family, but as her cousin Jiang Yunxia had said,

Su Changlin really liked her eldest cousin.

What was the most painful thing for an ex-boyfriend who couldn’t forget his former love?

It was seeing his ex-girlfriend not only not depressed after their breakup but also finding a better husband before him, living a happy and prosperous life.

Then her eldest cousin would become Su Changlin’s eternal white moonlight, his unshakable love. He would magnify every little annoyance in his marriage and think of her eldest cousin’s virtues.

By then, it would be Lady Su’s own consequences to bear.

The resentment from her most beloved younger son would be her burden to carry alone!