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Chapter 373 – Knowing everything (2)
writer:bai.lu      update:2022-06-30 20:59
  “Go and inquire about Teacher Ji’s situation. Come back and report the matter to me later.” 

  “Understood.” Guibai acknowledged the order and left. 

  It was only when Ning Yuxuan was alone that he let out a long sigh and started walking to the main hall. 

  He had used to laugh at Ning Mingjie for being too sentimental and thought that that his cousin wouldn’t be able bear the responsibilities of an important position. But, as is turned out, it was his household that was an embarrassing mess. 

  Ning Mingjie had brought Kangyuan Junzhu along. 

  Right after Ning Yuxuan stepped into the main hall and had barely finished exchanged greetings, Kangyuan Junzhu announced that she wanted to go look for Liu-shi and have a chat with her. 

  Kangyuan Junzhu took a servant girl with her as she went to the inner court. Just as she was going to head over to Linghan Courtyard, she heard the sound of wailing from close by. 

  “Isn’t that sound coming from where Wan-er lives?” Kangyuan Junzhu raised her eyebrows. “What happened?” 

  The servant girl that was leading the way said in a quiet voice, “The marquis has already ordered that no one can go near Qiangwei Courtyard. It’s only Mistress Wan and Tanxiang inside that courtyard.” 

  Confinement? Kangyuan was very shocked. Didn’t everyone say that Miss Wan-er was the marquis’s beloved? Why was she being confined? 

  The servant girl leading the way had been in the estate for a long time, so she knowingly mumbled, “It’s not like this is the first time. How many times has she been demoted or sent to the other estate? Doesn’t she still come back eventually?” 

  As Kangyuan Junzhu headed over to Liu Hanyun’s place, she mused. There weren’t many people left in the marquis’s inner court. No matter how many times Wen Wan rose and fell, in the end, Marquis Moyu still hadn’t abandoned her. This had to be true love. 

  — 

  Ji Man didn’t mind that Qian Yingchen seemed to find her increasingly dislikable and had been very strict during the weighing of the tribute rice. She hadn’t been serious about cutting corners with the tribute rice. After all, this was the first year, so she wanted the rice to be as good as possible. 

  After Ji Man put everything to order, the tribute rice from Ji Store finally entered the palace safely. 

  Yan Buba was smiling so big that his eyes almost disappeared. As he held the deed for a newly purchased place, he said, “Boss, it’ll be easier for us to do business in the future. The tribute rice came from this store, and we’re not selling the rice that much higher than other stores. If you open more stores, the rice shops of other families would probably go out of business.” 

  She had purchased several granaries, and the road to Zhangjun had been built quickly, so rice was naturally being transported very quickly from Zhangjun to the capital. She was also familiar with the people in the Ministry of Revenue. Ji Man was on the verge of marrying Zhu Yurun. Even if the other rich merchant families wanted to take her down, Ji Man’s position was too steady and stable for them to succeed. 

  — 

  The day of the two weddings quickly arrived. There were festive decorations hanged up in Qian Residence as well as in Zhu Residence. Ji Man sighed as she looked at the wedding clothes that she was waring. Was there something wrong with Qian Yingchen? It had already been four days. Had he still not figured things out yet? 

  Zhu Yurun was wearing a crimson wedding dress. She looked very uncomfortable as she looked at Ji Man and said, “I don’t want to marry……” 

  Ji Man smiled as she comfortingly said, “It’s okay. There’s still time for things to turn around.” 

  But, how could things turn around for the better? Qian Yingchen had already mounted a horse and went to Peng Residence to escort his bride home. It was said to be a spectacular sight. 

  There hadn’t been complicated etiquette that had to be observed at Zhu Residence. Since Zhu Yurun’s reputation was in tatters, Assistant Minister Zhu had agreed to Ji Man’s request for a simple wedding. 

  No matter how simple the ceremony was, Zhu Yurun still needed to be brought to the sedan chair. Ji Man sighed, carried Zhu Yurun on her back, and placed her down in the sedan chair. 

  She almost broke her old back by doing this. 

  The processions for the two families happened to pass by each on a road. However, the procession for Qian household was a sea of red. Although Ji Man’s side also had honor guards, it wasn’t nearly as magnificent. 

  Zhu Yurun’s servant girl, Zhuer felt furious. 

  Zhu Yurun was quietly sitting in the sedan chair. When she heard the ceremonial music that floated inside as the two sides passed each other, she finally gave up. 

  In the end, their fated encounter hadn’t worked out. One misstep by her, and there was no way to go back and fix things. 

  Outside, a matron of honor shouted, “Hey!” The marriage sedan for Qian Yingchen’s side suddenly stopped. From inside the sedan chair, a trembling voice said, “A-Almost.” 

  Qian Yingchen stopped and turned his head to look. Ji Man also turned her head to look in that direction out of curiosity. 

  Both of the wedding processions had halted. A bride came out of the sedan chair and trembled as she took off her wedding veil. “Here should be good enough…… Miss has probably already gone far enough. This servant…… this servant can’t enter Qian Residence.” 

  Everyone was stunned. When they carefully looked at that face, they realized that the bride was actually Miss Peng’s personal servant girl! 

  Qian Yingchen’s expression sunk. He got off the horse and walked to that servant girl. “What’s going on?” 

  “Miss…… She doesn’t want to get married.” The trembling servant girl had already knelt down. “Sir Qian, please be merciful and spare this servant.” 

  When Zhu Yurun heard these words while inside the sedan chair, she was overjoyed. 

  The young lady from Peng Clan had been very unwilling to get married to begin with. Knowing that her family would force her onto a marriage sedan, she had run away! What a huge joke. Ji Man guessed that the young lady hadn’t thought about the consequences of her actions. Anyways, Marquis Moyu’s scheming could be considered a waste. 

  But, there was another person that gave even less consideration to the consequences of her actions. Zhu Yurun happily came down from her sedan chair. With one hand holding onto her veil so that her head stayed covered, she skipped over to the other line, nudged that servant girl aside, and sat down inside the other marriage sedan. “Alright, you don’t have a bride anymore. You might as well marry me so that this wedding won’t be wasted.” 

  Oh my god, Ji Man facepalmed. That girl was totally not caring about the wedding that was happening over here!

  Chapter 374 – System Notification: Your white lotus has been upgraded (1) 

  Ji Man had seen things going wrong during wedding ceremonies, but never like this. Although she was actually delighted to see Zhu Yurun rushing over to Qian Yingchen’s side of the procession, she had to play out the role of someone that was infuriated and horrified that had his bride had been stolen. 

  Ji Man dismounted from her horse. Before Qian Yingchen had time to react, she had already walked over and shoved him. “Sir Qian, what do you mean by this?” 

  Her stance looked as if she was about to fight with a hooligan. 

  Qian Yingchen retreated half a step. His brow was furrowed as he looked Ji Man, “Miss Zhu is doing this of her volition. This has nothing to do with this one. Brother Ji, why are you angry with this one?” 

  “Fine, then I’ll take her away.” With her chin raised, Ji Man stretched her hand out and was about to pull Zhu Yurun down. 

  Of course, Zhu Yurun stubbornly refused to move. Clinging to the side of the sedan chair, she exclaimed as if this was a matter of life and death, “I like this sedan!” 

  A crowd had gathered to watch this spectacle. Qian Yingchen was on the verge of losing his composure. “Stop messing around!” 

  “I’m not.” Zhu Yurun stretched her head out and said, “You owe me a child! No matter what, it won’t end until I get compensation.” 

  There was uproar in the crowd. Miss Zhu’s words and actions were really too shocking. Qian Yingchen’s face was slightly red, and he somewhat helplessly looked at Ji Man. 

  Acting as if she was deeply heartbroken, Ji Man asked, “Miss Zhu, are you not willing to marry this one?” 

  Zhu Yurun bit her lip. The voice that came out from underneath the veil sounded sulky. “Older Brother Man, you’re a good person, but I still like him and can’t forget about him. I can’t marry someone else.” 

  Qian Yingchen was stunned. 

  “It’s okay that this person doesn’t like you?” Ji Man raised her eyebrows. 

  “There are lots of arranged marriages. At least I can marry someone that I like. Isn’t that already fortunate enough?” Zhu Yurun lightly pushed the sedan chair and said, “Older brother Man, please support us!” 

  The gathered people sighed. A lot of people looked at Ji Man sympathetically. 

  Ji Man let out a long sigh. She looked at Qian Yingchen said, “Today, Sir Qian snatched Miss Zhu from this one’s marriage sedan. If you don’t cherish her in the future, this one won’t let you off even if this one is only a mere commoner!” 

  Qian Yingchen was at a complete loss. How did it become him snatching her? 

  “Raise the sedan!” Ji Man shouted. Frightened, the nearby porters shakily followed the command. When the matchmaker saw this sight, for the sake of her bonus later, she hastily urged Qian Yingchen back onto his horse. 

  “Hey, it’s a lucky day, and it’s about time anyways. Hurry, let’s head over to Qian Residence and complete the wedding ceremony.” 

  With a clamoring sound, the grandiose procession for escorting the bride to the groom’s home resumed. They squeezed past the crowd as they headed towards Qian Residence. 

  Qian Yingchen was blankly riding his horse for a long time. By the time he returned to his senses, they had already arrived at Qian Residence. 

  After Ji Man happily paid the members of the procession, she returned to her newly purchased home. She ordered a servant to take down the festive decorations, then she changed her clothes and went to Qian Residence to attend the wedding reception. 

  No one had ever seen a person being so calm after having his bride snatched away on the wedding day. 

  Although Ji Man continued to appear very heartbroken, her act didn’t really fool anyone. 

  Even when Qian Yingchen looked at Ji Man from a distance, he could tell that this person was actually somewhat rejoicing over Zhu Yurun’s action in jumping to another marriage sedan. He thought that this person had truly only agreed to marry Zhu Yurun for his own selfish benefit. 

  — 

  After the bowing part of the ceremony had been completed earlier, the bride was sent to the bridal chamber. 

  Zhuer was currently standing by her side and protesting, “Miss, why are you being so foolish? Sir Qian doesn’t have you in his heart. Why are you still so happy about marrying him?” 

  Zhu Yurun was sneakily gnawing an apple underneath her wedding veil, so her words weren’t clear as she answered, “Because I want to life my life with him. It’s painful to live life if there’s something forever stuck in my heart. I did feel resentment towards him, but resenting him won’t get me anything, so I decided to give up on those negative feelings.” 

  Wasn’t she being too broadminded? Zhuer expressed that she couldn’t understand, “Sir Qian didn’t want to marry you at the start.” 

  “I know.” Zhu Yurun quietly said, “Still, it’ll be better to marry him than older brother Man. I can’t drag older brother Man down for a lifetime.” 

  After saying this, she couldn’t resist quietly mumbling, “Should it be older brother Man, or older sister Man?” 

  Zhuer didn’t clearly hear the last part of her question. She grumbled, ” This servant still think that Sir Qian won’t treat Miss well.” 

  “That’s okay.” Zhu Yurun tossed the apple core. “No matter how much he dislikes me, he still officially married me. It was because of him that other people cursed at me. Now that I’ve tied the knot with him, other people won’t have standing to continue cursing. They won’t be able to say bad things about my dad and older brother anymore.” 

  Zhuer was slightly shocked. 

  Zhu Yurun also thought that her tone had been a bit too excessive. She went back to smiling and said, “Anyways, I’ll have to find the time to thank older brother Man later.” 

  — 

  Ji Man didn’t need Zhu Yurun’s thanks. 

  After finding out that the marriage had fizzled out, Assistant Minister called Ji Man over. Extremely embarrassed, he asked Ji Man, “Do you have any other unfilled aspirations?” 

  This person had been willing to marry his daughter after everything that she had done. Ji Man had never broken off his promise to marry her. It was his daughter that ended up running off after already sitting down in the marriage sedan. Assistant Minister Zhu felt extremely apologetic towards Ji Man and didn’t know how to compensate him. 

  “Sir Zhu, don’t worry.” Ji Man wryly smiled and said, “It’s alright. This one and Miss Zhu simply weren’t fated to be together.” 

  “Ah……” Assistant Minister Zhu patted Ji Man’s shoulder and said, “If you ever need help in the future, this old man will definitely help you.” 

  “Thank you, Sir.” Ji Man deeply bowed. 

  Ji Man greatly admired Sir Zhu’s character. He was a good person that had a strong sense of paternal love. 

  Translator Ramblings: Zhu Yurun and Qian Yingchen are both victims, but I don’t think it would be fair for Qian Yingchen to be bamboozled into marry Zhu Yurun just because she’s in love with him. If Zhu Yurun’s real reason in wanting to marry Qian Yingchen is because she wants to fix the reputations of her family members that had been tarnished by association instead of being crazy in love with him, I like that reason a lot more.

  Chapter 375 – System Notification: Your white lotus has been upgraded (2) 

  On Marquis Moyu’s side, there were mixed feelings about the unsuccessful wedding. Grand Tutor Peng had personally paid a visit to offer his apologies. Ning Yuxuan didn’t have anything good to say. The relationship between the two sides would just be a bit awkward. However, Ning Yuxuan had still sighed in relief when he found out that Ji Man hadn’t been able to marry Zhu Yurun, 

  For now, he wouldn’t concern himself with what was happening over at Qian Residence. Once he found some free time, he went to look for Ji Man.

  — 

  Ji Store’s rice business was growing rapidly. Ji Man had confidence that after a year, she would be able to gain complete control over the cost of food in the capital. She had a solid relationship with the Ministry of Revenue as well as a talented store manager like Yan Buba. Ji Man felt that she could sleep without worries for a long period of time. 

  As for Ning Yuxuan, once Ji Man found out that he had chosen to confine Wen Wan within his estate, she no longer wanted to see him. And so, no matter where Ning Yuxuan went to stop her for a talk, he was unsuccessful. 

  This lasted until she received the news that the marquis’s honored concubine had hanged herself. 

  Ji Man felt a bit frightened. Wen Wan committed suicide? Although the original story was a stupid romance novel, wasn’t there a law that the female lead couldn’t die? If Wen Wan’s story ended like this, what would happen to her? 

  Was it time for a grand finale in this story? What would become of her then? 

  Not having the time to worry about anything else, Ji Man rushed to the marquis’s estate. The servants at the entrance were originally going to stop her from her entering, but Liu Hanyun happened to be waiting at the entrance for Marquis Moyu. Seeing that it was Ji Man, she let her in. 

  “Madam……” 

  “Don’t call me Madam. Sir Ji will suffice. ”Ji Man hastily walked. Her mood was very complicated as she asked, “How’s the situation?” 

  “She was saved from death, but she remains unconscious.” Liu Hanyun furrowed her brow as she said, “She was immediately rescued down when she tried to hang herself, so I don’t know why she’s still unconscious and saying nonsensical words in her sleep. I’ve already sent a servant to inform the marquis.” 

  Still alive? Ji Man let out a long exhalation of relief and hurriedly continued walking to Wen Wan’s room to check for herself. She had originally wanted this woman to simply die, but if Wen Wan died like this, wouldn’t that be letting her off too easily? 

  Wen Wan was clad entirely in white as if she was dressed in burial clothes. Her face was also thoroughly white with only her veins showing color. She was mumbling something. 

  The doctor was already putting away his tools on the side. Seeing Liu Hanyun, he reported again, “There’s nothing wrong with Mistress Wan. She’ll be fine after waking up.” 

  Liu Hanyun nodded. Ji Man sat down by Wen Wan’s bedside. 

  “Save me……” Wen Wan seemed to be having a nightmare. Ji Man stared at her for a while in puzzlement. 

  Why would a person that tried to hang herself be calling out to be rescued? Was this supposed to be a joke? 

  “Don’t……” 

  Ji Man couldn’t clearly hear the rest of Wen Wan’s words. Furrowing her brow, she couldn’t resist the impulse of getting closer. To her surprise, Wen Wan suddenly opened her eyes. Faced with Wen Wan’s empty gaze, Ji Man almost fell over in alarm. 

  “Where am I?” Wen Wan vacantly stared at the canopy of her bed for a long time before turning her head to look at Ji Man and Liu Hanyun. 

  While Liu Hanyun was still recovering from her surprise, the nearby crying Tanxiang had already rushed over. “Master, why had you acted so foolishly?” 

  Wen Wan had a blank expression as she looked at Tanxiang, then she dropped a bombshell question. “Who are you?” 

  Everyone in the room was dumbfounded. 

  Liu Hanyun was the first to recover. Frowning as she touched Wen Wan’s forehead, she confirmed that her temperature was normal. “Have you forgotten who we are?” 

  Wen Wan furrowed her brow and swept her gaze over the room’s occupants. “I don’t remember. Where am I? What did I do?” 

  For a moment, Ji Man felt suspicious that Wen Wan was only pretending to have amnesia. But no, Wen Wan didn’t have the IQ to put on such a good act. When their gazes met, there was only unfamiliarity. It seemed that Wen Wan had really lost her memory. 

  Marquis Moyu had also returned. As soon as he stepped into Wen Wan’s room, Wen Wan blankly looked at him without averting her gaze. “Who is he?” 

  “Master, he’s the marquis!” Tanxiang’s eyes were red from crying too much. “Have you really forgotten everything?” 

  Ning Yuxuan walked over. He looked at Ji Man in surprise before looking at Wen Wan and saying, “Why are you causing trouble?” 

  “I?” Wen Wan had a dimwitted expression. She was still unable to speak properly.* 

  * (T/N: She should be referring to herself as Wan-er or this servant when speaking to Ning Yuxuan.) 

  The doctor that had been about to leave the estate was brought back. After checking Wen Wan over again, the doctor could only offer a guess. “It’s probably because she suffered too much shock and has temporary amnesia.” 

  Ning Yuxuan was stunned for a long time before he pointed at Ji Man and asked Wen Wan, “Who is he?” 

  Wen Wan continued to show a blank expression. 

  No one knew what do. Ji Man seriously scrutinized Wen Wan for a long time before standing up and saying, “It was rude and inappropriate of this one to come here. This one will bid my farewell now.” 

  “Stop.” Marquis Moyu furrowed his brow. “Since you’re here already, why are you in such a rush to leaving?” 

  She had only come here to see if the female lead had died or not. Since Wen Wan hadn’t died, it was naturally time for her to leave. Was she supposed to stay and watch the show? Ji Man good-naturedly turned around and answered, “My rice business has been hectic lately. This one has to get back to it.” 

  “I went to the palace and saw Haohao today.” Ning Yuxuan pursed his lips and said, “You don’t want to stay and chat with me for a bit?” 

  Ji Man had wanted to firmly fling down the words, “don’t want to”, then immediately leave. 

  However, when she heard him mentioning Haohao, she weakened. She saluted with her hands and obediently said, “This one is willing to listen to whatever the marquis wants to say.” 

  “En.” Ning Yuxuan’s expression eased. As he led her out of the room, he said, “Let’s go to the western courtyard. It’s not convenient to talk here.”