Jiang Yucheng's face darkened. If he were to marry both of his daughters to the same man, wouldn't it make him a laughingstock?
Jiang Ruzhu was filled with anger. Who would want to share a husband with another woman, especially one she had always disliked, Jiang Luoxue?
Chu Lianxin was worried about her daughter's future, fearing that if Jiang Luoxue married into the Duke of Anguo's mansion, her daughter would suffer.
Only the Duchess of Anguo did not object; in fact, she wholeheartedly supported it.
"That's wonderful. The two sisters can marry my son together and support each other in the future. It couldn't be better."
Jiang Luoxue, that woman who dared to scold her and her son, let's see how she'll torment her once she's in the mansion.
In the inner quarters of the Duke's mansion, there are plenty of ways to break down her pride.
With his mother's support, An Yuanxiu felt more confident and looked at Jiang Luoxue with what he thought was deep affection.
"Luoxue, please stop being so temperamental. I was wrong about what happened before, and I apologize to you. At worst, I'll let you enter the manor first, and then welcome Ruzhu in later."
"And I promise that once you and Ruzhu enter the manor, I will treat you equally and will not favor either of you. You should know when to stop!"
An Yuanxiu still believes that the reason Jiang Luoxue treated him that way before was because he hurt her feelings by saying he wanted to break off the engagement, which is why she acted so rudely.
He felt that marrying her first, and then marrying Jiang Ruzhu, was already giving Jiang Luoxue an excellent way out.
If she's smart, she'll definitely know how to back down gracefully.
When Ye Xuanchen saw An Yuanxiu gazing at Jiang Ruoxue with deep affection, a sudden wave of displeasure washed over him.
I really want to gouge out his two eyeballs and stomp on them on the ground.
He tightened his grip on the jade pendant at his waist, and said with a half-smile, "Young Master An, you have quite the audacity to want to marry both sisters. Have you asked Miss Jiang's opinion?"
An Yuanxiu smiled at Jiang Luoxue: "I believe Luoxue is a smart woman, and she must know what the best choice is."
In this world where women are inferior to men and men are superior, it is already difficult for women to survive, and it is even more difficult for women who have been rejected in marriage.
Without a good reputation, the end result is either spending the rest of one's life in seclusion or being drowned in public scorn.
An Yuanxiu was certain that Jiang Luoxue would agree to the conditions he proposed.
Unfortunately, he guessed the beginning correctly, but not the ending.
Jiang Luoxue couldn't help but roll her eyes and unleashed a barrage of sarcastic remarks at him.
"An Yuanxiu, it's not even dark yet, and you're already having grandiose dreams."
"Are you out of your mind, or are you deaf?!"
"Stop pretending to be all sentimental and spouting nonsense. Let me tell you, today you either break off the engagement, or I'll beat you into eunuch. You choose!"
An Yuanxiu was so angry that his face turned ashen. He stared at her intently and said, "You... you're utterly stubborn!"
"If you won't marry me, who do you want to marry!"
"Jiang Luoxue, I'll give you three conditions: in this life, you either marry me, become a nun, or die. You choose one!"
Jiang Luoxue sneered disdainfully: "Heh! I, Jiang Luoxue, am not someone who can be easily intimidated. I have no interest in choosing from your three conditions. You can keep them for yourself."
"You...you...!" An Yuanxiu was so angry that he pointed at her but couldn't say a word for a long time.
Seeing her son's discomfiture, the fiercely protective Duchess of Anguo immediately turned to Jiang Luoxue and said, "Jiang Luoxue, it's an honor for you that my son is willing to marry you. You have no choice but to agree to this marriage, otherwise...!"
Hearing her threat, Ye Xuanchen said coldly, "Otherwise what? Is the Duchess trying to force her into marriage?"
Lady Anguo was surprised that this man actually intended to stand up for Jiang Luoxue, and she couldn't help but feel a little angry.
Suppressing her anger, she said, "General Ye, this is a matter between our Duke Anguo's mansion and the Jiang family. Although you are a general, you are meddling far too much!"
Ye Xuanchen's face was cold, and his words were as cold as his expression.
"I have no say in the affairs of your An family and the Jiang family, but Miss Jiang is my grandmother's savior, and I will definitely take care of her affairs."
"If Miss Jiang is unwilling to marry, anyone who dares to force her is going against my General's Mansion, and I will fight to the bitter end!" The man's words were firm and resolute.
The Duke of Anguo's wife and An Yuanxiu were stunned and stood there, not knowing what to do.
After all, they couldn't afford to offend the General's Mansion or the Empress's family.
Lady Anguo suppressed her anger and quickly thought of ways to benefit the Duke of Anguo's mansion. After a while, she suddenly had an idea.
She smiled and turned to gently persuade Jiang Luoxue.
"Luoxue, I've always known you're a sensible and good girl. Xiu'er was indeed confused about what happened before. I apologize on his behalf. Please forgive him this time, okay?"
"Look at this marriage. It was obtained by your mother when she was alive by saving Xiu'er's grandmother. Now that they have both passed away, we, as the younger generation, cannot let them be troubled in the afterlife because of your marriage, right?"
When Lady Liu was alive, she unintentionally saved the life of the old Duchess.
Originally, she had no intention of expecting the old Duchess to repay the favor.
Later, when she realized that Jiang Yucheng was unreliable, she went to the old woman for help, hoping that she would protect her child out of gratitude for saving her life.
The old Duchess was a kind-hearted woman. Seeing that Jiang Luoxue was beautiful and delicate, she simply arranged for her to be betrothed to her grandson.
Neither of them expected that so many twists and turns would arise after they left.
Seeing the calculating look on the Duchess of Anguo's face, Jiang Luoxue knew that this woman was up to no good. She wanted to see just how shameless this so-called noble lady could be.
She curled the corners of her lips and said, "What does the Duchess want to say? Just say it!"
As expected, when Lady Anguo saw that she did not curse, she thought she had been persuaded and began to reveal her purpose.
"Luoxue, I knew you were a sensible and good child."
"How about this? If you don't like Jiang Ruzhu sharing a husband with you, then I'll make the decision today: Xiu'er will break off his relationship with her. From now on, the position of the heir's wife in our Duke Anguo's mansion will belong to you alone. What do you say?"
As soon as the woman finished speaking, Jiang Ruzhu turned pale and cried out in shock.
"don't want!"
Then he suddenly knelt on the ground and begged, "Madam Anguo, brother Yuanxiu and I are in love with each other and have long had each other in our hearts."
"Please don't separate me from Brother Yuanxiu, Madam, I beg you!"
After saying that, she knelt on the ground and kept kowtowing to the Duchess of Anguo. Seeing that she was unmoved, she turned to An Yuanxiu with tears streaming down her face and said, "Brother Yuanxiu, please tell the Duchess that you will marry me."
An Yuanxiu felt a pang of pity seeing her crying so hard.
So he turned to his mother, wanting to plead, "Mother...!"