Contentment with modest wealth

Chapter 197 I'm not someone who can't risk my life

“It’s true.” Shen Qingzhou’s voice lowered. “Just as you suspected, my trip to Shawan wasn’t entirely for the Tanzhou water transport. When I woke up, I remembered everything that night, and I especially remembered you, who fought alongside me at the last moment.”

"So I also wanted to see you. At first, I just wanted to do everything I could to make your life easier."

"But I never expected that things would turn out differently from what I planned. Later, without realizing it, I found myself unable to leave."

Lu Jia's fist unconsciously softened.

“Jiajia,” Shen Qingzhou’s voice was low in the snow, “I’ve thought about it again and again, and I still believe that no matter how difficult this path is, I will continue to walk it.”

“I initially thought you thought the same way I did, but I later discovered that you weren’t so determined. You wanted to deny the marriage certificate without any explanation. You don’t have confidence in me.”

Lu Jia opened her mouth to defend herself, but before she could speak, he covered her mouth: "It was wrong of me to keep it from you before. But now I'm telling you because I want you to know that we went through thick and thin together, and that we have an indelible past."

"God brought me to know you, and I think it's not only to keep me from being lonely, but also to enable us to truly fight side by side."

"If I don't give up, will you marry me?"

A storm raged in Lu Jia's heart: "You're really dreaming. From the perspective of our two families..."

There's absolutely no way this will work!

"The difference in stance is only because the Yan family still exists. As long as the Yan family falls and the treacherous party is eliminated, wouldn't everything be resolved?"

"But……"

"No buts," Shen Qingzhou said, taking a thin booklet out of her sleeve. "Take a look at this first."

Lu Jia's voice was hoarse: "What is this again?"

"After I discovered that your father had intercepted Granny Du, I felt that he was acting strangely, so I had someone gather some information."

"These are some of the controversial measures your father has taken in court since taking office. These measures seem to be in favor of the Yan family, but in fact, none of them have been taken by him personally to harm loyal officials and common people."

Lu Jia looked up: "Then what do you mean?"

Shen Qingzhou said, "He may indeed be close to the Yan family, or he may indeed be a member of the Yan faction, or he may have done some bad things that I haven't found out yet, but even if he has ulterior motives, he has not yet reached the point of being unforgivable."

"What I mean is, instead of labeling him a traitor, we should try to win him over!"

Lu Jia was stunned: "Wasn't his marriage to the Jiang family just to accept the Yan family's offer of influence? For years, he's been humbling himself in front of the Jiang family, all to try and build a good relationship and use the Yan family's power to get into the cabinet. Now that we're just one step away, how could he possibly listen to us?"

"It's man-made."

Lu Jia's mind went blank at his suggestion: "I don't think that'll work! My dad has a lot of bad ideas in his head, you don't want to end up being sold out by him."

Shen Qingzhou said, "But if it succeeds, it will weaken a portion of Yan's faction's power. It's still worth a try."

"Besides, if he sells me, you can just buy me. I'll be your housekeeper wholeheartedly."

Lu Jia: ...

“Alright, Jiajia,” Shen Qingzhou looked at her, “I never treated that marriage contract as something to be dealt with. I don’t want the Jiang family to have another chance to scheme against you in the marriage.”

"I can't wait five years to remove the Yan family from power. I want to speed up the process of eliminating these obstacles."

“He is your biological father, and I know you still have expectations for him. I also don’t want to tie him to the Yan family.”

"The best course of action is to win him over to our side!"

Lu Jia crumpled the booklet in her hands into a ball. "Young man, you're thinking about something very dangerous!" Shen Qingzhou paused for a moment. "You don't trust me?"

"It's not that I don't believe you, it's that I don't believe my father."

Lu Jia sighed worriedly: "My father's idea is really hard to follow. Think about it, if he is not resolute, he will never be trusted by Yan. If he is resolute enough, then neither you nor I can sway him."

"The Yan family is keeping a close eye on you. It's fortunate that your father has always acted prudently and hasn't given them any leverage, otherwise you would have been in trouble long ago."

"Think again about why you hid your identity from me before? Why you've kept a low profile for so many years? Wasn't it all for your own safety?"

“Once my father discovers your intentions, you won’t be able to extricate yourself.”

"If it's for any other reason, then I have nothing to say. But if you ruin all your years of planning because of romantic feelings, how not worth it!"

Since they were able to storm the Yan family mansion and wreak havoc in their past life, they must have prepared for a long time. Now that they have another chance, shouldn't they cherish it even more?

Lu Jia also did not want the family's reputation to be ruined by Lu Jie. Over the past few days, especially after the incident with Granny Du and the rescue of Liang Jun, she did not deny that Lu Jie still cared about his eldest daughter to some extent.

But to say that he would give up the path he was on for Lu Jia was something Shen Qingzhou dared to say but she dared not even imagine.

Shen Qingzhou was silent for a moment before saying, "I've been lonely since I was a child. I was engaged twice, but both times the engagements were called off because the grooms thought I wouldn't live long."

"It was after meeting you that I realized there can be people in this world who can fight side by side with me and also lean on each other for warmth."

"Whether this decision is made for public or private reasons, there is no conflict."

Tsk tsk tsk, look at this pitiful creature!

For the first time, Lu Jia realized that even her words couldn't always win an argument.

Their marriage contract is truly the most difficult problem to solve in history.

Before this, Lu Jia subconsciously assumed that Shen Qingzhou thought the same way.

I never expected him to be so persistent; he's actually serious about clearing away all obstacles to marry me...

Does he even know how huge this project is?
But looking at his resolute expression, she could no longer utter a word of objection.

That's it.

He has already done so much for her, and he is still willing to move forward even though he knows the road ahead is so difficult, so what is she still hesitating about?

Come to think of it, wasn't it she who brought up the engagement first?
She has to take responsibility for him!
Lu Jie has already risen to the rank of Minister of the Imperial Secretariat and is increasingly favored by the emperor; his power is indeed not to be underestimated.

Even if it's not for the sake of marriage, being able to turn Lu Jie against the Yan family, or to completely sever his ties with the Yan family, would be entirely beneficial.

She nodded and said, "Since you've made up your mind, how could I possibly admit defeat? Let's do it! I, Lu Jia, am not one to back down from a fight!"

“I know,” Shen Qingzhou said, her eyes shining. “I’ve always known!”

Lu Jia then smiled.

Shen Qingzhou smiled too.

Snow water dripped from the eaves behind him, like a pleasant melody.

Two people who have already held hands in a life-or-death situation are indeed more likely to get closer to each other's souls.

He was willing to go through fire and water for her as long as she was willing to take a step forward, even a small one.