Love Lock

Chapter 58 Let’s get straight to the point
Zhao Zun and his group were fighting and eating in Tengyun Tower, unaware that Aunt Qin had already arrived at her daughter Zhao Qiao'er's house.

Zhao Qiao'er was Qin Yiniang's darling. She was clever and quick-witted from a young age and deeply loved by Qin Yiniang. No matter what happened, Qin Yiniang would always consult with Zhao Qiao'er.

Zhao Qiao'er is Zhao Zun's younger sister and Zhao Ling'er's older sister.

Because she was born out of wedlock, she had no way to marry a high-ranking official as his principal wife, so she married a cloth merchant in the capital.

Zhao Qiao'er's husband's surname was Lin, and his name was Lin Yuanshan. He was three years older than Zhao Qiao'er and worked with his family in the cloth business.

The Lin family's cloth business in the capital wasn't particularly large, but after several generations, they were considered quite wealthy.

Zhao Qiao'er had been married to Lin Yuanshan for two years, but they had hardly enjoyed any loving married life. Lin Yuanshan was always traveling around doing business, often leaving Zhao Qiao'er alone at home.

Zhao Qiao'er harbored many grievances against Lin Yuanshan, but as long as Lin Dafu could earn money for her to spend, she never voiced those grievances.

On the contrary, she took the initiative to work with her sisters-in-law to take care of her elderly father-in-law and mother-in-law, which earned her a good reputation in the Lin family.

Just then, Zhao Qiao'er had finished lunch with her parents-in-law and was sitting in her room counting the silver notes that Lin Yuanshan had sent back when her mother, Qin Yanran, came in crying.

"Mother, why are you here?" Zhao Qiao'er stuffed the silver notes into her sleeve and stood up to greet her mother.

"Qiao'er, Mother, Mother is going to die. Waaah..." Qin Yanran cried even harder when she saw her daughter.

Zhao Qiao'er quickly led her to sit down at the table, then poured her a glass of water and handed it to her. "Who made you angry? Tell me!"

Aunt Qin sniffed, took a sip of water, and then sobbed as she said, "Yesterday, Zhao Zun returned from Beiguan. He brought a girl back to stay at his house. Her name is Han Lei, and Zhao Zun said he wants to marry her as his princess."

Zhao Qiao'er knew that Zhao Zun had been granted the title of Prince of Xiaoyao. It was normal for Zhao Zun to marry a princess, but that wasn't Zhao Qiao'er's focus.

She asked in surprise, "Did that woman really move into the house?"

"Yes! I moved into the Prince's mansion yesterday."

"Moving into her husband's house before even getting married? What kind of behavior is this?" Zhao Qiao'er asked incredulously. "Is Zhao Zun blind? How could he marry such a shameless woman?"

Hearing this, Qin Yanran felt even more wronged. "That bitch not only moved into our house, she also hit me. Waaah..."

"What?" Zhao Qiao'er's eyebrows shot up immediately.

"Waaah... She also said I didn't know the rules for concubines and that I was disrespectful to the mistress, and she slapped me hard across the face. Look!"

Qin Yanran acted like a child complaining to her parents, not only crying about the grievances she had suffered, but also showing Zhao Qiao'er the five-finger mark on her face that had not faded overnight.

"Outrageous! What a shameless hussy! Whose daughter is she? How dare she be so bold?"

Seeing the clearly visible five-finger mark on her mother's face, Zhao Qiao'er became even angrier, her proud breasts heaving uncontrollably.

She wasn't angry about the five-finger mark on Qin Yanran's face, but rather Qin Yanran's words: "You don't understand the rules for a concubine."

What are the rules for concubines?
Over the years, with Zhao Zun away from home, Qin Yanran has been living a life of luxury and arrogance, dominating the old lady's household. She has almost forgotten that her mother, Qin Yanran, was a concubine of the former Duke of Zhenguo's mansion.

The word "concubine" was a source of eternal pain for Zhao Qiao'er.

Her mother was a concubine in the Zhao family, and consequently, she was also a concubine's daughter. Although she was Zhao Ling'er's older sister, she could only be considered an illegitimate daughter of the Zhao family.

While she was in the Zhao family, her food, clothing, and daily necessities were inferior to Zhao Ling'er's in every way, and even her marriage was nowhere near as good as Zhao Ling'er's.

Zhao Ling'er was able to marry into a powerful family in grand style as the principal wife, while if she wanted to marry into a powerful family, she could only be a concubine. Why?
“That wretched girl is no noble lady at all.” Qin Yanran wiped away her tears and continued, “She’s a wild girl that Zhao Zun brought back from the northern border town. The clothes she wears are not even as nice as those of the maids in the Prince’s mansion.”

"How dare she! A commoner girl, how dare she say that you, a concubine of the royal family, don't know the rules?" Zhao Qiao'er became angrier the more she thought about it, slammed her hand on the table, and gritted her teeth.

"So what if she married Zhao Zun? Even if she married Zhao Zun, she's still a junior. According to the proper etiquette, she should be the one calling you 'Auntie'."

"Qiao'er, I'm not reconciled! I already have a lowly position in this household, and now I've suffered this humiliation. I just can't swallow this!" Qin Yanran wiped away her tears pitifully.

Upon hearing this, a fierce glint flashed in Zhao Qiao'er's eyes: "Mother, don't worry, your daughter will definitely get justice for you!"

"Should we go and fight back? No way, she has Zhao Zun backing her up!"

"Hmph! You're just too kind. No wonder you've been unable to defeat that bitch Lan Hui all these years." The ruthlessness in Zhao Qiao'er's eyes grew stronger.

Lan Hui was Zhao Zunniang's maiden name. Zhao Qiao'er always called the old lady "mother" in public, but behind her back she always called the old lady "that vile woman".

"Then what are you going to do?" Qin Yanran stared at her daughter, her eyes full of expectation.

"What do I want to do? Hmph!" Zhao Qiao'er narrowed her eyes menacingly. "I want to get rid of her directly, so she won't get in your way."

"what?"

Upon hearing this, Qin Yanran's eyebrows twitched, but recalling the scene of Han Lei slapping her yesterday and telling Zhao Qiao'er that she wasn't ruthless enough, she quickly agreed with her daughter's idea.

"You're right! We should just get rid of her. She dares to treat me like this before she's even married into the family. If she does marry in, who knows how miserable my life will be!"

"Mother, don't worry, I know of a slow-acting drug that is colorless, odorless, and difficult to detect. Once I get the drug, I'll go to the Prince's mansion to find you. Then, we'll find a chance to put it in that wretched girl's food, and we can get rid of her without anyone knowing."

"Good! Good!"

Qin Yanran said "good" twice, and the same thought came to her mind. She was so excited that her hand holding the teacup trembled slightly.

Once this thought takes hold, it spreads like wildfire and can no longer be contained...

(Note: This is a work of fiction intended to depict the characters' emotions and psychological changes for the sake of the plot. It is not intended to encourage or promote violence or crime. In real life, we should respect the law and morality and resolve issues peacefully and rationally.)
……

At the same time, inside the palace.

Emperor Jing was having lunch with the Empress in her palace when he heard a eunuch outside the door announce that Princess Chang Le had arrived.

Princess Chang Le was the Empress's niece and often visited the Empress in the palace, so there was no need to follow too many rules. Emperor Jing simply had the eunuchs summon her in.

Princess Chang Le, dressed in magnificent robes, entered and greeted Emperor Jing and the Empress.

"Chang Le greets Your Majesty and Aunt."

"Hmm! Rise. What made you decide to come to the palace to see your aunt at this time?"

Emperor Jing smiled and gestured for her to sit next to the Empress. He was about to ask her if she wanted to dine with them when Princess Chang Le knelt before the Empress and immediately got to the point.

“Aunt. Chang Le has come to the palace to ask you and Uncle to grant me a marriage.”

Let a thunderclap sound, and let some money rain down!