Chapter 328: Chapter 328: The Suffering Wife VS The Mistress (Part Fourteen) Chapter 328: Chapter 328: The Suffering Wife VS The Mistress (Part Fourteen) Meanwhile, Qin Shaoâs favorable impression of the Prince of Zhenbeiâs Mansion had hit rock bottom.
Gu Shengyin was unaware that a simple outing could bring her such unintended benefits.
Starting from the day she met Zhang Mingshu, Gu Shengyin gradually came into more frequent contact with her, and Zhang Mingshu also slowly began to bare her soul to her.
âIâve noticed that in Capital City, noble ladies of Sister Mengâs age would have their marriages arranged by now. I wonder if Sister Meng has been promised to anyone?â Zhang Mingshu asked.
Gu Shengyinâs face flushed, and she bowed her head, saying nothing.
Seeing her response, Zhang Mingshu felt she knew the truth. Remembering her own secret love with her cousin, who she could not be with for life, she said melancholically, âI wonder which young master is so fortunate.â
Gu Shengyin remained shy, âIâve not yet met him, but Iâve heard nothing but good things about him.â
Little did she know, her shy and hopeful demeanor was inadvertently touching Zhang Mingshuâs sore spot.
She herself would likely never have the chance to be a bride. With the Grand Tutorâs Mansion fraught with peril, if Miss Liang from the Liang Residence were of a spoiled nature, she wouldnât allow her to marry in.
Seeing her suddenly weep, Gu Shengyin seemed greatly surprised and quickly inquired what had happened.
Wiping her tears with a handkerchief, Zhang Mingshu suddenly felt an urge to pour her heart out.
She slowly began to tell her own story.
The more Gu Shengyin listened, the harder it was for her to suppress a cold sneer in her heart.
In Zhang Mingshuâs story, she and her cousin were a match made in heaven, destined to be together; it was his fiancĂ©e who came out of nowhere, using her familyâs influence to force His Majesty to decree their marriage. She had to leave her cousin to avoid suspicion, and now lived alone in such a place.
If someone ignorant of the truth heard this, they would surely sympathize with the loving, helpless couple and see the fiancée as the vile and unsympathetic villain.
Gu Shengyin sneered. The Grand Tutorâs Mansion never had any intention of engaging their daughter to the Prince of Zhenbeiâs Mansion, and the imperial marriage decree came at the request of the Old Princess Consort of the Prince of Zhenbeiâs Mansion herself. How could the Liang Residence be accused of splitting up a pair of lovers? Moreover, if they had known about Qin Yuanzhengâs closely-knit cousin earlier, even at the risk of defying imperial orders, Grand Tutor Liang would never have agreed to marry his daughter into such a family.
What a story, twisting truth and fabrication so eloquently!
Seeing Zhang Mingshu looking pitifully at her, Gu Shengyin understood that she undoubtedly hoped for some words of solidarity, perhaps even to join her in condemning the âwickedâ fiancĂ©e.
She would not grant her that wish!
Gu Shengyin looked worriedly at Zhang Mingshu, âThen I wonder, sister, what are your future plans? Since your cousinâs marriage is decreed by His Majesty, itâs impossible for him to break it off. A person like you, sister, certainly should not lower yourself to become some demeaning concubine.â
When she spoke of a concubine, there was an undeniable look of contempt on Gu Shengyinâs face.
Zhang Mingshu was choked by her words. She could never have anticipated that Gu Shengyin would bring up this topic. Shouldnât the normal reaction be to pity her, comfort her, and along with it, chastise her cousinâs fiancĂ©e?
Moreover, with Gu Shengyinâs statement out in the open, Zhang Mingshu could not, no matter how thick-skinned she was, frankly admit she was planning to become the âlowly and humbleâ concubine she spoke of.
No, she could not even be considered a concubine; after all, a concubine still holds some status, whereas she was relegated to being a mistress, someone to be hidden away.