I really don't want to take shortcuts anymore

Jing Yuan's first reaction was to suspect that he had heard it wrong.

He had known Master Mo for a long time and understood him much better than most people, and he probably knew what kind of person he was.

Having to accept this marriage was one thing, but there was not even a slight chance that he would be mesmerized by the beauty of his own daughter.

Jing Yuan never dared to have such a dream even when he was sleeping. He just wanted to take advantage of this not-so-strong bond to get some benefits.

Of course, there must be some sense of propriety in this, for example, the other party turned a blind eye to the house and land he had hidden in the betrothal gift.

So he thought that if he could take control of the imperial estate that His Majesty had bestowed on that unfilial daughter, he would think that Master Mo would not take that thing seriously.

After all, Jing Yuan and Master Mo had met each other at a young age. Even if they had some old friendship that was hard to explain, the other party would not hold it against him.

When it was late at night and everyone was asleep, he would occasionally speculate optimistically that perhaps Mr. Mo had accepted the marriage so easily just to save his face.

He had never mentioned this idea to Caiwei, and had kept it in his heart. Although it was a little unbelievable, it was not impossible, so he still held on to a glimmer of hope until just now...

Until Master Mo spoke bluntly and reprimanded him for the unfilial daughter, he did not have the slightest intention of respecting him as a father-in-law.

Could it be that my unfilial daughter really managed to capture Master Mo in just three days?

But how is this possible! If he was so easily moved by beauty, he would have died countless times. How could he live to this day?

Thousands of thoughts flew through his mind, and Jing Yuan's face turned from pale to blue, and then from blue to red. He finally calmed down, and when he spoke again, he omitted the familiar words "virtuous son-in-law".

"Your Majesty is right." He forced a smile. "Since Yinyin has been blessed to marry into the Marquis's mansion, she will naturally become a noble lady. It is not appropriate for me to treat her as the little girl I once loved."

He took a step back, thinking that Master Mo would also step back and praise him a little, so as to save face for both parties.

Unfortunately, Master Mo once again did not do as he wished.

"It's good that you know." He half-lowered his eyes, leaning lazily on Luo Qianhuai's shoulder, not taking Jing Yuan seriously, and his voice was extremely cold:

"My wife was personally granted marriage by His Majesty. The imperial edict praised her as 'gentle, respectful, prudent, and virtuous', and 'of both ability and integrity'. Not only her medical skills, but her needlework skills are the best in the Western Capital. It is Chu's great fortune to have her as his wife."

"Although my father-in-law is my wife's biological father, he keeps saying that she has lost her education. Does he think that his vision is better than your majesty's?"

When Jing Yuan heard this, a layer of cold sweat broke out on his temples.

He knelt back dejectedly and glanced at Luo Qianhuai. Seeing that she turned her head away and didn't look at him, he signaled to Luo Xiao and Luo Zhao who were standing at the door, hoping that they could say something to help him out.

The two men had a faint smile on their lips, their bodies were as straight as bamboo, one was elegant and the other was heroic, but both turned a blind eye to his predicament.

Mr. Mo continued, "It is already disrespectful for the father-in-law to allow his concubine to enter the house, and it is even more disrespectful to condone her to bump into his wife... If she is not punished, it will be evidence of the lack of discipline in the inner chamber. If it is spread out, he may be impeached by the censor..."

Jing Yuan was sweating profusely at this time, and his vest was soaked with cold sweat. He repeatedly stretched out his sleeves to wipe the sweat off his face, while trembling, he said:

"It's just a family matter. It won't attract the attention of the censor, right?"

It's no wonder Jing Yuan was so frightened. Although the eunuchs were the emperor's servants, the Censorate, which supervised all officials, could not control them. Even if they were really reported, it would not be possible to investigate their crimes and punish them according to the law like the external officials. Instead, it would be decided by the emperor... and this was exactly where the problem lay.

When the censors impeached officials outside the capital, they might show some discretion, but they would always strike at the eunuchs without any reservation.

That would have been fine, but in the history of Dayu, few of the eunuchs who were impeached by the censors had a good ending. Those who were heartless were pushed out by the emperor to quell public opinion, and those who were affectionate were protected at the time, but they would still be held accountable after the change of dynasty - in short, they all had a dead end, and were often sentenced to unlawful punishment, and their deaths were much more tragic than those of the external officials.

Others may not know, but Jing Yuan is very clear about the relationship between the current Imperial Censor Luan He and Master Mo. If Luan He just says a few words, he will be killed without a burial place. The current young emperor has no friendship with him and will definitely not protect him.

Master Mo raised his eyes and glanced at Jing Yuan coldly, and said coldly: "This Marquis does not like trouble. If it is just my father-in-law's own family affairs, this Marquis will not bother to care about it. But if he is so long-handed and long-mouthed that he comes to this Marquis's house and makes my wife unhappy, then don't blame this Marquis for not remembering the old friendship."

As soon as he finished speaking, Jing Yuan sat upright on his knees, expressing his determination with a sincere face:

"Don't worry, my Lord. I know what to do! Yinyin is my legitimate daughter. I didn't manage the family well before, which led to rumors. I will clarify the rumors as soon as possible: I, Jingyuan, have only married one wife in my life, Yinyin's mother, and I have no plans to remarry in the future. If you violate this, you will be struck by lightning!"

There was a sound of dishes falling outside the door. Jing Yuan saw it clearly. Cai Wei stood on the steps with a pale face, full of disbelief. She stared at him for a long time, then covered her face and ran away.

Jing Yuan habitually wanted to get up and chase after him, but in the end he sat back down steadily.

Luo Xiao and Luo Zhao silently withdrew their gazes and felt a sense of intimacy towards this seemingly frail brother-in-law.

This time, it was worth the trip. Luo Qianhuai's eyes fell on Ah Qin who was standing on the side. Seeing that she looked confused, she didn't understand what had just happened, nor did she understand what losing her status as a legitimate daughter meant to her. He felt a little bit reluctant.

This little girl has a simple personality and is the only person in the Jing family that she still has some affection for.

I hope she won't resent me in the future. If she can always keep her original intention, Luo Qianhuai doesn't mind fulfilling her responsibilities as an elder sister when she is getting married.

Although Caiwei did not show up again, she still had to eat her meal.

During the meal, Jing Yuan put away his own little thoughts and just focused on flattering Mr. Mo and Luo Qianhuai, so there was no more quarrel. In addition, Luo Xiao and Luo Zhao would occasionally interject a few words about their experiences in studying and practicing martial arts, so overall, the atmosphere was harmonious.