Chapter 84 Scene of the Incident
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To be honest, Fu Cong didn’t use all his strength in the beating, and it wasn’t as painful as the fights Mingzhu had with Yuwen You in the past. However, Mingzhu felt unbearable pain, tears streaming down uncontrollably.
She threw herself forward, tightly hugging Fu Cong’s legs, crying and begging, “I was wrong, I was wrong, Father, please don’t hit me, it hurts so much.”
As she cried and spoke, she couldn’t tell if it was her heart or her back that hurt.
Fu Cong couldn’t bring himself to strike her again, wanting to push her away but unable to do so. He could only sigh heavily, deeply saddened, “It’s all my fault for spoiling you too much in the past, making you ignorant of the consequences. If you die someday, it will be because of me and your mother. Every time I think of that day, I can’t sleep.”
Mingzhu’s heart ached even more. It turned out her father knew everything. Unfortunately, she had been too willful in the past, not considering her family at all. She wanted to comfort Fu Cong, but he waved his hand, continuing, “You said you were wrong just now. Tell me, where were you wrong?”
Tears streaming down her face, Mingzhu said, “Daughter shouldn’t have disregarded etiquette and called Ying Wang’s name recklessly, that’s one; Daughter shouldn’t have acted on her own last night, privately going to find Shen Ruilin, that’s two; Daughter, bold but cowardly, had ideas but didn’t consider the consequences, blindly fell into the trap without verifying the truth, leading to being deceived by a villain, that’s three.”
Seeing little change in Fu Cong’s expression, she gathered her courage and said, “I can’t think of anything else.”
Fu Cong laughed angrily at her, “You shed tears only when the coffin falls. Do you think you’ve done nothing wrong? Who gave you the courage to defy your parents’ orders twice and marry of your own accord?”
Though he was furious, Mingzhu felt that, compared to her own recklessness, her father probably hated her more for being foolish and trying to emulate others’ scheming ways, only to end up getting herself into trouble. Since she didn’t dare to argue with Fu Cong anymore, she lowered her head and admitted, “Daughter just wanted to help the family.”
“You wanted to help the family? Forgive my blindness, but I didn’t see it!” Fu Cong pointed at her angrily. “Do you know how it felt when His Royal Highness Ying Wang graciously invited me for tea this morning, only to apologize? It felt like a slap in the face! You’ve made me lose all my face!” Thinking of Yuwen Chu’s injured lips, he wished he could find a hole to bury himself in. Even if he had ridiculed Yuwen Chu and scolded him severely at the time, it wouldn’t heal his wounded soul.
Mingzhu remained silent. What else could she say? Even raising an army to inquire wouldn’t help. Could she say that Yuwen Chu deliberately went to Shen Ruilin’s room, causing her to go to the wrong room and fall into his trap? He only needed to say, “How would I know you were coming?” to wash his hands of everything.
Fu Cong vented the anger that had been accumulating in his heart for a long time. Finally, feeling somewhat relieved, he looked at Mingzhu’s dejected appearance and said with frustration, “If you think Shen Ruilin is good, you could have told me. Do you think your mother and I wouldn’t agree?”
Mingzhu glanced at him and said softly, “I’m not a child, you can’t fool me. Mother would agree, but you and Auntie definitely wouldn’t. Over the years, although you haven’t said it, you’ve been very unhappy with Uncle. If I told you, you would definitely say, ‘Why does a young lady worry about such matters? I will choose a good husband for you. Who would want to marry that wooden boy?’ Besides, Uncle wouldn’t agree. Only when Shen Ruilin has made up his mind, Uncle would have no choice.”
Fu Cong was caught off guard by her insight. He narrowed his eyes and said, “Then couldn’t you have found another time to talk to him? Why did it have to be in the middle of the night?”
Mingzhu muttered softly, “I couldn’t give him a chance to refuse. What if he had various reservations and didn’t agree? I couldn’t give him the opportunity.” If Shen Ruilin rejected her once, she would never have the courage to ask again. Moreover, with this experience of being alone in the dark room, Uncle couldn’t refuse.
Fu Cong understood what Mingzhu meant by “couldn’t give him a chance.” His face turned red with anger and he scolded, “Who taught you these crooked ways?”
Who needed teaching? Having lived two lifetimes and been married, she certainly knew a thing or two about dealing with men. Mingzhu didn’t dare to tell Fu Cong about this. She whispered, “I originally planned it well. How could I have known that he would interfere?”
Thinking about it again, Fu Cong felt even more furious and cursed, “I, a clever person in this world, how could I raise such a daughter who is brave but lacks wisdom!”
So, what Fu Cong was most dissatisfied with was actually her failed strategy, which ended up falling into someone else’s trap and put him in a passive position.
Mingzhu flattered him, “I was wrong, I was wrong. But now that it’s like this, what should we do?” What did Yuwen Chu want after admitting his mistake? What did he say?
Fu Cong glared at her and peeled her hand off his robe, saying coldly, “Clean up your own mess!” With that, he shook his robe and sat down behind the desk.
Mingzhu knelt for a moment, then awkwardly tried to stand up, but Fu Cong glared at her. “Did I tell you to get up?”
Mingzhu hurriedly knelt down again, obediently saying, “You said Yuwen Chu was cunning and deceitful. He deliberately wanted to plot against me. How could I be his match?” Seeing Fu Cong fall silent, she hesitated and nervously called out, “Father? Dad?”
Fu Cong looked at her with a deep gaze and said slowly, “He said he wants to marry you.”
Mingzhu quickly waved her hand, “No, it’s impossible.”
Fu Cong sneered, “Why impossible? You don’t even like Shen Ruilin. You’re willing to marry him for the sake of this family, even lowering yourself and using all means to coerce him. Marrying Yuwen Chu would bring even more benefits. Why refuse?”
Mingzhu widened her eyes, “Can you tell I don’t like Shen Ruilin? I’m so good to him.”
Fu Cong sighed helplessly, “I’ve watched both of you grow up. Your kindness to him is just sibling affection… I won’t let you change the subject! Answer my question!”
Mingzhu lowered her head and said softly, “I don’t know why, but I’m a little scared of Yuwen Chu. I always feel… I always feel…”
How should she put it? It’s just that look Yuwen Chu gave her last night, it made her feel like she could be devoured in an instant. In short, it’s a very unsettling feeling. She felt confident that whether she married Shen Ruilin or eventually married Yuwen Long, she could control everything and lead her life in the future. But Yuwen Chu was obviously not someone she could manipulate.
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