The Marquis Mansion's Elite Class-Chapter 324

Xu Wan rolled her eyes with practiced ease.

She knew it—what could a kid possibly understand about standards for choosing a spouse? That little brat’s big head was filled with nothing but pride, either showing off to this person or flaunting to that one. He was practically the poster child for attention-seeking.

“So? So? Doesn’t it sound exciting just thinking about it?” Zong Jincheng asked eagerly, bouncing around.

Xu Wan mercilessly poured cold water on his enthusiasm: “Not at all. It just makes me want to cringe so hard I dig my toes into the ground.”

The little devil wasn’t so easily discouraged. Refusing to accept defeat, he quickly switched targets and pressed on: “Dad! Dad! What do you think? Am I right or not?”

Xu Wan glanced over.

Zong Zhao lifted his eyelids and answered without hesitation: “Your mother is right.”

“……”

The little devil’s face fell completely, thoroughly dissatisfied with his father’s response. He grumbled, “Dad, you’re not close to me at all. You never take my side. Hmph.”

Xu Wan kicked him lightly and chided, “Your father is just discerning right from wrong. Did you think everyone’s like He Zheng, spouting nonsense just to back you up no matter how wrong you are?”

The little brat pouted but, unable to win the argument, stiffly steered the conversation back: “Dad, earlier you said Luo Jingfeng married Madam Luo because of loyalty. Why is that? Was she his subordinate?”

Xu Wan: “……”

This was the first time she’d ever heard someone describe marriage like that. Who in the world married someone because they were their subordinate? If Madam Luo heard this, wouldn’t she crack this kid’s skull open on the spot?

“She wasn’t his subordinate,” Zong Zhao said calmly, dropping a little-known bombshell. “Luo Jingfeng was once betrayed by a woman he loved.”

Zong Jincheng: “!!!”

Xu Wan: “!!!”

The Great General of Pacifying the West, the Duke of State Protection who commanded the military—how could such a formidable figure have such a melodramatic past?

“Dad! Why didn’t you tell us such an interesting piece of gossip sooner?” The little devil, suddenly energized, tugged at Zong Zhao’s sleeve and pestered him. “How did she betray him? Did she find him annoying? Or did she see his ugly true colors and marry someone else without hesitation?”

As the questions poured out, Xu Wan’s curiosity also peaked, her eyes fixed on Zong Zhao, waiting for the juicy details.

Zong Zhao began recounting the tale: “Fourteen years ago, Luo Shu was offered to the palace to save the Luo family—but it wasn’t entirely because of Luo Jingfeng’s reckless words.”

“Huh?” “Huh?” fɾeewebnoveℓ.co๓

Xu Wan and Zong Jincheng exchanged glances, both baffled. Luo Shu’s entry into the palace was common knowledge, but there was another hidden reason?

Zong Zhao continued, “Luo Jingfeng isn’t a fool. No matter how unrestrained his personal remarks were, he still exercised some restraint in court. He wasn’t so reckless as to implicate the entire Prince of Southern Pacification’s Mansion. The real problem was the father of the woman he loved. He exaggerated and twisted every private, offhand remark Luo Jingfeng had made to her and reported them to the Emperor… With the court already wary of his boldness, the Emperor believed it, and that’s how the entire Luo family was implicated.”

The little devil’s eyes widened in shock. “There was actually more to it? So Luo Shu’s entry into the palace… was partly because of that woman too?”

Zong Jincheng knew how important Luo Shu was to Luo Jingfeng. And that woman had once been someone he adored… Betrayed by the one he loved, his family in crisis, his younger sister forced into the palace—Luo Jingfeng’s suffering back then had been unimaginable.

While he’d normally relish hearing about the villain’s misfortunes, the thought that Luo Shu might be his mother—and that this tragedy might be tied to him—made the gossip suddenly less appetizing.

“Mm,” Zong Zhao confirmed. “So Luo Jingfeng developed trust issues. When choosing a wife, he picked Madam Luo—someone from a less prominent family but utterly devoted to him.”

Xu Wan understood.

Even the little brat, who knew nothing of love, understood.

Once bitten, twice shy. Luo Jingfeng didn’t want to risk betrayal again, especially not from the person sharing his bed.

Seeing ​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​​​​‌‌​​​​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​​​​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌​‍the solemn expressions on his wife and son’s faces, Zong Zhao sensed the mood had soured. He added, “I heard that when Madam Luo first married into the household, she struggled against the scheming concubines and maids. Luo Jingfeng stepped in to settle things for her.”

“Huh?” The little devil was surprised. “He’d do that? He’d meddle in household affairs? I thought someone as arrogant as him wouldn’t bother with the inner quarters.”

Xu Wan chimed in, “The Duke of State Protection really doesn’t seem like the type to involve himself in women’s squabbles.”

Zong Zhao nodded. “True.”

Xu Wan: “???”

Zong Jincheng, acting as her mouthpiece, frowned. “Dad, then why did you say he helped?”

Zong Zhao replied, “He didn’t pay much attention to the inner quarters. He just issued one order: ‘Sell off any concubine who dares overstep the mistress.’”

Xu Wan silently raised a thumb. “That’s effective. From then on, any concubine thinking of causing trouble would have to weigh the master’s stance carefully.”

Zong Jincheng rubbed his nose and muttered, “That’s… kinda decisive.”

Xu Wan grew more amused the more she thought about it. “Someone like Madam Luo needed Luo Jingfeng’s iron hand to keep things in check. Otherwise, she wouldn’t have fared well. When you think about it, Madam Luo’s luck is enviable.”

“Envious of luck?” Zong Zhao glanced at her.

Xu Wan smiled. “Yes. Though effort matters, I believe luck plays a big part too. Madam Luo, someone unsuited for inner-house scheming, ended up with Luo Jingfeng as her husband. Whatever his reasons, she and her children live comfortably. That’s luckier than most.”

Zong Zhao lowered his gaze, lost in thought.

The family of three didn’t chat much longer before arriving home. The little devil was the first to leap off the carriage, eager to share this explosive gossip with his friends.

But halfway there, he suddenly froze.

Zong Zhao and Xu Wan took a different path through the corridor toward their own courtyard, nodding at the maids cleaning along the way.

The little devil sprinted back and called out softly, “Dad, which family was that woman from—the one who betrayed Luo Jingfeng? What… happened to her afterward?”

Only now did he realize they’d forgotten to ask the most crucial part. Luo Jingfeng had held military power for years, and his sister, sacrificed to the palace for his sake, had died tragically long ago. But what about the one who started it all?

The one who dealt the heaviest blow back then… Where was she now?