If I were born again, I would marry a strong but short-lived husband.

"Your Highness, please rest early." Lu Heng sent Guangning to the princess's residence and turned to leave.

Guangning reached out and grabbed him, "Prince Consort, where are you going?"

"I'm going to the front yard. There are still some things to deal with in the study." Lu Heng's expression was cold.

"There's no rush for your things. You can go tomorrow. It's getting late. You can stay. I've asked someone to prepare some food." Guangning spoke softly with tenderness in his eyes.

Lu Heng just felt disgusted.

He avoided Guangning's hand and said, "No need."

Guangning was hurt by his actions and expression, and angrily scolded, "Lu Heng, what do you mean?"

"I don't mean anything." Lu Heng was impatient. He didn't even want to say another word to Guangning.

Guangning held his hand tightly, "Those two men were not concubines at all. Didn't you know that in the bridal chamber? I married you with a pure virginity."

"So what? Aren't they kept by you in another courtyard?" Lu Heng asked coldly.

He even heard others talking about how the two men looked somewhat similar to him, which made Lu Heng feel even more disgusted.

Guangning did want to stay because they looked like Lu Heng. At that time, she thought Lu Heng was going to marry Shen Sui'an in the future, and she just thought it would be nice to have someone who looked like him accompany her for drinks.

After spending a long time together, she liked the two men quite a lot, so she treated them like servants and occasionally asked them to do some errands. Who knew that they would be impeached.

"Others don't believe me, and you don't believe me either. You and I are husband and wife." Guangning looked at Lu Heng's cold face. She knew that if she didn't make things clear today, it would be difficult to repair the relationship between them.

Lu Heng waved her hand away, "Do you regard me as your husband? Am I not a dog that Your Highness the Princess can call upon at will? You can kill my people if you want, and keep a concubine if you want. You are a noble princess, and you can do whatever you want."

"Are you still holding a grudge against me for killing the bartender?" Guangning stared at Lu Heng.

"If I killed your two lovers, wouldn't Your Highness hate me?" Lu Heng asked coldly.

Guangning pulled his sleeve again, and said softly, "If you want to kill me, just kill me. I don't care. Prince Consort, I only like you in my heart, you know that."

When Lu Heng thought of Song Xiuzhi and her two unborn children, his heart ached like needles.

He wanted to throw the jar into the ground and completely break off relations with Guangning.

Without this arranged marriage, his life would not have changed, and he would still be the envied Minister of the Court.

What about now?

As long as he is the prince consort, he will have no chance to succeed. Even his grandfather begins to pay attention to Lu Yuan.

Otherwise, my grandfather wouldn't have said a word today and not even said a word to help him.

"It turns out that you are really attracted to that bitch. I finally understand why Shen Suian wants to break off the engagement with you." Seeing that Lu Heng didn't say anything, Guangning thought that he was still thinking about Song Xiuzhi.

"If I had known this, I should have had her killed earlier!"

Lu Heng's eyes fell coldly on her face, his thin lips curled silently, and he turned and left resolutely.

"Lu Heng!" Guangning's heart began to panic.

She knew that if Lu Heng left today, they would no longer be husband and wife.

But no matter how she called him, he didn't even turn his head.

"If you leak even a word about what's going on between me and my husband, I'll kill you!" Guangning held back her tears and threatened the palace maids around her in a harsh voice.

These palace servants were rearranged by Concubine Yao. They looked calm, knelt down and responded respectfully.

……

……

Shen Sui'an finally had time to meet Zhao Jiuling.

In fact, Zhao Jiuling doesn’t have a surname yet, only the name Jiuling given to him by the old monk.

I heard that the surname Zhao came from the fact that he later adopted a sworn brother among the businessmen and took that brother's surname.

Qingluo placed Zhao Jiuling in the yard behind the bookstore.

This place is quite secluded and usually no outsiders come in. Only the owner of the bookstore puts some books in the back.

The young man, who had been bullied to the point of dying, had scabbed over his wounds and his face had some color after several days of treatment.

He was like a trapped beast that had lost its sense of direction, wary and alert towards everyone.

"Don't be afraid, it's our young lady who's here to see you." Qingluo didn't approach him, but just said to him at the door.

The fifteen or sixteen-year-old boy looked only twelve or thirteen years old due to long-term hunger. His amber pupils were as clear as gems, and he was staring at Shen Sui'an fiercely.

Shen Sui'an looked at him and overlapped the image of Zhao Jiuling, who had wealth in his previous life, was a man of great strategic planning and had a deep mind.

"I asked someone to rescue you." Shen Suian stood in front of him and looked into his fierce eyes.

"The old monk helped me before, so I saved you as a way of repaying him. But if you want to continue living, you have to help me."

"I don't keep idle people."

When Zhao Jiuling heard Shen Suian mention the old monk, he was stunned.

No one had mentioned the old monk to him for a long time.

That was the last warmth he had in this world, always hidden deep in his heart.

"What do you want me to do?" Zhao Jiuling asked uncertainly.

He doesn't know how to do anything, not even how to raise a horse, and is always called a fool by others.

"Can you read?" Shen Sui'an asked.

Zhao Jiuling nodded. The old monk taught him how to read and write.

Shen Sui'an: "You can't do anything right now. After you recover, I will tell you what to do."

"You can read books in the bookstore when you have nothing to do. You can read all the books here."

Zhao Jiuling looked at Shen Sui'an in surprise. She actually allowed him to read?

"They said that I was a lowly slave and had no right to read books," Zhao Jiuling said in a low voice.

Shen Sui'an: "Books are not divided into noble and humble. If you treat them seriously, they will have meaning."

"Do you have a body contract in the hands of the boss of Wa Si?" she asked.

Zhao Jiuling shook his head: "I am not a slave."

He had nowhere else to go and was bullied, so he ended up living in a tavern to survive.

Shen Sui'an smiled, "Okay, what do you want to do most?"

Zhao Jiuling looked up at Shen Sui'an and said in a loud voice, "I want to make money."

When he has a lot of money one day, he will no longer look down on him.

"No, in addition to making money, you also need an identity. Jiuling, do you want to take the imperial examination?"

"What?" Zhao Jiuling's eyes showed a bit of confusion, he wondered if he had heard it wrong.

Shen Sui'an: "After the spring, I will find a teacher for you. I know the old monk taught you to read, you just wasted some time."

Before becoming a monk, the old monk was actually a tribute student, but his family suddenly encountered a major change, and he became disheartened and shaved his head to become a monk.

Zhao Jiuling sneered, "I'm not as smart as you think. Others may not be able to pass the exam even after studying hard for ten years."

"I just ask you to give it a try, but I don't require you to pass the exam," said Shen Sui'an.

"What favor did the old monk do to you that you have to help me like this? I... I have never done you any favor." Zhao Jiuling said gritting his teeth.

Shen Sui'an smiled and said, "But from now on, I am your benefactor, and I am waiting for you to repay me."