I'll Marry Only One
The words he is saying now are the words the original owner of this body would have said. Therefore, Noble Consort Cen feels that although her son has matured, become sensible, and capable, his personality is still the same, and he hasn't changed at all inside.
"Son, you're so wonderful." Noble Consort Cen's tears streamed down her face. "You have no idea how scared I was just now. I was afraid that you brothers would covet the position, and that you would turn against each other and kill one another. That would have been like tearing my heart out."
At this point, Noble Consort Cen burst into tears and could not continue.
In the prime of her youth, she was full of hope for the future, but her family sent her to the palace. For the rest of her life, she could only look at the sky above the palace, be neglected by her husband, and scheme against the concubines. She had to be careful with every step she took, always afraid of losing her life, and even more afraid that her two sons would suddenly be killed.
She had finally managed to get her two sons into adulthood, leave the palace, and establish their own residences. If they were to kill each other again now, she feared she would go mad.
What did royalty offer her? It brought her nothing but oppression, fear, and constant anxiety. She couldn't help but envy the ordinary women outside the palace.
As a time traveler, Xiao Lingyan was already thirty years old before his transmigration, not much younger than Noble Consort Cen's current age. Moreover, as an outsider, he had a clearer perspective and could particularly understand Noble Consort Cen's situation and feelings.
Seeing that Noble Consort Cen was crying harder and harder, and that it seemed she was about to stop, he didn't say anything. He just sat quietly and gave Auntie Yu, who was about to step forward to comfort her, a wink, signaling her not to disturb Noble Consort Cen.
Noble Consort Cen had been suppressing her emotions for too long. When he went to the border some time ago, Noble Consort Cen was filled with anxiety. When he returned to the capital, he saw that Noble Consort Cen looked even more haggard than he did, as if she had aged several years in an instant.
Now that she finally has a chance to vent, let her have a good cry to relieve her unhappiness.
In this imperial harem, even weeping is a luxury.
Seeing that Noble Consort Cen had cried for a while and the crying had gradually stopped, he took a new handkerchief from Auntie Yu's hand and handed it to her, comforting her, "Mother, don't be sad, everything will be alright. My brother and I have both grown up safely. With our brothers working together, we will definitely make a name for ourselves for you; even if we can't, we can still retire safely. You must believe in us."
According to custom, they should address Noble Consort Cen as "Mother Consort," but Noble Consort Cen preferred to call herself "Mother" in front of them, as if in this way, they could feel closer to the status of ordinary people rather than the ruthless royals.
Whether it was the word "Mother," Xiao Lingyan's words, or both, Noble Consort Cen was comforted.
She wiped away her tears, looked at her tall son, whose head she could no longer touch, with reddened eyes, and nodded vigorously. "Okay, Mother believes that things will definitely get better and better for us."
"Your life is so hard because there are too many concubines in the palace and too many half-siblings. Taking concubines is the root of chaos in the harem and the inner quarters. Mother, I will marry a girl I love and have only her for the rest of my life. I will never take concubines. I don't want anyone to live like you."
Frankly speaking, as a good young man who received socialist education, his values were extremely upright. Having witnessed so much intrigue and scheming in ancient times, he deeply felt that monogamy was the guarantee of a happy life.
Putting aside Zhao Ruxi's personality, if he were to harbor any disloyalty, Zhao Ruxi would definitely break his legs, then take the child and all the family property and leave him in a carefree manner, leaving him with a miserable end. Just considering himself, after living in the palace for a year or two and personally experiencing that there is no warmth between women vying for favor and brothers fighting for resources, only killing, he would not take a concubine.
Men who believe that all wives, concubines, and children (both legitimate and illegitimate) can love each other and live as a family are all big idiots with pig trotters.
Noble Consort Cen had been crying so hard that she was occasionally sobbing, but her son's words made her stop even from sobbing.
She stared blankly at Xiao Lingyan for a long time, and then tears welled up in her eyes again.
She hugged her tall son tightly, crying, "Little Five, my Little Five, how can you be so sweet? It's all my fault, it's all my fault. If it weren't for me, how could you have such thoughts? Waaah..."
Xiao Lingyan amused and exasperated.
Noble Consort Cen's behavior always made him feel that his refusal to take a concubine was a tremendous injustice, even greater than the injustice of not being able to ascend the throne.
That's true. This was a perk for men in ancient times.
As a result, this Prince of Qi, who had worked so hard to help Xiao Lingpu, was unable to have many wives and concubines after his elder brother ascended the throne. Instead, due to a "mental illness," he only stayed with one wife. In the eyes of Noble Consort Cen and the other men, wasn't this a tremendous injustice?
He didn't know what to say until Noble Consort Cen finally stopped crying and let go of him. Only then did he say, "So, Mother, I will only marry one woman. Can you bear to let me marry a girl I don't like?"
Noble Consort Cen shook her head, shaking her head desperately.
"No, Mother won't force you. In fact, if you express dislike for the daughter of the Duke of Wei and don't want to marry her, Mother won't force you either."
She looked at her youngest son with slightly red and swollen eyes, and reached out to stroke his cheek. "How could your mother bear to see you suffer? I said those things to you before because I thought you didn't want to get engaged or married, so I wanted you to meet people and see how things went. If you didn't like them, we'd choose again. No matter which family you like, as long as you like them, your mother can get you an imperial decree. That's all my life has to do, and your brother doesn't have many choices either. Only you, your mother wants you to be happy."
As a mother, although she couldn't stay by her son's side as often as ordinary mothers, she still paid close attention to Xiao Lingpu and Xiao Lingyan's movements, and would occasionally call over the eunuchs around them to inquire about their situation.
She knew perfectly well whether Xiao Lingyan had interacted with any noble ladies or whether he paid special attention to any of them.
Seeing that her son was still clueless at this age and showed no interest in girls, spending all his time either tinkering with strange things at the Ministry of Works or busy at the auction house, Noble Consort Cen assumed that Xiao Lingyan had no girl he liked.
The Duke of Wei's Residence hadn't really taken sides, but now that they suddenly favored this faction, Noble Consort Cen and the Cen Family were quite pleasantly surprised. In addition, Noble Consort Cen had met Qi Xuan before and thought the girl was quite good—beautiful, poised, and a student at the Capital Women's Academy, a suitable match for her son. That's why she came to ask her son so excitedly, thinking it was a good match.
If she knew her son disliked the marriage, she would still bring it up, but she would be more tactful.