Chapter 157 FCADW? IRTBTMOTMM
FlamingoBees
Translating Chinese Historical Dramas for your enjoyment... and mine! :)
Favoring Concubines and Destroying Wives? I Refuse to be the Mistress of this Marquis' Mansion
Chapter 157:
Withdrawal From Marriage
"Isn't it hot wearing the veil?"
"Xiruo, make some tea for Lady Dong."
"Yes."
As soon as she left, there were only Lin Yunwan and Dong Shuangshuang in the room.
Dong Shuangshuang fidgeted with her veil but still hesitated to remove it.
Lin Yunwan remained calm, her eyes lowered, fingers gently twirling a string of coral beads, a recent favorite accessory of hers.
Dong Shuangshuang whispered, "...I'm afraid of scaring you."
Lin Yunwan sighed, saying, "How could I be scared of that?"
Dong Shuangshuang removed her veil, revealing a face covered in bruises and swelling, making it difficult to recognize her original appearance.
Despite being somewhat prepared, Lin Yunwan was still shocked. She furrowed her brow and asked, "Have you seen a doctor?"
It seemed like she had internal injuries!
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Dong Shuangshuang pursed her lips, remaining silent.
Lin Yunwan felt deeply distressed and frustrated by her lack of self-care.
Dong Shuangshuang reassured her gently, "Don't worry! After I take my daughter and get the divorce done, I'll see a doctor."
"Dissolving the marriage?" Lin Yunwan exclaimed.
Dong Shuangshuang explained, "My husband... he lost in gambling and used our daughter's marriage as collateral. Now he regrets it, and he promised me he'll file for divorce tomorrow."
"What about the money he owes? Are you going to use your dowry to cover it?" Lin Yunwan inquired.
Dong Shuangshuang sighed bitterly, "Yunwan, I'm not afraid of you laughing at me. Besides setting aside some dowry for my sister, my own dowry... it's long been emptied."
Both openly and in secret, she had no idea how much money she had already spent for her husband.
"My mother-in-law controls everything in the household. We don't have much money on hand. But... this time, my mother-in-law won't intervene."
As for the debts they owed...
She said, "My husband said he would figure something out and told me not to worry."
Dong Shuangshuang pursed her lips and continued, "Yunwan, I know I'm useless."
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"But as long as my daughter is safe and sound, I'll be satisfied," Dong Shuangshuang insisted.
Lin Yunwan asked calmly, "Do you really believe your husband will go through with the divorce?"
"A gambler who can't control himself... Shuangshuang, do you truly trust him?" Lin Yunwan pressed.
Dong Shuangshuang lowered her head in silence. Helplessly, she replied, "What else can I do if I don't trust him?"
Feeling lost, she continued, "What else can I do..."
"There are always solutions," Lin Yunwan stated flatly.
A hint of cunning flashed in Dong Shuangshuang's eyes.
She fell silent for a moment, mustering a smile. "Yunwan, I came to tell you that I'm fine. Don't worry about me. I've written down everything you asked me to do in this booklet."
"My daughter is still waiting for me at home. I should go back now," Dong Shuangshuang added.
Lin Yunwan could only rise and say, "Let me walk you out."
She helped Dong Shuangshuang put on her veil and escorted her out of the side gate.
When Xiruo brought tea, Dong Shuangshuang didn't have any. Instead, she set the cup down for Lin Yunwan and asked, "Does Madam Dong have injuries on her face?"
Lin Yunwan nodded. "Quite severe injuries."
Xiruo clenched her fists. "Men who harm women are truly worthless!"
She despised this kind of man the most.
Xiruo asked angrily, "Miss, didn't Madam Dong resist?"
Lin Yunwan touched the coral bracelet on her wrist and said gently, "Her daughter is her lifeline, and her husband can easily ruin her daughter's life. When someone else holds your lifeline, how can you resist?"
Xiruo fell silent. If it were her, she wouldn't let such a person off even if it meant sacrificing herself!
Lin Yunwan sighed softly, "But she doesn't know that the more she retreats, the more harm it will cause to her daughter."
Xiruo walked over and asked, "Do you have any good ideas, Miss?"
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"What's the use of my ideas? She has to be resolute herself."
Xiruo pondered for a moment.
Lin Yunwan opened the book left by Dong Shuangshuang, which was densely filled with the backgrounds of prominent families in Jiang Qian and suitable suitors.
"These are really well-written," she remarked, admiring the elegant calligraphy.
Xiruo, unaware of what was written in the book, asked, "Is it better than yours, Miss?"
Lin Yunwan smiled and said, "My handwriting is not as delicate as hers."
Xiruo understood and replied, "Each has its own merits."
Lin Yunwan grinned, looking increasingly satisfied with the contents of the book. She found that there were more suitable matches from prominent families in Jiangqian than she had expected.
As the mistress of the house, she felt confident and capable. If she could find a man who was dedicated to self-improvement, they would surely respect each other as equals in the future.
"Miss, will Madam Dong come again?" Xiruo suddenly asked.
Lin Yunwan's eyes brightened slightly. "Yes, she will."
She gave a faint smile and said, "It's hard to say, she might come tomorrow."
Indeed, Lin Yunwan's prediction was accurate. The next day, before noon, Dong Shuangshuang arrived. She was holding her child and crying uncontrollably. She didn't even bother to wear her veil properly. As soon as she entered, she removed it, her lips bitten until they bled. Gasping for breath, she said intermittently, "He... he lied to me! He deceived me. I took my daughter there not to divorce..."
Why would she bring her wife and daughter along if not for the divorce?
Lin Yunwan was filled with doubts, but she first instructed Xiruo, "Fetch a hot towel for Madam Dong. Take the child to the next room to sleep."
The child was also crying, seeming exhausted from crying, eyes shut tightly.
Xiruo carried the child out first, instructing a maid to fetch water but advising, "Leave it at the door. Don't enter."
"Yes."
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The young maid agreed and took the child to the next room, where she comforted her gently. Then she went to fetch water at the door and brought it in to wash Dong Shuangshuang's face, listening to her story.
In the morning, Dong Shuangshuang happily went to divorce, even bringing her daughter along. She hadn't wanted to bring her, thinking it would be troublesome for her daughter. Besides, parents should decide on marriage matters; why involve the daughter?
But her husband, Lu Rong, insisted, "If you don't bring our daughter, how will others believe you're there to divorce?"
Dong Shuangshuang wanted to argue, but Lu Rong impatiently interrupted, "Are you divorcing or not?"
"Fine, fine, fine!"
So she went to the creditor's house with her daughter.
Lu Rong seemed genuinely intent on divorcing, as soon as they arrived, he declared, "We're here to divorce!"
The creditor hadn't initially intended to make trouble; if they wanted to divorce, then so be it. But upon seeing the little girl, so innocent and lovely, his attitude suddenly changed.
"After returning the money, we'll tear up the IOU." However, he added, "Lu Rong, when you owed me money a month ago, you'll have to pay back more than just three thousand taels now."
The creditor slammed the table and named a sum, smiling slyly at Lu Rong, convinced that the gambling addict couldn't pay up.
Dong Shuangshuang, unaware of her husband's intentions, assumed he would agree. But Lu Rong sneered, "When I owed you money, you didn't mention your son being born disabled, did you?"
Dong Shuangshuang turned pale with fright.
"A disability!"
If this marriage didn't dissolve, her daughter would be marrying a disabled man. She broke out in a cold sweat on the spot.
The creditor, embarrassed, couldn't argue.
Lu Rong, with an air of superiority, declared, "We can take this to court if necessary!"
The creditor, his gaze drifting towards Dong Shuangshuang's daughter, felt a sense of pity, reluctantly agreeing, "Fine, fine, fine, three thousand taels it is."
He decided to forgive the debt in full.
But Lu Rong refused to accept it.
He wasn't really there to dissolve the marriage.
Trading a four-year-old daughter for three thousand taels of gambling money, how could that not be a good deal?
© translations belonging to flamingobeestranslations.blogspot.com. If you read this somewhere else instead of flamingobeestranslations.blogspot.com then the translations has been posted WITHOUT permission of translator.
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