Chapter 431: Co-Wives (2)
Editor: Atlas Studios
Drenched in cold sweat, Lu Zhen knelt down and called out to the Emperor. Seeing that the Emperor didn’t say anything, he could only grit his teeth and say, “In the Old Book of Tang, Biography of Wang Maozhong, it says: ‘His wife was already granted the title of State Lady, and his concubine Li was also bestowed the same title; every time they entered the inner court to pay homage, the two ladies received gifts together.’ In the Annals of An Lushan, it also says: ‘(In the sixth year of Tianbao), the imperial censor’s wife was promoted, and his two concubines Tang and Duan were both ennobled as State Ladies…’
“Lord Lu, I was asking you how the Great Zhou Code defines and explains the concept of co-wives, not who had co-wives in history,” Mu Yangling interrupted him, with a mocking smile: “I wonder how Lord Lu passed the imperial examination, answering so irrelevantly; it was a great fortune to be selected.”
Everyone laughed. Seeing Lu Zhen’s face turn red, Mu Yangling asked, “It seems that although Minister Lu has co-wives, you don’t quite understand how a co-wife is defined in the ‘Great Zhou Code’. What about the definition of a wife, then? Minister Lu, you should at least know this, right?”
Hatred flashed across Lu Zhen’s eyes, but he couldn’t say anything because saying it would be a crime.
Knowing it wouldn’t do her much good to continue arguing with Lu Zhen, Mu Yangling no longer pressed him. Instead, she turned to look at the seat at the top and said respectfully, “Minister Chen, you’re knowledgeable. I wonder if you can enlighten everyone?”
Chen Fang, the Minister of Rites, used to be the Minister of Justice. He was transferred to the Ministry of Rites because of his old age. Smiling, he said, “There is no such thing as having multiple wives of equal status in the Great Zhou Code. A wife is one who is equal to her husband, and this principle applies to everyone from the Emperor to the commoners.”
“Then can Minister Chen tell me where the term co-wife came from?”
Chen Fang shook his head and said, “A co-wife is just a term that merchants use to coax their mistresses. From the Qin, Han, to the Great Zhou Dynasty, the law stipulated that no one is allowed to marry another woman if they have a wife. It’s illegal to do so.”
It seemed that the Great Zhou Dynasty was really open-minded in terms of free speech. In front of the Emperor, Chen Fang was not afraid of refuting the Emperor with facts and theories, vaguely reminding him that some things were unreasonable.
Mu Yangling heaved a sigh of relief. She felt that there was nothing bad about living in the Great Zhou Dynasty. At the very least, it was much better than the Ming and Qing Dynasties in her previous life.
Mu Yangling knelt before the Emperor again and said, “Your Majesty, according to Minister Chen’s explanation, it’s illegal for Minister Lu to have co-wives. Then why can the criminal still be an official in the court and not be punished?”
Mu Yangling clearly wanted to divert the trouble and let this matter pass. Everyone looked at Lu Zhen sympathetically. When the Emperor mentioned ‘co-wife’, he shouldn’t have spoken up. If he hadn’t, they wondered what answer Madam Mu would have given.
Before the Emperor could say anything, the Empress had already slammed the table in rage and said angrily, “Wives and concubines must not be mixed up. This is an ancient teaching. Although this was not taboo among the officials of the Tang Dynasty, in my Great Zhou, no one has ever disregarded the law like this. Your Majesty, I request to have Assistant Minister Lu punished in accordance with the law.”
The Emperor lowered his head and stared at Qi Haoran and Mu Yangling for a while before saying slowly, “Madam Mu, move towards the east.”
Everyone looked at Qi Haoran and Mu Yangling in shock. Why did the topic suddenly change?
The Empress was also stunned. She turned to look at the two people kneeling below.
Mu Yangling blushed slightly and moved to the east. The Emperor stared at their sleeves for a long time before finally confirming his thoughts. The two of them had been holding hands below.
The Emperor, who was originally furious, felt a little better. He asked, “Minister Qi, let me ask you. Did you really make such a promise to Madam Mu? Raise your head and answer me.”
The ministers did not know what was wrong with the Emperor this time. Shouldn’t he be playing along since the Empress had just given him an out? Why did he revert back to the first question?
Qi Haoran raised his head and replied seriously, “Your Majesty, I did make a promise.” His face was slightly red, but he still explained seriously, “I grew up with Madam Mu. In fact, she saved my life.”
“Oh? How did she save you?” the Emperor asked curiously.
Qi Haoran naturally wouldn’t reveal his injuries and what happened on the battlefield. He only said, “Back then, I was young and insensible. My cousin and I ran to Xingzhou Prefecture to look for Big Brother on our own, but we were chased into the forest. At that time, not only did we not have anything to eat, but we also lost our way in the forest. If we hadn’t met her, the two of us would probably have died in the forest and none of our family would know. And in the past five to six years, we could be considered good friends even if we didn’t accompany each other day and night. When I was in trouble, she would help me. When she was in trouble, I would also help her. My marriage with her was agreed upon long ago. I originally said that I would only marry her when she turned 16, but Big Brother was seriously ill and we needed the wedding to flush out his bad luck. I only mentioned it once, and she agreed, so…” Qi Haoran’s face turned even redder. His voice lowered slightly, but he still said clearly, “I swore that I would only be with her for the rest of my life. I don’t even want a concubine or a handmaid, let alone co-wives. If I violate this promise, I’ll have to divorce her.”
Everyone’s eyes widened, and the Emperor was slightly surprised. He laughed and said, “You didn’t lose out on this promise at all. You can always marry another after you divorce, but it will be difficult for her to marry again. What kind of oath is this?”
Blushing, Qi Haoran said, “Your Majesty, you haven’t heard everything yet. Should we divorce, our children will go to her, and she can change her surname. All my assets will also belong to her. In the future, regardless of whether I remarry or remain single, I’ll give her two-thirds of my salary and assets. Even if I’m down and out, I’ll guarantee a certain amount of alimony and child support every year. In short, there are many rules.”
The Emperor was stunned. “Don’t tell me you’ve signed a contract?”
Qi Haoran nodded matter-of-factly. “Of course. If there’s no contract, what if we forget about it in the future?”
The Emperor said thoughtfully, “This price is indeed a little high and the terms are quite realistic, but assets can be faked. However, it’s not good for the bloodline to leave the family…”
“Your Majesty.” Qi Haoran interrupted him unhappily and said, “Most importantly, those things will only apply if I divorce Madam Mu, okay? How can I possibly divorce her?”
The Emperor looked at Qi Haoran’s round eyes and now believed that he rejected him not because the Emperor was the matchmaker, nor because the girl was Minister Qin’s daughter, but because of such an oath. Or rather, it was because he was newlywed!
The Emperor said affirmatively, “I forgot that you two are newlyweds now. In two to three years, I’m afraid you won’t think like this anymore.”
Qi Haoran said affirmatively, “I’ll still be the same in 20 to 30 years.”
The Emperor looked at the confident Qi Haoran and only smiled. He had said such words of love before, but they had all disappeared now. Even now, he would say such words of love. It was just that such words were now spoken to a different person.
The people below only smiled. Just like the Emperor, they also felt that Qi Haoran was young and affectionate, Madam Mu was his benefactor and they were newlyweds. That was why he was so confident, but things would change in the future.
Everyone had gone through this stage.
The women were a little envious of Mu Yangling. They knew that Qi Haoran’s deep feelings were temporary, and it might not be long before someone entered Qi Haoran’s residence in half a year, a year, or two years. In spite of that, they were envious of the fact that at this very moment, Qi Haoran was willing to stand up and reject this marriage for her. At least they would retain such beautiful memories in the future, right?