The Prince’s Beloved is Aiming for Someone Else - Chapter 25

Chapter 25: Act of Grace

Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

Li Baojia became a little upset when mentioning this. “Mingxuan, I know you may not believe me, but I am sure our family will not become as honorable as father wants it to be even if I marry His Highness.

“The prince doesn’t like me, and I can’t be the empress.”

Li Mingxuan said, “I am willing to believe you, but father will not want you to marry someone else. After all, His Highness is indebted to father, and we have an act of grace. Father sure will do something with it.”

Li Baojia said in surprise, “What do you mean an act of grace?”

She had never heard of it before.

Li Mingxuan said with hesitation, “I have mentioned to you about this, but only father and I know about it, so if I tell you, make sure you keep it a secret.”

Li Baojia nodded. “Does this belong to our grandfather?”

“It was rewarded to grandfather when His Majesty ascended the throne. His Majesty promised that he could grant the Li family a wish. As long as it does not endanger the country, he will fulfill our wish.”

Li Baojia hurriedly asked, “Then, if the Li family commits a serious crime, can we be exempted?”

Li Mingxuan shook his head. “It does not work for direct relatives but can protect the rest of his family from being executed.”

That was to say, if her uncle became guilty, the rest of his family could be acquitted of the crime.

It didn’t occur to her that her father used it to request a marriage between her and the prince.

Although it was true that the Li family was saved by mistake in the end, initially, they did not have to rely on the Prince because they had such a token in hand.

Li Baojia suddenly felt a little flustered.

She initially thought that her father was just consumed by benefits.

She didn’t expect that he would be so stupid.

To say that he arranged this marriage for her only was not something she would believe.

She knew the prince was a good person, but the palace was not a place for people to stay, for a careless mistake could be fatal sometimes.

Li Baojia said, “Mingxuan, father simply cannot use this token to arrange a marriage for me. This thing is so important. If something happens to the Li family in the future, this can be used to protect our family.”

“To exchange a life-preserving object for an unrealistic marriage contract, this is too ridiculous.”

Li Mingxuan thought for a moment. “I know, but this token only stands effective in the presence of His Majesty. His Highness probably won’t acknowledge it.”

“Besides, grandfather only told father about this, and father told me. We don’t have much time left till His Majesty abdicates. Nothing can happen to our family. If we miss this opportunity, we might as well make the best use of it while it’s still valid.”

“Something will happen, and it’s something big.”

Li Baojia just knew it.

She knew it was impossible to convince her father because he was an incorrigible person who never took his family’s advice.

Even Li Mingxuan, the eldest son in the family, had little say in front of him.

She thought it was better to find a way to let him know her uncle’s matter secretly so he would be alarmed and take a second thought about the token.

But she was still figuring out a plan.

She knew it was urgent because he would take action after the Lantern Festival.

She noticed the unusualness of the arranged marriage in her previous life because her family was less than honorable to the prince.

Although it was indeed better than Su Ruhui’s, the Li family was on the decline after her grandfather passed away. It was no longer as influential in the court as when her grandfather was alive.

With this in mind, she hurriedly bid Li Mingxuan farewell and went with Taotao back to their own courtyard.

Just when she arrived at the door, she saw Nanny Lin waiting for her at the door with a group of maids.

“Miss, there are some new maids in the house today. Madam figured you would be married soon, and Youyou, the oldest maid, got married and left. Now there is only Taotao, so she asked me to come and pick a maid for you.”

Li Baojia said, “Thank you so much. When do we get started?”

Nanny Lin smiled and said, “Very soon. The agent will be here soon. Why don’t you go in first and wait.”

The servants found a chair in the front shade of the courtyard and put it there. It was covered with a soft silk brocade yellow embroidered silk cushion, next to which a small table was set up with some seasonal fruits.

Li Baojia sat on it, eating grapes, and said to Taotao, who was employed to pound her legs, “Is the agent we visited last time the only agent in the Imperial City?”

Taotao said, “Of course not, but she is the most famous. She got the most and the smartest candidates to choose from.”

Li Baojia looked at Taotao’s round face and sighed. “You’ve been with me since you were five or six. How time flies. You’ve come of age for marriage.”

Youyou was a few years older than them and bid Li Baojia farewell after marrying a steward in the countryside last year.

Although these maids were on a lifetime contract, they could still be allowed to leave by their master.

Taotao shook her head. “I don’t want to marry anyone. I’ll stay wherever Miss is. If I have to leave Miss, I might as well die.”

Li Baojia stroked her head with amusement. “How can you follow me forever? Don’t you want to have your own family like Youyou?”

Taotao said firmly: “No, nowhere is as good as staying with Miss.”

“Besides, even if I marry someone, how can I be sure my husband will treat me well? I have so many sisters who married and left their master’s family. Ultimately, their lives were miserable because their husbands and mothers-in-law would constantly give them a hard time.”

“Qiqi, who delivered dim sum with me before, was mistreated by her husband, who broke her legs suspecting that she had an affair.”

“When I’m here, you will neither beat me nor scold me, and I can take care of Miss for the rest of my life. What’s wrong with that?”

Hearing this, Li Baojia sighed. She didn’t expect her to think like this. She said with a serious face, “Taotao, it’s not that I don’t want you. Of course, I’ll be very happy if you stay by my side.”

“I will not have you marry someone at will. If, I mean if, you find someone you like, and you’re sure he will not hurt you like Qiqi’s husband did, or other bad people did, make sure you let me know.”

“I will prepare a dowry for you to get married. You can return if you don’t like your life elsewhere.”

Taotao’s eyes were filled with eyes. “Miss, please stop. I will not leave you. You treat me so well. If I leave, who will help you with your hair and clothes and run errands for you?”

“What a silly girl.”

In her previous life, when she entered the palace, Taotao was always by her side and never left her side.

No matter what she did, Taotao always believed in her and supported her unconditionally.

She was about to say more when she saw Nanny Lin coming with an old lady followed by some people.

So she hurriedly sat upright, and Taotao also hastily wiped her tears casually and stood up to the side.

The woman came over and bowed her head, and said respectfully, “Miss, these are the new girls. They are all perfect…”

When she looked up, she immediately became dumbfounded. She found she’d seen Li Baojia before.

Li Baojia also looked up and saw the little girl behind the agent standing there with her head bowed respectfully.

She was wearing a clean and somewhat washed-out green dress. A dark red crescent birthmark was visible on her dark yellow neck.