readytorunbook Chapter 675 Escape from Marriage
Chapter 675 Escape from Marriage
Rong Xin seemed to be speaking to Wenren Jing, but also to herself.
"I think that with my skills, even if I wander around, I won't starve. I still have some money left over. Even if I don't travel around practicing medicine like Wen Yu, I can still open a clinic and maybe even promote the future of medicine."
"But I met Zong Lin on my way to escape an arranged marriage. He was almost the perfect embodiment of my ideal partner. It's funny, my family has been doctors for generations. Apart from studying, my life has been almost entirely devoid of any exceptions. My cousins and a whole string of siblings are all outstanding. I've seen their lives and become accustomed to a life of conformity. My university years were uneventful. After graduation, I went on to do my surgical internship and worked my way up in professional titles. I was so busy that I didn't even have time for blind dates. And the people I went on blind dates with were all doctors. Even though we liked each other, we couldn't even find time to go to the movies. So, in my nearly thirty years of life before I transmigrated, I had never been in a relationship."
“I was easily attracted to him. For the first time, I was impulsive for love and wanted to make vows of eternal love with that man. Looking back on that time, I wondered if I was under a spell, otherwise how could I not see through such a meticulously planned scheme?”
“My impulsive passion only cooled down completely when I learned that he was the emperor. I knew that he already had an empress and young children. My upbringing from childhood simply did not allow me to become a member of his harem. Just thinking about it makes me feel horrified, but at that time I loved him so much. That pain is still clear to this day, etched into my bones.”
"I can't think of a way to satisfy both sides. I just want to escape. But on my way back, I overheard that if I don't agree to go to the palace, my elder brother will not be able to launch the Northern Expedition as he wishes. The emperor will not agree, nor will the officials. Everyone is afraid that the then-famous General Rong will become too powerful with his troops. So I have to go to the palace."
“I’m not good at history, and I don’t watch many TV dramas or read many novels. That was the first time I clearly understood the responsibilities of women from noble families. They were not just themselves, but often also political pawns. I couldn’t just stand by and watch my older brother struggle, so in the end, I went to Zong Lin and begged him to help me think of a solution. I really didn’t know what to do.”
"He gently coaxed me, saying that because of his position, he could not promise me a lifetime of monogamy, but he promised me that after I entered the palace, he would leave the harem empty, and when the world was unified and peace reigned, he would fulfill his promise to me, abdicate in favor of the crown prince, and take me to travel the mountains and rivers."
“I believed him, entered the palace, became Consort Rong, and became the most favored concubine in the harem.”
"After entering the palace, I realized that the Empress was a very good person. She loved her husband just as deeply, while I was such a despicable person. I had stolen someone else's lover and his father. But both the Empress and the Crown Prince treated me very well, caring for me like family. They often mentioned you to me. I thought to myself, if I had come a few years earlier, would I have been able to meet you? Would I not have made such a lonely decision?"
"Only then did I realize that I had entered a magnificent cage. Even though he treated me as he said he would, I began to realize that my love for him had cracked."
"But I still naively believed in him. I thought that someone I had loved so passionately, someone whom such a good person as the Empress had fallen for, must have his own reasons. I believed that he also hoped to reclaim the Northern Lands as soon as possible and bring peace to the world. So when we started to have disagreements, I still naively believed in him and begged him to let me leave when my elder brother was able to reclaim the Northern Lands in the future."
"But what I got was the defeat at Chenzhou, the massacre of over 100,000 soldiers, and then my elder brother's treason and the confiscation of the Rong family's property. No matter how bad my history is, I've heard of the fabricated charges against Yue Fei of the Song Dynasty. Only then did I come to my senses. I ran out of the palace with all my might and went to the Rong State Duke's mansion. What I saw was blood and heads all over the ground. My sister-in-law, the female doctor who taught me medicine for half a year, and the wet nurse who had taken care of the original owner for many years and treated her like her own daughter—their heads, alive and well, rolled at my feet. My shoes and socks were covered in blood."