The Emperor’s Beloved Ugly Girl

Ah Chou could tell that this was the voice of Duan Chenghong’s eldest daughter, Duan Rulan, and it’s clear that this girl was extremely sad and angry; otherwise, a young lady who was raised by a rich and noble family would definitely not cry like this.

Alas, it seemed that she was not the only unlucky one.

She heard that the deposed prince was carried out of the Imperial Clan Court, and after being tortured, his legs were not in good condition.

She also heard that after the rough journey from the capital to Ningguta for more than three months, the abolished prince was found paralyzed when they arrived. Some said it was because of the severe cold weather that the deposed prince ended up frozen, while some said that he was intentionally crippled by someone. Whichever it was, in the end, the deposed prince had fallen, be it through his body or his future.

When Zhao Guifei heard about this, she was so distressed that she shed tears in front of His Majesty, saying that although the prince was now a commoner, as his concubine mother, she couldn’t bear that he was disabled and that he had no suitable person to serve him. It’s really unfortunate that the deposed prince’s main wife, Ding shi[1], died so young.

After being reminded like this, His Majesty suddenly remembered that there was still a marriage contract between the deposed crown prince and the daughter of the Duan family. Considering the age at which the daughter of the Duan family was already an adult, the Emperor immediately ordered Duan Chenghong to send his daughter to Ningguta.

In the past two days, Duan Rulan had already fought four or five times. Duan Chenghong lost his temper and didn’t bother to talk to her anymore, so he directly ordered the housekeeper to lock her in the room. Hence, for the past few days, Duan Furen[2] has been staying by Duan Rulan’s side for fear that her daughter will really commit suicide.

When Ah Chou thought of Duan Rulan’s red and swollen eyes like walnuts, she shook her head and sighed. Then she pushed open the woodshed door and entered. She was really tired, and as soon as she got into the tattered quilt, she fell asleep right away.

Of course, had she known she would be even more unlucky tomorrow, she might not have slept so soundly.

In Miss Duan’s bedroom.

“Mother, you and Father can’t treat me like this…” Duan Rulan was out of breath from crying, and her usually sweet and pleasant voice was hoarse. “That man has obviously become paralyzed… I…I don’t want to marry a crippled man! Mother, I don’t want to go to Ningguta. If I go…I’m afraid I won’t see my parents again! Mother, don’t force me anymore!”

“Lan’er, your parents can’t do anything about it either.” Duan Furen also had tears in her eyes. She reached out and held Duan Rulan in her arms and choked up. “This is an imperial decree, and we cannot go against it! Moreover… you and the deposed prince were indeed engaged…you were originally his person…”

“But in the past… But in the past, he was the prince of the East Palace! Now… Now he is a half-dead paralytic!” Duan Rulan became agitated once more, her hands thumping her chest and her eyes wide as she complained to Duan Furen. “Mother, you have taught me since I was a child. I learned housekeeping skills, balancing the rear palace, playing piano, chess, calligraphy, and painting. I can recite Women’s Commandments, Women’s Training, and The Analects of Women from beginning to end! I worked so hard because you told me that one day I would become the mother of a nation. But now, you and my father want me to marry a common man—a paralyzed man! I don’t want to marry him. I don’t want to!”

“You have to marry him even if you don’t want to!” Duan Furen suddenly turned cold, and she took out a handkerchief to wipe away the tears on her face and spoke to Duan Rulan in a stern voice.

TL Note

[1] 氏 shi: clan/maiden name

[2] 夫人 furen: referring to the legitimate wife