Chapter 111 She May Not Be Willing to Marry
The sentence "If you have no guilt in your heart, why fear divorcing your husband?" left everyone speechless.
If anyone still stands up to stop it, he or she will feel guilty.
The officials are not that stupid. Moreover, even Prime Minister Qin and Marquis Yongning have come out to support it. It would be tactless for them to continue to oppose it.
Xiao Jingheng stood up, gathered his sleeves and bowed to Emperor Hui, saying, "I hope your Majesty will approve Miss Song's request and allow women all over the world to have the right to divorce their husbands!"
Emperor Hui seemed a little hesitant.
Seeing this, the prince hurriedly said, "Father, this is absolutely impossible. If women can divorce their husbands, won't the world be in chaos? Where will the dignity of the men of Nanli be then?"
In his opinion, women are appendages of men. If they are given such rights, wouldn't they be out of men's control?
As the Crown Prince of the Eastern Palace, he would never allow women to dominate men and trample on their dignity.
Song Shiwei's face darkened, and she retorted, "If Your Highness wants to maintain his dignity as a man, he only needs to maintain his own virtues.
I said that the prerequisite for a woman to divorce her husband is that the man has lost his moral character and is made difficult and humiliated by his in-laws.
If one's moral conduct is intact, why should one fear losing face? Moreover, once this precedent of divorce is set, my sons and daughters in Nanli must be strict with themselves and keep themselves upright.
This can also eliminate bad habits, isn't it a good thing for the country and the people?"
"well said!"
Emperor Hui on the throne suddenly spoke up, saying: "My daughter of Nanli is no less than a man and should enjoy the same rights as a man.
Today I will make the decision to agree to Miss Song's request. If my son Nanli has lost his moral integrity and is disrespectful to his in-laws, the woman can divorce him on her own.
However, the laws and regulations need to be carefully formulated. I will leave this matter to Miss Song and Prince Ling to complete. You two should write a detailed set of regulations as soon as possible."
"Yes."
Song Shiwei and Xiao Jingheng both said yes, and then all the officials shouted in unison: "Your Majesty is wise!"
Emperor Hui said: "Song Shiwei, the eldest daughter of the Cheng'en Marquis's Mansion, is both virtuous and talented, beautiful and intelligent, and has extraordinary courage and insight. She should be a role model for women in Nanli.
I am very pleased that you have won the first place in the palace examination today. I have specially appointed you as the top scorer in the golden exam, and granted you a hairpin with flowers to parade through the streets, a mansion, a thousand taels of gold, a hundred acres of fertile land, and ten boxes of jewels.
I grant her the right to divorce her husband and announce it to the world: from now on, she can decide her own marriage and no one is allowed to interfere."
Song Shiwei was calm and composed. She knelt on the ground, bowed, and said in a clear voice: "I accept your order. Thank you for your grace. Long live the emperor."
Emperor Hui nodded and said, "Let the people of Nanli see the elegance of our number one scholar."
Song Shiwei stood up with a determined look in her eyes. She walked out of the hall with her head held high under the gaze of all the civil and military officials in the court.
She stood on the steps and looked into the distance, then let out a long sigh.
She really did it. She single-handedly changed the injustice of the world towards women and gave them the right to choose.
A smile appeared on Song Shiwei's face. She followed the eunuch down the stairs and walked towards the glory that belonged to her.
……
After the court meeting, Xiao Jingheng came to the imperial study. He bowed and said, "Father, you are looking for me?"
Emperor Hui glanced at him and said, "Don't you have anything to say to me?"
Xiao Jingheng said: "Hasn't Father already guessed it?
The sweetheart I mentioned to you before is Song Shiwei, the eldest daughter of the Cheng En Marquis’s Mansion.”
Although Emperor Hui had already guessed it, he was still somewhat shocked to hear him admit it himself. He asked, "Did you really... ruin the girl's innocence?"
Jamel Xiao touched his nose and explained, “My son had no choice at the time.
In order to let his eldest brother consummate the marriage on his behalf, Shen Linchuan lit a magic incense in the bridal chamber, and this accidentally helped his son to consummate the marriage."
Emperor Hui frowned. Logically speaking, his son had already ruined the girl's innocence and should be responsible for her.
Song Shiwei is worthy of his son in terms of talent, appearance, and courage, but the fact that she has been married will eventually be criticized.
And her background, Cheng Enbo was just a businessman, which didn't help Heng'er much.
Emperor Hui asked tentatively, "What do you think? Do you plan to marry her as your princess?"
Xiao Jingheng curled his lips and said, "My son wants to marry her, but she may not be willing to marry."
He sighed and said, "Father, you don't know that every time I met her, I did it in secret.
Not only that, she never thought about giving her son a status.
Even if she divorced her husband and regained her freedom, she didn't want people to know about the relationship between her and her son. Her son is now an adulterer who is not to be seen. "
The corners of Emperor Hui's lips twitched: "She doesn't want to marry you?"
Xiao Jingheng shrugged: "She is not a woman who indulges in love.
Love is just the icing on the cake for her. If her son wants to marry her, it is as difficult as climbing to heaven."
He looked at Emperor Hui and said with a smile, "How about Father issue an edict to grant us marriage?"
Emperor Hui glared at him and said, "What marriage do you mean? I just promised her in the palace that she can get married on her own. Now you want me to grant you a marriage. Isn't that a slap in my face?"
As he spoke, he pointed at Xiao Jingheng and said angrily: "You, you are so useless that you can't even handle a girl. You are really embarrassing me."
Xiao Jingheng said: "Father knows that she is not an ordinary girl.
She has her own ideas. She will spare no effort to accomplish what she wants to do. Father, do you know what she wants to do next?"
Emperor Hui raised his eyebrows and asked curiously, "What are you doing?"
Xiao Jingheng leaned over and whispered in Emperor Hui's ear.
Emperor Hui was stunned and looked at him with some surprise.
After a while, he murmured, "This girl is indeed extraordinary."
"Does my son have good vision?"
Jamel Xiao asked with a playful smile.
Emperor Hui snorted and said, "What's the use of having good taste? The girl doesn't want to marry you.
Now that she is famous, there will be countless people who would like to marry her after she divorces her husband. Do you still not know if you have a chance?"
"Father."
Xiao Jingheng said with a sullen face: "Why are you trying to boost others' morale and destroy your son's prestige?"
Emperor Hui chuckled, thinking back to the past, and said, “Back then, there were countless people who wanted to marry your mother.
But in the end, I still married her. I wonder how many people envied me at that time. "
When he said this, his eyes darkened and there was a hint of pain on his face.
Xiao Jingheng called out, "Father."
Emperor Hui waved his hand wearily and said, "You go and do your work. I am a little tired."
Xiao Jingheng knew that his father was thinking of his mother again.
He bowed and turned to walk out.
After opening the door, he looked back at Emperor Hui.
Then Emperor Hui took out a piece of letter from somewhere and looked at it in a daze.
The envelope has turned a little yellow due to its age.
Suddenly, a picture flashed through Xiao Jingheng's memory. He seemed to have seen the letter in his father's hand, in the room where his mother died.
That was the suicide note that my mother wrote to my father before she died.