Asking for marriage

Yan Chan placed her warm palms on the arms that were around her waist, and patted them gently with some reluctance.

"Do you remember what you asked me at Taohua Temple?"

"I'm going to tell you the answer now."

"I'm praying for my match at the temple, and I hope that person is you."

It seemed that all her tears had been shed. Even though her eyes were stinging, Guan Zheng did not dare to close them easily.

The time she spent with Yan Chan was perhaps the happiest and most unforgettable time in her life.

She was afraid that this fragile happiness would shatter like glass and leave her covered in scars.

"Yan Huaiqi, don't leave me." Guan Zheng grabbed her helplessly, as if Yan Chan would turn into a butterfly and fly away from her in the next moment.

The fingertips turned white due to the force, and Yan Chan could feel the person behind him crying and shaking.

She lowered her eyes, opened her mouth, and felt her throat was a little tight and painful. She chuckled in relief, her eyes red.

Yan Chan hardened her heart and hugged her tightly. She would never let go in her life.

Guan Zheng was forced to raise her face, and a ray of sunshine finally appeared in the endless sadness.

This was enough to dispel the haze and lead her out of the quagmire.

This was the first time Guan Zheng saw Yan Chan's tears. She started crying while smiling, holding her cheeks and kissing her salty tears.

"Wait for me." Yan Chan smiled through her tears and wiped her tear-stained face with her fingertips.

......

"What has the prince been doing recently?" Mrs. Qin finally had some free time today and asked Yan Chan's servant.

"Well..." The servant stole a glance at Lanxiang and saw her glare at him. With a bitter look on her face, she apologized to the prince: "The prince went to the mansion in the west of the city."

"What is she doing there?" Madam Qin paused with her hand holding the tea lid and looked up at the servant with his head lowered.

"..." The servant tugged at the corner of his clothes and wiped the sweat from his palms.

"Mother, if you have anything to say, just ask me directly." Yan Chan's voice came from the door. She walked in quickly and waved her hand to let the servant with trembling legs go back.

Lanxiang took a few steps back and followed him out through another door.

The room was brightly lit with candles, and in the dark night, the two looked at each other silently.

Mrs. Qin waved her hand and asked Yan Chan to sit next to her, but she saw that her clothes were a little messy. She felt a chill in her heart, thinking that she had just hurried back from the west of the city.

"Have you cried?" Mrs. Qin looked at Yan Chan's eyes in confusion. Her eyes were exactly like hers. Whenever she cried, they would become sharp.

Seeing that she couldn't hide it anymore, Yan Chan simply admitted it openly.

Mrs. Qin was a little curious. She knew Yan Chan too well and knew she would not cry easily.

I don't know what happened, but Yan Chan actually shed tears.

She rested her chin on the back of her hand and asked, "Could it be that my son has finally come to his senses and met someone he likes?"

Yan Chan's eyelashes trembled slightly.

"Is it a boy... or a girl?" Mrs. Qin was also very open-minded, but she was still quite worried about this issue.

Yan Chan saw the seriousness in Madam Qin's eyes, so she stood up and knelt on the ground, looking at the person sitting in the high seat with a sharp gaze, "Son, I like the eldest daughter of the Guan family, and I ask mother to grant my wish." She bowed her head with determination.

Mrs. Qin tapped the teacup with her fingers, and the hot steam drifted around her fingertips.

For a moment, no sound came from the house.

There was only the sound of candlelight crackling in the wind.

Yan Chan did not look up and continued to kneel on the ground. She knew that her mother would look down on the Guan family's practice of favoring concubines and neglecting wives.

But she didn't want to give up easily. She had promised Guan Zheng to wait for her, and she didn't want to be the one who broke her promise.

The hands that were originally lying flat on the ground gradually curled up and clenched into fists.

"Son, have you really thought it through?" Mrs. Qin picked up the teacup and took a sip.

Hearing this, Yan Chan stood up straight, straightened his back, and said with a firm look that he would never regret it.

Mrs. Qin said nothing more, but just sighed.

Just as Yan Chan knew, she didn't look down on Guan Zheng herself, but she just didn't want to be involved with the Guan family behind her.

Before this, although she was willing to let Yan Chan find the person she loved, she had to choose from those with a clean family background.

She did not agree to Yan Chan immediately.

......

I didn’t expect that the wait Yanchan mentioned would last for three months.

There has been no news in March.

Guan Zheng had no suspicions until one day after she came of age, when Lord Guan sent someone to invite her over.

"Dad." Guan Zheng called softly.

"Come on, sit down." Lord Guan turned his back to her and teased the bird in the cage.

"What did Dad call me for?"

Guan Zheng looked at the bird in the cage, unable to fly freely in the sky, and couldn't help but think of herself. She was also a bird trapped in a cage.

"Of course it's for your marriage." He took a small spoon and sprinkled some food into the trough to feed the birds.

Hearing this, Guan Zheng became nervous. Hasn't her father given up yet?

She looked at her father's back, and for a moment a feeling of powerlessness came over her.

"......" Guan Zheng clenched her fingers, and her fingertips pinched the flesh with force, and the pain made her face the reality.

"I've already made arrangements with the Crown Prince. The eighth day of next month is a good date."

"Dad!" Guan Zheng exclaimed. She stood up in disbelief, and the hairpins on her head jingled against each other.

"There's no turning back on this matter. You should just stay home and wait for your marriage. Don't go out these days." He had long been dissatisfied with Guan Zheng's frequent going out, but he just hadn't taken care of it before.

"Master, a matchmaker is here." The servant walked to the courtyard and said.

"Oh? Could it be that the prince wants to treat my son as a concubine?!" Lord Guan ordered his servants to lead the way quickly, and did not forget to order someone to send Guan Zheng back to her courtyard.

After all, the other daughters are still young, and only Guan Zheng is of the right age.

The more he thought about it, the more he felt that this was most likely the case.

Before this, Lord Guan had met the prince on the street, and Guan Zheng happened to be nearby.

The prince had met Guan Zheng before.

It was also on that day that Lord Guan learned that Guan Zheng often left the house.

The Crown Prince must be impressed by my son's beauty, which is why he wants to reward him and his family in Guan's residence with the position of concubine!

The more Guan thought about it, the more excited he became, and he almost lost his way.

Lord Guan walked to the main hall and looked at the matchmaker with an excitement in his heart, but his face remained calm and he maintained an air of composure.

"Who is this lady?" Lord Guan hesitated for a moment and noticed the woman with excellent temperament next to the matchmaker.

He had never seen this person before, but judging from his clothes, he must come from an extraordinary family. He did not speak actively, and felt a little confused.

"The lady's surname is Qin." Seeing that the atmosphere was a bit awkward, the matchmaker spoke to ease it.

"It's Mrs. Qin." Lord Guan responded politely and greeted her first.

Then he thought about it and realized that among the wealthy Qin families in the capital, the most prominent one was the Cheng'en Marquis Mansion. The old man in the mansion had just turned eighty.

So he dared to ask.

"My mother's family is indeed the Cheng'en Marquis's Mansion." However, even though Madam Qin said this, Lord Guan didn't know which family she was married into now. Although the old uncle had no concubines, he had three legitimate sons, and each of them had children. The number of his grandchildren was even more countless.

The family is flourishing and each member has his or her own future.

Lord Guan thought about it and it seemed that the Qin family had a daughter who was the concubine of the previous emperor.

However, he thought Madam Qin was too young and didn't look like the imperial concubine in the palace.

That’s right, how could the Empress Dowager come to such a small place like his Guan family? Isn’t this really embarrassing for him?

Could it be that the prince felt that only inviting the matchmaker to come seemed not serious enough, so he invited the concubine's family to come and support the event?

After all, the queen has passed away, and the imperial concubine has her own prince. She is not even busy opposing the prince, so how could she help him?

Today, among the late emperor's concubines, only Concubine Chen and Concubine Qin still have a relatively noble status.

Because Concubine Chen had a conflict with the late Empress Dowager, she naturally had no good feelings towards the prince born to her, His Majesty, let alone the Crown Prince.

"Mrs. Qin is doing this for the Crown Prince..." Lord Guan smiled after figuring out the key.

But before he could finish his words, he heard Madam Qin ask doubtfully, "Crown Prince? What does this have to do with the Crown Prince?"

She immediately realized that Master Guan might have misunderstood something, and she curled her lips and said, "I came here today to propose marriage for my son."

"Propose a marriage!" Lord Guan immediately realized that something was wrong. "I wonder which of my daughters does Madam want to ask for your son to marry?"

"Of course she is the legitimate daughter." Mrs. Qin smiled.

"Guan Zheng!?" Lord Guan frowned, and suddenly realized: "May I ask your son's name?"

At this time, the matchmaker spoke, "Young Master is the heir of the Loyal and Brave Marquis Mansion, the future Loyal and Brave Marquis."

“???” Is it the young marquis?

Lord Guan's expression changed immediately, and he suddenly remembered that on the day of Guan Qin's wedding, the young marquis had toasted him without any airs in his words. Could it be that he had been plotting against him since that day?

Mrs. Qin looked at his expression which changed again and again like a palette, and closed her eyes speechlessly.

After careful consideration, Lord Guan decided that marrying Guan Zheng to the Crown Prince would be more promising, even though she was just a concubine...

Oh, I thought it was a concubine. Lord Guan was a little disappointed.

Besides, he had already discussed it with the Crown Prince, so how could he go back on his word? He couldn't afford to offend the Crown Prince, so he had no choice but to offend the Mansion of the Loyal and Brave Marquis.

I think they won't make things difficult for themselves when they hear the title of prince.

"Actually, Zheng'er..." Lord Guan was interrupted by a servant who hurried in before he could finish his words.

"Master, something big has happened!" The servant came running all the way here, and his breathing was still not smooth.

"Can't you see there are guests here? You're in such a hurry. What a disrespect to the rules!!" He quickly scolded the servants and then gave Madam Qin an apologetic smile.

He walked aside and listened to what news the servant wanted to report.

"What!? Is this true?!" Lord Guan was shocked when he heard this and pulled the servant's arm to ask him to say it again.

The Crown Prince has been confined to the Eastern Palace! ?

"Master, this is absolutely true. His Majesty reprimanded the Crown Prince again in the Qinzheng Palace, and then the news of his house arrest spread."

"Hasn't the Crown Prince been reprimanded by His Majesty for a long time? Why today..." He also waited and watched for a long time before making up his mind to send Guan Zheng into the Eastern Palace. Now the Crown Prince is under house arrest... because of this incident.

Just when he was at a loss, he suddenly heard Mrs. Qin cough lightly.

"I wonder what Master Guan was going to say just now?"

What was he about to say? Oh, yes, he now looked at Madam Qin as if she were his lifeline, that warmth... "My dear relatives...!"

When Guan Zheng, who was unaware of the situation, heard that the matchmaker was coming, she felt like the sky was falling. She locked herself in the bedroom and didn't even let Dongxue in.

It seemed like she couldn't wait for Yan Chan any longer.

Guan Zheng held the brush and prepared to write a farewell letter, but her trembling hands made it impossible to write properly.

The originally beautiful handwriting had become crooked. After finally writing a few words, she crumpled them up and threw them away.

What's the point of writing all this? She can't even send it out.

Dad has locked her up, and the guards at the door won't be withdrawn until the eighth day of next month.

Are you afraid that you will run away?

Her father knew that she didn't want to marry the prince, but he still forced her to do so.

They even sent more people to her side, under the pretext of protecting her safety.

For a moment, she even considered committing suicide.