Chapter 320 Blue Eyes

Along with those Westerners of varying hair colors, only Cheng Zhiyuan, a native of the Great Zhou Dynasty, entered the capital. When Emperor Tai'an heard that he was General Lin's adopted son and that his son, Cheng Shu, was a member of the imperial guard, it was no surprise that he recruited him into the palace.

"I, Cheng Zhiyuan, greet Your Majesty. Long live Your Majesty."

Emperor Tai'an asked Cheng Zhiyuan to stand up in a gentle tone and asked about the overseas affairs.

Cheng Zhiyuan had been traveling in the West for several years and even built up a considerable force. His words were of course meaningful, and every word he said was a new insight and valuable experience for Emperor Tai'an.

The sea is the place that best reflects the unpredictable power of nature. Which sea route has the least risk? How to avoid and resist danger? Where are pirates rampant? What are the grievances between various forces? What are the laws and customs of overseas countries? These are not things that the court can understand and master simply by opening up maritime trade and setting up a caravan.

If you have someone who is familiar with these things and trustworthy to lead the way, you will undoubtedly get twice the result with half the effort.

Emperor Tai'an talked with Cheng Zhiyuan for half a day before letting him go. Because they talked too much, he had to drink two cups of tea before his throat felt better.

Liu Chuan hurriedly congratulated Emperor Tai'an on finding a talented person.

Emperor Tai'an had been in a rare good mood for days, and his expression remained calm: "Although Cheng Zhiyuan is General Lin's adopted son, he has been away from the capital for many years. Even if he does have talent, we must be cautious when using him."

Despite saying this, Emperor Tai'an couldn't help but smile.

For some time afterwards, the ministers held numerous large and small court meetings on the issue of maritime trade, and Cheng Zhiyuan, a non-staff member, participated in almost all of them. So people knew that the adopted son of General Lin was likely to become a new noble.

Upon further inquiry, it turned out that Cheng Zhiyuan's only son, Cheng Shu, had not yet married. How could this be possible? Countless matchmakers immediately thronged the general's mansion.

Upon further inquiry, it turned out that Cheng Zhiyuan himself didn't have a wife? Thus, the newly opened threshold of the General's Mansion welcomed a wave of matchmakers.

Lin couldn't help but sigh to the old lady: "I never thought that my eldest brother, at his age, would be so popular."

The old lady smiled but said nothing.

The father is more popular than the son, not only because Cheng Zhiyuan is favored by the emperor, but also because of his enviable wealth.

Those families would not take action until they saw the rabbit. Ever since Emperor Tai'an revealed the idea of opening up maritime trade, they had sent people to the coast to investigate, or they had been secretly running maritime businesses. Therefore, when Cheng Zhiyuan appeared in the capital, even if they could not find out all his background, they knew that he was a very wealthy man after a little inquiry.

Old? Don't be ridiculous, she's only in her early forties and still looks handsome.

"There are actually teenage girls!" Lin felt that her horizons had been broadened over the past few days.

"So what do you think?" the old lady asked calmly.

The man who reached the door paused.

Lin was suddenly asked, and she didn't think about herself at all. She curled her lips and said, "I don't think it's appropriate. Marrying a girl who is old enough to be your own daughter, aren't you afraid of being punished by heaven?"

The old lady twitched her lips fiercely: "Not to the point of..."

In this world, there are many cases where the age difference between an old man and his young wife is twenty years.

"Of course not. When I think about it, if Chan'er and Ahao find a son-in-law who is about my age..." Seeing Cheng Zhiyuan come in, Lin didn't say anything else.

"Zhiyuan has been so busy these days, why is he back now?"

"A batch of foreign goods has arrived, and I'm sending them back home." Cheng Zhiyuan suppressed the urge to look at Lin and asked calmly, "Why did I just hear about the son-in-law——"

The old lady was amused: "It's Wanqing. Seeing that there are girls as old as Ah Hao here to propose marriage to you, I'm a little worried."

Lin thought her mother's words were a little strange. She wasn't worried, she was clearly shocked.

Cheng Zhiyuan's smile was particularly bright. "Wanqing, don't worry. I definitely won't marry a young girl. That would be so inappropriate. I was just about to tell my stepmother to reject all these marriage proposals for me. I have to be busy with the maritime business later, so I don't have the time for this for the time being."

God knows how nervous he was standing outside the door when his stepmother asked Wanqing what she thought. But Wanqing's words made him understand that she still didn't have any feelings for him.

It was a sad and helpless fact, but he still felt lucky. At least he could wait openly and honestly, without having to bear the shackles of coveting a married woman.

"Since you don't have this intention for the time being, let's put it off for now." The old lady knew her adopted son's thoughts very well and was happy to see it happen.

Lin smiled and said, "Brother, you can wait until you are no longer busy before making plans. It's time to start arranging Shu'er's marriage."

Cheng Zhiyuan took some time out from his busy schedule to discuss Cheng Shu's marriage with the old lady and Lin.

Another person who was concerned about the father and son's marriage was Emperor Tai'an in the palace.

This period of time is enough for the Jinlin Guards on the coastal area to send back some information about Cheng Zhiyuan.

Emperor Tai'an had read it over and over again, and at least from what he had learned, Cheng Zhiyuan hadn't done anything truly evil. Of course, if he wanted a piece of the sea pie, he'd have to resort to some trickery, but that wasn't a big deal in Emperor Tai'an's eyes.

What he wanted was a talented person who could fill his treasury with gold and silver, not a morally flawless gentleman.

If you can make money and have no treasonous intentions, then you can use it.

In order to feel more at ease, Emperor Tai'an thought of getting married.

If Cheng Zhiyuan is reused, he will leave Beijing soon. Even if the princess is married to him, a wife with whom he is rarely together and has no feelings for her will probably find it difficult to influence his decision at a certain point.

The people who can really influence Cheng Zhiyuan are his only son Cheng Shu and the people from the Lin family of the general's mansion.

Emperor Tai'an thought about it for two days and went to the Cining Palace. As soon as he approached, he heard the empress dowager's laughter.

He couldn't help but soften his facial expression and walked in with a smile.

"The Emperor is here." The Queen Mother's voice was gentle, and she was obviously in a good mood.

Kou Wan, who was accompanying her, bowed respectfully and greeted her.

Emperor Tai'an smiled and told Kou Wan not to be so polite. He chatted for a while before letting her leave.

"The Queen Mother seems to be in a good mood." Without the younger generation around, the conversation between mother and son became more casual.

The Queen Mother's smile deepened: "Wan'er is a lively and kind child, a happy person."

These words made Emperor Tai'an think of Kou Wan's elder sister, Princess Yi'an Kou Jiao.

The girl who called him "Father Emperor" had not entered the palace for a long time.

He didn't have much feelings for Kou Jiao, especially since he could not hide Kou Jiao's personality from him at all, but at this moment he couldn't help but think that the Queen Mother was hard-hearted.

Of course, Emperor Tai'an knew better than anyone that it was normal to be hard-hearted in this palace, so this thought dissipated without even causing a ripple in his heart.

"How old is Wan'er this year?"

The Queen Mother's eyes flashed: "Sixteen."

"Sixteen, what a perfect age!" Emperor Tai'an said with a smile, explaining the purpose of his visit. "My son thinks Cheng Shu, the grandson of the old lady of the Lin family, who serves in the Jinwu Guard, is a capable and upright young man, and a good match for Wan'er. What do you think?"