Hua Xia was shocked.

"Madam, are we going to the Marquis' Mansion now? What did the Emperor say to you?"

Sheng Xiyan handed her the imperial edict.

Hua Xia opened it and showed an expression of disbelief.

My head buzzed, and I quickly grabbed Sheng Xiyan's hand.

“My lady, you are clearly thinking about the Emperor, but are you being stubborn and not saying anything?

Come on, I will accompany you to see the emperor and tell him that you like him.

"I've been thinking about a lot of things these days in Hanyu Temple, and I understand that His Majesty wants this answer, right?"

Sheng Xiyan called out to Daci, "Don't delay, go to the Marquis' Mansion."

Hua Xia was so anxious that she wanted to pull her out of the carriage.

"My dear, the Emperor has granted you a marriage decree, but he didn't ask you to get married right now!

Let's go back to Sheng Mansion first and discuss it carefully, okay?

Even if we want to get married, we still need to prepare. Why would we rush to our future husband's house right now?"

Hua Xia has been in the palace for two years and has some understanding of the imperial power and the emperor's authority. Even if she was granted a marriage, she was so anxious to go to her future husband's family. Isn't this a slap in the face of the emperor?

If Emperor Xuanwu knew about this, wouldn’t he be furious?

"Ma'am, what do you think?"

Sheng Xiyan scratched the jade scroll of the marriage decree with her hands.

"Since the Emperor can grant me a marriage, why can't I marry right away?"

Hua Xia knew that she couldn't persuade her, so she could only pray that Emperor Xuanwu was busy and would no longer ask about Sheng Xiyan's affairs since he had already sent her out of the palace.

The autumn wind wrapped in drizzle swept past the gate of the marquis' mansion.

Da Ci and Hua Xia helped Sheng Xiyan cross the vermilion lacquered threshold and walked into the courtyard, where they ran into several gray-clothed servants carrying tung oil barrels and rushing towards the west wall.

Because she was pregnant, Sheng Xiyan was very sensitive to smells. The strong smell of kerosene rushed straight into her throat, causing her to hold onto the porch and retch.

"Sister!" Sheng Xitang ran over.

"Ayan!"

A man in brocade robe came running out of the moon-shaped gate, and the blue skirt of his robe swept up the fallen petals all over the ground.

Qi Yan held Sheng Xiyan's cold hand, his eyes burning like fire:

"Ayan, the Emperor has granted us marriage, and our family of three can finally be reunited!"

"Mother!"

The delicate jade ball rushed over like a cannonball, and the black jade embedded in the gold necklace hit Sheng Xiyan's knee.

Jiang Jiang raised his little face, his eyes reflecting the spring light in the courtyard: "Mother, didn't you go to the palace to accompany father?"

Qi Yan picked up Jiang Jiang and said happily, "From now on, your mother won't have to come to the palace anymore."

Sheng Xiyan stroked the bodhi wood rosary on her wrist, inhaled to catch the scent of kerosene she had just smelled, and looked around the house, catching a glimpse of the tung oil barrels piled up into a small hill in the corner of the west wall.

She frowned slightly and looked at Qi Yan. His face was so happy that she couldn't bear to interrupt him.

The general tilted his head,

"Why? When my father made the rabbit lantern for me, he also said he would take my mother and me to Mount Li for a trip.

Besides, Father loves Mother the most, he will miss his baby terribly if he can't see her!"

Sheng Xiyan felt a lump in her throat and discomfort in her stomach.

Stroking her soft hair, she said softly:

"Be good, come and see the koi in the pond with your auntie, right?"

Sheng Xitang felt lost, "Sister, I wish you and your brother-in-law the best."

Sheng Xiyan touched her shoulder and said, "Xitang, thank you for taking care of me these past few days."

Sheng Xitang glanced at Qi Yan, his eyes always on Sheng Xiyan.

Holding Jiang Jiang's hand, forcing a smile,

"I'm your aunt, it's not hard at all. My sister and brother-in-law are chatting. Jiang Jiang, let's go fishing?"

"Okay!" Jiang Jiang happily went to get the fishing rod and bucket.

Qi Yan's eyes were hot and affectionate. Without saying anything, he took Sheng Xiyan's hand and walked forward.

He led her through the winding corridor and stopped in front of a door with hanging flowers.

The moment she pushed the door open, Sheng Xiyan felt as if she had returned to the bamboo garden of Prince E's mansion.

The same Xiangfei bamboo curtains, the same bluestone bricks, even the wisteria wrapped around the swing frame are exactly the same.

The sweet scent of tuberose mixed with the rich fragrance of peony hit me in the face, but it couldn't cover up the increasingly strong smell of kerosene in the corner.

"Ayan, I prepared this place a long time ago."

Qi Yan hugged Sheng Xiyan from behind, resting his chin on her hair.

"Ayan, when we leave the capital, I will build a bigger one in the south..."

"Are you going to burn down the Marquis's mansion?"

Sheng Xiyan suddenly turned around and swept the celadon vase off the table with her sleeves.

Amidst the flying porcelain pieces, she saw outside the window a servant pouring tung oil on the wall.

"Faking your own death and escaping? Do you think the Jinwu Guards are blind? Do you think the Emperor is a fool?"

Qi Yan's pupils suddenly shrank, and he grabbed her wrist with astonishing strength.

"Ayan, although the emperor has granted us marriage, I cannot afford to gamble! I lost you once, and I cannot lose you again.

Ayan, after I escaped death at the border, I thought about you and missed you every day and night.

It is even more so after returning to the capital. Even though I miss you so much, I dare not go to see you.

Do you know how much pain I am in?"

Sheng Xiyan looked at his bloodshot eyes, feeling sorry for him and her eyes also turned red.

"A feast."

She pried open his fingers one by one, the sound as light as falling bamboo leaves.

"You've given up your ambition? The Emperor has granted us a marriage, and we're going to disappear and die. Is that worthy of the Emperor's wishes?"

Her slender fingers touched the cold fish-shaped jade pendant on his waist. It was the tiger talisman used by the Ministry of War to control the garrison troops in the capital.

"Now this whole house of tung oil is your loyalty?"

Qi Yan was extremely confused. When he received the marriage decree today, he kowtowed three times and nine times to thank the Lord for his grace, and then he said that he was willing to die for Emperor Xuanwu.

"Ayan, I know I'm sorry to the Emperor, but I'm afraid he'll regret it later, or even not wait until we're married..."

How could he not be afraid under the imperial power?

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