Chapter 53: The Charming Girl Whose House Was Confiscated and Her Family Was Exterminated

An imperial edict from the Heavenly Family not only made the Nan family and their spouses worried, but also shook the entire Bianjing City, which was currently in turmoil.

Only a month after the new emperor ascended the throne, he used drastic measures to turn the entire court into a place where he had the final say.

It is the duty of a minister to please His Majesty, but this new emperor is very different from the previous one.

When the late emperor was alive, he enjoyed delicious food and fine clothes, loved singing and dancing, and was good at calligraphy, painting, and hunting. If the ministers below wanted to please him, they would always find ways to please the emperor.

And now, His Majesty, not to mention that when the new emperor first ascended the throne, he used various means to scare the ministers to death, as far as preferences are concerned, the new emperor has not revealed clear preferences. This makes the ministers who want to please the emperor helpless, and they can only tremble in fear every day, fearing that they will accidentally incur the emperor's dislike.

Now that they saw that the emperor had actually issued such an imperial decree, the noble families in Bianjing City were all a little restless.

They thought that as the former crown prince's pawns, the Nan family would definitely be liquidated by the new emperor this time, so they all distanced themselves from the Nan family. However, they never imagined that the Nan family would have a day to make a comeback?

"So, my husband means that the Nan family should be safe this time."

Knowing that his future in-laws were safe, General Ye's brows relaxed and he said, "Although His Majesty's intentions are unpredictable, since he has personally issued an edict inviting the Nan family to the palace for a banquet, I believe he will not make things too difficult."

He had once served alongside the Sixth Prince on the frontier before he ascended the throne, and had some understanding of his unruly and unbridled temperament. Now that His Majesty was in control, if he truly wished to take action against the Nan family, he would certainly not be so roundabout.

"Let's visit again some other day and arrange the marriages for the two children."

The Nan family had sent someone to cancel the marriage the day before yesterday. Although General Ye was puzzled, he also felt that it was because the Nan family did not want to drag down their own family. Now that the disaster has been averted, it is time to put the two children's marriages on the agenda.

Upon hearing this, Madam Ye paused slightly while straightening General Ye's coat, and a dignified smile began to appear on her face:

"It's good that the Nan family is safe."

"As for the two children's marriages, why are you so anxious? I heard that the girl from the Nan family is extremely favored in her family. She's only sixteen, so how could the Nan couple be willing to marry off their little one?"

She reached out and smoothed down the hem of her husband's clothes, whispering softly:

"Besides, the two children have only met once. Getting married like this is no different from a blind marriage. Now that the Nan family's troubles have been eliminated, there is no need to be so anxious. It is better to wait until the two children are familiar with each other before making any decisions."

General Ye thought about it and felt that what his wife said made sense, so he let the matter go for the time being.

It gets dark very quickly in winter. It was only the evening hour when the cold moon was already in the sky. The clouds were heavy and the moonlight looked dim. Lord Nan dragged his tired body towards the house.

"Why did you take so long..." Mrs. Nan took off her husband's dark brown cloak with her own hands. Seeing his weather-beaten face, she frowned slightly.

"Go to the kitchen and ask someone to heat up some dishes..."

"Bring me a basin of hot water..."

Mrs. Nan wrung out the face towel and handed it to her husband, then sat down and immediately asked

"Well, did His Majesty say anything?"

Lord Nan sat on the couch, picked up the teacup on the table, gulped down half a cup, and finally breathed a sigh of relief. He knew that his wife was anxious, so he did not show any impatience when he heard her question.

He didn't say anything immediately, but his thoughts had already returned to the time when he entered the palace...

Lord Nan stood at the door of the imperial study with his head bowed, waiting to be summoned, feeling a little nervous.

Logically speaking, as a civil and military official, meeting the emperor should be as normal as a daily routine.

However, the new emperor had just ascended the throne, and as a minister of the former crown prince's line, Lord Nan had no chance to receive a summons from the new emperor. He could only see the emperor at court meetings. This was the first time the new emperor had set foot in the imperial study since he came to power.

While he was lost in thought, the door of the imperial study opened. A man came in wearing an indigo-colored four-clawed python robe, a red hat, and a white face without a beard.

Lord Nan recognized that this was the eunuch serving the new emperor.

"Lord Nan, please come in." Shuangquan bowed, a smile on his handsome face.

"Thank you, eunuch." Lord Nan said politely. Although he was a palace eunuch, he was also serving the new emperor and could not be offended easily.

"You are too polite, Lord Nan." Shuangquan didn't dare to act arrogantly in front of this person, so he could only bow and say respectfully, "Your Excellency, it's a coincidence that His Majesty is having dinner."

Lord Nan was walking slowly into the house when he paused. He glanced at Shuangquan who was walking beside him, and seeing that there was no other expression on his face, he slowly put his mind at ease.

He lifted the bright yellow curtain and followed Shuangquan in. The new emperor, dressed in dark attire, was sitting at the table, enjoying his dinner, with several palace maids in pink coats standing beside him, serving the dishes.

Madam Nan bowed her head and did not dare to look the emperor in the face.

"Your Majesty has shown me great care and has granted me an imperial decree. I have come to express my gratitude for your grace..."

"Minister, please stand up." After a while, the new emperor's deep and pleasant voice sounded from above.

"Come here, add a seat for the Minister."

A trace of sweat slowly trickled down Lord Nan's forehead. He bent over and stood up from his kneeling position. Seeing the palace maid adding a chair next to the table, he hesitated slightly, but still walked over and sat down.

"Lord Nan probably hasn't had dinner yet, so please have dinner with me." Gu Qiao smiled, as if he didn't notice the nervous face of the minister opposite him.

"Someone, bring some bowls and chopsticks to Master Nan."

"Thank you, Your Majesty, for your grace!"

The palace maid moved quickly, and in just a few breaths, a pair of jade bowls and chopsticks were placed in front of Lord Nan. There were a wide variety of dishes on the table, and Lord Nan held up the jade chopsticks, not knowing how to eat for a moment.

Gu Qiaofeng smiled as she pointed to a plate of square pink pastries in front of him and said,

"Why don't you try this plum blossom cake, my dear."

The palace maid understood and immediately picked up a plum blossom cake and put it into Lord Nan's bowl. The plum blossom cake in the celadon bowl looked exquisite and had a faint plum blossom fragrance, which made people salivate.

Few people eat cakes before a meal. Lord Nan looked at the cakes in his bowl, feeling a sense of mystery, and was even more puzzled by their meaning. But, believing that thunder and rain were all the emperor's grace, he still picked up the plum cake with his jade chopsticks and took a bite.

The rice cake was soft and glutinous, and sweet in the mouth. The fragrance of plum blossoms became stronger as he chewed it. Lord Nan nodded secretly. The imperial chefs in the palace were indeed extraordinary. Even ordinary plum blossom cakes were made so delicious.

Seeing the admiration on his face, Gu Qiao's smile deepened:

"What do you think of this plum blossom cake?"

"Your Majesty, this plum blossom cake is sweet, soft, and glutinous, leaving a lingering fragrance on your lips and teeth. It is absolutely delicious. The skills of the palace chefs are truly extraordinary."

Lord Nan quickly put down the cake in his hand and said respectfully.

"Then you may as well use more of it, my dear."

"Thank you, Your Majesty, for your grace."

The palace maid once again tactfully picked up a few cakes for Lord Nan. The celadon bowl was small and elegant, and soon it was filled with several square pink cakes.

Shuangquan's eyes flickered when he saw this, and he couldn't help but smile and said, "A good cook cannot cook without rice. This plum blossom cake is delicious, all thanks to the plum blossoms."

"Without the plum blossoms, no matter how skilled the imperial chef is, he won't be able to create such a delicious and refreshing dish."

"My Lord, you are right. If you think about it this way, the plum blossoms in the palace are also extraordinary." Lord Nan thought it made sense when he heard it.

Shuangquan smiled and corrected him, "Master Nan, you guessed wrong this time."

"These plum blossoms are not the ones from the palace, but the ones from the Longhua Temple Plum Garden."

As if not noticing the slightly frothing look on Master Nan's face, Shuangquan continued:

"The red plum blossoms at Longhua Temple are renowned far and wide. A few days ago, Your Majesty went incognito to pray at Longhua Temple and saw the entire garden filled with red plum blossoms. Their beauty was truly breathtaking, defying the frost and snow."

Plum Garden!

The plum garden of Longhua Temple!

Nan Da Ren could no longer hear what Shuangquan said next, his mind was filled with what he said about the Plum Garden of Longhua Temple.

If he remembered correctly, before going to bed that night, his wife had mentioned that when Qiao'er went to Longhua Temple to pray, he also went to the plum garden of Longhua Temple!

The sweat on Lord Nan's forehead flowed even more freely, and beads of sweat the size of beans slid down his cheeks from his temples. He swallowed the plum cake in his mouth with difficulty, and his expression became a little complicated for a moment.

So, Your Majesty really met Qiao'er!

…

"What do you think Your Majesty means?" Lord Nan put down the teacup in his hand, leaned back on the couch, and looked at his wife in confusion.

What does it mean? Madam Nan frowned slightly and pondered for a long time, but she couldn't put her finger on it. How could the emperor's thoughts be easily guessed by the people below? In her irritable mood, she glanced at the stack of picture albums she had placed on the table.

Picture album!

Choosing a son-in-law!

Madam Nan seemed to have thought of something, and her eyes widened slightly. Could it be that His Majesty was warning the Nan family not to choose a son-in-law for Qiao'er?

"Madam, what's wrong with you? Madam?" Seeing his wife's face full of surprise and doubt, Lord Nan perked up.

"Husband, tell me, do you think His Majesty is warning us?" Madam Nan murmured to herself.

"Warning?" Lord Nan was puzzled.

"Oh, think about it. We've been working so hard on Qiao'er's marriage these past few days, and we even went to the Ye family to break off the engagement. The whole city of Bianjing must have heard about it."

"If, if His Majesty is really interested in Qiao'er, then, then right now, I'm afraid..."

Madam Nan clenched the handkerchief in her hand, sighing with lingering fear.

As a lady of an aristocratic family, Qiao'er didn't need to make so much fuss about a marriage. However, she felt that the Nan Mansion would not be able to escape this disaster, so in order to save her daughter's life, she was anxious to marry her off.

The crisis of the Nan family has been resolved at this time, but her recent actions have probably been seen by many high-ranking families. Now that she thinks about it, there are probably many people secretly laughing at her Qiao'er behind her back.

"Oh, I'm getting old and confused!" Mrs. Nan blamed herself in her heart. She was really confused at that time.

Master Nan sighed, hugged his old wife and comforted her:

"Alright, why blame yourself? You're doing this for Qiao'er's own good. What others say is their business. Our Qiao'er has a clear conscience..."

He is already old. Even if the Nan family escapes the new emperor's reckoning at this time, they will soon be old enough to submit a petition to beg for their remains. How long can they protect their children?

Now I don’t hope for anything, I just hope to find a husband for Qiaoer who can protect her.

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