Chapter 33: The one you like
Zhao Yan looked at her, his eyes gradually turning to regret, then to determination. "I'm shallow, and I expected you to think this way. You're right, how you live your life should be up to you."
In fact, he wanted to say, no, Huatang, it’s too hard for you.
But he has no right to say such things now. There is still a lot of time in the future, and he can slowly approach and plan.
She rejected him completely, and he felt pain in his heart, but he dared not express it...
He was afraid that she would think he was entangled...
She actually hated him in her heart, but time had smoothed it out a little. She was kind and strong at heart, so she was unwilling to pour out all her inner pain.
He thought of the letter Anfu had brought back. There was still hope. Once he found a way to cure her, he would come and heal her pain...
After a night, the two men finished their breakfast and called a carriage to return to their residence.
After Yu Huatang went back to change his clothes, he went directly to the Dengshi Hall.
Zhao Yan took half a day off today because he was busy with official duties and worked in the government office until midnight before returning home.
As soon as I arrived in the yard, I saw An Yuan waiting with a sword in his arms.
"Young Master." An Yuan stepped forward and saluted.
"Why did you come so soon? Is there something urgent at home?" Zhao Yan asked.
An Yuan shook his head. "It's because Madam is worried that the young master won't be able to adapt to life away from home. It's hot now, so Madam bought some things and sent me to check on the young master."
Zhao Yan let him into the house and led him to the rest area. "Mother, you're worrying too much."
Seeing the young master pouring water for him personally, An Yuan felt a little overwhelmed and said, "Why isn't An Fu here? I dare not trouble you, young master."
Zhao Yan's expression was calm as he sat at the table and opened the unfinished document. "Send him out to do something. He'll be back in half a month."
An Yuan finished drinking the water, opened the package again, and took out a letter from home. "Sir, this is something my wife asked you to give me. She said you should reply to her immediately after reading it."
This wouldn't normally happen. Could it be that something really big happened at home and the mother couldn't explain it to outsiders, so she wrote it in a letter?
He took it and opened it immediately.
It’s not an urgent matter, but it’s a happy event for them!
The letter said that the second daughter of the Marquis of Changping was willing to marry into his family. His mother expressed her satisfaction in every word and was just waiting for his consent so that she could match the six characters immediately.
With a cold face, he burned the letter by candlelight.
He concentrated for a long time without saying a word.
Then he unfolded a piece of paper and wrote, "I already have someone I love, mother, please don't arrange a marriage for me."
"Mother, please inform all the families in Beijing as soon as possible so as not to delay other people's happy marriages."
An Yuan saw his young master's expression changing again and again, and his face became frosty and a little scary.
At this time, Zhao Yan said, "Tomorrow you will run an express courier service a hundred miles away to deliver this letter back home. The contents of the letter are very important and need to be sealed with wax. After that, you will stay here and wait for Anfu to return, and then you can go home."
"yes."
"If Mother asks you later which girl I like, just answer 'I don't know'."
An Yuan thought over and over again, and finally realized that the lady was arranging a marriage for the young master, but it seemed that the young master did not agree. Before he left, he heard people in the capital express regret that the young master was so old and still had no children.
Some even said that the prince had a hidden illness and was unable to have children, so he divorced his wife because he was afraid that the matter would be exposed.
He has never liked to gossip, and has been with his young master for more than ten years. Now that others are making up stories about his young master, he can't help but be angry for him.
"Sir, why don't you tell Madam about the woman you like? People in the capital say that you..."
He really couldn't speak the vulgar language of the common people.
Zhao Yan looked at him calmly, and An Yuan knew that he had gone too far.
He immediately knelt down and said, "I'm the one who talked too much."
Zhao Yan walked over and said, "During this time, you have been by my side. In addition to paying attention to the actions of the people around me, you also need to pay attention to another person."
An Yuan immediately understood that this was the young master's ideal person, "Yes."
But he wondered, who would the usually cold and taciturn young man like, and who would he like, a girl from Quanzhou...
The government office was very busy over the next few days, as the tribute delegation originally scheduled to arrive in the fall arrived early.
On the desk, Zhao Yan held a file detailing past tribute envoy receptions. Seeing his frown, Yan Quan stood up and said, "Don't worry, sir. Past tribute envoys also enjoyed themselves. Even if they were difficult, at most we would send a few people to spar with them and temper their spirits. After that, they would return home."
After reading the documents, Zhao Yan discovered that there had been various skill competitions in the past, including Cuju, water conservancy tools, and gourmet pastry making techniques.
These are not too difficult, but this year the tribute delegation wants to compete in "lanterns".
After listening to this, Yan Quan finally understood why Lord Zhao was in such a dilemma.
Everyone knows that Luoyang lanterns are the best in the world, but now that you are the governor of Quanzhou, you must compete with us to show the characteristics of Quanzhou.
Luoyang lanterns no longer need to be filled with colors, so who can take up the challenge?
Yan Quan naturally believed in Madam Qiaodeng, but he didn't know whether this gentleman would agree. He hesitated for a long time and finally said, "Why not let Madam Qiaodeng give it a try?"
Zhao Yan had thought about it, but he couldn't make such a dictatorial decision. He wanted to hear Huatang's opinion.
"That's a good suggestion, but I have to talk to Madam Qiaodeng first."
Yan Quan nodded. "That's right. After all, this is a matter of Quanzhou's reputation. I've put all the pressure on Madam Qiaodeng, so naturally she needs her personal consent."
His original intention was to get close to Zhao Yan, so he naturally agreed with what he said. Sure enough, Zhao Yan chuckled and nodded.
He knew he was right. He had previously suspected that Lord Zhao was taking care of Madam Qiao Deng. He originally guessed that Madam Qiao Deng's ex-husband should know Lord Zhao.
But now he doesn't think so. Yesterday he heard that Master Zhao's family servants had arrived from the capital. "I heard that Master's family sent servants from the capital. I think they are worried that Master will have trouble living here."
Zhao Yan tallied up the sums used by previous tribute envoys and replied, "It's just some gifts from my mother."
"After all, mother and child are connected by heart. My Lord, you don't have anyone here to take care of you. I think the old lady must be very worried."
"Master Yan is right." Zhao Yan wrote down a few calculation figures and replied.
Yan Quan was a little surprised. Did Lord Zhao mean to agree with what he said?
He just said "know the cold and the heat" to find out about this gentleman's family background, but what Lord Zhao meant was that he had no family!
"Your Excellency has been here for such a long time, and I haven't heard of your wife coming here. I'm sure Mrs. Zhao is also very worried about you. I was sent abroad for a while before, and I'm not afraid of you laughing at me. My wife is worried about me day and night, and she can't wait to go with me."
"I divorced my ex-wife and am now alone."
"What?" Yan Quan couldn't control his voice. After he realized what was going on, he felt stupid for bringing up something that was not related to the topic.
"Please don't blame me, sir. I didn't mean to mention your sad story..."
Zhao Yan stood up and sorted the documents. "It's not a shameful thing, so it's okay."
After saying that, he walked towards the front yard, called a few people in charge, and said that he was going to the Lantern Master's Hall.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com