Su Jin disregarded his own safety and shouted to Lin Xiangzhi, "Brother Lin, run!"
This shout had a significant impact. Upon hearing it, the servants immediately split into two groups: one group chased after Su Jin and Xie Yunchen, while the other ran towards Lin Xiangzhi.
The chaotic footsteps grew closer and closer. Su Jin panicked and, holding Xie Yunchen's hand, scrambled onto the Xie family's carriage.
"Hurry, they're chasing us!" Xie Yunchen urged the driver, glancing back every now and then.
Su Jin broke out in a cold sweat; he had never seen anything like this before, and his heart was pounding wildly.
"Brother Xie, are they really making arrests?"
Xie Yunchen, still shaken, said, "Of course, it's better to take her back and discuss things properly. I'm just afraid of encountering some rich and powerful barbarians. If their daughter isn't any good, after a few drinks, they might coax and trick her into the bridal chamber. At that point, they won't be able to refuse to marry her."
There were precedents for this in the past.
One year, a wealthy family in the capital came to the examination hall to find a husband for their daughter.
After a chaotic search, they captured a scholar who had passed the imperial examinations. Once inside the mansion, the matchmaker they arranged lavished praise on the young woman.
The scholar, who came from a poor family, was secretly delighted to have met a wealthy father-in-law in the capital and become his support. He thought that such a windfall had fallen into his lap.
He accepted the wealthy man's offer after a good meal and drinks.
The wealthy family was well-prepared, and the wedding ceremony was held that very day.
A poor scholar experienced two great joys in one day: passing the imperial examination and his wedding night.
The scholar, slightly tipsy, was led to the bridal chamber by his servants. When the veil was lifted, he found the woman to be ugly, far from the beautiful woman the matchmaker had described. The scholar immediately regretted his decision and insisted on leaving.
The wealthy man was not about to let him have his way, and the bridal chamber was surrounded by his servants.
The scholar wasn't released from the bridal chamber until the next day. The wealthy man made it clear that if the scholar accepted the marriage, he would help him secure a bright future; otherwise, he would sue the scholar for being fickle and heartless.
The newly appointed scholar cherished his reputation and dared not gamble on how the yamen would rule, so he had no choice but to swallow his anger and accept the marriage.
Su Jin was startled by Xie Yunchen's words.
Seeing that they couldn't catch up with the carriage, the people behind turned and walked towards the group of people around Zhen Jingxiu.
Congratulations poured in, and those who remained were all scholars who had passed the exam. Their faces were beaming with smiles, completely unaware of the danger approaching them.
Lin Xiangzhi, standing under the wall of the top scholar, vaguely heard Su Jin's shout. When he turned around and looked in the direction of the sound, he saw several strong and sturdy men walking towards him with smiles.
Realizing what was happening, he immediately felt a chill run down his spine. "Wait! What, what are you going to do?"
He spoke as he backed away.
Several men surrounded him, forcing Lin Xiangzhi to retreat to the base of the wall where he had nowhere left to go.
The leader smiled and cupped his hands, saying, "I am a servant of the Li family. My master is from the capital and runs more than ten dye houses and other businesses. Congratulations, young master. My master specially sent me to invite you into the mansion for a chat."
Lin Xiangzhi: "..."
***
What bad luck! If he had known he would encounter the "marriage candidate selection" event, he should have come sooner.
Seeing the servants all smiling and surrounding him, even he, a man of great experience, felt a sense of unease.
Just as the leader grabbed his arm, he instinctively remembered what his uncle had said.
"Xiangzhi, you often visit the Prince of Yannan's residence. The Prince and Princess treat you like their godson. Could it be that the Prince is planning to betroth his eldest daughter to you?"
My uncle's words echoed in my ears.
Lin Xiangzhi had a sudden inspiration. He put aside his panicked expression, shook off the hand that was holding him, and straightened his chest.
"You lot, stop your nonsense! I am none other than Lin Xiangzhi, who stands and does not change his name or surname!"
"Who? What is the background of Young Master Lin?" The leader was taken aback by him and asked the crowd.
The others shook their heads. "Never heard of him. Seeing him standing under the wall of top scholars, grinning from ear to ear, he must be on the list."
One of the servants rolled up his sleeves and said, "Yes, stop arguing, catch him and hand him over to the master."
"What? You don't even know me? You're really ignorant!" Seeing the leader hesitate, Lin Xiangzhi thought to himself that the head of the Li family must be afraid of causing trouble and had specifically instructed his servants not to act recklessly.
He stood with his hands behind his back, raised his chin, and said, "Are you aware that the Empress Dowager is coming to the capital?"
"Of course I know, young master. Could it be that you are related to the Empress Dowager?" a servant said, retracting one of his outstretched feet.
Another servant chuckled and said, "If he's from the Empress Dowager's family, that's perfect. Let's invite the young master back; maybe then the master will become a member of the imperial family."
"Yes, yes, yes, such a good thing is hard to find even with a lantern. Young Master Lin, please come forward?" The servant said, waving to the servants in the distance.
Those who had surrounded Xiang Zhenjingxiu and his group, seeing that they had succeeded, naturally turned around and went back.
The Li family has more than one eligible daughter, but they dare not take too many sons-in-law home at once.
There is a tradition in the capital of "catching a son-in-law after the imperial examination results are announced." This custom has been tacitly accepted by emperors throughout history. If several sons-in-law were caught at once, it would incur public wrath and could lead to serious trouble.
Amidst laughter, the servants stepped back slightly to make way.
Although they appeared to have given way, everyone's wary eyes and ready-to-strike stances were unmistakable.
"When the Empress Dowager came to the capital, she naturally brought the two princesses with her. Are you aware of this?"
"Of course I know. If there's anything else you'd like to say, please come to my residence and we can talk about it there." The leader bowed and gestured for them to enter.
Lin Xiangzhi remained unmoved, his face darkening as he coldly said, "I am the Empress Dowager's personally chosen consort, how dare you try to snatch me away?"
That imposing manner was something he learned from Xiao Jingzhao; whether he could intimidate these people depended entirely on luck.
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