Chapter 55: Which Boy is the Marriage Engagement
"But you're hungry?"
“A little.”
"Then try the food cooked by the chefs at Prince Qi's mansion. If you don't like it, we can change it to something you like when you come."
Wait for her to change? Gu Youan smiled, this guy speaks quite nicely.
Gu Youan was no stranger to words. Now that his words were clear and he was free of reservations, he became much more forthright. As the two sat across from each other enjoying their meal, Gu Youan asked, "I heard you don't often see officials from Songjiang City. Who's usually in charge of things in Songjiang City?"
"Although I don't often see the officials in Songjiang City, I am well aware of all the affairs of Songjiang City. For example, I have a clear understanding of the personnel transfers, food supplies, and medicinal materials that are crucial to the survival of Songjiang City."
"Songjiang City isn't big, so there aren't many major events. Zhou Chen can oversee all other matters. If you have free time in the future, I can let you manage Songjiang City. After all, after we get married, you should know all the affairs inside and outside the Qi Palace."
"What do you care?"
"army."
In recent years, he has been going to the grassland whenever he has time. In addition to his intention of taking over the Northeast Army, training the Songjiang City defense army is also a big deal.
He didn't trust Zhou Xuan, and Zhou Xuan didn't trust him either. He knew that unless either Zhou Xuan or he died sooner or later, once Zhou Xuan completely controlled the northern and southern armies of the Great Zhou Dynasty, he would make a move on him.
Zhou Xuan now left him aside, but it was only because he had not yet completely gathered the men left by his father, and he was afraid that if he handled them improperly, those generals would lead their troops to rebel against him.
Prince Qi: "Although the Crown Prince died when my father passed away, there are still the Second Prince, the Third Prince, me, and several other underage princes. Even Zhou Xuan himself, although he is the Crown Prince's legitimate son, has an older brother above him and a younger brother below him. My father was able to set aside all others and choose him to inherit the throne, so he must have known that he was no simple good-for-nothing."
In recent years, Zhou Xuan had exiled many old ministers because of the death penalty. Many people did not dare to say it on the surface, but in fact they had many prejudices against Zhou Xuan in their hearts and spread a lot of gossip. However, these did not affect Zhou Xuan's status as a capable emperor.
As for military power, since Zhou Xuan ascended the throne, many concubines have been added to the harem. If people are careful, they can see that the families of most of the new women entering the palace have heavy military power.
Gu Youan took a sip of his soup and asked, "There must have been quite a few young princes in the palace over the years. If there's no real benefit, then no matter how clever his tactics are, they'll be useless."
Prince Qi gave her an admiring look and said, "Eight more princes and princesses have been added."
Take the northern defense line as an example. The governor of Zhenbei, the general of Ningxia, and the general of Liaodong all had daughters serving as concubines in the palace, and they all gave birth to children.
"Zhou Xuan was afraid that his concubines would become like married daughters, spilled water, so he would allow the concubines' families to enter the palace to meet him on major festivals or birthdays."
Prince Qi smiled and said, "Although the method is crude, it is effective. At least in the past few years, Zhou Xuan's control over the garrisons on the southwest and northwest defense lines has gradually strengthened."
"What about the northern border?" Gu Youan was most concerned about this.
"Under the command of the Grand Commander-in-Chief of Zhenbei, they undoubtedly obey the imperial court's orders. The Northeastern, Yanzhou, and Liaodong garrisons, however, are less loyal to Zhou Xuan for various reasons. Despite this, their loyalty to the people of the Great Zhou Dynasty is unquestionable. As long as they remain, we will never allow the steppe Tartars to plunder southward through Shanhaiguan."
Gu Youan was surprised. It was fine if the Northeastern garrison was deeply involved with Prince Qi, but why were the Yanzhou and Liaodong armies also like this...
Prince Qi smiled and said, "They don't necessarily favor me."
Gu Youan understood. It seemed that in recent years, apart from building his city defense army, keeping an eye on the north, and trying his best to bring the Northeast Army under his control, King Qi should have devoted all his free time to the Yanzhou Army and the Liaodong Army.
Thinking about it this way, it makes sense that Prince Qi doesn't have time to stay in Songjiang City all day.
Thinking about it carefully, Prince Qi spent all his energy on other things. If she had the ability, it would not be a problem for her to replace the sky of Songjiang City.
If one day he marches south and changes his mind, it wouldn't be too bad for her to guard Songjiang City.
The two of them expressed their feelings today, and Prince Qi was very happy. No matter what Gu Youan asked him, he would tell him everything he knew. He had no idea that Gu Youan was already thinking about the worst case scenario.
The lunch lasted half an hour, and the food was cooled by the mountain wind. Only then did the two put down their bowls and chopsticks, and the servants brought them hot tea.
He asked someone to bring a blanket and personally wrapped it around her shoulders: "Don't catch a cold."
Gu Youan accepted it calmly. When he wrapped the blanket around her and was about to leave, Gu Youan boldly grabbed his arm, looked up at him and smiled: "Matters outside the Prince Qi's Mansion are under the jurisdiction of Zhou Chen, what about matters inside the Palace?"
"Zhou Chen is in charge of the general aspects, while Liu Ling will be responsible for the details."
Prince Qi didn't want to leave, so he simply pulled his chair over and sat down next to her. He took her hand in his own, holding it, which was a little cold. He looked down at her, then looked up again and smiled, "Liu Ling is the eunuch who took care of me since I was a child. He is loyal to me and is not young anymore. He has a godson named Liu Zhong, who is twenty years old. I heard he is very useful. If you don't mind, I will give him to you."
Gu Youan smiled sincerely, tapping his wrist with his index finger: "The person you mentioned must be used. Thank you in advance."
She was right in her judgment. Prince Qi was truly a generous and reliable teammate.
The two of them talked frankly, and Xu Zhi, who was waiting to serve not far away, was stunned. He always knew that his master was thinking about Miss Gu, but he never expected that he would open up to her so quickly.
Most of the family fortune has been handed over before the marriage even takes place. If they do get married, is there any doubt about who will be in charge of Prince Qi's mansion in the future?
Xu Zhi couldn't help but envy Liu Zhong, that kid. He was just an inconspicuous eunuch in the palace, but he was about to rise to the top and become the confidant of the future princess.
Not only Xu Zhi, but everyone who came to serve today was shocked. Is their Prince Qi's Mansion about to welcome a female master?
She was not some noble lady from the Meng or Yuan family, but just a young lady from a criminal official's family who was exiled.
There will be a female master in the palace, and the prince has made many promises to the future female master. It is definitely impossible for Zhou Changshi to be second only to the emperor in the city in the future.
There are always people who dislike Zhou Chen, and now they are waiting to see Zhou Chen lose power.
"It's getting late. I should go back."
Gu Youan returned the blanket to him, and Prince Qi took it. He said, "In two days, after sending the Meng and Yuan families away, I will choose a good day to come and propose marriage."
"So fast?"
Prince Qi smiled and said, "Now that it's settled, then hurry up. I hope to marry you after the autumn harvest."
Gu Youan was a little embarrassed, his eyes were moist and his cheeks were red, he smiled and said, "That's fine."
Prince Qi escorted her to the woods, glanced at the shadowy crowd on the other side of the woods, and said, "When I come to propose marriage, I will send Liu Zhong to your house. If you have anything you want to know, you can ask him."
"good."
The two said goodbye, and Gu Youan walked out of the woods. When he looked back, he was still standing there looking at her.
Gu Youan turned and left, and his back looked like he was fleeing in panic.
Prince Qi couldn't help but smile. No matter how smart she was when talking about business, she was still a young lady after all.
Prince Qi turned around and took two steps. Suddenly, he remembered the vow he had made at Tianyi Temple. He instructed Xu Zhi, "Send someone up the mountain to tell Taoist Li that I will take the princess to the temple to burn incense before the snow falls."
"I understand."
Since the prince and princess are going to Tianyi Temple to fulfill their vows and burn incense, they must also go to sweep the tomb of Queen Meng.
When Gu Youan went to the stream again, Tian Dalang and the ladies of the Qi family were no longer there. She went to the banquet hall, but saw only a few people there. The ladies and young ladies of the Meng and Yuan families were no longer there.
"An An, where have you been? Come over and meet Mrs. Duan."
Gu Youan saw that next to her mother sat a lady with elegant temperament and wearing a cyan and gold dress, and next to her father sat a man with a kind face. Gu Youan also saw her eldest brother standing aside, and Axuan was chatting and laughing with a young lady.
Gu Youan hurried forward and saluted: "Greetings, Madam Duan."
Without waiting for her to kneel, Mrs. Duan hurriedly pulled her over and asked her to sit over with a smile.
Madam Duan looked her over and said to Madam Du with a smile, "This must be your capable daughter, right? It's really enviable to have such ability, and I didn't expect she's also so pretty. My Wan Niang is far inferior to this wonderful daughter you have."
Mrs. Du pulled her daughter to sit next to her and said with a smile, "I think Wan Niang is good in every way. I was worried that you would look down on this brat from my family."
Lord Duan smiled and stroked his beard: "Wenqing is both civil and military. There are not many good men like him in Songjiang City."
Gu Wen and Mrs. Du hurriedly said modestly that they were just ordinary children.
The adults were talking animatedly, and Gu Youan saw that her elder brother and sister Wan Niang blushed. Gu Youan knew in her heart that she would soon have a sister-in-law.
It's better this way. The eldest brother will get married first and then it will be her turn. This way, she won't have to worry about outsiders talking about her.
The Gu and Duan families had verbally agreed on a marriage. It was getting late, and it was time to return to the city. Before leaving, Mrs. Du took Mrs. Duan's hand and said, "Wait until I get back and check the almanac. I'll choose a good day and then ask Wen Qing to come. Don't chase him away then."
Mrs. Duan smiled and said, "I think these two young people are very suitable for each other. Every day is a good day."
The Duan family seems to be in a hurry to marry off their daughter?
After the two families parted ways, on the way home, Gu Youan asked her mother: "I haven't heard you mention it before, how come my eldest brother's marriage is suddenly settled? What's the story behind this family relationship?"
Mrs. Du smiled and said, "Your father and I have long had our eyes on the young lady from the Duan family, but we were afraid that she would look down on our family and that the marriage wouldn't work out, so we didn't tell you."
Mrs. Du explained to her daughter in detail, "Lord Duan is a second-rank official in charge of taxation. Last year, your father was still a fifth-rank official, so there was no way we could marry into the Duan family. This year, your father got a promotion and became more familiar with Lord Duan. Your brother also got a job, so your father finally dared to ask someone to raise the matter with the Duan family."
Oh, so that's how it is.
Gu Youan said, "Even so, Miss Duan is still marrying down by marrying my brother. How could it be so easy?"
"Miss Duan was originally engaged, but when the wedding was about to take place, her grandmother passed away. Miss Duan had always been very close to her grandmother and insisted on observing mourning for her grandmother. The man on the other side couldn't wait any longer and broke off the engagement to marry someone else. Miss Duan has been delaying until now, and now that she's only a few months younger than your brother, she can't afford to delay any longer."
Gu You was happy: "Then my brother was able to marry Miss Duan mainly because of good luck?"
"The Duan family has a good family tradition, and Miss Duan has a good personality. A small matter like breaking off an engagement is not worth mentioning. When you think about it..." Mrs. Du smiled and said, "Your brother is indeed lucky, otherwise he would not have been able to marry Miss Duan."
Mrs. Du thought about the date of the marriage proposal and said, "Your Aunt Bai and I just checked the almanac a few days ago. If you want to find a good date, there are several particularly good days at the end of October. You can pick any one of them and ask your brother to go to the Duan family."
"Mom, I'm afraid it's not good."
"What's wrong?"
Gu Youan coughed lightly and said, "In a few days, someone will come to our house to propose marriage. You have to ask my eldest brother to hurry up. You can't ask me to get married first and then my eldest brother to get married."
"Propose a marriage? Who comes to propose a marriage?"
Mrs. Du couldn't control her voice, she was both shocked and angry: "Gu Youan, you are so bold, what were you doing today?"
Although her parents were open-minded, Gu Youan didn't dare to say that she had arranged the marriage on her own. Now that her mother was holding her ear, Gu Youan didn't dare to say anything nonsense.
"Hurry up and tell me, don't wait for me to hit you."
Gu Youan was helpless and could only mumble, "You know that person."
"Who, who is this kid? How dare you promise her marriage without saying anything? And you even say you're getting married? Wait until your father finds out, and I'll see if he doesn't scold you."
"From Prince Qi's Mansion."
"Prince Qi..."
Mrs. Du was shocked again and covered her chest with her hands. This girl really scared her to death.
My God, how come they, a small family, are related to King Qi?
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