Chapter 11: Granted Marriage
His voice was extremely calm and composed, not like the nonsense spoken by a drunkard. Song Lingyi's heart moved slightly when she heard it, and when she looked up, she saw a pair of hard-to-conceal, scorching eyes.
"But...but my mother broke off an engagement before. Does your family mind?"
After arriving in Beijing, Song Lingyi often heard people discussing the matter privately. The broken engagement had caused quite a stir, and while the Pei family had close ties with the Duke's Mansion, there was no guarantee they would accept her as a bride.
"When I sent you home that day, I learned that the Yang family was here to propose marriage. I thought a lot about it after I got back. I discussed it with my second uncle last night. He didn't object and was even very eager to facilitate this perfect match." Pei Zhao curled his lips in a faint smile, and the large shadow cast by the setting sun in the sky fell on his face.
Song Lingyi's shoulders shook slightly, and her dark eyes turned slightly, as if she was thinking about something.
Let’s put aside the fact that Princess Changyang likes Pei Zhao for the moment. Yang Erlang just said that the pretty boy and the prince were asking him what they talked about in Haitang Pavilion.
The pretty boy is a frivolous dude who does things on a whim. She wants to find out what he's thinking, unless she's mentally ill too. The prince is a complicated person. He wanted to dig out her eyes and cut off her hands before, and interrogate Yang Erlang. Maybe he wanted to intimidate him and warn him not to get too close to her.
If that were the case, the Crown Prince would certainly use the same method to warn Pei Zhao if he wanted to marry her. Perhaps the pretty boy would also interfere, after all, they had been at odds since the first day she entered the mansion.
From this perspective, her plan to marry Pei Zhao was filled with obstacles.
"Brother Jianzhi, are you really willing to marry me?" Song Lingyi looked up at him.
The rosy glow reflected on Pei Zhao's face, illuminating his features, which were as pale as distant mountains. His dark eyes fixed on the person opposite him, and he said solemnly:
"I know that Uncle Song and Auntie are deeply in love. You've been influenced by them, so naturally you hope that your future husband will be devoted to you. Heaven and earth are your witnesses. I, Pei Zhao, am willing to marry Song Lingyi. You are my only wife in this life. I will treat you with sincerity and sincerity, and I will never have other intentions."
…
The next day, the sky was clear and the air was bright.
When Song Lingyi woke up in a daze, she was still dizzy as if she had fallen into the clouds. She tossed and turned in the soft quilt, recalling the scene of Pei Zhao swearing an oath yesterday.
Knock knock knock——
"girl."
Hongqiu's urgent voice rang out from outside the door, "Miss, it's almost noon, are you up yet?"
Chenshi?
Song Lingyi flipped up from the bed, quickly put on the dress hanging on the hanger, and opened the door.
"Hongqi, please help me dress up quickly. I need to go to the palace."
"Enter the palace?" Hong Qi tilted her head in confusion, then suddenly remembered the token and asked in surprise, "Miss, have you figured out what reward you want?"
Song Lingyi sat in front of a bronze mirror, her hair flowing like a waterfall. She opened a huanghuali wood box and picked out some jewelry. The bright mirror reflected the girl's pretty, smiling face. "I had no idea before, but I stayed up all night yesterday and figured it out completely."
Seeing that her daughter was happy, Hongqiu also started laughing. Just as she picked up the comb with one hand, she seemed to remember something and suddenly froze.
"not good!"
"I just heard Ah Zhu, who is in charge of purchasing in the kitchen, say that His Majesty left the Imperial City at 11:00 AM and moved to the Yaoquan Palace!"
Clang——
The jewelry box fell onto the dressing table.
Song Lingyi turned around in surprise, but forgot that Hongju was combing her hair, which caused her scalp to hurt.
"Hiss~"
Hong Qi was startled, and soothed her, "Don't worry, young lady. The officials will be waiting at the city gate to see you off, and it will take some time. His Majesty won't be leaving so soon."
When Song Lingyi had packed up and rushed to the East City Gate, she saw a line of waiting officials filling the entire street, with the ranks decreasing as they went further back.
The refreshing morning breeze blew the bright yellow flag on the luxurious carriage and ruffled a few strands of hair on the girl's temples.
Amidst the crowd of people dressed in solemn official robes, a single shimmer of yellow stood out. The eunuch in brocade robes, standing beside the emperor's carriage, glanced briefly at the ranks of officials and, upon seeing the young woman wedged in the crowd, a thought struck him. He took a few steps toward her and called out, "Hello, young lady!"
"Miss Song, why are you here?"
The surrounding officials immediately understood what he meant and made way for him.
Song Lingyi thanked him as she walked up to the eunuch in brocade robes, breathing heavily, "Eunuch, I would like to see His Majesty."
The eunuch in brocade robes held up the dustpan and said with a smile, "His Majesty is talking to the two princes. Please wait a moment, young lady. I will go and pass the message on."
"Thank you for your help, eunuch." Song Lingyi's eyebrows curved slightly.
After waiting for about half a cup of tea, the eunuch in brocade robes came over again and said respectfully, "Miss Song, His Majesty has summoned you to speak."
As we approached the carriage carrying the emperor, we saw guards in silver armor and carrying swords on both sides.
Song Lingyi was originally quite calm, but after seeing Xiao Mingyi, she instantly became nervous.
The man was dressed in a black robe, standing beside the flat-top carriage with a red tassel canopy. The faint gaze he gave her made her heart tremble for no reason.
Song Lingyi bravely stood in front of the right side of the carriage, bowed her head, and knelt down in worship: "Your Highness, I, Song Lingyi, respectfully greet you."
“Ahem…”
A light cough was heard in the carriage.
The eunuch in brocade robes lifted the carriage curtain, and the coughing sound became clearer and clearer. Then, a majestic and vicissitudes of life voice sounded: "Get up."
"Thank you, Your Majesty."
Song Lingyi stood up straight, keeping her eyes lowered, not daring to look around.
"Are you here today to see me off, or to think of a reward for me?" asked Emperor Xuanyuan.
"Your Majesty, I am here to see you off... and I also want a reward."
This cunning answer made Emperor Xuanyuan laugh out loud: "You are quite frank."
The Third Prince wanted to pull Xiao Mingyi away with him, but seeing him standing beside the carriage with his arms folded, showing no intention of leaving, he returned alone to the group of officials who were seeing him off.
"Tell me, what reward do you want?" Emperor Xuanyuan's eyes were very kind.
"Your Majesty, I would like to ask you to grant me a marriage."
Song Lingyi's eyebrows were curved and her eyes were shining.
As soon as the words fell, before Emperor Xuanyuan could express his opinion, a cold, casual, yet oppressive voice came from the front:
"Nonsense! Your Majesty is ill. If you wish to grant a marriage, I must be involved in the arrangements. If you find a good match, the elders will decide on the matter. Why would a little girl like you come forward to ask for His Majesty's grace?"
The atmosphere was tense.
The tiny gleam in Song Lingyi's eyes gradually dissipated, and she glanced at Xiao Mingyi with resentment, not understanding why he would say such sarcastic words in front of the emperor.
After a while, Emperor Xuanyuan coughed softly and asked, "You asked me to grant you a marriage, so who is your son-in-law?"
"Your Majesty, it's the second son of the Pei family, Pei Jianzhi." Her dark eyes reflected the sunlight, and the girl's face was beautiful and serene. "This subject and the second son of the Pei family are in love, so I would like to ask Your Majesty to grant us a marriage."
Hearing this name, Emperor Xuanyuan's expression froze. If he remembered correctly, Changyang also had feelings for Pei Jianzhi. He had only cared about Concubine Shu and her son before, and even if he knew about it, he had never thought of intervening in this matter.
but……
Emperor Xuanyuan's mind raced as he glanced at the crown prince's position inconspicuously.
It's just a marriage arrangement, which doesn't require much effort. Why does the prince react so strongly?
Moreover, the way the little girl looked at the prince just now was obviously a bit inappropriate, but the prince did not blame her.
"Pei Erlang is a famous talent in Kyoto. How could he fall in love with a little girl like you?" Emperor Xuanyuan said.
The Ruyang Pei family is one of the four major families in Dayuan, and Pei Erlang is the leader among the younger generation. This marriage cannot be arranged casually.
The eunuch in brocade robe standing beside was a perceptive man. He immediately sent someone to invite Lord Pei and the Duke to explain to them the matter of Song Lingyi asking the emperor to grant her marriage.
Both of them had a look of joy on their faces.
On the day of the Pei family's birthday banquet, Lu Tanwei jokingly suggested another golden marriage, and Pei Tingyou didn't object. He had thought it was just a casual remark, but he hadn't expected his niece to be so proactive, actually using the grace granted by His Majesty to ask for a marriage.
The eunuch led the two gentlemen to the imperial presence.
"Your Majesty, may you be in good health. Your Highness the Crown Prince, may you be in good health." Lu Tanwei and Pei Tingyou lifted their robes and saluted respectfully.
Xiao Mingyi's gaze swept across them lightly, and finally fell on Song Lingyi's face. That fair little face had a faint smile on it. For some reason, he felt inexplicably blocked in his heart, and even had an indescribable feeling of suffocation.
"My two beloved ministers, please stand up."
Emperor Xuanyuan's expression remained normal, even showing a hint of joy at being a matchmaker. "Eunuch Li should have explained this to you two. I want to hear what you two have to say."
The matter of the arranged marriage was proposed by Song Lingyi, but Lu Tanwei did not express his opinion immediately, wanting to wait for Pei Tingyou to speak first.
"Your Majesty, Jian and I discussed the marriage proposal two days ago, but I was delayed by my busy official duties. The two young people are very close in love, and as an elder, I am naturally happy to see it come to fruition."
"Your Majesty, I have watched Jianzhi grow up. He is an upright man with a gentle temperament. I could not be more relieved to entrust my niece to him." Lu Tanwei said.
Emperor Xuanyuan's brows relaxed, and he laughed heartily, saying, "I previously promised the young lady that I would grant her a wish as long as it did not violate the laws of our ancestors. Since both families are satisfied with this marriage, how could I refuse?"
"Eh... Your Highness?"
The eunuch in brocade robe seemed to be hesitant to speak as he looked at the figure in black robe who turned and left.
The breeze lifted the walnut-patterned curtains. Emperor Xuanyuan looked past the eunuchs and looked at the figure in black robe that was walking away, his eyes dimmed.
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