Chapter 241: Marriage
The night wind blows late, the flowers wither and the wine becomes turbid.
In the East Palace, the lights have been turned off, leaving only one lamp in the inner hall, flickering faintly.
Xiao Lingyu sat in front of the table, his eyes deep, looking at the maid kneeling in front of him.
The maid's voice was a little hurried: "Master, what should we do next? I think that Anle Hou has obviously become suspicious of you because of what He Yanting said."
Xiao Lingyu tapped the table with his fingertips.
The maid's voice was a bit cruel: "Master, now that Emperor Lu Daizong is dead, the emperor has also made up his mind to get rid of them, why don't we just take advantage of the situation and do it directly!"
The sound of knocking on the table suddenly stopped, and the maid lowered her head obediently. After an unknown amount of time, she heard a chuckle from above.
"Okay, go ahead."
The maid: "???!!!"
Did the master just agree? Didn't he stop her?
The maid tentatively raised her eyes to look at his face. Xiao Lingyu's face was intertwined under the light. Although he was smiling, his eyes were abnormally cold.
The maid's heart suddenly turned cold, and she dared not make a sound.
"I hope that next time before you speak, you will think about what you are going to say," Xiao Lingyu's voice was a little cold: "How is the Anle Marquis' Mansion doing now?"
"They are preparing for Lu Daizong's funeral. Looking at the current situation, they still think that Jiang Zhiyu is the murderer. The wife of the Anle Marquis has mentioned more than once that she wants to assassinate Jiang Zhiyu privately."
Xiao Lingyu chuckled without comment.
"In this way, it has diverted our attention," Xiao Lingyu looked at her eyes and moved slightly: "Marquis Anle must have felt that I treat you differently and will definitely not do anything to you. He must be thinking of a suitable opportunity to send you to me. During this period, you should pay attention to their movements and check if there are any strange people in the Marquis Anle's mansion."
The maid replied yes and stood up to leave when Ji You was walking forward. The
maid saluted him, and Ji You bowed in return, walked into the hall and said: "Your Highness, the Crown Prince has found out. Tomorrow, the fifth prince will lead 30,000 elite troops to personally attack Wala."
Xiao Lingyu raised his eyes and looked at Ji You, who was standing straight, and there was no sign of him being whipped. There was only a faint smell of blood when the breeze blew over him.
Xiao Lingyu stood up and stood in front of him, smiling gently, "Sir, I was just angry today, I hope you don't mind."
"Your Highness, you have said too much. What I said today was indeed a little out of line. Your Highness should have been punished."
Xiao Lingyu looked at him and saw that his eyes were sincere and his words were really from the heart. The smile on his face also had some real feelings.
Ji You's words were indeed from the heart. Before, he took the initiative to ask for help from the prince in order to repay the queen's kindness. After a few months of getting along, although the prince has a good personality, he is too mild and indecisive. If he is just an idle prince in the future, it will be fine, but he is going to be the emperor, the future master of the world. How can he accomplish anything if he is so weak? !
Today he saw another side of the prince. If the prince is like this in the future, then he, as the master, has made the right choice.
Xiao Lingyu nodded with satisfaction and motioned him to sit down at the table. The maidservant beside him poured tea for them.
Ji You stroked the teacup with his fingertips: "Your Highness, I have also heard a piece of news that the emperor is interested in arranging a marriage for Princess Qingwu."
...
The next day in the court, the fifth prince Xiao Siyuan knelt in the center of the hall wearing armor.
The emperor waved his hand, and Fuping came forward with a sword in his hands.
"This sword is the sword I often used when I followed the late emperor to fight. I never left it. Today, I will give it to you."
Xiao Siyuan raised his hands above his head and took it, his voice calm.
"Your son, you must defeat the Wala, pursue them to the northern desert, plunder their land, chase them to the north, and conquer the Wolf's Lair!"
He spoke these words with great vigor, but the emperor's face did not show any emotion, and he just nodded lightly.
Everyone in the court had different expressions, especially Jiang Zhaorong.
He glanced at Xiao Siyuan, and it was unknown what he was thinking.
After the court was dismissed, Xiao Siyuan rode his horse straight to the city gate before he had time to say goodbye to Xiao Qingwu.
Outside the city gate, 30,000 elite soldiers were waiting.
Xiao Siyuan nodded to the deputy general, turned his head to look at the palace hidden behind the heavy doors and windows, closed his eyes, turned around and left, as if he had made up his mind.
He had only been gone for a few hours when the Emperor's decree of marriage was delivered to Yilan Palace.
"By the grace of Heaven and the Mandate of Heaven, I hereby declare: Princess Qingwu is my youngest daughter, born to Concubine Duan, of noble birth. She has been intelligent and clever since childhood, and has been favored by the Empress Dowager and me day and night, and the Empress Dowager and I love her very much. Now the princess is already in her teens, and it is time for her to get married. I have followed the Empress Dowager's benevolent order to choose a good husband from among the ministers for my beloved daughter to marry.
I have heard that Qu Xingchun, the third son of the Minister of Works, is a man of noble character, handsome appearance, and has no family. "The marriage between Xiao Qingwu and the princess is a match made in heaven, and I am very pleased. In order to make the beauty of the lady come true, Princess Qingwu will be married to Qu Xingchun. All the etiquette will be discussed by the Minister of Rites and the Qintian Supervisor.
The announcement will be made to the inside and outside of the country, and the envoys will hear it."
Fuping put away the imperial edict, looked at Xiao Qingwu, who was pale, and sighed: "Princess, accept the edict."
As soon as the voice fell, Xiao Qingwu's slender figure fell forward weakly.
"Princess!"
The maids serving in the room were all startled and hurried to help her.
"Quick! Go and get the imperial physician!"
Concubine Duan said anxiously, taking Xiao Qingwu from the maid.
Fuping had been in the palace for so long, and he had seen many people pretending to faint in an attempt to avoid punishment.
He could tell at a glance that Xiao Qingwu was pretending to be dizzy.
"My queen, princess, don't blame me for saying a few more words. The emperor's marriage proposal came so suddenly. If you don't want to lose his favor, you should accept it honestly and don't do anything. The emperor's power is unpredictable now."
Concubine Duan's eyes moved, and she was about to thank him, but she saw Xiao Qingwu in her arms suddenly opened his eyes and scolded him fiercely: "What do you know, you eunuch?! My father loves me the most. He will definitely not marry me to the son of a minister of the Ministry of Works!"
Concubine Duan's face changed slightly, and it was too late to reach out to cover her mouth.
Fuping narrowed his eyes slightly, and when he heard Xiao Qingwu talking about the eunuch, the corners of his mouth even raised a smile: "Then the princess refused the imperial edict? This refusal of the imperial edict is a capital crime..."
Before he finished speaking, Concubine Duan pushed Xiao Qingwu away, stood up and said with a smile: "Don't be angry, Eunuch Fuping, Qingwu is a child, she is just worried that if she accepts the imperial edict, she will have to leave the palace and will not be able to see the emperor, so she is so impulsive..."
As Concubine Duan spoke, she personally took Fuping's hand with her slender fingers, put a pair of earrings on his rough hand, and said softly: "Don't blame Eunuch Fuping."