32 Marriage
◎I will not marry anyone other than Mr. Gu◎
The objects in the carriage were all over the place and in a mess.
Gu Ningxi froze as he realized where he was. A few breaths passed in silence, their breathing audible to each other. Gu Ningxi tried to stand, but he was flustered, unsure where to find support.
After groping for a while, she finally touched the carriage seat and hurriedly put some distance between herself and the person under her.
Sitting back in her seat, Gu Ningxi raised her eyes and saw that His Royal Highness Prince Zhao looked even more confused than her.
"Is your Highness okay?" She pretended to be calm and spoke with concern.
Lu Jing's dark brocade robe was messed up by her. He looked away: "What kind of incense are you using?"
When Yuan Le fell over just now, her jade-white cheek was pressed against him, and a faint fragrance lingered in his nose.
There were only four words in his mind at that time, "warm, fragrant and soft jade".
I don't understand what you are saying. This is totally outrageous!
"Your Majesty..." Seeing the obvious discomfort on the face of His Royal Highness Prince Zhao, Gu Ningxi breathed a sigh of relief.
His Royal Highness Prince Zhao certainly did not have a preference for both men and women. Their actions just now were indeed too intimate, which made His Royal Highness feel very unhappy.
"It's just the incense on the clothes." She explained haltingly.
It was common for nobles to use spices to fumigate their clothes. Not only their daily clothes, but sometimes their beddings were also fumigated with agarwood.
Lu Jing just needed a reason. The feeling of Yuan Le in his arms still lingered, fragrant and soft, with her tender palm brushing against his legs...
The two people in the carriage were thinking about their own things. The carpet in the carriage was askew, the teacup was missing, and the chaos in the carriage was quite appropriate to the scene.
Lin Yang's noisy voice continued outside the car window: "Is Lord Gu hurt? It was an unintentional mistake. I hope Lord Gu will forgive me and not hold it against me."
The carriage did not overturn, and Gu Ningxi was not seriously injured.
Lin Yang concluded that Gu Ningxi didn't dare to argue with him. The status of the Xuanping Marquis' Mansion was much inferior to that of their Duke's Mansion.
Besides, the two families are going to get married, and neither the Duke's Mansion nor the Gu family will allow this matter to be made a big deal. At most, he can just pay some money as compensation.
He has plenty of money.
Lin Yang was very proud: "Why is Master Gu so silent?"
He was about to order his servant to come forward, but as he wished, the front door of the carriage opened the next moment.
When Lin Yang saw clearly the nobleman sitting in the carriage, the smile on his face froze.
He hurriedly dismounted and prostrated himself, saying, "Your Highness, Lin Yang, pays respects to His Highness Prince Zhao. May His Highness live a thousand years in peace and health."
As he bowed his head and dared not utter a word, he thought, isn't this Gu Ningxi's carriage? He saw it clearly.
The attendants knelt on the ground. Lu Jing sat down casually in front of the carriage and motioned everyone to stop making formalities, leaving only Lin Yang to apologize.
Sun Jing held a parasol for Prince Zhao. The sunlight at 9 o'clock was already glaring enough, and the road surface was scorching hot.
Lu Jing's voice was neither hurried nor slow: "Tell me, what's going on?"
Behind him, Gu Ningxi, who stayed in the carriage, quietly stretched out a hand and pushed the other half of the carriage door a little wider, and even opened the window, for fear of missing a scene or hearing a word.
Seeing that His Royal Highness Prince Zhao did not call him, Lin Yang knelt quietly, demonstrating his arrogance at first and respectfulness later to the fullest.
"Your Highness, I... was riding past this place on horseback. Due to the detour, I didn't see the carriage clearly, and thus I accidentally offended Your Highness. I, your Highness, acknowledge my sin and hope Your Highness will forgive me."
"That's all?"
"Yes, Your Highness, I hope you will forgive me this time." His voice was trembling, and he was completely different from before.
Although he is arrogant in daily life, Lin Yang is born in a first-rank Duke's Mansion. He knows very well who he can offend and who he must not offend.
He relied on his grandmother's favor and at most acted arrogantly in the Ningguo Mansion.
But the prince in front of him can walk around arrogantly in the Great Jin Dynasty.
Besides, he was the one who caused the collision first. If His Royal Highness Prince Zhao was really hurt, he would be finished.
Lin Yang was terrified when he heard His Royal Highness Prince Zhao say, "I vaguely heard you say that the new horse is untamed?"
As soon as he finished speaking, an attendant from Prince Zhao's palace brought the horse over.
"Your Highness."
Lin Yang's heart was bleeding. He had gone to great lengths to find this horse, which cost him twenty taels of gold. Today was the first time he rode it, and he hadn't even had the chance to show off to his friends.
But he didn't dare to deny what he had said: "Your Highness, yes."
"In that case, how about I order someone to discipline you a little?"
"Your Highness is wise, and I am deeply grateful."
Gu Ningxi looked at the horse from the carriage. It was pitch black with snow-white hooves. While it wasn't as good as the warhorses in Prince Zhao's palace, it was still a rare and fine steed. It was a pity for it to fall into Lin Yang's hands.
According to the order of His Royal Highness King Zhao, the horse was immediately sent to the military camp.
Lin Yang closed his eyes in sorrow, not daring to say a word, but still had to smile and express his gratitude.
"As for you, it's not convenient for me to discipline you on behalf of Duke Ningguo," Lu Jing said calmly, "Send Lin Liulang back to the Duke's Mansion."
Sun Jing saluted: "I understand."
The Duke of Ningguo of this generation is the cousin of the emperor. In fact, Lin Liulang is also related to His Royal Highness Prince Zhao.
Sun Jing ordered his attendants to help Lin Liulang up, and then he personally went to the Ningguo Mansion. As for how he would respond to the Duke later, he knew very well.
Lin Yang's face was pale and his knees were sore from kneeling.
He was taken away, and the farce ended. Lu Jing ordered, "See how much damage the street vendors have suffered and compensate them."
"Yes, Your Highness."
Lin Yang rode his horse recklessly on the streets, destroying countless stalls and causing great suffering to the people.
The carriage from Prince Zhao's mansion was already waiting nearby, and Gu Ningxi's carriage was also tidy.
The good show made her feel relaxed and happy. With a smile on her lips, she met the eyes of His Royal Highness Prince Zhao who turned around.
The awkward situation in the carriage was overwhelming, and Gu Ningxi immediately stopped smiling.
"Your Highness, I, your servant, would like to go home and change clothes first."
"Okay."
Lu Jing agreed, obviously wanting to forget what had just happened.
The two carriages separated at the intersection. Lu Jing had been resting his eyes when he remembered something and called the secret guards, "Go and find out what's going on between Yuan Le and Lin Jia Liulang."
He dared to take revenge in the street, fortunately Yuan Le was not injured.
Otherwise, Lu Jing's eyes turned cold. There was no reason to let this matter go lightly.
…
The commotion that occurred on the streets of Yongningfang at 9:00 PM quickly spread throughout Kyoto.
The merchants trampled by Lin Jia Liulang's horse had no place to complain, and knowing it was useless to file a complaint with the authorities, they were incredibly grateful to His Royal Highness Prince Zhao for teaching them a lesson and even compensating them for their losses.
The street shops quickly resumed operations. How could they resist telling others about such a gratifying event?
The news spread like wildfire, and within half a day, many of the noble families in Kyoto had heard about it.
In the afternoon, in the pavilion of Prince Zhao's Mansion, Gu Ningxi, who had changed into a new official uniform, enthusiastically asked Steward Sun to tell him about his experiences in the Ningguo Mansion.
Zhen Yuan and Xie Qian were there, so of course they were well-informed.
Intentionally or unintentionally, Lu Jing sat farther away from Gu Ningxi this time, but the people who were immersed in watching the fun didn't notice at all.
Seeing that everyone was listening to Sun Jing attentively, His Royal Highness Prince Zhao's eyes darkened again.
Sun Jing smiled and said that he had sent Lin Liulang back to the Lin Mansion at noon, and that Ning Guogong was fortunately staying there. Because the Crown Prince had already taken up an official position at court, the Duke had taken the initiative to take on a sinecure, intending to withdraw from the court.
Sun Jing told the truth about what happened on the street, without a single lie. For example, how the sixth son of the Lin family rode his horse in the street and collided with the carriage of His Royal Highness Zhao Wang, Sun Jing explained it in detail.
Duke Ningguo's face immediately darkened when he looked at his rebellious son who had caused such a disaster.
"His Royal Highness Prince Zhao has stated that he is not in a position to teach the Duke's son, so he ordered this servant to bring Liu Lang back. This is a family matter of the Ningguo Mansion, so please handle it yourself. I hope you won't blame me."
"What are you talking about, Manager Sun?"
Duke Ningguo immediately ordered someone to pass on the family rules. Sun Jing saw that he could not stay any longer and took his leave with a bow.
I heard that Duke Ningguo had punished Lin Yang by making him kneel in the ancestral hall for three days, and even his wife's pleas were useless. Gu Ningxi drank her cold tea comfortably. It seemed that this guy would be in peace for a while.
Gu Ningzheng had also knelt in the ancestral hall before, so of course these two good friends had to share the difficulties.
Zhen Yuan, who had only just learned these details in Prince Zhao's mansion, was shocked when he realized, "So it turns out that the sixth son of the Lin family hit Lord Gu's carriage?"
"Yes." Gu Ningxi nodded.
The common people only knew that they were all high-ranking officials and nobles, and could not distinguish between a marquis's mansion and a prince's mansion. Moreover, the carriage of Prince Zhao's mansion was indeed present later.
Sun Jing didn't mention Lord Gu in his reply to Duke Ning. According to his Highness, the matter could be handled solely by Prince Zhao's Mansion, and Lord Gu didn't need to be involved. If Lin Yang had been sensible, he wouldn't have mentioned it further. He had already offended Prince Zhao's Mansion, and if he had also involved the Marquis Xuanping Mansion, his guilt would have been even greater.
"But why is His Highness in Lord Gu's carriage?" Xie Qian was curious.
Gu Ningxi said casually, "It's all to avoid being summoned by His Majesty."
It was no secret within the court that His Majesty was interested in selecting a concubine for Prince Zhao. Xie Qian smiled knowingly, "Then Lin Liulang is truly unlucky."
"Yes, that's why we should avoid doing bad things in our daily lives, otherwise we will suffer retribution sooner or later."
Gu Ningxi picked up a piece of cake and spoke with inspiration.
The two of them were chatting and laughing happily. Lu Jing sat the farthest away, and the familiar feeling of displeasure and boredom surged into his heart again.
He looked at the person chatting and laughing, and somehow he remembered the scene of him falling into his arms. At that time, he lowered his head slightly and could see the delicate neck like white jade and a few strands of hair hanging down.
Lu Jing drank a cup of tea and suppressed the distracting thoughts in his mind.
After hearing the news from the Ningguo Mansion, Gu Ningxi felt refreshed. Even when she returned to her duty room in the afternoon to look through the complex Ministry of Works blueprints, she felt full of energy.
…
Shortly after the lunch break, Sun Jing entered the study and reported, "Your Highness, the Prince of Ningguo has sent a visiting card and brought the sixth son of the Lin family to apologize. The Prince also brought gifts, saying that the several stalls that were damaged by the sixth son of the Lin family were definitely not worth asking Your Highness, Prince Zhao, to compensate."
The Prince of Ningguo is of the same generation as Your Highness, so it is indeed most appropriate for him to handle this matter at the Duke's Mansion.
Lu Jing kept reviewing official documents. The country had just been established, but the sons of the nobles had already begun to develop a lifestyle of arrogance, extravagance and debauchery. This was not a good sign.
"Let them wait in the front hall."
"Yes." Sun Jing accepted the order and ordered his men to go to the hall to prepare.
"Have you checked it clearly?" Lu Jing turned over a page of official documents.
The secret guards of Prince Zhao's mansion acted very quickly, and in just half a day they had uncovered the old grudge between Lord Gu and Lin Liulang.
There wasn't much to say, as the secret guard explained one by one: "Your Highness, the first is that Lord Gu and Lin Liulang entered the court in the same year. Lord Gu was personally selected by His Majesty as the third place winner, while Lin Liulang barely made it in, ranking last. Lord Gu rose through the ranks, while Lin Liulang remained stagnant. Comparing the two, it's inevitable that jealousy and resentment would arise."
"Secondly, Lin Liulang is close friends with Gu Ningzheng, the third son of the Gu family. Furthermore, the Ningguo Duke's son is currently discussing marriage with the eldest daughter of the Gu family, who is also Gu Sanlang's biological sister. This further strengthens the kinship, and Lin Liulang consciously sides with Gu Sanlang, helping him to exclude Lord Gu."
"Third," the secret guard said meticulously, "Lin Liulang had arranged a marriage with the Marquis of Nan'an's daughter two years ago."
The Marquis of Nan'an had only one daughter. Although he adopted a son to continue the family business, the dowry for his only daughter must have been generous.
Many noble families wanted to marry into the Nan'an Marquisate, especially young men from noble families like Lin Liulang, who had no hope of inheriting the family title and needed more assets to maintain their dignity.
Having led troops abroad for three years, Lu Jing knew very little about the trivialities of marriage alliances in the capital. However, after returning to the capital, he did not seem to have heard that the Ningguo Mansion and the Nan'an Marquis Mansion had formed an in-law relationship.
"Yes," the secret guard said respectfully, "It's probably because the daughter of the Marquis of Nan'an fell in love with Master Gu at first sight in Huiwen Hall and declared that she would not marry anyone but Master Gu, so..."
Before the secret guard finished speaking, His Royal Highness Prince Zhao put down the ink brush in his hand.
【Author’s words】
Xiao Lu: Is this even possible?!
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