Chapter 7 Chapter 7 is a perfect match for my brother.
"At the beginning, you ran to mother and father's yard and overheard the news that you were going to be sent away. You didn't want to, so you ran to my room to complain. At that time, you were only six years old, so young, and I was not willing to let you go either." Xie Helan stroked Xie Tingyu's cheek, "Now that you are back, I am really happy."
Xie Helan is now twenty-six years old, eight years older than Xie Tingyu.
Years of loneliness in the deep palace had already worn down this young man's gentle heart to a mere shell, and he only showed some life when he saw his relatives.
Xie Tingyu said, "Life at Shangqing Monastery is austere, but it does temper one's will. As the saying goes, 'tear one's mind, wear one's muscles, deprive one's body, and frustrate one's actions.' This is fate, so if you can bear it, then accept it."
After saying this, Xie Tingyu took out a peace knot woven with red rope from his bosom, with a Dharma pendant tied on it, and wrapped it around Xie Helan's wrist. "This is something I wove myself. I have been offering it in front of the Xuannv Yuanjun Temple for seven days. May Xuannv bless you and keep my brother safe."
Xie Helan nodded: "You are thoughtful."
He looked Xie Tingyu up and down, and was very satisfied with his second sister. "You just returned to Jiankang, so there is no rush. But as your elder brother, my father has also told me about this matter, so I naturally have the obligation to take a look at you."
Xie Helan gave a wink, and the attendant immediately walked into the inner room. Soon, he came back with some scrolls in his arms, and placed them neatly on the small table one by one.
Xie Tingyu was startled: "What are these?"
Xie Helan said, "They are all the noble young men in Jiankang who are worthy of our Chenjun Xie family. These are all portraits that I sent people to collect. Take a look and see if there is anything you like."
"My second sister is outstanding in appearance, so naturally she needs a man with both talent and beauty to be a good match for you."
Xie Helan pulled out a scroll and unfolded it halfway, revealing the handsome figure of the man in the painting. A small note was written on the edge: "This is the second son of the Lu family of Fanyang. I saw him once at a palace banquet. He is a gentle and handsome man."
The other attendants came forward and unfolded each scroll for Xie Tingyu to appreciate and choose.
Xie Tingyu glanced over and saw that they were all handsome men. Some were as gentle as jade, some had sharp eyebrows and bright eyes, and some had eyes full of autumn water. They all came from famous and prestigious families, including the Longxi Li family, the Xingyang Zheng family, the Hedong Pei family, and so on.
It is really a dazzling array of things, with all kinds of colors, which is dazzling.
"After the autumn hunt, there will be a banquet for all the noble ladies and gentlemen to meet each other. When the time comes, sister, you must hurry up and decide on a principal and a concubine."
Xie Helan noticed Xie Tingyu staring at a painting for a long time and thought he had taken a fancy to it. "This is the youngest son of the Wang family of Langya, named Wang Qiwu. He's very lively and lovely, with a heart of utmost sincerity and kindness. Father has seen him many times at Ci'en Temple in the suburbs. How come he's already found someone he loves?"
Xie Tingyu shook his head. "Well, I remember him as a child, he loved eating all kinds of sweets and pastries. He was chubby and a little fat boy. How come he has lost so much weight? Brother, is your painting authentic?"
Xie Helan glared at Xie Tingyu and gently hit her shoulder. "How can you talk like that, kid? If you meet him, don't call him fat. Which boy likes to hear that?"
He asked curiously, "Although the Wang family of Langya's house is right next door, you were prone to illness as a child and didn't like going out. How do you know he likes sweets?"
Xie Tingyu was speechless. How could she, a lonely ghost, know anything about her original life's childhood? She hadn't thought of any excuse to cover it up when she heard a loud voice outside the hall saying, "Your Majesty has arrived!" She naturally shut her mouth and quickly stood behind Xie Helan.
Xie Helan suddenly felt a chill all over his body. The gentle and intimate atmosphere he had just had when chatting and laughing with Xie Tingyu disappeared without a trace. His back was tense and he looked as if he was facing a great enemy.
It was rumored outside the palace that Xie Helan and the current emperor treated each other with respect and were deeply in love, but Xie Tingyu felt that the rumor was untrue.
The ceremonial guards and palace servants came in a mighty procession, following a man in bright yellow casual clothes.
"I heard that your second sister had arrived, so I rushed over to see her after I finished reviewing the memorials—"
The emperor strode in and sat down on the soft couch in the center of the hall without saying anything. A palace attendant immediately made him a pot of tea.
Ji Zhao patted the soft couch without saying a word, staring at Xie Tingyu. However, Xie Helan quickly stepped forward and sat beside Ji Zhao with an expressionless face.
After looking at each other for a while, Ji Zhao stretched out his arm, hugged Xie Helan, and said with a smile: "Your second sister is really good-looking. In my opinion, she is a perfect match for my younger brother Ji Lian. It just so happens that my younger brother is eager to get married and always clamors to find a good wife. How about I act as a matchmaker and issue an order to bring the two together?"
In Xie Helan's view, this decree, which seemed to be a blessing from heaven, was equivalent to directly isolating Xie Tingyu from his official career.
The only daughter of the Chenjun Xie clan's eldest branch was Xie Tingyu. Her mother, Grand Tutor Xie, had probably already paved a path for her, waiting for the right moment to bring her into the imperial court. If Grand Tutor Xie were here, she would have immediately objected.
Xie Helan could no longer sit still and turned to look at Ji Zhao. "Your Majesty, I shouldn't refuse your grace. However, my second sister just returned to Jiankang from Shangqing Temple and is not used to being restrained. I'm afraid that there will be many conflicts between us and the emperor, which may hinder our marriage."
Ji Zhao pinched Xie Helan's waist and said, "This is a match made in heaven. Everyone knows that my brother is the most handsome man in Jiankang, well-educated, good at dancing and playing the zither, and has a beautiful handwriting. Don't miss out on such a good man. What do you think, second sister?"
She turned to Xie Helan and whispered, "If I marry you, and your sister marries my brother, it will be a closer relationship. Isn't that good?"
Xie Helan didn't answer, but just clenched his fingers secretly.
Xie Tingyu bowed and said, "Your Majesty, I have no right to refuse your kindness. However, before I left the mountain, my master gave me a fortune telling. He said that I should avoid marriage and stay away from relatives in my first year away from the temple, otherwise I might face a bloody disaster. I am afraid of causing trouble to you, so I dare not obey lightly."
After speaking some nonsense, Xie Tingyu rolled up his sleeves and looked so solemn that no one could detect any flaws in him.
Ji Zhao was speechless.
Even though these words were quite suspicious, such as if the Grand Tutor really said so? When he said it, were there other people to testify, etc., Ji Zhao could only put the matter aside for the time being.
Xie Helan looked at Xie Tingyu with a worried look on his face, sighing inwardly that his sister's horoscope was too strange. She had unexpectedly brought bad luck to him when she was young, and bad luck to her marriage when she grew up. It seemed that he would have to keep an eye out for a few outstanding young men and arrange an engagement as soon as the one-year period was over.
At this time, an attendant came into the hall quickly with a memorial in his hand and presented it to Ji Zhao with both hands.
Ji Zhao unfolded the memorial, frowned, and read through it before snapping it shut. Suddenly, his eyes narrowed in thought, as if he were lost in thought. "I heard that my second sister is studying under Grand Master Zixu, Wei Huacun, at the Shangqing Monastery?"
Xie Tingyu nodded.
Ji Zhao smiled softly, "The Taoist priest who was originally scheduled to come to Jiankang to serve as a prayer envoy was intercepted and killed by bandits on the way. Since my second sister is a disciple of Wei Yuanjun, I am relieved that you will take over the position of prayer envoy."
When she said this, her tone was nonchalant, and she had no sympathy for the deceased Taoist priest.
If Xie Tingyu could still regard the arranged marriage as a blessing from the emperor, she could see from the current appointment as the envoy of prayer that Ji Zhao was on guard against her.
No, to be more precise, we should be on guard against the Xie family of Chenjun.
The post of Prayer Envoy was established by the previous emperor. He was responsible for palace rituals, liberating wronged souls, and praying for blessings and warding off disasters.
This was because he was a licentious and immoral man, particularly fond of having sex five times a night, and when doing so, he stipulated that his men could only wear red. The previous emperor was cruel, and if he angered his men while serving him, he would either beat them with a stick or whip them, and those who could not bear it would die on the spot.
During that period, the number of male deaths within the palace skyrocketed. A palace maid, doing nighttime laundry duty, would occasionally see a red shadow passing by, and everyone would claim it was a ghost seeking their life. Therefore, the late emperor established this position to quell resentment within the harem.
The problem was that being a Prayer Envoy was considered an unclean position by both the censors and the military officers. Once appointed, one would be ostracized by the court and would have difficulty entering the Sirong Mansion.
Xie Tingyu believed that Ji Zhao's defense against her was intended to avoid the situation of "the Wang and the Ji family sharing the empire" that had prevailed during the previous emperor's reign. At that time, the Wang family of Langya held immense prestige and commanded significant military power, while the Ji family, despite being a royal family, was constrained by their power. Today, the Wang family of Langya currently holds third place, while the Yuan family of Runan and the Xie family of Chenjun are considered the twin pillars of Jiangzuo, hinting at a return to their former power.
Xie Tingyu had no choice but to refuse, as the imperial edict had already been drafted according to Ji Zhao's wishes.
Xie Helan tried to stand up and kneel down, begging Ji Zhao to retract his order. Ji Zhao, however, pushed him back onto the couch, increasing his grip so that he couldn't move.
Xie Tingyu stared at the yellow silk imperial edict and took it expressionlessly.
She was not dissatisfied with the job.
However, she was really a fake Taoist priest. She couldn't perform rituals, exorcise evil spirits, or draw talismans. So how could she make up for it? Was she supposed to use her fortune?
She had just used Master Zixu as an excuse, but she didn't expect that the emperor would use this as a pretext, and it really boomeranged back at her.
Xie Tingyu began to think about how to get away with it.
It was supposed to be a happy reunion between brother and sister, but because of the emperor's intervention, Xie Tingyu had to leave early.
When she was about to leave, another person entered the hall.
Wang Shuhe had not expected the Emperor to be there, and after hastily paying his respects to the Emperor and His Excellency, he said, "Since returning from the banquet, Your Excellency has had a severe headache. The pain is unbearable and it's difficult for you to get out of bed. I think there might be an evil spirit entering your body, and you need to recuperate for several days."
Although there was no Feng Jun in the harem, Xie Helan was a noble lord and the head of the harem. Everyone's daily life and health had to be reported to him. Therefore, after every diagnosis and treatment, Wang Shuhe would describe the patient's condition in detail to Xie Helan in person.
Moreover, the phrase "evil spirits entering the body" in his words is actually a cliché. For example, if one eats incompatible foods and causes the reverse flow of qi and blood, it can be called evil spirits. If one is depressed and phlegms form and one falls into a coma, it can also be called evil spirits entering the body.
Wang Shuhe had already secretly reached an agreement with Ji Lian that the true cause of the illness must not be revealed.
Wang Shuhe had never expected that upon hearing that an evil spirit had entered his body, the emperor, sitting on the couch, would wave his sleeves and say in a loud voice, "Since it is an evil spirit, it just so happens that my second sister is good at suppressing evil spirits. I believe that with Doctor Wang's diagnosis and treatment, and my second sister's full support, Lian'er will recover faster."
So, Xie Tingyu, who had just been given an official position, went to Ji Lian's Posha Pavilion with Wang Shuhe, carrying the freshly issued imperial edict.
The author has something to say:
----------------------
1. Wei Huacun did exist in history and was the first Grand Master of the Shangqing School. However, I only briefly quoted his story.
2. Undoubted Love and Loving One Another - From "Farewell to My Wife" by Su Wu
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
