Chapter 226 The Selection of the Third Prince's Consort
Min Yuexi fell into deep thought.
The man is dead; if she marries him, she'll only be a widow in name only!
Marrying a dead man is indeed a highly likely proposition, as few would compete with her for it.
Although she was dead, once she married into the family, she became the second wife of the General of the State, her status changed completely, and she was no longer the disgraced Miss Min of the Marquis of Xuanping's mansion.
Although the General of the State's mansion was nearly deserted, she could still stand out even on the merit list of the dead members of the Yuan family. She would not be afraid even when facing the Crown Princess.
By leveraging the achievements and connections of the General of the State, it would be easy to gain some benefits for the Marquis of Xuanping's family.
If her father can see through all this, why should she worry about him not fawning over her and begging her for favors in the future?
As long as her father wants her to help the Marquis of Xuanping's family, he won't easily offend her.
At that time, wouldn't she be in charge of everything in the Marquis of Xuanping's mansion?
With this in mind, Min Yuexi had already made up her mind.
"What? Have you thought it through?" Wei Jia looked at Min Yuexi with amusement.
Min Yuexi nodded seriously, "I've thought it through. Sister Weijia is right. The General's Mansion is the best place for me! I'm willing to marry into it!"
Wei Jia smiled and said, "Then we'll have to plan this carefully. You can't just marry a dead person off like that!"
***
Min Qiaoshi was naturally unaware of the schemes between Wei Jia and Min Yuexi.
Right now, she is strolling around the south city with Madam Zheng.
The carriage of the Duke of Jin's mansion stopped at the street corner, and two old ladies dressed in plain clothes, accompanied by several maids, strolled around slowly and leisurely.
After a period of recuperation, Madam Zheng's health has improved considerably. Although she has not yet fully recovered to her pre-poisoning condition, she can still walk normally.
Now, Mu Jin has opened a clinic in the southern part of the city with her son and four apprentices she selected from the village.
The money to open the clinic was naturally provided by Madam Min.
Min Qiao didn't care about the money. But Wei Jia and Mu Jin signed a detailed and rigorous contract, clearly defining their rights, responsibilities, and profit distribution.
In just over a month, the clinic has already made a name for itself and is extremely busy every day.
Fortunately, Mu Jin was a person who knew what was important and what was urgent, so she never dared to delay going to check on Madam Zheng's pulse every three days.
In order to improve Madam Zheng's health as soon as possible, Mu Jin did everything she could.
While out shopping today, Madam Zheng also wanted to visit Mulan's clinic. After all, she was her savior. If she could help the clinic gain recognition and attract more patients, that would be good.
But when the two of them saw the long queue outside the clinic from afar, Madam Zheng lost all interest in going in.
They already have enough patients; it seems they don't need her to use her name to attract more patients.
Seeing the children bustling around, Madam Min Qiao and Madam Zheng didn't go in to disturb Mu Jin. Instead, they led their people past the clinic and went elsewhere.
Even the children are so busy, wouldn't they just be causing trouble if they went in?
"I didn't expect Dr. Mu to have so many patients." Madam Zheng couldn't help but sigh, then smiled and said, "However, with her excellent medical skills, it's normal for her to have many patients."
Madam Min Qiao also smiled and said, "Speaking of which, the fact that her clinic was able to open so quickly is largely thanks to the shop you gave her. With such a good location, any business she does is bound to be successful."
Madam Zheng smiled and changed the subject, "I heard your niece went to the palace? Why did you decide to send her there?"
Madam Min sighed, "How could I have sent her in? It was the Seventh Princess who took the initiative to request her presence."
Madam Zheng said with some concern, "Recently, the Seventh Princess and the Third Prince have been getting quite close, and your niece has been following the Seventh Princess around. Be careful not to attract attention and get caught in the crossfire."
Madam Min frowned, a vague unease creeping into her heart.
The Seventh Princess and the Third Prince are getting close? What's going on here?
***
Meanwhile, in the palace, Li Sanqi was discussing his choice of a princess consort with the Third Prince.
Ever since Li Sanqi cried in front of the Third Prince that day, the Third Prince had someone inquire in detail about the past conflict between Li Sanqi and the Crown Prince.
Thus, the idea of winning over Li Sanqi and taking advantage of him arose.
So, they sent a lot of good things to Li Sanqi's palace one after another.
Li Sanqi, seizing the opportunity, began to associate with the Third Prince.
Soon, Consort Liu was frequently summoned to the Empress's palace to keep her company, and she became a favorite of the Empress.
Occasionally, the Empress would bring Consort Liu to the Empress Dowager to show filial piety, creating a harmonious and beautiful scene.
People in the harem are adept at changing their allegiance to those in power. Seeing that the Empress and Consort Liu were getting close, Consort Liu's status in the palace rose accordingly, and her food, clothing, and daily necessities improved significantly compared to before.
Consequently, the Third Prince also visibly benefited. For one thing, his younger brothers were noticeably more affectionate towards him. Even the Fifth Prince, who only considered the Crown Prince his elder brother, would affectionately call him Third Brother.
The Third Prince was naturally in a great mood.
However, this doesn't prove anything.
To further test Li Sanqi, he deliberately told Li Sanqi that he was almost twenty years old and still hadn't settled his marriage, and didn't know what kind of woman his father and mother would choose for him.
Li Sanqi immediately stated that this was not a matter of her word.
So, a few days later, the Empress ordered the Imperial Household Department to submit a list of eligible women from various families.
Afterwards, they invited Consort Liu Hui to come and make selections together.
Of course, Li Sanqi also had to accompany them and offer advice.
Ultimately, the three selected three candidates, and the final choice would be left to Emperor Xiaozhao.
However, before that, it didn't stop Li Sanqi from using the famous list to curry favor with Li Chengrui.
"Third brother, come and take a look. These ladies are all top-notch ladies from prestigious families."
The three portraits that Li Sanqi presented as if they were treasures.
Li Chengrui was surprised to hear the result so quickly and asked with delight, "Let me see, who did Mother choose for me?"
Li Sanqi smiled and corrected, "These three weren't chosen by the Empress Dowager. They were chosen for you by Consort Hui and me."
Li Chengrui looked at Li Sanqi in surprise, "Wasn't it chosen by the Empress Dowager?"
Li Sanqi said matter-of-factly, "Of course not. The Empress Dowager said that Consort Hui is Third Brother's real mother. There is no one in the world who loves Third Brother more than Consort Hui. For Third Brother's sake, Consort Hui will also choose the most suitable princess for Third Brother."
Li Chengrui was somewhat taken aback, but also pleasantly surprised. However, a bad premonition soon rose in his heart.
When the portraits were unfolded, the first one read: "Xie Huanhuan, age fifteen, daughter of the Vice Minister of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices."
Li Chengrui's bad premonition was confirmed.
He hurriedly unfolded the second painting and saw next to the portrait: "Liu Qingxue, age fourteen, daughter of a Hanlin scholar."
Li Chengrui's heart finally died.
Two daughters of fifth-rank officials... just like his mother.
I'm afraid that if the Empress were to choose a consort for him, the women she would select would be better than the ones chosen by his mother.
The Third Prince looked at Li Sanqi with a strange expression. Was she really not doing it on purpose?
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