Chapter 50 It was you, you little brat, who brought him here.
Gao Zheng was speechless and could only express his resistance through stubborn silence.
He didn't know what else he could do, and he didn't dare to ask Shen Yan to wait for him again.
Just as her grandfather said, he could wait, but could Shen Yan wait? Besides... she simply didn't want to wait.
This stalemate lasted for about a year. Just when Gao Zheng thought his resistance was merely a stubbornness in his bones and actually meaningless, things suddenly took a turn for the better.
With the conclusion of the Liu Yuan case, Shen Mingshan's reputation spread to the capital, and the emperor personally ordered him to be transferred to the Hanlin Academy.
Although he is currently only a sixth-rank lecturer, many high-ranking officials and nobles come from the Hanlin Academy. Someone like him who has won the emperor's favor is likely to go higher and further than others in the future.
Gao Zheng tried to persuade his grandfather with this, but his grandfather still thought that the Shen family's social status was too low, and that even if Shen Mingshan became a high-ranking official in the future, the family's wealth would still be meager.
Moreover, the Shen family only has one daughter, and no one will inherit the family business. Shen Mingshan is now nearly forty years old. Even if he lives to sixty, how many more years can he serve as an official and bring much benefit to the Gao family?
Because of these concerns, my grandfather hesitated to let Gao Zheng go to Beijing until two months ago when he finally relented.
But given the Gao family's status, how could they allow their eldest grandson to travel to the capital just to find a woman from a poor family? It would become a laughingstock if word got out.
So my grandfather first wrote letters to the people in the Court of Judicial Review and the Ministry of Justice, trying to find Gao Zheng a suitable position before he was allowed to enter the capital.
In this way, even if the Gao and Chen families do become related by marriage in the future, it will be because Gao Zheng's arrival in the capital to take up his post that brought about this marriage, rather than the Gao family rushing to marry into a poor family.
From the day he learned that he could enter the capital, Gao Zheng was overjoyed, hoping to see Shen Yan as soon as possible.
He knew that the Shen family had only moved to the capital at the end of last year, and at that time Shen Yan was not yet married or engaged to anyone.
It has only been a few months since they arrived in the capital. The Shen family is still unfamiliar with the people and affairs of the capital and will not easily arrange a marriage for Shen Yan. Therefore, it should be enough time for him to go there now. It should be enough time.
But now... the woman he likes is not only engaged, but also told him personally that no one forced her, and that she agreed to it herself.
"Why……"
Gao Zheng looked at Shen Yan, his eyes filled with confusion and resentment: "You... how could you be willing to marry such a person? He clearly bullied you, everyone outside is saying..."
"That's just what other people say."
Shen Yan interrupted.
“Brother Gao, the prince did not bully me. Although this marriage was indeed somewhat unexpected, it is not as outsiders say.”
"What's so unexpected?"
Upon hearing these two words, Gao Zheng immediately pressed for details.
Unable to bear it any longer, Madam Su spoke up, "Ah Zheng, this marriage is already arranged, you..."
“Mother,” Shen Yan turned her head and said gently to Madam Su, “You are pregnant, so please rest first. I will talk to Brother Gao.”
He then gestured for Gao Zheng to come out with him.
Madam Su glanced at the door, then quickly got up and took two steps forward: "Aci..."
The courtyard wasn't just filled with their own family members; palace maids from the palace had also arrived. Shen Yan and Qi Jingxuan were getting married in a few days, and even if it was a fake marriage, it wasn't good to let any bad rumors spread now.
Shen Yan simply smiled reassuringly at her: "It's alright, Mother, I know what I'm doing."
With that, he turned and walked out.
Inside the room, Madam Su watched the two figures leave and couldn't help but sigh, "Why bother... why bother?"
Shen Mingshan stood up as she did, and now stood beside her, supporting her. He couldn't help but sigh softly, "Azheng is a good boy, but..."
He shook his head and said nothing more.
They were all experienced people, and even though they didn't realize Gao Zheng had feelings for Shen Yan at first, they gradually understood after spending more time together.
However, the Gao family and the Shen family were of vastly different social standing, and the head of the Gao family had always looked down on people from poor families, so they never considered letting Shen Yan marry into the Gao family.
Therefore, they had subtly probed Shen Yan's intentions, fearing that she might secretly harbor feelings for Gao Zheng and end up heartbroken if the marriage didn't go through.
But Shen Yan was quick-witted and immediately understood their meaning. When they tried to probe her, she told them frankly that they didn't need to worry and that she had no intention of marrying into the Gao family.
After that, Shen Yan began to distance herself from Gao Zheng intentionally or unintentionally, but Gao Zheng only thought that she was too busy at home to come out often and did not notice. When she came of age, he even subtly expressed his feelings.
It was at that time that Shen Yan explicitly rejected him. In a fit of impulse, he returned to his ancestral home in Jiangzhou, where he was locked up and never came out again, nor was he able to contact the Shen family again.
The Shen family thought the matter was over and done with, but unexpectedly, he suddenly came to their door today and brought up the marriage between Qi Jingxuan and Shen Yan...
Madam Su took a deep breath and frowned, saying, "The Gao family has been kind to us, and I will never forget that. But one thing is one thing, and I will never let Aci get involved because of this."
Shen Mingshan patted her hand reassuringly: "Don't worry, if you can't bear to part with her, neither can I. As for Aci... she never had such intentions, she will explain it to Azheng herself."
Madam Su nodded, but she was still worried, so she did not go back to her room to rest. Instead, she waited in the main room, keeping a close eye on the two children.
…………
Shen Yan originally intended to take Gao Zheng to the outer room of the west wing to sit down and talk, but after thinking about it, she changed direction and came directly to a courtyard wall, indicating to the maid to keep a distance and not to come close.
Once everyone was alone, she said to Gao Zheng, "My house isn't very big; there's no garden or reception hall. Please make do with it, Brother Gao."
Gao Zheng followed her out of the main room in a daze, only coming to his senses at this moment, and hurriedly said, "This is good. I...we used to...often stand outside and talk like this."
His voice trailed off, his eyes filled with disappointment.
In the past, Shen Yan often went to the county government office to assist Shen Mingshan, and Gao Zheng also frequently went in and out of the government office. Therefore, the two often met, and occasionally when some cases came together, they could chat anywhere in the government office.
Gao Zheng had been interested in criminal investigation since childhood, while Shen Yan was always curious about things she didn't understand and was willing to learn. Over time, the two became familiar with each other.
At that time, the customs on the border were relatively open. Shen Yan was the only daughter of the Shen family, and Shen Mingshan never restricted her. She was very free to come and go as she pleased, and there were not many rules between the two of them.
But now that they've arrived in the capital, they feel constrained.
Gao Zheng felt a tightness in his chest, as if it were stuffed with cotton wool. Shen Yan pretended not to hear him and didn't respond. Instead, she continued the conversation they had had in the room.
"Your Highness has never bullied me; this is a misunderstanding."
She did not hide anything and told the whole story of what happened at the Cheng'an Marquis's residence in March. She concluded by saying, "So, in this matter, both the Prince and I were actually victims. Although I was implicated by the Prince, that was not his original intention."
Gao Zheng originally thought that Qi Jingxuan had violated his personal morality and humiliated Shen Yan, but he did not expect that the matter was more complicated than he thought.
After listening, he understood why Shen Yan did this, but he still felt aggrieved for her.
"Even so, does getting married really have to be the solution? Can't we think of other ways?"
"Marriage is a once-in-a-lifetime event. How can you agree to this so carelessly? It's simply... simply absurd!"
"It was clearly Prince Ping who caused this trouble, yet he got away scot-free and even gained a wonderful wife! But what did you do wrong? Why are you ruining your life because of him?"
"This man has always had a bad reputation, yet His Majesty favors him the most. If he mistreats you in the future, how will you endure the rest of your life in the Prince of Ping's mansion?"
Shen Yan lowered her eyes, her voice cold: "This may not be the only way, but it is certainly the safest way at present. As for the future... I haven't thought that far ahead."
With crises looming ahead, a misstep could mean the end of our lives. How can we even think about the future then? Naturally, getting through the current predicament is the most important thing.
She originally wanted to say that she had already obtained the divorce papers personally stamped by the Emperor and Consort Shu, and that she could leave at any time in the future, but after thinking about it, she decided not to say it, so as not to give Gao Zheng unnecessary hope.
Seeing that she wasn't worried at all, Gao Zheng raised his voice a few decibels: "I know this is a difficult problem, but I'm sure there are other ways!"
“Prince Ping is not someone you can entrust your life to. How can you agree to this marriage just to deal with the current predicament, Sister Shen? Why are you so foolish!”
Qi Jingxuan, who had only peeked out from behind the wall of the Shen family compound, heard this sentence before he could even see what was happening inside. His brows furrowed immediately, and he pushed hard with his legs hanging outside, gripping the top of the wall tightly with his arms, and leaned half of his body out.
"What are you so upset about? Who do you think you are, talking to me like that!"
Gao Zheng, who was talking to Shen Yan, was startled and instinctively reached out to protect Shen Yan. At the same time, he looked up in the direction from which the sound came and saw a man with a golden crown on his head and dressed in gorgeous clothes leaning against the wall, using his arms to hold onto the wall to prevent falling while glaring at him angrily.
"Who...who are you? Why are you leaning against the Shen family's wall? Leave at once!"
Gao Zheng shouted sternly.
"Why should I leave? Who are you? Why did you come to the Shen family? And what were you saying just now? Why did you have such a bad idea to marry me?"
Qi Jingxuan questioned him repeatedly, wishing he could immediately climb over the wall and exchange eight hundred rounds of insults with this person.
Gao Zheng was taken aback by his words, then suddenly realized his identity and turned to look at Shen Yan in disbelief.
Shen Yan looked at Qi Jingxuan on the wall and shook her head with a smile: "Your Highness, come down quickly, don't fall again."
Qi Jingxuan listened to her and said "Oh" as he prepared to go downstairs. Just as he was about to let go, he remembered something and asked, "Then...can I go in?"
Shen Yan nodded in agreement, and Qi Jingxuan happily climbed over the courtyard wall, walked to the door, and pretended to knock on the door.
Upon receiving Shen Yan's instructions, the maid immediately opened the courtyard gate and invited the people outside in. However, Qi Jingxuan did not come alone; Xu Jinyu, who had come with him, was also standing beside him.
Xu Jinyu was right next to Qi Jingxuan when he climbed the wall, but he didn't dare to climb over the Shen family's wall, so he didn't show himself. He just covered his face from under the wall, unable to bear looking at him.
The courtyard gate opened, and the two walked in together. Upon entering, Xu Jinyu saw the person standing beside Shen Yan and exclaimed in surprise, "Young Master Gao, it's you!"
Gao Zheng also looked surprised: "Young Master Xu"
The two looked at each other, Qi Jingxuan also puzzled, glancing at Gao Zheng and then at Xu Jinyu: "You two know each other?"
Xu Jinyu nodded: "Didn't I tell you that I met someone in Jiangzhou who is good at criminal investigation and quickly helped me find clues? It's this young master Gao."
“It always rained on the way, so it was inconvenient for him to ride a horse. He rode in my carriage and came back to the capital with me.”
Qi Jingxuan suddenly realized, then gritted his teeth: "It was you who brought him here."
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A note from the author:
Thank you so much for your support! I will continue to work hard!
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