Chapter 407 Adding Gifts
Qi Rong didn't know what was wrong with him, but when he heard that Xiao Liu was going to marry his sister, he felt vaguely uneasy. He sat on a big rock in the back garden and pondered for a long time.
After sighing, she laughed through her tears. It was probably because her younger sister, who had just returned, was getting married again that she felt this way. She knew that Ming Shu was not doing well, but now, by some twist of fate, she was going to marry Xiao Liu.
It's not that Xiao Liu is bad. He's watched Xiao Liu grow up, and he's a person of noble character and kind nature. It's just that for some reason, there's always an emptiness in his heart.
It felt like something that belonged to him was missing. Qi Rong smiled bitterly, looked up at the sky, and tried to find the reason for his bad mood.
"Second Brother? Why are you sitting here?"
Qi Rong turned around abruptly upon hearing Lin Changning's voice: "Xiao Liu? Weren't you supposed to be seeing Shu'er and Yue'er off? What are you doing here?"
Lin Changning leaped up and sat down next to Qi Rong on the boulder: "I've already sent the princess and the others back. The princess has taken the princess and my mother back to the inner courtyard. She said there are still female relatives to entertain there, so I took a break and slipped out to find you. There's something I want to ask you."
Qi Rong nodded: "Ask away."
Lin Changning's face showed a hint of struggle: "I remember that the wedding has many procedures, but now that I'm telling everyone that the group leader and I have exchanged betrothal gifts, I'm wondering if we should find a day to make up for the betrothal and naming procedures for the princess? And then there's the betrothal gift. You know my second brother. I come from a humble family, so I don't know what kind of betrothal gifts to give. That's why I'm asking you for advice."
Qi Rong composed himself, looked seriously at Lin Changning who was counting the items on his fingers, and suddenly asked, "Do you like Shu'er?"
Lin Changning looked up at Qi Rong with a blank expression: "Huh?"
Qi Rong looked at Lin Changning's blank expression and knew that the child was probably not enlightened. He rubbed his aching temples and said, "Alright, we have to act quickly today. If you don't like Shu'er, I will help you. We can refuse the marriage after a while. Don't worry about my aunt and uncle being angry. I will take full responsibility."
Lin Changning turned her head and looked at Qi Rong with some confusion: "Huh? Why did you cancel the marriage? I think the princess is quite nice."
Qi Rong stared intently at Lin Changning: "Are you determined to marry Shu'er?"
Lin Changning nodded: "Of course, the princess is very nice, and Yue'er is also very cute."
Qi Rong looked at Lin Changning with a hint of suspicion, and stared at her without saying a word.
Lin Changning thought Qi Rong was worried that he might treat Yue'er and the princess badly in the future, so he blinked and raised his hand to swear: "Second brother, are you worried that I will treat the princess badly? I, Lin Changning, hereby swear that I will never mistreat the princess and Yue'er, I will never take a concubine, and I will never make the princess and Yue'er unhappy. If I break this oath, may I, I, Lin Changning, die a horrible death on the battlefield and leave no whole corpse!"
"Good! Good, you brat! I tried to get you to take the blame before, but you wouldn't. Now you're willing. Eighth Brother, look how vicious the oath Changning made is."
Li Mingxiu laughed as he led Li Mingde over from the other side. Li Mingxiu winked at Lin Changming and said, "How come I didn't know you had fallen deeply in love with my Shu'er? Why didn't you want to take the blame when I wanted you to?"
Lin Changning thought to herself, naturally because the die was cast, what was the point of resisting? No, it was pointless. Besides, she had never disliked the princess. One of them refused a political marriage, and the other concealed their identities. What was wrong with that?
However, outward appearances must be shown to the princess; the faces of the Shen family are truly disgusting.
Qi Rong shifted his gaze to the rare and exotic plants in the garden: "If you want to make up for the previous steps, then go and personally hunt a wild goose to propose marriage. As for asking the name, find some matchmakers to come to your door. After the marriage is auspicious, just give some jewelry and silk. My aunt and uncle know that your family is not wealthy, so they will not make things too difficult for you. I will have the people in the Prince's Mansion help you prepare the betrothal gifts."
Lin Changning stroked his chin thoughtfully, wondering where he could hunt a wild goose at this time of year, when Li Mingxiu flipped onto the boulder and punched Lin Changning on the forehead.
"If you treat my sister badly, just wait and see how I deal with you later."
Lin Changning rubbed his forehead and looked at Li Mingxiu with annoyance: "Your Highness!"
Qi Rong followed Lin Changning's gaze and looked at Li Mingxiu: "Big brother, don't be silly."
Li Mingxiu rolled his eyes and said, "You do know how to protect your little brother-in-law."
After finishing speaking, he sat upright on the rock, looked at Lin Changning, and was satisfied: "If I were to say I would marry you, that would be fine. You are good-looking, skilled in martial arts, and have decent character. Young man, be good to my sister in the future. Shu'er was sent to the capital at the age of 14 for the sake of the Prince's mansion, and endured four years of hardship. Now that she has returned home, her life has just improved a bit, but she was used as a hostage by the Shen family because of her father's uprising..."
As Li Mingxiu spoke, he lowered his eyes, feeling a pang of heartache for his younger sister's experiences over the past few years. If his mother hadn't found Lin's mother in advance, his sister would probably have been sent to the Shen family again.
Father is in a difficult position at the banquet today. His soldiers depend on him for their livelihood. Although he loves his children, he cannot save the lives of his soldiers.
If my mother hadn't arrived in time, I'm sure my father would have agreed to the marriage alliance with the Shen family after careful consideration.
That's what it's like to be born into royalty—profit comes first.
Li Mingxiu sighed, his smile slowly fading, and he took back his joking words, looking at Lin Changning seriously.
"Lin Changning, if you treat my sister and Yue'er badly, I will definitely kill you in the future."
Lin Changning straightened his posture and bowed to Li Mingxiu, saying, "Your Highness, rest assured."
Li Mingxiu responded to Lin Changning, then smiled and said, "But overall, I still want to thank you for protecting Shu'er today. I know your family is poor. Come with me to my courtyard later, and I will give you 10,000 taels of silver. It will make things look better when you come to deliver the betrothal gifts."
Li Mingde stood beside the boulder, leaning against it as he looked up at Lin Changning: "I'll also give you ten thousand taels, don't be too stingy."
Lin Changning bowed to the two of them with a pleased smile: "Thank you both, Your Highnesses!"
Li Mingxiu patted Lin Changning on the shoulder: "Still calling him Prince?"
Lin Changning followed the pole and climbed up: "Hey, Xiao Liu greets Eighth Brother, Eldest Brother, and Second Brother."
He cupped his hands in greeting and bowed to the group, which made the three of them laugh. Qi Rong let out a sigh of relief and said, "Second brother will also add ten thousand taels to your account."
Lin Changning cupped his hands in a broad smile, his eyes practically disappearing as he bowed to Qi Erge again: "You three brothers are too kind, too kind indeed! I, the sixth brother, would be impolite to refuse such hospitality, haha~"
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