As for the matter of the Crown Prince marrying Duanhua, Yan Huisheng didn’t elaborate much in his letter, which intrigued Su Rong.
After folding the letter, she recalled what Zhou Gu had said earlier and glared at him, "Duanhua is quite good. Why can’t she be the Crown Prince’s consort? If the Crown Prince is marrying her, there must be a reason, maybe he truly thinks she’s suitable."
Zhou Gu glanced at her and didn’t argue, "Fine, either way it’s not our affair."
Smiling in exasperation, Su Rong heard his tone and thought that Duanhua had greatly offended him.
She put down the letter and after pondering, said, "I haven’t written to Duanhua in a long time. I’m sure she’s angry with me now."
"What’s there to write? You need rest." Zhou Gu dragged her away, "Hurry up and have dinner. After dinner, go rest."
Su Rong reluctantly agreed, "Alright!"
The next morning, after attending court, the Nanchu King glared at her several times. Su Rong retaliated with glares of her own, leaving the Nanchu King speechless.
After court, Su Rong and the court officials went to the Council Hall. Throughout the session, she received countless concerns for her health.
Half a month later, Su Rong received a reply from the Lady of the Su Family, and Zhou Gu also obtained a letter from the Duke Residence.
They sat opposite each other, reading the letters under the lamp.
In her letter, the Lady of the Su Family questioned whether the wedding date was set too hastily. She worried that after arranging the weddings for her six sisters, she would hardly have time to return from Jiangzhou and would have to rush to attend the ceremony.
After skim reading the contents, she asked Zhou Gu, "Why do you look like that? What was written in the letter?"
"My grandfather is retired and he says he will come with my grandmother, as well as my mother. The letter also states that my elder sister-in-law feels bad for my little nephew, she’s letting my mother bring him along." Zhou Gu said without uttering a word.
Su Rong laughed, "I see. Let me have a look."
Zhou Gu handed over the letter.
After reading, Su Rong couldn’t contain her laughter, "I never expected that the old Duke would retire so soon."
"It’s not early. My grandfather is seventy this year." Zhou Gu sighed, "He should have retired long ago. Were it not for His Majesty’s suppression of the Crown Prince and control over the Duke Residence all those years, my grandfather would have retired a few years earlier."
Su Rong was amazed, "Already seventy, huh? The old Duke was still fighting wars with Dawei just a few months ago, which made me mistakenly believe he’s still at his prime."
She handed the letter back to Zhou Gu, "Grandfather also asked in your letter if our wedding is being rushed. What do you think? At such an old age, and with grandmother and mother, as well as my mother in the mix, it would not be good to rush their journey. What if their bodies can’t take it and they fall ill on the way? Shall we postpone it?"
Zhou Gu sighed, "Okay."
"Now it’s April, it was originally planned for August, let’s just push it to the end of the year!" Su Rong said: "Besides, the wedding attire is heavy and thick. If the weather is hot, it would be extremely uncomfortable to wear."
"Okay." Zhou Gu had no objections.
Although he was eager to get married, the safety of family is more important.
As a result, the next day, the old Minister of Rites received a message from the Princess, saying that the wedding was postponed until December. He was told not to hurry, and to carry out the customary rituals slowly.
The Minister of Rites was dumbfounded. He turned to Fen Ling and asked, "Why did the Princess change her mind?"
He hadn’t forgotten that despite his earnest persuasion, he couldn’t convince the King to change the date. The Princess and her consort were so eager to get married that he was almost forced into premature retirement.
Fen Ling whispered, "It’s because the old Duke of the Daliang Duke Residence has retired. He and the eldest Princess, the Duchess, want to come to Nanchu to attend the ceremony, but they won’t make it in time. To allow them to travel at a slower pace, the date was postponed."
The Minister of Rites immediately exclaimed, "Oh, thank the old Duke."
Fen Ling laughed out loud.
The Minister of Rites felt a weight lift off him, "In that case, I need to take a break, rest for three days. I’ve been working myself to death these past few days."
Fen Ling couldn’t bring herself to tell him, "I’m afraid you might only be able to rest for a day at most. The day after tomorrow, Yanjin and I are being transferred to the Ministry of Works."
"What?" The Minister of Rites was shocked and raised his voice.
Fen Ling sighed, "As you know, we need to repair the dike. The Ministry of Works has a lot of work this year and they can’t keep up, especially with the arrival of the spring rain."
The Minister of Rites was speechless. After a long while, he let out a deep sigh, "Ahh, I am destined to a life of toil. Come on, let’s go!"
The Princess and her consort are no longer in a hurry to get married, wouldn’t the people they assigned to assist the Ministry of Rites be sent back?
Cui Yanjin, though small, had become thin from exhaustion. He was at the age where his body should be growing stronger, and he felt drained. One evening, he told Cui Xingzhi, "Cousin, I regret coming to Nanchu. This isn’t a life fit for people."
Cui Xingzhi looked at him, although thin from exhaustion, he had grown taller, and no longer resembled the somewhat robust young master from before.
He laughed, "Just get past this year and it will be all right. I’ve heard that the Princess has postponed the wedding, so your Ministry of Rites should not be so busy."
Cui Yanjin immediately said, "But that doesn’t apply to me. Although my sister-in-law postponed the wedding date, Brother Feng and I have been transferred to the Ministry of Works. We’re still as busy as ever. I’ve been reading into the late hours every night, and I’m not getting enough sleep. I’ve never worked so hard before, I can’t even wake up for martial arts practice in the morning."
It’s hard for him to persevere through this, regardless of how late he stays up, he insists on practicing martial arts for half an hour every morning. Otherwise, he fears his martial arts would rust, and he would be killed by Dawei ten years later when they go to war.
Cui Xingzhi patted his head, "I have written to our grandfather, but he hasn’t replied yet. According to my cousin, if we can convince our grandfather, more people from our family will come. If descendants from the Cui family can join the Nanchu court, it will be easier for you, me, and our cousin."
"Really?" Cui Yanjin’s eyes lit up. "I really hope someone can come and help me out."
Cui Xingzhi flicked his forehead, "Even if people come, your workload won’t decrease. It’s just that the Cui family in Nanchu would no longer be only supported by the two of us brothers. So relatively speaking, things will be a bit easier, but only just."
The bond they had with their cousin and sister-in-law, born from fighting side by side at the battlefield, could not be compared to ordinary bonds. As long as the two of them could behave properly and work hard, their future careers would also have no comparison. It’s still up to them to support the Cui family, only now they wouldn’t have to fight alone anymore.
The Ye Xiang Residence in Nanchu is powerful, and although her sister-in-law doesn’t fear or guard against the Ye Xiang Residence, they, as descendants of the Cui family and the relatives behind their cousin, naturally shouldn’t let their cousin be without strong assistance. This way, their future generations can avoid ending up like the Nangong family, without anyone to check on them.
Cui Yanjin didn’t fully understand; he obviously lacked the talent that Cui Xingzhi had, who had been cultivated by Mister Cui since childhood. Being raised freely and being younger, he didn’t fully understand Cui Xingzhi’s words. Clasping his hands together and muttering prayers he said, "Come quickly, my cousins, and share in my suffering."
Cui Xingzhi: "..."
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