Chapter 107 Lu Qiongshuang's Parents
Before leaving for the Xiangfu, Jiang Xue told Xiaochun, "If the Prince Consort comes back from court, tell him that I have something to ask him. If he is free, he can come to Wenqingxuan to have dinner with me tonight."
Xiaochun nodded and said, "I will definitely pass on your message."
Jiang Xue took Fu Dong and Xu Chong to the prime minister's residence.
When they arrived at the Xiangfu, Jiang Xue's aunt Shen was also there. Seeing Jiang Xue, she hurriedly bowed and then overjoyedly stepped forward to hold Jiang Xue's arm, helping her walk into the courtyard while saying, "This morning, my father-in-law's condition has improved significantly. I think it's because your highness's daily visits and prayers have moved the heavens with sincerity."
Jiang Xue was also delighted when she heard this and asked, "Then is Grandfather willing to let someone in to see him?"
Shen smiled and nodded, saying, "Qiong Shuang has already served in the room this morning, but the two old doctors are now consulting in father-in-law's room. Your Highness, please go to the hall first to have some tea, and wait for me to send someone to inform father-in-law that you can go in after the consultation is over."
Jiang Xue nodded and said, "Uncle and aunt's filial piety is touching. I'm sure you've been very busy these days, managing the household and taking good care of grandpa. Otherwise, grandpa wouldn't have gotten better so quickly."
Seeing Shen's smiling face, she said, "Aunt, why don't you go back to your room and have a rest first. Where is Qiong Shuang? Just ask her to come and accompany me, so that we two sisters can talk."
Shen looked at Jiang Xue lovingly, and admired her thoughtfulness and attentiveness. If one day her daughter could grow up to be like Jiang Xue, she would die with peace of mind.
Thinking of Lu Qiongshuang, she sighed softly.
"Your Highness, Qiong and his wife have just returned to their own courtyard. I will send someone to call them." She hesitated for a long time before speaking again: "Your Highness, please forgive me for saying something disrespectful. I am a humble woman and I think I treat you as my own flesh and blood."
Seeing her like this, Jiang Xue understood about 70% of it and said, "My aunt and I are originally blood relatives. If my aunt wants to say something, just say it. How can I blame you?"
Shen smiled, with a helpless expression, and said: "Your Highness knows Qiong Shuang's personality best. She is not young anymore. In recent days, one is because of the instructions of her father-in-law during his illness, and the other is because of my anxiety as a mother, I want to find a good marriage for her."
She looked at Jiang Xue tentatively and said, "I had chosen a man and wanted her to go take a look. But she refused to go no matter how much I persuaded her. I'm already busy with many things, and she made me so angry that blisters appeared on the corners of my mouth."
Jiang Xue understood, but did not continue. She just pretended to be surprised and asked, "Is this true? Aunt, why don't you tell me which families you have taken a fancy to? If I know more, I will know how to persuade Qiong Shuang."
Shen looked embarrassed, and after thinking for a while, she said to Jiang Xue, "Okay. Then Your Highness, please follow me to the hall and sit down. It's not good for you to stand here in the wind for too long."
Jiang Xue nodded and said with a smile, "Then please come in, aunt."
After they sat down in the house, Shen asked the maid to serve tea and cakes, and then sent all the servants away.
She said, "Originally, it was something that had not been decided yet. I am afraid that people would laugh at me if I tell you now. But Your Highness is one of my family members after all, so I will tell you everything."
"The families I picked for Qiong Shuang are mostly nobles in the court. Although my father-in-law said that character is more important than family background when choosing a son-in-law, Qiong Shuang has the support of the prime minister's mansion after all, and my aunt is the current queen. Her family background is there anyway, so I don't want my daughter to be inferior. Therefore, I always choose children with outstanding character and appearance from similar families."
Jiang Xue listened, took a sip of tea, and nodded: "Aunt's consideration is for her own good. So which ones did she choose?"
Shen listed several of them. Apart from the son of the Minister of War Chonghuan and the young General Zheng from the family of Duke Xu whom Jiang Xue had heard of earlier, there were also several sons of noble families and ministers of the third rank in the court. Anyone who had children of the right age and with good reputation in their families were also included in her list of candidates.
Jiang Xue was a little amused and helpless after hearing this. With so many candidates, was Aunt Shen planning to choose a husband for Lu Qiongshuang, or was she planning to take her to the market?
She thought for a moment and asked, "Among so many men, there must be one that you particularly like, right? I wonder which family he is from?"
Shen smiled awkwardly and said, "Yes, there are a lot, but I'm afraid she won't like them. I think the more the better. I'll take my time to choose and I'll eventually find something she likes."
"In terms of reputation and fame, the best one must be Chong Feiyun, the eldest son of the Minister of War Chong. If we talk about young and promising people, it must be General Zheng from the Xu family, who was appointed by the Holy Ancestor to inherit the title of Marquis of Zhenyuan."
As expected, Jiang Xue lowered her eyebrows and thought - I'm afraid it's not because the more the better. The Prime Minister's Mansion still mainly likes these two people, but I'm afraid that my uncle and aunt haven't decided which one yet, so they say more candidates to mix them together to avoid any gossip and trouble in the future.
"I have heard of the name of General Zheng. He is an upright person, just like his grandfather, loyal, brave and good at fighting. Although there have not been any major wars in our Great Ji Dynasty for many years, his own Zheng family army trains every day and never slacks off. They have a strict military style and have always been praised as a promising young man." Jiang Xue said.
"He is just the son of the Minister of War..." Jiang Xue frowned, "I don't know much about the public opinion of this person. Aunt, why don't you tell me what kind of character and temperament this person has?"
Shen became interested when she heard this, and said hurriedly, "The eldest son of Lord Chong is also brave and capable. His mother's surname is Xie, and she is the third daughter of the Xie family in Chenzhou. With Lord Chong's upright character and the upbringing of the Xie family's daughter, how can a child raised like this have bad character?"
Jiang Xue frowned. She had never asked who Chonghuan's wife was, but she didn't expect that she was the daughter of Chenzhou Xie.
The Xie family of Chenzhou was one of the three major aristocratic families in Ji State. When aristocratic families married each other, they never looked at official positions, power, or wealth, but only family background. If a person was not of high family background but was still favored by them, it meant that he had outstanding character.
Chonghuan was not a descendant of a high-class family. He had worked his way up through all the hardships on his own. It was only then that he could be considered to have brought honor to the family. The Xie family was actually willing to marry their daughter to him - the implication of this was self-evident.
Since my grandfather ascended the throne, after three dynasties, the State of Ji began to emphasize imperial examinations over recommendations, and to value poor families over aristocratic families - but in the end, the status of the three major aristocratic families could not be easily shaken.
However, the three great families also took some actions to better protect themselves. In order to show their position and keep themselves out of trouble, they were unwilling to marry into the court.
Therefore, since the beginning of this dynasty, those who can marry into the three major families are extremely rare - how could she not have heard that Chonghuan married a daughter of the Xie family?
Could it be that his temper is so stubborn and bad that people prefer to talk about him and ignore his wife?
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