"So this is also the reason why the Princess took the initiative to help me contact a famous doctor last time?"
Wen Zhu continued to ask.
There was a gleam in her eyes, and it was obvious that she cared deeply about this issue.
"Yes, that's right. After all, the Crown Prince had been childless, which made His Excellency very worried, so the Princess stepped in to help solve the problem."
Aunt Mei nodded and said.
Her answer was simple and clear, without any concealment.
"But why is your attitude towards the young lady completely different?"
Wen Zhu raised his doubts directly.
There was a hint of determination in her voice, as if this question had been weighing on her mind and she couldn't let it go.
Upon hearing this, Nanny Mei's expression changed slightly, and she then signaled Su Yue to temporarily retreat outside the door and wait.
Noticing that Wen Zhu was still staring at her, waiting for an answer, she coughed lightly and said, "It's mainly because of personal reasons that we don't get along well with each other."
There was a hint of helplessness in her eyes, and it was obvious that this matter was not that simple.
"Madam Mei, please tell me more about the inner workings of the palace, so that I can better understand how to behave appropriately when I see them again in the future."
Wen Zhu begged.
Her eyes were full of sincerity and expectation, hoping to get more guidance.
After a brief hesitation, Nanny Mei slowly began to explain, "Because the family has few descendants, the prince has only one daughter, born to the princess. This daughter has married and moved far away. As for the crown prince, he was born to another concubine. Because he is the only legitimate heir in the entire family, the prince officially named him as the heir to ensure the continuation of the bloodline."
"Since the princess dotes on her daughter so much, why would she be willing to let her marry so far away?"
Wen Zhu was full of doubts about this and raised this question that was bothering her to Aunt Mei.
Faced with Wen Zhu's questioning, Aunt Mei couldn't help but sigh again.
I thought to myself that this child was indeed not easy to deal with. He could always find something unreasonable during the conversation.
"Regarding the true circumstances of this matter, no one in the palace has ever dared to say a word..."
Hearing this, Wen Zhu immediately said in a pleading tone, "Please, Aunt Mei, please tell me all this. I promise I will never tell anyone else."
Her eyes were full of sincerity.
Seeing this, Madam Mei could only shake her head helplessly, "Alas, no one can disobey the Emperor's order."
Then she sighed deeply, seeming unusually heavy.
After noticing something unusual, Wen Zhu immediately asked, "In other words, this marriage was arranged by the emperor himself?"
Aunt Mei was silent for a moment and then nodded in response, confirming her guess.
After understanding this, Wen Zhu lowered his head and said softly, "Even if she was sent to a faraway place to get married, there should still be a chance to see her in two or three years, right? This way, we won't be separated forever."
However, Aunt Mei gently took the handkerchief in her hand and wiped the tears that were about to overflow from the corners of her eyes. She said with a choked voice, "I'm afraid that after this departure, we will be separated forever and may never see each other again in this life."
Wen Zhu was shocked after hearing this, "How could this happen?!"
She could hardly believe what she heard.
Seeing the girl's confused expression, Aunt Mei took a deep breath before slowly telling the truth: "My cousin was sent to Beiyou."
Beiyou?
Wen Zhu was stunned.
It is a neighboring country located northwest of Daliang, where most people live a nomadic life.
After realizing this, Wen Zhu expressed his thoughts in disbelief: "Could it be that this is not an ordinary wedding ceremony, but a means for countries to establish friendly relations - a marriage alliance?"
Nanny Mei lowered her head slightly and explained in a low voice, "Strictly speaking, that's indeed the case. At that time, the Emperor even specially bestowed upon her the title 'Princess Changping'. But do you know what this title represents?"
After hearing this, Wen Zhu just shook his head, indicating that he knew nothing about it.
Conferring the title of princess on the daughter of a royal family and sending her to Beiyou as a marriage partner is a major national event that everyone should know about.
"In the past, it was Daliang who suppressed Beiyou, and Beiyou showed us friendship and paid tribute. But now the situation has changed. We don't have the money to fight Beiyou, and even defending the border is already a struggle. Now we have to send women over to marry them. The emperor feels ashamed and doesn't want to make it public."
Aunt Mei spoke slowly, her tone revealing helplessness and heaviness.
Aunt Mei's face was gloomy and her eyes were filled with deep sighs.
After hearing this, Wen Zhu was thoughtful and vaguely understood something in his heart.
This emperor was actually quite unlucky. Since he took office, natural disasters have continued to occur, either droughts causing crop failure, or floods ravaging the fields, and there have also been locust plagues, hail, freezing rain, earthquakes and other disasters one after another.
Once a natural disaster occurs, it will inevitably affect agricultural production and lead to a sharp drop in grain output.
The lives of ordinary people became increasingly difficult. In order to appease the people and stabilize the political situation, the emperor had to significantly reduce taxes and allocate limited financial resources for post-disaster relief.
As a result, the national treasury was quickly emptied and the country's overall strength declined. The neighboring countries took the opportunity to make moves, especially Beiyou, which frequently invaded the border.
"At that time, the Princess went to beg our Duke, asking him to help my cousin. The Duke went to the palace and asked for permission to initiate the war, guaranteeing that the Fu family army was fully capable of resisting Beiyou's invasion on its own, without sacrificing royal women in exchange for peace. The Duke argued with officials from the Ministry of Revenue and the Ministry of War in the palace for three days and three nights, but ultimately, due to insufficient military funds, large-scale military operations were impossible. Forced by necessity, the Emperor finally decided to marry my cousin to Beiyou as a peace agreement."
Having said that, Aunt Mei sighed softly, a trace of regret that was hard to conceal revealed between her brows.
"Even if it's a marriage alliance, there should be some dowry and ceremonial objects, right?"
Wen Zhu asked with a little confusion, she believed that such etiquette should not be omitted.
"They did prepare several carts of dowry, but it was actually just property, supposedly given to the groom, but actually compensation. As for the so-called royal procession, there was virtually no arrangement. Late that night, accompanied by a very small entourage, my cousin quietly left the capital. Even the official conferment of the title of Princess Changping was done in the utmost secrecy. If it weren't for someone in the know, the outside world would never have known about this major event."
Aunt Mei shook her head and continued, "Poor cousin! Although she comes from a noble family and is only two or three years older than you, she was sent to live with the nearly forty-year-old Beiyou Khan, who already has seven or eight wives."
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