Chapter 7 If you like it, just take it!
Tang Xinuan told the Regent, who held absolute power and could elevate anyone to the pinnacle of authority with a mere wave of his finger, that she only wanted her cousin to give her a formal title.
Prince Duan had no idea what the Regent was thinking.
But his fists were already clenched.
"Little girl, are you playing hard to get?"
Just as Tang Xinuan realized that this very flamboyant man was talking about her, she understood the meaning of playing hard to get.
"You wanted to catch him, but deliberately let go first. You wanted to control him better, so you deliberately loosened your grip. Did you want me to let go of my cousin first? But I'm afraid my cousin won't want me anymore."
The air in the study suddenly seemed to drop, and Prince Duan felt as if his second brother beside him had turned into a block of ice.
The little girl spoke so naturally, her eyes clear and bright, as if she didn't understand what Prince Duan meant at all, yet she gave a literal interpretation.
Prince Duan wiped his face vigorously. "Second Brother, why don't you rest first? I'll send this girl away."
He suspected that if the little girl stayed any longer, she would surely perish there.
"Who is my cousin?" The regent, who had been silent and had a cold expression, suddenly spoke.
Mentioning her cousin, Tang Xinuan's fair face flushed with a shy blush. "He is the heir of the Marquis of Wu'an's mansion, and he is my cousin."
"By the way, I'm looking for my cousin. I'm lost and can't find him. Can you help me find him?"
Prince Duan: "..."
The Regent smiled for no reason and took all the books related to mathematics from Tang Xinuan's arms one by one.
"I can help you find your cousin, but I can't make him marry you. These books are all rare copies, so I can't give them to you. If you want to read them, you can come here anytime."
He collected all the books and put them all on his desk.
He then pulled a jade pendant from his waist, grabbed Tang Xinuan's hand, and placed it in her palm.
“Apart from getting your cousin to give you a formal title, you can ask me for anything, and I will do it for you.”
Tang Xinuan pouted. The book was snatched back. What a stingy person.
She couldn't even get her cousin to marry her, yet she thought she was so capable.
Yes, he can't even do such a simple math problem, he must be an even bigger idiot than her.
Anyway, he gave me a jade pendant, so I should comfort him. "I know you're not smart and don't have any special skills, but you're so tall and strong, you must be in good health. You'll always be able to make a living. Don't be sad."
Regent: "..."
Prince Duan could no longer contain himself and suddenly burst into laughter.
The Regent waved his hand with a headache: "Send him to the Ministry of Revenue. When you see his cousin, just say that she got lost. Don't say a word else."
After Prince Duan led Tang Xinuan out, the Regent King gave the palace maids and eunuchs at the door a majestic look.
"Anyone who dares to utter a single word about what happened today will be beaten to death with sticks!"
"We understand." All the palace maids and eunuchs hurriedly kowtowed in an orderly fashion.
On the way, Tang Xinuan turned into a curious child and asked Prince Duan many questions.
Why are you in the palace?
Is the place my cousin is going to on his business trip very far away?
"What's your relationship with that person from earlier?"
Why didn't he come to see me off?
Are you very free?
"Is this jade pendant he gave me very valuable?"
"By the way, is it wrong for me to accept it without refusing?"
"My cousin told me I shouldn't accept things from strangers, but this is the first time I've received a gift from a stranger, and I'm so happy!"
...
Prince Duan answered her questions selectively, as if coaxing a child.
They quickly sent the person to the Ministry of Revenue.
Chu Yannuo was still worried about disaster relief. He had proposed several plans, but the Regent was not satisfied with any of them.
He was exhausted these past two days.
Suddenly, a familiar voice was heard: "Cousin—"
He glanced over instinctively and saw his cousin, dressed in a beautiful blue brocade dress, standing not far away, waving at him.
A smile gradually spread across his face as he strode over. "What brings you here?"
Tang Xinuan suddenly remembered something very important, and she tapped her head hard.
I was so anxious that tears were almost streaming down my face.
"Cousin, I've lost my cousin."
Chu Yannuo immediately understood what she meant. "You and your third sister got separated, didn't you? Were you in the palace? Who brought you here?"
As cousins who grew up together, Chu Yannuo could guess what had happened as soon as Tang Xinuan mentioned the beginning.
Tang Xinuan turned to look at Prince Duan: "This brother brought me here."
Only then did Chu Yannuo get a clear look at the Prince Duan, who was standing behind his cousin with an air of nobility and majesty.
“Prince Duan,” he bowed first, then thanked him, “my cousin is unaware of the situation in the palace and has offended Your Highness. Please forgive her.”
Prince Duan wasn't unfamiliar with Chu Yannuo; he just couldn't help but scrutinize her a little longer today.
"It's no trouble at all. I happen to be at the Ministry of Revenue on business, so I'll leave this young lady to you. Farewell."
Prince Duan turned to leave, but Chu Yannuo rushed over and pleaded, "My third sister is definitely still looking for my cousin. Please tell her that I'm taking my cousin with me, so she can rest assured."
“Fine,” Prince Duan said, though he was displeased, he did not refuse.
He pretended to take a document and returned to the palace.
Not long after entering the palace, he happened to run into Chu Yanqing, who was in a hurry and looked completely flustered.
"Miss Chu—"
Chu Yanqing didn't see Prince Duan; her mind was filled with thoughts of her cousin.
As it was getting dark, all the noble ladies had to leave the palace as soon as possible. If they couldn't find anyone, my cousin would have to stay in the palace for the night, and she could only try to get back in the next day.
Furthermore, the palace rules are strict, and their Marquis's family is not related to the imperial family, so it's uncertain whether they can even get in.
The palace is the place where power is most concentrated and also the darkest place. The death of a person there is less significant than the death of a cat or dog in an ordinary family.
"Cousin—ouch—"
Chu Yanqing suddenly bumped into something, and apologized as she backed away, "I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I... Prince Duan?"
Chu Yanqing had unexpectedly run into this jinx, and forced herself to bow and greet Prince Duan.
Prince Duan took a step forward, suddenly grabbed her chin, and forced her to look up. "My sister invited so many noble ladies to the palace today. You should know what that means, right?"
Chu Yanqing knew this, of course, but she didn't want to have too much contact with Prince Duan, so she deliberately said, "The princess invited us to the palace to admire the flowers."
"Just admiring the flowers?" Prince Duan gritted his teeth in hatred as he looked at her face.
Chu Yanqing reached out to push him, but dared not use too much force.
"It's all my fault. I offended Prince Duan. Please forgive me."
Prince Duan didn't believe her words. "Let me tell you the truth. My little sister invited so many noble ladies simply because she was worried about my marriage with my second brother. I won't hide it from you either. I've taken a liking to you. Do you want to be my queen?"
Of all the princes in the Great Zhou Dynasty, the most lecherous was Prince Duan.
Chu Yanqing isn't mentally deficient. "Thank you for your kindness, Prince Duan. What woman wouldn't want to be Prince Duan's queen?"
That sounded reasonable, so Prince Duan released her. "Since you're interested, then wait for me to come and propose marriage."
Chu Yanqing bit her lip and looked directly into Prince Duan's eyes. "I can marry you, but I have one condition: as long as Prince Duan agrees, I can enter your household at any time."
Prince Duan generously said, "Go ahead."
Women, all they want is gold and silver jewelry, vows of love, and he can give them all.
Chu Yanqing didn't believe he could grant her request: "I have only one condition: the Prince of Duan can only marry me, and he cannot take any concubines or secondary wives, nor can he have any children with other women. His future title can only be passed on to my children. If the Prince of Duan can do this, I will be ready to serve you anytime. But if he cannot..."
Chu Yanqing clenched her fist and made a peace sign in front of Prince Duan, saying, "I'd rather die a glorious death than live a shameful life."
Prince Duan knew that this young woman was not so easy to deal with.
He hesitated for a moment, then raised an eyebrow: "Never mind what I said."
Chu Yanqing is beautiful, but he can't bring himself to give up the bliss of having three wives and four concubines for the sake of one woman.
Chu Yanqing knew him like this. "Please make way, Prince Duan. I still need to find my cousin."
Prince Duan was displeased and his attitude changed. "Your cousin asked me to send her out of the palace."
Chu Yanqing's expression changed drastically, "You..."
Prince Duan didn't make things difficult for her, saying, "I'll send it to the Ministry of Revenue and give it to your brother."
Chu Yanqing finally breathed a sigh of relief.
She searched for two or three hours, almost scaring herself to death.
"Thank you, Prince Duan. It's getting late. I'll go say goodbye to the princess and then leave the palace. See you another day."
She ran faster than a rabbit.
If she weren't worried about her cousin, who would need Prince Duan's help in the future, she wouldn't even want to say a word.
Prince Duan watched Chu Yanqing escape and snorted angrily.
It's not like we can't afford to support her.
Marrying into a royal family and enjoying wealth and luxury is no better than marrying an ordinary man who only stays by her side.
A woman with shallow knowledge.
Regent Zhou Chuanxing ordered his men to bring all the disaster relief documents, intending to go to the Ministry of Revenue overnight to finalize the resettlement policy for the disaster victims.
If 100,000 disaster victims are not properly resettled, they will not have enough to eat by autumn, and they will become 100,000 rebels.
The Great Zhou Dynasty had been at war for decades, leaving its treasury empty and its people impoverished. It could no longer withstand any further storms.
Now that all the data is organized and in order, if all goes well, it can be executed tomorrow morning.
As they were leaving, they ran into Prince Duan returning home.
"Second brother, shall we go to the Ministry of Revenue?"
Zhou Chuanxing was in a bad mood and gave a curt "hmm".
Prince Duan hesitated for a moment, then asked, "Have you taken a fancy to that girl from earlier?"
Zhou Chuanxing remained silent.
Prince Duan clenched his fist. "If you like it, just take it."
Zhou Chuanxing denied it, saying, "You're overthinking it."
Prince Duan didn't think so. The two were brothers, and although they hadn't been in much contact over the years, since Zhou Chuanxing was always away leading troops in battle, they were still brothers from the same father and mother.
"You say you don't like it, but you keep those books so she can come to the palace to read them anytime. Isn't that just so you can see her?"
Zhou Chuanxing gave him a cool glance. "Have you finished your errands?"
Knowing that his second brother was in a bad mood, Prince Duan quickly made his escape.
"Not yet, Second Brother. I have to go take care of some business now. See you later."
When Zhou Chuan arrived at the Ministry of Revenue, Chu Yannuo had just left, but he had already asked the Minister of Revenue for leave to take his cousin home.
Zhou Chuxing handed the revised plans to the Minister of Revenue.
"Call the people back, and also the two prime ministers. We must come up with a plan today."
The truce, bought with the blood and lives of countless soldiers, must be nipped in the bud, no matter what.
A note from the author:
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Random red envelope
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