Qin Su relaxed and slumped onto the table, saying plaintively, "Yes, I don't know why the Empress insists on harping on my marriage."
The Empress Dowager glanced at her. "Are you really unaware, or are you pretending not to know?"
Qin Su just chuckled awkwardly and didn't respond.
She couldn't figure out the Empress Dowager's thoughts on this matter; after all, Emperor Mingyang was her biological son.
"I can save you once, but I can't guarantee it will happen a second time."
Qin Su nodded obediently, "I'll go back and urge my mother to find a suitable candidate as soon as possible."
The Empress Dowager responded, but did not continue the topic.
After lunch, as Qin Su was leaving, the Empress Dowager mentioned Princess Cheng'an, saying, "After you leave the palace, go to the princess's residence to visit Cheng'an for me."
Princess Cheng'an did not appear at the birthday banquet yesterday. Although the Empress Dowager is not her biological mother, the two have an extremely close relationship. It is inconceivable that she would not come to the palace to offer her birthday wishes. Something must have happened.
When Qin Su arrived at the princess's residence, she learned that Princess Cheng'an was seriously ill and could barely get out of bed.
Perhaps thinking of her past life, Qin Su couldn't help but feel a pang of pity.
She sat on the edge of the bed, sighing at Princess Cheng'an's appearance. "How did such a noble and beautiful woman fall to this state? Will she be overshadowed by other noble ladies in the future?"
Princess Cheng'an glared at her weakly, then had her maid help her up. "Did you come here just to mock me?"
Qin Su shook her head. "The Empress Dowager is concerned about the princess and sent me to see how she is doing."
Princess Cheng'an instantly withdrew her claws and sighed, "It is my regret that I was unable to attend my mother's birthday celebration. I heard that something happened at my mother's birthday banquet yesterday. Are Your Majesty and my mother alright?"
Then she became worried again, "With Mother's temperament, I hope she won't get hurt."
"It's alright, don't worry, no one's in trouble." She concealed the fact that her comrades in the Imperial Guard were injured, only reporting good news and not bad.
Princess Cheng'an's pale face immediately lit up with joy. "That's good, that's good. I can finally rest assured. The palace is heavily guarded, and I don't know much. I'm so glad you came out to deliver the message for me."
"Take good care of yourself. There's no hurdle you can't overcome," Qin Su encouraged her, holding her slightly cold hand.
Being stared at like that, Princess Cheng'an's defenses nearly crumbled. With tears in her eyes, she asked Qin Su, "Were the assassins at the birthday banquet arranged by Kang Lin?"
Qin Su hesitated for a moment, then nodded.
Princess Cheng'an wiped away her tears sadly, "How could he do this? How could he, how could he do this? Haven't my brother, mother, and I been good enough to him all these years? Why did he have to treat us like this?"
She didn't understand Kang Lin. She felt that Kang Lin had clearly grown up in Da'an, so why couldn't he consider himself a citizen of Da'an?
His previous keeping of a mistress was almost insignificant in the face of matters of national importance.
Qin Su patted her hand, but said coldly, "Princess, you don't need to think about him. He's a spy. For the country he believes in, he's willing to point a knife at the lifeline of Da'an."
She was afraid that Princess Cheng'an would act recklessly, so she thought it was necessary to give her some pointers to prevent her from doing anything wrong.
Princess Cheng'an was almost sobbing uncontrollably. "I know, I know everything. Don't worry, I'm clear-headed. It was my fault for misjudging people and trusting that thief."
"If I could, I would rather kill him with my own hands."
"Take good care of yourself, and I can promise to ask His Majesty to bring Kang Lin back to you." She said this, but in her heart she was thinking that this would be a good opportunity for her to avoid the Empress's little tricks.
"Really?" Princess Cheng'an's eyes were filled with hope.
Qin Su nodded. "On the premise that His Majesty agrees, if he doesn't agree..." She dragged out the last syllable, then turned to the pitiful Princess Cheng'an and whispered, "I will act secretly."
"Don't cry, Heaven have mercy on you. If the Empress Dowager knew, she would be heartbroken."
The more she talked, the harder Princess Cheng'an cried, even throwing herself into Qin Su's arms and sobbing loudly.
Her body was too weak; she cried until she ran out of strength.
Qin Su instructed someone to take good care of Princess Cheng'an, then left the princess's residence, intending to return home and ensure her safety with her mother.
She has been rarely home these days, which inevitably worries her mother and Xiaozhi.
The scene in front of the Marquis of Zhongyi's mansion was different from usual; there were many more people there today, and at first glance, they all seemed to be matchmakers wearing red flowers in their hair.
Qin Su was startled, without even blinking.
"That looks like Miss Qin over there!" someone in the crowd shouted, immediately drawing all the matchmakers' attention to Qin Su.
"Miss Qin!"
"Miss Qin, stop right there!"
All the matchmakers flocked towards Qin Su.
Qin Su didn't have time to think and ran away.
A group of matchmakers couldn't catch up with Qin Su. After shaking them off, she climbed over the wall from the side and entered the Marquis's mansion.
When Lian Tao saw the girl return, she immediately chased after her, exclaiming, "Girl! You're finally back!"
She hadn't seen Qin Su for a long time, so she was naturally very worried.
For the sake of convenience, Qin Su did not bring Lian Tao with her when she was preparing for the birthday banquet.
"What's going on outside? Why are there so many people gathered here?" Qin Su patted her clothes, which were a little dusty, and asked Lian Tao.
Lian Tao replied, "They've all come to propose marriage to the young lady, and they're all sons of prominent families in the capital, some of whom are said to be legitimate sons."
Qin Su was puzzled and laughed, "Have they lost their minds? Didn't they used to avoid me like the plague? Why are they suddenly sending matchmakers to our door?"
Lian Tao followed Qin Su closely, saying, "Perhaps they cured their eye disease and realized how good the young lady is."
With the recent pressure from the royal family, Qin Su has no interest in these aristocratic scions. She just wants to find an ordinary person and distance herself from these powerful and wealthy people.
"Is Mother awake? Does she know what's happening outside?"
Lian Tao replied, "Madam knows, but she dares not open this door and claims to the outside world that the person is not in the mansion."
Qin Su nodded slightly, went to see her mother, and after talking with her for a while, she brought up the matter of finding a suitable man for her.
Qin's mother said, "There are a few suitable people, but we still need to meet them in person to determine if they are suitable. It's very important that we click with each other."
"Yes, Mother is right. She will make arrangements in a while, and I will go and take a look then."
"You haven't been resting well these past few days, have you? Let me give you a massage, so you can get some rest."
Qin Su shook her head, "I plan to go to the palace again, to avoid the people outside. I'll go after the imperial decree comes down."
"Imperial decree?" Qin's mother was unaware of what had happened in the warm pavilion.
Qin Su gave a brief explanation, then went back to her own courtyard to wash up.
Not long after, two imperial edicts departed from the palace, one to the Duke of Cheng's residence and the other to Qin Su. Unlike the edicts to the Duke of Cheng's residence, the one to Qin Su also included a box.
The one who came to deliver the imperial decree was not Chief Eunuch Deng, but still a eunuch of considerable importance to His Majesty.
His arrival dispersed the matchmakers gathered in front of the Marquis's mansion, but the news that the Marquis of Loyalty and Righteousness had suddenly become a favorite of His Majesty quickly spread throughout the streets and alleys of the capital.
The imperial edict on Qin Su's side stated that she was conferred the title of Princess Wei'an. Unlike other princesses, whose titles were full of feminine gentleness, Qin Su's title had a rather dashing feel to it.
It is not difficult to discern Emperor Mingyang's expectations from this.
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