When the Crown Prince spoke, he positioned Chonghua Palace's attitude as one of sharing the burdens of their elders. Even if this was someone else's family matter, it was different when it involved the Crown Prince.
Fan Heng was surprised that the Crown Prince would bring up this matter directly. He wondered what mistakes he had made and what the Crown Prince and Crown Princess had found out.
Moreover, in this setting, the young man and his wife were seated on either side. Even though there was a screen separating the women, he could hear the whispers behind it, which were undoubtedly gossip about him and the Grand Tutor's residence.
But most people say he's like a toad trying to eat swan meat, which means his high-ranking family looks down on him, a poor student.
Guo Xun stepped forward, glanced at Fan Heng kneeling on the ground, and saw that he remained silent. A hint of mockery flashed in his eyes.
He bowed and replied, "Your Highness's decision in honor of our teachers is a sign of respect, and we should emulate Your Highness's actions. How could we possibly have any objections?"
Xu Lingyu looked to the right and saw that Madam Qin and Qin Wanyin were in front of the group, accompanied by Li Shiyue and Xu Lingzi.
Next, a screen was brought in by servants and placed between Fan Heng and Madam Qin and her daughter.
Upon seeing Li Shiyue, Xu Yunci walked towards her without hesitation and pulled her to stand beside Xu Lingyu.
Li Shiyue shook her head slightly, indicating to Xu Yunci that she was alright. Beside her were Xu Lingzi and Guo Xun.
The Crown Prince has brought his wife here today, clearly intending to stand up for the Grand Tutor's family. Therefore, Fan Heng is certain to have no chance of escaping today.
"Just now, the Crown Princess said that Miss Qin is engaged, but we don't know which gentleman she is. We might as well tell everyone so that they can know, lest some people can't control their mouths after leaving the Guo family mansion today and spread these unfounded rumors even more."
Xue Jinzhao stood beside Madam Xue. As expected of the eldest daughter of the Grand Commandant's family, she was not afraid in this situation.
Standing behind the screen, even after she finished speaking, Madam Xue, a servant of the Grand Commandant, did not stop her.
Grand Commandant Xue's prestige was no less than that of Grand Tutor Qin, especially since Grand Commandant Xue held military power and was familiar with the generals in the capital. Such influence was no less than that of Grand Tutor Qin in the eyes of civil officials.
Unlike the Grand Tutor's Mansion, which was clearly part of the Chonghua Palace faction, the Grand Commandant's Mansion was mostly a royalist party and did not participate in the affairs of any prince.
Even when Qin Ying was a commoner and still the Prince of Yan, he tried to win over Grand Commandant Xue, but failed. But today, the people from the Grand Commandant's mansion took the initiative to speak up, and even Grand Commandant Xue's wife did not stop them, which clearly meant they were helping the Grand Commandant's mansion.
Lady Xue noticed the gazes of the crowd, raised her head and smiled slightly: "Although my relationship with Lady Qin is not deep, we both have daughters. If I were to suffer such an injustice today, I would naturally understand Lady Qin's feelings."
"Besides, there are some things that the Xue family cannot remain uninvolved in, so naturally they have something to say."
After saying that, he glanced at Xue Jinzhao, who raised his chin and looked at Fan Heng kneeling in the center with great disdain. He really didn't want to look at him, and his gaze was as if he had seen something dirty, so he quickly looked away.
"Qin Wanyin is the eldest daughter of the Grand Tutor's family. Even if the Grand Tutor's family has no intention of forming a marriage alliance with my family, they would certainly look down on a hypocritical person."
"Every morning".
One of the men on the left spoke up, stopping her from saying anything more.
Li Shiyue looked in the direction of the cold voice. The voice was as cold as Xu Yunci's, with a sharp jaw and eyes that showed no emotion.
His skin wasn't particularly fair, and there was a faint scar between his eyebrows, short and only reaching the end of his eyebrow, adding a touch of fierceness to his cool and aloof face.
"That man is the eldest son of the Grand Commandant."
Xu Yunci's voice was very soft. Li Shiyue looked at Qin Wanyin thoughtfully, but Qin Wanyin blushed, which was rare for her.
Something's not right, something's very wrong.
"General Xue, if you have something to say, why not let Miss Xue finish speaking? Today, His Highness and I are here. If anyone dares to say anything wrong, His Highness and I will naturally stand up for you."
Xu Lingyu's smile deepened, seemingly even more genuine than before.
After she finished speaking, she looked at Xue Jinzhao, who understood and stepped out from behind the screen, pulling the young General Xue out with him.
“My elder brother, Xue Yue, is engaged to Miss Qin. The two families have already exchanged tokens and are just waiting for the auspicious day for my Xue family to present the betrothal gifts. I never expected that someone would 'steal' Miss Qin's heart first. This person is no match for even one of my brother's students.”
After Xue Jinzhao finished speaking, she pushed Xue Yue, her strength far exceeding that of an average woman.
Caught off guard, Xue Yue stumbled two steps and stopped in front of Qin Wanyin. To everyone's surprise, the usually aloof General Xue blushed, and even Qin Wanyin blushed and avoided Xue Yue's gaze.
Xue Jinzhao was extremely satisfied and walked to Madam Qin's side: "Qin Wanyin should have been my sister-in-law, the new bride of my Xue family. My father had already consulted the Emperor about this matter, and even the Emperor nodded in approval."
"Young Master Fan, tell me why you're targeting my sister-in-law. Do you know what the consequences will be if you ruin a woman's reputation?"
Li Shiyue and Xu Lingzi were both surprised. She looked up at Xu Yunci, but he was clearly much calmer.
But this is not the time to dwell on this. Li Shiyue looked up at Fan Heng kneeling in the center and said in a serious tone, "I'm afraid he knows this and is deliberately using this to force the Qin family to compromise so that Miss Qin can marry you. As the son-in-law of the Grand Tutor's family, you will also receive guidance from Grand Tutor Qin in the future."
Li Shiyue's voice was completely different from Xue Jinzhao's. Although it was not as loud as hers, Li Shiyue spoke sternly, her gaze fixed on the kneeling Fan Heng.
Madam Qin patted Qin Wanyin's hand, let go of her, took two steps forward, and knelt down to perform the ceremony, but was stopped by Xu Lingyu first.
"Madam, please speak frankly. As His Highness's teacher, how can we accept such a courtesy from you?"
Before Madam Qin could say anything, the Crown Prince spoke up: "The first thing the Grand Tutor taught me was to know 'propriety.' Madam, there's no need for such a grand gesture."
Madam Qin couldn't insist any further, and said gratefully, "Thank you very much, Your Highness and Your Majesty. I dare not lie. The Qin family has indeed exchanged betrothal gifts and tokens with the Xue family, and we are just waiting for an auspicious day to formally propose marriage."
"As for who this scholar is, I do not know, nor have I heard of any such rumors. Ayin could not possibly be in love with anyone else. The marriage with the Xue family was agreed to by Ayin herself. I would never speak nonsense."
“I believe what Lady Qin said. I also met with the Grand Tutor before I came here.”
The Crown Prince's gaze fell sadly on Fan Heng, who was kneeling. His trembling arms clearly showed that he could no longer bear the pain.
"Before I came here, I met with the teacher and he said that a student had indeed come to my door, boasting that his literary talent was outstanding and that he wanted to become the teacher's disciple."
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