Of course, Fu Xiaoguan did not expect this situation to happen.
Of course he understood what Concubine Shang meant by this, but what he didn't understand was that he had been so low-key and was just living a life of idleness and waiting for death, so why did Concubine Shang choose him.
But he had to answer.
"Miss Yu is a beautiful lady, full of poetry and books. She is definitely a rare and extraordinary woman in the world. I dare not look up to her."
"You don't dare to look up, you're just looking back." Concubine Shang said lightly. Fu Xiaoguan chuckled and said, "That's because Miss Yu is approachable and doesn't use her power to bully others."
"So, you think my daughter is very good?"
Concubine Shang's words were even more serious. If Fu Xiaoguan gave a good answer at this moment, then the matter would basically be settled.
Prince Xian and Yu Hongyi both looked at Fu Xiaoguan, and even Yu Wenjun was quite expectant at this moment.
All wealth and honor lies in this nod.
Fu Xiaoguan stood up and bowed respectfully to Concubine Shang. He said slowly, "Thank you for your kindness, Concubine Shang and Miss Yu. I'm afraid there are some things about me that you may not know."
Concubine Shang frowned and said, "Tell me about it."
"I lost my mother when I was six, and was raised single-handedly by my father. Even though he's remarried, he loves me even more than before. A loving father demands filial piety from his son. As the Book of Rites says, 'A filial son's upbringing delights his son and does not violate his will.' My father has no great ambitions; all he wants in life is a large family with many children and grandchildren, and healthy descendants. If I leave home, he will be unhappy, and his will will be violated."
"The Book of Rites, Sacrifice, says there are three kinds of filial piety: the greatest is honoring one's parents, the next is not dishonoring them, and the lowest is providing for them. My father is growing old, and I am the only son in the Fu family. He needs me to support him and see him through to his death. If I can't even achieve the third level of filial piety... what's the point of reading these sage books? How can I face my father, the elders of Linjiang, and my mother who passed away so long ago?"
"I, a humble official, have read the books of sages and received their teachings, which have taught me the meaning of filial piety. The words of sages cannot be disobeyed, and I, too, cannot go against the principles of filial piety."
"I am going to return to the Imperial Concubine. It's not that I don't want to, but that I can't. I hope the Imperial Concubine will forgive me. I hope Miss Yu will forgive me."
Fu Xiaoguan spoke slowly and calmly, but with great grief and indignation. His meaning was naturally clear, but Concubine Shang could no longer mention the matter of her daughter.
As a son-in-law, of course he had to go to Beijing and live in the princess's mansion.
From ancient times to the present, no prince consort has been able to bring his parents to live with him.
The Yu Dynasty respected the teachings of Confucius and Mencius, and filial piety was the most important of all virtues. The Fu family only had one male heir, Fu Xiaoguan. If he were to be forcibly taken away, it would be against the harmony of nature.
At this point, Concubine Shang could only sigh.
"You go now. This matter ends here."
"Thank you, Your Majesty!"
Fu Xiaoguan took his leave, but saw Yu Wenyun in tears.
…
"What a pity! Such a young man... would have been a perfect match. Why does the Fu family only have this one son?"
Prince Xian thought for a moment and said softly, "Official Fu has remarried, and I heard she's pregnant. She's expected to give birth in September."
Concubine Shang's eyes lit up, but her brows tightened again, "If you give birth to a daughter, there will be no hope."
Prince Xian looked around and said, "That senior official, Fu, is not yet forty. If Your Majesty truly wishes to arrange this marriage, after this trip, when you return to the palace, please ask Your Majesty to issue an edict to that senior official, allowing him to marry three or five more times... surely he will eventually have a son."
Concubine Shang's brows relaxed, a hint of a smile appearing on her face. "Your Highness, what you say makes sense. This young official Fu is a man of exceptional talent, appearance, intelligence, and learning. He just so happens not to want to be an official, and he and Wen Yun have a common interest. Your Majesty will agree to this, so let's do it."
From beginning to end, Yu Wenjun did not object. She decided to have a good talk with Dong Shulan after returning to Beijing.
A month later, Mr. Fu received the first imperial edict in his life and was stunned. As a result, Mr. Fu had several concubines.
The fact that the official Fu took a concubine in compliance with the imperial order became a popular topic in Linjiang for a while. However, apart from the father and son of Prince Xian's mansion, no one else knew the reason behind it.
I just thought that Fu Xiaoguan was appreciated by His Majesty for his book A Dream of Red Mansions, and this decree was to make the Fu family prosperous and glorious.
…
It was late at night when Fu Xiaoguan returned home. When he stepped into the moon gate in the backyard, he saw a lantern hanging in the yard. Fu Daguan was sitting under it.
The father and son sat opposite each other. "I heard that it was the Imperial Concubine who summoned you?"
"Yes, and the Ninth Princess is here too."
"Nothing's wrong, is it?"
Fu Xiaoguan shook his head and said with a smile, "No problem at all. I just talked about Dream of the Red Chamber and wrote a couplet."
Officer Fu stood up and said, "That's good. Go and rest early."
"You should rest early too."
Fu Daguan walked out. Fu Xiaoguan looked at his departing back and felt that the decision he made in Wangjiang Tower was right.
As for Yu Wenjun, he acknowledged her beauty, but had no other thoughts.
This is not about a gentleman remaining calm in the face of temptation, but because the emotions have no foundation.
Apart from knowing each other, he didn't know anything about Yu Wenjun. Unlike Dong Shulan, the two of them had exchanged letters many times and had a lot of exchanges in their thoughts. Whether speaking or doing things, they were very direct and trusting of each other. This led to their concern and longing under the moon.
So Fu Xiaoguan went to the second floor and wrote a letter to Dong Shulan.
The letter detailed what happened in Shanglinzhou, including the questions asked by Concubine Shang and his answers. He did not try to hide it, but just wanted to let Dong Shulan know about it so that he could find a chance to persuade Yu Wenjun, after all, Yu Wenjun cried in the end.
I originally wanted to ask Dong Shulan in the letter whether she could get the mining permit, but after thinking about it, I decided to go find Old Qin first tomorrow. This old man has great influence, because even Concubine Shang respects him very much.
Then he wrote about the pricing of the book A Dream of Red Mansions, saying that if the book was written in a disjointed manner and consisted of 100 chapters, many women would have to spend all their money on their dowries, which was a bit too cruel.
After finishing the letter, I still couldn't sleep, so I went to the yard to meditate and practice qigong, but found that I couldn't concentrate, so I simply went back to the second floor to write "Dream of the Red Chamber".
Su Mo didn't sleep either. He stood on the opposite building and watched, thinking that this guy seemed to have suffered some setbacks after returning from Shanglinzhou. But seeing that he was sitting in front of the window writing something, he didn't disturb him. Just as he was about to turn around and go back to the room, he suddenly looked up at the sky, and then his figure moved and floated to the roof.
He saw a man in black landing in the west courtyard, where the Qi family lived. Su Mo thought about it and flew over as well, landing on a beam like a night bird.
The lights in the main house here lit up, and the door of the main house also opened gently. A maid's head stuck out of the crack in the door, looked around, and walked out.
The maid handed something to the man in black, and the man in black left the west courtyard. The maid turned around and went into the house and closed the door.
Su Mo also flew out, but saw the man in black landed in a mansion not far ahead, which was Zhang Mansion.
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