"Although it has always been said that marriage is the decision of parents and matchmakers, if I discuss the marriage with the Qinghe Palace without consulting my old man, I would be unfilial. Secondly, this is at my brother's house, where there are many people and gossips. I'm afraid that if I agree, the news will get out before the marriage is even discussed. His Royal Highness the Qinghe Prince is a royal relative. If the marriage fails, wouldn't it be a joke? The Qinghe Palace's reputation is important, and so is my daughter's reputation."
He added, "We are both married. We have been together for half a lifetime and we all know that marriage is a lifelong commitment that cannot be taken lightly and must be carefully managed. Marriage is not a matter of one person, but of two people. Whether the words husband and wife can be firmly tied together depends on the intentions of both parties. If they are intentional and know how to manage the relationship, it will last. If they are not intentional or not, or if one person is intentional and the other is not, even if the marriage can last, it will not be happy. We must be cautious in discussing the marriage. I must ask Huan'er's opinion. If she has no intention for the prince, as a father, I can't force her to get into the bridal sedan. Wouldn't that harm the two children? My two dear brothers are also parents. You can understand the feelings of a father like me."
After this long speech, the image of Ye Shiheng as a loving father who loves his children and always thinks about them emerges naturally.
Sheng Guangzhi only had a partial understanding of the matter, but he understood one thing: marriages for children should not be taken lightly. He said, "It should be done with caution. No matter how good a man's family background is, he has to be liked by the girl. You can't force a man to marry you."
"That's right." In fact, Du Shangshu didn't quite understand what he heard, but he still nodded.
The matter was just passed.
Du Shangshu's tea powder was also sifted with a tea sieve. In order to make the tea powder finer, Du Shangshu ground it again and sifted it again. Finally, the tea powder was as fine as dust.
The container for making tea is a Jianzhan, which is dark black and particularly eye-catching among the sky-blue tea sets. Each person has a Jianzhan and a tea whisk, and they begin the tea-making competition.
The first step is to warm the cup.
The second step is to add tea.
The third step is to prepare the paste.
Step 4: Pour the soup and beat.
Step 5: Add soup and whisk.
Step 7: Adjust the temperature to obtain a smooth tea soup.
In the end, the tea ordered by Ye Shiheng was the best, and he won the first prize in the tea contest. He returned home with a full load of tea.
As soon as Ye Shiheng left, Du Shangshu also prepared to return home. Sheng Guangzhi saw him off to the door. Before leaving, Du Shangshu said, "My dear brother, the general declined the marriage proposal from the Qinghe Palace. How true and false do you think the general's reason is?"
Sheng Guangzhi smiled and said, "It's all true. He treats his daughter like a treasure. His daughter's marriage will naturally be based on her wishes. As for what he said about being unfilial and about face and reputation being decided by the old man, just listen to it and don't take it seriously."
Du Shangshu asked, "Why?"
Sheng Guangzhi said, "I've known Ye Shiheng for so many years. He's been a man who doesn't care about rules and dignity since he was young. In order to win the beauty, he ignored his father's wishes and the rules and etiquette. He hired a matchmaker and went to Ouyang Yuanzheng's house to propose marriage. This matter caused a lot of uproar. In the end, his father dragged him back and reluctantly proposed marriage according to the rules. Fortunately, he has a good character, otherwise I would not be friends with him. He was willful and absurd in his youth, but after becoming a father, Ye Shiheng became more stable and became a general who is even more outstanding than his father."
Du Shangshu sneered.
Sheng Guangzhi added, "I've said everything I can to help you. If Brother Zhongping doesn't agree, it's not easy to force him. He loves his daughter dearly. Just reply to the King of Qinghe truthfully. I don't think the King of Qinghe will say anything bad. There's no rush to reply to the King of Qinghe. Brother Zhongping said we should ask his daughter's opinion. Why not wait a couple of days for his reply, and then you can reply to the King of Qinghe."
Minister Du nodded, got on the carriage and returned home.
In fact, the person entrusted by King Qinghe to cut down the enemy's mark was not Sheng Guangzhi, but him.
After the court session that day, he invited Ye Shiheng to have a drink in order to ask Ye Shiheng's opinion on behalf of Prince Qinghe, but Ye Shiheng refused his invitation.
So he invited Sheng Guangzhi to his house and asked King Qinghe to entrust Sheng Guangzhi as a father to be the one to fend for Ye Shiheng.
After he returned home, he originally wanted to wait for Ye Shiheng's reply before replying to Prince Qinghe, but after thinking about it carefully, he sent his personal attendant to deliver a letter to Prince Qinghe's mansion.
At this time, in the private study of the palace, Prince Qinghe summoned a middle-aged man in black clothes and a veiled hat. This man was Bai Yanlang who had returned from Yuezhou, and the person opposite him was the famous prince of the Song Dynasty, Prince Qinghe.
Prince Qinghe also looked like a middle-aged man. Although he was old, he looked more handsome than Bai Yanlang. Even though he was wearing crimson purple clothes, it couldn't conceal the royal nobility that emanated from him.
Bai Yanlang briefly explained the affairs of Yuezhou. After listening, King Qinghe just nodded without saying anything, with a calm expression.
Bai Yanlang asked, "Have you found the girl in red?"
The girl in red he was asking about was the one who was hunting him down in Luoyang. It was said that the disciple of his former junior sister had been hunting him down for over a year. When he went back to investigate the girl, he couldn't find any trace of her, as if she didn't exist.
Prince Qinghe said calmly, "It's still under investigation, no news yet."
Bai Yanlang said solemnly, "We must find her. Since she is my junior sister's disciple, she must know my junior sister's whereabouts. Finding her is equivalent to finding my junior sister. To obtain the treasure, we must first gather the Plum Blossom Order and the Plum Blossom Descendants. Both are indispensable."
Prince Qinghe asked, "Mr. Bai, does it have to be your junior sister?"
Bai Yanlang nodded: "That girl is not a blood relative of the Mei family. She can only be the heir of the Plum Blossom family, not the descendant of the Plum Blossom family. My junior sister is the only descendant of the Plum Blossom family. Only my junior sister can open the treasure. No one else can."
King Qinghe said, "If I have any news, I will tell you. You can go and do your work first."
Bai Yanlang raised his hand and bowed, then turned and left. After walking four or five steps, he turned back and said, "Don't forget what your Highness promised me."
Prince Qinghe said seriously, "Of course I will never forget that the King of Japan is the Emperor and Mr. Bai is the King."
"It's good that Your Highness remembers it." Under the curtain, Bai Yanlang smiled with satisfaction and left.
As Bai Yanlang left, a hint of disdain flashed in the deep eyes of King Qinghe, "How can a ungrateful person who betrays his teacher and ancestors be worthy of the title of king?"
The servant brought the handwritten letter from Minister Du. Not long after Prince Qinghe read it, Crown Prince Zhao Jue came looking for him.
The prince greeted Prince Qinghe and then asked about the marriage proposal with the Ye family. "Father, I heard that the general went to attend a meeting at Lord Sheng's house. Lord Sheng mentioned that matter. Does the general agree?"
Prince Qinghe looked at his son. His face was full of expectation, which made him hesitate to tell him that Ye Shiheng did not agree to the marriage between the two families. But he still told him, "Sheng Guangzhi proposed it, but Ye Shiheng did not agree."
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