Chapter 121 Being appointed as a Junior Minister to serve His Majesty is a blessing for a prince.
Originally, when Tuoba Hong planned to bestow the marriage upon her, Yu'er was thinking of feigning illness to delay and find an opportunity to sabotage the engagement. She had already made up her mind that if feigning illness didn't work, she would create an accident and injure herself if necessary.
Fortunately, things have taken a turn for the better, and there is hope even before Yu'er can resort to these methods.
With Yu'er's quick wit, upon hearing the Phoenix Envoy's condition that Wu Kingdom send a handsome prince, she immediately guessed that Yuan Yan was fulfilling their agreement and trying to rescue him.
He wanted to find the people of the Phoenix Kingdom to get to the bottom of things, but before he could even set off, they came to him on their own.
Yu'er's heart skipped a beat when she saw the palace maid disguised as a man in front of her. "Who are you? How did you get in?"
"I am His Majesty's secret guard, and I have come here on His Majesty's orders to deliver this message."
The visitor was Zhuiyue, Yuan Yan's secret guard. She disguised herself as a palace maid and infiltrated the Wu Kingdom's palace, giving Yu'er a letter and a pill.
Yu'er unfolded the letter and recognized Yuan Yan's handwriting. After reading the letter, his heart began to race.
In his letter, Yuan Yan outlined the subsequent arrangements. As agreed upon by the two, Yuan Yan would bring Yu'er's biological father with him out of the Wu Palace and head to the Phoenix Kingdom.
In this matter, Yu'er herself was in a better position, as she could use the marriage as an excuse to extricate herself. However, her father was a member of the Wu Emperor's harem, and barring any unforeseen circumstances, he would never be able to leave the Wu Palace in his lifetime; even if he died, he would only be able to die in the palace.
Yu'er knew that it would be difficult for him to take his father out of the palace on his own, but it was also impossible for him to abandon his father and leave alone.
I didn't expect Yuan Yan to have even considered this point.
The pill that was sent along with the letter was a pill for faking death.
Yuan Yan instructed Yu'er's father to feign illness, portraying himself as someone who was deeply saddened by his son's impending marriage to another country and was bedridden with grief.
After some time had passed, and shortly after Yu'er departed with the marriage procession, her father could then legitimately "die of illness."
Afterwards, Yuan Yan's people will find a way to smuggle him out of the palace and send him to Yu'er's side so that the father and son can be reunited.
If this method succeeds, Father can escape from the palace.
Yuan Yan's meticulous consideration for him suggests that he holds a certain place in her heart...
Yu'er held the letter tightly, biting her lip slightly, a feeling she couldn't quite describe welling up inside her. It was like a small hammer, striking her heart again and again.
So, under Yuan Yan's plan, Yu'er's father pretended to be sick.
When Tuoba Hong saw that Yu'er's father had messed up at the crucial moment of the wedding, he couldn't help but feel even more displeased with him.
However, in order to appease Yu'er and allow him to continue serving his motherland, Tuoba Hong unprecedentedly promoted Yu'er's father to a higher rank as a sign of favor.
While Yu'er's father accepted the imperial decree with trepidation and gratitude, his condition did not improve and even worsened.
With Yuan Yan's help, the imperial physician's diagnosis matched the description given by Yu'er's father.
Upon hearing this news, even Feng Qing couldn't help but sneer, mocking Yu'er's father as an unlucky man.
She finally made it through the hardships, rising in rank thanks to her husband's marriage to a foreign ruler, but before she could even enjoy it for two days, she was on her deathbed. Truly, she was born with a lowly fate.
Feng Qing held He Jia's hand with great concern, and reluctantly urged him that things were different in Huang Kingdom than in Wu Kingdom. He must restrain his temper, act prudently, and never be as willful and capricious as before.
Despite Emperor Wu's description of He Jia's gentle nature to his envoys, He Jia's true character was not like that at all.
The good reputation of He Jia Huang Nan was all built by Feng Qing. On the surface, he was dignified and generous, but in reality, he was narrow-minded. He was used to being the center of attention and could not stand seeing other men being better than him.
When He Jia learned that the Phoenix Kingdom's envoy had publicly stated in the palace that he was of average appearance and not as handsome as his younger brothers, he couldn't help but harbor resentment. He appeared obedient when receiving the imperial decree, but privately, he silently smashed several objects in his bedchamber.
"The envoy from the Phoenix Kingdom is truly impolite! How can those lowly beings be compared to me, the royal son... Only I am the sole legitimate royal son of the Wu Kingdom, worthy of a contemporary overlord like the Phoenix Emperor."
He Jia had never suffered any humiliation since childhood, so how could he accept being so disgraced by Ge Miao in public? He was proud and arrogant, and felt that only a ruler with great talent and ambition like Yuan Yan was a wife worthy of his service.
Therefore, unlike Feng Qing, He Jia was not worried about being sent by his mother to marry into the Phoenix Kingdom. On the contrary, he was ambitious and full of confidence. He had already decided that once he arrived at the Phoenix Palace, he would do everything in his power to win Yuan Yan's favor. Once he became the Phoenix Emperor's favorite minister, he would definitely avenge the humiliation he suffered today on Ge Miao.
Feng Qing could only advise him: "Your brothers' biological fathers are all here. With your father in charge, they wouldn't dare disobey you."
"Once we get to the Phoenix Palace, they will all be your helpers. If there's anything they can't do, just ask them to do it," Feng Qing instructed earnestly.
This is teaching Hejia to use his younger brothers as pawns, so that he doesn't have to personally take risks when things happen.
Her words revealed her deep love for her son, but He Jia did not appreciate it. Instead, he found Yu'er and the others' appearances increasingly irritating.
When the day of departure arrived, no matter how dissatisfied He Jia was, the marriage procession set off as scheduled.
On the way, news suddenly came that Yu'er's father, Qing, had passed away. Yu'er appeared to be heartbroken, but seemed to be restrained by her status as a concubine in a marriage alliance and dared not show it. She could only pretend to be suppressing her grief and weeping.
Seeing this, Prince Hejia felt no sympathy whatsoever. He even sent a message to Yu'er, "Tell Seventh Prince that the marriage alliance concerns the relations between our two countries. If he continues to show sorrow and people mistakenly believe that Prince Hejia of Phoenix Kingdom is unwilling to participate in the marriage alliance, then don't blame your elder brother for punishing him."
After saying that, he lowered the carriage curtain, giving Yu'er no chance to plead for him.
After the servant finished speaking, the sobbing inside the carriage finally stopped.
Inside the carriage, Yu'er was relieved to no longer have to pretend to cry. Looking at her father, who was disguised as a male servant, she felt a moment of disorientation.
After so many years, he finally led his father away from the palace, escaping the place that had imprisoned the two of them.
...Unexpectedly, the person who ultimately fulfilled his long-cherished wish was Yuan Yan.
"Yu'er, why did the envoy from the Phoenix Kingdom help us? Is there some reason behind it..."
Yu'er's father felt that everything had happened too suddenly. Even now, after leaving Wu Kingdom, he still felt like he was in a dream. Thinking about it, he was still worried. His delicate face showed a hint of anxiety as he cautiously asked Yu'er.
"Father, don't worry. That Phoenix Envoy was only acting on orders, so he was just covering for us. The one who truly helped us escape was someone else," Yu'er explained to her father.
Yu'er's father was slightly startled.
Who exactly has the ability to command Huang Chen and arrange for them to fake their deaths and leave?
Thinking this, he couldn't help but ask aloud.
Yu'er thought of Yuan Yan, the woman he both loved and hated, and her feelings became even more complicated. She didn't know how to describe Yuan Yan to her father, and finally only vaguely said, "She is no ordinary person... Father will know when we get to the Phoenix Kingdom."
...
The prince of Wu Kingdom arrived in Huang Kingdom.
As arranged beforehand by Yuan Yan, Yu'er's father was placed outside the palace.
The marriage procession waited in the capital for two days until Yuan Yan had some free time and summoned them to the palace.
At the announcement of the master of ceremonies, the envoy from Wu Kingdom, accompanied by He Jia and others, entered the main hall.
Under the watchful eyes of the officials of the Phoenix Kingdom, the envoy bowed his head and knelt down, speaking humbly as he announced that the Wu Kingdom was offering a marriage alliance with the crown prince.
The officials present were deeply moved by this scene. They never imagined that they would live to see the Kingdom of Wu present its royal son and kneel before the steps.
All of this is thanks to His Majesty's repeated victories over the enemy.
The dowry maids knelt and bowed with the envoy, behaving themselves properly and not daring to look directly at the emperor's face.
This... is the Phoenix Emperor?
Only He Jia caught a glimpse of him from afar as she entered the hall, and she felt that Emperor Yuan Yan was indeed as majestic and imposing as the rumors suggested. Thinking this to herself, she lowered her head, one step behind the others.
Like her younger brother beside her, Yu'er wore a veil. But Yuan Yan recognized her from among the kneeling men at a glance, just by looking at her slender waist.
Unlike his brothers, Yu'er was not well-behaved. Knowing that Yuan Yan wouldn't do anything to him, Yu'er slightly raised his face and met Yuan Yan's gaze as everyone bowed their heads.
As his eyes darted around, a gentle light flashed within them, carrying a hint of a smile.
The bold gaze was like a ticklish hook, tantalizingly captivating Yuan Yan's eyes.
Ha, you're still in the main hall, and you can't help but start seducing her already, huh?
Yuan Yan remained expressionless, as if he hadn't seen it at all, ignoring Yu'er's seductive glances, though he was fully aware of her little trick.
Yu'er is both incompetent and playful; she dared to seduce him like this in front of all the court officials.
She probably felt that her father had escaped and that she had arrived in the Phoenix Kingdom, about to enter Yuan Yan's harem. Therefore, she acted recklessly, completely unafraid of arousing suspicion from the Wu Kingdom's envoys, and now she didn't even want to pretend anymore.
"No fooling around."
Yuan Yan glanced at her silently, a warning lurking in his eyes as Yu'er playfully made a fuss.
After restraining the restless Yu'er, she casually bestowed upon He Jia the title of Junior Minister and brought him into the harem, which was considered as accepting the marriage alliance with Wu Kingdom.
"Shaoqing? This..."
The envoy opened his mouth, then his heart skipped a beat; he had some objections but dared not voice them.
No matter what, Prince Hejia is the legitimate son of the Wu Kingdom. He traveled thousands of miles to marry into the royal family, and he only received the position of Junior Minister. Isn't that a bit too low?
Although male princes who marry into the royal family are generally unable to become Feng Qing due to their status, they can still be granted a ministerial position under normal circumstances.
The Phoenix Emperor's arrangement clearly shows that he doesn't think much of He Jia and doesn't want to give Wu Kingdom any face.
"What, does the envoy have something to say?" Yuan Yan asked knowingly, noticing the envoy's frozen and changing expression.
Circumstances dictate their actions. The Wu envoys had received instructions from the Wu Emperor before their arrival. No matter how aggressive Yuan Yan was at this moment, they dared not turn against him.
Wu Shi could only force a smile and suppress his emotions deeply. "It is Your Highness's blessing to be able to serve His Majesty the Phoenix Emperor with the grace of Heaven."
"Your Majesty, I, your humble servant, thank you for your grace on behalf of my sovereign." She bowed again.
...
Yuan Yan returned to the inner palace after court.
"Sister Yan, Hanliang Palace is still empty. Should we arrange for that Junior Minister to be placed there?" Yang Lingyi asked.
Yuan Yan: "Hanliang Palace is in a bad location. Let them live in the palace at the west end."
The so-called bad location means that it's too close.
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