The next day, at the Duke of Yan’s Mansion.

The Duke of Yan does not have to attend court unless the emperor summons him.

Early this morning, he was sitting in the hall playing chess with Zuo Anning.

Half a year ago, Zuo An Ning was plotted against by the eldest princess in Qiao's mansion and suffered a great fright.

Therefore, the Duke of Yan did not allow her to attend this year's Lantern Festival, the East Suburb Poetry Festival, and yesterday's Wanshou Palace Banquet.

Zuo An Ning was happy to have some free time, and he picked up his chess skills which he had abandoned for a long time.

Playing chess can reveal a person's character. Duke Yan could see that his son An Ning was calm, intelligent and decisive, and was an excellent child.

Now he has only one worry: An Ning will be sixteen next year, but her marriage has not yet been settled.

Years ago, Zhongguo had mentioned Tan Hanchi to him. He had learned more about him in detail. Although Tan Hanchi came from a humble background, he was extremely talented and, most importantly, had good character.

But he is now a close minister of the emperor and is extremely useful in front of the emperor. Just based on the relationship between the Duke of Yan's Mansion and the Qiao's Mansion, this marriage will be difficult to achieve.

The Duke of Yan's Mansion was on the verge of decline. Their own son was a loser, and after detaining him for more than half a year, he had fewer women around him and became obsessed with collecting jade.

An Ning's future cannot be guaranteed by relying on this useless son. He must find a good home for An Ning before he is buried!

Perhaps because he was thinking too much, Duke Yan couldn't help but sigh softly.

Hearing this, Zuo Anning looked up from the chessboard and asked with concern, "Grandfather, why are you sighing?"

Duke Yan looked at Zuo An Ning in front of him and smiled gently, "It's okay, Ning'er's chess skills have improved again, and grandfather is thinking about what to do next."

There is no reason to discuss the marriage of children in front of them. Besides, Duke Yan did not want to cause Zuo An Ning to worry.

Zuo An Ning, however, was a very insightful person. She had seen the sadness of Duke Yan over the past six months.

What could I have done to upset my grandfather? It was nothing more than a trivial marriage.

"grandfather."

Zuo An Ning suddenly stood up and bowed deeply to the Duke of Yan.

Duke Yan was startled, and hurriedly supported Zuo An Ning, asking in a hurry: "Ning'er, what are you doing?"

Zuo An Ning's face was calm. An idea had been lingering in her mind for a long time. She plucked up her courage and decided to tell her grandfather about it today.

"Grandfather, Ning'er knows that you are worrying about Ning'er's marriage, but Ning'er has no intention of getting married and has no expectations for marriage."

"Ning'er knows that this will make you very embarrassed and will also bring shame to the Duke of Yan's Mansion, but after thinking about it, Ning'er still wants to be selfish for once."

"Grandfather, can you allow Ning'er to remain single for the rest of her life?"

Upon hearing this, Duke Yan was shocked all over and looked at Zuo An Ning in disbelief.

Zuo An Ning felt guilty, stepped forward, took Duke Yan's hand, and said softly:

"Grandfather, most men in the world are probably like Dad."

"Ning'er has seen her mother cry too many times and heard her parents quarrel too many times since she was a child. Ning'er is extremely scared."

"Ning'er doesn't want to end up with the wrong person one day, and then go through the same path my mother has gone through. If that's the case, it's better for me to remain single for the rest of my life."

"Grandfather, Ning'er is full of knowledge and principles taught by you. Ning'er has ambitions. In the future, I want to work hard to become a female teacher and help those illiterate women."

"grandfather."

Looking at the white frosty temples of Duke Yan, Zuo An Ning felt extremely sad and knelt in front of Duke Yan with tears in his eyes.

"Ning'er knows this is embarrassing for you, but Ning'er only wants to serve Grandfather for the rest of her life and doesn't want to go anywhere!"

When Duke Yan heard Zuo An Ning's words, he felt sad and painful. Thinking of what Zuo An Ning had gone through in recent days, he couldn't help but burst into tears.

After all, it was the injustice committed by the previous generation that left An Ning with deep hurt. It was no wonder that An Ning would have such thoughts.

She must have made up her mind long ago, but she was always concerned about his feelings as a grandfather and the reputation of the Duke of Yan's Mansion, so she dared not say it out loud.

Faced with this child who was covered in scars but still kind and sensible, how could he have the heart to refuse him? How could he have the right to refuse him?

"Ning'er, the path you've chosen is too difficult to follow. In the future, countless rumors, sarcasm and ridicule will flood in."

"After your grandfather passes away, who will be able to shoulder the responsibility of carrying this huge Duke of Yan's Mansion with you?"

Duke Yan's voice trembled slightly, and he held Zuo Anning's hand tightly.

Zuo Anning had tears in her eyes but a smile on her face.

"Let him be strong, the breeze blows over the hills, Ning'er lives a life of honesty and integrity, how can other people's words hurt Ning'er in the slightest?"

"Grandfather, Ning'er feels guilty for what you taught me and for your expectations of me."

The Duke of Yan felt mixed emotions, feeling both distressed and relieved. After hesitating for a while, he finally let it go.

"One cannot ask for too much in life. If my Ning'er can live a happy life, Grandfather will have no regrets."

When Zuo Anning heard this, his eyes suddenly became warm. At this moment, he could not express the gratitude and respect in his heart.

"grandfather!"

Zuo An Ning leaned her head on Duke Yan's knees, tears rolling down her cheeks.

The grandparents and grandchildren in the hall were in a state of excitement when Butler Xi suddenly came in hastily, shouting, "Master! Master! An imperial decree has come from the palace!"

This sound startled both Duke Yan and Zuo An Ning.

How could an imperial edict come down for no reason?

Zuo An Ning quickly wiped away her tears and stood up. Duke Yan looked solemn and worried:

Could something have happened at the Qiao family?

In this capital, serving the emperor is like serving a tiger. Today he may receive unlimited favors, but no one knows what will happen tomorrow.

"Let's go to the front to receive the imperial edict!"

Duke Yan was about to leave in a hurry, and Butler Xi hastily added, "Master, the people in the palace specifically said that our daughter should go to receive the imperial edict!"

"I?"

Zuo Anning stood there, confused.

Upon hearing this, Duke Yan suddenly turned around and looked at Zuo An Ning, his heart skipping a beat.

Could it be...

"Ning'er, go wash your face quickly."

Zuo An Ning didn't dare to delay, and hurriedly called for Nanny Zhu, washed her face and tidied her appearance, then hurried forward with the Duke of Yan.

Butler Xi is the elder of the family and is very considerate in his handling of matters. He received the people from the palace to the main hall early in the morning and served them with good tea and water.

Duke Yan led Zuo An Ning to the main hall, only to find out that the eunuch who announced the decree was actually Eunuch Huang who served the emperor!

Huang Pei took the initiative to step forward with a smile on his face, "My Lord, this is good news, come and receive the decree."

Duke Yan felt relieved when he saw this, and pulled Zuo An Ning to kneel in the main hall. Huang Pei opened the imperial edict and said loudly:

"The Emperor, in compliance with the Will of Heaven, proclaims:

I have heard that Zuo Anning, the grandson of Zuo Yongling, the Duke of Yan, is virtuous, generous, gentle, honest, and has outstanding character and appearance. I am very pleased to hear this. Now there is a good minister, Tan Hanchi, who is in charge of the post of editor of the Hanlin Academy. He is very talented, has excellent character and appearance, and can be a good match.

The two of you are destined to be together, and I have now issued an imperial decree to grant you marriage. The prosperity of the country is closely related to the prosperity of the family. I hope that you two will be of one mind and one heart, serve the country with all your heart, and do not disappoint me.

So decreed."

"Miss Zuo, please accept the order." Huang Pei leaned forward slightly and said with a smile.