In the southeast of the capital city, there stands a magnificent and beautiful royal mansion.
Inside the ornately decorated main hall of the Prince's Mansion, a richly dressed man sat leisurely on an exquisite mahogany chair. His brocade robe was embroidered with intricate patterns, and a jewel-encrusted belt around his waist further accentuated his wealth and status.
The man was fair-skinned and plump, with a faint smile on his lips and sharp eyes that exuded an air of authority.
He was listening intently to a middle-aged man dressed as a scholar speaking.
The middle-aged scholar was dressed in a blue robe and held a folding fan. When he spoke, he pointed east and west.
“Your Highness, our guard Wang has died, so he is not on duty and cannot complete the task you asked him to do. We will have to find another guard.”
"He went to the Lin family to propose marriage, but died on the way."
"The reason why our Prince's guard Wang dared to propose marriage even though he knew that Lin Daoyan's daughter, Miss Lin, was a jinx was because he had his eye on Miss Lin's dowry shop."
“Our Queen ordered her servants to buy ten cloth bags, from that shop. They sell out every day, and you have to pay in advance to reserve them.”
"For the sake of a shop, he dared to risk proposing marriage, thus delaying the important matters arranged by Your Highness. Guard Wang is truly foolish."
After the middle-aged scholar finished speaking, the man's fat face showed interest. He narrowed his eyes slightly, revealing a curious look, and asked, "Master Shan, is it true that Lin Daoyan's daughter is a jinx to her husbands?"
Master Shan thought for a moment and shook his head. “Although that’s what everyone says outside, I don’t think it’s true. After all, only three people have died so far: Ren Chuanhe, Young Master Shen, and Young Master Wang. The fact that three people have died doesn’t necessarily mean that Miss Lin is a jinx to her husbands. It might just be a coincidence.”
After a moment's thought, the prince said, "How about this, you find someone else to try?"
Upon hearing this, Master Shan looked troubled. After hesitating for a moment, he nodded and replied, "This... I do indeed want to find out if this woman is truly a jinx to her husbands."
The prince then instructed, "Master Shan, go and find someone to propose marriage to the Lin family. However, this matter must be kept secret; you must never reveal that this is my arrangement."
Master Shan quickly bowed and said, "Yes, Your Highness."
After Master Shan left the Prince's mansion, he pondered to himself that this matter needed to be kept secret so that no one would know about Prince Lu's plan, but he also had to complete the task assigned by his master. It was quite a tricky situation.
After much deliberation, Master Shan decided to ask one of his relatives to give it a try.
After leaving the Prince's mansion, Master Shan went straight to the maternal home of Concubine He, found He's younger brother He Shangang, and asked him bluntly, "Shangang, have you ever thought about being promoted to the head guard of the Prince's mansion?"
Upon hearing this, He Shangang's eyes lit up, and he eagerly replied, "Brother-in-law, I've not only thought about it, I've been dreaming about it!" Thanks to Master Shan's introduction, he now works as a gatekeeper at the Prince of Lu's mansion.
Master Shan smiled slightly and proposed a condition: "Alright, as long as you go to Lin Daoyan's house to propose marriage and marry his daughter, you will be able to be promoted to head guard as you wish."
Upon hearing this, He Shangang was stunned and speechless for a long time before he came to his senses. He stammered, "Brother-in-law, aren't you trying to harm me? I've heard about the reputation of that Miss Lin. Everyone says she's a jinx to husbands!"
"Don't listen to those people's nonsense!" Master Shan waved his hand sternly, then lowered his voice and said, "I heard it from Prince Lu himself: Prince Song's illness is almost cured, and he will return to the capital soon. At that time, Lin Daoyan will definitely be reinstated."
Master Shan paused for a moment, then said mysteriously, "Did you know? Lin Daoyan's daughter owns a shop, the one that sells silver jewelry, and business is booming!"
Upon hearing this, He Shangang's heart skipped a beat, and he quickly asked, "Really? That shop is very profitable?"
Master Shan chuckled and said, "Of course! Would I lie to you? Go see for yourself how thriving the Silver Shop is. Even our Princess Consort sent someone to buy ten cloth bags. If you marry Miss Lin, you'll not only get a promotion, but you'll also make a fortune!"
He Shangang hesitated for a moment, then frowned and said, "But I heard she's a jinx to husbands, what if..."
Master Shan impatiently interrupted him: "Why are you so stubborn? Don't you know that you should kill her first after you marry her?"
He Shangang was startled, stared wide-eyed at Master Shan, and stammered, "This...how can this be? Lin Daoyan's kung fu is first-rate, everyone in the world knows that."
Master Shan rolled his eyes at him and said, "What's wrong with that? As long as you do it cleanly and efficiently, who will know it was you? Besides, with the Prince's Mansion protecting you, would Lin Daoyan dare to come to the Prince's Mansion to touch you if he wanted to rebel? As long as you can accomplish this, Prince Lu will definitely make you the head of the guards!"
He Shangang hesitated for a moment, but was finally blinded by the temptation of promotion and wealth. He gritted his teeth and said, "Okay, I'll go propose tomorrow!"
The next day, a young man dressed as a guard arrived at Lin Daoyan's door. He also brought a matchmaker and several subordinates carrying gifts such as wine, meat, and snacks.
The gate of the Lin residence was gently knocked on, producing a crisp sound.
The servant inside opened the door upon hearing the noise and saw a burly man standing outside, dressed in a magnificent guard's uniform.
The servant hurriedly asked, "May I ask what brings you here, General?"
The man stepped forward and introduced himself: "I am Guard He from the Prince of Lu's residence. I have come to propose marriage to your young lady. Please inform your master."
The servant dared not delay and hurriedly turned and ran into the mansion to report to his master, Lin Daoyan.
Lin Daoyan was sitting on the corridor drinking tea when he heard that it was a guard from the Prince of Lu who had come to propose marriage. He was startled and muttered, "He still dares to propose marriage at this time. What is his purpose?"
Lin Yajun also shook her head, expressing her confusion, "My daughter really doesn't know, but I don't think it's anything good."
Lin Yajun pondered to herself, "The people from the Lu Prince's Mansion are not afraid of being cursed to death by me, and they dare to come and propose marriage so openly. They must have some ulterior motive."
Thinking of this, she couldn't help but sneer, "Hmph, they're probably after my shop. It really is true that 'people die for money, birds die for food.'"
She sighed inwardly, thinking that the saying "don't flaunt your wealth" was indeed true. It seemed she would have to be more careful in the future.
Zhao Canchen sat to the side reading a book, listening to the conversation between Lin Daoyan and Lin Yajun, his brows furrowed tightly.
He was extremely annoyed by these ill-intentioned and ulterior-motive-driven marriage proposals.
If this guard He truly liked Lin Yajun, that would be fine, but now it seems he's clearly after the Lin family's shop, which makes Zhao Canchen's impression of him even worse.
"If only I could kill them!" Zhao Canchen cursed inwardly.
The more he thought about it, the angrier he became. He regretted not having learned some martial arts when he was young. Otherwise, he would have not hesitated to send away all these people who came to propose to Lin Yajun with ulterior motives!
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