Prince Huaiyang wanted to return to Northern Jin before the New Year, so the wedding date of Princess Xiyue and Xiao Jingyan was set on the 20th of the winter month. Because time was tight, the Xiao family became busy. The men contacted relatives and friends and ran diplomatic affairs; the women decorated the mansion and prepared banquets for the wedding.
In order to show their respect for the distinguished guests from Northern Jin and Princess Xiyue, the Xiao family took the time to host a banquet for Prince Yusu and the twelfth prince Luo Yan.
Xiao Yao, who had received the news in advance, hid back in Yaoyuan Tower early on the day Luo Yan visited, and ordered the maid to close the door tightly. The old marquis also sent more people to surround Yaoyuan Tower. The guards received orders that if any strange man dared to approach, they should take action directly without any hesitation.
I don’t know whether Yun Yichen and Mu Fengwu heard the news or it was just a coincidence, but they arrived at the Xiao family almost at the same time as the guests from Beijin.
"Are Prince Yun and Young Master Mu also relatives of the Xiao family?" Luo Yan asked meaningfully.
"Our relationship with the Xiao family is incomparable to outsiders." Mu Fengwu ignored Luo Yan's sarcasm and passed by him, walking into the hall as if he was familiar with the place. Yun Yichen ignored Luo Yan and left after greeting the Xiao family.
Xiao Jingkang wondered what day it was today, but a bunch of people he couldn't afford to offend had gathered. He couldn't afford to offend these three people, or rather, everyone who came today, but he didn't dare not entertain them attentively.
Everyone sat down in the living room, chatting with each other in a polite yet distant manner. As the host, Xiao Jingkang could not ignore the people from Beijin, but he was also unwilling to be too enthusiastic towards them, because he got angry when he thought of Luo Yan's thoughts about his daughter. However, for the sake of his future brother-in-law and Luo Yan's status, he could only swallow his anger and deal with him.
Because Luo Yan was coming, Old Marquis Xiao had intentionally stayed away today. He left this group of annoying, annoying people to his eldest son and the culprit, his youngest son, to handle. He also sternly warned the two brothers to be "cold and polite" to the Twelfth Prince. If he tried to mess around again, the princess would take him back to the princess's mansion. At that time, the Xiao family would no longer care about their marriage. They would just send Xiao Jingyan over, and Beijin would handle the rest on its own!
"Dad, are you not planning to have a son anymore?" Xiao Jingyan asked with his mouth wide open. He had only heard that a daughter who is married off is like spilled water, but he didn't expect that in the eyes of his biological father, the son is the one who is spilled.
"If you want to get married at home, you can persuade the princess to let her control the twelfth prince. Otherwise, you should go to the princess's mansion and never come back. How can you, as his uncle, feel ashamed when someone bullies Ping An? I tell you, whoever provokes the person is responsible for the aftermath. If you can't deal with the people from Beijin, how can you let Ping An call you uncle again?" Old Marquis Xiao said as a matter of course.
Because of this, Xiao Jingyan had to be extremely attentive to the guests. He didn't want to be kicked out of the house.
After lunch, Luo Yan finally couldn't help but ask Xiao Jingkang: "Where's the little girl at your house? Why didn't she come out to meet the guests?"
"My daughter has a lot of things to do, and our Tianyu custom is that girls cannot easily meet men other than men, so she will not come today." Xiao Jingkang said bluntly.
"Then aren't they outsiders?" Luo Yan pointed at Yun Yichen and Mu Fengwu and said.
"We didn't say we wanted to see Miss Xiao. Prince Yun and I came to visit our junior brother." Mu Feng originally wanted to say that he came to visit the old man, but the old man was not at home at all, so he had to change his words.
"You... In a few years, this prince will come to Tianyu to propose marriage. I don't believe that your emperor will offend Beijin for a woman." Seeing that the other party's attitude was not friendly at all, Luo Yan directly expressed his thoughts. He was sure that the emperor of Tianyu would never give up the opportunity to reconcile the two countries for a girl.
"Have you, Twelfth Prince, forgotten that the Emperor promised our Xiao family that we can have full authority over the marriages of our daughters? Today, as a parent, I say it again that we will not let our daughter marry far away." Xiao Jingkang said bluntly.
"So, you might be my father-in-law in the future!" Luo Yan didn't care about Xiao Jingkang's rejection at all. In his opinion, that set of formulaic statements might fool others, but it would never work on himself.
"The Xiao family doesn't dare to marry into a family of this stature, so please be careful with your words, Twelfth Prince." Xiao Jingkang said with a slightly gloomy expression.
"Is Prince Huaiyang just going to watch? I think as a relative, you should say something. Our Xiao family's attitude is very clear, that is, the girls in the family need to find a son-in-law, and we already have a candidate. If it weren't for my old father wanting to keep a low profile, he would have announced the news to the public long ago." Xiao Jingyan didn't expect Luo Yan to be so arrogant and dare to shout in front of the Xiao family.
"This excuse is too old, this prince will not believe it." Luo Yan still didn't care. He had always wanted to get whatever he wanted since he was a child, and he really didn't believe that there was a family like the Xiao family in this world who was unwilling to curry favor with the rich and powerful and did not want to become royal relatives.
Mu Fengwu's first reaction when he heard Xiao Jingkang's words was: It's such a pity that Junior Sister Xiao can't become his sister-in-law.
Yun Yichen's mind only echoed with Xiao Jingkang's words: The little girl already has a husband, and it's a live-in son-in-law...
"Ahem, ahem, cousin, we've been out for a while, it's time to say goodbye." Prince Huaiyang was bathed in the cold gaze of his future brother-in-law, and had no choice but to admonish his little bully cousin.
As a prince, I've been so frustrated. First, I was bullied by my own sister for years. After finally waiting for someone to take over, I didn't have time to breathe or gloat before a cruel reality appeared before me: this future brother-in-law had my sister completely under his thumb. My miserable and abused life has not changed at all, but has become more and more severe. Sigh! I was bullied in Northern Jin, but I can't stand up straight when I come to Tianyu! How sad!
"Well, this prince will leave first today. It's not too late to meet the little beauty when my cousin gets married. Your Xiao family will not forbid her to attend the ceremony!" Bei Jin's requirements for women are not as strict as Tian Yu's. Women are allowed to go out on the streets, have parties, and attend weddings. Except that they cannot stay overnight outside, they are almost the same as men in other aspects.
"In our Tianyu, no young lady would witness other people's weddings and worship heaven and earth. If the twelfth prince doesn't believe it, you can go and ask anyone on the street." Xiao Jingkang laughed angrily. He said that he would never marry his daughter to such a man. There was nothing about Luo Yan that met the Xiao family's requirements for choosing a son-in-law. Anyway, with the emperor's decree, his family had nothing to be afraid of. Could he dare to snatch the bride away?
At this moment, Xiao Jingkang sincerely admired his father's ability to plan ahead. Although the Twelfth Prince was only talking about it now, if there was no decree, there was no guarantee that there would not be a second or third Twelfth Prince.
The emperor would never give up the opportunity to make friends with the neighboring country for an insignificant little woman. If that happened, his daughter would really be a piece of meat on the chopping board. Xiao Jingkang was so scared that he didn't dare to think about it anymore. It seemed that he should talk to his father and decide whether he should arrange Ping An's marriage as soon as possible.
When Xiao Jingkang thought about his smart and caring daughter belonging to someone else, he became so upset that he wanted to hit people and smash things.
After finally sending the unwelcome crowd away, Xiao Jingkang dragged his exhausted body back to Yayuan, changed into his casual clothes, and freshened up before picking up a book to read. However, even though his eyes were fixed on the book, his mind was still on his daughter's affairs. What should he do?
The more Xiao Jingkang thought about it, the more suffocated he felt. He threw the book heavily on the bed, leaned against the headboard, and his mind wandered away angrily.
"What's wrong with you? Did the twelfth prince say something again? Just ignore him. Once your fourth brother gets married, the people from Northern Jin will leave." Tong Mingyu saw that her husband's face was not looking good, so she persuaded him softly.
"The twelfth prince said that he would come to Tianyu to propose marriage in a few years. For the sake of friendly relations between the two countries, will the emperor..." break his promise to the Xiao family and choose to help Luo Yan. Although the possibility is not great, the Xiao family has to be on guard early.
It took Tong Mingyu a long time to react. She sighed heavily and said, "What you fear is what will come true. I have always hoped that Ping An would be more outstanding. But as the years passed, my daughter became more and more outstanding. There were many nights when I couldn't sleep because of worry. Later, I received the emperor's decree, and I felt a little relieved.
But after only a few days of peaceful days, a prince from Northern Jin arrived. Fortunately, he was not a relative of Tianyu, and fortunately, my father-in-law had prayed to the emperor for safety early on. Otherwise, even if there was no twelfth prince, who could guarantee that there wouldn't be a thirteenth or fourteenth prince?
"Didn't Father select a few young men for Ping'an and Ruyi? The third brother and I will go take a look and investigate someday. If there are any good ones, we can settle them down with Ping'an so that others won't worry about them."
Tong Mingyu stared at her husband in astonishment. After seeing that he wasn't joking, she stammered, "Shouldn't we discuss this matter with my father-in-law? Even if you have this intention...you must carefully examine the other party's character and talents and get a comprehensive understanding. I always feel that the families of the generals under my father-in-law may not be able to find a suitable candidate. Although we are looking for a son-in-law, we can't let Ping An down, right?"
"Of course I understand this. It's so good for our family to be safe! I wouldn't agree even if the other party was even slightly short of it. After I finish dealing with Fourth Brother's affairs, I will personally monitor this matter. Don't worry, no matter who is wronged, I will not let Ping An down."
"Ping'an will be eight years old after the New Year. How come the time goes by so quickly! It seems like in the blink of an eye, the children have grown up. After the New Year, my brother and sister-in-law will arrange Alang's marriage. Our Ayi is also of marriageable age. It would be best if we can marry our son off before the end of next year." Tong Mingyu thought of her son's marriage again and couldn't help nagging a few words.
"Just take care of Ayi's affairs. Everything else is easy to deal with. The only thing you must pay attention to is that the other party must treat Ping'an well. When you go to look for a daughter-in-law, remember to bring Ping'an with you and let our daughter help you choose one."
I have only ever heard that it is the mother-in-law who chooses the daughter-in-law, not the sister-in-law. Tong Mingyu didn't know how to answer her husband.
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