Chapter 294 Granted Marriage
Huo Gannian lay on the couch for three days.
It was only three days, and when he woke up, dark clouds were gathering outside and heavy rain was pouring down. The weather had completely changed.
The test of distinguishing loyalty from treachery on Mount Li ended "successfully", Ni Kun was torn apart by five horses, and Yun Chen was imprisoned in the Sky Prison.
He lay on the couch and listened to this "absurd drama" for three days. Sometimes he couldn't even tell whether it was reality or he was having a terrifying and dark dream.
The empty house told him that Yun Chen was away and had not returned for three days. Everything was true.
He sat up from the couch and put on a very simple robe.
Ye Yan and others heard the noise and ran in. They saw Huo Gannian waking up, and his complexion even looked rosier than before. They were so happy that they cried.
It was only three days, but it felt as long and unbearable as three years.
Ye Yan said with a sense of relief:
"Young Master, you've finally woken up. I can't control Hua Jue anymore. He wants to drag Buyan to rob the Heavenly Prison!"
Huo Gannian looked up at Hua Jue, who was wearing armor and carrying several weapons.
Buyan, who was standing aside, had not yet found suitable armor because he was too thin, but he had already put on his combat boots.
Hua Jue wiped away his tears. "Achen is imprisoned in the Sky Prison! Winter is about to arrive, and the prison is freezing cold. There must not even be a thin blanket on the bed. The Su family has an old grudge against Achen, so they will definitely take this opportunity to take revenge on him! Shouldn't we go? And watch Achen being framed for treason?"
Bu Yan sighed, "Achen is a brother to all of us. Who would be willing to let him suffer in prison? But can we rob the prison casually?" He patted Hua Jue's shoulder comfortingly.
"It's okay, now that the young master is awake, everything will be fine."
"I know." Hua Jue nodded, wiped away his tears, and asked Huo Gannian:
"Young Master, are you going to the palace now? I'll get you some armor!"
Huo Gannian shook his head: "No need."
"Then put on your official uniform."
"Need not."
Huo Gannian brought nothing with him. He only wore a neat and clean plain dress, put on a raincoat, and rode the wolf-killing colt alone.
Hua Jue was a little anxious and wanted to give the Hidden Moon Sword to Huo Gannian, "Young Master, this is not an ordinary time, you have to take the sword!"
Huo Gannian still said "no need" and only put three things on his body.
A supreme token of the Huo Gang, a military token of the Lion Army, and a crown symbolizing the rank of a marquis.
Ye Yan and Buyan stopped Hua Jue, and the latter had to give up and watched Huo Gannian and his horse go away.
…
…
Huo Gannian walked all the way into the palace and saw the palace servants cleaning up the leftovers of the banquet in the heavy rain. Everyone was talking about the topic of Donggong's upcoming ascension to the throne.
It is said that the dragon robe was embroidered in the embroidery room three days ago, and all the ceremonies for the coronation ceremony had been prepared early.
The wolf-slaying colt's hooves stepped on the stone slabs of the square. An hour ago, a loyal minister, Ni Kun, was wronged here and was willing to be killed.
Huo Gannian stopped his horse and bowed his head in silence for a moment.
When we walked to the East Palace, we could hear laughter from a distance. Zhiluo and several other female officials were accompanying Nan Lijun to try on the dragon robe.
An imperial edict of enthronement was spread out on the table. It was the third secret edict entrusted to Ni Kun by the late emperor.
It was supposed to be released ten years later, but now it has been brought out to the public so early that the ink color is still brand new.
Amidst everyone's endless praise, Nan Lijun, dressed in a gorgeous dragon robe, looked ethereal, her stunning face radiant, and she truly had the aura of a superior.
Yan Shijiu looked at Nan Lijun from the side.
Whenever Nan Lijun looked at him, he would be like a perfect lover, generous with his compliments and praises.
When Nan Lijun and the ladies-in-waiting were not noticing, his smile would unconsciously disappear and his eyes would be filled with mockery.
Like a hunter watching his prey walk into a trap, he looked at Nan Lijun with great interest.
He knew that soon, Nanli Jun would bring this entire prosperous kingdom into his arms.
Huo Gannian took everything in.
But now, nothing can shake his determination.
Noticing Huo Gannian's presence, Yan Shijiu straightened his expression and said with a smile:
"Hey, Lord Huo is here."
Nan Lijun waved his hand to signal all the female officials to leave, but did not let Yan Shijiu leave.
Now that there are no more constraints, she will be the emperor of Nan Kingdom and should enjoy everything in the world without being blamed, including her lover.
From today on, she no longer needs to hide Yan Shijiu.
Yan Shijiu stood up and walked out, smiling:
"The harem is not allowed to interfere in government affairs. I'd better step down!"
Nan Lijun was amused by his words, but when she saw that Huo Gannian didn't laugh, she subconsciously put away her smile, pretended to cough, and asked Huo Gannian to come forward and talk.
When Nan Lijun was the only one left in the hall, Huo Gannian lifted up his robe which was wet and heavy from the rain.
He slowly knelt down, took out the three things from his arms, and placed them one by one in front of Nan Lijun:
"This is the highest token of the Huo Gang. I present this token and half of the Huo Gang's halls to Your Highness. I congratulate you in advance on your ascension to the throne and wish Your Majesty a long life and eternal peace."
Nan Lijun opened his eyes wide in surprise, and then heard Huo Gannian pointing at two more things and saying:
"This is the Lion Might Army's military token. Although the Black Scale Cavalry hasn't been eliminated, there's no war in the southeast now. I will return the command of 300,000 soldiers to Your Highness to show that I have no second thoughts. Also, I beg Your Highness to revoke the title of Marquis. I am willing to be a servile merchant dealing only in copper coins. A small fortune will suffice, and I will return all my power to you."
Nan Lijun was so shocked that he couldn't speak.
She had never seen Huo Gannian so humble. He didn't look like the famous General Shiwei at all. He looked more like a cat with its fur smoothed.
Without waiting for Nan Lijun to ask, Huo Gannian bowed respectfully and kowtowed gently. Then he stood up straight, looked directly at Nan Lijun, and said word by word:
"Your Highness, I have no other request but Yun Chen."
All of this was too significant and sudden. It took Nan Lijun a long time to recover from the shock. He was surprised and puzzled.
"For Yun Chen, are you willing to give up everything you have now? Even half of the Huo Gang? Although Ni Kun said that he tricked Yun Chen into entering the palace to steal the military token, you and I both know whether this is true or not. Yun Chen is ultimately implicated in the crime, and I can't let him go easily."
In fact, she had already listened to Yan Shijiu's advice and was ready to release Yun Chen.
But she hasn't told anyone else about this decision.
She wanted to see what absolutely irresistible reason Huo Gannian could come up with to excuse Yun Chen.
At this time, Huo Gannian's face was calm, and his tone was as slow as a dusk drum:
"Yun Chen will not and cannot possibly plot against your kingdom. Yun Chen is a woman. If you don't believe me, you can verify it yourself."
"You, what did you say?!" Nan Lijun was stunned, so surprised that he couldn't close his mouth.
"A woman? A woman dressed as a man?"
Huo Gannian didn't say anything else.
Nan Lijun seemed to be lost in memories of the past, regretting why she had never realized Yun Chen's identity.
After thinking for a long time, she still looked incredible and kept shaking her head and muttering to herself:
“No wonder, no wonder…”
No wonder no matter which female official she promised to Huo Gannian, he didn't want to marry her, and he also didn't allow Yun Chen to marry Song Lan.
No wonder he doesn't care what people in Nan Kingdom say about his homosexuality.
No wonder, the last person the late emperor wanted to see before his death was Yun Chen.
Cao Fang, Meng Jianyun, Ni Kun, all the old ministers who had served the Empress, were very fond of Yun Chen.
There really are women disguised as men in this world.
A woman can actually climb to a peak that countless men cannot reach.
A strong sense of sourness struck Nan Lijun's heart, and her tone unconsciously became sarcastic:
"General Huo and General Yun are so powerful! They have me fooled. If I punish you for deceiving them, I'm afraid everyone in the world will blame me for killing meritorious officials. Yun Chen, very good, she's very successful in disguising herself as a man. She has trampled all the women in the world under her feet. No one can compare to her, right?"
Huo Gannian was not at all surprised by Nan Lijun's ridicule. He said sincerely:
"Yun Chen is indeed a rare woman in the world. But no matter how high she climbs, or how many people she surpasses, she is always at your feet, and I am also at your feet."
After hearing this, Nan Lijun felt much better.
She preferred to see the lion bow its head rather than those ministers who were used to flattering her carefully on a daily basis.
Huo Gannian's submissive appearance of retreating again and again really made her feel comfortable.
But then, Nan Lijun's expression darkened slightly, revealing suspicion and temptation:
"Yun Chen. Could it be the Yun family of Youzhou that you went to borrow horses from?"
Huo Gannian didn't answer, and Nan Lijun's expression changed immediately.
She didn't expect Yun Chen to have such a prominent family background.
"It's actually the Yun Clan of Youzhou? Haha, not only do you have a hundred thousand war horses, but you also have Yun Wang, whom I just appointed as Prime Minister. Great, really great! I wasn't paying attention for a moment, and you guys quietly huddled together and spread a huge net!"
At this point, Nan Lijun finally understood and was no longer shocked by Huo Gannian's sudden handing over of three tokens that symbolized power and wealth.
If Yun Chen was arrested just because he was involved in treason, Huo Gannian could rescue Yun Chen with just a flick of his finger.
All this is happening right now, in exchange for his and Yun Chen's future.
He even wanted to guarantee Yunwang a bright future at the cost of their withdrawal from the court.
Nan Lijun figured it all out and felt more and more like a clown being fooled. It was she who gave the order to go to Youzhou to borrow horses!
She couldn't help but sneer:
"You're not still asking for an arranged marriage, are you? I hope that I will let bygones be bygones, not pursue the crime of deceiving the emperor, and grant you and Yun Chen an arranged marriage?"
Huo Gannian kowtowed again and said earnestly:
"Your Highness, Yun Chen left the Yun family when he was young. He has been estranged from the Youzhou Yun family for many years and is a complete stranger. He has absolutely no intention of relying on family background. Yun Wang has a talent that surpasses hundreds of thousands of disciples. Regardless of his origins, he is a unique prime minister in this world."
He put his tone more humble:
"I am guilty. I was trapped by love and was indecisive. I was so foolish that I caused the current misunderstanding and dared to confess to Your Highness. Please forgive my sin of deception for the sake of past events. I will marry Yun Chen."
The "past" that Huo Gannian mentioned refers to the past when the Huo Gang eliminated the Yu family at a huge cost and supported Nan Lijun to ascend to the throne, as well as the past when they fought on the battlefield and made many meritorious deeds.
These are the "past" that Nan Lijun has to deal with.
Seeing Huo Gannian's desperate look, I'm afraid he doesn't even want to ask for an imperial decree to grant marriage. He must marry Yun Chen no matter whether he has to rob or cheat.
Even if Nan Lijun intended to discourage him and only allowed Yun Chen to be a concubine, and gave him a wife of more noble birth, Huo Gannian would probably just invite her back and treat her like a beautiful vase. Yun Chen would still be the unshakable mistress of the Huo Mansion.
Suddenly, a brilliant, vicious, and also brilliantly amusing idea popped up in his mind. Nan Lijun picked up the Huo Gang's highest token and played with it, pretending to be regretful and said:
"Ah, if that's the case, how can I not grant you your wish? In recognition of the two generals' heroic deeds in serving their country, I am willing to personally grant you a marriage."
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