allonlinenovel Chapter 286 Taking the Initiative to Propose Marriage
Chapter 286 Taking the Initiative to Propose Marriage
The master was anxious and couldn't wait a moment longer, so he immediately took Zhao Yi to the Qi family.
After leaving the Duke's mansion, Prince Rui went straight back to his own residence and summoned his advisors.
The aide bowed to Prince Rui, observed his expression, and saw no relief or joy in achieving his goal.
He asked, "Your Highness, did Zhao Yi refuse you?"
"Zhao Yi instructed me to truthfully report the matter concerning the Ministry of War to my father, and leave it to my father to decide."
Prince Rui threw the letter on the table, his face grave, and said, "Zhao Yi has always been a prudent person who does not participate in the struggle for the throne. He is loyal only to the Emperor and has never been close to any of the princes."
"When I saw that he did not avoid the question, I assumed that he had agreed to help me. I then probed him about the marriage of Princess Guangning, but Zhao Yi was unwilling to get involved."
Prince Rui was somewhat irritated: "I can't figure out Zhao Yi's thoughts. Has he accepted my offer of recruitment, or is it because of the Ministry of War's mistake that concerns the court that he is willing to offer some guidance?"
“Your Highness, it’s quite simple if you want to know Zhao Yi’s attitude.” The advisor pondered, “You report this matter to the Emperor. If the Emperor wants to investigate it thoroughly, then you can consult him again. If he continues to give you guidance, then he is on your side.”
He paused, then continued, "Zhao Yizhi is almost supernatural; he knows what he should and shouldn't do. Since he gave you this advice, he naturally knows what it means."
It means taking sides.
Thinking of this, Prince Rui felt a little more at ease.
“My mother sent a message from the palace that my father intended for my elder brother to marry Princess Guangning. Shortly afterward, Princess Guangning was frightened at Yanxiang Palace. This matter is quite suspicious.”
Prince Rui pondered, "Given the methods of Consort Ling and my brother, they will most likely make Princess Guangning back down."
Upon hearing this, the aide smiled and said, "Your Highness, this is not a bad thing for you."
"Oh?" Prince Rui looked up at him: "Tell me about it."
An advisor suggested, "If Your Highness trusts me, you should take the initiative to ask the Emperor for Princess Guangning in marriage."
Prince Rui was taken aback, and pursed his lips.
He and Prince Yu were unwilling to marry Princess Guangning because they feared it would affect the succession to the throne.
If he takes the initiative to propose...
The advisor advised, "Your Highness, the Northern Qi was defeated and just sent a princess to marry a foreign ruler. This princess poses no threat to the Great Zhou."
"The power of discourse lies with our Great Zhou. The Emperor can personally appoint whom Princess Guangning marries, and Northern Qi has nothing to say about it."
"His Majesty did not make a decision, but instead allowed Princess Guangning to choose for herself. Isn't this a test of your and Prince Yu's attitude?"
Prince Rui's expression suddenly changed.
“If Your Highness takes the initiative to ask for Princess Guangning’s hand in marriage, in the Emperor’s eyes you will not only have the courage but also the vision to not be held back by a mere princess of a defeated country.”
"Your Highness, from another perspective, you are sharing the Emperor's burdens. For the sake of the people and the nation of Great Zhou, you do not want to see the two countries at war, and you voluntarily marry Princess Guangning to promote an alliance between the two countries."
"His Majesty is a wise ruler who cares about the people and the country. Naturally, he hopes that Your Highness will also care about the people as he does."
At this point, the aide said meaningfully, "His Majesty came from the position of a prince, so he naturally knows what a prince thinks. The more you resist marrying Princess Guangning, the more you are showing your ambition for the mighty imperial power."
Prince Rui's heart stirred, and he murmured, "To contend without contending."
No emperor could tolerate his throne being coveted.
Prince Rui made up his mind: "I will enter the palace now."
He wrote a memorial to the throne, changed into ordinary clothes, and went to the palace to meet Emperor Jing'an.
Eunuch Deng was on duty at the gate. After understanding the purpose of Prince Rui's visit, he went into the inner hall to inform the Emperor Jing'an. Only after receiving permission did he invite Prince Rui into the hall.
Prince Rui entered the main hall and bowed to Emperor Jing'an: "Father, when I took over the Ministry of War and handed over the reins to my elder brother's men, I discovered that the silver allocated by the Ministry of Revenue to the Ministry of War had disappeared..."
He looked up at Emperor Jing'an and saw that the emperor was staring at him intently. He immediately felt a chill run down his spine and handed over the memorial and account books with both hands.
"Father, I have written down all the problems of the Ministry of War in this memorial. This account book records the income and expenditure of the Ministry of War for the past three years. Please take a look."
Eunuch Cao immediately presented the memorial and account books to Emperor Jing'an.
Emperor Jing'an first opened the memorial and quickly read it through, then opened the account book. The further he flipped through the book, the more gloomy his face became.
With a loud bang, Emperor Jing'an slammed the account book on the table and roared, "Investigate it for me!"
Prince Rui, worried that Emperor Jing'an would protect Prince Yu, breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing the emperor's decision. However, he dared not propose marrying Princess Guangning while the emperor was in a state of fury, and planned to bring it up again after the morning court session the next day.
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Shen Qingtan returned to Lanxue Garden, washed her hands, changed into casual clothes, sat on the couch, and looked through the account books sent from the shop.
It was two hours later when the accounts were checked.
Shen Qingtan's eyes were sore and swollen. She pinched the corner of her eye and instructed Liu Yue, "Go and get a hot towel. I'll put it on my eyes."
Liu Yue responded and left.
"Second Madam." Mama Liu hurried into the room and handed over a letter: "This is a letter from Miss Qin."
Shen Qingtan opened the letter, read its contents, and couldn't help but chuckle.
In her letter, Qin Yao said that she had someone beat up Pei Wuyan so that she could extort some money from him and save it up as a full-month gift for her nephew.
Shen Qingtan stared at the words "little nephew" and couldn't help but rub her forehead; it was too early.
Zhao Yi had only recently recovered from the poisoning, and he was worried that having a child now would still affect the child, so he planned to wait another year or two.
She was two years older then, so having another child wouldn't be too much of a hardship.
Shen Qingtan read the letter again. Pei Wuyan had already left the Duke's Mansion, losing the opportunity to climb up to the Duke's Mansion. Pei Wuyan had also lost his value to Prince Yu.
Now he can only cling tightly to Qin Yao, and with no other choice, he is more likely to fall into the trap.
If Prince Yu wanted to use Pei Wuyan again, that would be exactly what she wanted.
Thinking of this, Shen Qingtan sighed.
That day, after inviting the Qin family to the Zhenbei Prince's Mansion, she privately asked Qin Yao what she thought of her three older brothers.
Qin Yao said, "Sister Shen, your eldest brother will inherit the title in the future and needs to marry a lady of equal social standing. I am just a merchant's daughter and cannot bear the heavy responsibility of being the wife of the clan leader. Your third brother is just as carefree as I am and doesn't have much of a mind. If I am deceived and he goes to help me seek justice, he might be deceived as well."
She asked, "Where is my second brother?"
Qin Yao said, "Sister Shen, your second brother and I don't get along, and his personality makes it very tiring to be around him."
Shen Qingtan put down the letter in her hand, about to say something to Liu Mama.
At this moment, the steward came to report: "Second Madam, someone from the palace has come and requests that the Second Master enter the palace."