Dad, open the door. I'll bring your mistress back for you.
Chapter 236 It’s useless, don’t think about it
"Decide it in advance? I think His Majesty proposed some conditions for the exchange." Zhou Lin asked with a frown.
Zhou Antai slowly put down his teacup and said softly, "The war in the north is intense. Relying solely on your father and your elder brother is simply not enough to handle it. Your Majesty wishes for me to lead the battle personally."
Hearing this, Zhou Lin's heart tightened, and he quickly began to persuade him, "Your grandson can fight for his own future. You were sick the winter before last and were left with a stubborn cough. The imperial physician once said that you must never catch a cold again. Now that you have finally been able to live a peaceful and comfortable life for two years, your grandson really can't bear to see you rush to the battlefield again for my future!"
However, in the face of his grandson's persuasion, which was full of concern, Zhou Antai just waved his hand nonchalantly.
He smiled and consoled her, "Don't listen to the nonsense those imperial doctors tell you! Grandfather's illness is because he's been sitting idle in the capital for the past few years, becoming completely lazy and indolent. If I could truly return to the battlefield, all my ailments would be cured!"
"Grandfather, those deputies you carefully trained in the North are, in my opinion, exceptionally capable and fully capable of handling this important task! Why do you insist on going there in person?"
Zhou Antai sighed heavily, shook his head helplessly, and continued, "Alas, ever since the incident with Ji Anbang in the Jingjiao camp, His Majesty has been suspicious of them. Well, let's not talk about the affairs of the Northland for now, let's talk about your marriage first."
Zhou Lin was a little absent-minded at first, but when he heard the word "marriage", his eyes suddenly brightened like the twinkling stars in the night sky.
However, he quickly realized his mistake, so he coughed lightly, trying to hide the joy that surged in his heart, and responded calmly: "Yes, grandson is listening."
"In fact, when you were still in Shandong, your grandmother made a special trip to the Shen family to ask Old Madam Shen about this matter."
Zhou Lin nodded slightly when he heard this, indicating that he had heard about this matter.
He said, "My grandson's performance in the imperial examination was quite good. The results have been announced, and he will soon be appointed to one of the six ministries. I think now is the right time to send a matchmaker to propose marriage. However, Chu Ning is still young, so we will have to wait a few years before the marriage can be completed."
When he said this, Zhou Lin's face was filled with confidence and longing, and he looked energetic and full of vigor.
However, Zhou Antai looked troubled. After much hesitation, he finally hardened his heart and slowly spoke, shattering Zhou Lin's beautiful fantasy: "But... the Shen family rejected this marriage."
As soon as he finished speaking, Zhou Lin stood there in a daze as if struck by lightning, and was stunned for a long time before he came to his senses.
He lowered his head and kept muttering to himself, "How...how is this possible? How could this happen..."
Then, Zhou Lin slowly raised his head, his eyes sparkling, and he spoke in an unusually firm tone, "It must be because I hadn't achieved any fame before, and I was always careless and unserious, so the Shen family looked down on me. However, the situation is different now..."
Just as he was speaking, Zhou Antai suddenly frowned and interrupted him rudely, "Hanzhi, this is absolutely not your fault. Back then, when your grandmother was in the Shen family, she never even mentioned your name. Instead, it was Old Madam Shen who took the initiative, stating that the husband a young lady from the Shen family must marry must be no less capable than her grandfather and father."
Hearing this, Zhou Lin couldn't help but be slightly startled. After a moment's hesitation, he quickly argued: "My grandson's starting point is not low now. If he works hard, it may not be impossible to reach the heights of Lord Shen and Prime Minister Shen."
Seeing him so stubborn, Zhou Antai became increasingly anxious. He suddenly raised his voice and shouted, "Why can't you understand?"
This sudden shout was like a thunderclap, which frightened Zhou Lin so much that he stood there in a daze, not knowing how to react for a moment.
Zhou Antai calmed down a bit and continued to persuade earnestly, "Can't you see that this is clearly the Shen family evading responsibility? Since ancient times, how many civil servants have been able to reach the first or second rank at such a young age? Although you say you may not be unable to reach such a high position, the key is that the Shen family must be willing to believe it! The Shen family's sights are clearly on the sky."
Hearing his grandfather say this, Zhou Lin's heart was shocked, and all kinds of scenes from the past instantly emerged in his mind.
At the beginning, Shen Chuning always patiently taught the fifth prince to read and write. That gentle and focused expression is still vivid in my mind.
Later, she begged him to teach martial arts to the fifth prince. Her earnestness and sincerity were hard to refuse.
During the Lantern Festival, just because the fifth prince said he had never seen lanterns, she begged her to take the fifth prince out of the palace.
Thoughts drifted to the Lantern Festival on the night of the Lantern Festival. Zhou Lin subconsciously touched his right wrist, which had been broken and reconnected. For some reason, the pain there began to build again.
However, just a moment later, he shook his head vigorously, trying to get rid of these messy thoughts from his mind.
Shen Chuning has just reached the age of 15, and Xiao Yuanyi is three years younger than her. How could she possibly be interested in him?
Moreover, Zhou Lin clearly felt that Shen Chuning was not completely indifferent to him, otherwise she would not stare at him in a daze so often.
So when his grandmother mentioned that she wanted to choose a future wife for him from among the relatives, and mentioned the Shen family, he nodded without hesitation.
And that time in Shandong, when I decided to go to Lingdao, Shen Chuning's face showed obvious tension and concern. Could it be that all this was just my illusion?
Zhou Lin gritted his teeth, trying hard to suppress the surging emotions in his heart. His face was as cold as ice as he said, "Grandfather, this is just Madam Shen's opinion. I think we should first meet with Prime Minister Shen, or pay our respects to Lord Shen, to hear what they think about this."
Unexpectedly, before he finished speaking, Zhou Antai's originally calm face suddenly turned gloomy.
He glared at Zhou Lin and shouted, "Zhou Hanzhi! Do you really want to disregard the reputation of our Zhou family and trample on it wantonly?"
Zhou Lin tried hard to hold back the tears that were about to burst out of his eyes, and whispered, "I... I just... I just want to try again..."
He lowered his head, looking lonely, like a child who had made a mistake.
Seeing him like this, Zhou Antai couldn't help but feel fortunate that he had kept the matter a secret until after the results were announced, otherwise who knows what kind of trouble would have arisen.
He sighed and said, "It's useless, don't think about it."
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