The cruel little princess

Time was running out, and with the 25th day of the twelfth lunar month drawing near, the embroiderers at Prince Jin's residence toiled day and night, finally completing Shen Youyou's new dress within the allotted timeframe. Prince Jin personally sealed the dress in an exquisite wooden box and sent it to the herbal medicine shop, making up a simple excuse to thank the Princess of Rui'an for saving his life, but not revealing his true identity. This way, the dress could be presented with a legitimate reason, leaving no one else to complain.

After receiving the gift, Shopkeeper Wang felt very embarrassed. He knew that he couldn't handle such an important item casually, so he decided to go to the backyard to ask Shen Youyou for instructions. After Shen Youyou learned about this, she ordered Shopkeeper Wang to send the clothes to her for inspection.

Shopkeeper Wang didn't dare to delay and immediately took the clothes to the backyard and handed them to Shen Youyou. Shen Youyou only needed to take a glance to understand where the clothes came from. She told the coachman, Li Bo, to send the clothes back to the mansion first and try them on in the evening to see if they fit her well.

At the same time, after finishing the morning court, His Royal Highness Prince Jin also came to the door of the imperial study and asked to see his father.

After giving him the news, eunuch Xiao Xizi invited him in.

"What's going on today? After leaving court, you didn't go back home immediately but came to my imperial study? What? Have you changed your mind and asked me to grant you a marriage and ask to marry another girl?" The emperor teased him.

"Father!" His Royal Highness Prince Jin solemnly paid his respects to the Emperor, then walked to the Emperor's side and said seriously, "Father! I want to marry Princess Jin."

Upon hearing this, the Emperor paused with his imperial brush, and a large red dot appeared on the memorial with his cinnabar seal. But the Emperor paid no attention. He placed his brush on the table and smiled at Prince Jin. "Old Nine, are you serious this time? You're not trying to trick your father to please me, are you?!"

"Father, marriage is not a joke. I, your son, sincerely want to marry you!" His Royal Highness Prince Jin said a little shyly.

"Haha! Let me guess, is it the Princess of Rui'an County?!" The emperor did not hide his gossipy heart at all and asked it so openly.

"Yes! Father is very good at predicting things!" When His Royal Highness Prince Jin talked about his sweetheart, the corners of his mouth slightly raised, his tone was light, his face was filled with a smile of happiness and satisfaction, and his whole body exuded an aura of joy.

"Oh~" The Emperor nodded slightly, indicating that he understood the situation. Then, he suddenly approached His Royal Highness Prince Jin and whispered, "At that time, I allowed the Princess of Rui'an to marry freely! Are you and the girl in love with each other?" The Emperor's expression was full of curiosity, as if he was very concerned about this relationship.

His Royal Highness Prince Jin smiled shyly, a gentle light glittering in his eyes, and replied softly: "Yes, we love each other and are devoted to each other."

His Majesty nodded slightly, a look of satisfaction on his face. Then, leaning closer to His Royal Highness Prince Jin, he whispered even softer, as if sharing a secret, "So, how do you plan to propose to General Shen? Do you have any plans or ideas?"

After a moment's reflection, His Royal Highness Prince Jin said firmly, "She has agreed to let me propose to General Shen, but she wishes to wait until her father returns to the capital. Therefore, I hope you can recall General Shen to the capital during the New Year holidays so that I can propose marriage sooner rather than later. After all, General Shen is now capable of handling matters on his own, so please let him handle the situation for a while while General Shen returns to the capital to resolve my lifelong affairs!"

His Majesty the Emperor smiled and patted Prince Jin's shoulder, saying encouragingly, "Okay, I'll consider it. However, marriage shouldn't be rushed; it requires careful consideration. Do you have sufficient understanding and trust between you?"

Prince Jin replied confidently, "Of course. We understand and trust each other. I believe we can create a beautiful future together."

"Then I will order Lord Shen to return to the capital to report on his work, and wait until you have proposed marriage before going back?" The emperor asked His Royal Highness Prince Jin with a smile, gently stroking the non-existent beard on his chin.

Upon hearing this, His Royal Highness Prince Jin immediately knelt down to express his gratitude: "Thank you, Father!"

However, the Emperor said with some concern, "But we can't be careless with this proposal!" After careful consideration, he continued, "To demonstrate our seriousness regarding this marriage, I intend to consult with your uncle, Prince Heng, to see if he can propose on your behalf!" The Emperor considered who would be suitable to propose on his son's behalf and ultimately decided that Prince Heng was the most suitable. After all, Prince Heng was of noble status, and having him propose would further demonstrate the importance the Royal Family attached to this marriage!

Upon hearing this, His Royal Highness Prince Jin was secretly delighted in his heart, but his face remained solemn and he said with tears of gratitude: "Thank you, father, for considering me!" He tried hard to control his excitement and tried his best to suppress the corners of his mouth that wanted to rise.

Normally, the marriages of the princes were arranged by their respective mothers and the Imperial Household Department. However, this was different. Prince Jin lost his mother at a young age, and Empress Defei was known for her gentleness, grace, kindness, and thoughtfulness. Without his mother's care and guidance, Prince Jin, as a father, had to pay special attention to his son's marriage.

After all, Concubine De's only wish before her death was that her son would grow up healthy, safe, happy and blessed! As a husband, he must definitely fulfill such a small wish!

Therefore, as a father, he had to supervise and manage Lao Jiu's marriage carefully. He must not let Lao Jiu feel that with his mother gone, the huge palace would be deserted and no one would love him! Therefore, compared with other princes, he had to buy more things for Lao Jiu!

The Emperor wondered if he should pick out a few rare and auspicious treasures from his own private vault and secretly slip them into the Ninth Prince's betrothal gifts. He also needed to ask the Imperial Household Department to prepare more things. Oh, what a worry! However, the thought of his son, whom he cared about most, getting engaged and getting married, filled the Emperor's heart with joy.

I wonder what the Rui'an County Lady actually looked like? What was her character like? However, judging by her ability to single-handedly establish a rescue team, hone the skills of military and imperial physicians, freely donate the Black Jade Ointment, generously improve the Zhuge Crossbow, and never take credit for herself, this Rui'an County Lady is undoubtedly a woman of great integrity and generosity.

Well, there will be a palace-wide dinner tomorrow, and Princess Rui'an will definitely come to the palace then. It's a good opportunity for him to ask the Queen today to pay attention to the girl's words, deeds, behavior, character, and take good care of her.

Prince Jin watched his father, his face shifting from gloomy to cheerful, as if something had finally come to his senses. He didn't want to interrupt, so he just stood quietly by, waiting for his father to regain his composure.

The emperor was moved by his own feelings for a moment before he remembered that the Ninth Prince hadn't left yet. "Xiao Xizi, give the Ninth Prince the largest coral, the exquisite pagoda, and the Nine-Phoenix Crown from my private collection. Take them back to the palace and keep them for future marriage proposals!"

"Thank you, Father!" Although the palace has its own small private treasury, as well as the dowry from my mother and the occasional rewards from my father, who can complain about having too many treasures? Who knows, Youyou might also like the ones given by my father! His Royal Highness Prince Jin thought to himself, and then thanked him and returned home with the rewards, feeling satisfied.