Golden Branch

"Yang Twenty-One? Prince Rui?"

After hearing what Wang Heng said, Lou Yu smiled slightly and said, "Zheng Shisan is a good choice."

To be specific, Prince Rui was not the most favored or powerful among the many members of the Yang royal family, but he was not a marginal figure either.

At most, his situation was a little embarrassing.

His title of king was conferred by the former emperor, which means that he was the former emperor's confidant.

After the saint ascended the throne, he cleaned out many of the former emperor's men, but the Prince Rui's Palace was not greatly affected.

It’s not that he has any relationship with the saint, but more because of his surname, generation, etc.

King Rui was also smart enough to assess the situation.

The former emperor had become the former emperor, and the saint was firmly in the court, so King Rui quickly adjusted his strategy.

He is not like the Dugu family, who sticks to one path to the end.

He was one of the first people in the royal family and clan to express his submission to the saint.

Therefore, he retained his title of king and maintained the dignity of the Rui Palace.

But, that's all.

After all, he is not the saint's confidant, and King Rui now has the title of king but no real power.

He had no real power, let alone military authority, but fortunately now he was still a prince of noble status.

But if after more than ten years, the prince inherits the title, and if he still fails to achieve great things, the Rui Wang Mansion is destined to become an idle royal family.

The powerful people in the capital were all aware of the situation of Prince Rui's Mansion.

It was somewhat difficult for Prince Rui to find an excellent marriage for his prince.

Neither high nor low can achieve the goal, which describes the current situation of Prince Rui’s Mansion.

Zheng Shisan chose Yang Shou precisely because of this.

With a little effort, she will be able to marry into the palace!

"Brother, do you mean this is feasible?"

Wang Heng had already made up her mind; she was determined to help Zheng Shisan realize his wish.

She said this just to ask Lou Yu for help!

The smile lines on Lou Yu's lips deepened. How could he hide the little girl's little thoughts from him?

Although we already knew that the little girl could act, the innocence she showed was just what she wanted others to see.

It may not be true!

But, Lou Yu could still see through her.

"Don't worry, I'll take care of this!"

Isn't it just a matter of talking to King Rui and confirming the marriage?

In recent years, Lou Yu has made quite a lot of arrangements in Beijing.

Lou Yu has no direct interest relationship with Prince Rui, but he can have "relationship" as long as he wants!

"Brother, that's great! Thank you on behalf of Thirteenth Lady!"

When Wang Heng heard this, she knew that there would be no problem with the marriage between Zheng Shisan and Yang Eryi.

Once Lou Yu opens his mouth, he will get the matter done.

Maybe, before she leaves Beijing, Shisanniang will be able to marry smoothly into Prince Rui's Mansion.

……

Lou Yu agreed to Wang Heng's request. A few days later, he found a time to go to Prince Rui's mansion and talked with Prince Rui in his study for the time it took to stick of incense.

No one knew what the two talked about, but that night, when Lou Yu returned to the Duke's Mansion, he went from the back mountain to the Princess's Mansion.

"Prince Rui has already agreed and will soon ask a matchmaker to propose marriage."

He looked at Wang Heng, "Heng, do you want Zheng Shisan to stay in the princess's residence, or return to the Zheng family?"

Logically speaking, Zheng Shisan is the daughter of the Zheng family, so when it comes to proposing marriage, she should contact the Zheng family directly.

However, Zheng Shisan’s situation is different.

She was Wang Heng's playmate and had been staying by her side for the past few years.

After Wang Heng became Princess Langya, Zheng Shisan became her legitimate companion.

As the "king", Wang Heng is fully qualified to decide Zheng Shisan's marriage.

Letting Zheng Shisan marry in the princess's mansion is not a humiliation to the Zheng family, but rather elevates Zheng Shisan's status.

"Let me ask Thirteenth Lady. This is, after all, a major event in her life."

"The Zheng family has indeed fallen on hard times, and they have never valued Thirteenth Lady. However, her surname is Zheng after all, and her stepmother and biological father are both alive. It would be unwise for her to become too estranged from the Zheng family."

It’s not that he was afraid that something would happen to the Zheng family, but he was worried that Shisan Niang would be labeled as unfilial.

"She married into the Rui Wang Mansion, which was a high-ranking marriage."

"Secretly, there are probably many people who envy and hate her. If anyone wants to cause trouble for her, her feud with the Zheng family will be the perfect target!"

In the Dayu Dynasty, filial piety was as important as the sky.

Just like Wang Heng, who was already a noble princess, she still deliberately did things she didn't want to do in order to have a reputation of being filial.

Zheng Shisan's status is far inferior to Wang Heng's, so she needs to be more careful in what she says and does, and must not make any mistakes.

"Then let her go back to the Zheng family first! Prince Rui's Mansion will go to the Zheng family to propose marriage!"

Lou Yu understood Wang Heng's meaning, nodded, and said, "I will also send someone to greet the Zheng family—"

The woman that King Rui wanted to marry was not Zheng's daughter, but Zheng Shisan.

Therefore, the Zheng family must not play word games or do things like "sisters marrying on behalf of others".

Although this possibility is not very high, Lou Yu is used to being thoughtful and meticulous, and he will not allow even the slightest loophole!

"Yeah, brother is really thoughtful."

Wang Heng's beautiful little face was full of trust and admiration for Lou Yu.

This wasn't a disguise, but she really believed Lou Yu was reliable—

As long as it is something he agrees to do, he will do it to perfection and there will never be any "accidents"!

……

Tongshanfang, adjacent to Qujiang, is considered the most remote neighborhood in the capital.

The property purchased by the Zheng family in the capital is located in Tongshanfang.

The large courtyard with five entrances and exits is a mansion like a fairy palace for ordinary people.

But for the real aristocratic families, it is just ordinary.

Especially the mansion in Tongshanfang, which further highlights the decline of the Zheng family.

A carriage that was not new but not shabby either, slowly drove towards Zheng's house.

Call!

With the driver's shout, the carriage stopped steadily.

The servant at the gate of the house was secretly leaning against the corner and taking a break.

Hearing the noise, he hurriedly held his hat and ran out.

A maid with two buns on her hair jumped out of the carriage. After landing, she hurriedly brought the footrests from the back of the carriage.

The maid put the footstool in place and stood beside it.

The car door was opened again, and a slender hand stretched out.

The servant saw a woman with a slim figure and beautiful face walking down.

She was wearing the latest style of chest-length skirt in the capital, with a shawl casually draped over her shoulders.

Her hair was combed into two spiral buns, and a red gold hairpin inlaid with gems was pinned on the buns.

There are earrings with gemstones of the same color on the ears, as well as armlets, bracelets and other accessories that look like they are from the same set of jewelry.

Just with this outfit, she looks like a true noble lady.

And her temperament, she looks charming and weak, and I feel pity for her, but there is still a kind of dignity that emanates from the inside out.

"Hiss! Whose noble lady is this? How could she be so majestic?"

The Zheng family had been in decline for a long time. After moving to Beijing, most of the relatives and old friends they had contact with had also fallen on hard times.

The only and most noble relative is the Lou family of Duke Anguo.

However, before the Zheng family could rely on Duke Anguo to revive the family, the saint ascended the throne.

As the former emperor's confidant, Lou Jin, the Duke of Anguo, has completely become a wealthy and idle man.

They have titles but no real power. In the capital, there is no shortage of such nobles.

The Duke of Anguo's Mansion also fell into decline.

Lou Jin was unable to take care of himself, so he was even less able to protect and support a large group of relatives.

As a close relative of the Lou family, the Zheng family will only decline further.

Madam Lou wanted to continue using Zheng's daughter to curry favor with the rich and powerful, but Zheng Chi's previous cancellation of the engagement almost ruined Zheng's daughter's reputation.

Even if the Zheng family wanted to sell their daughter for fame and fortune, they couldn't.

When the master falls into poverty, the servants will also be dejected.

There are usually no decent visitors, but today, when he suddenly saw such a noble-looking young lady, the servant was a little at a loss for a moment.

It was another older doorman who saw the girl and hurried over to greet her.

"This servant greets the Thirteenth Lady!"

After paying his respects, the doorman slapped the servant in the face: "You idiot, what are you standing there for? This is our young lady!"

In fact, when the servant heard the doorman call "Thirteenth Lady", he realized: It turned out to be the Thirteenth Lady from the family who went to study with Princess Langya!

This person is the only capable person in the entire Zheng family.

Whenever Madam Lou and Lady Lady Lou go out to socialize, they always bring her out as a cover.

However, this Thirteenth Lady has always lived in the princess's mansion.

I have been back to Beijing for several months, and have only been back twice.

So, it’s no wonder that the servant couldn’t recognize him.

Not only him, a servant, but even some of the less favored masters of the Zheng family had never seen Thirteenth Lady.

"Well! Are Grandmother and Mother here?"

Zheng Shisan nodded reservedly, glanced at the Zheng residence which was obviously a new courtyard but exuded a sense of decadence, and asked softly.

"Yes! All are here!"

It's summer, the sun is scorching outside and the heat is heavy. Where else can you go if not stay at home?

Uh, well, it's hot even at home.

When the summer heat becomes unbearable, the truly prominent and powerful people will go to the farm outside the city to cool off.

The Zheng family has very little property in the capital.

Apart from this house, there is only a small farm on the outskirts of the city, which is far from meeting the requirements of summer vacation.

Zheng Shisan didn't know much about the Zheng family's situation, but he could imagine it.

Especially when she was led by the servants all the way to the main courtyard on the central axis and entered the main hall, but did not feel a trace of coolness, Zheng Shisan deeply realized that the Zheng family had indeed completely declined.

There wasn't even an ice jar in Madam Lou's main hall.

Ice in summer is indeed expensive.

But the Zheng family is not ordinary people.

I guess I can't afford it if the whole family uses it.

But the fact that the most honorable lady in the family didn’t have any ice is very telling.

"Hey, isn't this Thirteenth Lady? Why are you back so suddenly when you're not enjoying yourself in the Princess's Mansion?"

When Zheng Chi saw Zheng Shisan's glamorous outfit, the jealousy in his eyes almost turned into reality.

The family has fallen on hard times, making a living is difficult, and now even the marriage is not going well.

Zheng Chi, who claims to be a noble legitimate daughter, has long had a distorted mind.

Seeing the lowly thing that once crawled at her feet now in such a glorious position, she couldn't stand it at all and started to challenge him: "What, did you offend the noble and get chased back by the princess?"

Madam Lou also looked at Zheng Shisan with a sharp gaze: "Shisan Niang, why did you come back so suddenly? What happened at the Princess's Mansion?"

"Reporting to Grandmother, the princess has arranged a marriage for her granddaughter. The matchmaker will come to propose in two days!"

Zheng Shisan took his time and slowly dropped a bombshell that would shock the entire Zheng family: "Prince Yang Ershiyilang, the crown prince of Prince Rui, wishes to marry his granddaughter to be his consort!"