Resisting the Wind and Splendor

"He's not stupid, he's just blinded by love right now. Once he comes to his senses, he'll probably be able to see things more clearly."

But these things no longer have much to do with her.

"I'm going to check on Grandfather. Zisu, you go and remind my older brother later to make sure he takes his medicine."

"Miss." Zisu called out to her just as she was about to step out of the courtyard gate: "Miss, why don't you... go and see the young master first?"

...So Chu Yue left Chu Xiaohe's Qinghui Pavilion.

Zisu asked her to come over because the Empress Dowager had sent a pile of portraits early that morning.

When Chu Yue arrived, Chu Xiaohe was sitting at the table, staring blankly at a pile of portraits.

But his gaze never lingered on the portrait.

"Granny Su personally delivered the portrait just as dawn broke today," Zisu whispered.

Chu Xiaohe looked at Chu Yueli with a somewhat unnatural expression: "Ali, the Empress Dowager means... that she hopes I can choose a girl I like and get married as soon as possible."

"At the martial arts tournament, the Emperor just told the Empress Dowager to pay attention to my elder brother's marriage, and the portrait was delivered this morning? It came so quickly, as if it had been planned in advance."

Chu Yueli walked over and carefully examined each painting.

They were all daughters of high-ranking officials and nobles, some of whom could be considered to come from prestigious families. However, to be matched with the eldest son of their Duke's family, their social standing was still slightly insufficient.

Chu Xiaohe and Chu Yueli themselves did not care much about these social status differences, but for the royal family, matching social status was very important when arranging a marriage.

These girls seem like they were just there to fool the older brother.

"The decision was made just yesterday, and preparations are underway today. This doesn't seem like the Empress Dowager's intention." Chu Yueli's brows furrowed slowly.

The Empress Dowager spent most of her time in the inner palace, rarely venturing out, and always turned a blind eye to the power struggles within the palace.

She certainly wouldn't prepare these things in advance.

"It seems that someone went to see the Empress Dowager last night, but I don't know if it was Consort Rui or the Empress."

"The Empress?" Chu Xiaohe didn't understand. "Even Consort Rui can understand, but why is the Empress also concerned about my marriage?"

"Recently, the Empress has been trying to win over our Duke's Mansion." Some things don't need to be said too clearly, but Chu Yueli understood.

The Empress was concerned about her marriage, and naturally she was concerned about her elder brother's as well.

"But the Fourteenth Prince is so young. With the Empress making such plans, when will he be able to shoulder the heavy responsibility she has given him?"

Whether a six-year-old child can grow up safely in the imperial harem is still unknown.

The key point is that the princes nowadays all wield great power, and each one is more difficult to deal with than the last.

Even the ministers themselves had implicitly agreed that the position of crown prince would only be related to the current princes.

The fourteenth prince is only six years old, but the emperor's health has clearly deteriorated in recent years. It seems that the emperor will not be able to wait for the fourteenth prince to grow up and will have to establish a crown prince.

"Is there any point in the Empress doing all this?"

"Only by planning ahead can you ensure your survival. No matter what you're planning, you must always plan ahead first."

However, the Empress's situation in the inner palace is still very difficult.

"Based on my estimation, these portraits were given by Consort Rui, and the fathers of several of them were members of Prince Jin's faction."

Chu Xiaohe frowned: "Why is Consort Rui even concerned about my marriage? With you and Prince Jin having such a falling out, there's no way I can maintain a good relationship with Prince Jin's faction."

Chu Yueli shook her head and said, "I'm afraid Consort Rui never intended to get along with us. Brother, these girls are here to uncover the secret of your body!"