Marrying the Crown Prince

After being rejected twice, Princess Wuxing felt her face burning.

But when she thought of the Prince's mansion, which looked glamorous on the outside but was an empty shell inside, she gritted her teeth, hardened her heart, rushed to the front of the sedan chair, and knelt down.

Zhou Zhou's sedan chair was forced to stop.

"If Your Highness does not agree, I will not get up." She raised her head, her eyes filled with pleading; anyone who saw her would not dare to say she was pitiful.

But is it really pitiful?

She appeared to be the weaker party, yet she publicly pressured Zhou Zhou, attempting to force the Crown Princess to submit using morality and etiquette. Her attempt to use the weak to bully the strong was utterly ridiculous!

Zhou Zhou raised her hand and gently played with the hair on her forehead, smiling sweetly, "The scenery here is quite nice. If the Princess Consort wants to enjoy the scenery here, then she has truly chosen the right place."

“That’s right. This road is so wide and so big. There are plenty of good places for you, Princess Consort, to kneel. Why kneel in the middle of the road?”

"Someone, please move the Princess Consort to a different spot, so she won't block other people's way."

After saying that, Zhou Zhou raised his hand, and the old woman who had followed him quickly stepped forward and lifted the person up.

Princess Wuxing struggled incessantly, but the old woman didn't tolerate it and said in a low, menacing voice, "Princess, if you still want this face, don't force this old servant, otherwise, this old servant doesn't know what will happen."

Her body froze instantly.

Back at the Changxin Hall of the East Palace, Donghe brought over a pot of honey pomelo tea.

This tea has a refreshing aroma and a sweet and sour taste; one sip warms both the stomach and the body.

Zhou Zhou relaxed completely, leaning lazily against the cushions.

Seeing this, Donghe tentatively asked, "Should we investigate what has recently happened at the Prince of Wuxing's residence?"

"No need," Zhou Zhou said, waving his hand dismissively with his eyes closed.

In this life, there's no need to linger too long for unworthy people or unworthy things.

Some things, once they're over, are over; there's no need to cling to them.

Hearing this answer, Donghe was not surprised and replied with her eyes lowered, "Yes, this servant understands."

Soon, the second day of the Lunar New Year arrived.

Generally, these three days—today, tomorrow, and the day after—are the days when court officials and their wives enter the palace to pay their respects.

The wives of officials from powerful families, such as the Duke's Mansion and the Marquis of Beiping, who held real power and military authority, all entered the palace today.

As for the Yongjing Marquis's residence, they were scheduled to visit on the tenth day of the month.

Of course, thanks to Zhou Zhou's relationship with Consort Mei, they were able to enter the palace to pay their respects on the fifth day of the lunar new year.

Today, Zhou Zhou met two interesting people at Fengyi Palace.

One was the granddaughter-in-law who accompanied the wife of the Duke of Qi, who was also Su Ye's wife.

This lady's background was quite remarkable among the wives of the clan, as she was the only one who came from an ordinary family.

Fortunately, they were not from a poor family and had some spare money, which enabled her to learn some characters, so that she wouldn't be unable to understand even the list of names on the post.

This was her second year after marrying into the Duke of Qi's household, but it was her first time entering the palace.

Therefore, she sat there, her posture reserved, and her words carried a hint of cautious flattery.

Seeing this, the old lady of the Duke of Qi simply closed her eyes—out of sight, out of mind.

Zhou Zhou sighed silently and tried to smooth things over, "This young lady beside the old lady seems to be someone I've never seen before?"

Since the Crown Princess herself spoke up, even if the old lady of the Duke of Qi was unhappy, she had to give her some face.

"Your Majesty has a good eye," she said with a kind smile. "This is the new bride that good-for-nothing of my family has married."

Upon hearing the mention of this by the old lady of the Duke of Qi, someone immediately chimed in, "Is it the lady from the courtyard of the young master who won the third-place prize in the imperial examinations back then?"

To understand why the Duke of Qi's mansion ultimately agreed to let Su Ye marry a woman who was not suitable to be a wife of the royal family, we must mention the Qionglin Banquet after he won the Peach Blossom Scholar title.

The Qionglin Banquet was a banquet held by the imperial court for the newly appointed scholars after the palace examination.

At the Qionglin Banquet, Su Ye knelt before Emperor Chenze, begging him to grant her a marriage.

Emperor Chenze was not an unreasonable person. When he heard Su Ye's request, the first thing he looked at was the Duke of Qi, who was having a meal nearby.

The Duke of Qi's face turned ashen, but he did not utter a word of objection.

Emperor Chenze agreed and immediately issued an edict to bestow a marriage upon Su Ye and Fang Youyun.

Upon hearing someone bring this up, the old lady of the Duke of Qi felt a lump in her throat, her expression complex, and her voice slow and low, "Yes, it's that wretched child."

The atmosphere at the scene became even more eerie.

As for Madam Fang, at this moment, her face paled, she gripped her handkerchief tightly, lowered her head, lowered her eyebrows, pursed her lips, and dared not speak.

She looked even more reserved.

When others see this, they will smile and look away.

Although the gaze was not malicious, to someone who was highly stressed and excessively insecure, it was like a series of sarcastic remarks and knives, piercing her heart.

Zhou Zhou sighed silently, then raised a smiling face, "Madam, please don't joke with us. Who is this young master? He became a third-ranked scholar at a young age and is now working at the Hanlin Academy."

"You should know that the Hanlin Academy has been a place for cultivating prime ministers since ancient times. Those who can enter the Hanlin Academy are mostly outstanding individuals."

"In that case, Madam, please don't be modest anymore."

It's hard to say about other things, but praising people, especially praising them lavishly, is always a good thing.

Sure enough, upon hearing Zhou Zhou's words, the old lady of the Duke of Qi smiled and looked up at Empress Chu. "Your Majesty, look, the Crown Princess is so eloquent. Her words are as sweet as honey, reaching right into my heart and making me very happy."

"Her," Empress Chu nodded in agreement, "is always quick-witted; she can make anything sound wonderful."

Zhou Zhou blinked innocently—this didn't sound like a compliment at all.

Seeing that Empress Chu had taken the bait, the old lady of the Duke of Qi immediately clutched her chest, feeling extremely sad. "It's a pity that my wife is so clumsy with words, always causing me distress. If only she were half as dignified as the Crown Princess."

On the eve of the Lunar New Year, the old lady of the Duke of Qi was seen wiping away tears in front of everyone. Even if everyone wanted to watch the spectacle, they had no choice but to comfort her.

So, in a back-and-forth exchange, the old lady of the Duke of Qi took a handkerchief and wiped away non-existent tears from the corners of her eyes, then looked at Zhou Zhou and said, "Your Highness, I have a request that you cannot make."

This……

Since you already know it's an unreasonable request, then don't say it out loud, so that you won't lose face if I refuse you later.

He might have his complaints, but he couldn't actually say them out loud.

"The Duke is a high-ranking official in the court, with profound knowledge and outstanding talent, and is highly valued by the Emperor." Zhou Zhou wore a distant and indifferent smile. "Given all this, why would the old lady ask for anything? If there is anything I can do to help, please just tell me."

This wasn't a genuine instruction to her not to be polite and to speak freely.

Instead, it was a reminder to everyone, and also to the old lady of the Duke of Qi, that you are the matriarch of the Duke's mansion, and if even you cannot accomplish something, I am afraid I am powerless to help you.

Therefore, it is perfectly reasonable for me to refuse or be unable to accomplish it.