Marrying the Crown Prince

If a young lady takes a liking to a noble young man, and the two families agree on the terms, they can request the Empress to bestow a marriage upon them.

In short, it was a large-scale matchmaking banquet hosted by the royal family.

“I did hear some rumors in the palace.” Zhou Zhou nodded. If asked about the credibility of the rumors, the answer was almost certainly yes.

After receiving the answer he wanted, the old Marquis did not continue discussing the peach blossom banquet and calmly changed the subject.

The days at home weren't exactly leisurely. Jingyang Palace was on holiday, but that didn't mean the Yongjing Marquis's school was also on holiday. Shen Ning and Zhou Zhou asked each other to go to class together.

Although she was in the same classroom as Zhou Heng and the others, what she learned was completely different. If they were learning chess, Shen would have Zhou Zhou play against her while the others watched.

Zhou Zhou and Shen Shi both appeared to be restrained and reserved, but when they played chess, they were decisive and ruthless. The two seemed to be competing with each other, and as soon as one of them made a move, the other would follow suit.

Zhou Heng and the others were dazzled and dizzy, but with Ning's explanation from the side, they were able to understand about 70-80% of it.

Anyway, they had been in the school for half a month. Regardless of what Zhou Zhou learned, Zhou Heng and the others were deeply discouraged.

Fortunately, they only suffered for half a month before the school closed for the holidays.

At the same time, the emperor sealed the palace seal, all officials took a break, and Li Zixiao and Li Zixi were also allowed to leave the palace.

The two princesses first went to Pingshuo Hall to greet the old lady, and then told her that they wanted to take Zhou Zhou out shopping.

The old lady smiled and had Zhou Zhou seen off at the princess's invitation, and even had a maid slip a silver note into her hand.

Zhou Zhou: "..."

Zhou Zhou looked at the old lady and saw her smiling kindly.

Okay, take it without worry.

After leaving with the two princesses, Zhou Zhou asked curiously, "Where are you taking me?"

Li Zixiao looked a little awkward. After all, she had always been at odds with Li Zixi, so it was strange that she had come to Li Zixi's maternal grandparents' house.

Li Zixi was delighted, her eyes curving like crescent moons. "Our princess residence is now complete, and we'd like to invite you to come and see it with us."

According to the rules of our dynasty, princesses can only leave the palace and build their own residences after they reach the age of fifteen. When Li Zixiao was fifteen, Emperor Chenze saw that Li Zixi was also about the right age, so he decided to build their princess residences together and start construction at the same time.

Now, more than a year has passed, and the Princess's Mansion has been officially completed. After the Lunar New Year's Eve, the two princesses will be able to move out and live there.

What was said in jest was taken seriously by Zhou Zhou, who keenly noticed the key word "you all," and a slow smile appeared on her lips. "No wonder the Sixth Princess came to my house."

Li Zixiao gave a haughty snort, which was taken as tacit agreement.

"Why are you like this?" Li Zixi directly exposed her. "Didn't you suggest inviting everyone? What are you pretending for now?"

Li Zixiao gritted her teeth, wishing she could devour this loose-lipped guy. "What's it to you!"

Seeing that the two were about to fight, Zhou Zhou quickly changed the subject, "Where are we going?"

After being slightly interrupted, the two men's tempers subsided. "Let's go to Jingyuan's house."

Soon, all six people were gathered. Luckily, the carriage was a deluxe upgraded version, big enough to fit all six.

"Which mansion would you like to visit later?" Wang Qingwu asked.

“Naturally, it is my residence,” the two princesses replied simultaneously.

"Why should we see yours first?" Li Zixiao complained, pouting. "When we were picking people up, we picked up your companion first, so we should see mine first when we're looking at the mansion."

“My residence is on the right. If the carriage has to pass in front of my residence to get to your residence, then why don’t you just visit my residence first?” Li Zixi replied confidently.

“My residence is right next to yours. Do you think it’s a mere ten steps away?”

"It's bad, so what?"

Upon hearing Li Zixi's answer, Zhou Zhou quickly took away the snacks on the table, Wang Qingwu picked up the tea tray next to him, and the other two also guarded the rest of the items.

Li Zixiao: "..."

She did want to smash it, but your movements were a bit too synchronized.

"If I remember correctly, both princess residences have the same layout?" Wang Qingwu spoke slowly. She was always gentle, and her words had a calming effect, so the two firecrackers calmed down.

As for why Wang Qingwu knew these things, it was naturally because when the princess's residence was to be built, the two princesses specifically brought the blueprints to Jingyang Palace and asked everyone to give their opinions.

Liu Jingyuan suggested, "In that case, let's each go to our own residences and meet up again later, how about that?"

“That’s a good idea.” Zhou Zhou was the first to agree. Separating the two princesses was a serious matter, to avoid them fighting again at any time.

Just as they made the agreement, the carriage lurched, and the girls nearly fell to the ground.

Li Zixiao had been holding back her anger for a while, and now she was walking right into her line of fire. "You dog servant, you pig-brain! Do you want to kill this princess?"

The coachman was drenched in sweat and looked aggrieved. "Your Highness, please forgive me! It's just that someone suddenly appeared out of nowhere and rode his horse recklessly through the street. I almost crashed into him, and that's why..."

"Riding his horse recklessly through the streets, what a scoundrel!" Li Zixiao cursed.

Zhou Zhou's expression was also not good. You should know that our dynasty has long had a clear decree - riding horses in the city is prohibited, and those who violate the order will be whipped ten times.

Unfortunately, many things cannot restrain the imperial relatives. As long as they don't really cause any trouble, even if they are arrested, most of them can get out unscathed.

If anyone is injured, their family will take care of the aftermath.

She pursed her lips, remaining impassive, and said, "Luckily, the driver was alert. If we had really crashed, all of us in the carriage would have been..."

Zhou Zhou paused deliberately before continuing, "Thank goodness."

After Zhou Zhou said that, Li Zixiao and Li Zixi were also a little scared.

Li Zixiao said angrily, "Take my token and tell the Prefect of the Capital to investigate thoroughly. I want to see which family this is from!"

The guard beside the carriage responded with a "yes" and was about to leave when Li Zixi stopped him, saying, "Take my token with you too."

One princess is enough, so if there are two princesses, that matter will definitely escalate, at least to the imperial court, and that scoundrel will definitely suffer a great loss.

With the matter resolved, the carriage continued its journey and soon arrived at the princess's residence. To avoid further argument, the carriage stopped peacefully between the two residences.

Before leading her people inside, Li Zixi greeted Li Zixiao, saying, "Whoever comes out first, go find them."

It wasn't a big deal, so Li Zixiao readily agreed, "Okay."

The two made their agreement and then stepped into the princess's residence.

Zhou Zhou looked over and understood—although the princess's mistress had not yet moved in, the servants had all been arranged.