Marrying the Crown Prince

Emperor Chenze looked at Consort Mei and was satisfied—her eye for choosing a daughter-in-law was much better than the Empress's.

Although Emperor Chenze was an emperor, he was not an autocratic ruler. He treated his children's marriages the same way, not only asking for their opinions but also consulting with their mother.

It's important to understand that for the crown prince, who is the future emperor, marrying a wife is not just a simple matter; more importantly, it's a way to consolidate power.

He is already the grandson of the Marquis of Beiping. No matter what happens, the Marquis of Beiping will naturally be within the Crown Prince's sphere of influence. As far as power is concerned, Li Ziyan marrying Chu Xuan will have no effect.

Leaving aside power and talking about feelings, although Chu Xuan had lived in the capital for many years, Li Ziyan had not seen her many times, and each time he did, he was always polite and courteous, not at all like a couple in love.

Most importantly, Emperor Chenze asked Li Ziyan his thoughts, "Do you have someone you love?"

Upon hearing his father's words, for some reason, a scene flashed through Li Ziyan's mind from a long, long time ago, in a snow-covered landscape, where a little girl held another child's hand and said she would buy her a sugar painting.

He took a deep breath, banishing the image from his mind. "Father, I have no one I love."

Therefore, in terms of feelings, Chu Xuan cannot be said to have any romantic involvement.

However, Empress Chu did not think so. When Emperor Chenze asked her who her preferred daughter-in-law was, she immediately said, "Xuan'er is the most considerate of this child. It would be wonderful if she could come and live in the palace for a long time."

“You are the Empress,” Emperor Chenze nodded. “If you really miss your niece so much, you can simply summon her to the palace to stay.”

Empress Chu: "..."

Seeing that Emperor Chenze could not understand her deeper meaning, Empress Chu expressed again, "Xuan'er has a calm and steady temperament, which I like very much."

“You are her aunt, so of course I like you,” Emperor Chenze said, expressing his understanding.

What does this say?

Empress Chu's smile froze. "This... Xuan'er is a good child. Whether she is my niece or not, I like her."

"I wonder where she'll marry in the future. I hope she can marry someone nearby." Empress Chu looked at Emperor Chenze with anticipation.

"Yes, you are her aunt," Emperor Chenze reached out and patted Empress Chu's hand, comforting her like an older brother, "When she gets married, you should add more dowry."

This...this...how did we end up talking about Chu Xuan getting married?

Empress Chu withdrew her hand, deciding to cut to the chase, "If I've chosen a daughter-in-law, it will be Xuan'er."

Emperor Chenze: "..."

No, did I just give her a false hint for so long?

"The daughter of the Marquis of Beiping, if I remember correctly, grew up on the frontier like you." Emperor Chenze rubbed his temples and reminded Empress Chu again.

Children who grow up on the frontier have ridden the wildest horses and drunk the strongest liquor. How many of these children would willingly be confined within high walls?

Not to mention Chu Xuan, even the Empress Chu would shed tears in the quiet of the night, recalling the joys of her youth.

For this reason, Emperor Chenze had much more patience and tolerance for Empress Chu than for his other concubines.

Unfortunately, Empress Chu still didn't understand Emperor Chenze's meaning and said without understanding: "That's right, but Xuan'er has been living in the capital since she was a teenager."

Seeing that he couldn't reason with Empress Chu, Emperor Chenze got straight to the point, "I think the Grand Tutor's daughter is quite good."

Empress Chu was stunned.

"You've met her before; she was Xiao Qi's study companion, and she's known as a talented woman in the capital," Emperor Chenze continued, before Empress Chu could recover. "I remember her name was Wang Qingwu."

"By the way, she also has a younger brother who is only fifteen years old but has already achieved the title of Juren. I have met this young man myself," Emperor Chenze told Empress Chu in detail about the benefits of marrying Wang Qingwu. "He is a man with a bright future."

Unexpectedly, after hearing what Emperor Chenze said, Empress Chu's face fell completely, and her tone was icy, "Since Your Majesty has already made a decision, why are you asking me?"

Emperor Chenze: "..."

Indeed, he was just bored; why did he have to ask such an extra question?

"It's not up to us parents to decide matters of marriage; it mainly depends on what Yan'er thinks," Empress Chu said with a barb. "Your Majesty, don't you agree?"

Emperor Chenze's temper flared after being mocked.

He stood up and said coldly, "I had not thought of this. Thank you for reminding me, Empress."

Empress Chu responded with a cold laugh, "Your Majesty is too kind."

"Prepare the carriage and return to the Hall of Mental Cultivation." Emperor Chenze kicked the head eunuch beside him and strode away.

As the recollection ended, Emperor Chenze looked at Consort Mei with increasing satisfaction, which made Consort Mei tremble with fear.

"It's been a long time since I've seen my beloved consort," Emperor Chenze said in a clear voice, "your beauty has only grown more striking."

Consort Mei: "..."

Didn't we just see each other a few days ago?

"Come, why are you sitting so far away? Come closer." Emperor Chenze spoke again, calling Consort Mei to his side.

As soon as Consort Mei entered, Emperor Chenze smelled a peculiar fragrance, faint and gentle, like a spring breeze.

"The aromatherapy you used today smells quite nice," Emperor Chenze praised.

“This is sesame oil that Xiao Qi found outside the palace,” Consort Mei said with a warm smile. “It seems to be from a newly opened shop.”

"Oh?" Emperor Chenze continued, following her lead. "It seems that I haven't left the palace for many years and was unaware that such a treasure existed outside the palace."

Even a casual remark from a person in a high position can cause countless ripples. Soon everyone present knew that Yu Yan Fang had a kind of fragrant oil that tasted extremely good, the kind that even the Emperor praised.

On the other side, Zhou Zhou walked back to Li Zixi's side, and the chessboard on the field was also carried off, and the game of passing the flower continued.

Li Zixi leaned close to Zhou Zhou and whispered to her, "When did your chess skills become so good?"

“It’s always been this good,” Wang Qingwu added coolly from the side. “You just didn’t know it.”

In the past, she could at least play a few rounds with Zhou Zhou, but in the past year, she has lost nine out of ten games against him, and one of those losses was particularly devastating.

Upon hearing Wang Qingwu's words, Li Zixi's eyes instantly welled up with tears. "Zhouzhou, how could you hide this from me? Aren't we still sisters?"

Zhou Zhou, who couldn't stand seeing people cry, felt overwhelmed and quickly hugged her to comfort her, "I was just afraid you'd think I was showing off."

Li Zixi: "..."

You call this coaxing people?

The game of musical chairs didn't last long; including Zhou Zhou's round, it only lasted five rounds. Among those chosen, besides Zhou Zhou, there were two women and two men.

Among the women, one was Liu Jingyuan, who performed a sword dance, attracting the attention of the military families; as for the men, Li Ziyan was chosen.