The daily life of a cold and aloof general raising his wife

Xie Huai'an thought the emperor was going to bestow a marriage upon Princess Yong'an.

His clothes were soaked by the palace eunuchs, and after he changed, he coincidentally ran into Princess Yong'an, who then struck up a conversation with him...

Xie Huai'an guessed wrong.

Emperor Mingde said with a gloomy face, "I have made up my mind to issue this decree. Not only do you have to accept the decree happily, but you also have to treat Shuwan well. I have watched this girl grow up since she was a child, and you must not bully her!"

Xie Huai'an's mind flashed with Jiang Shuwan's face, and then his mouth spoke faster than his brain, "Your subject obeys the decree."

"???"

Emperor Mingde was taken aback.

How come the person who was just being so stubborn suddenly gave in?

Although Emperor Mingde was puzzled, he could not concern himself with such matters at the moment. He dismissed Xie Huai'an and began to draft the imperial edict.

Xie Huai'an left the palace still unable to understand why he had spoken out of control and agreed to the emperor's bestowed marriage.

It's true that he hadn't considered getting married, and it's also true that he didn't want to get involved in the power struggles in the capital. But now that he's agreed, there's no going back.

***

Not long after Jiang Shuwan and the Grand Princess returned to their residence, an imperial edict arrived from the palace.

Soon, news of the Emperor's bestowal of a marriage upon Princess Yongning spread throughout the capital.

Dongping Marquis Mansion

Upon hearing the maid's report, Madam Gu exclaimed in shock, "What! The Emperor has bestowed a marriage upon Jiang Shuwan, and to some General Weiyuan?"

Gu thought through all the military officers in the capital, but he had never heard of such a person.

"This servant heard it clearly, General Weiyuan's name is Xie Huai'an."

Madam Gu waved her hand impatiently, "You can go now."

"Yes."

The maid bowed and left.

Madam Gu asked anxiously, "Granny, what should we do? Why did the Emperor suddenly issue an imperial decree to grant us this marriage?"

Thinking that Madam Gu was worried, Jiang Shuwan comforted her, "Madam, don't panic. The Emperor won't give away our eldest daughter to just anyone because of the Grand Princess."

"No, I have to find out."

After Gu finished speaking, she went to find the Marquis of Dongping.

Du Mama hurriedly followed, thinking to herself that her mistress still cared about her eldest daughter. Although she wasn't raised by her, she was still blood relatives, and what mother wouldn't love her child?

Marquis Dongping had always been indifferent to outside affairs, so he only found out when Madam Gu came looking for him.

After all, she was his own daughter. Upon hearing the news, Marquis Dongping went to the Grand Princess's residence, while Madam Gu waited at the Marquis's residence.

***

Huian Earl's Mansion

When Huianbo heard this news, he was so angry that he smashed the teacup in his hand.

Ye didn't dare to breathe loudly.

The more Huianbo looked at Ye Shi, the angrier he became. "Look at the mess you've made! If you hadn't helped the second son cover it up, things wouldn't have turned out this way!"

Originally, the Earl of Hui'an had planned to renew the marriage between the two families at the Marquis of Dongping's place after this matter was settled. But now, the Emperor has issued a decree, and the marriage is officially off.

Some unknown General Weiyuan appeared out of nowhere and somehow managed to marry Princess Yongning.

Gu only knew that the Emperor had bestowed the marriage upon her, but she did not know the contents of the imperial edict given to Xie Huai'an.

The Earl of Hui'an had found out everything clearly. Xie Huai'an was a border general with the rank of fourth grade. He didn't even have a house in the capital. He lived in a rented courtyard. The emperor not only served him but also bestowed upon him a large house, which was not something someone of his rank should have.

They were given a large house right after the marriage, but what about after they got married?

Huianbo felt heartbroken, as if he had missed out on millions of gold.

The Earl of Hui'an was not a short-sighted person who only cared about money. At that time, he took a fancy to the Marquis of Dongping's mansion not only because of its wealth, but also because of its family background and the Marquis of Dongping's relationship with the palace.

"Lord, please don't be angry. It seems that the Emperor doesn't truly love Princess Yongning. A fourth-rank general isn't even an official in the capital. I heard he's from a commoner background. I suppose he can't cause any trouble." Madam Ye's tone gradually turned disdainful.

"What do you know? A border general, once transferred back to the capital, he'll be a general in the capital. How many commoners in this world can rise from a lowly soldier to a general!"

In addition, given his wife's family background, he's sure to have a good future.

The Earl of Hui'an was already thinking about how to win over Xie Huai'an, not for his own sake, but for the sake of his nephew, the current Second Prince.

Lady Ye didn't think as far ahead as he did; at this moment, she was thinking about finding a good marriage for Erlang as soon as possible.

***

Grand Princess's Residence

After paying his respects to his mother, the Marquis of Dongping sat down and asked, "Mother, is it true that the Emperor has bestowed a marriage upon Shu Wan?"

The Grand Princess glanced at him and said irritably, "What, do you have a problem with that?"

Marquis Dongping quickly shook his head, "No, no, no, I wouldn't dare."

"Then who are you trying to impress with that accusatory look?"

Marquis Dongping's face stiffened. "I don't have a son..."

The Grand Princess had been finding him increasingly displeasing lately, and interrupted him, "Alright, just say what you have to say."

"My son and Peilan are a little worried about Shuwan after hearing about the Emperor's bestowal of a marriage. They don't know which Xie family in the capital the Emperor has chosen?"

On the way here, Marquis Dongping thought about it all the way, but he still couldn't figure out which Xie family Xie Huai'an was from.

The Grand Princess took a sip of tea and said calmly, "It's not the Xie family from the capital. He's been stationed at the border for many years. I've seen him from afar, and he seems alright."

Marquis Dongping felt reassured. "If Mother says it's okay, then there's definitely no problem. I'm relieved now. I'll go back and have Peilan prepare the dowry."

The Grand Princess responded with a faint "yes".

"Son takes his leave."

Marquis Dongping bowed and left.

The Grand Princess watched as Marquis Dongping left with an easy stride. Even if her silly son hadn't mentioned it, she could have guessed that it was Madam Gu who had sent him to gather information.

Gu's inquiry was probably not truly for Shu Wan's good, but rather out of fear that her elder sister's marriage would affect her younger sister's marriage.

The more the princess thought about these things, the more of a headache they became. So she simply stopped thinking about them and let things take their course. What was meant to happen would happen.

Upon returning to his residence, Marquis Dongping went to find Lady Gu.

"Don't worry, Mother said that if a person is good, then that person must be good. Now you just need to prepare your daughter's dowry."

With his daughter's wedding approaching, Marquis Dongping was in a good mood.

"A commoner? A border general? Mother just agreed to that?"

Gu found it unbelievable.

Marquis Dongping frowned slightly. "What kind of expression is that?"

"My husband, I just find it strange. Mother values ​​Wan'er so much, how could she marry her off to a commoner who is also a fourth-rank general on the frontier?"

Madam Gu always felt that the Grand Princess hadn't explained things clearly, and there must be some hidden meaning behind it.

Marquis Dongping felt that Lady Gu was overthinking things.

"You're overthinking it. When it comes to marriage, my mother only cares about whether the two people are compatible. She's not strict about family background."

"Husband, it's not that I'm overthinking it, it's just really strange..."

Marquis Dongping interrupted her, "Alright, stop talking. Even if you, as a mother, are unwilling to accept the marriage decreed by the Emperor, there's nothing you can do. Are you going to defy the imperial decree?"

Lady Gu fell silent. The Marquis of Dongping was right. The marriage was bestowed upon her, and to refuse would be to defy the imperial decree.