Tang Dynasty: Father, if you don't rebel, I will!

In the spring of the second year of Zhenguan, on the eighteenth day of the third month, it was an auspicious day for marriage.

The crackling of firecrackers, along with the wedding procession, converged into a red-clad flow of people on Longmen Street in Taiyuan.

All the members of the Zheng clan from Xingyang who could still travel from Henan were present.

As the groom, Zheng Wuhe, who was about to marry the adopted daughter of the current Crown Prince, the daughter of the Western Turkic Khan Mohedu, and the Western Turkic princess, had a smile on his face that was somewhat forced.

"Second brother, don't give anyone cause for gossip today. Smile happily. Fortunately, His Highness the Crown Prince has allowed you to keep your concubine. Today, your marriage is not only a great achievement for the Zheng family of Xingyang, but also a great achievement for the peace between our Great Tang and the Western Turks."

"His Highness the Crown Prince will definitely not mistreat you..."

Zheng Wuling, the eldest son of the Zheng family of Xingyang, seeing the expression on his younger brother's face, quickly and solemnly reminded him.

Zheng Wuhe: "...Big brother, I know, but I can't laugh..."

Behind them, several members of the Zheng family, also riding tall horses and dressed as best men, exchanged glances upon hearing this, and could only feel sympathy for each other.

If it were an ordinary family, they would be able to marry a princess, even a princess from the Western Turks.

That would surely be a very auspicious occasion, like the ancestral graves emitting auspicious smoke.

But for powerful families like the Zheng family of Xingyang, this good fortune was no different from a disgrace.

"If you can't laugh, think of something happy. If His Highness the Crown Prince is displeased, our entire family will be in deep trouble! This isn't just about your marriage; it's a matter of state!"

In the residence of Moheduo in Taiyuan Prefecture.

"Hahaha, Your Highness truly lives up to your reputation as someone who can defeat that old bastard Jieli time and time again. This game of chess is full of twists and turns, even employing military strategy... I'm not playing anymore, I'm not playing anymore, if I keep playing I'll lose all the prize money I prepared to Your Highness."

Moheduo Ashina Quli laughed loudly.

As if playing a rogue, he messed up the chessboard in front of him, which he had no chance to defend against.

Li Chengqian chuckled lightly, not seeming to mind.

"Brother Qu Li is quite capable. The game of Go in the Central Plains is profound and complex. He has already grasped the intricacies of it after only a few games with me. Hehe."

Li Chengqian smiled, his eyes looking at the rugged Turkic man in front of him, but he couldn't help but feel a bit of admiration.

He gently picked up the teacup in front of him, completely unconcerned about the seemingly insurmountable situation that Ashina Quli had disrupted.

"I have already asked my father to grant you the title of Duke. With your merits, my father will certainly not be stingy with a mere Duke title. If there is anything else you want, you can tell me as well."

"I have no reason to refuse..."

Li Chengqian stared at the other person.

Upon hearing this, Ashina Quli's face lit up with joy, but then, as if embarrassed, he hesitated and rubbed his hands together.

"Um, Your Highness, is there anything else you would like?"

A cold glint flashed in Wang De's eyes as he stood to the side, while Li Chengqian nodded with a light smile.

"Of course, do you think I'm the kind of person who makes things up on the spot?"

Ashina Quli quickly waved his hand: "No, no, Your Highness is a man of your word, the most upright and honest young man I have ever met."

He hesitated for a moment, then took two deep breaths.

Like a gambler about to place a bet, he suddenly gritted his teeth.

He cupped his hands in a respectful gesture towards Li Chengqian.

"Your Highness..."

Before the other party could even say what else they wanted, Wang De, who was standing to the side, and Lu Shiheng, the Eastern Palace Commander in charge of Li Chengqian's danger today, already harbored some murderous intent.

But unexpectedly, the next moment...

"I heard that Your Highness previously bestowed a rattan whip upon the daughter of the Duke of Ying to support her... Well, my daughter is to marry that young man from the Zheng family today. Your Highness, I, Ashina Quli, do not want to lie to you. It is only because you acted as matchmaker that I... would not have allowed my daughter to marry that young man from the Zheng family of Xingyang!"

Ashina Quli looked frustrated and worried.

Under the slightly softened gazes of the people behind him, he cupped his hands to Li Chengqian with a hint of flattery.

"Your Highness, could you also bestow a rattan whip upon my daughter? At least... if that boy really is short-lived, my daughter won't have suffered such injustice at the Zheng family's residence in Xingyang."

As he spoke, tears welled up in the eyes of this tall, burly Turkic man, who was at least 1.9 meters tall and had a broad back and thick waist.

The murderous intent in Li Chengqian's heart immediately dissipated.

"Hahaha, you, you! What? The Zheng family of Xingyang doesn't give you, the future Duke, any face? Do they even dare to disrespect me, the Crown Prince?!"

He waved his hand: "Alright, alright, it's just a rattan whip. Wang De, go back and prepare it. After the princess has finished her wedding ceremony and entered the Zheng family, you will personally deliver it to her!"

Ashina Quli: "Your subject thanks Your Highness!"

"Hey, hey, Brother Quli, you're being too polite! Get up quickly..."

Soon, the sounds of gongs and drums from the wedding procession could be heard outside the mansion.

When Zheng Wuhe, the groom, entered through the main gate with the help of his elder brother Zheng Wuling and other members of the Zheng family, scattering wedding money and sweets, he then broke into the boudoir of the Turkic princess Aida.

Finally, Aida, dressed in red, arrived before Li Chengqian, the princess's adoptive father, and Ashina Quli, the princess's biological father.

Li Chengqian had no intention of overstepping his bounds, and after smilingly gesturing for Ashina Quli to speak, he did so.

Then he watched as the other party began to repeatedly warn Zheng Wuhe.

Things like treating his daughter well...

Li Chengqian beckoned to Wang De, who hurriedly stepped forward and unfolded a copy of the Crown Prince's edict.

"By the Mandate of Heaven, the Crown Prince:"

I have heard that Zheng Wuhe, a member of the Zheng family of Xingyang, is a man of both talent and virtue, and of upright character. Recently, the Zheng family has formed a marriage alliance with a Turkic princess. Our Great Tang and the Turkic peoples are now united in marriage. Zheng Wuhe's marriage to Princess Aida of the Western Turkic Khaganate is a symbol of friendship between our two nations and is also a piece of good news for me.

Effective immediately, I hereby bestow upon Aida the title of Princess Xiyue of the Great Tang Dynasty, and make her my adopted daughter.

Because of his merit in marrying the princess, Zheng Wuhe was granted the title of Marquis by the Emperor, which was to be passed down for three generations.

May Zheng Wuhe and Princess Xiyue have a son soon, so as to demonstrate the harmony between the Han people of our Great Tang and the Turkic peoples..."

Marquisate! Hereditary for three generations!

The members of the Zheng clan in Xingyang who heard the imperial decree later all showed expressions of ecstatic joy.

Zheng Wuhe pursed his lips and bowed respectfully.

"Your Majesty, I am deeply grateful for your grace! I will certainly treat the princess well..."

This decree is, of course, insufficient from a legal perspective.

But who can blame them when the current Crown Prince is Li Chengqian, a prince whose power is greater than that of the emperor, a figure unprecedented in history?

The final execution of the decree was only one step away from being completed in Chang'an.

To be honest, Li Chengqian had never even seen what this adopted daughter looked like.

However, he knew that if his wife married into the Tang Dynasty, it would mean that the three to four hundred thousand Turkic herders who had come to the Tang Dynasty from outside Yanmen Pass would feel more at ease.

The policy of integrating the two ethnic groups will be easier to adapt to.

Therefore, Li Chengqian, the adopted daughter, directly had a dowry of over one million strings of cash prepared.

The banquet was held in a huge mansion owned by the Zheng family of Xingyang in Taiyuan Prefecture, which will henceforth have a new name: "Princess Xiyue's Mansion".

At the banquet, everyone was in a happy and festive mood.

Drinking and drinking each other.

Some of the Turkic tribal leaders present, finally certain that their future wealth and status would be secured, got completely drunk.

In a garden decorated with festive wedding decorations.

Li Chengqian, who had drunk a few cups with Zheng Jiang, the head of the Zheng family of Xingyang, and Ashina Quli, had one arm around Zheng Lizhen's waist.

"Lizhen, you helped a lot with this, didn't you?"

Looking at the Crown Prince, who was either genuinely drunk or pretending, Zheng Lizhen gave him a rare, flirtatious look and gently lifted his chin, causing a blush to rise on his pretty face.

"Yes, it is my honor to be able to help Your Highness, and it is also a blessing for the Zheng family."

Li Chengqian laughed heartily.

"That's what they say, but the Zheng family of Xingyang gave Ashina Quli this way out, which gave our Great Tang Dynasty hundreds of thousands of Turkic people who submitted to us for no reason. This is a great achievement for the Great Tang Dynasty and for me!"

"Tell me, your old father must have told you what he wanted to ask for on behalf of the Zheng family, right?"

Zheng Lizhen's expression froze for a moment.

He hurriedly shook his head: "Ah? Your Highness, no!"

“My father never said he needed anything. Haven’t you already bestowed upon the Zheng family a marquisate?”

Li Chengqian squinted and carefully examined the other person's eyes for a long time.

He finally turned around and glanced at the old scoundrel Zheng Jiang, who was drinking with Ashina Quli, and sneered.

"What a greedy old man..."

Meanwhile, in another garden within the princess's residence...

Three small figures were also strolling around the mansion.

“Brother Zhinu, don’t be fooled by how big this princess’s residence looks. It’s really just like the other residences I gave you before. If you want to move out of Yangcheng Palace, I’ll have someone clean it up and decorate it to be even more beautiful than the palace.”

"Tch, he's just got a little money, what makes him think he can compare to the imperial palace? Does he have a death wish?"

"Hmph, mind your own business! With your fierceness, Brother Zhinu will definitely choose me to be the Princess Consort of Jin in the future!"

"Ha, as if anyone wants to be the Princess Consort of Jin... The person I'm going to marry in the future may not be better than the current Crown Prince, but at least... he must have thirty percent of the Crown Prince's abilities, otherwise! Humph!"

"Tch, you'd better keep your word, you old woman!"

"What did you say?!"

"Oh dear! Why do you still carry that thing with you? Oh dear... Brother Zhinu, Brother Zhinu, save me! Oh dear!"

Li Zhi stood awkwardly in place, watching Wu Zetian suddenly pull out the rattan whip bestowed upon her by the Crown Prince from who-knows-where and chase after Murong Yu, making him jump and leap.

But they didn't dare say a single word of advice.

He watched as Murong Yu suddenly turned a corner and hid behind him.

Wu Zetian, holding the rattan whip, was about to punish herself as well, so she quickly raised her hand and shouted.

"Hey, hey, hey? Wu Zhao, I didn't do anything to you. If you lay a hand on me for no reason, I'll tell your sister!"

Wu Zetian's beautiful face, with its striking features, carried a hint of coldness.

But after hesitating for a long time, she still snorted coldly and glared fiercely at Murong Yu, who was still baring her teeth at her.

"So what if you have a little money? Do you think someone like you who only knows how to squander money can become the Princess Consort of Jin? Putting aside His Highness the Crown Prince, His Majesty and the Empress alone would never agree to it!"

She put away the rattan whip in her hand, snorted coldly, turned around and left.

For some reason, watching Wu Zetian's stubborn departing figure...

Li Zhi couldn't help but feel a little nervous.

"Xiaoyu, could you please stop constantly telling Wu Zhao how rich you are...?"

Murong Yu protested innocently: "But I am very rich!"

"Does having money mean I have to give in to her?!"