Wushuang didn't care about any of that and solemnly recited, "...On the Double Ninth Festival, my parents are going to take me to Biyun Temple. There we can climb mountains, worship Buddha, and there are red leaves and clear springs. I really want to play with you. Can you ask your brother to bring you?"
She said it so naturally, "Let your brother bring you," that no one listening found it strange. Chu Wan was only three years old; it was just as natural for her to ask her brother to take her out as it was for Wu Shuang to ask her parents to take her out.
However, Wushuang's true scheming lies precisely in this.
She wanted Chu Yao to help her find a way to prevent Pang Yuan and her sister from getting along.
Although she was young and didn't need to worry about the strict separation of men and women, it still felt incredibly awkward to openly ask him out, especially at a time when her older sister was looking for potential husbands. A different approach, turning Chu Yao into a caring older brother taking his younger sister out, felt completely different.
The letter was delivered to the Prince of Ying's residence at noon the next day.
Unfortunately, Chu Wan has been living in the palace ever since she returned from Hangzhou, and Chu Yao is not at home either.
Where did Chu Yao go?
He was receiving instruction in Consort Jing's palace.
“I spoke with your mother recently.” Consort Jing was gentle and always spoke slowly and deliberately. “I told her that you are sixteen now, and it’s time to find a virtuous princess. Otherwise, not only will there be no one to take care of you at home, but the palace will also always be cold and quiet.”
As Consort Jing spoke, she kept glancing at Chu Yao's expression, afraid that he might be displeased.
Most men from noble families in the capital marry around eighteen or twenty years old, but men from the imperial clan marry earlier. Princes, in particular, are chosen for their princesses around fifteen or sixteen, and only after the wedding can they leave the palace to establish their own residences. Although Chu Yao is not a prince, Consort Jing can see that Emperor Deqing treats him like his own son, so Chu Yao's marriage cannot be taken lightly. The late Princess Ying, once she left the capital, is like a kite with a broken string; no one knows when she will return. Chu Yao is also completely focused on serving the emperor, and he hasn't shown any interest in any particular woman.
Therefore, if no one takes care of Chu Yao's marriage, it will probably be delayed year after year. Who knows, by the time all the good girls of marriageable age are married, he himself will still be waiting to make a decision.
As someone's aunt, Consort Jing couldn't just stand by and watch her nephew, who was of excellent character, looks, and ability, grow up to be quite old and still hadn't found a wife, so she took the initiative to arrange it.
When Consort Jing chatted with the ladies of the court during a banquet, she heard that some young men were arrogant and thought that girls were troublesome, and were still unwilling to get married even when they were over ten years old.
She had never discussed these matters with Chu Yao before, and she didn't know what he thought, whether he wanted to get married sooner or later, or what kind of princess he hoped to marry. So, she specially summoned Chu Yao to the palace to talk to him in detail.
“Auntie is right,” Chu Yao agreed. “My marriage should indeed be settled as soon as possible.”
Things went much more smoothly than expected, leaving Consort Jing somewhat stunned. She had prepared a lot of arguments to persuade him, but they turned out to be completely useless.
She picked up the plum-green tea cup and glanced at Chu Yao sitting by the window.
He leaned back in his chair, his posture somewhat casual, which slightly softened his usual sharp demeanor, making him appear much gentler and more handsome.
What kind of girl would be a perfect match for such a young man?
Seeing Chu Yao's indifferent expression, Consort Jing was unsure whether he was telling the truth or not. Not good at pretending, she asked directly, "You agreed so readily, is it because you already have a girl you like in your heart?"
Chu Yao closed the folding fan he was playing with, looked up and said, "That's right."
Since he has someone he likes, it's not surprising that he'd like to get married soon. Just like her third prince, Chu Ye, who has somehow taken a liking to the eldest daughter of the Marquis of Runan's family and keeps pestering her to marry him, without even considering how old he is.
"Whose daughter is she?" Consort Jing asked again.
Chu Yao said, "The third daughter of the Marquis of Runan, Wushuang."
"Wushuang?" Consort Jing's eyes widened in surprise. "Isn't she only a year older than Wanwan?"
As Consort Jing spoke, she glanced at Chu Wan, who was sitting on the other side of the table, eating pea flour cake with both hands like a little squirrel. Her niece, of course, was perfect in every way; even if she were a real squirrel, she'd be the best squirrel in the world! However, marrying a soft, squirrel-like little baby as her nephew's wife was something no normal person could accept… It wasn't that she disliked Wushuang, but the age difference was too great. By the time the squirrel-like baby grew into a young woman, how old would Chu Yao be?
"You...you really don't think there's too much of an age difference?" Consort Jing asked.
"It's alright, I'm not in a hurry to get married right away. Besides, she and Wanwan are close, so the two sisters-in-law will get along well in the future." Chu Yao said, turning to Chu Wan, "Wouldn't Wanwan be especially happy if Wushuang moved into our house?"
"Okay!" Chu Wan answered readily, "I want to sleep with Shuangshuang every day!"
Consort Jing rubbed her temples, unsure whether to laugh or remind her niece that once Jun Wushuang truly moved into the Prince of Ying's residence and became his princess, her brother Chu Yao would never allow the two of them to sleep together every day...
"Brother, brother!" The child couldn't resist being teased. Chu Wan completely took Chu Yao's words seriously. She had a maid carry her down to the ground, ran to the window, climbed onto her brother's lap, and kept asking, "When are you going to take Shuangshuang home? When?"
"You can come whenever you want, okay?" Chu Yao scratched his sister's chin and continued to tease her.
"Tomorrow?" Chu Wan's eyes lit up with excitement.
Consort Jing couldn't stand it anymore, so she coughed lightly and stopped her, saying, "Don't teach her nonsense. She's still young. Wanwan will take everything you say seriously."
Chu Yao carried his younger sister back to the bed and said seriously, "Aunt, I'm serious. Actually, if the Marquis of Runan agrees, it wouldn't be a problem to marry Wushuang back to the palace now. Anyway, in our Qi Kingdom, there's only a law that if a woman is over nineteen years old and cannot marry, her parents will be punished. There's no restriction on how old a girl has to be before she can get married."
Consort Jing believed that Chu Yao genuinely wanted to marry a princess who could get along well with Chu Wan, but she didn't take a single word of his later words seriously. If it weren't for unavoidable circumstances, what family would marry off their five-year-old daughter? The Marquis of Runan's family was neither short of gold nor silver nor power. Even if they wanted to curry favor with the royal family, Jun Wushuang had two older sisters, so there was no need for her to intervene.
Chu Yao had no intention of saying more, only saying that Ling Guangwei had other matters to attend to, and then took his leave.
At roughly the same time, the Third Prince Chu Ye and his younger brother Chu Xu came from the Imperial Study to pay their respects to their mother. Upon hearing the palace servants mention that the Prince of Ying had just left, they couldn't help but ask their mother, "Zixiu is usually busy with official duties, how come he has time to come here today?"
Consort Jing, recalling Chu Yao's idea, teased him, saying, "Isn't he just like you, eyeing the daughter of the Marquis of Runan?"
The daughter of the Marquis of Runan?
Besides being flawless, they are all tiny.
Chu Ye blinked. It turned out that his cousin and he had both taken a liking to the same girl.
Chapter 65 | Table of Contents
Chapter Sixty-Five:
Chu Ye blinked; it turned out his cousin and he had both taken a liking to the same girl. (Seeking Books Website: http://www.qiushu.cc/)
No wonder my cousin was always so attentive to that little Wushuang from the Jun family, whether he went to Mocheng or Jiangnan. It turns out he was following the route of whispering sweet nothings in his sister-in-law's ear.
No wonder I've been hearing lately that the Prince of Ying's Mansion and the Marquis of Runan's Mansion are getting along better and better; it turns out they're trying to build a relationship with the future Taishan.
So scheming!