The memory of Song Yanji's near-massacre of the court to eliminate Li Sheng's cronies and his dethronement of the emperor was still fresh in Jiang Yuan's mind. She couldn't help but shudder. No, she couldn't go to the palace. Once was enough; this time, she couldn't sacrifice the Jiang family.
“My daughter just wants to live an ordinary life,” Jiang Yuan said, fiddling with the ends of her hair. “She has never had any ambition to become a golden phoenix.”
The room fell silent. After a long while, Jiang Zhongsi chuckled softly, sounding somewhat unwilling but mostly relieved. "Very well, then let your mother choose carefully these days." His gaze darkened, and Jiang Zhongsi tapped his fingers on the table. "It would be best to set a date before March."
After March, it's time for selection.
These past few days, Madam Jiang has been busy inquiring about the unmarried sons of various families. Jiang Yuan has also been busy, copying down all the wealthy and noble families who rose to prominence after Song Yanji became emperor.
The Fu family was the best choice, as they were wealthy and a family of great scholars. However, Jiang Yuan didn't even dare to consider the Fu Zhengyan brothers, so he immediately crossed them off the list.
The Liu family is also quite good, with a good family tradition and Madam Liu is easy to get along with. If the eldest son of the Liu family were unmarried, Jiang Yuan would definitely marry into the family. However, the eldest son married the daughter of the Minister of the Imperial Stud two years ago, and the second son of the Liu family is short-lived, so let's cross that out.
Jiang Yuan's gaze fell upon the Da Xingling family, and the name Duan Jieran immediately came to mind: a handsome young man, seemingly carefree and elegant. The Da Xingling family had indeed been incredibly powerful before her death, but the Duan family's rise wasn't due to her. Jiang Yuan sneered, ruthlessly erasing the name Duan Jieran from her mind.
Mu Qie, Jiang Yuan's brows twitched. The old Marquis Mu died young, and Madam Mu also passed away early. This was the only son in the Marquis's mansion. He was taken to Huaizhou by his aunt to be raised in his early years. He and Song Yanji were from the same school. She dared not choose someone so close.
Jiang Yuan spent an entire day planning his future. He thought about everything and decided that one was no good. In the end, only three names remained on the Xuan paper. After thinking for a long time, Jiang Yuan circled the last one: That's it!
Jiang Yuan's marriage was proceeding in full swing. Jiang Yuan mentioned this person to Madam Jiang intentionally or unintentionally. As the saying goes, mother and daughter are of one mind. Jiang Yuan gave a hint, and Madam Jiang understood immediately. Within a few days, she made contact with Madam Feng and even arranged for Jiang Yuan to have a chance encounter with her in the garden.
Jiang Yuan put in a lot of effort for this chance encounter, acting like a proper young lady from a wealthy family. Feng Xiuyuan was eighteen years old, well past the age of marriage, but unfortunately, Madam Feng had very high standards. She either thought that the girls in this family were too gloomy, or that the girls in that family were too petty.
Jiang Yuan knew Madam Feng's preferences all too well. In his previous life, Feng Xiuyuan's marriage was delayed until he was twenty-four, and in the end, it was Jiang Yuan who chose his wife, Zhang Shi. Before that, Jiang Yuan had to secretly visit at least ten or eight families with Madam Feng before finally meeting Zhang Shi, which satisfied Madam Feng.
In this life, Jiang Yuan simply transformed herself into a replica of Zhang Shi, lively yet proper, quiet yet not dull. Sure enough, Madam Feng was particularly satisfied with Jiang Yuan's performance, and since Madam Jiang was easy to talk to, she gradually developed some other thoughts.
Especially after meeting Jiang Yuan, she was extremely satisfied. As soon as the court session ended, she hurriedly took her leave and went to inquire about Lord Jiang from her husband. The result she received was naturally in line with her wishes.
Madam Feng sat down next to Lord Feng and said to him with a smile, "I met Miss Jiang today. She is so generous and charming. Our son is not young anymore, so I think she is suitable."
"Perhaps he's going to be sent in," Lord Feng shook his head. "The fact that you took a liking to him shows that you've put a lot of effort into teaching him."
Madam Feng got up, closed the door, and sat back down, saying in a low voice, "I've subtly inquired, and Madam Jiang is currently looking for a husband for her daughter, so she probably doesn't intend to send her there." After saying that, she couldn't help but laugh out loud, "The young masters in Lin'an City are no match for our Mo Ze, let alone our son."
"That's true." Lord Feng stroked his goatee. "When choosing a wife, choose a virtuous one. Madam, you can decide."
"Oh, do you think His Majesty might hold a grudge against us because of this?" Madam Feng suddenly thought of something. "After all, they are old officials."
“Madam is overthinking it,” Lord Feng said with a smile. “The Jiang family surrendered early, and His Majesty remembers them. However, Jiang Zhongsi’s career has probably reached its peak here.”
“I’m not worried about that.” Madam Feng didn’t mind this and got up to pace around a couple of times. “Anyway, a man’s success depends on himself, not his wife’s family.”
Madam Feng was open-minded, and Jiang Yuan was also satisfied with the young master of the Feng family. The two families visited each other more frequently. Whenever she saw Jiang Yuan, Madam Feng couldn't help but hold her hand and chat with her about needlework and calligraphy and painting. The more they chatted, the more they liked each other. With these back-and-forth exchanges, the two families began to understand each other implicitly.
Madam Jiang had asked Jiang Yuan if she wanted to secretly take a look at Feng Xiuyuan, but she flatly refused. How bad could someone she had personally chosen be? Moreover, in Jiang Yuan's memory, Feng Xiuyuan was also exceptionally talented and handsome.
The marriage proceeded smoothly, and Jiang Yuan estimated that she was about 70-80% sure. Although the two of them would be together in the future, it would have a bit of an arranged marriage feel to it, but who was Jiang Yuan? A woman who could manage the imperial court and the inner palace, was she afraid of not being able to manage a man in the inner palace?
Jiang Yuan sat in the garden, chin in hand, admiring the scenery. Winter had passed, and some of the earlier blooming flowers had begun to sprout tender buds. Jiang Yuan looked at the vibrant green jade flowers in front of her, savoring the finest Lushan Yunwu wine. The fish in the pond also seemed to have come alive, swimming happily.
However, this good mood did not last long, as the incense brought a major scandal to Lin'an City, and the protagonists of the scandal were Feng Xiuyuan and Princess Qingping.
For a moment, Jiang Yuan thought she was hallucinating. She rubbed her ears and asked, "Who are you talking about?"
"It's that young master Feng and Princess Qingping!" Zhang Xiang's eyes were red. Although the two families hadn't officially confirmed the affair between their young lady and young master Feng, judging from Madam Feng's words, it seemed that their young lady had truly fallen for it. "Yesterday, the princess went to Guilong Temple to offer incense. It was almost curfew and she still hadn't returned. The princess sent guards to look for her, but the monks said that the princess hadn't gone at all. No one knew what had happened in between. Anyway, this morning, the princess was brought back by young master Feng's carriage."
Jiang Yuan's mouth was slightly open, clearly indicating that this matter had a significant impact on her.
“Miss,” Zhang Xiang bit her lip and continued, “the Feng family members are all at the Princess’s residence now.”
Jiang Yuan didn't know what kind of expression she had, but deep down she was incredibly shocked. How could Li Qingping be involved with the Feng family? And what about the future He Tanhua?
Chapter 13 Palace Banquet
The rumors about Feng Xiuyuan and the county princess spread like wildfire, and Feng was angrily rebuked by the emperor in court. Madam Feng was too ashamed to come to the Jiang family again, and the county princess of Qingping was not idle either, trying everything from hunger strikes to hanging herself.
Fearing that Jiang Yuan would be heartbroken, Madam Jiang also spent a lot of time with her.
As for Jiang Yuan, she wasn't actually that upset. It was just that a man she had never met had been snatched up by the county princess. She still had two backup options. However, everyone seemed to sympathize with her. Even the usually silent Zhu Chuan couldn't help but comfort her, "Miss, don't hold it in. If you're sad, just cry it out."
In this atmosphere, Jiang Yuan was too embarrassed to say to Madam Jiang, "Mother, I have two more people here. Please take a look at them again!" So she had no choice but to swallow her words and wait a couple of days until things had calmed down before bringing it up again.
Although the entire Jiang family mansion was shrouded in a deathly atmosphere due to this incident, there was one exception: the second young lady, Jiang Zhi.
"The Second Miss is here again." That day, Jiang Yuan was enjoying a braised pork knuckle when Luo Nuan hurried over to report.
Ever since Jiang Yuan was heartbroken, Jiang Zhi has been using the excuse of "comforting my sister" to mock her almost every day. However, since Jiang Yuan is usually quite bored, she is happy to let her in, only to be annoyed and driven away by Jiang Yuan in the end. But this does not stop her from coming back to mock Jiang Yuan the next day, even if she is frustrated.
"Oh, little sister, you're still in the mood to eat?" What Jiang Zhi disliked most about Jiang Yuan wasn't her appearance or talent, but her knowing expression no matter what happened. Every time Jiang Zhi saw that face, she couldn't help but want to tear off her mask.
"How could we not have it? This braised pork knuckle was made by an old chef who had retired from the palace." She said, taking a bite with elegance. "It's so tender, you can't find it anywhere else."
Jiang Zhi snorted, held her head high, went straight into the house, pulled up a chair, and sat down opposite Jiang Yuan. "I'm afraid her beloved husband was snatched away, so she's eating to vent her anger." After saying that, she couldn't help but glance at Jiang Yuan. "If she gets fat, she'll be even less likely to get married."
“My sister is still unmarried and has no need to worry about marriage.” Jiang Yuan had been practicing her tongue for decades, and sometimes she wouldn’t even bother to speak to Jiang Zhi, who was only ten years old.
"You!" Jiang Zhi was clearly angered by her. Her marriage had been delayed again and again, and none of the men her mistress had chosen for her had met her standards. This had become a source of great anxiety for her. Jiang Zhi clutched her chest and muttered for a long time, "With your sharp tongue, even if you get married, you won't get along well with your husband."
"Since that's the case, then I shall enter the palace?" Meeting Jiang Zhi's questioning gaze, Jiang Yuan deliberately narrowed his eyes, revealing a row of white teeth in a sinister manner, and said, "At that time, I will definitely give my sister a good marriage, hehe."
"I came to see you out of kindness, and you're trying to scare me again! I'm going to tell Father!" Jiang Zhi was clearly frightened again. As she spoke, she stomped her foot, wiped away her tears, and left Chunnuan Pavilion. Her steps were so fast that the maid behind her couldn't keep up.
"Miss, please stop scaring the Second Miss. You know she's as timid as a flea." Bi Fan had seen Jiang Zhi crying as she left Chun Nuan Pavilion almost every day for the past few days, her tears falling like rain.
Jiang Zhi was spoiled by her father and had a high opinion of herself. She was somewhat willful and domineering, but she was born weak, timid, and a bit naive. Sometimes Jiang Yuan couldn't help but worry about her older sister. With this personality, if she married into a family with a complicated background, she would be controlled and killed sooner or later.
Marry. Marry. Thinking of this, Jiang Yuan felt a headache coming on, and even lost her appetite for her favorite braised pork knuckle.
Hmm, she needs to be faster. Jiang Yuan thought of those two names again. There's a banquet in the palace tonight, and her father will probably be late. So tomorrow will be better. She can start over tomorrow. After all, there's only one Princess Qingping in Lin'an. It's impossible for the princess to run into all the girls she's set her sights on.
However, before the tomorrow Jiang Yuan imagined could arrive, something happened in the palace.
"Qingping, come down quickly!" Li Sheng wanted nothing more than to strangle his audacious niece.
Feng Wenzhang was his mentor and served as his advisor during the war, earning his deep appreciation. Feng Xiuyuan was Feng Wenzhang's youngest son, a man of both literary and military talent. Li Sheng had promised to find Xiuyuan a suitable wife, but unexpectedly, Li Qingping took a liking to him.
Li Sheng knew exactly what his niece was like. He had also sounded out the Feng family's opinion, and it seemed they looked down on Qingping. Given the current situation, if he were to marry Qingping off to the Feng family, wouldn't that be a blatant disrespect to the Feng family? So even though he spoke harshly to Feng Wenzhang in court, it was just an act.
I had planned to use this opportunity to point out Qingping, but who would have thought that this girl would be so clever at this moment.
"Your Majesty, Qingping will not marry anyone but Feng Shaofu." To be fair, Li Qingping is quite capable in some respects, after all, she was the first to attempt suicide by drowning at a royal banquet.
"Nonsense!" Li Sheng's chest heaved with anger. "Get down right now! What kind of behavior is this?!"
“I have already been intimate with Feng Shaofu. If he does not marry me, then Qingping will still have the face to live on in this world.”
Li Qingping's words almost made Feng Wenzhang faint with anger. Feng Xiuyuan rushed to help him, but before he could even touch him, he was slapped by his father. "You unfilial son!"
"Father, I truly don't remember this." Feng Xiuyuan was on his way to Qingfeng Tower to attend a poetry gathering when his carriage was hijacked. It was just his bad luck that he ran into Princess Qingping, who was being held hostage by bandits. After that, it was as if he had lost his memory, missing a piece of his past. When he regained consciousness, he was caught up in this huge incident, becoming the subject of gossip for no reason. Feng Xiuyuan was already feeling wronged enough, but Princess Qingping seemed to have a grudge against him, leaving him speechless.
Li Qingping didn't care about any of that. She was going all out today and said to Feng Wenzhang, "You're all doing this because you've got your eye on Jiang's daughter, A Yuan!"
Jiang Zhongsi, who had been watching the commotion from a distance, suddenly felt uneasy when he saw Jiang Yuan being dragged into the matter and Princess Qingping's confident expression. His fingers unconsciously clenched slightly as he looked suspiciously at Li Qingping, who was standing on the high platform by the lake, wondering what she was up to.
"Do you think Jiang Yuan would marry into your Feng family?!" Li Qingping said, pointing to Song Yanji not far behind Li Sheng. "She was having a secret rendezvous with Lieutenant Song a while ago, which I, the county magistrate, witnessed with my own eyes!"
What's going on here? Everyone held their breath and strained their ears, afraid of missing anything. There was complete silence all around. No one was afraid of death and dared to discuss royal private affairs in the palace. As for Song Yanji, the heroic young man was in charge of the garrison troops in the capital. Apart from secretly glancing at him a few times, everyone kept their eyes down and remained indifferent, acting as if it was none of their business.
For a moment, the two sides were at an impasse. Jiang Zhongsi had mixed feelings. He looked up and his eyes met Song Yansi's. Song Yansi nodded slightly to Jiang Zhongsi, and the smile on his lips was so fleeting that it was almost unbelievable.
The situation seemed to have reached a stalemate until Song Yansi's voice rang out from behind.
“Your Highness, you are mistaken. It is true that I have feelings for Miss Jiang, but it is not a private matter,” Song Yanji said calmly and without arrogance. “I have met Lord Jiang before and expressed my admiration for Miss Jiang. However, my parents are both in Huaizhou, so I thought I would wait until some time before proposing marriage. That day, I just happened to meet Miss Jiang at the Princess’s residence. I wanted to tell her as soon as possible, but I did not expect to be seen by Your Highness.”
"As for the Feng family matter, I'm afraid the county princess is overthinking it." Song Yanji's voice was like a night breeze, gently blowing through everyone's hearts. "It's nothing more than the ladies in the inner quarters getting closer."
Song Yanji's words clearly gave Lord Feng and Li Sheng a way out, and Feng Wenzhang nodded to him in gratitude. Li Sheng, unwilling to let things remain tense, seized the opportunity to rebuke Li Qingping, "Lieutenant Song has already said so, how long are you going to keep making a scene?"
The palace banquet ended almost in farce, leaving Li Sheng humiliated. He immediately thought of Jiang Zhongsi. The Jiang family was of illegitimate birth, with a weak foundation, and their sons were mediocre. Although Jiang Zhongsi held the rank of second-grade official, he was ultimately a civil official. With such a family background, he was the perfect match for Song Yanji. He immediately made up his mind.
So much so that when Li Sheng questioned Jiang Zhongsi, Jiang Zhongsi's mind went completely blank. But even though his mind was blank, his intelligence was still intact. Song Yansi gave Li Sheng a way out, so he naturally couldn't embarrass the emperor in front of all the civil and military officials. He could only force a smile and smooth out Song Yansi's words.
"Haha, it was my oversight." Li Sheng was overjoyed and said, "Lieutenant Song is now nineteen years old and it's time for him to get married and have children. Since you and the lieutenant both have this intention, why don't I bestow a marriage upon him? It would be a beautiful story."
Before Jiang Zhongsi could react, he saw Song Yansi bowing down beside him and quickly followed suit, saying, "Your Majesty, this humble subject thanks you."
For court officials, an imperial marriage decree has always been an immense honor. However, this time, Jiang Zhongsi felt a heavy weight in his heart.
This feeling lingered until the banquet ended and Jiang Zhongsi returned to the Jiang residence. He couldn't shake it off. For some reason, he felt it was necessary to inform Jiang Yuan about this matter.
"What do you mean by 'arranged marriage'?" Jiang Yuan's eyes widened as if she had heard something incredible. Her blood seemed to run cold, and memories flooded her mind like a torrent.
The deafening sounds of battle echoed across the northern desert, billowing smoke pierced the sky, the air was thick with the smell of blood and gunpowder, and what filled the eyes was an overwhelming sea of red and countless piles of white bones—her past, which might now become her future.
You can't marry her! How can you marry her? She'll die! Your brother and sister-in-law, Zhu Chuan and Bi Fan, they'll all die!
“Father,” Jiang Yuan murmured, clutching his sleeve, “I can’t marry him, I can’t marry him. Can I go to the palace instead?”
"A-Yuan?" Jiang Zhongsi noticed that something was wrong with her and quickly supported her shoulders. "Yuan'er, what's wrong?"
Chapter 14 Assessing the Situation
"Don't go back, you can't go back!" Jiang Yuan seemed to hear nothing, completely engulfed in a nightmare, muttering to herself, "I can't kill him, I can't kill him."
Then her eyes rolled back, and she fainted.
The incident happened so suddenly that Jiang Zhongsi was caught off guard. He quickly put his arm around Jiang Yuan's shoulder and shouted, "Ruian! Go and get a doctor!"
The sounds of people coming and going startled the entire Jiang mansion, which was then brightly lit, as if it were daytime.
Jiang Yuan fell ill and was bedridden for almost half a month. When she opened her eyes, she would stare blankly at the curtains above her head. When she got tired of staring, she would fall asleep silently. Doctors from all over the manor were called in one after another, and she practically took medicine like it was food, but there was no improvement. As for her condition, not only Jiang Zhongsi and Madam Jiang, but even Jiang Zhi couldn't bear to see her like this.
"What are you doing lying there like this every day, half-dead!" Jiang Zhi sat on the edge of the bed, glaring at her. "Get up! Where did your arrogant demeanor go?"
"It's just getting married, if you don't want to leave him hanging, then don't!"
"Is that guy surnamed Song particularly ugly?"
"I peeked at her today, and she's quite good-looking."
Jiang Zhi nagged in Jiang Yuan's ear almost every few days, and of course, she couldn't help but make a few sarcastic remarks, "You better get better soon. You've been married off as if you've lost half your life. Now the whole of Lin'an knows that Song Yanji is your nemesis."
As she spoke, Jiang Zhi popped a pastry into her mouth. "Even if one of you two has to die, you have a sharp tongue and a hateful personality, so you're the one who'll bring him death."
The early spring night was still a bit chilly. Zhu Chuan carefully covered Jiang Yuan with a thick quilt before extinguishing the candle and getting up to go to the outer room. Just as Jiang Yuan was about to close her eyes, suddenly, the candle on the table flickered on.
"Are you dead?" Jiang Yuan would remember that voice even if he were reduced to ashes.
"You're not dead, how could I dare to die?" Jiang Yuan remained silent for a long time, her voice somewhat hoarse.