****
Just as Yun Lie said last night, Luo Cuiwei had only been home for less than two hours when the marriage proposal procession arrived.
Emperor Xianlong specially dispatched his younger brother, Prince Rui, Yun Cong, as an envoy to personally visit the Luo family in western Beijing, in accordance with folk customs, to solemnly propose marriage to the Luo family.
The entire Luo family was stunned, but fortunately Luo Bibo remained calm and handled the situation with ease.
Prince Rui presented a pair of wild geese as a gift and performed the betrothal ceremony for Luo Bibo.
Wild geese fly south in autumn and return north in spring; they come and go at the right time, never missing their season.
This is presented as a gift, symbolizing unwavering trust.
Since the situation in Linchuan was still confidential, Prince Rui could not explain too much and could only vaguely say that Yun Lie was busy with military affairs and could only act expediently at the moment.
Because Luo Cuiwei had already given her instructions, Zhuo Yu couldn't say much, but she couldn't help feeling uneasy. So she secretly turned her back and tugged at Luo Bibo's sleeve.
It's not that Zhuo Yu is making a fuss; in any ordinary family, the head of the household would inevitably scold their child for acting recklessly and arrogantly.
According to the wedding customs of Dajin, whether it is a daughter getting married or a son marrying into the family, betrothal, name-asking, and gift-giving are all essential pre-wedding rituals.
These three pre-wedding gifts alone would take at least two or three months to prepare, so it can't all be done on a whim.
According to Prince Rui, not only were the three letters and six rites completely disrupted, but the wedding banquet was also indefinitely postponed, and Luo Cuiwei was to go to Prince Zhao's residence in two days.
This whole thing is absolutely absurd.
Zhuo Yu didn't dare to reprimand Luo Cuiwei, but leaned closer to Luo Bibo and whispered, "If this gets out, I'm afraid people will say that eldest sister is..."
Luo Bibo gestured to his sister-in-law with his eyes to calm down, then turned to Prince Rui with a respectful yet assertive smile and said, "To be treated with such formality by the imperial family is a great honor for the Luo family. Since there is a reason for this, a little haste is acceptable, but surely we can't omit all the formalities?"
Because of her indifferent nature, she disliked meddling in family affairs and even lived in a separate house with her husband and children. However, when the family encountered a situation that required her to step forward, she still had the courage that the Luo family should have.
To ask the imperial family for proper etiquette in front of His Highness Prince Rui, which seemed extremely arrogant to others, was perfectly natural to Luo Bibo.
Fortunately, Prince Rui had already received Emperor Xianlong's decree, and Yun Lie had repeatedly asked him for help. In addition, he himself was not the type to bully others by relying on his power, so he negotiated with Luo Bibo in a good manner.
Seeing that they could not reach a consensus for a long time, Luo Cuiwei, who had been pretending to be a quail behind the screen for a while, finally couldn't help herself and took a few steps to invite her aunt over.
"Anyway, this matter is destined to go wrong. Let's just finish the betrothal and engagement ceremony today; as for things like asking the name, exchanging birth charts, and consulting divination, let's leave them for tomorrow."
Prince Rui had never seen a girl so carefree, and he couldn't help but burst out laughing.
Luo Cuiwei glared at him in her heart, but on the surface she still smiled calmly: "In urgent situations, one must act expediently."
And that's how it was decided.
****
News always travels very fast in the capital. The sensational news that "Prince Rui visited the Luo family on behalf of His Majesty to propose marriage to the eldest daughter of Prince Zhao" spread even faster.
The news spread like wildfire the very next day, sparking heated discussions.
Those from ordinary families, unaware of the inside story, simply thought that Luo Cuiwei was determined to curry favor with the Prince Zhao's mansion, which was why she was so eager to back down, proving her true nature as a merchant.
Meanwhile, the nobles and high-ranking officials of the imperial family had heard some rumors about Linchuan and could understand why Yun Lie had proposed marriage so hastily. They were also even more shocked that Luo Cuiwei dared to agree so readily.
Such unwavering determination requires immense courage and boldness!
I'm afraid there aren't many girls in the world who would dare to make the same decision.
Through word of mouth, Luo Cuiwei's reputation was inexplicably elevated to an unexpected height.
Prince Rui, who witnessed the event firsthand, was deeply moved by it. When chatting with Duke He about it, he sighed with admiration and envy, "One should marry a woman like Luo Cuiwei."
Little did they know that it would be spread by a gossipy busybody.
For a time, many young men from prominent families and noble relatives were filled with curiosity about the girl named "Luo Cuiwei".
However, Luo Cuiwei was so busy that she had no idea that she had become the talk of the town overnight.
On the first day of the third month, after Yun Lie and Luo Cuiwei went to the Zongzheng Temple to submit their marriage certificate, they had to go about their business again with a heavy heart.
In this situation, anyone else would probably tear up the marriage certificate on the spot and turn around and leave.
Fortunately, Luo Cuiwei kept her word and didn't make things difficult for him at all. Instead, she urged him to focus on his work and said she would handle the rest herself.
****
On the second day of the third lunar month, according to the auspicious time chosen by the Court of Imperial Sacrifices, Luo Cuiwei entered the Prince Zhao's residence.
There was no grand wedding ceremony, no formal wedding banquet, and not even her "newlywed" husband to greet her.
Chief Steward Chen An was both gratified and guilty, fearing that Luo Cuiwei would not be able to bear the humiliation and would return home on the spot.
However, Luo Cuiwei had no time for self-pity.
As soon as she stepped into the gate of Prince Zhao's mansion, she hurriedly said to Chen An, "Uncle Chen, I'm sorry, I don't have time to talk to you today. If there's nothing urgent, we can talk slowly in a few days. I need a study right now."
The old man was stunned by her actions and couldn't come to his senses for a long time.
Seeing this, Luo Cuiwei assumed that the old steward was in a difficult situation, so she quickly added, "A room will do, as long as there is a small table! I'm so busy. I was away on the spring hunt for half a month, and I've already accumulated several large boxes of account books and business information. If I don't deal with them soon, it will be too late."
She had been busy with those formalities for the past two days, but that was temporarily over today, so she had to get to work as quickly as possible.
Because Yun Lie was also extremely busy, he didn't give any detailed instructions. The old steward was at a loss as to where to place Luo Cuiwei.
Although the marriage certificate has been submitted to the Court of Imperial Clan Affairs, the wedding ceremony has not yet taken place, and His Majesty has not yet bestowed any title upon Luo Cuiwei. At this moment, she is indeed the legitimate wife of Prince Zhao, Yun Lie, but she is not yet the Princess Consort of Zhao.