0p0 Chapter 644 A woman asks for marriage
Chapter 644 A woman asks for marriage
When they returned to Miaoling Villa together, Emperor Shenwu looked a little uneasy and in a very subtle mood. He was a man of honor, a legitimate prince, and most of the women around him were offered to him or arranged by his father. Later, after he ascended the throne, he selected them according to ancestral rules. Other unrelated women were mostly flatterers. He had never experienced the process of being seriously pursued. With the noble status of Emperor Shenwu, if there was a woman he really wanted, wouldn't it be a matter of a word? He could just summon her to the palace. How could he give them so many choices? In the end, this world still respected men.
Even among ordinary people, men are the main ones who will go to propose marriage to a woman they like. How can a woman chase after a man in broad daylight, completely lacking a woman's modesty and reputation? And who would get so close to a man without being engaged?
So, is the outside world that Lan Qingwu mentioned really so... strange?
Emperor Shenwu coughed lightly and said, "Wei Ruo, is it true that the outside world has gender reversal and practices such a perverse thing?"
Lan Qingwu was unhappy: "How can it be so upside down? Didn't I tell you that men and women are equal there, and the whole world is peaceful. There are almost no wars or invasions of other countries' territories. Moreover, there are women seeking to marry men. This is not uncommon there."
"Please... marry?"
Lan Qingwu nodded seriously: "I plan to pursue you first, and then get along with you for a year or two. If it works out, we will get married! This time I must succeed in proposing to you! By the way."
Lan Qingwu turned sideways to look at Ruhan, who looked dazed. "Ruhan, please take inventory of my assets and prepare all the necessary items for the wedding. Also, I need cash!"
Ruhan nodded quickly. After a trance, she was refreshed and then excited. She had already sensed the fun of this matter. Look at the confused and shrewd Eunuch Li, and General Qian who wanted to bury his head in his feet, and His Majesty whose face was always frozen...
Oh, what a pity, Her Majesty didn't dare to look any longer. This was such an interesting and rare thing! When Ruhan thought about the fact that Emperor Shenwu would soon marry her young lady, she felt full of energy and even more excited!
The Emperor Shenwu looked even more uneasy. After they returned to Qingliang Palace, with Lan Qingwu on his back, the Emperor Shenwu instructed Li Xiang, "Go to Changjie again and find some women's jewelry. They must be top-quality. You can't use the ones in the palace. I wouldn't have enough time to make them myself. Remember to pick the best ones yourself!"
Li Xiang trembled and said, "Your Majesty, this is... the Empress's place..."
Emperor Shenwu said with a stern face, "Am I really just waiting for all the women's things to be thrown at me? Even though she is pursuing me, if I want to respond, I should also prepare some return gifts!"
Emperor Shenwu held in his hand a white jade pendant that was moist and translucent. It was the gift that Lan Qingwu gave him today. It was obviously a top-grade product, and it was also a good thing from a jewelry store outside. How could he not pay attention to it?
Li Xiang wiped the cold sweat from his forehead and said, "I'll go right away!"
"and many more!"
Emperor Shenwu instructed: "Remember, the Queen must not know who is carrying her on her back!"
Li Xiang immediately said, "Yes, I saved it."
After finishing his duties in the Imperial City, the Crown Prince took a few days off to visit the Miaoling Palace. It happened that Emperor Shenwu and Lan Qingwu were both out for a leisurely outing and not at the palace. The Crown Prince immediately took Consort Jiang and his eldest daughter, Zhou Bingyun, to visit the Crown Princess and his eldest son, Zhou Bingyou. As soon as they crossed the threshold, they saw the tiny son, You'er, standing in the drafty air, sobbing and reciting his lessons intermittently. Not a single palace servant was around.
The prince's face suddenly darkened. He took a few quick steps, and when You'er raised his little face and looked at him in surprise, he had already stretched out his arms and held his eldest son in his arms.
"Father."
The prince looked at his son in his arms. He was shorter than his daughter, who was six months his junior. Even with the careful care he had received over the past few years, he was still very thin. The prince had no other wishes for him, only that he grow up safely and live a prosperous life. Unfortunately, his mother didn't see it that way, and this would become the biggest conflict between them in recent years.
The Crown Prince carried his son inside. Surprisingly, there was no one guarding the main hall. From the bedroom, the Crown Princess's dissatisfied voice could be heard faintly: "No one is allowed to pay attention to him... Let him memorize that passage... He's already four years old..."
Yun En, who was beside the Crown Prince, quickly called out, "The Crown Prince has arrived! Concubine Jiang has arrived!"
The voice inside suddenly stopped, and within a moment, the Crown Princess came out in a panic to greet the emperor, "Your Highness, I pay my respects to the Crown Prince!"
Concubine Jiang also hurriedly bowed: "This concubine pays homage to the Crown Princess!"
The Crown Prince waved his hand and called out. He sat at the head of the table, holding his son in his arms, and said expressionlessly, "Yun'en, take the little grandson to rest. The child can no longer open his eyes."
The Crown Princess had just stood up until she almost fell over. Her face was slightly pale. "Your Highness, it was my fault for being careless. I was only teaching You'er to recite an article, but he..."
Yun'en swiftly reached out and picked up the little grandson, then walked out. Concubine Jiang in the palace was feeling like she was on edge. Ever since she entered the palace, she had felt the Crown Princess's piercing gaze constantly falling on her and her daughter. She felt as if she had swallowed a bitter lotus, and at the same time, she was vaguely angry. Why? Just because they were pregnant at the same time, and had encountered the mad horse at the same time, and the Crown Princess herself was frightened and gave birth to the little grandson prematurely, resulting in a weak child, while she was not frightened, and her child was born healthy, and this caught the Crown Princess's eye! She has been holding a grudge against her ever since. Her child is only a daughter. If it was a son, she would be furious!
Seeing that the atmosphere in the palace was not right, Concubine Jiang hurriedly stepped forward and whispered softly, "Your Highness, Your Majesty, Yun'er is tired from the journey. Please allow this concubine to take Yun'er back to your own palace to rest."
The prince nodded: "Go!"
The Crown Princess quickly said, "Go! Children can't stand being tired. Don't get sick again."
"Yes! Yun'er and I thank His Royal Highness the Crown Prince and His Majesty the Crown Princess for their consideration."
After Concubine Jiang and Yun'er left, the Crown Prince asked casually, "You are so considerate of Concubine Jiang's child, so why are you so harsh on your own child?"
The Crown Princess's body softened, and she immediately knelt on the ground: "Your Highness, I am doing this for You'er! He is the emperor's grandson, how can he be compared with a girl like Yun'er? He is also your eldest son, he..."
The Crown Prince's expression was as cold as ice, causing the Crown Princess to shudder. "If you want to force this son to death, then continue. Good health is the foundation of all efforts and progress. You'er is so weak, and instead of taking good care of him, you blindly force him to learn this and that. If something happens to You'er, what will you do?"
The Crown Princess' lips turned white, tears welled up in her eyelashes, "I...I didn't...I didn't neglect You'er. He is my biological son!"
The prince's expression softened slightly. "It's good that you know. Think about it carefully! What is most important?"
The Crown Prince left, and the Crown Princess collapsed to the ground. Her tear-stained face had vanished, replaced by a look of resentment and indignation. "It's that Concubine Jiang again! Whenever she comes, and her child comes, nothing good ever happens to me! And it even caused me to be reprimanded by His Highness! You'er is the Crown Prince's eldest son, so noble! How can he be compared to that daughter of his!"
"You'er was born under the spell of mother and daughter. Her daughter, on the other hand, was born fair and plump. It's a pity for my You'er! Someone, contact this Crown Princess's mother and ask her to find some folk pediatricians. I want You'er to be healthy as soon as possible!"
When the Crown Prince paid his respects to the Emperor Shenwu, he straightened up after paying his respects. Seeing his father, his eyes widened: "Father, you are so..."
Emperor Shenwu coughed lightly, his voice filled with helplessness: "Your mother likes it."
Emperor Shenwu was dressed in a jade-white robe, looking tall and graceful, with an elegant demeanor. He lacked the solemnity and dignity of the black dragon robe, but was more suave and elegant.
The Da Sheng Dynasty respected black as the most important color, followed by gold and purple. Since Emperor Shenwu ascended the throne, he had not worn such flowing snow-like clothes for many years.
The prince's eyes turned around, and a smile appeared on the corner of his lips: "Father looks a lot younger, full of vigor and vitality, elegant and graceful. If Father and Xiao Qi stood together, I'm afraid others would think they were brothers!"
The Emperor Shenwu's face darkened, and he threw the wolf-hair brush in his hand at the prince: "Get lost! How dare you tease your father!"
The prince turned around swiftly and dodged. "Then your Majesty, please take a look at the memorial I brought here. I will take my leave now!"
The next day, when Emperor Shenwu and Lan Qingwu went to watch a play, Lan Qingwu again booked a room upstairs. The view on the second floor of the Pear Garden was better, and he could see the actors' every move, every frown and smile more clearly.
The waiter from the opera house served the snacks and left. Lan Qingwu looked at the stage excitedly, "It's so clear from here. Mr. Zhou, take a look at these snacks. Do you like them?"
Emperor Shenwu nodded and took a wider pear wood box from Li Xiang's hand. "This is my return gift to you. Open it and take a look."
Lan Qingwu's eyes seemed to be shining with stars. She reached out to take it, and gently opened the switch of the pear wood box with her slender jade fingers. Inside, there was a pair of jade hairpins. Lan Qingwu picked up one of them. It was a white jade hairpin with two butterflies spreading their wings and flying high. It was transparent and moist. The other one was an ice-red jade hairpin with two hibiscus flowers. The red color was like fire, and it was obvious that the craftsmanship was exquisite and the quality was superior.
Lan Qingwu raised his eyes and looked at Emperor Shenwu: "Why did you give me two hairpins?"
"This hairpin is the work of one person, and I'm only selling one pair. This is the only fine jade left in the hands of an old artist. This pair of hairpins is lifelike, one like ice jade, the other like fire jade. Do you like it?"
Lan Qingwu nodded, unable to conceal the love in his eyes.
"Mr. Zhou, I'm sorry to bother you."
Emperor Shenwu chuckled, "How can I let you be the only one to pay for everything? Even the money for today's show will be paid by me!"
How could Lan Qingwu agree when she was in high spirits? She hurriedly tried to persuade Emperor Shenwu that she had not yet used up all the tricks to pursue the person she liked. After finally getting Emperor Shenwu to cooperate, how could she give up halfway?