MYUFPC CHAPTER 21
My Cousin and Zhan Daren, they both like my Sister
Ruyang couldn't help but gently rubbed her temples and tentatively asked, "At your age now, has Old Madam Wen not arranged a marriage for you yet?"
Zhan Yue paused: "Grandmother favors the daughter of the Huguang province's Governor, the Feng Shi."
"Governor of Huguang province," Ru Yang's gaze was calm. She said, "That's a good position too. Your grandmother cares for you more than I thought."
Zhan Yue lowered his gaze slightly.
A image of Old Madam Wen's half-gray hair suddenly flashed through his mind, and he thought of how she had taken care of him meticulously after his mother passed away. He leaned back slightly and softened his tone: "Feng Daren has a nephew who is sixteen this year and wants to join the Jinwuwei Guards. Recently, I've been paying attention to this matter."
Zhan Yue did not finish the rest of his sentence.
For noble families like the Duke Anguo or the Feng family, they generally would not take the imperial examination like the Pei family. The Jinwuwei Guards were the emperor's personal guards, and joining them was both honorable and prestigious. If one did well, the path to advancement was also bright and promising. It could be said that it was not easily obtained.
The Governor of Huguang province was already a high-ranking official. Zhan Yue did not want to marry Miss Feng, but he also could not afford to offend Feng Daren for no reason, nor could he disappoint his grandmother.
Although he could not form a marriage alliance with the Feng family, if he could help Feng Daren's nephew, the Feng family would probably not have any more complaints when they found out.
Seeing that Zhan Yue had thought everything through and was determined to marry Jiashan, Princess Ruyang said, "You've gone to so much trouble and thought of everything."
"But there's one thing," Ruyang looked at him. Her lips trembled, as if she was reluctant to say what was next.
Zhan Yue said, "I know."
"Aunt, you want to talk about my family background," he looked up at the flickering firelight and said indifferently.
When Princess Ruyang heard him say this, she felt both regret and heartache. This child, whom Fu Shiyu had exchanged her freedom for, should have had a noble life as well.
Ruyang closed her eyes and then opened them again, as if she had finally made a decision: "Next month, His Majesty will celebrate his birthday, and I will also enter the palace."
She glanced at the tall and slender Zhan Yue: "I will find an opportunity to mention this matter to His Majesty."
Zhan Yue's eyes moved, and his pupils flickered with light and shadow as he stared at Princess Ruyang.
Princess Ruyang was different from the well-maintained women in the palace. She was over forty, her face showed slight signs of aging, with fine wrinkles at the corners of her eyes, but her expression was always calm and peaceful.
This was his maternal aunt.
One of the few people in the world who still cared about him.
Zhan Yue's lips moved: "Thank you, Aunt."
"There's no need to thank me," Ruyang looked at him calmly, "Since you gave Jiashan the hairpin, you must have had this idea in mind."
Zhan Yue was slightly stunned, caught by Princess Ruyang.
Ruyang didn't probe further. She said, "Your mother passed away early, and she probably didn't teach you these things. Aunt will just tell you one thing. If you like her, sincerity is the most important thing. Don't use any sneaky tricks."
"Do you think that once she wears the hairpin you gave her, she will belong to you?" Ruyang asked him with a glance.
Zhan Yue pursed his lips.
Ruyang instructed him, "It's one thing for me to mention it to His Majesty, but you still need to make it clear to Jiashan as soon as possible. I see that she is a very opinionated person. And regardless of whether His Majesty agrees to this marriage, even if His Majesty does agree, with Jiashan's temperament, she probably won't agree to marry unless she personally nods."
"Do you understand what I mean?" Ruyang asked him softly.
Zhan Yue frowned but nodded. "I understand."
Seeing his sincere attitude, Ruyang finally relaxed slowly. She said, "It's getting late. Go and rest early. In a few days, you should be returning to the palace. You must observe the etiquette in the palace."
Zhan Yue nodded: "Yes, I know."
He looked at Princess Ruyang and said slowly, "I'm grateful to my aunt for worrying about my affairs."
Ruyang smiled and said "It's good if there's something to worry about. What Aunt fears most is that there's nothing at all for me to worry about."
After learning that Zhan Yue has a special fondness for Jiashan, Princess Ruyang, while feeling worried and uneasy, also felt a sense of reassurance.
At least, his heart was still willing to make room for another person.
In that case, she was also willing to speak to the emperor on his behalf.
As the half-sister of Emperor Zhanghe, even though Princess Ruyang had lived in the monastery for many years, relying on the bond of blood, her words always carried more weight than others.
I hope I can really help this child, Ru Yang thought.
She returned to the inner room, intending to see if Zhao Youze had kicked off his covers in the middle of the night. As she approached, she found Zhao Youze sitting up with wide eyes. His gaze was innocent, and he scratched his chin with a small hand, seeming deep in thought.
Amused, Ruyang said with a smile, "What is Yuan Kang pondering about? Are you waiting for your aunt to come back and tell you a story?"
Hearing her speak, Zhao Youze grinned and shook his head, saying, "Nothing, I'm going to sleep now."
Half of his face emerged from the covers, and his lips moved slowly "Aunt should also rest early. I hope you to dream about Yuan Kang."
Ruyang smiled, and all the gloom in her heart was swept away in an instant. She said, "Yes, you little clever one."
A few days later, Zhao Youze finally finished copying the remaining scriptures with great difficulty. He organized the papers and brought them together with the original scriptures to Jiashan's courtyard to report to her.
"I've finished copying everything, Sister," Zhao Youze handed the stack of white paper to Jiashan. His handwriting was very neat, not at all like that of a child with a disability.
After flipping through a few pages, Jiashan couldn't help but reach out to wipe the sweat from Zhao Youze's nose. She said gently, "Yuan Kang is a good child."
Zhao Youze climbed onto a chair and sat down next to Jiashan. He leaned close to her and said, "Sister, smell this. I used the hair oil my cousin gave me last night. Does it smell good?"
After Zhao Youze mention this, Jiashan realized that his hair did indeed have a different scent than before. Thinking that it was just a child's desire for novelty, Jiashan didn't pay much attention and simply said, "It's a bit different from before."
She looked at him, "Does Yuan Kang like it?"
Zhao Youze scratched his face: "It's okay."
He paused for a moment and said with a smile, "Actually, I'm asking for my cousin."
Jiashan was puzzled. She looked at Zhao Youze and said, "That's a strange thing to say."
Zhao Youze's eyelashes were long and dark. His skin was fair, and every time he blinked, his eyelashes, which were accentuated by his pale skin, were like a small fan.
He lowered his head, pondered for a moment, and said in a grown-up manner, "Sister, I have something to tell you, please think about it carefully."
If she had heard this in the past, Jiashan would probably have dismissed it, but now, she looked Zhao Youze up and down.
She asked in a low voice, "What?"
"My Cousin and Zhan Daren, they both like my Sister," Zhao Youze raised his head and said unhurriedly.
The expression on Jiashan's face immediately became very interesting. Her almond-shaped eyes widened slightly, and she turned to look at Zhao Youze carefully.
Her lips parted slightly, and said in trembling voice, "What?"
Zhao Youze said on his own, "Master Xu taught me a sentence, which says 'A woman adorns herself for the man she loves, and a man dies for his confidante.'"
Cupping his chin, he said earnestly, "But I think this statement is too one-sided. Isn't it the same for men?"
"We've only been at Changchun Temple for less than a month, and Cousin has come three times." Zhao Youze held up three fingers. He smiled at Jiashan and said, "All three times, I've smelled the scent of fresh hair oil on Cousin's hair."
In other words, Pei Yuantang had groomed himself carefully before each visit.
Zhao Youze said, "And the letter Cousin gave to Sister is also very suspicious."
When Pei Yuantang came a few days ago, he not only came in person but also personally wrote a very thick letter. In the letter, he listed all the potential husbands that Emperor Zhanghe had chosen for Jiashan.
Not only that, but at the end of the list, he additionally listed all of them, with each person's shortcomings.
Yes, only shortcomings, no advantages at all.
Jiashan now knew that the young master of the Marquis Qi Le's family liked to frequent brothels, the young master of the Earl Chang Le's family liked to brag and preferred to have others write his articles, and the heir of the Duke Yingguo's family liked to collect beautiful women... Pei Yuantang specifically noted at the end that this person would most likely take concubines in the future.
It was almost like saying outright that all these people were rubbish.
Without Zhao Youze saying anything, Jiashan also understood that there were too many strange things about this letter. She just hadn't expected Zhao Youze to be so observant.
Since that day when she talked with Pei Yuantang, Jiashan had some doubts in her heart, and now that Zhao Youze had suddenly revealed this, she was surprised but not too astonished.
However, Zhan Yue.
What was going on with Zhan Yue...
"What about Zhan Daren?" Jiashan looked at Zhao Youze with complex eyes.
Zhao Youze said, "The night I rested in Aunt's courtyard, I heard her conversation with Zhan Daren. They thought I was asleep."
"Zhan Daren said......." Zhao Youze's voice lowered slowly.
Jiashan raised her eyebrows and stared at him intently, "What did he say?"
Zhao Youze's voice was clear and steady. He said word for word, "He said he has a special fondness for Sister."