Fu Yu said awkwardly, “Mother Empress, isn’t it a bit inappropriate to discuss this so openly?”
The Empress found it strange: “What’s inappropriate about it? Sooner or later, you will be married off, and someone will wed you.”
Fu Yu’s mind was screaming: Your Highness, Empress, could you be a bit more subtle… Why is this Empress’s style so reminiscent of those steamy novels… Even though she had read countless such novels, she would never speak so bluntly in daily life.
Her face flushed: “Mother Empress, can we not talk about this? Besides, I’m a Ye person…”
Seeing her blush, the Empress smiled even more deeply, ah, she really has grown up and learned to be shy: “What is there to avoid? I am your birth mother, it’s only right that I discuss this with you.”
Fu Yu knew that in ancient times, before marriage, families would give the newlyweds a small booklet to study the knowledge of the wedding night. For families that didn’t prepare such booklets, it was likely that the elders would provide oral instruction.
But hadn’t Zhao Hua not yet married? Why was the Empress so eager to impart this kind of easily censored knowledge?
Fu Yu said with difficulty: “There’s really no need.”
The Empress immediately frowned: “You child, what do you mean by ‘no need’? Do you think I want to meddle in your affairs? It’s only because you’re not getting any younger, what’s wrong with finding you a reliable person to marry?”
Fu Yu: Stop talking!
“It seems you’re still too young. Very well, I’ll take care of this matter. You may leave now.”
Fu Yu: “Huh??? How does Mother Empress plan to handle it?”
The Empress said irritably: “None of your business!”
And so, Fu Yu was driven out of the bedchamber.
Standing at the palace gate, Fu Yu looked up at the sky speechlessly. As if on cue, a row of crows flew across the horizon, emitting “awk-awk-awk” cries, approaching from afar, then gradually fading away, their figures slowly turning into a row of black dots against the sky.
The next day, a palace eunuch came to the princess’s residence to announce that the Emperor had issued an edict bestowing a marriage, and preparations for Qing Yao and Zhao Hua’s wedding would begin soon.
Bestowed marriage?
Qing Yao and her?
The Emperor and Empress’s matchmaking skills were truly miraculous.
Fu Yu was dazed, unable to react for a moment.
Xiao Mei had already started applauding for her: [Amazing, amazing. The plot that originally required effort until the end of the series is already happening in the opening chapters. How far am I from finding my next host?]
Fu Yu recalled yesterday’s conversation with the Empress and realized that the phrase “wed the princess” might have another meaning.
So she finally remembered to ask Xiao Mei.
Xiao Mei sighed with admiration: [How strong are your tinted glasses? Indeed, one must read more. Fu Yu, do you need me to provide a daily reading service? ‘Wedding the princess’ simply means marrying the princess. Since the princess is of higher status, we can’t use the ordinary term for marriage, it would be too undignified.]
Fu Yu: “…”
After a moment of speechlessness, Fu Yu suddenly remembered something and hurriedly grabbed the eunuch who had come to announce the marriage decree: “So the imperial decree hasn’t been delivered to Qing Yao’s family yet, right? There’s still time to stop it?”
The eunuch smiled confidently: “Your Highness, how can you say that? Don’t you trust this servant’s work? I’ve always prioritized efficiency, otherwise, how could I hold the position of Chief Eunuch of the Inner Court? The decree was sent to Xiangxue Garden early this morning. I came to report to you only after delivering it there.”
Fu Yu thought to herself: This isn’t a report, it’s a death sentence.
She sighed helplessly: “Then let’s just wait for your Princess Zhao Hua to experience her second rejected marriage in this lifetime.”
The eunuch gave an awkward smile upon hearing this. “Your Highness, your romantic path isn’t so rough. Just rest assured and wait for the wedding. His Majesty and Her Majesty have everything under control.”
Fu Yu massaged her forehead and had the eunuch respectfully escorted out.
The eunuch actually wanted to chat a bit more, after all, the princess hadn’t given him any reward money yet, and he had prepared a whole bellyful of blessings to offer! Unfortunately, the people escorting him out were too respectful, they didn’t even let his feet touch the ground, directly carrying him out instead.
Ah, the reward money was lost. He’d have to ask the Empress for it instead.
After the eunuch left, Fu Yu spun around in circles like a cat with a scalded tail, looking somewhat helpless.
This imperial marriage decree had come far too suddenly.
Watching from the side, Qing Li also found it quite bizarre. Based on her understanding of these two noble ladies, the final outcome should have been them fighting to the death. How had they ended up discussing marriage in just a few days?
Where exactly had things gone wrong? This didn’t make sense? But it had actually happened. If you said it was completely unacceptable, that wasn’t quite true either. After all, the princess had resented Qing Yao for so many years, that could be considered a unique form of attention. How long can love for someone last? Better to hate someone, as the saying goes, this hatred stretches endlessly. Thinking this, Qing Li suddenly comprehended a great truth of life, as if she had been elevated, her mind becoming empty as she stared blankly at the princess spinning in circles.
As Fu Yu spun around, she realized she wasn’t actually that opposed to the marriage decree. What she feared was Qing Yao herself. After all, this wasn’t the mortal Qing Yao from three hundred years ago, this was the sect leader of the immortal mountain, a genius of the emotionless path. Getting involved in such worldly matters would probably be quite repulsive to her.
Would Qing Yao end up hating her because of this? After all, if she hadn’t entered the Fusheng Realm, the development of these past events would never have become so absurd. Her arrival had caused a series of strange chain reactions, like the flapping of a butterfly’s wings.
No, she still had to go see Qing Yao at her home and explain things clearly, Fu Yu thought.
Having made up her mind, she set off immediately.
The carriage clattered along for a while, going from the princess’s residence to Xiangxue Garden, Qing Yao’s home, which was separated by five main streets.
Meanwhile, in Xiangxue Garden, in the main hall, a middle-aged man with a thin mustache was pacing like an ant on a hot pan. The young woman in white sitting in an armchair to the side calmly continued practicing tea ceremony with her pot.
Water boiling, warming the utensils, brewing tea, shaking the pot, tea opening, smelling the aroma, serving the tea.
Qing Yao said unhurriedly, “Father, the tea is ready. Sit and have some.”
Qing Wei glanced at his daughter, sat down heavily, picked up the teacup and took a sip, oh, it was too hot, he almost spat it out. He sighed irritably and put the cup down.
“How can you still sit so calmly?” her father said.
Qing Yao replied, “This chair is quite level. Sitting for half a day shouldn’t be a problem.”
Qing Wei, “…” In her father’s eyes, his daughter had always been rather obtuse. She never smiled, and seemed unable to understand human emotions. Qing Wei was frustrated by her lack of progress. “I’m talking about this thing.” He glanced at a roll of bright yellow fabric on the table.
Qing Yao followed his gaze and looked at it too, still appearing completely detached. “What about it?”
Qing Wei wanted to say, “The princess has always targeted you before. This marriage decree is utterly baffling. How can you just accept it so easily? Aren’t you afraid that after marriage, when you move into the princess’s residence, isolated and powerless, she might bully you?” But the words reached his lips only to be swallowed back.
He then thought, “After all, the imperial decree has been issued, what else can be done? That Scholar Li earlier managed to refuse the marriage because the decree hadn’t been formally issued yet, and he declined when the Emperor consulted him. Besides, how could the Emperor allow his daughter to be rejected twice? The first time might have passed without incident, but this second time… it’s hard to say. Moreover, our family is considered part of the respectable gentry. If we don’t want to jeopardize the entire family’s fate, I’m afraid Qing Yao is the only one who can be sacrificed this time.”
His thoughts raced through his mind, and in an instant, Qing Wei calmed down.
He patted his knees and let out a long sigh, then turned to comfort his daughter. But he had never been good at comforting others, so he said, “Forget it. What’s done is done. You’ll just have to endure this injustice. Think of it as… meat buns thrown at a dog, ” Wait, that’s not right.
“What I mean is, just consider it as being bitten by a dog.”
Just then, Fu Yu, who had been led by a servant to the main hall, overheard this from outside: ?
At this moment, should I play along and let out a “woof woof”?