Zhou Mingzhu had little memory of this imperial elder sister, Zhou Mingli. Among the few concerns she paid to the other party in her former incarnation, the most impressive thing seemed to be that the other party rejected the imperial father’s point to marry. She insisted on leaving home to become a Buddhist nun and entered the Miaoyin Nunnery to pray for blessings for the Great Zhou’s royal family and people.
At that time, the Great Zhou had an invincible general Yan Chu and did not need to sacrifice a princess to connect by marriage with Jiang. For this reason, nothing like this happened in this life.
When Zhou Mingzhu first heard that imperial elder sister, who she did not care much about in her former incarnation, unexpectedly directed to marry Emperor Jiang, who was gradually approaching old age, she still felt a little guilty. But on second thoughts, even if she was obstinate and stubborn to not marrying Emperor Jiang, it was also the same as being a Buddhist nun. She was widowed and became Empress Jiang. In the future, when Emperor Jiang Wang died, she would be Jiang’s Empress Dowager. She could not entirely enjoy a life of luxury. Zhou Mingli should be grateful to her.
“Why do you say that Imperial Elder Sister necessarily has Young General Yan to send her to marry?”
Zhou Mingzhu did not understand this matter.
“This servant is also unclear, but listening to the little palace maids and eunuchs said that the eldest princess did not seem to like Young General Yan. She knew that the other side had broken his hamstring and wanted to humiliate Young General Yan on the way to send her to marry.”
Zhou Mingzhu’s maid was also not understood, so she chose one of the most popular news in the palace to tell the princess.
When Zhou Mingli pleaded for Yan Chu, there were only two people in the Xuanshi Hall, Emperor Zhou and her. Emperor Zhou would not talk about this matter to anyone around him, and Zhou Mingli even more unlikely would. Because of this, the people in the palace kept dubious about the messages now.
Zhou Mingzhu pondered the memories of her former incarnation and did not remember where Yan Chu and Zhou Mingli had feuded.
But thought about it carefully, in the Zhou Imperial Palace, the empress was the one only who ruled. As the daughter of a foreign country dancer, Zhou Mingli was the only princess in the palace who did not come from the empress of Zhou, how could she live a good life?
Indeed, Empress Zhou felt it beneath her dignity to bother with the concubine-born princess. After all, she was a daughter, not like the concubine-born sons, who might vie over her son for the title of Emperor. However, there was no lack of social climbing people in the palace. Although Empress Zhou maintained a model attitude towards this eldest princess, she still smart-aleck to tease and bully her, luckily preserving a little face in front of the empress.
This kind of practice, was not until the princess gradually became a person who was worthy of some respect, at least the other side still had a princess’ status, in the end, dare not do too much.
Zhou Mingzhu recalled this matter and thought that Yan Chu, like those people, had bullied Zhou Mingli when she was young? So in the former incarnation, did Zhou Mingli become a nun and discouraged when she saw that the people she hated had reached a height where even a princess could not retaliate?
Thinking this way, Zhou Mingzhu felt that her work method was not wrong before. Such a man was not worthy at all of her, Princess Mingzhu’s beloved.
Because she knew the truth consciously, and Yan Chu indeed became a useless man, the best physician of the Imperial Institute of Medicine had already sentenced him to death. In this life, he could not cause any problem.
“Didn’t Mother give me a few boxes of the best blood bird’s nest not long ago? Send them to the Yan family, said that I couldn’t persuade the eldest princess, and hoped that Young General Yan would be careful and protect his body this time.”
Zhou Mingzhu did not plan to have an acrimonious falling-out with the Yan family’s side openly.
The Yan family’s strength in the army absolutely could not be underestimated. Now that Yan Chu’s crime of treason cleared, even if he became a useless man, there might be many people who were willing to follow him, and what she wanted was the Yan family’s connection in the army.
It was necessary to let the Yan family owing to her feelings, merely something she was tired of, nothing much. It was worth using these as human emotions.
The little maids did not know Zhou Mingzhu’s schemes and thought that the princess still had a deep emotional attachment for Young General Yan. Consider that one had become a useless person, and the other promised by the Emperor to another now. They were just like a pair of jade annulus people who were destined to meet but not fated to be together in the vernacular folk stories, which directly made people sigh.
Zhou Mingli was not valued in the palace before, but now it was different. She was both Zhou’s princess and Jiang’s future empress. Therefore, her bridal procession was majestic. Solely for the number of the bridal procession to send her as large as 10,000 people.
It was needless to say, the gold, silver, and jade artifacts were as high as 188. Even if Princess Mingzhu got married in the future, she might not get that much dowry, because Zhou Mingli’s marriage was not only a princess’ wedding but also to signify a diplomatic relation between Zhou and Jiang.
Empress Zhou was still quite explicit in this matter, so she did not have any deduction in the dowry of this concubine-born eldest daughter, rather how to be generous so that the other party could remember her kindness. In the future, she would become Jiang’s empress and must not forget the Great Zhou, where she was born and brought up.
On this day, Yan Chu put on the lying unused for a long time silver-white armor, each piece of which was wiped clean and polished without the least bit of dust.
This armor had been with Yan Chu for five full years. In addition to the fact that it was sent to the smith several times because of its size, it accompanied Yan Chu every time he went to the battlefield.
The armor was stained with the blood of countless enemies, simultaneously also Yan Chu’s own. It had already been impregnated with innumerable evil spirits for a long time. The clouded luminescence on the armor gave people endless deterrence.
Yan Chu looked at himself in the pupil of his paternal grandmother and mother and hung the ancestral sword of the Yan family on his waist.
“Take care all the way.”
The Third Lady Yan was as stubborn as her son, and now she had red eyes. That was all she could say.
Yan Chu nodded, said goodbye to his paternal grandmother and mother, as well as the eldest aunt, and several older female patrilineal cousins, and left Yan residence with a dozen of his soldiers, heading out of the city.
“Mother, Third Sister-in-law, Little Tiger has this ambition. You should be happy. What we should do for him is burn incense and worship Buddha to bless him.”
Compared with this nephew Yan Chu, First Lady Yan loved her three daughters more. Now that Yan Chu’s crimes had cleared up, she seemed to have plans to start over again. She was happier than anyone else.
Let’s not talk about how far the other party could achieve with a half disabled body, okay? At best, he would not be worse than now. She did not ask too much. She only sought for her two younger daughters to marry out smoothly and favorably. As for her eldest daughter, she could only go along with fate.
The First Lady Yan did not think that Yan Chu could restore the Yan family to its former glory. Toward this, her requests were also awfully low.
Outside the city gate, and the bridal procession primarily had been assembled. The dowry of the princess had arranged a long majestic line and looked from inside the city gate, unable to see the end of it.
Zhou Mingli sat on the Longjian sedan chair, and the embroidered red cover with the dragon and phoenix blocked her sight. At first sight, there were only her knees, her jade-white hands, and the deep red and dazzling nail polish on her fingernails.
She seemed to have a telepathic mind. When people around her were riding fast and out of fashion, she slightly turned her side head, and a gust of wind blew the side curtain of the sedan chair simultaneously also the cover on her head.
And that person also seemed touched to some extent, in an instant, their four eyes looked at one another. Unfortunately, it was fleeting.
The rider did not stop and drove on. And so the wind that just blew the cover also swept past, disappeared with the gallop of the steed.
Zhou Mingli reached out her hand to cover her heart. It palpitated so fast.
“Young General Yan.”
It was not too late for Yan Chu to come. The auspicious time had not arrived yet. It would take some time for the bridal procession to start.
Because of the previous events, as well as his current physical condition, put it this way, Yan Chu was indeed a civilian. Although Emperor Zhou ordered him to escort the eldest princess’ bridal procession, he did not specify in the imperial decree what identity he was when sent on a diplomatic mission to Jiang.
The title of Young General Yan was so popular that even though the current him was not this identity now, everyone did not know what title to call him, they still chose this one.
Most people thought that Yan Chu suddenly had fallen from a former specially privileged person to a useless person with unworking four limbs. At this time, he should be decadent and depressed.
But looking at the man in armor, whose radiating health and vigor and came here with a horse, both surprising and thought he should be in this way.
That was the son of the Yan family. How could he be easily defeated?
Some of them were deputy generals of Yan Chu’s subordinates who had the rim of their eye become red. The young general was still that young general.
Today was the day to send the eldest princess of harmony* to marry Jiang. The close members of the royal family had appeared. Emperor Zhou and Empress Zhou, as well as the two princes and the second princess, naturally could not fall.
Speaking of it, this was the first time Yan Chu to see the second princess, Zhou Mingzhu.
On his days of recuperating, everyone was instilling into him how deeply he and Zhou Mingzhu loved each other. They grew up together from childhood and had destined to be a couple initially.
Even when everyone was hitting them who were down, only Zhou Mingzhu opened her mouth to plead for leniency towards His Majesty for him. Included after that, only she was concerned about him all along and sent things to Yan residence every few days. She did not seem to care a bit about her current fiancé General Fu.
Third Lady Yan often talked about the lack of such a good daughter-in-law. However, considering Yan Chu’s mood, she would not say this matter in front of him but secretly regretted it.
But when he saw this second princess today, Yan Chu could not help doubting that the second princess in the rumor was indeed the same person as the second princess he saw with his own eyes?
Facing those beautiful eyes, Yan Chu only saw the hidden and almost invisible malice and superficial friendship.
He lowered his eyes. This second princess was quite interesting.
