Longtai shook his head and said: "The King of Huainan only said that he would give you a marriage, but he did not propose to marry any girl to you." He smiled faintly and said: "Don't you understand what Uncle Wang is thinking?"
Qining is so shrewd. When Longtai said this, Qining understood instantly and said: "The King of Huainan was worried that I would make great contributions to Dong Qi as an envoy, and the emperor would give me several opportunities to hold important positions, so he gave me a marriage early as a reward." Reward, if this is the case, it will be difficult to give another reward."
"The existence of the Black Scale Battalion has already put a thorn in the hearts of King Huainan and Sima Lan. How can they hope to see other opportunities for me to give you important positions." Long Tai's eyes were sharp and he said softly: "It's fortunate that he reminded me. I just thought that Ximen Wuhen’s daughter has not left the court yet, so I will wait for you to come back and ask what you mean.”
"Your Majesty, if my guess is correct, this time Duan Shao proposes marriage, I am afraid that it has something to do with King Huainan." Qi Ning's eyes were like daggers, and he sneered: "King Huainan may not have thought that the emperor would marry Ximen before. Zhan Ying, but after thinking about it, he might have expected that the emperor would make such a move, so he came up with the idea of using Duan Shao to block the marriage. As long as Ximen Zhan Ying is married to Duan Shao, then no matter who the emperor proposes to marry, King Huainan doesn’t care about Jinyihou Mansion.”
Long Tai nodded slightly and said: "When Duan Shao mentioned this marriage, he was really surprised as to why he chose Ximen Zhanying. Now that I think about it, what you said is quite reasonable." Wei pondered for a moment before asking. Said: "Why would Duan Shao be willing to be used by the King of Huainan? Although Ximen Zhanying is the daughter of the Shenhou, Duan Shao is the crown prince of the Eastern Qi Dynasty. He wants to find a crown princess. Even if he is not from our Da Chu royal family, It should also be the family of our hereditary marquis of Chu."
"Your Majesty, Duan Shao is a scheming man, and his cunning is not inferior to that of King Huainan." Qi Ning sneered: "He asked for Ximen Zhanying, so his purpose is naturally not simple."
Longtai said: "Is it for the Shenhou Mansion?"
"It's very possible." Qi Ning said: "Although Ximen Zhanying is young and has little experience in the Shenhou Mansion, she is the daughter of the Shenhou Mansion after all. There are many secrets and important things in the Shenhou Mansion that others don't know, and Ximen Zhanying may not know them. .”
Longtai smiled and said: "So Duan Shao asked Ximen Zhanying for a gift, and then took something out of Ximen Zhanying's mouth. If Ximen Zhanying really marries Dong Qi and becomes a princess, then she is from Dong Qi, not necessarily I won’t reveal things I shouldn’t.”
"Your Majesty, for the benefit of our Chu Kingdom, Ximen Zhanying must not marry far away from Dong Qi." Qi Ning said sternly: "Fortunately, the Emperor has not promised him yet, and there is still room for maneuver on this matter."
"I didn't agree to him, but in order to take care of his face, I didn't refuse immediately." Longtai said: "Duan Shao was very respectful when he asked for a marriage. If I refused directly, I would definitely make him unable to step down. This person will eventually die. He will become the king of Eastern Qi. Before the Northern Han Dynasty is conquered, it is not easy for him to hold a grudge." He smiled slightly and said: "I can't refuse him, but it doesn't mean that others can't."
Qi Ning understood something and said: "What does the emperor mean...?"
"Tomorrow morning, Duan Shao will enter the palace." Longtai said: "For such a big event as the marriage between two countries, he will naturally ask me in the court hall."
Qi Ning's eyes lit up: "Your Majesty asked me to go to court tomorrow morning and when he proposed to you, I would stand in the way?"
"It depends on how capable you are." Long Tai smiled half-heartedly: "Qining, don't tell me that I didn't give you a chance. Before the court tomorrow morning, you must find a way to refuse his request, but you can't do it in front of the courtiers. It hurt his face."
"Your Majesty, this matter is related to Ximen Zhanying's life-long matter. How will Ximen Wuhen make a decision?" Qi Ning asked softly: "Ximen Wuhen will not watch his daughter marry Dong Qi, right?"
Longtai shook his head and said: "If someone else were to propose marriage, Ximen Wuhen might block it if he didn't agree. But this time it's the crown prince of Dong Qi, and this marriage is also related to the alliance between the two countries. If Ximen Wuhen blocks it in public, he will be punished. People use their excuses to say that he abandoned his official position for personal reasons. Ximen Wuhen is mature and prudent, and even if he is dissatisfied in his heart, he will not refuse in public."
At this moment, I heard a report coming from outside: "Your Majesty, Mr. Yuan of the Ministry of Rites asks for an audience!"
Longtai said: "Tell him to come in." Xiang Qining said: "It should be for my wedding."
Yuan Laoshangshu was summoned to the imperial study. After seeing him, he bowed his hands to Qining and said, "Everything goes well on your trip to the Eastern Qi Dynasty in Jinyi. You are really young and promising."
Qi Ning smiled slightly, and then Mr. Yuan took out a memorial from his sleeve, presented it to him, and said: "To express my gratitude to Your Majesty, I have been preparing for your Majesty's wedding with the officials of the Ministry of Rites and Yamen these days. After deliberation, Si Tianjian selected an auspicious day and stated all the wedding matters in the memorial, asking the emperor to preview it."
Longtai opened the memorial, glanced at it a few times, and then said, "The wedding date is set for July 18th?" He raised his hand to calculate, and said, "There are still about ten days."
Yuan Laoshang wrote: "Reporting to Your Majesty, there are two auspicious days this month, the sixth day of July and the eighteenth day of July. The sixth day of July was too hasty, and we were not ready to go to the imperial mausoleum to offer sacrifices, so the old minister and his colleagues We decided to set the date on July 18th. We will set out for the imperial mausoleum on July 15th. July 16th is an auspicious day for sacrifices. We will return to Beijing on July 17th. July 18th is a good time for weddings, so it coincides with it."
Longtai said with a smile: "Old Minister, you have taken the trouble. Since the date has been set, everything will be done according to your preparations."
"If the Emperor feels that there are any omissions, the veteran will make preparations in time." Although Yuan Laoshangshu is old, his mind is very clear and his spirit is not bad: "If we follow common sense, the great wedding of the Holy One will come from all directions. Now that the crown prince of Dong Qi is staying in the capital, there is no need to invite Dong Qi anymore, and the Northern Han Dynasty and Chu are enemies, so I think there is no need to invite them. However, I want to ask the emperor for instructions. Does the feudal official allow them to attend the wedding now?"
Longtai shook his head and said: "I have told you before that this wedding should not lose dignity or harm the country's prestige, but it should also not be extravagant and luxurious. Local officials at all levels do not need to come to Beijing. They can just do their jobs. If there is any Those who enter the capital without being summoned will be severely punished."
Yuan Laoshangshu's eyes were filled with relief, and he said respectfully: "Your Majesty is wise."
"Old Minister is already old. You don't need to work too hard. You should take care of your health." Longtai said with a pleasant expression: "I have just ascended to the great throne, and I still need your dedicated support from veterans."
"Although my old minister is dim-sighted, as long as the emperor has a decree, I will do my best and die!" Old Shangshu Yuan bowed again, and Longtai gave a few more instructions, and then Old Shangshu Yuan retreated.
Longtai watched Old Shangshu Yuan leave and sighed: "Old Shangshu has done a lot of things himself these days, and it's hard for him." He glanced at Qining and said softly: "But there are too many old ministers in the court, some of them are deaf and dazzled, like It’s just that the old minister can still do something like this. Some of the corpses are in plain sight. If some important yamen are controlled by these old ministers, it will not be a good thing for me, Dachu."
Qi Ning nodded slightly, knowing very well in his heart that the little emperor had just ascended the throne and was very high-spirited. He indeed had the ambition to work hard to govern. However, the situation in the government is complicated now and the little emperor has not yet been able to grasp the power. This is like trying to do something big but being blocked. My hands and feet were blocked and I couldn't use it.
Fortunately, although the little emperor is young, he has a calm temperament and is not too hasty for success.
"I still have some memorials to read here. You should go back and think about how the court will deal with it tomorrow." Long Tai looked at Qining with a half-smile but not a smile: "I know that Ximen Zhanying is very close to you, and you want to marry her. It depends on whether you have that ability."
Qining thought to himself that after I got to know you, I expected you to rise to great heights, but you are the one who gives yourself problems every day. This big tree is really not reliable at the moment.
After leaving the palace, Qi Ning knew that Long Tai obviously had concerns about Ximen Zhanying marrying away to Dong Qi. Yu Gong did not want to see the people from the Shenhou Mansion being taken back by the Dong Qi people, which might lead to the leakage of the secrets of the Shenhou Mansion. After all, the little emperor had already promised that Ximen and Ying would be married and married, so naturally it would be hard to go back on his promise.
However, considering the overall situation, the little emperor did not refuse Duan Shao's request directly. Instead, he left some room and thought of letting Qining resolve the marriage.
Qi Ning rode on horseback and thought about how to deal with the meeting tomorrow. After all, it was really difficult to do this alone. He needed the cooperation of Ximen Zhanying. He was thinking of going to Shenhou Mansion to discuss this matter with Ximen Zhanying. Something happened, and suddenly I heard someone shouting next to me: "Master Hou, Master Hou...!"
Qi Ning was a little surprised. He followed the sound and looked over, only to see a person approaching from the street. After looking carefully, he recognized that it was Liu Qingzhou, a disciple of the Beggar Clan.
Liu Qingzhou almost lost his life last time due to the epidemic spreading in the capital. Fortunately, Qi Ning saved his life in time. He was only a middle-level disciple in the Ghost Golden Sheep Branch of the Beggar Clan, but he was very familiar with Qi Ning.
"Brother Liu?" Qining reined in his horse and said with a smile, "Why are you here?"
Liu Qingzhou looked around, then lowered his voice and said, "Master Hou, I wonder if it would be convenient for me to go somewhere with you. Someone wants to see you."
"Oh?" Qi Ning said, "Is it Elder Suzaku who wants to see me?" He secretly thought that after the Aoki Conference, Elder Suzaku should have returned to the capital with his men.
Liu Qingzhou smiled mysteriously and said, "He is an old friend of Mr. Hou. Mr. Hou will know it when he sees him."
Qining laughed and said nothing, motioning for Liu Qingzhou to lead the way. Liu Qingzhou led Qining through two streets and arrived at a secluded alley. He looked around, then went over and opened a wooden door. Liu Qingzhou stood there. In front of the door, he said respectfully: "Master Marquis, the person is inside."
Qi Ning nodded slightly, threw the horse's reins to Liu Qingzhou, and entered the house. A man came up to him. He cupped his hands and said with a smile: "Master Hou, I haven't seen you for a long time. How are you?"