In the evening, the gate of the Qin Mansion opened wide, and three cars drove out happily. Several members of the Qin family, including the eldest son Qin Tong and the second son Qin Bin, who had already established their own business, came and rode in cars to attend the banquet at Prince Wu's Mansion.
Qin Mubai wore a gorgeous brocade robe with purple and green embellishments, and a silver crown for her hair. She sat in the same car with her mother and sister, chatting happily all the way.
Suddenly, the carriage and horses stopped. Everyone heard a voice.
"Ahead of us is the chariot of General Qin Shubao, Duke of Yi Kingdom?"
Qin Mubai opened the car window and took a look. There was a man riding a horse on the side of the road, asking questions. Qin Shubao, who was sitting in the car in front, was already getting off the car and was ready to reply.
"Who is this? You're really ignorant. Liang'er, go and have a look." Ms. Liu said displeased.
Qin Mubai got out of the car and walked forward. But I saw a middle-aged man in his forties or fifties, inviting Qin Shubao aside to whisper. Qin Shubao was much taller than him. He was leaning sideways and lowering his head to listen. The expression on his face instantly became solemn.
"Father, what's going on?" Qin Mubai stepped forward and asked. The two brothers also got out of the car and asked questions at the same time.
"No need to say anything else, turn the horse's head and go back home!" Qin Shubao waved his hand, dropped this sentence and walked towards the car on crutches.
His face was ashen!
"What's going on?!" Qin Mubai was stunned and confused.
The eldest brother Qin Tong obviously knew the man. He stepped forward and asked, "Mr. Gai, what is going on?"
"Hey, I have told Duke Yi the whole story. You should go back and ask your father-in-law... This matter is not something to be discussed in the street. Be careful what you say. Take your leave!" After that, he handed back. With a salute, he got on his horse and drove away with a whip.
"This is really weird!" The three brothers looked at me and I looked at you, both confused.
"What are you doing standing around, get in the car and go back home!" Qin Shubao shouted loudly from the car. The three brothers couldn't talk much for a while, so they had to return to the car.
Liu and Shuang'er were shocked and asked Qin Mubai what was going on. Qin Mubai could only shake his head, feeling vaguely that something was not good in his heart.
Back in the mansion, Qin Shubao walked straight back to the room without saying a word, ordered the servants in the mansion to close the door tightly, and called Qin Mubai into his room alone.
"Dad, what happened?"
"Huh!" Qin Shubao was obviously extremely depressed and annoyed. He took a long breath, glared at Qin Mubai and shouted in a low voice, "What a good thing you did!"
"What happened?" Qin Mubai's heart tightened and he asked.
"Do you know that person just now?" Qin Mubai said.
"The kid doesn't recognize him, but the eldest brother seems to recognize him. His surname is Gai." Qin Mubai replied.
"His name is Gai Wenda, and he was one of the eighteen bachelors in Prince Qin's palace. If he hadn't had a close relationship with his father, today's disaster would have been even greater!" Qin Shubao shouted sharply.
Qin Mubai took a deep breath and said calmly: "Dad, don't get angry and hurt your body. Let's calm down first, and slowly tell the whole story first."
"Well, everything happened because of you after all, I have to make you understand!" Qin Shubao gritted his teeth, his eyebrows were straight and his eyes were shining, and he said in a deep voice, "Since the death of the queen, the emperor has been depressed and unhappy. The ministers had been thinking about letting the emperor accept a concubine to relieve the pain of losing his wife. More than a year ago, the imperial court sent Gaiwenda to mourn the death of his wife, and he met Wu Erniang this time. He told the emperor that the warrior Yi had a beautiful second daughter who was very popular with the country. So the emperor first made the warrior Yi a third-rank minister and gave the Wu family property and mansion. Do you understand that the Wu family was also ordered to return to the capital. "
Qin Mubai frowned: "According to what my father meant, this Wu Zhao is the beauty that the emperor has already selected internally? And the Wu family doesn't know it yet?"
"That's right. Not only the people in the Wu family don't know, but no one knows the inside story except the emperor and Gaiwenda. Do you know why Gaiwenda suddenly appeared to stop us just now?"
"have no idea."
"That's because he just got the emperor's decree today and went to the Duke's Mansion to declare the decree and formally declare Wuzhao's entry into the palace - and then he learned about what you and King Wu did today!"
"So that's it. It's such a coincidence that we are half a day early!" Qin Mubai nodded attentively: Li Shimin is really doing things safely. After all, the warrior Yan was also pushed out of the court by him. Use a reward to transition, so that the people of the Wu family will first thank the emperor for his magnanimous grace, and then willingly send the daughter to the palace... But the hateful thing is here. If Li Shimin had made it clear when he was in Jingzhou, he would have directly issued the edict. If he had transferred her to the palace, or even if Gavinda had been sent to deliver the order a day earlier, wouldn't things have been as bad as today
There are so many fragrant grasses in the world, why should we snatch them from the emperor's hands? … This is appalling.
"What are you waiting for, grind the ink!" Qin Shubao scolded, interrupting Qin Mubai's meditation.
"What does father want to do?" Qin Mubai didn't panic at all and asked Qin Shubao.
"You still need to ask? Of course, write a seal to apologize to the emperor! Then tear up the marriage contract that will bring disaster!" Qin Shubao lowered his voice and scolded, "How many heads do you have? We Qin How many members of the family can bear this crime? - You dare to touch the woman appointed by the emperor's imperial decree, well, you are much more courageous than your father was!"
"No, father. We can't write this on the list." Qin Mubai was still as calm as water, but Qin Shubao was a little stunned.
"Why?"
"Father, think about it. If you are on this list now... wouldn't you be making the matter public and embarrassing the emperor even more? If I go to snatch the emperor's woman, no matter whether I get it or not, it is the emperor who loses face." Qin Mu Bai said, "If you submit this letter, the emperor may not be angry for a while out of favour, but there is no guarantee that not only our Qin family will suffer in the future, but also the Wu family, King Wu and even Gai Wen, who just reported to you." Da, there are no good fruits to eat.”
Qin Shubao was startled for a moment, his brows furrowed and he thought hard, and nodded slowly: "Yes, that makes sense. My father was so excited that he actually acted inappropriately. My father has been with the emperor for many years, and I have some understanding of his temper. . It is related to the emperor's privacy. In any case, this matter cannot be made public. The more secretive and low-key the solution is, the better. The emperor is a wise and benevolent king, and his mind is as broad as the sea. As long as we don't make this matter so big that the emperor can't step down. There is still room for redemption!”
Qin Mubai's mind was also spinning rapidly, and he quickly figured out something, and asked: "Dad, my child has heard some old things. I don't know whether they are true or false. Can you please confirm it?"
"explain."
"I heard that before, when Empress Changsun was still alive, the empress intended to recruit a woman named Zheng to serve the emperor in the palace, but she failed. Is this possible?" Qin Mubai asked.
Qin Shubao's eyebrows twitched: "It's true... As you said, Wu Zhao's situation today is somewhat similar to that of that woman. At that time, the queen heard that Zheng Renji had a smart and virtuous daughter, and intended to introduce her to the palace to serve the emperor. The emperor also agreed and decreed that Zheng Nu should be appointed as one of the nine concubines. The court hired her, and even the marriage was arranged. He only waited for the auspicious day to marry Zheng Renji's daughter into the palace. She made a marriage agreement with the Lu family when she was young. When Wei Zheng heard about it, he caused a stir in the court. In fact, the emperor did not know about the engagement between the daughter of the Zheng family and the Lu family at first. Later, the emperor heard about Wei Zheng's marriage. He gave up marrying Zheng Renji's daughter. This incident was well known to both the government and the public at that time, and it also won the emperor a reputation as a law-abiding person."
An inexplicable smile appeared on Qin Mubai's face. I had only seen a little bit of the matter that my father had just explained in detail on TV, and I didn’t remember it very clearly. Now that it has been confirmed, I have a plan.
"Father, since we have learned from the past, there is no need for us to be afraid of anything now." Qin Mubai said, "It is true, and those who do not know are not guilty. The child did not know at first that Wu Meiniang was the emperor's designated beauty, and the Wu family themselves did not I have never mentioned it. Since a man is unmarried and a woman is unmarried, it is normal human relations for a well-matched person to marry a son and a daughter. "
"That's easy to say." Qin Shubao snorted coldly and said, "As a father, in this small room, I can't say anything serious. The emperor has a special hobby for women. He has always been the only one to take other people's wives, but no one else has Take the woman away from him. Even though he is a saint, he is still a man. What man is willing to give up his favorite wife?"
"What my father said is absolutely true, and the child also understands this truth." Qin Mubai said, "But things have already happened, and it is useless to express emotion and fear. But at this moment, we must first find a way to escape the crime, It makes sense from a legal and moral perspective. As for the emperor’s private grievances, we will find ways to make amends in the future.”
"You brat, you got into a big disaster and yet you're so calm..." Qin Shubao didn't know whether to praise or to blame, he frowned and asked, "In your opinion, what should we do?"
"Do nothing, wait."
"wait?"
"That's right." Qin Mubai said, "We won't go to Prince Wu's Mansion for a banquet, nor will we apologize to the emperor. We will just wait and hand over the initiative to the emperor. Give him some time to think clearly and act Make a decision.”
Qin Shubao stood up, walked a few steps with his hands behind his back, and suddenly said: "Do you want so many members of our Qin family to wait with you with our heads raised?"
"Of course there are risks... but father, please believe me. Nothing will happen." Qin Mubai said, "Put yourself in the emperor's shoes. He will be charged with taking someone's wife and killing heroes because of a woman. There are so many beauties in the harem, and all the beauties in the world are chosen by him. But in our Zhenguan Dynasty, this is the only one who is more important. Furthermore, which one is more important, between us and the Wu family? We have to get married first, and the relationship between the two families is mutual, and the king of Wu is the matchmaker. It is justified by law and morality. I believe that with the emperor's wisdom and the lessons learned from the Zheng family's daughter, he will definitely make the wisest decision. s Choice."
"Then tell me, what choice will the emperor make?" Obviously, Qin Shubao was moved by Qin Mubai's reasonable words.
"Instead of losing it, it is better to be generous and do a favor to show that the emperor's kindness is great and that the emperor's heart is as big as the sea." Qin Mubai smiled to himself and said calmly.
"Well... the analysis is quite reasonable. With the emperor's character, it is indeed possible for him to act like this." Qin Shubao said slowly and thoughtfully, "But there is one thing that is invisible, and that is the knot in the heart. You want to win love with a knife. For robbing the emperor's woman, even if he doesn't blame you on the surface, it's hard to tell whether he's keeping a tab on you in his heart. Liang'er, there will be a sharp sword hanging over your head from now on, unless you do. Don’t make a mistake... otherwise, if you settle the front and back accounts at the same time, it will definitely bring disaster to the whole family!”
"Don't worry, kid. Don't worry, father. I have a clever plan to eliminate the emperor's worry." Qin Mubai said with a smile.
Qin Shubao turned his head, a pair of hawk-like old eyes cast a sharp light on Qin Mubai's face, and his expression changed slightly.
He thought to himself: This brat is obviously more scheming than a warrior like me who is a father... I have been on the battlefield for decades, and I have always tried to make things difficult. Only the way of being an official is inferior to that of others, otherwise the Qin family would not be like this. This boy is so shrewd, well-behaved and brave. From now on, will he be a monster that brings harm to the whole family, or will he be a wise man who will bring glory to our Qin family
"Then... wait!" Qin Shubao made the final decision. The cane hit the ground hard, as if he was about to charge into battle, using all his energy and energy.
The heavy shaking frightened the Qin Tong brothers and Liu's mother and daughter who were waiting outside the house.
Only Qin Mubai looked like he had the pearls of wisdom in hand, and he was leisurely and calm, like a man who had nothing to do. Qin Shubao felt a little annoyed when he saw his ghostly appearance. But I really couldn't think of a better strategy than "waiting", so I felt uneasy.
Nothing happened all night. The Qin family didn't go to Prince Wu's Mansion for any banquet, and Qin Mubai also stayed at home.
The next day, the door of the Qin family was called open and an angel arrived.
The emperor indeed sent someone to announce the decree!
As Qin Mubai expected, the emperor said nothing about the fact that he had taken a liking to Wu Meiniang and wanted to announce her entry into the palace. He greatly praised Qin Shubao's past achievements and praised Qin Mubai for being an outstanding young man and a talented person in the Wu family. Women are better suited to each other—Marriage to Qin Mubai and Wu Zhao!
The Qin family was full of joy, grateful for the emperor's kindness. The big stone weighing on everyone's hearts finally fell to the ground.
Qin Shubao was relieved and shook his head.
"I'm not as good as me!"
Father and son sat together again.
"Liang'er, things are as you expected. The emperor is indeed as big-hearted as the sea and his kindness is boundless." Qin Shubao said, "But there is one thing you must understand. Although the emperor has given you the woman Wu Zhao, it does not mean that he has given you the woman Wu Zhao. He has given, and you are able to receive.”
"Of course I can save the child." Qin Mubai said, "If I dare to marry a Wu girl at this time or announce my engagement with her in a big way, it will be no different from slapping the emperor in the face. Similarly, since the emperor is so generous It is a gift to show that your heart is open and your grace is infinite, so we will accept it generously, so that he can successfully step down and gain people's hearts and praises. Father, please write a note of thanks now, but don't do it. Mention the scaly claws related to the past, so as not to expose the emperor's scars."
"Okay!" Qin Shubao sighed heavily, "I'm old and useless. I can only be at the mercy of you brat!"
[Asking for red tickets! ]