On the night of Liu Yuzhuang's visit, when Yong Ruo and Feng Liao were lying on the bed, they finally couldn't help asking: "What are your plans for the emperor's marriage proposal?"
Xiu Nu has entered the palace for more than 20 days, and the one-month period is about to expire. She felt that the sword of Damocles on her head was about to pierce her scalp, and she couldn't force herself to remain calm.
"You finally asked?" Feng Liao looked at her with bright eyes, "I thought you never asked!"
Yong Ruo smiled bitterly, leaned on the bed, and buried his head in his shoulder: "I also thought about not asking, and leaving everything to you. But now, I really can't help it, I still want to Just ask..."
Feng Liao stretched out her hand, rubbed the back of her head, and then wrapped her arms around her shoulders, making her stick closer to him.
"First of all, the emperor has promised that I will choose my own wife. Therefore, as long as I pick and choose one by one among this batch of beautiful girls who are qualified to be crowned concubines, the matter of establishing a crowned concubine can be discussed later." There was a very gentle smile on his face.
Yong Ruo hummed lightly: "But if you don't make a crown princess this time, the emperor will definitely point you to a few concubines, and you... how will you deal with it?"
She thought: I really can't bear to compete with a group of women for men! If you really have another woman, I won't miss you anymore...
Thinking that maybe in the near future, she would have to wave the sword of wisdom to cut off the thread of love, and bid farewell to such a beautiful moment, her emotions quickly fell to the bottom.
A taste called despair gnawed at her heart.
There seemed to be a dull and dull pain in her heart, and her eyes immediately became sour. A wave of moisture quickly permeated from her heart, condensing into little tears in her eye sockets.
Feng Liao, how long can I have you? She wept silently in her heart.
Feng Liao was silent for a while, and said slowly: "I will delay for a while, and then... I will use some other means."
"What means?"
Feng Liao held her arm tightly, and comforted her softly: "I won't tell you about this, lest you feel uneasy."
Yong Ruo bit her lips lightly, and said with some hesitation: "If I keep asking, will you feel bored?"
Feng Liao chuckled lightly: "No. I will be very happy whether you ask or not."
"Why?"
"If you don't ask, it means you trust me completely; if you ask, it means you care about this matter. Therefore, I will feel very happy."
After hearing this, Yong Ruo smiled inexplicably, and his irritability and depression were greatly soothed.
She thought: He thinks of the best in everything like this, which is really a rare good quality between couples, and can reduce many conflicts between each other.
"Then I won't ask any more!" She said with a smile, seeming to regain her sense of solidity.
————
The one-month deadline is coming soon. The sixth day of March is the final day of the draft.
Because of the promise to let Feng Liao choose his wife, the emperor specially notified Feng Liao to participate in the final selection. If Yong Ruo was not invited to "observe the ceremony", she wished for it.
The day before the final election, Feng Liao received two pamphlets, which recorded the words and deeds of all the beautiful girls in Yuxiu Palace in the past month.
These two booklets, one was sent by the female officer in charge of Yuxiu Palace, which is the official file of this draft; The records are sorted out, which can be regarded as Feng Liao's personal reference materials.
Feng Liao took Yong Ruo and looked at the two booklets together, and found a few sharp-edged people.
"This Zhou Mingrou is really amazing!" Feng Liao shook her head endlessly, "Befriending An Shuqi while pushing out Liu Yuzhuang, and by the way suppressing several other outstanding girls, you really can't take a moment off.
"It's just that she hugged her thigh too early. She is so sure: Is An Shuqi definitely the princess?"
This is the record in Feng Liao's personal information, the official information provided by Yuxiu Palace is relatively brief and does not contain these contents.
"There is also this Xu Wan'er, who is really impressive." Feng Liao looked at the personal reference materials in her hand, and continued to complain, "On the surface, she is gentle and virtuous, and she speaks softly. But how dare she Talking bad about you behind your back! What a character! The daughter of Xu Wei, the magistrate of Tangzhou, I remember..."
Yong Ruo smiled and said nothing.
Feng Liao continued to complain: "My distant cousin An Shuqi is not easy! After living in Yuxiu Palace for a month, there are only a dozen or so sycophants and followers around her, and Liu Yuzhuang is squeezed out by them. I can't go on. If you want to talk about the ability to form a party, I'm afraid no one can match this cousin An."
He took a look at the official files sent by Yuxiu Palace, and said with a smile: "It's full of good things about her! It seems that my aunt is quite influential and prestigious in the palace!"
The aunt he was talking about was An Shuqi's maternal grandmother—Princess Huaiqing.
Yong Ruo read the two booklets together with him, and said with a smile: "You are busy studying government affairs with the emperor all day long, and you still have time to deploy your own people in Yuxiu Palace, it really surprises me."
Feng Liao smiled: "It didn't take much effort! I just picked a few smart ones and gave orders quietly after the Yuxiu Palace servants were settled.
"Speaking of which, my status as the prince is still somewhat useful. They did not reject me, and they completed this matter very actively."
Yong Ruo shook his head and laughed: That's right! As long as the prince is not deposed, he is the future emperor. Who would dare to refuse the future emperor's confession? Who dares to be perfunctory
Even without Feng Liao taking the initiative to order, someone would do everything possible to please him.
The final election will not be held in Yuxiu Palace, but in the Queen's Kunde Palace.
On that day, Emperor Chengtai sat at the main seat in the main hall of Kunde Palace, Empress Wei and Feng Liao sat on both sides of him, and several high-ranking concubines sat on the side to watch the fun.
The show girls who should be selected are still the same as the re-selection, in groups of five, they enter the hall one by one to salute and pay their respects.
After watching the three groups of beautiful girls, Feng Liao remained silent, and Emperor Chengtai couldn't help asking him: "What do you think... these beautiful girls are qualified?"
Feng Liao bowed slightly to Emperor Chengtai: "Father, I want to read everything before making a judgment."
Emperor Chengtai smiled slightly: "Alright."
He no longer asked Feng Liao anything, and only occasionally exchanged a few words with the queen, asking about a certain beautiful girl, or commenting on a certain person's appearance.
After all the show girls had finished watching and everyone who was irrelevant withdrew, Emperor Chengtai asked Feng Liao, "Is there any show girl that caught your eye?"
Feng Liao took a light breath, and said to Emperor Chengtai with a very respectful attitude: "I feel that these beautiful girls are lacking in qualifications, and none of them can catch my eyes."
"not a single one?"
Feng Liao said with certainty: "Not a single one."
"Is your vision too high?"
Feng Liao smiled and said: "My son is the crown prince appointed by my father, so it's only natural that I have high vision. The choice of the crown princess is related to the peace of my son's house and the well-being of my heirs. How can I be careless?"
Emperor Chengtai felt amused when he saw his eloquence. Then he asked: "Then what kind of woman do you think is worthy of being a princess?"
"My father, the present princess is the future empress. If you don't have the character, bearing, talent, heart, and vision of the empress, how can you take on this great responsibility?"
Emperor Chengtai glanced at Empress Wei with a smile, and seeing Empress Wei smiling, he scolded Feng Liao with a smile: "You really know how to flatter!"
Feng Liao said without changing her face: "My son's words are from the bottom of his heart, not flattery."
"Your mother's magnanimity, vision and talent have also been gradually honed day by day. When she was young, she was not as hot as she is now. If you look for a wife according to your mother's standards, I am afraid that you will only be able to fight for a lifetime." Bachelor."
"My son would rather be a bachelor all his life than marry an unqualified woman!"
Feng Liao categorically stated her attitude, then slowed down her tone: "As the saying goes: a good wife and husband are less likely to cause harm. The future mother of the country should choose the best from the best. Otherwise, it will not only harm my family, but also my family." It will harm the whole world and future generations."
Emperor Chengtai hooked the corner of his mouth: "Isn't it too alarmist?"
"Where is the scaremongering? Father, please think about it: During the reign of the first emperor, the turmoil of seizing the heirloom lasted for 20 to 30 years and caused countless people to confiscate their families and exterminate their families. Wasn't the starting point of the initial conflict a few women in the harem who were jealous?" ?”
Emperor Chengtai thought about all the things that happened back then, but he was speechless.
Feng Liao also said: "In this dynasty, the princes, grandchildren, and clansmen are close to each other. Marriages are not blind marriages like the folks, who rely on the words of matchmakers to achieve marriage. The reason why the emperor Tai`zu set up the rules of the draft is not because Do you hope that future generations can marry a daughter-in-law who has both ability and political integrity?"
Emperor Chengtai stroked his beard, and looked at Feng Liao sharply: "If it's according to what you said, you won't marry a wife this year?"
Feng Liao saluted him solemnly, and said very sincerely: "Father, my son has not yet reached the crown. If there is no suitable candidate, there is no need to hurry to establish a crown princess. Maybe there will be a suitable candidate in the next draft." ? Husband and wife have to get along for a lifetime, if they don't get along, they will have a lifetime of unrest."
Cheng Tai fell silent.
Feng Liao looked at Empress Wei, and said: "Besides, I have always envied the love between father and queen, mother and empress, and I also hope that when I marry a wife... I would rather be short than excessive, so as not to marry the wrong person and regret for the rest of my life."
Emperor Chengtai looked at Feng Liao, and said with a half-smile, "Is it true that I can't see you, you procrastinating formula?"
"Everything my son said comes from the bottom of my heart, and I didn't delay it on purpose."
"Then tell me: what's wrong with these show girls this year? If it's reasonable, I will allow you not to choose the princess among them."
"There are so many beautiful women, where do we start?"
"Let's talk about your Liu family cousin first! What do you think of her?" Emperor Chengtai asked casually.
Feng Liao said solemnly: "Liu's cousin is smart, but she didn't use it where she should be. A few days ago, she even went to the East Palace to say nothing, which made my son very angry.
"I feel that the cousin of the Liu family is not suitable for marrying into the royal family. The emperor still put her down as a sign, and it is better for her family to hire her to marry herself, so as to avoid future complaints."
Emperor Chengtai smiled and said, "Why did she say nothing? She asked you to complain to me personally!"
"The little girl's muddled thoughts and muddled words are hard to be elegant."
Emperor Chengtai then changed the topic: "What about An Shuqi? She looks good, and her family background is even more impeccable. Judging from the records of Yuxiu Palace, there is nothing wrong with it. Do you even look at her? Not up?"
"Leaving aside the question of whether you like it or not, just because she is the daughter of my aunt, I feel that she is not suitable to be a princess."
"Why? Isn't it good to kiss more and more?"
Feng Liao smiled wryly: "Of course it's not good. I heard that my aunt loves this granddaughter very much. In order to ensure that her cousin was elected this time, her old man sent many people to the palace.
"If I marry Cousin An, and there is a little quarrel between the husband and wife, I am afraid that my aunt will come to seek justice for my granddaughter? At that time, I am afraid that this junior, Erchen, will not be able to bear it! Ordinary people will be fine if their husbands are weak. , the crown prince of a country is also weak, this is a big problem."
Emperor Chengtai thought to himself: Are you afraid that An Shuqi will embarrass your lovely son by relying on his family background
It's hard for you to explain your reason so high-soundingly, but you haven't brought out your cuteness in a single word.
He was a little proud in his heart: It seems that his training for the past year has been quite effective!
Feng Liao in the past was not as eloquent as she is now.