"Princess, this is..."
"It hurts, oooooo..."
Before Xu Qinglin could finish his words, he looked up and saw his fourth princess, who started crying in grievance.
It makes people feel at a loss.
I looked around, but there were no servants.
Xu Qinglin frowned, thought for a long time and finally squatted down.
"How about I carry the princess to the Imperial Hospital? The princess's feet are badly swollen, and she must see a doctor as soon as possible."
The fourth princess looked at him aggrievedly.
She clearly had a pair of phoenix eyes, yet they were as charming as a fox. Now that they were filled with tears, it was even more heart-wrenching.
"No, it's ugly to carry me on your back. Carry me."
After he finished speaking, he extended his hand.
Of course the Fourth Princess was doing this on purpose.
She is not the kind of person who is timid. If she likes someone, she will fight for it.
Usually Xu Qinglin behaves like a well-behaved gentleman, and it's rare to get close to him.
Xu Qinglin was indeed troubled by her request.
But before she could say no, she saw the fourth princess burst into tears.
The little guy looked as if his feet would hurt and fall off if he delayed any longer.
"Princess, I am sorry."
Xu Qinglin bowed, took off his outer robe, wrapped the fourth princess in it, and picked her up horizontally.
With a layer of cloth between us, it can't be considered skin-to-skin contact.
Even so, feeling the softness in his arms, Xu Qinglin couldn't help but blush for the first time.
Although the fourth princess was brave, she was a girl after all, and her face also blushed.
In particular, she didn't know what to do with her hands.
It feels restrictive when folded in front of the chest, and even more uncomfortable when placed at the side.
After thinking it over again and again, she bit her lip slightly, then plucked up the courage to put her hand on Xu Qinglin's shoulder.
From such a distance, it looked as if the Fourth Princess was hugging Xu Qinglin's neck and leaning in his arms.
For a moment, Xu Qinglin's body became even stiffer.
After sending the person to the Imperial Hospital, he did not dare to stay for a moment and ran away without looking back.
The calm and composed young master of the Xu family had never fled in such a panic.
For several days, the image of the Fourth Princess was all in his mind and he couldn't get rid of it.
The fourth princess was the same, excited and shy.
Fortunately, she sprained her ankle and needed to rest for a month, so she avoided the meeting.
However, during the period of recuperation, Xu Qinglin was the only one who did not send anything, which made the Fourth Princess very unhappy.
When he heard that the Xu family was choosing a wife for him, he became even angrier.
My foot would take another five or six days to fully heal, so I couldn't help but sneak out.
On his way out of the palace after court session, Xu Qinglin was blocked by the Fourth Princess at Xuanwu Gate.
"I heard that the An family girl is both talented and beautiful, and she is a perfect match for you. When you two get married, don't forget to send me an invitation. I will definitely go to your house to drink two glasses of wedding wine!"
Looking at the angry girl in front of him, Xu Qinglin felt short of breath and a little at a loss.
After all, after what happened last time, he didn't know how to face the Fourth Princess, and he was so confused that he forgot to visit the patient and give her gifts.
His mind was in a mess at the moment, so he could only bow awkwardly.
"Thank you, Princess. However, the matter has not been finalized yet. If there is any clue, I will not forget to invite you."
This is the confusion of the authorities.
Just these few words made the fourth princess' eyes red with anger.
"Xu Qinglin, you are such a good person. Just go and marry someone else. I have reached the age for marriage. Tomorrow I will report to my father, the emperor, and my mother to choose a prince consort. You think I am blind and have liked you for so many years in vain!"
After he finished speaking, he got into the sedan chair and urged the servants to leave quickly.
Xu Qinglin was standing there, still not coming back to his senses, his mind full of the girl's words "I like you".
When I finally came to my senses and tried to chase after him, there was no sign of him.
Even though he had a lot of ideas in his mind, he had to hold them back for the time being and leave the palace first.
At that time, the fourth princess was also angry and did what she said. She went to find Ye Jun and said that she wanted to choose a prince consort.
The Crown Prince and the Sixth Prince happened to be there as well, and they heard everything.
"Fourth brother's coming-of-age ceremony has just ended, and mother and father are busy selecting a princess for him. Please stop making a fuss. Besides, it's embarrassing for a girl to talk about selecting a prince consort all the time." said the Sixth Prince.
"No, I want to choose a prince consort. Fourth brother wants to get married, Xu Qinglin wants to get married, and I am old enough. Why can't I get married?" The fourth princess was furious.
Seeing his daughter like this, Ye Jun had a rough idea in his mind.
She gave the prince a wink, and the latter understood. The mother and son worked together to coax the person back.
"I don't have time to worry about Yuan'er's affairs anymore. I'll leave it to you." Ye Jun raised his hand and rubbed his forehead.
The prince smiled and cupped his hands, "Don't worry, mother. I will definitely get it done."
After saying this, she carried the Sixth Prince out of Zhaochun Palace.
In just half a day, the whole story was clear.
In the evening, the prince called Xu Qinglin to his house for a drink, looking very sad.
"I don't know what's wrong with Yuan'er, but today she's making a fuss about choosing a prince consort. I guess she's grown up and has someone she likes. It's true that girls can't be kept when they grow up."
Xu Qinglin paused, "What do the Queen and the Emperor say?"
"What else can I say? My father and my mother have always loved her, so how could they not agree? My father will probably issue an edict to select a prince consort tomorrow. I heard that my father already has a few candidates in mind, so I guess he will decide soon." The prince said casually.
Seeing Xu Qinglin distracted, I had an idea in my mind.
Then he deliberately said, "Why don't you give it a try? Yuan'er has liked you since she was a child, and she called you Brother Qinglin affectionately."
"But... I have discussed marriage before." Xu Qinglin felt depressed.
The prince glanced at him unceremoniously and said, "My mother once discussed marriage. When did you become so pedantic?"
Xu Qinglin wanted to refute that this was not being pedantic, but because he liked her, so he was being extra cautious, but in the end he didn't say it out loud.
The next day, after court was dismissed, Xu Qinglin said he had something important to report, and followed Ning Chen to the imperial study alone.
"What's the matter? Tell me." Ning Chen waved his hand and sat down with the teacup.
Xu Qinglin took a deep breath, lifted his robe and knelt down, "Your Majesty, I would like to marry the Fourth Princess."
"puff-"
Ning Chen spat out a mouthful of hot tea and choked and coughed.
Yuan Jiu was about to go forward to wipe it, but was stopped by Ning Chen, who just stared at the person kneeling in front of him.
"What did you say?"
"I would like to marry the fourth princess!"
This time, Xu Qinglin's voice was louder and more determined.
Ning Chen heard every word carefully and didn't know how to respond for a moment.
After a long while, he said, "Qinglin, you are a good child, but Yuan'er is still young. I want to keep her for a few more years. You have already delayed for so long..."
"I am willing to wait for the princess as long as the emperor agrees." Xu Qinglin said firmly.
Ning Chen was overwhelmed and could only calm him down first.
"I still need to discuss this matter with the Queen. You go back first. I'll tell you when I've thought it over."
Xu Qinglin looked up at Ning Chen, kowtowed one last time, and then stood up and left.
In the afternoon, Ning Chen told this matter in Zhaochun Palace.
"This child is quite good. I watched him grow up. He has been engaged before, and everyone in Kyoto knows about it. If Yuan'er marries him, what if someone gossips about him..."
"Ning Chen, have you ever disliked me like this?" Ye Jun suddenly stared at him.
This look made Ning Chen short of breath.
Can he admit it? Definitely not!
So he immediately shook his head, "How could that be? Don't you know how I feel about you?"
Ye Jun didn't believe his lies, but she didn't expose him either.
He just said calmly, "You are an experienced person, why bother to dwell on this point? Yuan'er likes the boy from the Xu family, so you can do whatever you want."
Ning Chen was extremely reluctant to see his little daughter being taken away by the wolf cub, but his daughter was grown up now and he couldn't ignore the child's feelings.
What else could I do? I had to accept it.
Finally, after waiting in anxiety for more than ten days, Xu Qinglin finally received the imperial decree granting marriage.
From then on, he was going to marry the girl whom he had watched grow up.
But the Queen had said that she wanted to keep her daughter until she was seventeen years old before letting her marry, so he had to wait another two years.
Ye Jun was afraid that Xu Qinglin would think she was deliberately making things difficult for him, so she explained it secretly.
The princess is still young and has not fully grown yet. Getting married at this time will definitely not be good for her health.
Xu Qinglin naturally didn't mind this. He had already waited for ten years, so why should he be afraid of the next two years
The fourth princess was even more embarrassed, especially when she heard that it was Xu Qinglin who took the initiative to propose to her. She now understood the intentions of both parties.
Two years later, the fourth princess got married, and the 25-year-old young master of the Xu family finally got the beauty.
On the wedding night, under the veil, the fourth princess had a rosy face, like a drunken crabapple.
Facing the man's fiery gaze, she timidly called out, "Brother Qinglin..."
"It's time to call me husband now."
Xu Qinglin smiled lightly, pulled the person into his arms, and pulled off the red curtain.
In the days after marriage, the fourth princess lived an even more pampered life than when she was still at home.
Xu Qinglin was reluctant to let the girl he had married with great difficulty suffer any grievance.
So much so that after the fourth princess gave birth to the eldest son, she was still as pretty as a young girl.
This is an effect that cannot be achieved by cosmetics and makeup. It is because life is comfortable and relaxed, without any worries.
One year, the fourth princess was pregnant with her second child and she wanted to eat the pear blossom yogurt from Fuyuanlou in the middle of the night.
It was still winter, and Xu Qinglin ignored the heavy snow and rode to Fuyuanlou in person. He spent ten times the price and asked the chef to get up in the middle of the night to make two servings.
Another time, he drew a pattern himself and asked someone to make jewelry according to it, just because the fourth princess accidentally complained that she couldn't buy something she liked.
There are so many things like this that apart from the emperor and empress Ning Chen and Ye Jun, the fourth princess and her husband were the only ones who were regarded as a couple.
Ever since Xu Qinglin married the Fourth Princess, he had been thinking about her all his life. Until his death, he always told his children to take good care of the Fourth Princess.
When he was dying, the fourth princess cried so hard that she couldn't breathe.
Xu Qinglin held the princess's hand and smiled, "I'll go explore the way first, you wait well, I will come back to pick you up when the time comes."
The fourth princess nodded with tears in her eyes and watched her beloved slowly close his eyes.
Many years later, the fourth princess passed away. In a daze, she actually saw the handsome young man in blue waving at her.
He really came to pick her up in person.
The fourth princess, who died of old age, closed her eyes with a smile.