Yunyi said indifferently: “Does it matter whether I want to or not?”
Sure enough, the princess still hadn’t forgotten Li Shimin. She seemed completely indifferent to this matter, while the other princesses, upon learning of this event, had already become consumed with jealousy.
The title of princess, though seemingly noble, actually made them less free than many ordinary women. Their marriages were completely beyond their own control—whoever His Majesty designated was who they would marry. If it was someone from the Central Plains, that would be acceptable, but otherwise… they could only suffer in silence.
Take Princess Yicheng, for example. In the nineteenth year of Kaihuang, she was married off to the Turkic lands. Who knows what customs they had there—after a father’s death, his son could actually inherit his father’s wives and concubines. It was truly incomprehensible.
Princess Yicheng was originally married to the Turkic Qimin Khan. It was said that after Qimin Khan died, the princess was forced to remarry Shibi Khan. Just thinking about it was pitiful.
This matter was known by many in the palace, so the greatest fear of the unmarried princesses was that one day they would be designated for a distant marriage alliance. If they encountered someone good, that would be fine, but otherwise they would truly have no tears left to cry.
Now that Xiao Shi had invited all the noble young men in Luoyang city, even the top ten from the imperial examinations, to the palace for Yunyi to choose from, how could the other princesses not be envious and jealous?
Jixiang said from the side: “Princess, Her Majesty the Empress is doing this for your own good.”
Yunyi said coldly: “I know, so the day after tomorrow I will follow Mother’s wishes and choose one person to be my prince consort.”
“Princess…” Ruyi wanted to persuade her further, but didn’t know what to say. Yes, the princess was already following Xiao Shi’s wishes in everything—what more could she advise? As for the bitterness in the princess’s heart, she could only resolve it herself. As an outsider, she really couldn’t help much.
Jixiang knelt down and said: “What this servant and Ruyi most want to see is for Your Highness to marry happily and live a blissful, carefree life from then on. I believe this is also what Her Majesty the Empress most wishes to see.”
Ruyi continued: “That’s right, the day after tomorrow you will surely meet a man who is a hundred times, a thousand times better than Young Master Li.”
Her hand that was about to place a piece paused at Jixiang’s words. Yunyi caressed the smooth chess piece between her fingertips and said softly: “A hundred times, a thousand times better… Ruyi, would you forgive someone who killed your closest relative?”
Ruyi was startled by her question: “Eh, what does Your Highness mean by this?”
The chess piece fell onto the intersecting grid. Yunyi shook her head and smiled: “Nothing, alright, let’s not talk about this anymore. Play chess with me properly.”
Ruyi nodded, and they took turns placing pieces on the chessboard barely a square inch in size, engaging in intense but smokeless battle. Yunyi’s chess moves and strategies today were both ruthless and cunning, leaving Ruyi struggling to keep up. Before placing each piece, she had to consider for a long time, but even so, Ruyi continued to retreat step by step, unable to reverse her declining position, only able to struggle on.
Jixiang watched from the side, occasionally glancing at Yunyi, her eyes filled with wordless worry. Having served Yunyi for many years, she knew her temperament well. Usually, when playing chess with others, she would always leave some room for maneuver, but only when her mood was extremely bad would she attack relentlessly, leaving no mercy whatsoever. It seemed the princess was very resistant to the matter of choosing a prince consort. Sigh, she hoped everything would go smoothly the day after tomorrow without any complications.
The lotus leaves reaching to the sky are endlessly jade-green, the lotus flowers reflecting the sun are differently red.
If you asked the people of Luoyang where the most beautiful place to admire lotus flowers was, the answers would vary, but if you asked someone who had been in the palace, there would be only one answer: the Nine Provinces Pool in the Purple Forbidden Palace.
Ten li of lotus flowers, ten li of jade-green leaves, boundless and endless, as if extending all the way to the distant horizon where water meets sky. Whether in summer afternoon thunderstorms or on clear days, that emerald green and brilliant red were so beautiful that one couldn’t look away.
On the seventeenth day of the sixth month, the weather was clear and the sky was azure as if freshly washed. The delicate lotus flowers stood gracefully under the summer sun, and from time to time the wind brought bursts of fragrance and fresh water vapor, bringing a touch of coolness to the summer day.
Dragonflies occasionally fluttered their transparent wings from afar, sometimes alighting on blooming lotus petals, sometimes on small lotus tips, and sometimes even flying onto the shoulders of palace maids rowing small boats to collect lotus roots. The palace maids would turn their heads and smile, creating a peaceful and beautiful scene like the most wonderful painting in the world, with nowhere else to compare.
This flower viewing event was set by the Nine Provinces Pool. Young gentlemen were guided by palace attendants to arrive at this place one by one, admiring the unique beauty of the Nine Provinces Pool in summer.
As time passed, more and more young gentlemen gathered here. Some acquaintances chatted together in groups. Looking at these young gentlemen, some were handsome, some gentle, some elegant—all quite remarkable.
Among these people, one person seemed particularly silent. Since arriving at the Nine Provinces Pool, he had been standing alone by the railing, gazing out without saying a word.
Someone approached him and said: “Brother Du, you’ve been looking for a long time. Aren’t you tired of it yet?”
The person called Brother Du smiled slightly, turned his head and said: “Such beautiful scenery—even if I looked at it for three days and three nights, I wouldn’t tire of it.”
That person nodded: “The Nine Provinces Pool is indeed so beautiful that one can’t look away, but Brother Du, don’t forget what we came to the palace for today.” Lowering his voice, he said: “I heard that although Princess Jinyang has a somewhat different temperament, she looks exactly like Empress Xiao—incomparably beautiful. If one could marry her, this lifetime would truly have no regrets.”
“Brother Pei should know that I’ve never thought of marrying a princess. This visit to the palace is only because His Majesty issued an edict, and I had no choice but to come.” This person was none other than Du Ruhui, who was devoted to Meixue. In the ninth year of Daye, due to his mother’s opposition and “Meixue’s” rejection, he had to leave Honghua Commandery with bitter resentment. Along the way, he made a living by writing letters for others and selling calligraphy and paintings. His days were extremely difficult, but no matter how difficult, he never thought of writing home to ask his family for money. When troubles come, they come all at once—when he was still a hundred li away from Luoyang, he caught a cold and fell ill in bed. Because he couldn’t pay the rent, the innkeeper threw him and his belongings out of the inn. It was at this moment that he met Pei Qiancheng, who was now speaking with him. Although this person’s words and actions were somewhat frivolous, he was extremely righteous. Unable to stand how the inn people treated Du Ruhui, he taught the inn people a lesson, then had someone take Du Ruhui to another inn to stay, and even paid for a physician to treat him. After about ten days of treatment, Du Ruhui gradually recovered. If he hadn’t met Pei Qiancheng, Du Ruhui wouldn’t have been able to make it to the imperial examinations in time. Later, he not only passed the imperial examinations but also achieved first place in the palace examination, and was appointed as Assistant Director of the Imperial Stud, a position of the seventh rank.
Although it was only the seventh rank, Du Ruhui was overjoyed. He could finally marry Meixue. That very night, he wrote a letter home, asking his mother to go to the Wu family to propose marriage and bring Meixue to the capital. In his letter, he wrote that if he wasn’t allowed to marry Meixue, he would immediately resign from office. He knew his mother had always hoped for him to pass the imperial examinations and bring honor to the Du family. For the sake of his successful career in the court, she would surely agree to this matter.