Chapter 119: The Auspicious Wedding Day
Chapter 119: The Auspicious Wedding Day
"Grand Preceptor..." Meng Qianqian hesitated, her words trailing off.
Lu Yuan shot her a chilly glance. "What? Are you trying to back out?"
"Why didn't the Grand Preceptor hide?" Meng Qianqian asked.
Lu Yuan replied indifferently, "Would a mere iron rod be enough to make me hide?"
Meng Qianqian pictured Lu Yuan panicking and screaming for help while trying to dodge the attack. That would indeed be a bit undignified.
"With your martial arts skills, how could a mere iron rod hurt you? And what about Yu Zichuan, Official Shangguan, and the Embroidered Guards?" Meng Qianqian fired a series of soul-searching questions.
Flipping through the marriage contract, Lu Yuan responded nonchalantly, "Even the best of us make mistakes sometimes."
"A horse may stumble, but it's rare for a whole group of horses to stumble together," Meng Qianqian muttered.
Lu Yuan's voice turned cold. "Say that again."
Meng Qianqian immediately backed down. "Grand Preceptor, your virtue shines brightly, and your generosity knows no bounds. Xiao Jiu admires you."
She hadn't expected her third uncle to go as far as writing a marriage contract.
With her parents no longer in this world, her third uncle indeed had the authority to arrange her marriage. Unless her grandfather and second uncle rushed over from Youzhou to stop it, in which case she would most likely be taken back to Youzhou.
With her vengeance unfinished, she couldn't leave the capital.
Lu Yuan spoke up. "If you're worried about your reputation suffering, you can refuse."
"What would happen to my uncle if I refuse?" Meng Qianqian asked.
A smile tugged at the corners of Lu Yuan's lips. "What do you think?"
In truth, she no longer cared about her reputation. She had no intention of falling in love with any man in this lifetime, and marrying Lu Yuan was merely a different way of risking her life for him.
Compared to marrying another man and living an ordinary life as a wife and mother, being by Lu Yuan's side gave her more freedom.
Moreover, what Cen Guan Shi said was true. As the Grand Preceptor's wife, she would have access to information that was currently out of her reach.
Besides, Lu Yuan was only using her to deal with Miaojiang; he didn't truly intend to become a fairy couple with her.
It was a transaction, each taking what they needed.
After leaving the Grand Preceptor's residence, Meng Qianqian returned to Fengshui Hutong.
Li Mama, Meng Bo, and Qi Shugong jumped to their feet in surprise.
Qi Shugong stammered, "Third Young Miss, did you get the marriage contract back?"
They had already learned about the contract from Meng Tianlan.
Meng Qianqian shook her head.
Meng Bo's expression turned complex. "Third Young Miss, are you really going to..."
"That Lu Yuan!" Li Mama cursed the Grand Preceptor silently several hundred times. As for Meng Tianlan, she had already scolded him to her heart's content, leaving him speechless.
"I'm going to teach that Meng Tianlan a lesson!" Qi Shugong couldn't hold back his anger and went to reprimand Meng Tianlan again.
Meng Qianqian said to Li Mama and Meng Bo, "Mama, Meng Bo, don't be sad for me. Marrying the Grand Preceptor isn't necessarily a bad thing."
Li Mama's eyes reddened. "How can you say that after the way he forced you?"
Meng Qianqian explained, "Mama, you must have heard what Miss Zhou said to me during her last visit. The Emperor wanted me to enter the palace and become his concubine."
Meng Bo was shocked. "Is that true?"
Meng Qianqian downplayed the situation. "The Emperor got lost and stayed here for a night. The next day, his birth mother sent people to deliver rewards. That's when I should have been more alert."
Hearing this, Meng Bo thought that the Emperor had taken a fancy to their young miss because of her beauty.
Meng Qianqian continued, her voice gentle towards the secretly weeping Li Mama, "Compared to entering the palace, a place where people are eaten and their bones spat out, I'd rather marry into the Grand Preceptor's residence. With Baoshou's favor, my life in the Grand Preceptor's residence won't be too bad.
Upon thinking of Baoshu, Li Mama felt slightly more at ease. "That child is indeed quite compatible with our young miss. Oh well, marrying the Grand Marshal at least means being his primary wife. Entering the palace would mean having the Empress above her, not to mention His Majesty's birth mother isn't an easy person to get along with. By the way, I've never heard anyone mention the Grand Marshal's parents. Are there any other family members in his household?"
This question left Meng Qianqian stumped.
She only knew that his mother was in Miaojiang, but he had never mentioned anything about his father or other family members.
Not mentioning them didn't mean they didn't exist.
However, judging from Lu Lingxiao's attitude towards Miaojiang, he probably intended to act first and report later.
Uncle Meng glanced at Meng Qianqian and said to Li Mama, "Li Mama, how can a young lady like her inquire about such things? Tomorrow, I'll go to the Grand Marshal's residence with Seventh Uncle and Third Master."
Li Mama angrily said, "What are you going to do there? It's the woman's family that should visit the man's family. They should be the ones coming here!"
Uncle Meng thought to himself, 'That's the Grand Marshal's residence we're talking about. Would they really take the initiative to come here?' In reality, Uncle Meng had no idea just how much influence the Grand Marshal's residence held. When Lord Lu went to Youzhou to propose marriage, he didn't bring much in terms of betrothal gifts, yet not a single person dared to ridicule him or the Meng family because he was an official in the capital.
Whoever could tie up Lu Lingxiao and beat him with ninety military canes must be an extremely high-ranking official!
What was even more jaw-dropping was that before dawn the next day, Cen Guanshi personally arrived at their door.
"I should have come yesterday, but the betrothal gift list wasn't finalized yet. I rushed through the night to prepare it, and it's mostly done now. Clan Uncle and Third Master, please take a look. If there's anything inappropriate, I'll change it immediately."
Seventh Uncle and Third Master Meng stared at the betrothal gift list, which was so long that it covered the entire table, and they were instantly stunned.
Li Mama had originally wanted to scold them, but suddenly, the words caught in her throat.
The Grand Marshal's residence...
Lu Lingxiao sat in his study, perusing the marriage contract while Baoshu crawled around on the floor.
Today, she wasn't the chubby, grumpy Baoshu; she was the happy Baoshu, rolling around on the floor in delight, crawling a few steps, rolling over, and doing somersaults—she was having the time of her life! Just as the Chief Astronomer entered the study, Baoshu tumbled right to his feet, upside down with all four limbs in the air, looking up at him.
The Chief Astronomer stared at his foot, which had accidentally kicked Baoshu, and froze in place, tense with anxiety.
Assuming that this most difficult-to-please little ancestor of the entire capital was about to throw a tantrum, he never expected that Baoshu would simply do another somersault and crawl away.
The Chief Astronomer secretly breathed a sigh of relief.
He bowed to Lu Lingxiao and said, "Greetings, Grand Marshal. May I ask why you have summoned me?"
Lu Lingxiao asked, "Are there any auspicious days coming up?"
The Chief Astronomer replied, "Auspicious days depend on the occasion."
"For a wedding," Lu Lingxiao clarified.
With the Emperor about to marry the Yao family's eldest daughter as his Empress, everyone was aware of it, and the Chief Astronomer had just finished selecting the auspicious date. He had planned to report it to the imperial court tomorrow.
Since Lu Lingxiao had asked, there was no harm in telling him first.
"The sixteenth of next month, the ninth of June, August..."
Lu Lingxiao closed the marriage contract. "The sixteenth of next month."
The Chief Astronomer smiled. "Grand Marshal, you have excellent taste. Indeed, the sixteenth of next month is the most auspicious day. If the Emperor and Empress's wedding is held on this day, it will surely bring blessings for generations to come, a lifelong harmony, and an everlasting union."
The only issue was that it was rather rushed, but Consort Li had been planning this for a long time, so she likely had everything prepared already.
Lu Lingxiao coldly snorted. "Who said it was for the Emperor and Empress?"
The Chief Astronomer was taken aback. "Then, for whom was this auspicious wedding day chosen?"
Lu Lingxiao raised an eyebrow and placed the marriage contract on the table. "For me."
Chief Astronomer: "...
Who's showing off here? I won't say it.
Double monthly tickets have started. If you have monthly tickets, dear readers, go ahead and cast your votes!
(End of Chapter)
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