King Xiang of the Red Chamber

Chapter 391 The final selection of the princess

"The royal family does not marry nobles, you are breaking the rules!" Zhu Xianming looked serious.

Obviously, he was very repelled by his niece being a princess.

"The rules are not made by humans!"

After saying this, Yang Qingyin added: "Besides... the Yang family is far away from the capital and does not engage in military affairs. What kind of honor is it?"

"Rules are rules!" Zhu Xianming did not intend to give in.

Yang Qingyin did not give in and continued: "Old Thirteen is not going to be the emperor, so why should he be bound by these rules!"

"you……"

Zhu Xianming finally saw that the queen had no intention of being reasonable.

If it were anyone else, he would have been thrown into death row long ago, but it was different for his first wife after all.

So Zhu Xianming decided to persuade her from another angle and heard him say: "I know something about that girl, but I'm afraid she is a good match for Lao Shisan!"

"Are you trying to say that she is dull?" Yang Qingyin responded quickly.

Although Zhu Xianming did not speak, he acquiesced to this.

"This girl has grown a lot in recent months, but she was just worried about what happened in the past, so she didn't find out!"

Seeing that Zhu Xianming wanted to speak, Yang Qingyin spoke first: "This matter has been settled. The marriages of the fourth and sixth children have been decided by you, so don't interfere with the thirteenth brother!"

"Do you know that the king is the guide for the ministers, the husband is the guide for the wife, and the father is the guide for the son?" Zhu Xianming asked with a cold face.

"Then do you still remember the reason for the arrow wound on my body?"

Anger appeared on his face, Yang Qingyin stood up and said: "You said this to me ten years ago, and I was blind before I blocked an arrow for you. The surname is Zhu..."

Seeing that his wife was about to get angry, Zhu Xianming quickly stood up and pulled her to sit down. With a smile on his face, he said: "Look at you, you will fall out whenever you want... Let's discuss everything!"

"According to the rules, who is your favorite concubine?" Zhu Xianming took the initiative to change the topic, which was equivalent to approving the queen's arrangement.

"Concubine...that girl from the Xue family is pretty good!"

"Xue Zhen's daughter?" Zhu Xianming asked tentatively.

"Who else could it be!"

"Xue Zhen died young, and this girl lost her father. She is not a blessed person!"

Having said this, Zhu Xianming stood up directly, turned his back to Yang Qingyin and said, "Who are you choosing!"

In order to help the prince hold Lao Shisan back, the queen must let Baochai enter the gate of Prince Xiang's Mansion.

"Xue Zhen died young... You know better than me why Xue Zhen died young!"

"Look, how many of those who made money for you didn't grow old and die in their prime?"

"Besides, Xia Mingdao of the Osmanthus Xia family died before he was forty, Lin Ruhai, the inspector of salt inspection in Jinling, is half dead now, and..."

When Zhu Xianming heard that the queen talked endlessly, he felt that he could not save his face.

"Okay... are you done yet?" Zhu Xianming turned his head, his expression becoming increasingly ugly.

He thought he could scare the queen, but seeing his wife's firm eyes, he finally had no choice but to give in.

After all, she was just a side concubine. Compared with letting the daughter of an honorary noble become the main concubine, it was actually not a big deal, so Zhu Xianming chose to pinch his nose and admit it.

While the couple was in a stalemate, a report came from outside: "Ms. Qi, His Royal Highness Prince Xiang has arrived!"

"Let him in!" Yang Qingyin responded.

She called Zhu Jinghong over to explain to her son first and let him know what to choose tomorrow. This was also a routine operation for choosing the crown prince and princess.

Soon Zhu Jinghong entered the palace, and when he saw that the old man was there, his high-spirited aura instantly faded, and he became respectful and calm.

"The final selection of the princess will be held tomorrow afternoon. I called you here today to tell you who should give the Ruyi and the sachet to!"

"Yeah!" Zhu Jinghong replied.

"I have discussed with your father that Ting Yatou will be your princess and Bao Yatou will be your concubine..."

Did you discuss it with yourself?Zhu Xianming felt uncomfortable when he heard this and turned his head to the side in anger.

"Ok!"

Zhu Jinghong responded, only saying that he heard it. Whether he agreed or not was another matter.

"Tomorrow you can just pass Ruyi to Ting Yatou and the sachet to Bao Yatou!"

"Ok!"

"Hmm... you kid can't speak?" Zhu Xianming couldn't help scolding him.

Upon hearing this, Yang Qingyin glared at the emperor: "I said you were angry at me, but what's the point of venting your anger on a child?"

The two people quarreled, which really surprised Zhu Jinghong, but he also asked him to take it out.

The emperor and empress stopped without arguing for a few words, because the Qianqing Palace reported that Dusi Annan had handed over urgent military information.

So Zhu Xianming had no choice but to leave, and Zhu Jinghong had lunch in Kunning Palace before leaving. During the meal, senior wives arrived one after another. They came to participate in the second re-election in the afternoon.

Tomorrow is the final selection. Today, the final two will be selected from thirty women in Kunning Palace.

Zhu Jinghong wanted to watch, but was driven away by the queen because of the incompatibility of etiquette.

At the first quarter of noon (12 o'clock), Baochai and others came to Kunning Palace from Shangyi Bureau wearing the same palace clothes.

In the eyes of the high-ranking ladies, these thirty women are already exceptionally outstanding in terms of appearance and demeanor.

In the corridor of the main hall, Yuan Chun stood on the queen's side, looking at Baochai in the first row below with a complicated expression.

She and Baochai were cousins. It would be a good thing for her if Baochai was chosen, but because of Chen Zhi's interference, the nature of the matter changed.

So now, she hopes that Baochai will be chosen, but she doesn't really hope that she can be chosen.

Only Chen Zhi, standing on the other side, hoped that Baochai could pass today's test and looked forward to a big show tomorrow.

As for the high-ranking wives of first rank and above present, they were just here to watch the fun, and whoever they chose had little to do with them.

Of the thirty women, ten will be selected first. This step is the responsibility of the Shangyi Bureau and will be determined based on their performance during the 20 days of training.

So after the Queen announced the decree, Shangyi Bureau directly gave the score.

So-and-so is "above", so-and-so is "middle", so-and-so is "below"...

A few minutes later, Shangyi Bureau announced the promotion list, and the remaining 20 people were automatically eliminated and left.

To Baochai's surprise, Cui Xiuqing was among the final ten, and she could see that she was also surprised.

And next, it was the queen's turn to appoint...

Even though she knew she could be the winner, Baochai couldn't help but feel nervous at this moment. Yang Jingting was the only one who could truly be called calm.

Although the candidates have been decided, the queen still brought the records of Shangyi Bureau and carefully looked through each person's performance.

About ten minutes later, the queen picked up her ink pen and placed the list of ten winners in front of her.

Behind her, Yuan Chun and Chen Zhi both stared at the pen in her hand, because it was time to make a circle next.

The queen's pen moved, but she waved around the list without any intention of writing, as if she was really thinking about a decision.

This scene made Yang Jingting uneasy, fearing that the situation would develop in an unfavorable direction.

The other women, including Cui Xiuqing, are all full of expectations and eager for good luck to come to them.

Princess Xiang is a top-notch married woman. She is one of the top group of married women outside the imperial city. Together with Princess Rui, there are only two of them.

With such a distinguished position, how can these women of ordinary backgrounds not look forward to it like looking at the clouds during a severe drought.

It can be said that the queen's turning pen is playing with people's hearts and destiny.

However, most of the time, accidents are unlikely to happen, and Yang Jingting is still the first to be selected.

A few breaths later, Baochai's name was also included in the circle, and today's selection was over.

The female officer of Shangyi Bureau copied the names on the spot, then announced the results of today's re-election, and also announced the time of tomorrow's final election. "Sister Bao, I really envy you and wish you a good tomorrow!"

On the way back, Cui Xiuqing sent his blessings to Baochai.

Although she has lost the election, she is not as disappointed as others and is obviously full of expectations for her new life in North Korea.

Normally, this is indeed the case. Not to mention that her family has a family business in North Korea. Just because her father was a member of the Ming Dynasty, he was also an extraordinary figure when he went to North Korea.

After all, North Korea also studied the Four Books and Five Classics, and selected talents to govern the country through imperial examinations. The value of the imperial examinations in the Ming Dynasty was undoubtedly much higher than that in North Korea.

Therefore, many students who have achieved fame in North Korea will choose to take the exam again in Ming Dynasty.

The current left prime minister of North Korea was a Jinshi in North Korea first, then refused to serve as an official and came to the Ming Dynasty to take the exam, and won the Jinshi in the third year of Taiping (the reign of Emperor Taishang).

Generally speaking, because the Ming Dynasty's fame is more valuable, even if the Cui family is just a member, they can live a good life in North Korea.

"As luck would have it, what are your plans next?" Baochai asked.

Cui Xiuqing replied: "Of course I'm going home. Maybe my family will move out in the next few months!"

"It's a pity that I can't send it to you!"

The two of them chatted all the way and rushed straight to the Shangyi Bureau. The unsuccessful candidates will be sent back to their hometowns in the next two days, so they don't have much time together.

Let's say that in Prince Xiang's palace, Zhu Jinghong was fishing in the garden of the palace. Next to him, Ke Qing was reading a book, and Yinglian was sitting beside him peeling melon seeds.

As for the accompanying maids and eunuchs, they stood far outside the pavilion.

"My lord, it's moving... it's moving!" Yinglian warned.

Zhu Jinghong was thinking about choosing a concubine, and when he heard the reminder, he subconsciously had a hunch, and sure enough, he caught a fish.

Seeing the fish take the bait, Zhu Jinghong felt much better.

On the side, Keqing put down the book and said with a smile: "Your Majesty, you have caught it!"

"It's a pity that the fish is too small, otherwise we would have grilled fish tonight!"

After taking off the fishhook, Zhu Jinghong threw the fish back into the pond. Everyone was not surprised by this.

Just when Zhu Jinghong was about to say a few more words, Yinglian reminded him: "Your Majesty, Deng An is here!"

The next moment, Deng An rushed over, and after saluting, he reported: "Your Majesty... today the person selected for the princess has come out!"

Throwing the fishhook back into the lake, Zhu Jinghong looked at the sparkling lake and said, "Who was selected?"

"It's Miss Yang and Miss Xue!"

"Ok!"

Zhu Jinghong's reaction to this news was unremarkable, but Qing and Yinglian's hearts were filled with turmoil.

For the women living in the palace, honor, disgrace and even life and death are closely related to the princess, and they cannot help but think about it.

Both Keqing and Yinglian prefer Baochai to be the princess, although they know it is absolutely impossible.

But one thing they can be sure of is that Zhu Jinghong's favorite is Baochai.

Looking at Zhu Jinghong's standing figure in front of them, the two women couldn't help but wonder what this man was thinking at this time.

………………

It was April 11th, the [-]th year of Orthodoxy, and the weather was sunny.

Outside the main hall of Kunning Palace, the thrones for the emperor and empress have been set up, and today the princess will also be present when she chooses the emperor.

Today's grand event, concubines, family members of the clan, and wives of foreign ministers will all come to watch the ceremony.

Princess Rui, Chen Zhi, entered the palace early in the morning. She didn't say a few words to the queen before she was kicked out by her mother-in-law on the grounds that she wanted to be clean.

However, the later Crown Princess Yuanchun has not yet come out after entering Kunning Palace, which already shows the difference between closeness and distance.

Although Chen Zhi felt resentful about this, she could not tell it at all on her face. She was talking to several princesses in the courtyard at the moment.

Although there are her elders among them, Chen Zhi is still the undoubted protagonist, and her words are quite manipulative.

"Princess, who do you think will be the winner today?"

"Needless to say...of course it's Miss Yang. How could the Queen have wronged her niece!"

"But Miss Yang is from a distinguished family, so choosing her is against the system..."

"Miss Xue lost her father at a young age, so choosing her is not against the system!"

Hearing everyone's discussion, Chen Zhi didn't know what to say, because she didn't know what the outcome would be.

Will Lao Shisan risk everything for Baochai?

If Zhu Jinghong had acted according to his own ideas and completely ignored the Queen's arrangements, there would indeed be no threat to Prince Rui's Mansion.

And if he is timid and knows how to weigh the interests, then he will be the biggest enemy of Prince Rui's Mansion.

Up to now, Prince Rui's Mansion has collected a lot of all Zhu Jinghong's illegal acts and transgressions. Once Zhu Jinghong becomes an enemy, he can be killed in a short time.

Even if he pays the price for this, Zhu Jingyuan will not hesitate. After all, the party members he developed should be used as consumables when necessary.

Among the three legitimate sons, if the most capable Thirteenth was eliminated, Zhu Jingyuan could easily grind the prince to death, and the position of crown prince would belong to him sooner or later.

Just as Chen Zhi was thinking about these things, she saw Zhu Jinghong coming in from outside the palace gate.

Yi Shan wears a dragon robe, and Zhu Jinghong is dressed very formally today.

Seeing him appear, the ladies present saluted one after another, and Chen Zhi even greeted him.

"Meet my sister-in-law!"

"Thirteenth brother, today is a good day, why do you look unhappy?" Chen Zhi looked concerned.

Zhu Jinghong is unhappy, which is a good sign for Chen Zhi, which means that the other party may be dissatisfied with the queen's arrangement.

From the beginning to the end, Zhu Jinghong knew what Prince Rui and his wife were planning, so he promptly replied: "My sister-in-law will not understand my difficulties!"

"Today is the day for you to choose your princess. Choose the princess you like to live with. What a wonderful thing it is...Why do you still have difficulties!"

In this sentence, Chen Zhi emphasized "choose a princess you like" and was still guiding Zhu Jinghong at the last moment.

Seeing that Zhu Jinghong still looked uncomfortable, Chen Zhi decided to provoke him one last time.

Chen Zhi glanced around and said with a smile: "My thirteenth brother is unparalleled in the world in bravery. Could it be that he is afraid of today's situation?"

Everyone else also laughed, and Zhu Jinghong also laughed in his heart. He just wanted to let everyone know that Princess Rui Chen Zhi encouraged him now.

Then when what happens next, he can openly tell the emperor that at least his sixth brother and his sister-in-law support him, and then he can trick these two people in turn.

When it comes to acting... Zhu Jinghong is also a professional.

"Thirteenth brother, if you choose the girl you like to be your princess, we are all waiting to eat your wedding wine!"

While everyone was talking and joking, Zhu Jinghong smiled and said goodbye to everyone, and then went to the main hall of Kunning Palace. Next, he had to stay with the queen.

There is no doubt that after entering Kunning Palace, the queen gave him some advice. He kept saying "hmm" throughout the process to show that he heard it.

Yuanchun on the side had a complicated look on his face, but he didn't say a word from beginning to end.

As time went by, concubines and concubines arrived one after another, making the courtyard of Kunning Palace more and more lively.

Although there were a lot of people at the scene, it didn't look messy at all because there was a female officer from the Shanggong Bureau guiding the shift arrangements.

At this moment, in the official office of Shangyi Bureau, Yang Jingting and Xue Baochai have finished dressing up.

The two of them were introduced into the courtyard at the same time, and then taken together to the direction of Kunning Palace.

"Sister Bao, if you choose to be the princess, I will be completely dependent on you to take care of me from now on!"

"Sister Ting, please don't say this. Today you will be chosen as the princess...I will have to call you sister from now on!"

Looking at Baochai beside her, Yang Jingting said slowly: "You can't say that. It's not until the last moment, how can you say who the princess is!"

"Sister, please don't be modest. I just hope that I can have a place to live in the palace in the future..."

　Happy Mid-autumn Festival!
　　
　
(End of this chapter)