Long live Emperor Wu!

Chapter 36
Four days later, invitations to the polo match were sent out from the palace and sent to the homes of many nobles, ministers and members of the clan outside the palace.

As long as she is an unmarried girl between the ages of 16 and [-], she is available regardless of her concubine or concubine.

The invitation was naturally in the name of Concubine Wei. The Holy Emperor had already greeted Concubine Wei before, and Concubine Wei wrote the invitation herself.

Naturally, the post did not clearly state that it was for the purpose of selecting a candidate for Tuyuhun's marriage. Instead, it said that the weather had been very good recently, and young girls were invited to the palace to play polo, which was lively and lively.

The last word is that the winning team will have a showdown with His Royal Highness King Jin’s polo team in the palace.

At that time, Wu Rou was a little worried when she saw that the post was so cryptic. After all, getting married is a hard job. The more people come, the more possibilities there will be.

Concubine Wei said calmly:

"Don't worry. The big families in Chang'an City are all human beings. This hint is enough. To say it more clearly would be deceiving. The royal family still needs the credibility."

Wu Rou bit her lip and asked again:
"Then... why don't we also call some unmarried ministers and descendants of the clan? This way, the temptation will be greater, and the girls may be more active."

When Concubine Wei heard this, she looked at her as if she were an ignorant child and said slowly:

"For those little girls, there is no greater temptation than His Highness, Prince Jin."

At that time, she didn't realize it...

She didn't really understand until the day of the polo match, when all the aristocratic girls came into the palace.

In order to provide a place for the girls to watch and rest, before the invitations were sent out, Wu Rou calculated the number of people and asked the Ministry of Works to build a circle of temporary pavilions around the polo field.

The base of the pavilion is eight feet high, supported by four pillars, with a tiled roof and gauze at the four corners.Each pavilion can accommodate ten people, one at a distance of ten steps, and the seats are full.

Wu Rou dressed up as a little palace maid, and followed the team of palace maids serving tea and snacks, walking between the pavilions and secretly observing these girls.

The game hasn't started yet, and the girls are nervous and excited. Wu Rou is carrying a food box and placing refreshments, and listens to their discussion there:

"Hey, do you think it would be better for us to wear Hufu? What if the underskirt affects us and we lose?"

"Goodbye, haven't we already discussed it? Wearing Hufu and a hat is just like a man. Even if you win, His Highness Prince Jin will be too ugly to look at, so won't your victory be in vain?"

"That's right... The noble concubine asked us to come into the palace, didn't she just want him to see it for himself first? The most important thing is that it looks good."

A girl covered her mouth and said with a smile:
"I'm going to wear a skirt anyway. I asked my maid to study today's makeup for several days. I spent an hour dressing up in the morning, so I can't let it go to waste."

Another one said:

"Yes, yes...what if His Highness Prince Jin falls in love with me? Even if I can't be my wife, I'll be content as my concubine, hahaha..."

She laughed extremely wildly, and her voice was full of joy.

While Wu Rou was packing the food box, she couldn't help but look up at the woman.

Logically speaking, palace maids should not be like this. No matter what the nobles say, they should pretend not to hear. The main thing is to be silent and have no sense of existence.

But when Wu Rou raised her eyes, perhaps showing some disgust and coldness, she happened to be seen by the girl.

The woman immediately raised her eyebrows and said angrily:

"What are you looking at?! The maids in the palace are so unruly?! Where are your people in charge! Call me to file a complaint!"

The few palace maids who came in with Wu Rou naturally knew that Wu Rou was the one in charge. They lowered their heads even harder when they heard this, and did not act or make a sound.

Wu Rou's mind raced, thinking that she had just begun and must not be exposed like this, so she quietly observed the surroundings, looking for a way to resolve it.

"Your Excellency, please forgive me. I saw something dirty on Your Excellency's skirt and was thinking about whether to tell Your Excellency before I raised my eyes to look at you." Wu Rou said with a half-crouched body and a respectful posture, holding the food box in her hand. .

The woman's raised eyebrows relaxed a little and asked: "Where is it?!"

Wu Rou didn't look up and pointed at the shawl on her waist.

The woman lowered her head and saw that there was indeed a spot of stained dust that could not be seen without looking carefully.

Turns out he wasn't laughing at her.Coupled with Wu Rou's lowered eyebrows, it seemed as if it was really a misunderstanding just now.

So she reached out and slapped it away, and never made trouble again.

Seeing that everything was okay, Wu Rou picked up the food box and followed the maids' procession down the steps of the pavilion to the Shang Food Bureau.

The floating gauze of the pavilion swayed gently with the wind, shadowily covering the people inside. On the one hand, it was to prevent some dust, and on the other hand, it was also to isolate the line of sight. Therefore, except for the front, it was open and all three sides were closed.

Wu Rou deliberately designed the veil at the back to be hung with thick cloth and fastened tightly to the pillar, so that it was like a screen and the scene behind it could not be seen at all.

The palace maids followed the predetermined route, and those delivering tea stayed to the right and walked near the back of the pavilion.

The team that went back after sending them off also stayed to the right, going on the side with the flags demarcating the boundary.

The two teams of maids came and went behind the pavilion without interfering with each other, in a quiet, beautiful and orderly manner.

Wu Rou followed the leaving team of palace maids, and as she was walking, she met the team approaching from the opposite side. She stretched out her hand to stop the leader.

The palace maid who was stopped raised her eyes in surprise. First she thought she looked familiar, and then she realized that this was the Wu Cairen who was supervising the banquet.

Although she didn't understand why Wu Cairen wanted to dress like them, she subconsciously began to bow and salute.

Wu Rou quickly put a finger to her lips: "Shh, don't talk."

Then he waved to the palace maid carrying the food box and said:
"Give me your food box, let's change places." The maids saluted halfway, then stood up straight obediently, and then looked at her in confusion.

Regardless of that, Wu Rou walked over, took the initiative to snatch the other party's food box, put his own into her hand, and then pushed her to let her go to her team.

The whole movement was done in one go, for fear of wasting time.

"Go!" she ordered.

Then the teams of palace maids that had stopped on both sides started moving again and passed by each other.

The palace maid whose food box had been changed was forced to follow the others back before she arrived. She secretly turned her head and glanced at Wu Rou, who was following the team, with question marks on her head.

Wu Rou followed the new team into the next pavilion, and the girl inside was also chatting:
"...His Royal Highness the King of Jin will definitely not leave the vassal. King Wei is so old, why is he still in Chang'an? Today, His Majesty always feels particularly sorry for his legitimate children."

Another said:

"Indeed, Concubine Wei has such a noble status, why didn't her son King Yue be sent away early? She was sent out of the feudal clan at the age of eight, and it was still so far away... as if she was afraid that he would stay in Chang'an for a long time. If according to King Jin At his age, it’s time for him to leave now.”

"...I heard from my Aye that His Royal Highness Prince Jin is more like Queen Wende and is more beautiful than His Highness the Crown Prince."

The girl two seats away was very interested, stretched her head and asked:
"Have you ever seen him?"

"Well... His Majesty once summoned him at the Wude Palace. He met him by his side and said that King Jin was dignified and quiet, with a gentle temper and very intelligent."

"I also heard from my mother-in-law that His Highness the Prince of Jin has a good temper. ... If anyone can marry him, he won't be angry with him after the marriage, not to mention leaving Chang'an with the feudal clan."

The young girl's voice was crisp, soft and childish, as cute as a kitten.

Wu Rou lowered her eyes and packed the food box silently, thinking that this was it.

No wonder Concubine Wei said that...

Considering all aspects, King Jin is probably the best candidate for a husband besides the prince.

In this way, she followed the same pattern and visited almost all the pavilions.

Finally, she followed the maid who brought tea into the attic where the host was seated.

Jin Wang Li Shan is inside.

There is a row of windows in the attic on the second floor. When the windows are opened, you can see the outside. But at the moment, the windows are closed, leaving only the middle one, which seems to be ventilated normally.

Prince Jin stood sideways in front of the window, watching the polo match that had started below. The girls' screams and cheers came in from time to time, they were engaged and excited.

As soon as Wu Rou entered the door, she saw King Jin's profile. His thick hair was tied into a heavy single bun at the back of his head. The top of the bun was curved and hung slightly, reflecting a healthy luster in the sun.Coupled with the two-finger-wide hair tie, it really has a kind of quiet and graceful beauty.

If any girl had such smooth and thick hair, she would probably wake up laughing while sleeping.

"What do you think? Is there a suitable candidate?" King Jin knew she was coming, so he turned around and asked.

Wu Rou's pupils swayed, and she quickly covered up her confusion and said:

"...No, they are all thinking about how to marry you. I really don't see any of them willing to marry far away from Tuyuhun."

After she finished speaking, she realized that her words seemed to be laced with sourness, and she was shocked.

King Jin also noticed it and looked at her blankly.

Wu Rou was extremely embarrassed. She bit her lip, her eyebrows drooped, and she looked a little pitiful, thinking:

As long as I am thick-skinned, there is no embarrassment that cannot be resolved!

So she walked over very naturally, still standing five steps away from King Jin, looking out of the window with her hands on the pane, and said casually:
"Hey... I guess I am the same age as them. If I, Aye, were still here, maybe I would have a chance to sit down there."

"Do you want to sit down below?" Prince Jin also wanted to resolve the embarrassment and just chatted casually, but he regretted it after the conversation.

He doesn't want to hear the answer, isn't interested, don't tell.

"Well..." Wu Rou turned her head and glanced at King Jin, and saw that although he was looking out the window calmly, his ears were already red.

She suddenly felt happy and thought of teasing him, and said with a smile:
"Of course, whose daughter doesn't want to have a good marriage? They all say that His Highness Prince Jin is the best choice."

Sure enough, the blush at the base of King Jin's ears quickly spread to his face. He glared at Wu Rou angrily and said:
"What nonsense are you talking about? Don't think that just because there are two of us, you can be rude and I can still punish you!"

"I'm just kidding, why didn't His Highness tease you?" Wu Rou immediately opened her eyes to clarify, her tone was very firm and impeccable.

But after she finished speaking, an unspeakable sourness welled up in her heart.

It was as if King Jin's accusation was a small knife that cut into her heart.

But soon, this sourness was left behind by her strong will, and there was no longer any flaw.

King Jin didn't speak anymore.

He needed time to calm down his agitated mood, and regretted that he had easily blushed at someone's joke.

It was as if what he was hoping for was true, and it seemed like he had a dirty mind... This was the most difficult thing for him to accept.

So the two of them made a tacit understanding and didn't speak again, watching the game below in silence.

(End of this chapter)