Chapter 137

 

Hua Yang didn’t expect that Chen Jingzong would suddenly say such serious and heavy words just after washing the thing.

It was so unexpected that she didn’t know how to respond.

Chen Jingzong helped her put on her clothes, put on his robe himself, and went outside to punt the boat.

The boat was swaying leisurely while Hua Yang was laying on the pillow, looking at the moon in the sky through a layer of gauze.

In fact, Chen Jingzong just liked to speak indiscriminately. When it was time to do serious things, he was more serious than anyone else.

He would run back and forth in the mountains where heavy rains were pouring, working hard to help people avoid disasters, and never envy his two civil official brothers who had an easier job than him.

Surrounded by a group of corrupt officials in Lingzhou, he would insist on rectifying the guard station and fight for military pay and land for the soldiers, instead of collaborating with corrupt officials to collect money.

Relying on his status as the son of the cabinet elder and the son-in-law of the emperor, he easily obtained the official position of the third-rank commander. However, he also relied on his own ability to lead the Daxing Left Guard to win first place in the martial arts competition, and later repeatedly achieved military success in the war to quell Prince Yu’s rebellion.

What was so unexpected for such an upright and intelligent man to see the many crises hidden beneath the current prosperity of the Chen family?

Perhaps, if Hua Yang was just an ordinary lady, Chen Jingzong would have already talked to her about his worries about his family. But because she was the grand princess and belong the imperial family, he did not mention it, in case she misunderstood and then let the gossip slip to the emperor and empress dowager, turning the casual conversation between husband and wife into a major matter involving state affairs.

He knew that it would be difficult for her father-in-law to implement reforms, but he never thought of discouraging him. He only silently prepared for the possible fate of the Chen family.

This preparation included him not wanting to tie her up with a child.

Talking about tying up or not, if Hua Yang despise Chen Jingzong, even if she gave birth to a child, she would not accommodate him for the sake of the child.

It was Chen Jingzong himself. He didn’t believe that even if she didn’t have children, she would never divorce him in this life. He was even more afraid that she only kept him, this prince consort of a fallen family, because of the child.

Chen Jingzong asked her if she knew what husband and wife were.

Hua Yang understood because she had seen it before.

A real couple would share joys and sorrows, just like Luo Yuyan did with Chen Xiaozong. The delicate young lady from the marquis family could obviously break away from the Chen family with a divorce letter after something happened to the Chen family, but Luo Yuyan didn’t. She would rather brave the wind and snow while wearing shackles on her feet to accompany Chen Xiaozong to the frontier and endure hardships.

Chen Jingzong didn’t want Hua Yang to be that kind of wife. He chose to be a husband who was willing to let go because he was resolute. If something happened to the Chen family, he would advance and retreat together with the Chen family, but he didn’t want Hua Yang to exhaust herself for him because of the child. So he was not in a hurry to have a child, and wanted to cherish the time when they could still be a happy couple.

“We’re about to dock.”

Following Chen Jingzong’s brief reminder, the boat’s hull shook slightly and then stopped again.

Hua Yang sat up.

The curtain at the entrance of the boat canopy was lifted, and Chen Jingzong walked in, looked at her, and joked: “Can Ancestor go by herself?”

Hua Yang glared at him.

Chen Jingzong then came to the couch.

Hua Yang lay on his back.

Just when Chen Jingzong was about to walk out, Hua Yang put her arms around his neck and whispered in his ear: “It’s true that our marriage is arranged because of Father, but no matter whether Father is a Cabinet Elder or a commoner in the future, whether the Chen family is a prominent family in the capital or a down-and-out family in poverty, I will not abandon you because of these. If I were to divorce you, it would only be because of something you did to wrong me.”

Chen Jingzong was silent for a moment and said with a smile: “Give me a hundred guts, and I won’t dare to do something that wronged you.”

He was not serious again, Hua Yang snorted: “Don’t say such unlucky words again in the future.”

Chen Jingzong started to walk out: “You asked me about the child first, so why can’t I tell you the truth?”

Hua Yang pinched his neck.

Chen Jingzong stopped at the door of the cabin. When Hua Yang stopped pinching, he tilted his head and asked, “You ask me if I am in a hurry to be a father. If I am in a hurry, will you be willing to give birth?”

Hua Yang didn’t want to. Her father-in-law still had three unsolved crimes, and pregnancy would consume her energy for nearly a year. How could she wait for childbirth with peace of mind.

She asked Chen Jingzong rhetorically: “Do you really want to be a father now?”

Chen Jingzong: “If you’re in a hurry to be a mother, I can comply to you tonight. If you’re not in a hurry, then let’s wait. When the situation outside becomes stable, I can concentrate on taking care of you two ancestors.”

Hua Yang: “How do we consider the situation to be stable?”

Chen Jingzong lowered his voice and said, “When His Majesty truly in power. Right now, Empress Dowager and the cabinet are basically the ones making the final decision on major matters. His Majesty is young and his attitude can’t be discerned yet. Once he truly took charge, everything will become clear.”

Hua Yang was silent.

Chen Jingzong: “You won’t tell His Majesty this, will you?”

Hua Yang: “I’m not stupid.”

Chen Jingzong: “You are not stupid, but you are very close to His Majesty. I’m really afraid that if you sell me out, His Majesty will dislike at me, and the old man will blame me for being too talkative, and I’ll be in a difficult position.”

Hua Yang: “If you’re really afraid, you wouldn’t tell me.”

They have been husband and wife for more than four years. Even if they haven’t fully understood each other, they still knew each other’s temperament. Just like she could see Chen Jingzong’s righteousness underneath his shamelessness, Chen Jingzong also knew that she would never confuse the matters between husband and wife with state affairs.

Chen Jingzong stepped ashore and looked around to make sure there was no one there. He smiled again, looked at her and said, “I thought you would say that in your heart, I’m as close to you as His Majesty, or even closer.”

Hua Yang also smiled: “You have quite an imagination.”

.

Early the next morning, Chen Jingzong rode his horse that he had raised for eight years to the guard station again.

After Hua Yang had breakfast, she called Wu Run and asked him to go to the horse market to see if there were any outstanding horses.

The good horses that could be brought to the capital for sale were basically Mongolian horses, and Mongolian horses also have good and bad qualities. Horses of exceptional quality, rarely seen for years, were informed to the wealthy families in the capital by horse dealers early on, and were snapped up quickly. Even though the remaining horses were still considered fine steeds, they could not meet Hua Yang’s gift requirements.

Wu Run, who knew grand princess’s preference best, went out for a round and came back to report: “Grand Princess, there are no outstanding steeds in the horse market at the moment. However, this servant has informed the horse dealers to let them send news to our house first if they have new horses.”

Even though officials roamed the streets of the capital, outside the palace, no one had a prestige that could surpass Hua Yang’s Grand Princess Mansion.

Hua Yang: “How long will it take?”

Wu Run: “There may be a batch of new horses shipped before the Mid-Autumn Festival.”

Counting the days, it was only one month left.

Hua Yang asked Wu Run to pay attention, then she put aside the matter of buying horses for the time being.

On the first day of Eight Month, Hua Yang went to the palace to pay respects to her mother empress as usual.

Empress Dowager Qi saw her daughter’s rosy complexion and knew that her daughter lived more freely outside the palace than inside. However, after all, she had been married for almost five years. Empress Dowager Qi was really afraid that her daughter would be too carefree, causing her prince consort to misunderstand that her daughter did not care about him, which would make relationship between husband and wife estrange.

“You’re already twenty-two, it’s time to have children.” Empress Dowager Qi advised softly.

Empress Dowager Qi was a stern mother. In her previous life, Hua Yang did not dare to disobey her mother. But in this life she was not as afraid of her, and pouted, “If you keep urging me, I will not enter the palace in the future.”

Empress Dowager Qi:…

“Mom said this for your own good.”

“I also said that for your own good, so that you won’t be angry again if I don’t listen to you next time.”

Empress Dowager Qi felt that her daughter’s crooked reasoning was getting more and more outrageous. It was just that when her daughter was a child, she could let the wet nurse keep an eye on her daughter and learn etiquette seriously, but now she had no way to interfere in her daughter’s relationship with her prince consort.

When the mother and daughter were in a stalemate, Emperor Yuanyou arrived.

After her brother saluted, Hua Yang found an excuse to take her brother away, and the siblings changed places to talk.

“Sister made Mother Empress unhappy?” Emperor Yuanyou was still very good at observing people’s expressions, especially mother empress’ face.

Hua Yang sat down in the pavilion and asked Cao Li, Chao Yun and the others to retreat outside, then she told her brother, “Mother Empress is urging me to have children. I’m not happy.”

Emperor Yuanyou’s gaze quickly swept at his sister’s belly, and his earlobes were slightly red.

Hua Yang didn’t mean to tell her brother this. She turned the subject and praised Chen Jingzong and the Chen family in a roundabout way: “In other families, the parents-in-law or the husband will be anxious with the issue of heirs. But mine is really good. My husband’s family is not anxious, instead it was Mother Empress who’s most worried. ”

Emperor Yuanyou was indoctrinated in various etiquette and dogma by his mother and ministers every day, so he understood what his mother meant: “Mother Empress is afraid that Sister will never be able to conceive and will be criticized by the people.”

Hua Yang: “Why, are you also on Mother Empress’ side?”

She raised her slender eyebrows, as if Emperor Yuanyou dared to nod, and she would get angry.

Emperor Yuanyou didn’t dare to offend his sister. It was still fine that his sister was just angry. If she thought that no one in the family was on her side, she would be sad.

Emperor Yuanyou said hurriedly: “Of course I support Sister. Sister can give birth whenever you want. If anyone dares to talk about Sister behind your back, I’ll ask Jinyiwei to arrest them.”

Hua Yang smiled: “With you having this intention, I’m already satisfied. There is no need to alarm the Jinyiwei.”

After talking of this matter, the siblings began to share some new things inside and outside the palace in the past month.

Hua Yang mentioned her trip to Hongfu Temple with Chen Jingzong: “It’s lucky for him that he really went, otherwise I would have punished him by shaving his head at Hongfu Temple.”

Emperor Yuanyou deeply sympathized with Chen Jingzong and sweated for him. With such heavy rain, he probably wouldn’t have gone out himself. Fortunately, Chen Jingzong was honest and value his sister, so he could keep his hair.

After Hua Yang finished speaking, it was Emperor Yuanyou’s turn. Studying and listening to politics were really boring, he felt his sister wouldn’t enjoy hearing about them. Instead, he just picked out some interesting memorials. For example, a local official who indulged his concubine and bullied the main wife was reported by his father-in-law, who was also an official.

“By the way, the envoy from the Tatars who is bringing fine horses to the court as tribute has passed through Jizhou and will arrive in the capital in a few days. Prince Consort is outstanding. I’m going to select one of the tribute horses to reward him.”

Hua Yang’s heart moved. The Tatars produce excellent horses, but the horses were military supplies. Horse dealers who want to transport horses from the grasslands to the Central Plains for sale must first go through the selection of the Tatar officials. Due to these restrictions, the number and quality of the horses were limited. It could be said that the “treasure horses” that horse dealers boast so much might only be average or above average on the grassland.

But the tribute that the Tartar pay to the court was different. Among five hundred horses, there must be a few top-notch steeds, so as not to damage the face of the Tatar Khan.

“Why should you reward him for no reason?” Hua Yang asked nonchalantly.

Emperor Yuanyou: “He is my brother-in-law. He treats Sister very well. It doesn’t matter if I reward him with a horse.”

Hua Yang: “Okay, I’ll tell Mother Empress later that this is the reward I specifically asked from you for Prince Consort, so that she won’t always suspect that I bullied him. Also, when you reward Prince Consort, you must reveal my merits. Let him accept my favor.”

Emperor Yuanyou:…

Sister is really “nice” to her prince consort!

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