At this time, Su Changzhen, the governor of Southern Zhili, and Chen You, the Duke of Jing, had brought their wives and daughters to the Donghua Gate outside the palace to wait.
Duke Chen You of the State of Jing was a nobleman in the capital, while Su Changzhen was a local feudal official. The two of them did not have much in common, and neither of them had the idea of continuing to talk in depth at this time, so after meeting,
They just exchanged a few casual polite words and then returned to their respective families.
Chen Zhirong, the youngest daughter of Chen You, the Duke of Jing, and Su Xiuning, the eldest daughter of Su Changzhen, the governor of Southern Zhili, the two real protagonists of the palace banquet, were sitting in the sedan chair all the time and did not show their faces from beginning to end.
…………
But Su Changzhen, the governor of Southern Zhili, is now in his sixties, about to enter the official age, but he is well maintained, without too many wrinkles, with a clear face, elegant temperament, and white beards on his temples and chin.
It has also been carefully taken care of and looks clean and tidy.
All in all, this is an old man who is easy to fall in love with.
But people should not be judged by their appearance. Although Su Changzhen seems to be sanctimonious, he is actually a corrupt official. His greed and boldness are rare even among the countless corrupt officials throughout the dynasty!
Therefore, Su Changzhen's reputation among the government and the public is almost the same as that of Zhao Junchen.
After returning to his team, Su Changzhen hesitated for a moment, then suddenly a hint of worry flashed across his face, and he came to the sedan chair of his daughter Su Xiuning.
"Daughter, I have wronged you..." Su Changzhen sighed with guilt: "But dad's current predicament has been told to you. Now only in this way can our Su family be safe. Otherwise not only
It's just that dad, your brothers and nephews are afraid that they will also be implicated, so dad can only let you suffer some injustice. You, don't blame dad..."
After hearing Su Changzhen's words, Su Xiuning sat in the sedan chair, but remained silent. She didn't answer for a long time.
Seeing Su Xiuning's silence, Su Changzhen looked even more guilty. He wanted to say something more, but after his lips moved slightly, he just let out a long sigh.
…………
There are never completely evil people in this world. Although Su Changzhen is a corrupt official, to Su Xiuning, he is a loving father!
Although Su Changzhen had many sons, he only had one daughter like Su Xiuning, and she was a daughter of old age. In addition, Su Xiuning's gentle and filial temperament won Su Changzhen's favor, so over the years, Su Changzhen could be said to be a
He doted on Su Xiuning so much that he regarded her as the apple of his eye.
Like all fathers who love their daughters in the world, Su Changzhen has long considered his daughter's marriage.
According to Su Changzhen's original idea, Su Xiuning's future husband should be a handsome and talented man. He can be from a humble and poor background - Su Changzhen will never be stingy with the dowry when the time comes - but he must be from a clean background.
, knows etiquette and observes integrity, has a generous temper, and has a single-minded relationship. In short, he must be the kind of husband who loves his wife and will never let his daughter suffer any injustice.
Unfortunately, this is just Su Changzhen's initial idea, and the word "imagination" is often easily changed due to reality.
A month ago, Su Changzhen suddenly received an order from Emperor Deqing, asking him to return to Beijing with his wife and daughter to report on his duties. Although Su Changzhen was puzzled by this strange order, he did not dare to violate it.
However, after Su Changzhen returned to Beijing, although he was quickly summoned by Emperor Deqing, Emperor Deqing did not talk about government affairs after meeting Su Changzhen. He only talked about family gossip and kept hinting at Su.
Chang Jin said, "As a high-ranking member of the imperial court, Zhao Junchen, the Minister of Household Affairs, is currently single. I heard that Su Aiqing has a daughter named Su Xiuning. She is a virtuous and virtuous daughter. She is now of the right age and has not yet been engaged. You guys
The two families are a perfect match, and if things finally come together, it will definitely be a good story."
Su Changzhen naturally understood Emperor Deqing's hint.
However, although Su Changzhen was a corrupt official, he would never want his daughter to marry another corrupt official, even if Emperor Deqing personally arranged the matchmaking, even if the other party was the powerful and popular Zhao Junchen!——
Su Changzhen is very aware of the cold nature of corrupt officials. He believes that such people are definitely not worthy of his daughter!
Therefore, Su Changzhen declined Emperor Deqing's offer.
It is a pity that Emperor Deqing's request could not be declined by Su Changzhen.
After Su Changzhen politely rejected Emperor Deqing's suggestion, the originally amiable Emperor Deqing suddenly changed his expression.
Then, a thick stack of impeachment papers, about fourteen or five of them, were thrown in front of Su Changzhen. They were all memorials written by the censors to impeach Su Changzhen for bullying the emperor, violating the law, and accepting bribes!
Some of the impeachment excerpts not only impeached Su Changzhen himself, but also impeached several of Su Changzhen's sons for committing crimes in the local area, oppressing the people, and robbing people's daughters!
The crime was so serious and the evidence was conclusive that there was no room for Su Changzhen’s sophistry!
Emperor Deqing didn't say much next, but his attitude was very clear. If Su Changzhen didn't agree to his hint, then these accusations would break out in the court!
At that time, not only Su Changzhen himself, but also several of Su Changzhen's sons will end badly! Even the originally innocent Su Xiuning will be implicated!
Therefore, Su Changzhen could only agree to Emperor Deqing's request and let Emperor Deqing arrange the marriage between Su Xiuning and Zhao Junchen!
…………
However, for Su Changzhen, although he escaped temporarily, the matter was far from that simple.
Zhao Junchen is a second-rank official in the court and one of the few powerful officials in the temple. Regarding Zhao Junchen's marriage, even Emperor Deqing cannot completely make the decision. It still depends on Zhao Junchen's attitude and choice!
In fact, being able to divide a range of marriage partners for Zhao Junchen was the limit of Emperor Deqing's ability.
And Su Changzhen's daughter Su Xiuning is just one of Zhao Junchen's choices.
In addition to Su Xiuning, there are also Cui Qianxue, the granddaughter of the former Cui Mian, and Chen Zhirong, the second daughter of Chen You, the Duke of Jing! These two women are not inferior to Su Xiuning in terms of birth or appearance!
As a result, Su Changzhen was naturally very nervous!
Su Changzhen knew very well that if Emperor Deqing wanted to investigate him, he could do so at any time. However, only because his daughter Su Xiuning was one of Zhao Junchen's future wife candidates, Emperor Deqing let him go for the time being!
However, if Zhao Junchen finally chose another woman, it is hard to say whether Emperor Deqing would continue to pretend to be deaf and dumb.
Maybe, by that time, Emperor Deqing will think that Su Changzhen has no use value, so he will make Su Changzhen's various crimes public. By that time, the grievances of the people will be redressed, and the court will be stable.
During the reign of Emperor Deqing, all the family property that Su Changzhen had embezzled for decades was put into internal funds, which was completely beneficial to Emperor Deqing.
In fact, with Emperor Deqing's consistent style, this kind of thing is very likely to happen!
Faced with such a threat, marrying his daughter Su Xiuning to Zhao Junchen was Su Changzhen's only life-saving straw.
Therefore, regarding the marriage between his daughter Su Xiuning and Zhao Junchen, Su Changzhen has gone from being reluctant at the beginning to becoming an urgent need now!
In the face of the cruel reality, all the original persistence was too fragile!
…………
Standing next to Su Xiuning's sedan, thinking about everything that had happened in the past few days, Su Changzhen felt guilty, but still said with a slight pleading: "Daughter, I am sorry for you, but we are a family. From now on, whether we die or not
Life, whether it is an honor or a disgrace, all depends on you. The palace banquet is about to begin, and Zhao Junchen is about to appear. You must behave well and don't be petty, and daddy will also
I will try my best to fight for opportunities for you. With your appearance, as long as you can put down your arrogance and fight for a little bit, you will definitely be able to get it. At that time, our Su family can survive..."
However, although Su Changzhen said pitifully, Su Xiuning in the sedan still did not answer.
Su Changzhen's expression became increasingly pleading and guilty, even with a hint of pain, as he continued: "Daughter, daddy also knows that you don't want to marry Zhao Junchen, so it's not okay for you to flatter Zhao Junchen and deliberately cater to Zhao Junchen.
I really embarrass you. This is all Daddy's fault. Daddy also understands that you look down on Daddy now and even resent him a little. Daddy doesn't dare to ask for your forgiveness. But you don't think about daddy or your brothers. At least.
You should also think about your little nephews! You have always liked them the most. They are innocent, so how can you let them be implicated? My daughter, you..."
Halfway through Su Changzhen's words, Su Xiuning finally spoke in the sedan chair.
There was some coldness in the voice, and it seemed to be a little trembling, but it was still gentle and pleasant.
"Dad, since my daughter came to the palace with you for the banquet, she has already agreed to you. She will not be petty and put the family first... But dad, why do you have to confirm and remind you again and again?
?Dad, do you know that such repeated confirmations and reminders will only violate the last trace of your daughter's dignity?...So, daddy, please stop talking..."
Listening to his daughter's cold and trembling voice, Su Changzhen's face turned gloomy. He couldn't help but feel complicated, and he didn't know whether he was feeling relieved or sad.
…………
Su Xiuning was not aware of Su Changzhen's changing expressions and complicated thoughts at this time. She was just sitting in the sedan chair, dazed, her eyes were slightly moist, and she seemed to be about to cry at any time. Therefore, her delicate face looked even more charming.
.
But Su Xiuning pursed her lips hard, trying not to cry.
This has nothing to do with the word "strong". In fact, in recent days, Su Xiuning has cried secretly several times without telling her family.
However, if she cried at this time, the tears would destroy her makeup and stain her face. Su Xiuning would not be able to show her most beautiful side in front of Zhao Junchen. In this way, she would not be able to show her face to Zhao Junchen.
Zhao Junchen "promotes" himself and cannot save the Su family from disaster!
Selling herself is like a cheap commodity that no one wants, like a lowly and humble brothel girl, but this is what Su Xiuning must do next.
In the past few days, Su Xiuning's world has been completely turned upside down.
From childhood to adulthood, Su Xiuning grew up in the care and love of her family. She was carefree and never encountered any ups and downs or hardships, or even encountered many unpleasant things. It was a completely poetic life, and
In Su Xiuning's view, all of this was brought to her by her father, Su Changzhen.
In Su Xiuning's eyes, her father is wise, charitable, and even great. There is nothing in this world that her father cannot solve. She even fantasized that her future husband must have her own
The shadow of his father.
However, a few days ago, when Su Changzhen hesitantly told her the truth, Su Xiuning finally knew the truth of the matter!
It turns out that his father, whom he has always respected and admired, turned out to be a notorious corrupt official! Now, all kinds of crimes are on the verge of being exposed, and the only way to ensure the safety of the family is to betroth yourself to another corrupt official.
!
This was a huge blow to Su Xiuning!
The more beautiful the original illusion is, the more cruel the reality becomes when the illusion is shattered!
From that moment on, Su Xiuning's world was completely turned upside down.
Girls' feelings are always poetry. Now that Su Xiuning has reached the age of spring, she often fantasizes about what kind of person her future husband will be. Naturally, a corrupt official like Zhao Junchen is definitely not among Su Xiuning's choices.
A girl of Su Xiuning's age would only hope that her husband is a hero or a talented man, and these things have nothing to do with Zhao Junchen.
But now, the dream has fallen into reality. Su Xiuning must find every way to "subvert" Zhao Junchen. The pain and helplessness involved are definitely not understandable by outsiders.
However, unlike Cui Qianxue, Su Xiuning does not care what other people think, but she values her family very much, even her notorious corrupt official father!
So, after crying, feeling sad, feeling sad, and after reorganizing her mood, Su Xiuning still chose to take on her "responsibility."
Some things, whether right or wrong, always have to be done.
A slightly sad smile flashed across Su Xiuning's pretty face, and then she put all the complicated thoughts in her heart back together, slowly closed her eyes, and quietly waited for Zhao Junchen to appear.
As the palace banquet approached, she could no longer care about self-pity.
What kind of person is Zhao Junchen? Su Xiuning doesn't know much about him. She only knows that he is a corrupt official who is more powerful and more infamous than his father Su Changzhen!
How should she please Zhao Junchen? Su Xiuning didn't know. She had no experience in this area. She only knew that she had to do everything possible to achieve her goal, even if it meant betraying herself!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
While Su Xiuning was secretly feeling sad, on the other side of the Donghua Gate, Chen You, the Duke of Jing State, also returned to his own team.
Chen You is now in his prime, and his figure is much taller than that of ordinary people. His face is neither ugly nor handsome, ordinary, but his pair of deep red phoenix eyes always flash an eye-catching light inadvertently.
Like Su Changzhen, Chen You also came to the sedan chair of his daughter Chen Zhirong, planning to give some instructions.
After pondering for a moment, Chen You asked slowly: "The palace banquet is about to begin, and I think Zhao Junchen will appear soon. Are you ready?"
There was not much emotion in the voice, but mostly commands.
Chen Zhirong's voice came out from the sedan. No one showed up, but the charm in the voice seemed to be natural, making people feel itchy in their hearts unconsciously: "Father, you can rest assured that my daughter has already been prepared, but...
My daughter is a little strange about Zhao Junchen's performance today, and she asked her father to help her clear up some of her doubts."
Chen You frowned. In response to his daughter Chen Zhirong's inquiry, a hint of wariness flashed across his face, but he still asked, "Tell me, what is it that makes you confused?"
It seemed that there was a chuckle in the sedan, and then Chen Zhirong asked: "Father, according to the various intelligence we have collected, Zhao Junchen was originally a greedy person who did not know how to restrain himself, but in recent years he has suddenly become violent.
Not only did he learn to endure the changes, but his scheming and methods were completely different. In this way, he was able to win many battles during the party disputes between the DPRK and China, and now he has become the most powerful official in the temple second only to the chief minister Zhou Shangjing."
Chen You nodded and said, "Well, according to all the information, it is indeed the case."
Chen Zhirong said: "It is precisely because of this that my daughter finds it strange that since Zhao Junchen's temperament changed, he has not only become more profound, but also learned how to deal with things in a low-key manner. No matter who he is in front of, he is always humble and polite... But today
Everyone knows that this palace banquet was deliberately held for him. According to the character he has shown all along, he should have been waiting outside the palace first. Why are we now with the family of Su Changjin, the governor of South Zhili?
We've all arrived, but he still hasn't shown up yet? Isn't it rude to make us wait like this? And this kind of thing should never happen to Zhao Junchen."
After hearing Chen Zhirong's analysis, Chen You also felt that something was fishy, but he couldn't figure it out for a while. With a reluctant expression, Chen You asked Chen Zhirong: "Then what do you think?"
Chen Zhirong was silent for a moment. He seemed to be thinking carefully, and then replied: "From my daughter's point of view, Zhao Junchen's late arrival this time is probably deliberate, deliberately giving us a chance to express dissatisfaction and taking this opportunity to inspect us."
attitude towards him."
"Examine our attitude towards him?" Chen You frowned and thought.
"Yes." Chen Zhirong smiled softly and replied: "With Zhao Junchen's current status, when choosing a marriage, he will not only consider the appearance of the other woman, but also consider what the other party's family can bring to him.
How much help! And this kind of help must not only consider the power of the family itself, but also whether the family is willing to fully support him!"
After a pause, Chen Zhirong continued: "So. He came late on purpose this time just to give us an excuse and reason to show dissatisfaction. If we don't want to marry him, we will definitely take the opportunity to show our dissatisfaction."
, As a result, even if there is a marriage in the future, it will not provide him with much help. It cannot be regarded as relying on him, so Zhao Junchen will definitely consider it between choices. "
"That's it." Chen You nodded thoughtfully.
"So, when Zhao Junchen appears, father, you'd better be more enthusiastic and never show dissatisfaction because of Zhao Junchen's late arrival. Although our family has been a noble family for generations, we are not powerful enough to be able to help Zhao Junchen."
The help provided is not much, so all we can show now is our willingness to fully support him."
Chen You knew that he had always been solemn in nature and informal in speaking and laughing. Under such circumstances, it was very easy for others to misunderstand him.
Therefore, although Chen Zhirong's words were nominally asking for advice from Chen You, they were actually taking the opportunity to give Chen You some advice!
In response, a hint of complexity flashed across Chen You's expression.
Chen Zhirong is so smart that sometimes it even scares Chen You, a father!
However, in many cases, Chen You still needs to rely on Chen Zhirong's talents, although this will reduce his dignity and prestige as a father.
Such as now.
…………
Like Su Changzhen, the governor of Southern Zhili, Chen You, the Duke of Jing State, is now obsessed with marrying Zhao Junchen!
Su Changzhen had such thoughts because he wanted to avoid guilt, while Chen You had such thoughts because it was the intention of the Seventh Prince Zhu Hejian!
Only a few people now know about Zhu Hejian's desire for the throne, but Chen You, as Zhu Hejian's father-in-law, is one of them and has always been his unwavering support!
Without him, Chen You was a very ambitious man, but the Ming Dynasty's various regulations and restrictions on nobles always prevented him from realizing his ambitions!
Nowadays, although Chen You has inherited the title of Duke of Jing, it is nothing more than that. If the nobles in the court do not hold actual positions and have no real power in their hands, they will only be slightly more noble than ordinary people, but there will never be any
Really value your attitude!
Chen You didn't just want to be a duke with no real power, he wanted to be a powerful and important minister in the DPRK!
Unfortunately, Emperor Deqing did not value him, let alone reuse him, so his ambitions could not be realized at all.
Therefore, Chen You can only realize his ambition by supporting the seventh prince Zhu Hejian!
In fact, although Chen You is Zhu Hejian's father-in-law, the more he gets to know Zhu Hejian, the more Chen You admires Zhu Hejian, and he has always believed that Zhu Hejian will definitely succeed to the throne, and he can also use this to realize his ambition!
Now, Zhu Hejian needs to deepen his relationship with Zhao Junchen and has issued relevant instructions to Chen You. Chen You must do his best to complete this task.
Therefore, although Chen You didn't like being pointed out by his daughter, he still nodded and said: "Understood, I will try to be more enthusiastic when Zhao Junchen shows up. You don't have to worry about this."
"Not only must we show our enthusiasm, but we must also show our value to him." Chen Zhirong seemed to understand Chen You's complicated thoughts. But he completely ignored this and just continued to mention: "Although we are powerful in the court
Not obvious. But after all, we are nobles from generations, and we still have some personal connections. After meeting Zhao Junchen, father, you must express this in a subtle way, otherwise, no matter how enthusiastic we are, Zhao Junchen will still be disdainful of us.
Take a look."
"I know." Chen You frowned slightly.
Chen You was a little impatient with Chen Zhirong's constant reminders of himself.
Another chuckle came from the sedan. Chen Zhirong added: "This time, because of Your Majesty, the only ones competing with us are the Su family of Su Changzhen, governor of South Zhili, and the family of Lao Cui Mian of the front cabinet.
The Cui family, including the former Cui Mian, has always cherished his life, and now he is allowed to marry someone like Zhao Junchen. He must be reluctant, let alone take the initiative to fight for it, so we can ignore it, but for Su Changjin,
It must be taken seriously.”
"Why?" Still somewhat reluctant, Chen You continued to ask.
"I heard that Su Changzhen always loves his daughter the most. How can he be willing to marry his daughter to a corrupt official like Zhao Junchen? He must have no choice but to do so, but since he has no choice, he will definitely try his best to fight for it. However, Su Changzhen manages
He has been here for many years. The help he can provide to Zhao Junchen is by no means comparable to ours. However, Su Changzhen’s reputation is very bad, and Zhao Junchen’s current desire to improve his reputation is obvious, so we still have a chance.
, of course, father, you also need to remind Zhao Junchen about this matter."
Chen You nodded and said, "I understand."
Having said this, it seemed that he was unwilling to be pointed out by his daughter all the time. Chen You suddenly said: "However, it is best not to show your intelligence and shrewdness in front of Zhao Junchen. A woman who is too shrewd will only let her down.
People are alienated and scrupulous.”
Chen Zhirong smiled softly again, her voice was like a silver bell, but she said: "That's not necessarily true. As far as my daughter knows, although Zhao Junchen has always been single, he has a concubine in his house, who is called 'Mrs. Ruyi'.
She has always been known for being shrewd and capable, and is also the most favored by Zhao Junchen. Perhaps Zhao Junchen is more tolerant, so he prefers this type of woman?"
Chen Zhirong's words seemed to imply that he had no tolerance for others, and a trace of anger flashed across Chen You's face!
But then, as if he had considered something, Chen You finally just snorted and said nothing more.
However, Chen Zhirong continued: "What's more, we want to marry Zhao Junchen, but we don't have enough chips after all. Although we have His Highness the Seventh Prince behind us, his current attitude towards His Highness Zhao Junchen is whether he is on guard or close to him.
, we can’t say for sure... In addition, the only thing we can show off is the title of 'Jingguo Gong', but now we are down and out. Although our family is not down yet, we have no real power in our hands. In Zhao
In Junchen's eyes, he may not be much nobler than chickens and ducks. Therefore, if our daughter behaves shrewdly, we can also add some chips for us. After all, the help Zhao Junchen needs is not necessarily just power. To him, intelligence is.
It’s also a resource.”
After another long silence, Chen You said slowly: "You are a little presumptuous... Zhang Yu'er!"
Following Chen You's words, there was also silence in the sedan for a moment, and then Chen Zhirong chuckled and said, "My daughter is being presumptuous. I hope you won't be offended, father."
…………
Chen You called Chen Zhirong "Zhang Yu'er", which was not a slip of the tongue. In fact, this was Chen Zhirong's original name.
Chen Zhirong is not Chen You’s biological daughter.
Her real name is Zhang Yu'er. No one knows who her parents are or where she lives. They only know that she was sold to the Duke of Jing's family as a maid when she could barely remember.
In the early days, Chen Zhirong was very hard. She was just a maid. No one would feel pity for her because of her young age. She still had to do the dirty work. If something went wrong, the stewards of the Jingguo Duke's Mansion would be like
Suddenly beaten and scolded.
However, within two years, although Chen Zhirong is still underage, she has become more and more beautiful. Although she is still young, anyone can see that she will definitely be stunningly beautiful in the future!
Then Chen You discovered her and soon decided to adopt her as his daughter.
Not a goddaughter, but a real daughter - although Chen You is the Duke of Jing, he has no real power after all. If one of his concubines had given birth to a daughter in the early years, and now this daughter suddenly appeared, this kind of thing would happen
Even if it's a bit abrupt, not many people will care.
And Chen You's intention of adopting Chen Zhirong as his daughter is also very obvious - having a beautiful daughter will also be a rare resource when marrying someone in the future.
Chen You's decision may have been just a whim, but Chen Zhirong's life has undergone earth-shaking changes!
She who had to do menial and tiring work every day suddenly became well-dressed and well-fed. She who had to serve others suddenly began to be served by others. The officials in the mansion who used to beat and scold her suddenly changed their attitude towards her.
She became respectful.
The young Chen Zhirong also initially understood the life changes brought about by the improvement of status through this, and was deeply impressed.
Then, Chen You clearly told Chen Zhirong that a person's status comes from his use value. The higher the use value, the higher the status. The reason why Chen Zhirong suddenly has a higher status is because
Chen You discovered more of her use value, that's all! - Chen Zhirong thought she would never forget these words!
Maybe it's because of this experience. Or maybe it's because of her nature. In short, Chen Zhirong's original innocent and childish nature quickly changed.
When other girls were still at an ignorant age, Chen Zhirong already knew it. The reason why she was valued by Chen You was because she had beauty that others did not have. Therefore, Chen Zhirong has always paid attention to her appearance and always paid attention to it.
Show your most beautiful side and cultivate your manners, skills and temperament at all times.
However, when one of Chen You's concubines was ruthlessly abandoned by Chen You because of old age and sex, Chen Zhirong discovered that a woman's beauty would depreciate with the passage of time. If she wanted to ensure her status, besides her beauty,
, she also needs to show other aspects of utilization value!
As a result, Chen Zhirong began to deliberately show her shrewdness, intelligence, and calculation! She was just a pawn cultivated by Chen You. Apart from her beauty, these were the only values she could show.
Then, what Chen Zhirong herself did not expect was that she was quite talented in this area, and she soon received further attention from Chen You. As a result, Chen Zhirong's status in the Duke of Jing's palace was further improved, and even
It also surpassed Chen You’s biological daughter.
When Chen You began to hand over some confidential matters to Chen Zhirong, Chen Zhirong's talent in this area was fully demonstrated!
Sometimes, her various performances even make Chen You feel afraid, even though Chen Zhirong was created by Chen You himself!
In fact, Chen You's fear of Chen Zhirong was not without purpose. Today, Chen Zhirong has gradually lost control.
Especially after Chen You received instructions from the Seventh Prince Zhu Hejian to assign Chen Zhirong to Zhao Junchen, Chen Zhirong's attitude towards Chen You was no longer as respectful as before!
Chen You felt angry about Chen Zhirong's change in attitude, but Chen Zhirong himself felt that it was natural!
Chen You is taking advantage of Chen Zhirong, and Chen Zhirong has been taking advantage of Chen You!
Because such values have been instilled in her since she was a child, Chen Zhirong feels that this is a matter of course.
"A person's status comes from his use value." This sentence was taught by Chen You to Chen Zhirong, and Chen Zhirong has always regarded it as his creed!
Nowadays, Chen You can no longer bring anything more to Chen Zhirong. Instead, he has gradually begun to restrain and fear Chen Zhirong. This means that Chen You has no more use value in Chen Zhirong's eyes!
However, Chen Zhirong's utilization value for Chen You is far from fully realized!
Therefore, Chen Zhirong will no longer be as respectful to Chen You as before!
…………
And as Chen Zhirong reaches the age of marriage, in Chen Zhirong's eyes, the next person who can reflect her value and the next person who can be used by her is her future husband-in-law!
And Zhao Junchen is the most suitable candidate for her future husband.
Because Zhao Junchen is powerful enough, he can bring more things to her; because Zhao Junchen does not seem to reject smart women like her, so she can get enough room to display; because Zhao Junchen is not a good official, so he is not a good official.
It is consistent with the values she has developed since childhood.
As for whether Zhao Junchen will choose himself in the end, Chen Zhirong is also full of confidence.
Even if she doesn't talk about her appearance, Chen Zhirong now has many things in her hands that Zhao Junchen is interested in.
For example, some information about the seventh prince Zhu Hejian.
Chen Zhirong believed that Zhao Junchen would be interested in this.
And she doesn't mind betraying the seventh prince Zhu Hejian, even if it involves the Duke of Jing's Chen family!
A person's use value determines a person's status. If the subject of this sentence is replaced by "a family", it will be equally fluent.
Thinking of this, in the sedan chair, the pretty Chen Zhirong suddenly smiled, as if a hundred flowers were blooming!
She couldn't wait for Zhao Junchen's appearance!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
While everyone was having different thoughts, Zhao Junchen's sedan finally appeared in the distance on the official road outside Donghua Gate.
As Chen Zhirong speculated, Zhao Junchen arrived late on purpose this time, which also meant to test the attitudes of various parties.
But Zhao Junchen's temptation failed to come true in the end.
Putting aside the old Cui Mian and his family who had not yet appeared in the front cabinet, when Zhao Junchen appeared, both Su Changjin, the governor of Southern Zhili, and Chen You, the Duke of Jing, were all unexpectedly eager.
When Zhao Junchen got off the sedan, Su Changzhen and Chen You both walked quickly to greet each other. Not only was Su Changzhen's face full of deliberate smiles, but Chen You, who had always been informal and smiling, was also facing Zhao Junchen.
At that time, he actually managed to squeeze out a smile.
To be honest, in Zhao Junchen's opinion, the reason why Su Changzhen and Chen You agreed to this blind date at the palace banquet must have been under pressure from all aspects, and it was definitely not out of their own free will.
So now that he found that not only was he not disliked, but he was so popular, Zhao Junchen actually felt a little flattered.
However, although the feeling of "flattered" in my heart was only a trace, when it showed on my face, it was absolutely overwhelming.
Faced with the greetings of Su Changzhen and Chen You, after Zhao Junchen got off the sedan, he bowed his hands repeatedly and apologized: "I'm really sorry, I'm really sorry that I made these two seniors wait here with their families for a long time. I'm really a junior."
"It's so rude. In fact, this junior should have come a long time ago. However, just as he was about to leave the house, he received an urgent message from the Ministry of Household Affairs, which delayed him for a long time. I hope the two seniors won't take offense."
"No blame, no blame! There is nothing to blame for this." Su Changzhen waved his hands and said: "I also know that Zhao Shangshu has a heavy responsibility and many court affairs. He is not only in charge of the household affairs of the imperial court and His Majesty's internal funds, but also
Xichang Yamen, which is also in charge of the inner court, is always busy with many things, unlike Duke Jing and I, who are just idle in the capital. It is normal for us to be a little late now."
Chen You also nodded and said: "Shangshu Zhao is really serious. The palace banquet will only start in half an hour. Shangshu Zhao is not late. It's just that Governor Su and I came too early."
Zhao Junchen smiled and said: "Both of you are my seniors, and this is not a formal occasion, so just call me 'Junchen', such as 'Zhao Shangshu', 'Master Zhao', etc. The junior is young."
It’s too light, I really can’t take it seriously, and it also seems too raw.”
While they were talking, Zhao Junchen, Chen You, and Su Changzhen were walking together and had arrived outside Donghua Gate.
As Zhao Junchen gradually approached, the sedan curtains of Chen Zhirong and Su Xiuning on the left and right sides of Donghua Gate were opened by a small crack at almost the same time.
Then, two pairs of wonderful eyes focused on Zhao Junchen.
The emotions contained in the eyes are either complex or profound.
At the same time, another group of sedans appeared at the official road in the distance, but it was Cui Mian, the old man from the front pavilion. After finding Cui Qianxue, he hurriedly hurried along and with Zhao Junchen, he finally arrived outside the palace.
.
Since then, all the protagonists of this palace banquet have finally arrived!
…
PS: During this period of time, Chongzi will not break chapters at all. He can never finish a chapter, and has several chapters of 10,000 words in a row.
Chapters of 10,000 words are very slow to write, more time-consuming to check, and tiring to read. It is completely thankless.
But there is no way, the chapters must be complete. If it is updated just for the sake of updating, I am afraid I can only write some streamlined text.
This chapter is still a 10,000-word chapter, but Chongzi will try to only update ordinary chapters of three to five thousand words in the future.