eurekapd Chapter 468 Zhou Feng's Marriage
Chapter 468 Zhou Feng's Marriage
Zhou Feng wanted to explain that he posed no threat to His Majesty.
But after saying all that, the younger brother turned and left, refusing to listen to his explanation at all.
Zhou Feng didn't go out to see people off. He sat in a chair, looking at the ashes inside the fire bucket, at the portraits he had made in his spare time.
Even though the paintings were all burned, the same images still lingered in his mind.
The girl's beautiful face, sometimes coquettish, sometimes innocent, but more than anything, it was her sharp and resolute gaze.
He had seen this kind of gaze in Si Muyan's eyes before, and he had also seen it in the current Emperor.
He recalled the first time he saw Si Muyan in Fenghuang County; he was immediately drawn to her talent and confidence. It was a side of her he had never seen before.
Young girls are always shy, and they like to lower their eyes and blush.
Si Muyan, however, acted like a man, boldly meeting people's eyes and arguing with them over a few coins.
When he later met Si Muwan, he thought it was the same person, but he was also puzzled as to why the same person could have changed so much.
So what was he thinking when his aunt refused to let him marry Si Muwan? He was thinking that perhaps his aunt was right, and that the one he loved had always been Si Muyan.
Zhou Feng's hand rubbed the table, recalling Si Jing'an's words.
He prefers power.
is it?
The time Si Muwan met him in Kyoto, Si Muwan underwent a complete transformation. She became a high-ranking county princess, all her former naivety gone, leaving only gentleness and resilience.
What he admired was perhaps the resilience that emanated from her very being.
Whether it's Si Muyan or Si Muwan, he loves their strong personalities.
After seeing his younger brother off, the steward nervously approached the study and knocked on the door after a long while before asking questions.
"Master, I've had someone bring you some cooling tea. Would you like some?"
Zhou Feng said in a deep voice, "Don't worry about me, step back."
The next day, after court, the younger sister kept Zhou Feng behind and met him in the Hall of Diligent Governance to inquire about her younger brother's recent situation.
"Xiao An isn't very talented, so I'll need your help a lot. How has he been doing lately?"
Zhou Feng bowed and replied, "Your Majesty, diligence can make up for lack of talent. Jing'an is very diligent and will surely become a useful person in time. However, this process is necessary, and I will do my best to nurture him."
The younger sister nodded and rubbed her temples: "With you taking such good care of me, I can rest assured."
After talking for a while, the younger sister gestured for Zhou Feng to leave, but Zhou Feng did not leave and stood hesitantly at the bottom.
The younger sister asked in confusion, "Does Minister Zhou have other matters to report?"
After a moment's thought, Zhou Feng replied, "Your Majesty, I... have reached the age of thirty and have secured my position in the Ministry of Personnel. It is time... to consider starting a family."
“Yes.” The younger sister perked up and smiled, “If you hadn’t mentioned it, I would have almost forgotten. You’ve worked so hard all these years, missing out on many fine ladies in order to keep the court in order for me.”
Zhou Feng's heart sank.
Then the younger sister continued, "My dear minister, which family's daughter have you taken a fancy to? I will bestow a marriage upon you."
Zhou Feng mustered his courage and looked up at his younger sister. Behind the beaded curtain, his younger sister was completely blurred and he couldn't see her clearly.
Just as she was in his heart.
After a short while, Zhou Feng lowered his head dejectedly: "Thank you for your concern, Your Majesty. I have no idea yet. Once I have chosen a family, I will definitely report to Your Majesty first."
"it is good."
After Zhou Feng left, the younger sister returned to the Zichen Palace to rest.
For some reason, I felt a tightness in my chest.
He then said to Granny Tian with a self-deprecating tone, "I know what he's thinking, but I have no intention of taking a concubine. Now that he's getting married, I should be happy."
Granny Tian replied, "It is Zhou's good fortune that His Majesty is willing to think this way. Otherwise, if his unspeakable thoughts were discovered, it might be detrimental to His Majesty."
The younger sister turned her face away; she didn't care about any of that.
That man was the first man she had ever truly loved. Unfortunately, things had changed; they could never be together, and she was no longer at the age where she would be consumed by love.
Zhou Feng acted swiftly and soon selected the granddaughter of the Minister of Works.
The Minister of Works was nearly seventy years old. He had always been diligent and conscientious, and disliked court intrigues. When the late emperor was alive, he only managed the Ministry of Works. The late emperor wanted him to join the cabinet, but he declined, saying that he was not capable enough.
His descendants all share the same temperament.
The grandchildren are all quite young. The eldest granddaughter is twenty-two. At this age, a girl of that age who is still unmarried is considered an old maid.
She was engaged after she came of age, but her grandmother passed away and she was in mourning for her husband's relatives, which caused the engagement to be delayed. After the mourning period ended, the man broke off the engagement and married someone else.
This matter caused quite a stir in Kyoto for a while.
But this woman was quite strong-willed. Without saying a word, she asked her parents to comb her hair and decided not to remarry.
I heard that this time, Zhou Feng was away on business and happened to encounter the woman's carriage being damaged, so he lent her his own carriage.
The two met briefly, and immediately understood each other perfectly.
The young lady readily agreed and sent someone to the Minister's residence to deliver the message. Since it was His Majesty himself who sent someone to inquire, the Minister's residence dared not delay. They then went to confirm their young lady's intentions, and she shyly agreed. Only then did they realize that their young lady had fallen in love with Minister Zhou at first sight.
This is a good marriage, and His Majesty himself issued the decree.
Both families were overjoyed.
The old servant who took care of Zhou Feng was so happy that he went to the graves of his deceased master and mistress and bowed again and again, weeping bitterly several times.
He also wrote a letter to the matriarch of the Xu family, telling her not to worry.
The old lady of the Xu family was already very old, and the doctor said she didn't have much time left. Upon hearing this, she wept uncontrollably.
He repeatedly said that he had delayed Ah Feng back then.
On one hand, she felt indebted to Zhou Feng, and on the other hand, she had a plan in mind, but she dared not say it.
She assumed that Zhou Feng hadn't been able to marry because the current emperor was preventing him from doing so. Perhaps this nephew she had raised was already in the palace as the emperor's male favorite.
How could she not be moved to receive a letter written in Ah Feng's own handwriting?
Upon seeing this, the eldest son smiled and said, "Mother has always been worried about my cousin. Now that she knows he is doing well, she should be happy."
Grandma Xu wiped away her tears and said softly, "I used to be too strict with him and always restricted him, wanting him to go into business... And that other person... after all, I was the one who broke up our relationship, so I was worried about retaliation."
“Mother is overthinking it. The Si family isn’t such petty people. As you said before, the eldest daughter of the Si family is a smart person. And now it can be proven that two years ago, when we had some business dealings with the Si family, the Si family’s steward, Mr. He, came to meet with my son in person after he found out. It’s clear that the eldest daughter of the Si family is grateful.”
If it weren't for Old Madam Xu valuing Si Muyan and providing her with a lot of help, the Si family wouldn't have had such a comfortable few years in Lingnan.
Later, however, Old Mrs. Xu, unwilling to get involved in a lawsuit, forced Ah Feng to sever ties with the Si family.
But Si Muyan knew the principle of repaying a drop of kindness with a spring of gratitude, and she had indeed helped the Xu family over the past few years.
Therefore, Zhou Feng spared no effort in supporting his younger sister in the imperial court.