Chapter 238: A Perfect Match

The Emperor personally bestowed a marriage upon Zhao Lang, the young man of the Zhao family, and Miss Jinzhi, the newly adopted sister of Prince Rui, and as soon as the news spread, it instantly ignited a raging fire of gossip among the people of Shang Jing.

Everyone knows that last time Prince Rui married his counterfeit sister to Zhao Lang, nearly taking Zhao Lang's life, and he still bears a deep scar on his chest to this day.

Had Zhao Lang, the young general, not been in good health and able to withstand blades, he would have already met the King of Hell this time.

Although Prince Rui's manor was also a victim, harmed by that counterfeit, the misfortune that befell Zhao Lang was truly caused by Prince Rui's manor dragging him into the water.

Because of the previous marriage affair, Zhao Lang has long become the laughingstock of Shang Jing.

Not only did he lose his wife and nearly his life, but the crucial blow was that the Sixth Prince Xiao Wei put a green hat on him, stripping him of any reputation.

Although Zhao Lang later did not cause trouble for Prince Rui's manor, he still harbored a certain amount of hostility toward it.

This lingering hostility had not been resolved when the Emperor suddenly issued an imperial edict of marriage.

The people of Shang Jing found it entertaining, and they were eager to see how the entangled grievances between Prince Rui's manor and the Zhao family would finally be resolved.

The other noble families, however, did not think so; it was clearly Emperor Longqing fanning the flames from the side!

How could Emperor Longqing not know that a rift had already formed between Prince Rui's manor and the Zhao family, and now he was marrying Prince Rui's lady to the Zhao family?

It was heard that Xiao Yin dotes excessively on this newly adopted sister, giving her the best of everything; Princess Consort of Rui even dotes on Miss Jinzhi to the extreme, treating her as his own sister.

If Miss Jinzhi were to marry into the Zhao family and suffer grievances, the affair would become a spectacular spectacle.

Then Xiao Yin would have to take Zhao Lang's head off; the Zhao family and Prince Rui's manor would surely be unsettled, and if so, it would weaken Xiao Yin's momentum in the army and give him several more enemies.

Emperor Longqing knows how to balance power; after the incident in Wuzhou, Zhao Lang did not voluntarily come to Prince Rui's manor to discuss it, and on the court his prominence no longer tilted toward Xiao Yin, evidently even Xiao Yin himself had become resented.

This move could be said to roast both the Zhao family and Prince Rui's manor on the fire at the same time.

For the Zhao family it isn't easy either, since Xiao Yin has a heavy hand over them; logically, after the previous incident, the two families should have no further entanglements this time.

Now they are sending a mute woman from Prince Rui's manor to the Zhao family—clearly an act of bullying the Zhao family.

Although Zhao Lang is a young general, his battle achievements are already impressive; at a young age he has his own general's residence and has become a new aristocrat of Shang Jing.

Never mind whether Miss Jinzhi's family is worthy; the crucial point is that she is a mute with a disfigured appearance, sending such a person to be a proper bride is truly repulsive.

The fact that the Emperor's marriage decree is involved inevitably makes Zhao Lang overthink; the royal family seems to be using their great power to bully the small, suppressing his prominence.

Thinking that way, if Zhao Lang could treat the new bride Miss Jinzhi well, that would be something miraculous.

Gu Jiu Ling also thought of this, and her face instantly darkened.

The eunuch of the Ministry of Rites had finished reading the Emperor's marriage edict; Xiao Yin's complexion turned iron‑blue as he realized Zhao Lang was now at odds with him, and sending Miss Jinzhi over would make her a scapegoat.

She cannot speak, a pitiful little mute; if she were to be bullied to death by that little scoundrel Zhao Lang in the Zhao residence, what could be done?

But now he is not fully prepared; the timing is wrong, and if this leads to a fallout between Miss Jinzhi and Emperor Longqing, the sacrifice would be too great and the odds of success are low.

Up to now they have only eliminated one Xiao Wei, while the Duan family remains, the Sixth Prince's Cao Clan still stands, and the Crown Prince of the Eastern Palace's strength is also not to be underestimated.

He furrowed his brows tightly.

The eunuch of the Ministry of Rites had to repeat once more, "Prince Rui, receive the edict!"

Xiao Yin lifted his eyes coldly toward the inner attendant; the Ministry of Rites attendant's heart skipped a beat, and he forced himself to present the edict with both hands before Xiao Yin.

Xiao Yin slowly raised his hand, yet he did not wish to accept it.

Six years ago his mistake was misidentifying a person, and he had to let General An's daughter wander in hardship for so long.

Now, after finally clearing the injustice, she was reinstated; just a few days ago she entered the An family ancestral hall, was recorded in the family genealogy, and her name was changed to An Jinzhi.

The name is a bit awkward, but it's still better than being called Su Wanrou again; the name Su Wanrou has been rendered useless by that countryside counterfeit.

This time he still hasn't properly arranged Miss Jinzhi's marriage, and it has again been tangled with the Zhao family, which makes him somewhat worried.

Although the Zhao family members are still decent, the most unpredictable thing in this world is human hearts; if the Zhao family truly harbors hatred toward him because of the previous Wuzhou incident, it would drag Miss Jinzhi into trouble.

The eunuch of the Ministry of Rites slipped the edict into Xiao Yin's hesitant hand, then turned and hurried away with his men.

He always got the feeling that Prince Rui's gaze was murderous; this time delivering the edict, not even a reward of silver, it would be good enough just to get out of Prince Rui's manor in one piece.

After the eunuch of the Ministry of Rites left, Xiao Yin almost grabbed the edict and stomped it under his foot; Gu Jiu Ling quickly seized his arm, preventing Xiao Yin from dropping the edict to the ground, and ordered it to be placed on the main hall instead, ending the matter.

She followed behind Xiao Yin into the Eastern Garden; Xiao Yin's face turned a sickly green with anger, and although Gu Jiu Ling was clever, she truly didn't know what to do about this, feeling it was a deadlock.

"Why has it tangled with the Zhao family again?" Gu Jiu Ling offered Xiao Yin a cup of tea.

Xiao Yin clenched his jaw tightly, a hint of murderous intent flashing across his brows, and slowly said, "Perhaps… once we begin, we don't stop—let's kill him…"

"Prince, that's forbidden!" Gu Jiu Ling hurriedly urged, "Zhao Lang must not be killed!"

"Zhao Lang now enjoys considerable prestige in the army, hasn't committed any wrongdoing, and is a heroic champion who kills enemies for the people and the nation; if he were killed, how could the Prince conduct himself in the army thereafter?"

Xiao Yin immediately grew frustrated, inhaled and said, "Then poison him; do you have any drug that can cut off his lineage? Give it to him!"

Gu Jiu Ling was speechless, giving a wry smile, "That's not right; after all, Zhao Lang is the sole heir of the Zhao family, and a lasting feud would be undesirable."

"What then?" Xiao Yin gritted his teeth, "That kid now hates me, I can see it; Miss Jinzhi will inevitably be subjected to petty mistreatment."

Gu Jiu Ling furrowed her brows and looked at Xiao Yin: "Jinzhi's marriage must go through, after all it's an imperial decree; an imperial decree cannot be defied!"

"But after marrying in, can we still divorce, Prince?"

Xiao Yin was startled, then sighed, "Divorce is far from easy; moreover, an imperial marriage makes divorce even harder, unless both spouses commit a grave fault…"

"No, that girl Jinzhi is too pitiful; if she again bears a tarnished reputation just for a divorce, it's not worth it."

Gu Jiu Ling slowly said, "Who says we must let Jinzhi bear it? Let's first see the situation; if the Zhao family treats Jinzhi poorly, we'll use some means to make Zhao Lang commit an unforgivable error, then our own family can step in and divorce, demanding justice from the Zhao family!"

"What do you think, Prince?"

Xiao Yin's eyes lit up instantly, and he whispered a laugh, "Makes sense!"

Outside, Ling Feng and Jiu Yue exchanged a glance, their faces flashing with contempt, wondering how the Prince and Princess Consort were moving farther down the treacherous, vile path.

Could it truly be such a perfect match?