Chapter 71: Li Lizhi's Premarital Anxiety? Solve It at the Root!

Of course, to find out whether Chen Yan really likes me, I definitely can't just ask him outright.

I have to find out indirectly.

Otherwise, if I mess up, future meetings will be awkward.

However, before she could speak, Chen Yan said, "Your Highness, why are you interested in these things?"

"Could it be..." Chen Yan teased, "Your Highness, do you have someone you like?"

Li Lizhi's eyes flashed with a hint of panic.

No way?

Could he have already noticed?

No, that shouldn't be the case!

Li Lizhi forcibly suppressed her panic, trying to keep her voice calm as she said, "Marquis of Weinan, you're joking; I grew up deep in the palace since childhood, and aside from Father Emperor and my elder brothers, the people I see most are eunuchs."

"Next would be the Marquis of Weinan."

"I can't very well say... that I've taken a liking to you, can I?"

This is a small test.

After Li Lizhi finished speaking, she kept watching his expression out of the corner of her eye.

She wanted to see how he would react.

Yet Chen Yan waved his hands repeatedly, saying, "You can't say that sort of thing; I'm a good-for-nothing who frequents pleasure quarters, neither literary nor martial, and Your Highness isn't blind—how could you take a liking to me?"

Li Lizhi: "......"

She was a little annoyed, but she couldn't show it.

After all, she couldn't admit she liked Chen Yan, or admit she was blind, could she?

She puffed her cheeks slightly, forcing a smile, "Marquis of Weinan, aren't you selling yourself short?"

"You cured Sizi and Duke Cai, whom even the Chief Imperial Physician could not help, and your teahouse earns over five thousand strings a day; your talent has Father Emperor and Mother Empress singing your praises."

How could you be a good-for-nothing?

Chen Yan chuckled, "It's true I haunt the pleasure quarters—I know every courtesan in Pingkang Ward."

"What's wrong with calling myself a good-for-nothing?"

Li Lizhi: "......"

Great, now I'm even angrier.

She didn't know why Chen Yan belittled himself like that, but she didn't want to keep arguing with him, so she changed the subject: "I remember you said earlier that you currently have no romantic feelings for Gao Yang."

"Then have you thought about how you'll get along with Gao Yang after marriage?"

"Getting along..." Chen Yan glanced at the night sky and said lightly, "Let things take their course; having no romantic feelings now doesn't mean there won't be any later."

"After all, familiarity breeds affection."

Li Lizhi asked again, "What if no feelings develop?"

"That just means we haven't spent enough time together; day after day, we'll eventually cultivate feelings..."

Chen Yan said, "Your Highness, if you have something to say, just speak up; I'll answer what I can—there's no need to use me and Gao Yang as an analogy."

From the very start, he felt Li Lizhi was acting oddly.

She seemed nervous, and also seemed to be probing, trying to find out something.

But after talking for a while, he still couldn't figure out what Li Lizhi wanted to know or test.

Besides, Cheng Tian Men was just ahead, so he simply asked outright.

Upon hearing this, Li Lizhi fell silent for a moment, her voice tinged with bitterness: "I... Father Emperor and Mother Empress have been constantly mentioning before me that Gao Yang will marry you next month, and they keep suggesting, intentionally or not, that I should spend more time with my Cousin Chang Sun."

"Ah, I see!" Chen Yan exclaimed, realizing, "His Majesty and Her Majesty want to match you with Chang Sun Chong."

He said that was why Li Lizhi had been acting so strangely today.

It turned out that, knowing Emperor Li Shimin and Empress wanted to pair her with Chang Sun Chong, she had become anxious.

No wonder she kept asking how I viewed our marriage with Gao Yang, what liking meant, and what to do if there were no romantic feelings after marriage.

Everything now made sense.

Li Lizhi quietly observed Chen Yan's expression; seeing no other emotion, she felt a bit disappointed.

If Chen Yan truly liked her, upon hearing that she was about to marry someone else, he certainly wouldn't remain so calm.

And Chen Yan, aside from his realization, showed no sign of being upset or distressed.

This was enough to show that Chen Yan...... did not like her.

A sourness, like a tide, welled up in her heart; an indescribable feeling lingered in her chest, making her feel utterly miserable.

Li Lizhi lowered her gaze, afraid to let the surging emotions in her eyes show.

Her voice hoarse, she said, "Exactly, Father Emperor and Mother Empress want to marry me off to Chang Sun Chong."

"But I...... don't want to marry him."

Deep down, she still held a sliver of hope, wanting to test one last time.

Chen Yan nodded, saying, "Not marrying him is right; you really shouldn't marry him."

"...... Huh?" Li Lizhi startled, her long lashes fluttering slightly, and the hope in her heart suddenly swelled.

"Why...... why?"

Chen Yan thought Li Lizhi was probably ill.

The name of her illness is 'pre-marriage anxiety syndrome.'

Although he isn't a psychiatrist, he can actually cure Li Lizhi's condition.

Since it's pre-marriage anxiety, just let her not marry, and that'll settle it.

Solve the problem at its root, and she won't even be able to feel anxious.

If it were someone else's wedding, Chen Yan might really not be able to get involved, but Li Lizhi and Changsun Chong, you know......

No problem at all!

"You didn't mention it today, I actually forgot about this matter." Chen Yan explained slowly: "How to put it, actually, close relatives within the five degrees of mourning cannot marry; otherwise they will incur heavenly punishment."

He didn't explain to Li Lizhi anything about genes and all that nonsense.

In this era, directly telling people that marrying close relatives will bring heavenly punishment works better than any explanation.

It's just like those simps nowadays; no matter how you advise them, it's useless.

But if you say that woman's horoscope clashes with him......

I guarantee it'll make him switch to licking another woman.

"Heavenly... heavenly punishment?" Li Lizhi was dazed.

"That's right." Chen Yan said seriously: "If you don't believe me, feel free to investigate; those who marry close relatives basically never have a good ending."

"If you marry Changsun Chong, you'll likely kill yourself and your future children."

Li Lizhi, seeing how earnest he was, believed him a little, hesitated a moment, and asked: "I know that close relatives cannot marry; the Book of Rites, Chapter on Etiquette, records: 'One does not take a wife of the same surname.' But I and my Changsun cousin have different surnames."

Chen Yan was speechless: "If you say that, then if you took the Empress Changsun's surname, wouldn't you be of the same surname?"

"In the Tang Dynasty, many men marry into their wives' families, and the children take the wife's surname."

"Following your logic, then a child who takes the mother's surname could marry a paternal cousin of a different surname?"

Li Lizhi was momentarily speechless, not knowing how to rebut.

Upon further thought, it actually seems reasonable.

Chen Yan continued his explanation: "The blood flowing in your veins is not only His Majesty's, but also Empress Changsun's."

"Medically speaking, there's no difference between the blood of cousins and paternal cousins; likewise, they cannot marry."

"If they insist on marrying, they are likely to produce deformed children missing limbs or suffering from some congenital disease, dying young before they grow up."

"As I said before, if you don't believe me, go ahead and investigate to see whether those cousins who marry are as I described."

"......"