Chapter 220

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Protagonist:

Yan Qianqian

An Wang hurriedly stepped forward, bowed respectfully, and called out, "Imperial Brother."

The Emperor set down the memorial in his hand, looked at An Wang with great interest, and asked, "What brings you here this time? Presumably, if there were no important matter, you would not so easily enter the palace to face the Son of Heaven."

Indeed, just as the Emperor said, An Wang has always been someone who never visits the Three Treasures Hall without a reason; ordinarily, if there is no important matter to report, he would absolutely not set foot in this Imperial Study of his own accord.

An Wang smiled slightly and replied, "Imperial Brother, Si'er has returned from Dongying. This time, the shop she opened in Dongying had an unprecedentedly grand opening, lively in the extreme. Inside the shop, heads thronged and shoulders rubbed, customers filled the doorway, business was exceptionally brisk, and the profits were remarkably substantial."

Upon hearing this, the Emperor could not help but beam with joy and exclaimed in admiration, "Oh? So outstanding! It truly exceeds Our expectations."

An Wang immediately added, "Imperial Brother, please examine this item." With that, he took out the imperial edict from his bosom and presented it to the Emperor with both hands.

The Emperor accepted the edict, slowly unfolded it, and read its contents carefully. As his gaze moved, the Emperor's expression first froze slightly, then the corners of his mouth gradually curled upward, and finally he could not restrain himself from bursting into loud laughter.

"Hahahaha... laughing Us to death! We can almost imagine how ugly Shangguan Peilin that old fellow's face must have been when writing this edict! Yan Si is truly formidable!!" The laughter echoed endlessly throughout the Imperial Study, as if it would break through the roof and soar straight into the clouds.

An Wang said to the Emperor with a face full of joy, "Imperial Brother! This time I have come precisely to humbly request that You bestow an imperial marriage decree. That way, I can also select an auspicious day and complete the marriage as soon as possible!" Upon hearing this, the Emperor was greatly pleased and laughed heartily, "Hahaha, good, good, good! Since Younger Brother has this request, We shall naturally grant it."

Having spoken, the Emperor opened his mouth slightly and spoke in a measured tone. Eunuch Sun, standing to one side, understood perfectly, hurriedly stepped forward, picked up an exquisite brush from the table, saturated it with ink, and began writing swiftly on the bright yellow silk.

For a moment, only the "shua shua shua" sound of the brush tip contacting the silk could be heard in the study, crisp and urgent. In just a short while, Eunuch Sun had already set down the brush, gently blew on the still-wet ink on the silk, and then presented it to the Emperor with utmost reverence.

The Emperor glanced over it briefly, nodded in satisfaction, and then signaled Eunuch Sun to hand the edict to An Wang. An Wang accepted the edict with great joy and impatiently unfolded it to read carefully.

After confirming it was correct, he bowed again in gratitude, "Many thanks for Imperial Brother's great grace!" The Emperor smiled and waved his hand, saying, "Very well, hurry back and discuss the wedding matters with your family."

Having obtained the Emperor's permission, An Wang hastily replied, "Then Younger Brother will take his leave first." With that, he carefully put away the edict, turned, and quickly withdrew from the Imperial Study.

Exiting the Palace Gate, An Wang mounted his horse, raised his whip and lashed it hard; the steed beneath him shot forward like an arrow released from a bow. All along the way, the sound of hoofbeats resounded through the long street, causing passersby to turn their heads in droves.

Before long, An Wang raced back to An Wang Fu. However, to his astonishment, the residence was utterly quiet, not a soul in sight. "What is going on? Clearly everyone was still quite concerned about Yan Si's marriage before, so how is it that now not even a single person can be seen?"

An Wang could not help but mutter to himself. Just as he was puzzling over this, he suddenly saw Yue Yi walking over. He immediately went up to ask, "Yue Yi, where has everyone else in the residence gone?"

After bowing, Yue Yi replied, "To answer the Prince, the Princess Consort, Miss Qianqian, and Miss Yan Shuang'er — the three of them — went out together early this morning to find someone to calculate the date. As for Young Master Yan Si, because he went to Dongying on official business some time ago and has been gone for nearly half a month, today he also went to the shop early to attend to business."

Hearing this, An Wang suddenly understood, and the doubts in his heart largely dissipated., An Wang remained alone in place, and the surroundings instantly fell quiet, an indescribable sense of boredom welling up in his heart.

He raised his head to look at the sky, estimated the time, and felt it was about time for Yan Jie to finish class. So, An Wang got on the carriage and sped toward Shangshufang.

Before long, the carriage stopped steadily in front of Shangshufang. An Wang looked out through the carriage window and discovered many carriages already waiting there. He did not rush to alight, but chose to sit inside the carriage and wait quietly.

After all, ever since Qianqian graduated from Shangshufang, only Yan Jie remained there alone. Although every time he asked about Yan Jie's situation at Shangshufang, the answer was always "pretty good" or "no one bullies me" and the like, An Wang knew clearly that his own child is by nature too well-behaved and gentle; even if he truly suffered some grievance, he would probably not reveal it easily.

Precisely because of this, whenever he had time, An Wang would personally come to pick up Yan Jie from school. On the one hand, naturally to confirm whether anyone dared to bully him; on the other hand, to demonstrate to everyone the importance he placed on this son, so that others would not dare to look down on him.

Just like that, after waiting not long, a "zi ya" sound rang out, and the tightly shut main gate of Shangshufang slowly opened. Immediately after, three or five children came out together, talking and laughing all the way, very lively. Seeing this, An Wang hurriedly got down from the carriage, stood at the gate, and stared fixedly inside, hoping to see Yan Jie's figure as soon as possible.

After another short while, he finally saw Yan Jie walking side by side with a little girl; the two seemed to be chatting very happily, radiant smiles on both their faces.

Seeing his child from afar, An Wang thought to himself, "Judging by that appearance, his mood seems excellent; presumably he has not been bullied by others, and in this Shangshufang he must be living quite happily."

Just as he was pondering thus, the sharp-eyed Yan Jie had already spotted An Wang's figure, and immediately shouted at the top of his voice, "Father! Father!" Then, like an arrow released from a bow, he sprinted over, plunged into An Wang's warm embrace, and impatiently said, "Father, why did you come today?"

An Wang, wearing a smile, gently stroked Yan Jie's head and replied, "Today I had nothing to do, so I thought I would come pick up my son to return home; moreover, today there is also a happy event to tell you about."

Hearing this, Yan Jie's curiosity-filled eyes instantly brightened, and he pressed urgently, "What happy event exactly? Father, quickly tell your son!" However, An Wang deliberately played the mystery, only smiling and soothing, "Don't rush, don't rush; once we get home, you will naturally know."