son, don't mess around

Chapter 818 Zhao Xiang's Conditions

The atmosphere in the study was solemn.

And yet, it's somewhat eerie.

The fire beside the table burned brightly, making the room warm and cozy. The tea on the fire boiled, and steam rose continuously, swirling between the two people.

Zhao Xiang picked up the teapot from the stove, skillfully washed and brewed the tea. Before long, two steaming cups of tea appeared on the table, shrouded in mist.

In the dim light, it was impossible to discern any change in Zhao Xiang's expression.

The aura shrouded in darkness was powerful and chilling. Zhao Xiang's reaction was unexpected by Lin Jiangnian.

As expected, upon learning that the cabbages he had painstakingly cultivated had been secretly stolen, Prime Minister Zhao should have been furious and extremely angry.

However, aside from the coldness he felt emanating from Prime Minister Zhao when he was first arrested in the courtyard, Lin Jiangnian was unable to sense any further emotions from him.

At this moment, Prime Minister Zhao was extremely calm!
He's so calm it's almost unreal... What tricks is this old man up to?
If Zhao Xiang were to fly into a rage and angrily point his finger at him and hurl insults, Lin Jiangnian would actually feel more at ease, since he was as thick as a rock and wouldn't flinch.

But Zhao Xiang showed no emotion whatsoever; the calmer he was, the more unsettling it became.

An ordinary person would probably be terrified by now.

After all, the current prime minister wields immense power and influence; it's no exaggeration to say his authority is unparalleled. Even the emperor in the palace might not have as much influence as this Prime Minister Zhao these days.

Few people can remain calm in the face of such an important figure, especially one who has made a mistake and feels guilty, having stolen someone's daughter in the first place.

...But Lin Jiangnian is different!
He's shameless!
Having weathered countless storms, he now remains calm and composed in any situation.

Furthermore, the fact that Prime Minister Zhao did not get angry and break ties with Lin Jiangnian from the beginning, and is even able to remain so calm now, clearly indicates that he most likely wants to talk to Lin Jiangnian.

Otherwise, given his status and position, he could easily have Lin Jiangnian beaten out with sticks.

Lin Jiangnian picked up the teacup on the table, took a small sip, and exclaimed, "Excellent tea!"

"To be able to drink tea personally brewed by Prime Minister Zhao, there are probably very few people in the world who have such a blessing."

Lin Jiangnian's small compliment failed to elicit any change in Zhao Xiang's expression. In the dim light, Zhao Xiang's gaze fell on Lin Jiangnian, scrutinizing him intently.

Despite not knowing any martial arts, Lin Jiangnian felt a pair of dangerous eyes staring at him, as if he were being watched by some ferocious prey, making his whole body tremble.

...This Prime Minister Zhao's gaze was far too forceful.

Lin Jiangnian remained calm and composed, showing no sign of fear on his face.

The two remained locked in this stalemate for a long time before Zhao Xiang's deep question finally came: "When did you and Xi'er get together?"

This question?

Lin Jiangnian subconsciously said, "That's a long story..."

Under Zhao Xiang's gaze, Lin Jiang cleared his throat and said, "Miss Zhao is as beautiful as a flower and as lovely as a fairy. I have long admired her, therefore..."

Before Lin Jiangnian could begin his explanation, Zhao Xiang interrupted him expressionlessly: "Talk about others."

"Well, it must have happened a year ago."

"a year ago……"

Zhao Xiang's gaze sharpened, and he stared intently at Lin Jiangnian.

a year ago?

Isn't this young man someone who just arrived in the capital a year ago?

Did he get together with Xi'er back then?

She just arrived and already she's seduced his precious daughter?!
"you……"

Zhao Xiang spoke in a low, suppressed voice, as if he wanted to ask something.

But as soon as he opened his mouth, he fell silent again!
Some questions don't need to be asked anymore; the answers are already obvious.

Thinking of this, Zhao Xiang's eyes gradually darkened, and the atmosphere in the room became even more oppressive.

Lin Jiangnian noticed this and coughed lightly again: "Prime Minister Zhao, don't get too angry, it's not good for your health. The court is in turmoil right now, and we still need you to take charge. You absolutely cannot let anything happen to you..."

While trying to appease her, he continued to probe: "Well, Miss Zhao and I are truly in love, and I hope Prime Minister Zhao can grant our wish..."

These words, once spoken, caused the previously calm Prime Minister Zhao's eyes to turn extremely dangerous.

"Really love each other?"

Zhao Xiang stared at him and said coldly, "Sneaking into my Zhao residence is such a despicable act as that of a dignified heir to the Prince of Lin."

"Or is this a tactic Lin Hengzhong taught you?!"

Faced with Zhao Xiang's accusations, Lin Jiangnian knew he was in the wrong and obediently accepted the scolding.

"Ahem, this has nothing to do with Your Highness. Miss Zhao and I are indeed mutually in love, there is absolutely no other reason. As for sneaking into the Zhao residence... Prime Minister Zhao, you misunderstand, I did not do anything sneaky, and..."

"The reason I kept my affair with Miss Zhao a secret from Prime Minister Zhao was because I was worried he wouldn't be able to accept it. I was thinking of waiting for a suitable time to slowly explain it to you, but I didn't expect..."

Lin Jiangnian did not continue speaking, explaining only to the point, which was just enough to make his meaning clear.

This Prime Minister Zhao seemed to suspect that Lin Jiangnian was deliberately getting close to Zhao Xi, that he had some unspeakable secret, and even suspected that Prince Lin was behind it all.

Upon closer examination, Zhao Xiang's suspicions were not entirely unfounded.

Given the identities of Lin Jiangnian and Zhao Xi, it's hard not to arouse suspicion.

Prime Minister Zhao wields immense power and is the pillar of the current court. With the world in chaos, it's hard not to suspect that the Prince of Lin in the south is secretly plotting to use Prime Minister Zhao's daughter's connections to climb the social ladder and gain power within the Zhao family.

Then, did they try to gain influence in the Great Ning court?

However, Lin Jiangnian was quite frank. He and Zhao Xi were mutually in love, and their feelings were extremely pure, without any elements of political power struggles involved.

Therefore, Lin Jiangnian was not guilty in the face of Zhao Xiang's probing and questioning.

Lin Jiangnian's frankness surprised Prime Minister Zhao. He continued to stare at Lin Jiangnian, but with less coldness.

After a long silence, Prime Minister Zhao picked up the tea that was gradually getting cold on the table, took a sip, and then asked in a deep voice, "What do you plan to do?"

"What do you mean?"

Zhao Xiang stared at him: "Xi'er, how do you plan to treat her?"

Lin Jiangnian was quite surprised to hear this.

What do you mean?
Judging from Zhao Xiang's tone, is he perhaps going to grant their wish?

Lin Jiangnian tentatively said, "Since Prime Minister Zhao already knows about this, then I won't hide it anymore... Miss Zhao and I are in love, and naturally we hope that Prime Minister Zhao can grant our wish."

Today's events were all beyond Lin Jiangnian's expectations.

He hadn't expected to be caught red-handed by this Prime Minister Zhao, nor had he expected the Prime Minister Zhao to be so calm. What was even more surprising was... the tone of the Prime Minister Zhao's voice.

It seems they've accepted it?

He doesn't seem very angry that his daughter was stolen?

Zhao Xiang stared at him, expressionless, and said, "Is this your explanation to me?"

These words only fueled Lin Jiangnian's suspicions, leaving him stunned.

Is he serious?
"I don't know..."

Lin Jiangnian continued, "What explanation does Prime Minister Zhao want?"

Zhao Xiang said expressionlessly, "You infiltrated my Zhao residence and ruined Xi'er's reputation. Don't you intend to take responsibility for her?"

“I’ll take responsibility, of course I’ll take responsibility.” Lin Jiangnian nodded.

"You plan to marry her?"

Is this what they call forcing someone to get married?
The surprise came too suddenly, making Lin Jiangnian vaguely sense that something was amiss.

What exactly is Old Deng up to?

Although he had a vague feeling that something was amiss, Lin Jiangnian still gave an answer when Zhao Xiang pressed him for an answer. "As long as Zhao Xiang agrees, I will naturally marry Miss Zhao and let her marry into the Lin Prince's Mansion openly and honorably. I will never let her suffer the slightest grievance."

Lin Jiangnian made a solemn vow, his words resolute and certain.

Even if Prime Minister Zhao doesn't bring it up, Lin Jiangnian will bring it up with him when the time is right. After all, Zhao Xi is the eldest daughter of the Zhao family.

Lin Jiangnian should definitely find a way to marry her openly and honestly!
...The Prince of Lin's mansion is large and wealthy, so they can afford to support him.

However, Zhao Xiang gave him a deep look: "What about the eldest princess?"

The unexpected question instantly dampened the atmosphere.

This old Deng... definitely has a problem!

Why bring up the eldest princess out of the blue?
"Ahem, why did Prime Minister Zhao bring up the Eldest Princess?" Lin Jiangnian chose to play dumb.

Zhao Xiang stared at him expressionlessly: "You are engaged to the Princess, yet you have such an ambiguous relationship with my daughter. If you marry my daughter, what will the Princess do?"

Lin Jiangnian sighed: "Prime Minister Zhao has misunderstood. My engagement with the Princess... is actually invalid."

Zhao Xiang looked at him coldly: "How can it not count?"

"Your marriage to the Princess was arranged by the late Emperor; they are a perfect match, and it was decreed by imperial decree. Do you intend to break off the engagement?"

"That's a capital offense of deceiving the emperor!"

That old man, he did it on purpose, didn't he?

Use the charge of deceiving the emperor to pressure him?

But Lin Jiangnian really couldn't refute it.

After all, the engagement was invalid; Lin Jiangnian would not, and could not, marry Li Piaomiao. Only the two parties involved knew the truth of this matter.

It's not easy to explain to outsiders.

Therefore, Lin Jiangnian was left speechless when faced with Zhao Xiang's questioning.

"Of course I had no intention of committing the crime of deceiving the emperor. Although I am engaged to the Princess, it does not affect my true love for Miss Zhao..."

Before Lin Jiangnian could finish speaking, Zhao Xiang coldly interrupted him, questioning him: "Do you mean that if you want to marry the Princess, you also want to marry my daughter?"

"Do you want my daughter to be your concubine?"

He had said everything; what else could Lin Jiangnian say?
In a sense, Zhao Xi could only be a concubine...

However, this is clearly unrealistic, and it is also the essential contradiction between Lin Jiangnian and this Prime Minister Zhao.

How could the daughter of the dignified Prime Minister Zhao become a concubine, even if he is the heir apparent of the Prince of Lin, even if his wife is the current Princess?
In any case, the daughter of the current prime minister shouldn't be reduced to being a concubine. If word got out, the Zhao family's reputation would suffer.

Therefore, when Zhao Xiang asked this question, he was clearly trying to put Lin Jiangnian in a difficult position.

"Don't worry, Prime Minister Zhao, Miss Zhao will never become a concubine."

Lin Jiangnian remained calm, shook his head slightly, and said, "If Miss Zhao marries this young master, she will naturally be my wife."

"Then you mean..."

Zhao Xiang stared intently at him: "The Eldest Princess as a concubine?"

The eldest princess as a concubine?
Even if Lin Jiangnian were willing, the people of the world would not agree. For a princess of a nation to become someone else's concubine would be a complete disgrace to the imperial court.

“The eldest princess is naturally also a wife,” Lin Jiangnian replied.

"Since Xi'er is a wife, how can you say that the Princess is also a wife?"

Zhao Xiang said expressionlessly, "The laws of my Great Ning Dynasty stipulate that a man can only have one principal wife."

Lin Jiangnian realized that this Prime Minister Zhao was indeed just there to make fun of him.

However, Lin Jiangnian was prepared. Faced with Zhao Xiang's difficult behavior, he immediately waved his hand and said, "Don't worry, Prime Minister Zhao, this matter can be easily resolved..."

"Since our dynasty's laws stipulate that a man can only have one principal wife, the solution is easy... just change the law so that each man in our dynasty can have two principal wives... wouldn't that solve the problem perfectly?"

"..."

"If Prime Minister Zhao feels it's not enough, we can change it to an unlimited number of legal wives. Wouldn't that solve the problem?"

"..."

Zhao Xiang's eyes widened suddenly, a surge of anger rising within him: "The laws of the dynasty are the laws of our ancestors, how can they be altered at will?"

"That's ridiculous!"

Zhao Xiang spoke angrily.

These words seemed to have touched a nerve with Prime Minister Zhao. He hadn't been angry when Lin Jiangnian was caught having an affair with his daughter. But the mere mention of amending the law had made this old man furious.

"Prime Minister Zhao, please don't be so hasty. While the laws of our ancestors are indeed immutable, times have changed. Prime Minister Zhao should not be so stubborn and should keep pace with the times..."

Lin Jiangnian argued, "Prime Minister Zhao is a veteran of three reigns and enjoys extremely high prestige. If he is willing to take the lead in submitting a memorial to the Emperor proposing amendments, it can certainly be accomplished."

"In this way, not only will the Eldest Princess be my principal wife, but Miss Zhao will also be a principal wife, able to stand on equal footing with the Eldest Princess... This would certainly be a fine story if word got out..."

"Shut up!"

Zhao Xiang coldly interrupted Lin Jiangnian's continued nonsense.

He stared coldly at Lin Jiangnian, his breathing rapid and his face gloomy, clearly very angry.

"Prime Minister Zhao, calm down, don't be angry..."

Seeing that Lao Deng had turned hostile, Lin Jiangnian quickly tried to appease him.

Zhao Xiang closed his eyes to calm himself. This boy was spouting nonsense and behaving improperly; he was truly no good.

only……

For some unknown reason, Zhao Xiang gradually calmed down.

When he opened his eyes again, his gloomy and cold expression made it impossible to fathom his thoughts.

"You have ruined my daughter's reputation. If it weren't for Lin Hengzhong's sake, I would never have let you off today."

Zhao Xiang coldly rebuked, "Now that things have already happened, I have no intention of pursuing the past any further. Let me ask you..."

"Do you truly wish to marry Xi'er?"

Hearing Zhao Xiang's serious expression, Lin Jiangnian also became serious and nodded: "I sincerely want to marry Miss Zhao, and I hope that Zhao Xiang can grant my request."

"If you are sincere, I can give you a chance."

Zhao Xiang spoke in a deep voice: "However, I have a few conditions."

"Please speak, Prime Minister Zhao."

Zhao Xiang's gaze deepened: "You should also know that the world is in chaos now, all because of the Xu Prince's rebellion. The relationship between the court and the various regional princes has become extremely tense, especially your Lin Prince's residence..."

“Your Prince Lin’s Mansion holds a large army and is entrenched in the southern territory of the dynasty. Your power is unfathomable and poses a great threat to the court.”

"As the current prime minister, I am responsible to the court and the people. How can the people trust and feel at ease if I were to form a marriage alliance with your Prince Lin's family?"

"At that time, will anyone in the world still believe in the truth?"

Lin Jiangnian naturally understood this point. He looked at the solemn-faced Prime Minister Zhao and asked, "What does Prime Minister Zhao mean?"

Zhao Xiang said in a deep voice, "The Prince Lin's residence must reconcile with the imperial court!"

"What does Prime Minister Zhao think is the best way to reconcile?"

A glint of shrewdness flashed in Zhao Xiang's eyes, and he said firmly in a deep voice, "Hand over military power and cooperate with the court in weakening the power of the regional military governors!"

"..."

(End of this chapter)