The Red Mansion Big Liar.

Chapter 733: The First Wife
It's quiet at night.

Inside Xiaoxiang Pavilion.

Lin Daiyu's face flushed as she snuggled in Zhang Yun逸's arms.

"I wouldn't say this is a one-of-a-kind sentiment, but at least my sister shouldn't doubt my feelings for her, right?"

"You've passed." Lin Daiyu said proudly.

Although she did not say it explicitly, the so-called passing the test naturally referred to Princess Beijing.

Compared to Wang Xifeng, Princess Beijing was more likely to accept it.

Lin Daiyu, who is hard-mouthed but soft-hearted, naturally would not argue with him anymore.

This is partly due to the fact that Zhang Yun逸 always has appropriate reasons and proceeds step by step.

On the other hand, it was also because Lin Daiyu came from a family of officials and was used to seeing men having three wives and four concubines.

She cared more about her position in Zhang Yunyi's heart, or in other words, Zhang Yunyi's feelings for her.

And it doesn't matter how many women he has.

This can be seen from the fact that in the original novel she teased Xiren and drank a cup of tea with Xue Baochai.

As for Mrs. Niu, that’s even less of a problem.

Although as the former wife of the Duke of Zhenguo, she was a little old to be a concubine, but no matter what Zhang Yunyi's purpose was, he asked for her under the guise of coveting her.

So, even if it was to avoid the suspicion of deceiving the emperor, he had to do his job appropriately and put enough effort into Mrs. Niu.

Of course, this is only limited to Wang Xifeng, Princess Beijing and others. If she knew about Madam Xing, Madam Wang and the two wives of the Xue family, she might not be so easy to talk to.

However, Zhang Yun逸 was not a rash person, so he would naturally conceal the truth if he could. Besides, bottom lines were meant to be broken, as everything depended on human effort.

What's more, times have changed. Now with the cooperation of Lady Jia, even if an accident really happens, it may not be impossible to cover it up by asking Lady Jia to come forward and explain it on their behalf.

Although it is still unclear, Zhang Yunyi is quite satisfied with his PUA progress.

He no longer concealed his intentions towards Princess Beijing, but smiled and said, "Sister, you really have the demeanor of a great lady. We both have no relatives, so it's a good opportunity for us to depend on each other. In a year or so, I will ask the old lady for marriage. With you in charge at home, I believe everything will be harmonious."

"Then I won't have to hold it in so hard."

The first sentence is serious, but the second sentence becomes ridiculous.

At the same time, the big hand on Lin Daiyu's shoulder was raised slightly quietly, with five fingers spread out, and began to caress the corner of Lin Daiyu's lips.

Even though there was only one step left and there had been similar precedents before, Lin Daiyu was still too embarrassed to restrain herself when discussing marriage in person and when Zhang Yunyi hinted at her.

He lowered his head, but couldn't help but ask: "Why..."

At this point, she hurriedly tried to cover up her mistake, "I... I mean, Brother Yi doesn't have to endure it. Zijuan and I are like sisters, and she will have to serve in the house in the future. It's better to let her serve Brother Yi instead of her sister."

Since Lin Daiyu was trying to cover up her mistake, Zhang Yunyi was happy to explain. He smiled and shook his head, saying, "I am sincere to my sister, so what's the big deal if I endure it? What's more, I love my sister's clever mouth!"

Lin Daiyu was very persistent about the last step, and Zhang Yunyi had considered taking Zijuan as his concubine first.

However, he had other plans, and taking in Zijuan first would be detrimental to the implementation of his subsequent plans.

Anyway, as Lin Daiyu said, Zijuan's identity as a maid is already a foregone conclusion.

Zhang Yunyi now has numerous beautiful maids and concubines, so he is not in a hurry to take Zijuan as his wife.

As for the time of proposing marriage, Zhang Yun逸 originally did not care much about the choice of his wife.

However, after experiencing a series of recent events, he began to think seriously about it.

For one thing, the marriage was still pending, and there was an endless stream of people coming to propose marriage, which made him very annoyed.

Secondly, without the threat of King Ning, he also began to consider the subsequent development. Nowadays, the popularity of immortal learning has greatly increased. Although it has provided a lot of convenience in recruiting talents, the contradiction with the imperial examination has gradually begun to emerge.

Zhang Yun逸 also vaguely sensed Gu Dashou's intention to distance himself from him.

If the emperor was in good health, he would naturally cooperate with Gu Dashou and perform this play well.

But times have changed.

Since we foresee that the emperor will not live long, we should prepare for the worst.

The teacher once said that politics is about making more friends and fewer enemies.

Marrying Lin Daiyu and gaining the status of the son-in-law of a top scholar can indeed eliminate the hostility of some people and is also in line with his next plan.

He learned from Prince Zhongshun and others that Lin Ruhai was also one of the earliest meritorious officials who followed the emperor. He and Prince Zhongshun, one inside and one outside, were both the emperor's money bags before he appeared.

It was just because he died young that he didn't live to see the emperor ascend the throne.

However, since Lin Ruhai died in office, he could be said to have devoted his life to his work until his death. Even if he is no longer a figure, it does not mean that he has disappeared without a trace and has no feelings for his country.

More importantly, Gu Dashou was Lin Ruhai's teacher.

In ancient times, teachers were respected and the status of a teacher was extraordinary. It is not an exaggeration to say that once a teacher, you are like a father for life.

Not to mention the considerations of character, temperament and other aspects, with these two relationships, marrying Lin Daiyu is obviously more in line with his long-term plan than marrying other princes and nobles.

Gu Dashou experienced ups and downs in his official career and followed the emperor for many years.

If the emperor had health problems, the first important official he would think of would not be himself, but Gu Dashou.

Although, he intentionally distanced himself from me, most likely he had sensed something in advance.

But once resentment begins to emerge, it will not only be difficult to eliminate, but will only grow bigger and bigger.

Therefore, he needed to give Gu Dashou a way out, or a definite signal.

Lin Daiyu's identity as Lin Ruhai's beloved disciple and legitimate daughter is undoubtedly the best signal and guarantee.

In this case, if the emperor wanted to marry someone with a similar status to Lin Daiyu, he might not necessarily obstruct her and make a scene of forced marriage.

On the contrary, if I marry Lin Daiyu, the resistance will be much smaller.

On the one hand, Lin Daiyu had been in Rongguo Mansion for a long time, and it was natural for her to fall in love with him. This would not arouse the emperor's suspicion of him and his intention to ease the relationship between him and the literati. He also had an old relationship with Lin Ruhai.

On the other hand, if Lin Ruhai were alive, it would arouse the emperor's fear, but in the officialdom, people are always forgotten when they leave.

By taking advantage of Lin Ruhai's relationship, the effectiveness of forming a clique for personal gain would naturally be greatly reduced.

But despite this, Zhang Yun逸 still felt unsure.

If it weren't for his age and the fact that he couldn't delay any longer, he wouldn't mind waiting until the emperor passed away, and then bring up the relationship between Lin Ruhai and Gu Dashou, ask him to help with matchmaking, and marry Lin Daiyu.

Now, in order to avoid any complications and to be on the safe side, I only plan to wait for a year or two.

Although Zhen Shiyin had previously judged that the emperor could still delay for another three to five years, that was also calculated based on the frequency of the emperor's use of medicine at the time.

Now, judging from the number of times he missed court, it is obvious that the dosage has been increased, and it is estimated that he will not last that long.

Therefore, Zhang Yun逸 planned to wait until the emperor's health deteriorated and he had no time to take care of other things before starting to plan the marriage.

This is why the saying "a year or two" came about.

……

(End of this chapter)