Uncle from a poor family

Chapter 141 The dust has settled
After the selection of the Crown Princess was completed, Empress Dowager Zhou arranged for Zhang Yu to be escorted out of the palace with palace maids and eunuchs, while the other two women simply followed behind and were not treated as solemnly as Zhang Yu.

When Zhang Yu walked out of the red wall, he was still a little dazed.

She didn't figure out whether she was selected or not.

It sounds like he was selected!
Because even the prince named her, but the problem was that she was called aside afterwards, and no proof or token was given, and she was just sent out of the palace, which made her a little confused...

Wasn't it agreed that once I became the Crown Princess, I would live permanently in the palace?

What's that saying? Oh, right, once you enter the palace, it's like entering a deep sea, and from then on you're locked away in high walls and away from the worldly world. Why is it different when it comes to me?

When Zhang Yu walked out of the palace gate, he saw the familiar Shen family carriage parked not far away and waiting.

Besides Zhang Luan and Zhang Yanling, father and son, Shen Lu was also among those waiting for her to leave the palace this time.

"Sister is out."

Zhang Yanling had sharp eyes. As soon as Zhang Yu appeared, he immediately pointed in the direction of the left gate of Chang'an and shouted.

When Zhang Luan saw his daughter coming out, his expression froze. He didn't bother to talk to Shen Lu anymore and hurried forward to greet her.

At the same time, the people from the Wang and Song families who came to pick up their daughters also looked at the scene with curiosity.

Zhang Yu did not wear a veil or anything else to cover herself up. She walked towards her carriage with lotus steps, looking calm...

After seeing Zhang Luan and Zhang Yanling, Zhang Yu felt much more at ease.

After all, for a girl who had never left her family, staying in an unfamiliar palace for a night was a new experience that was tense but also a bit novel. Seeing her family made her feel at ease.

"How is it? Girl, have you been selected? Tell your father quickly...your uncle is here too."

Zhang Luan asked nervously.

Zhang Yu frowned slightly and shook her head, "I don't know either."

Zhang Luan got anxious when he heard this, his eyes widened, and he asked in confusion: "Hey, look at you, silly boy, how could you not know whether you were selected or not? Oh, no, if you were selected, you should stay in the palace and receive systematic palace etiquette training, and you would not be sent out... Ruxue, is that right?"

Shen Lu, who followed, said helplessly: "To be honest, whether they were sent out of the palace or not, I don't know the inside story. It is said that during the last selection of concubines, all three women were kept in the palace...

"But according to the earlier royal rules, the selection of the Crown Princess is the beginning of the six ceremonies. The Crown Princess-to-be should still live in her parents' home and wait for the royal family to come and welcome her."

"Is that so?" Zhang Luan looked at the palace gate again, feeling somewhat discouraged. "The other two didn't come out yet, so they chose him, right?"

Zhang Yu shook his head and said, "No, they wanted to come out too, but they fell behind... My stride is longer, and they hadn't left when I left."

As she spoke, Zhang Yu's beautiful eyes fell on her younger brother Zhang Yanling.

If Shen Lu had not been present, she would have started asking long ago, why were the poems I wrote known to people in the palace, and why was it brought up by the Empress Dowager in person?
Is there any hidden story behind this?
Facing Zhang Yu's concerned gaze, Zhang Yanling smiled and asked, "Sister, you said you didn't know whether you were chosen or not. Didn't you hear what the Queen Mother and the Crown Prince said? But you don't know who the Crown Prince said he would choose in the end?"

Zhang Luan's eyes were a little evasive at this time, as if he was very afraid that his daughter would not be chosen as the Crown Princess. In the future, he would completely become a tool of Li Zisheng, and would no longer be able to get along with Li Zisheng on an equal footing. He could only rely on Li Zisheng to see if he could get a position. His future was bleak.

Zhang Yu calmed down and answered seriously: "The prince...he said he would choose me."

"Haha, that means I was chosen..."

Zhang Yanling said with a smile.

This time Shen Lu had a different opinion and shook his head, saying, "Yanling, don't be blindly optimistic... The situation of the Crown Prince's selection of a concubine is very complicated, and it is still unclear who will make the final decision...

"My dear niece, what did the Queen Mother say? Did she specify you?" Zhang Yu said without hesitation: "The Queen Mother said that everything is up to the Crown Prince."

When Shen Lu heard this, his eyes widened.

Is this really chosen?
Is it that easy?

Seeing Shen Lu's shocked expression, Zhang Luan quickly asked, "Ruxue, if even the Queen Mother personally identified my daughter, what will happen next?"

Upon hearing that the Queen Mother and the Crown Prince had chosen their daughters to be the Crown Princess, Zhang Luan became instantly excited.

Shen Lu took a deep breath, trying to suppress his excitement, and said solemnly: "If that's the case, then Lai Zhan, maybe I should say congratulations to you first.

"If nothing unexpected happens, the Crown Princess...will be our niece's! You have formed a marriage with the Eastern Palace, which is a great joyous event."

"Really? Really? Ruxue, why do I feel that this matter is so unreliable? Will there be variables in the middle? How about this, let's go and ask Minister Li and see what he says? Minister Li has a wide network of contacts in the palace, so we should be able to get accurate information from him, right?"

Zhang Luan's face flushed, and it was obvious that he was ready to have fun. However, reason told him that he could not celebrate before things were finalized, as that would make a big fool of himself.

Shen Lu was in a good mood and responded with a smile: "I was thinking the same thing. It's a good opportunity for us to go talk to Minister Li and ask him for confirmation. Let's go!"

……

……

"What happened to Dad? Didn't he want to go home with me? How come he disappeared in the blink of an eye..."

When Zhang Yu got on the carriage, he found that Zhang Yanling was the only one in front of him. His face immediately turned ugly. After all, even the coachman from the Shen family didn't come today. The scene seemed too shabby.

Zhang Yanling explained, "My eldest brother wanted to come today, but my father refused to let him, saying that he would only cause trouble. When we arrived, we saw my uncle waiting here. Sister... you stay here for a while, I will take you home first... My father is going to ask my uncle for information from reliable people, and you also want to confirm from my father as soon as possible whether you are really selected, right?"

"Oh."

Zhang Yu frowned slightly, feeling that he was being ignored by his father, but then he thought again, he felt relieved and got into the carriage with the help of his brother, thinking that he had never been treated specially by his father since he was a child.

"Yanling, tell me, who did I write to before?"

Zhang Yu entered the carriage, and when the curtain was lowered, she immediately spoke and asked tentatively.

Zhang Yanling smiled and replied, "Of course it's the prince."

Zhang Yuxun was about to open the curtain, revealing a pretty face that was so beautiful that it could captivate all the people. She tilted her head, looking puzzled: "Didn't you say that he was the eldest son of a wealthy family and felt miserable in life because his stepmother was mean and his father didn't like him? How did he become the crown prince? You are kidding me!"

Zhang Yanling shrugged, "Sister, you don't know the prince's origins until now, do you? He is a concubine's son, and although he is not the eldest son, his elder brothers all died young. As the prince, who else can he be if not the future head of the family? Besides, you should have met the prince in person today, right? Do you think he is... well-liked by our father?"

"This...I...I don't know..."

Zhang Yu originally felt that his brother had deceived him.

But then I realized that what my brother said was not false at all.

Based on her experience in dealing with people, the prince she met today was totally unmanly. He was so submissive in front of his grandmother that he didn't even dare to breathe...

She let her grandmother decide everything, and she didn't even dare to fight for her own marriage...

If such a person says that he has not been treated badly by his father, no one will believe him!
(End of this chapter)