Damn it, I'm in the garbage book I wrote

Chapter 673 Personnel Affairs Unknown
Actually, they didn't care that Xia Lin went out for a stroll; what they cared more about was who Xia Lin went out with. After all, his problem of having children was a major headache. Although Emperor Jingtai knew the truth, he dared not tell anyone.

Oh... how so? Say that the current emperor of the Tang Dynasty's eldest son is actually Xia Lin's son? That's terrible, who knows what kind of story people will make about that.

But in order to cover up the truth, Emperor Jingtai had to use countless excuses to fob off those who flocked to him every day to propose marriage to Xia Lin. These people came from all walks of life, including princes and nobles, meritorious officials, gentry, and powerful families.

Although everyone outwardly despises Xia Lin to the point of disgust, what they actually hate is not Xia Lin herself, but rather that she didn't stand by their side.

But think about it from another angle: could someone who could arrange a marriage with the emperor be an ordinary person? There's no way a woman selling tofu pudding on the street could ask Emperor Jingtai to give her daughter to Xia Lin.

Did they not know that Xia Lin was the imperial son-in-law? How could they not know? He was a long-established imperial son-in-law, known to everyone. Even if their precious daughters were to die, they could only become concubines, yet even as concubines, they would flock to him. This fully demonstrates one thing: these shrewd investors know best who truly holds the power right now.

However, all the matchmaking proposals so far have been rejected by Emperor Jingtai. The only one he has his eye on is the niece of the Khan of the grasslands, because this is a kind of marriage alliance, which can at least ensure that there will be no problems in the development of the three northern provinces for a long time to come.

Emperor Jingtai knew that he was not as capable as Xia Lin, but he was not stupid. He was a top performer who had received elite education, so he still had some wisdom.

But over the years, there's been no news of Xia Lin getting close to any girl. Today, he's actually out shopping and eating with a young woman. This is quite unusual.

"Hey shopkeeper, let's share a table."

Xia Lin raised his hand and called out, then carried the wine pot to the table where Old Zhang and Emperor Jingtai were sitting. He put down the wine pot, straddled the bench, and told Hong Yuan to sit opposite him.

"What a coincidence, gentlemen! What brings you out for a stroll today?"

"He called me out." Emperor Jingtai pointed at Old Zhang: "I said I was too busy with official duties to come out today, but he insisted that the rain had just come and was even more intense than a sunny day."

While he was speaking, his eyes kept glancing at Hong Yuan beside him, which was quite strange, you know? She was clearly a stranger, but she looked strangely familiar.

Xia Lin glanced at Hong Yuan at this moment. He could see the doubt in Emperor Jingtai's eyes, but he wasn't worried because he knew she wouldn't recognize him. How old was she when the Prince of Lingnan committed the crime? She was still a child who hadn't fully grown up. Now she was a woman in her twenties. When Emperor Jingtai last saw her, she was probably only seven, eight, or nine years old. It would be a miracle if he could recognize her.

"Gongsun Hongyuan greets the two young masters."

"Oh... Gongsun, that's a very rare surname." Emperor Jingtai nodded, then turned his gaze to Xia Lin: "You're quite something, surrounded by beauties, living a carefree life."

"Not particularly beautiful," Hong Yuan shook her head and said, "Just so-so."

His words amused both Emperor Jingtai and Old Zhang. After laughing, Emperor Jingtai turned to Old Zhang and said, "Zhang, you say you are proficient in painting, so tell me, is this girl beautiful?"

"Her eyebrows are like distant mountains shrouded in mist, her eyes like autumn waters rippling across the surface, radiant with a captivating charm. Still as a delicate flower reflected in water, in motion as a startled swan dancing gracefully. She is undeniably beautiful." Old Zhang described his sister with ease. Having painted for so many years, his paintings now fetch three to five thousand taels of silver on the black market, so describing his sister was a piece of cake: "If there's any flaw, it's her bone structure; it's the face of a woman destined for hardship. Though she is exceptionally beautiful, her life is filled with trials."

These words startled Hong Yuan. She looked at Xia Lin in surprise, but Xia Lin simply waved his hand and said, "He's a painter, not a fortune teller."

"More or less." Old Zhang picked up the wine pot and poured a cup for Emperor Jingtai. "But we don't really need to sit here, do we?"

“But I haven’t eaten any mutton yet.” Hongyuan was a lively person. “I’m waiting for mutton.”

"Lamb won't do." Old Zhang waved his hand and said, "Speaking of good food and fun things to do in the capital, you can't ask Xia Daosheng. You'll have to ask my Master Tian. Master Tian's family has a manor in the suburbs, where all sorts of rare and exotic animals are kept. Sister, have you ever eaten a crocodile?"

Hongyuan shook her head vigorously: "No..."

“The master’s house has some. Have someone wrap up this mutton. Let’s go to Master Tian’s manor to eat alligator lobster.”

Upon hearing Old Zhang's words, Emperor Jingtai's eyes widened. Although the manor was called a manor, it was actually a place used to store rare and exotic animals that were tributes from various countries. This alligator dragon was a tribute from the Indian envoy a few days ago. Unlike the alligator dragons in China, the Indian alligator dragons were slender with the longest mouth. They were about two zhang (approximately 6.6 meters) long and weighed about 500 jin (approximately 250 kilograms). They looked delicious.

Old Zhang had been thinking about it for a long time, but Emperor Jingtai said he would wait until the ancestral worship ceremony to kill it and eat it. But today, in the heat of the moment, he brought it up.

"Really!?" Hong Yuan's eyes widened, her face full of curiosity. "I've seen alligator dragons, but aren't they covered in iron armor and impervious to swords and spears? How can you eat them?"

"Hey, it's no big deal. Even the strongest armor can't withstand a guillotine, right? Don't worry, as long as Master Tian gives the word, we'll go."

"Daosheng, say something!" Emperor Jingtai whispered, gripping Xia Lin's hand under the table, "That son of a bitch wants to eat my dragon!"

Before Xia Lin could speak, Hong Yuan asked with bright, sparkling eyes, "Master Tian, ​​is it really okay to eat alligator dragons?" Emperor Jingtai took a deep breath. He didn't dare look the young girl in the eye, but he steeled himself and said, "Eat, eat, eat! Let's go! Let's eat alligator dragons!"

Whenever Lao Zhang or Xia Lin wanted to eat, he would always try to avoid it until the ancestral worship ceremony before killing the crocodile. But today, he couldn't resist the gaze of a little girl, so he had no choice but to nod and agree.

The group packed 20 jin of top-quality grassland mutton and then headed together to a manor on the outskirts of the city.

This manor is very low-key and doesn't look like a royal estate. It is usually managed by dedicated staff. Sometimes, when Emperor Jingtai got tired of the palace, he would take a short break here. So the facilities inside are quite complete.

Oh, Jinlian would often come to stay here on weekdays. Since she was not a concubine, she did not have a palace in the palace. In addition, there was that damned court attendant, so Emperor Jingtai had no choice but to put Jinlian here.

Upon arriving outside the manor, a bamboo grove came into view. Before Emperor Jingtai could even speak, Old Zhang began to introduce the place: "This used to be the royal garden. Later, the royal family sold the manor to Master Tian to raise funds for the army. It was one of the best in Nanjing."

Looking at the lush bamboo grove inside, Hongyuan felt a little sad. She turned to Xia Lin and said, "My family also had a bamboo grove like this back then. My brothers and sisters and I often played there when we were young."

"And then?" Emperor Jingtai asked curiously, "What happened to your family afterward?"

"Later..." Hong Yuan pursed her lips and gave a bitter smile: "Later, due to the war, my parents and brothers all died."

"Alas...what a pity." Emperor Jingtai sighed, "That fellow was right, you really are a beautiful woman with a tragic fate."

The group continued walking for a while before they bypassed the bamboo grove and came to the main part of the manor. Emperor Jingtai had once said that Xia Lin's Dream of the Red Chamber had a petty and narrow feel to it, since it was just the maternal home of a concubine. What could it possibly have? This, on the other hand, was the real royal garden.

Grand View Garden? Stingy, stingy, so stingy.

However, this place will no longer be a royal garden in a few days, because Emperor Jingtai has donated the manor. Next year, it will be transformed into Jinling Polytechnic Academy and become the starting point of the new imperial examination system, which means that engineering and agriculture will replace the current subjects such as classics and economics as the new subjects for the imperial examination.

"It's so big..."

Hongyuan stood in that huge courtyard, feeling somewhat dizzy. It was like a small world, with mountains, rivers, streams, bridges, houses, and even a complete artificial river.

She didn't even have these kinds of services when she was in the Prince's Mansion...

Jinlian had already come forward to greet them. She was an extremely clever person. When she saw that there was a strange woman among these people, she didn't even need to look at her before she came forward and bowed, saying, "Master, Lord Xia, Master Zhang."

"Why is he ahead of me?" Old Zhang asked, pointing at Xia Lin. "His position isn't as high as mine, he's not as old as me, and he's not as capable as me. How come he's ranked ahead of me?"

"Yes, yes, Master Zhang, Lord Xia," Jinlian replied with a smile. "Please come in."

Jinlian, acting as the hostess, welcomed Xia Lin and the others inside. As soon as they entered, Emperor Jingtai waved his hand and said, "Jinlian, go and kill that alligator dragon. I will use it to entertain our guests today."

"Wait, wait!" Hong Yuan immediately stood up. "Sister, wait for me. I need to go see what that alligator dragon looks like."

"Okay." Jinlian took Hongyuan's arm and walked out. "How about I show you around here some more, so the men can talk about their business?"

"Good."

Jinlian and Hongyuan left, and Emperor Jingtai pointed at Old Zhang: "You old bastard, let me tell you, it's lucky it's me. If it were any other emperor, you would have died eight times over."

Old Zhang leaned back with his legs crossed: "Yes, yes, yes, Your Majesty is wise. But what you should be asking now is where that young lady came from, right? How come some people just happen to have a beautiful girl by their side?"

"She's a member of the royal family." Emperor Jingtai grinned and glanced at Xia Lin. "I think she's probably a relative of some rebellious prince. I'm too lazy to ask. Anyway, such a silly girl can't cause any trouble. Keep her around if you want."

"You could tell that?" Xia Lin was quite surprised. "You didn't investigate secretly, did you?"

Emperor Jingtai lifted his collar, revealing a small tattoo on his left shoulder: "The Tuoba family crest is still a custom from when we were barbarians. She has one too. You don't think I can't even recognize a family crest, do you? Alright, let's not talk about this anymore, it's all trivial."

Emperor Jingtai sat up straight: "These days, all the powerful families in Jinling have united and are preparing to put pressure on me to suppress the Legalists. I did not agree, but can you two handle all their next moves?"

(End of this chapter)