good season

Two flowers bloom, one branch each.

At this moment, Zhao Shiqing was still strolling in the melon field, while on the second floor of the antique shop, Yang Shengqiu and Princess Huiming were sitting facing each other.

Because Xiao Guai relayed the word "Empress Dowager," Zhao Shiqing mistakenly thought that "Empress Dowager" referred to the Empress. In fact, it was indeed the Empress, but not the one in the palace; it was the deceased Empress Xiaokang!
This antique shop was part of Empress Xiaokang's dowry.

After Empress Xiaokang passed away, her father, Lord Meng, requested to retire and took his family away from the capital back to their ancestral home. Empress Xiaokang had no children, and Zhao Yuan, who was registered under her name, had already "died young." The Meng family took back most of the dowry. Seeing that Princess Huixin and Princess Huiming were alone and helpless, Lord Meng still gave them four shops as their future dowry.

Over the years, these four shops have been managed by the Meng family's stewards who remained in the capital. Previously, when the two princesses lived in the palace, the stewards were not allowed to enter the palace.

Half a year ago, Princess Jiarou wanted to leave the palace for quiet meditation. There was no precedent in the Dayong Dynasty for a princess who was still unmarried to become a nun. Princess Jiarou could neither become a nun nor stay at the Zizhu Temple for a long time. Therefore, Emperor Yongjia bestowed a house not far from the Zizhu Temple upon Princess Jiarou.

Princesses are supposed to live in the palace before they get married, but Princess Jiarou has made it clear that she has no intention of getting married, so it is understandable that she is granted a residence now.

Princess Jiarou was the late-life daughter of the Emperor Emeritus. She was a year younger than her niece Huixin. In addition, she was devoted to Taoism and rarely interacted with the female members of the imperial family. Huixin and Huiming were the closest to her.

When Princess Jiarou established her own residence, Princess Huixin secretly went to ask the Empress for help. The Empress then spoke highly of them to Emperor Yongjia. As a result, the two of them were able to leave the palace with Princess Jiarou and temporarily reside in the Princess's residence.

Although Princess Jiarou was their elder, her age was a factor. In addition, Princess Jiarou spent ten out of twelve hours a day meditating. The nannies she brought out of the palace were the same as her, either chanting scriptures or meditating. Therefore, Huixin and Huiming were much more comfortable after moving here than when they were in the palace.

For example, today, Princess Huiming can avoid her maids and servants and go out alone, something that would have been unthinkable in the past.

At that moment, she sat there cautiously, like a child who had done something wrong.

"Brother Qiu, Her Majesty the Empress has chosen a marriage for my sister and me each. One is You Lang, a junior scholar in the Hanlin Academy, and the other is Jiang Shaoyuan, the Vice Minister of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices. Her Majesty the Empress said these are both good marriages. I..."

In fact, after the last flower viewing party, the Empress summoned them to the palace and listed several suitable candidates for the imperial consorts for them to choose from. The elder sister said that she would ask the Empress to make the decision, and she also said so, but she was becoming more and more uneasy.

Her sister had already analyzed it for her: Yang Shengqiu was a top scholar in the imperial examination, and the emperor would not allow him to marry a princess and become her son-in-law.

Before the country was unified, there was a mutiny. The initiator of that mutiny was the brother-in-law of Emperor Taizu, the first imperial son-in-law of the Dayong Dynasty.

During the reign of Emperor Taizu, two imperial sons-in-law were involved in the largest corruption case. Emperor Taizu was furious. Since then, until today, the imperial sons-in-law in the Dayong Dynasty have been nothing more than idle positions where they receive a salary but do not have to work.

The main job of the prince consorts was to accompany the princess and please her.

Therefore, princes-in-law often fawned over princesses, and it was common for princesses to summon and dismiss them at will. If a princess was particular about her conduct, she would give her prince a divorce decree after she grew tired of him, ending the relationship without any further obligations. However, if a princess was not so particular, she would not even give him a divorce decree, but would directly bring her new lover into her mansion and live a life of debauchery. The princes-in-law dared not speak out against her, and could only let the new lover grow on their heads.

Princess Jiayi, who still cherished her husband even after twenty years of marriage, was the only one like her in the Great Yong Dynasty.

As for her sisters, apart from Jiale who is still unmarried and Jiarou who is determined to become an immortal, the other two are Jia Ning who left her father and left her son, and Jia An who has raised more than twenty male concubines, all of whom are old enough to be her sons.

Princess Huiming was no longer a child. She knew that Yang Shengqiu, as the top scholar in the imperial examination, would not be content to spend all his time by the princess's side. She also knew that the emperor would never allow someone he wanted to promote to become the princess's husband.

She understood everything, knew everything, but she was still unwilling to accept it.

She was unwilling to give herself to a man she didn't like, and she was even more unwilling to watch Yang Shengqiu marry another woman.

She looked at Yang Shengqiu, and before she knew it, her eyes were filled with tears.

Yang Shengqiu's gentle voice rang in her ears: "You Lang and I are from the same cohort, and Jiang Shaoyuan is a junior scholar who has completed his studies this year. He will be a sixth-rank official upon entering officialdom, and his career will be bright. Both of them are of excellent character and appearance, so it's no wonder that Her Majesty the Empress said they are good relatives."

Princess Huiming raised her teary eyes. Yang Shengqiu wasn't wearing the wooden hairpin she had given her today, but she knew that Yang Shengqiu had worn it before. She was so excited when she heard that she hadn't slept all night.

"These are all good relatives, but I don't like them."

A warm hand touched her face, and Princess Huiming tensed up instantly, as if a fire was spreading from her face to her whole body. She knew her face must be very red. The hand gently caressed her face, and she remembered that when she was very young, someone had also gently stroked her face, but the feeling was different. The memory from her childhood was of affection, while this was liking, the liking of a man for a woman.

Brother Qiu likes her, just as she likes him.

Princess Huiming mustered her courage and raised her head, only to be caught off guard by Yang Shengqiu's dark and cold pupils, causing her heart to skip a beat.

Yang Shengqiu's aura, like his temperament, was faint and cold, enveloping Princess Huiming like a thin mist.

Princess Huiming felt boundless tenderness, but this tenderness was accompanied by trepidation and unease.

That hand was so warm, a feeling she hadn't experienced since losing her parents. It was such a wonderful feeling that she wanted to immerse herself in it, even if it meant eternal damnation.

But the hand was withdrawn, just like those times in the Eastern Palace, completely and utterly ripped from her life.

Princess Huiming wanted to cry, but instead she showed a smile that was even uglier than crying.

"Brother Qiu, I know that you have me in your heart, and that's enough. I will never forget you in my life."

She gently touched her cheek, where the warmth of Yang Shengqiu's hand still seemed to linger. She thought that this was the closest she had ever been to Yang Shengqiu, so close that he had touched her face.

Princess Huiming stood up and bowed deeply to Yang Shengqiu: "I'm going back now. My sister must be looking for me. Brother Qiu, thank you for today."

Thank you for keeping our appointment, and thank you for your kind treatment.

"Wait a minute." Yang Shengqiu suddenly called out to her from behind.

Princess Huiming was overjoyed. She stopped and slowly turned around, meeting Yang Shengqiu's eyes once again. At that moment, she felt as if she were in a gentle lake. She never knew that her gentle and refined brother Qiu also had a tender and gentle side.

And this tenderness was for her.

The girl's heart was pounding, her heartbeat even drowning out Yang Shengqiu's voice. It wasn't until Yang Shengqiu repeated it that she realized what was happening.

"I will be going to the palace for the Mid-Autumn Festival banquet. You will be there too, right?"

Princess Huiming was taken aback. The Mid-Autumn Festival banquet! Princess Jiarou had decided long ago not to go, and neither she and her sister wanted to go. They were superfluous in the palace, and the more special the occasion, the more trouble they would be caused by others. If Princess Jiarou went, they could stay by her side. People like Princess Qingchuan would be mindful of Princess Jiarou and wouldn't treat them too badly.

But now Princess Jiarou has made it clear that she will not go. If they go by themselves, they will definitely be schemed against again, just like at the flower viewing party last time.

It's better to avoid trouble, so she and her sister had already prepared to say they weren't feeling well and wouldn't go. But now, with Yang Shengqiu's sudden question, Princess Huiming hesitated.

Brother Qiu will attend the Mid-Autumn Festival banquet.

Yes, although the sisters' status was awkward, they could decide for themselves whether to go to such a palace banquet or not. But Brother Qiu could not. Unless he was too sick to get up, he had to go.

Princess Huiming met Yang Shengqiu's gentle gaze once again, but the words "I won't go" that were on the tip of her tongue remained unspoken.

“I will go, but there are many rules in the palace, so we may not be able to meet.”

Yang Shengqiu said softly, "If you want to see me, you will definitely be able to. I will be waiting for you in the palace on the Mid-Autumn Festival tomorrow."

Princess Huiming hummed in agreement, her voice so low that even she could barely hear it: "I... I'll be waiting for you too."

After saying this, she turned and walked away quickly. She didn't dare to look back, not wanting Yang Shengqiu to see her shy yet happy expression.

Princess Huiming did not turn around, so she did not see the fleeting regret in Yang Shengqiu's eyes behind her.

He liked a girl who was of noble birth and had a simple mind, but unfortunately, her noble birth could not bring him any benefit.

Yang Shengqiu recalled the two names that Princess Huiming had just mentioned.

You Lang was a scholar from a poor family who passed the imperial examination, and even more so, he was a scholar from a family with two members who passed the imperial examination.

His elder brother was last in the first and second list of candidates for the imperial examination. He failed to become a probationary official and was instead assigned to a county under the jurisdiction of Yunnan Prefecture as a county magistrate.

You Lang did better than his brother in the exam. He ranked twenty-eighth in the second list and became a probationary official. He spent three years observing politics in the Hanlin Academy. If he hadn't married a princess, he would likely have entered the Censorate after completing his studies. After a few years of training, he would have been transferred to one of the Six Ministries and started his official career step by step.

However, if he were to choose either Huixin or Huiming, his official career would end before it even began.

He would spend another three years in the Hanlin Academy. After completing his three years as a junior official, he would return to the princess's residence and become her husband.

If he were to resume his official career, it would only be when the princess grew tired of him and gave him a divorce decree. Like the other divorced princes-in-law before him, he would be given an opportunity to be sent to a remote place to serve as a local official of the sixth or seventh rank. However, he would not go too far and would usually only reach the fifth rank.

It is precisely for this reason that the prince consorts do not want to be divorced. After all, a prince consort is a third-rank official. The drop from third rank to sixth or seventh rank is too great. Not only will he be ridiculed by others, but he himself will also find it difficult to accept.

Therefore, almost every prince consort who was divorced would beat his chest, swear to the heavens, and cling to the princess's legs, begging and pleading.

Yang Shengqiu sighed. He had already seen You Lang's life. All those years of hard study and his former high spirits would eventually be worn away in front of the mirror as he painted his eyebrows, turning him into a dog lying at the feet of a princess.

Yang Shengqiu then thought of another person Princess Huiming had mentioned, Jiang Shaoyuan.

Unlike You Lang, Jiang Shaoyuan came from a prominent family, but unfortunately he was an adopted son.

The Jiang family had already made their stance clear from the beginning: promoting him to a position of the sixth rank would be the most benevolent thing they could do.

Now that Jiang Shaoyuan is a sixth-rank official, he will no longer have the support of his family and will have to rely on himself.

This is most likely not going to work.

Therefore, if Jiang Shaoyuan could marry the princess, it would actually be a shortcut for him.

Unfortunately, if Jiang Shaoyuan had known that the princess he was to marry was not the current emperor's daughter, but the orphan of the former crown prince, he would probably have regretted it to the core. If he had known it would turn out this way, he would not have gone to the flower viewing party that day.

Yang Shengqiu sneered. This kind of good-for-nothing, who even had to rely on his family to get a sixth-rank official position, was only fit to entertain the princess.

Yang Shengqiu saw Princess Huiming get into the sedan chair through the window, and the sedan chair gradually disappeared from sight.

Yang Shengqiu straightened his clothes, pushed open the door, and went out.

After leaving the antique shop, Yang Shengqiu did not go home, but went to the Feng residence instead.

Feng Ke was practicing calligraphy in his study. This was a habit he had maintained for decades. No matter how busy he was, he would set aside an hour each day to practice calligraphy.

When Yang Shengqiu came in, Feng Ke didn't look up, still focused on practicing calligraphy.

After finishing writing on a large sheet of paper, Feng Ke put down his pen, washed his hands, and then looked up at Yang Shengqiu, who had been standing there the whole time.

"Are you here? Sit down."

Yang Shengqiu thanked him and sat down carefully.

Feng Ke observed coldly. He had noticed Yang Shengqiu since he was a scholar, but this was the first time he had seen nervousness and restraint on Yang Shengqiu's face.

"Speak, what makes you so uneasy?"

Although both of them were seated, Feng Ke's aura of having long held a high position still made Yang Shengqiu feel a sense of pressure from above.

Yang Shengqiu calmed himself down, then stood up and bowed deeply to Feng Ke: "My esteemed teacher, please accept my bow."

Feng Ke and Yang Shengqiu were nominally teacher and student, but they were not teacher and student in the sense of imparting knowledge and teaching skills. Rather, they were simply mentor and apprentice in the officialdom. Every year, Feng Ke would take in several students, all of whom were young people he had his eye on and who had a bright future.

At this moment, Feng Ke slowly raised his eyelids and his gaze swept across Yang Shengqiu's face: "Do you need my help?"

Yang Shengqiu: "Yes."

Feng Ke: "What do you need my help with?"

Yang Shengqiu gritted his teeth, his lips pressed into a thin line, and finally, he made up his mind. His voice was not as calm as usual, but contained more of the excitement and nervousness that a young man should have.

"This student has long admired your esteemed fifth young lady and wishes to marry her. I humbly request your permission, esteemed teacher!" (End of Chapter)