Ming Dynasty: Ask Zhu Yuanzhang to abdicate at the beginning

Chapter 273: Lovesickness! See through the act!

The girl then bowed to Miss Gu who was setting up the stall and said, "Sister Gu, I was confused before. I was always thinking about my brother's good points and thinking that my brother would not ruin my life, but I didn't consider my sister's wishes. Please don't blame me if I offended you."

"My sister likes you when she sees you. Even if you don't want to marry into my family, we can still be sisters in the future."

"I recognize you as my sister, you won't dislike me, right?"

The girl who was setting up the stall had been listening to their conversation. When she saw the girl in military uniform acting like this, she hurriedly said, "What are you talking about, sister?"

"How dare I, a lowly person like me, despise my sister?"

"As long as my sister doesn't dislike me, that's all."

She picked up the money that the girl in military uniform had put on the stall, handed it to her, and said, "Sister, if you accept me as your sister, please take this money. I don't deserve any reward without any merit."

The girl in military uniform glanced at her and said, "Since Sister Gu said so, it seems that I am being pretentious."

She took the money and threw it into the hands of the maid beside her.

He clasped his hands together again and smiled at Zhu Yunhuan beside him, saying, "Thank you for your reminder, brother. Otherwise, I would have done something annoying and become an annoying person without even realizing it."

"I will go to my sister Gu's brother and sister-in-law's house and cancel this marriage."

After saying that, he jumped into the carriage.

After entering the carriage, his expression suddenly changed. He was no longer as calm and collected as before. Instead, he looked as if he had suffered a serious illness. His face quickly became haggard, and he looked weak. There were two lines of clear tears rolling out from the corners of his eyes.

The carriage turned and slowly drove away.

……

"Miss, why were you suddenly so polite to that rude young man just now?" The maid still looked angry.

What is the status of my lady?
No matter how powerful or wealthy a person is in the capital, no one dares to offend him.

Today, she was scolded for no reason and the maid felt a little unfair for her master.

"It's true that we did something wrong." The girl smiled bitterly and said, "He has a point in blaming us."

"What's the point?" The maid said angrily, "We were just trying to disperse a few passers-by and persuade Miss Gu, but he was just being unreasonable... If he knew the identity of the young lady, he would definitely not dare to be so presumptuous."

After that, he added, "I think that man might be a beast in human form. He deliberately provoked Miss to cancel the engagement so that he could take advantage of the situation and take Miss Gu for himself."

"Miss, we can't be fooled by him. The engagement with the young master cannot be cancelled!"

The maid thought for a moment, then said, "Yes, it must be like this."

"When he first got off the carriage, he was clearly bewitched by Miss Gu and lost his mind for a while before coming back to his senses."

"It's just that this person is too cunning and quickly pretends to be polite."

"I think he must be a hypocrite...Miss, we can't let Miss Gu fall into the fire pit and fall into his clutches."

"Miss, you said you would protect Miss Gu and not let anyone hurt her."

"Miss Gu is so pretty and innocent. I feel sorry for her. We can't abandon her."

"She is young and ignorant, and doesn't know the dangers of the world. If she is deceived by bad people and falls into their clutches, it will be very bad."

The maid shook the arm of the girl in military uniform.

"Miss, didn't you say that Miss Gu is too beautiful? If no one protects her, she will be like a three-year-old child carrying gold in the market and will be robbed. We must protect her."

"That's why the young lady went to her house to ask for marriage, and asked her brother and sister-in-law to marry her to my son."

"Otherwise, how could my son, a noble duke, marry a commoner?"

"It's because the young lady is kindhearted and can't bear to see such a beautiful person, so she has to suffer..."

The maid's voice suddenly stopped.

"Ah...Miss...Miss, you...you...why are you crying?"

She chattered a lot, and only at this moment did she realize that her young lady was crying beside her.

The maid was suddenly flustered and hurriedly took a handkerchief to help wipe the tears.

"I'm fine." The girl in military uniform smiled sweetly, tears sparkling in her eyes, and said:

"Miss Gu is a person with her own ideas. Since she doesn't want to marry my brother, how can we force her?"

"It's better to cancel this marriage as soon as possible."

"Besides, with his protection, no one in the world would dare to deceive Miss Gu, let alone bully her."

The maid was bewildered and asked, "He? Who is he?"

"Of course it's the most powerful person in the world today, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince of Ming!"

The maid's face froze instantly. She twitched, as if her eyes were about to pop out of her head. "Miss, are you saying that the one who just accused our young man is the current Crown Prince?"

"Who else could it be but him?"

The girl in military uniform recalled what happened just now.

When the boy first approached her, she sensed something was wrong.

The reason is simple: the carriages manufactured by the bureau are extremely expensive.

If a wealthy family spends a lot of money to buy a car, they will put their own logo on the car.

First of all, it is a bit of a show-off.

Secondly, these carriages are all of standard type, and everyone's carriages are exactly the same, so they are easy to distinguish after being marked.

But the young man's carriage just now did not have any markings.

It looked as if it was done on purpose.

In addition, behind the young man, there was a second carriage that was exactly the same.

But she could see clearly that the second carriage had neither people nor anything on board.

Its function should be to serve as a backup in case of an emergency with the first carriage.

This style is quite shocking.

Even if she traveled alone, it would not be like this.

However, after thinking about it, I still couldn't figure out whose family the young man belonged to.

Unfortunately, the other party was only wearing ordinary clothes, and the carriage had no gorgeous decorations.

In the eyes of ignorant people, they would simply think that this is for the sake of saving money.

After all, jewelry is very expensive.

But she felt that the other party was intentionally concealing his identity.

Later, when he tried to get closer to the other party, he actually felt the gaze of the other party's guards. There was obviously something wrong, and there seemed to be murderous intent in it.

It seemed that as soon as she made any move, any action that threatened the young man, the guards would attack without hesitation and kill her.

The guards of ordinary noble disciples should try to protect their masters.

But he would never indiscriminately kill anyone who had a conflict with his master.

Moreover, any discerning person could see that their group was also children of noble and high-ranking officials.

The guards are also observant.

Knowing that a conflict had arisen between the sons of noble families, they could only try their best to mediate.

Even if the two sides really fight, they will only use fists instead of using knives and guns to kill people and cause a murder lawsuit.

No matter how noble you are, you will not be able to eat it all and will have to bear the consequences.

Even if the matter can be settled afterwards, it will still cost a considerable price.

But the guards seemed to not care at all, and were not afraid of causing trouble for their masters.

The murderous aura that suddenly arose was definitely not false.

This is so unusual.

What kind of identity does this young man have that could make his guards dare to completely ignore the safety of other noble children?

There were also subtle movements by the people around.

Those people seemed to be preparing.

Ordinary people would not pay much attention to it, but the girl had practiced martial arts since she was young and was very careful. She noticed something was wrong at that time.

The guards around the young man are all excellent fighters selected from thousands of people.

Moreover, there are many people hiding in the dark around the streets.

When the young man's carriage arrived, those people arrived one after another, but did not approach, but stood guard around.

The total number of people may be hundreds, or even more.

Who could travel incognito and yet have such a grand ceremony?

Is there any guard who only cares about protecting his master's safety and is not afraid of causing trouble for his master by killing someone?
The answer is ready to come out.

Looking at the entire Ming Dynasty, there is only His Majesty the Emperor who is high above everyone else and His Royal Highness the Crown Prince who is now in charge of the government.

His Majesty the Emperor is over sixty years old and is very old.

The young man before that must be His Royal Highness the Crown Prince without a doubt.

That's why her attitude suddenly changed.

The maid stuck out her tongue and stopped talking, but glanced secretly at her mistress.

She remembered that her young lady had admired His Royal Highness the Crown Prince for a long time.

The young lady could recite the poems and couplets written by His Royal Highness the Crown Prince by heart, and would recite them repeatedly when she had nothing to do.

I am particularly delighted about the "scientific" tradition pioneered by His Royal Highness the Crown Prince.

I believe that is the only way to pursue the great way.

The young lady always said that His Royal Highness the Crown Prince was the most extraordinary man in the world, and even her brother was not even one-tenth as good as His Royal Highness the Crown Prince.

I didn't expect to run into His Royal Highness the Crown Prince today.

The two sides also had an argument.

If His Royal Highness the Crown Prince really went after Miss Gu, how could my young lady not be sad and upset?

However, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince is an extremely talented person. Whether it is his poetry, prose, or military strategy, they are all rare in history.

There are countless women in the world who admire His Royal Highness the Crown Prince.

Even though my young lady has a noble status and extraordinary appearance, she may not be able to catch the eye of His Royal Highness the Crown Prince.

It's just unrequited love.

But the young lady seemed to be possessed by a demon, and was obsessed with it, unable to extricate herself.

I'm afraid that today's "misunderstanding" will have a great impact on the young lady.

The maid didn't dare to speak anymore.

The girl in military uniform smiled sadly: "It's great to be able to meet him today. I don't have such an opportunity on weekdays. Although there were some misunderstandings before, they were explained later."

She turned her head and looked at Zhu Yunhuan through the window at the back of the carriage, muttering in a low voice: "A pot of muddy wine makes us happy to meet. So many things in the past and present, all turned into jokes."

The carriage continued to tick forward.

……

When the young lady in military uniforms and her group left in a carriage, accompanied by a group of guards, the stall girl stepped forward and saluted, saying, "Thank you, sir, for helping me out just now. Mr. Gu Pan would like to thank you."

She spoke graciously and behaved in a measured manner, without any of the shyness that was common among women of that era.

Since the Song Dynasty, Cheng-Zhu Neo-Confucianism has gradually become the mainstream, and restrictions on women have become increasingly strict.

Under the high pressure of society, many women have become very restrained in their speech and behavior.

But the girl in front of me is not like that. Instead, she is innocent, lively, and spontaneous.

It turns out her name is Gu Panjun.

Zhu Yunhuan joked: "I helped you out, but I also ruined your good deed."

"You can tell at a glance that the girl's family background is extraordinary."

"Marrying her brother, and marrying him in a formal ceremony, is something that many people would wish for."

"You missed your chance today, don't regret it later."

Gu Panjun smiled and shook his head, saying, "I often hear people say that marriages in the world are all predetermined by heaven."

"The matchmaker tied two people together with a red thread, and they can never be separated."

"Her brother is a good man, but I have no destiny with him. What is there to regret?"

She picked up a well-made glass pendant from the stall, handed it to me, and said, "This is for you."

Zhu Yunhuan was slightly startled and asked, "Why did you send it to me?"

"You just helped me, this is a thank you gift!" Gu Panjun smiled sweetly: "I don't want to owe anyone a favor."

"This pendant is quite beautiful. It is said that it was designed by the current Crown Prince himself. Hanging it on the carriage will ensure your safe journey."

She spoke bluntly and honestly.

Coupled with her clear voice like a yellow warbler, her innocent smile, and her generous manners, her words and actions did not sound like the courtesy and utilitarian calculations between adults, but rather like an innocent child giving a gift to her friend.

No wonder this girl became so famous in such a short time.

She is so relatable.

It can infect people who come into contact with it without them realizing it.

Talking to her is so healing.

It was as if all the troubles in this world were forgotten at this moment.

Zhu Yunhuan took the pendant and looked at it.

It is true that he designed it when he was free, based on the common car pendants in later generations.

There are many glass beads on it and a sign hanging on it.

The sign is originally left blank, so you can write or draw on it according to your personal preferences.

The pendant that Gu Panjun gave had the words "peace" written on one side and "joy" written on the other side.

The font is lively and free-spirited, graceful and lively, and you can tell at a glance that it was written by a woman.

Zhu Yunxun smiled and said, "Isn't this glass pendant very expensive?"

"It's not easy for you to make some money by setting up a stall, so why give me such an expensive gift?"

He pointed to a bamboo plaque next to him and said, "I think this is pretty good. It should be cheaper. I can carry it with me, and it is more useful than this glass pendant."

As he spoke, Zhu Yunhuan leaned forward and was about to take the bamboo token.

"That won't do." Gu Panjun bent down and stretched out his hand to protect the bamboo token, saying, "This bamboo token is different from the carriage pendant. It is something you carry with you."

"If I, an unmarried woman, gave a man such an item, outsiders would gossip about it."

"I hope you won't embarrass me."

Zhu Yunhuan laughed and said, "What if I pay for it?"

Gu Panjun stood there for a moment, thinking, and said, "I'm here to set up a stall. If you want to buy, of course you can."

"Okay, then take a look at how much it costs in total. I'll buy it all."

Gu Panjun was stunned again: "Why do you want to buy so much, young master?"

Zhu Yunxun sighed, "Of course, I want you to close your stall early so that you can go home with me."

As soon as these words were spoken, a red cloud rose from Gu Panjun's neck, then reached his cheek, and then quickly climbed up to his nose, eyebrows, and forehead.

Soon, her whole face turned red like a sunset glow.

The girl lowered her head and smiled, "Sir, please stop joking. I... I... How can I go home with you?"

Zhu Yunhuan looked at Gu Panjun deeply, then looked at Yang Rong beside him, then turned back to look at her and said, "You have put so much effort into putting on a good show, isn't it just to get you to go home with me? Let's go, get in the carriage."

The girl suddenly raised her head and looked at Zhu Yunhuan in front of her, her face full of disbelief.

……

(End of this chapter)